"Seliph, mind if I ask you something?" Lewyn said, looking at the young prince.
"Of course. What's up?" Seliph replied quickly.
"Julia, could you come over here?" the bard asked, gesturing to a young girl sat nearby. She got up quietly and approached Seliph, curtsying daintily.
Seliph felt his heart skip a beat looking at the young girl. She was about his age, maybe slightly younger, but she was the most lovely girl he'd seen. She had long silver hair and very pretty violet eyes. The girl reminded him of a bouquet of lilacs or a soft blanket of snow, he wasn't quite sure which.
"Julia?" Seliph asked quietly, and found himself inwardly savoring the name.
The young girl glanced up as he said her name and gave him a gentle smile. Seliph felt something great pulling at his heart and broke from her gaze, looking to the rubbled ground.
"I found her in Belhalla when she was real little. She was injured," Lewyn explained, placing a reassuring hand on Julia's shoulder. "So I took her to a remote area of Silesse and have been taking care of her since. But things in Silesse started getting ugly, so we made our way here," he said with a chuckle. "But now I have to go to Lenster and... well, she's slowing me down a bit. Seliph... I hate to burden you, but can you watch over her for a bit? She's been through a lot and doesn't have any memories of what happened before I found her."
"Julia," Seliph repeated, feeling his eyes sting and his breath catch. "Yes, Lewyn, I'll protect her. But she won't be happy without you, so please hurry back to her, okay?"
The older man grinned lopsidedly at the prince. "Right on. I'll be back by the time you've liberated Isaach. Sound good, Seliph?" With that, he turned to leave.
"Don't go getting yourself killed, okay Lewyn?" Seliph called out to the sage.
Seliph turned to his new charge. Julia was staring demurely at the ground in front of him. The young prince couldn't help but smile. "Julia, I'm sure you'll miss the old coot. Don't worry, though—I'll protect you. I mean, I'm not very strong yet, but..." Seliph trailed off a bit, feeling somewhat silly.
Julia glanced up, her violet eyes meeting his gaze. Seeing the warrior at such a lost for words, she began laughing softly.
Seliph felt his cheeks flush, but continued, "Just watch—I'll be strong enough to protect everyone some day. I'll be able to defeat the empire, too." He balled his sword hand into a fist and closed his eyes. "I'll become strong, like my father."
The young girl frowned slightly, but did not move. "Seliph," she managed quietly.
Seliph met her gaze once more. "Come on, then. Let's get going," he said, flashing her a reassuring smile.