The earls steps paused. Did he hear it right? The girl called his name as high-pitched as a frightened little squirrel, but still loud and clearly. Nathaniel. There weren't many who dared to call him like this. He didn't want her to do it, it would only complicate their relationship. On the other hand however...
He gripped the handrail tightly. His chest hurt. He didn't want her to do it, but he didn't want her to stop either. It felt like something long forgotten was slowly and painfully awakened again. A strange yearning made him not want to stop the process, although rationality told him, the thing inside his chest would only bring him bad luck and endless pain.
Torn in between, he decided to ignore it for now. Maybe she will stop then. So, without reacting to her call, he began to climb the steps again, turning to the left at the end of the stairs and vanishing into the corridor leading to his study.
Katherine decided for herself, no reaction was a good reac
It took them two hours to find the exit by chance and none of them wanted to go in again to search for the middle."Let's just set it free right here.", Katherine sighed. "It will find everything it needs eventually." Even Hazel nodded approvingly.It was surprising, how quiet Froseti was all this time. It seemed to like sitting on Katherine's arm. But although the rabbit was small, after carrying it for over two hours her arms were hurting badly.Crouching down, she put Froseti on the ground. "There you go. This big garden is your new home now. Be safe."The rabbit, however, didn't move at all. It just sat there and looked up at her adorably. "You're free now. Hush.", Katherine tried again. Slowly, it began to move. Just it's direction didn't fit. It hopped right back to Katherine's feet and rested it's head against her ankle. Black lines appeared on Katherine's forehead as it rubbed it's fluffy head on her. "Are you a cat?! That's not how a rabbit shoul
The next day dawned and the guards were switched for some unfamiliar faces, as the earl had called for Jack and Pete. That was all Katherine knew of the matter. Only the exchange guards and some other selected people knew that Jack and Pete were getting punished for letting the lady outside before she was allowed to.This fact made the new guards quite nervous and they swore to themselves to strictly follow the rules. Especially because their own punishment would be even harder than that of the elite guards Jack and Pete.Yes, the both of them were elite guards and quite revered by the other guards for their great achievements in several wars before starting to work for the earl when they got older. You could call them war heroes even. If you told anyone that Katherine managed to steal the dagger of one of those heroes, they absolutely wouldn't believe you.After taking her breakfast and trying to make Hazel eat with her again - which ended in a failure - , Kath
They were blue. A pure sky-blue, just like her dress the other day. Mesmerized, she stared at them. These eyes may be cold, but there was some uncertainty, and gentleness hidden in them. Completely different from the domineering viciousness of the earl.She didn't notice lowering her head while staring at him, until a strand of her hair brushed his cheek. The blonde brows furrowed and he moved his head to the side to dodge it.With burning cheeks, Katherine backed away. "I'm sorry. I'm treating you just now, so try not to move too much."The strangely deep gaze moved back to her and he gave a short nod. He didn't seem to be troubled by the pain he most likely felt on his arm.With half of her concentration focused on her magic, she asked: "What is your name? It feels strange to keep calling you 'patient' in my head, now, that you're awake."He seemed to be reluctant to answer her, just scrutinizing her hands on his chest silently.Although h
Such ungrateful people, Katherine thought while closing the door behind her silently, in contrast to her raging emotions. She just wanted a little bit of information, okay?! It wasn't even anything harmful."Milady, please excuse his attitude.", Sam, standing by the side, said humbly. "He doesn't have much patience. If we can do anything to make it up to you...?"After a short thought and calming her emotions, Katherine inquired: "Where did you get that rabbit from? The one at the dinner?""The rabbit?", Sam repeated. "We have an enclosure outside, near the stables. There are rabbits, hens and a few other animals mainly treated as a food-source."What? Her sweet Froseti was a food-source before? Katherine's cheeks paled and she congratulated herself for being so mindful as to take him with her. Hesitatingly, she asked: "Can you show me?""Of course."In the enclosure lived nine well-fed rabbits. It was quite big and had a small hut for rainy
"Do you know anything about the earl's family?", Katherine asked nonetheless. Hazel raised her nearly invisible red brows in a surprised way, while the new guards where shifting uncomfortably. Did the earl allow for the lady to know his history? Wouldn't he have told her himself then? "The earl's family?", Hazel repeated, her face changing into a pensive expression. "No, I... don't think so." "They haven't visited him? Send gifts, letters, anything?" " ... Nothing I know of." "Hmm." "Wait, no, there was one gift box! I didn't remember it, because they didn't say from whom it was. And it wasn't something a family would sent, actually.", Hazel memorized, first exited but later getting dispirited again for it wasn't what the lady asked for. Katherine gestured her to continue nevertheless. Any information was better than nothing, actually. "The cook told me that story for it was really weird and a little - " Katherine's stomach gru
The next date with the earl came up, without Jack and Pete coming back. Although she didn't spent much time with them, Katherine missed them already. Sadly, the replacements didn't want to tell her were they went or when they'll be back. Was it some kind of mission? She'd question the earl about it later just to make sure they were alright.As for the date, Katherine had everything prepared. Her dress was simple this time, because the last one hadn't caused a good reaction and she needed to have more freedom of movement today. In white and with a straw-hat she looked innocent and pure. Picking up the thing she'd made with Hazel's help, she strode to the entrance hall.Nathaniel was already there, waiting for her. He'd donned a red shirt and his usual black gloves. He didn't put in any extra-afford, but that shirt high-lighting his eyes was enough to exclude a devilish charm. Counting in his soft white hair... Katherine bit her lower lip. She really wanted to know how i
Silence was the only answer. The earl seemed to be hypnotized by the blue kite swirling in the strong winds. Or maybe he was thinking about something insightful.She let him be. Her goals, to surprise him, make him think about her, and try touching him were met for today. Although more was always better, she wouldn't rush it and wait for opportunities. She didn't forget about Jack and Pete, but she could still ask later. The silence now was somewhat comfortable.Combing through her hair with her fingers, she watched him as he slowly got acquainted to how to control the kite, letting it fly here and there and from time to time perform a looping.After a while she stepped over to him, reaching for the rope. "My turn."He pulled away, uttering a cold: "No.""What? But it's my kite!", she protested. She wanted to let him experience using the kite first, but of course she wanted to play with it, too."You gave it to me, so it's mine now." Before
Just as he was about to get out of sight, Katherine remembered she still hadn't asked him about Jack and Pete. With a startled "Ah!" she stretched out her hand but slowly pulled it back right after. No, she didn't have the courage to see into his face again. At least not today.Judging by his demeanor, she completely believed that he really could kill her, if he needed to. However, the sentence was somehow wrong. Why did he say 'it might just kill you' not 'I will kill you'? The latter was more threatening and more definite, while the first one was rather vague. A 'I might or might not kill you'. Not that she wanted to gamble her life on the 'might not' but it was strange, wasn't it? Like he hadn't decided it yet or it was out of his control, though that was somewhat implausible.Maybe he just wanted to let himself a way out, she concluded, and started to pull the kite down. She wasn't in the mood to play with it anymore. She wasn't even sure she could keep stalking th