The trees swayed gently in the breeze, and a stream was nearby. A girl was on shore, and she scooped down a handful of water, watching as it trickled down her fingers. There was so much innocence within both her and the place that surrounded her. A boy standing nearby chuckled.
"The Grandmaster sent me here." he said "He says it's getting late and that we should return to the Temple."
The temple was a large structure which sat on the eastern side of the forest. It housed all inhabitans of the Kingdom of Heaven. Like all kingdoms, this one had a political structure of its own. Although there was no prejudice here, the system of some sort was still needed to prevent the whole thing from becoming chaos.
Upon their deaths, Isabel Magnolia and Furlan Church had been assigned the role of Guardians. Essentially, what this boiled down to was that they'd protect the Kingdom from any outside threats. At the command of the Guardians was the Grandmaster, an old and wise individual who was in many battles. And he had something to show for it too.
All inhabitans of the Kingdom were here because they were pure at heart, and they were no exception. Furlan, however, suspected that he ended up here because of Isabel. He had hurt many of his fellow humans in his lifetime, even killing some in the process. But Isabel never did. Sure, she hurt the pride of rival gang members when they lost against her, but she never seriously hurt anyone. Furlan felt his heart beat a little faster as he watched her.
She had spotted a kitten and abandoned her post by the river to pet it, seemingly forgetting what he had told her.
Eventually, however, she stood up and they began their walk towards the Temple. It was actually a castle, but they called it 'Temple' on Grandmaster's assistance, in honor of whatever entity had brought them here.
Isabel pranced ahead, for which Furlan was thankful. That way, she wouldn't be able to notice the changes in his heartbeat.
-x-
The Grandmaster was leaning against the Temple wall, and Furlan was standing near /br /"So, is there anyone you have special feelings for?" he asked
Furlan spat out the water he had just drunk.
"What?! No!" he announced, flustered "Of course not!"
The Grandmaster raised an eyebrow at the display
"You're way too young to fool me, young'un." he said "It's that little friend of yours, isn't it?"
For once, Furlan was at the loss for words.
"I am not worthy of her." he admitted, looking away
"My experience has taught me not to posture." the Grandmaster advised "Grab the opportunity with both hands before it slips away, as it did for me."
"You were in love with someone too..." Furlan deduced
"Aye, I was." the man said "But I put too much time and effort into other things, like fighting battles and what not. By the time I realized I loved her, she had already been...undone...by my best friend. Or maybe it was because of that that I realized I loved her. But she was never the same since, and neither was I. Still, I spent the rest of my career dealing with the enemies of Heaven, which is probably why I was allowed to live here in spite of my sins. So listen to me, don't let your chance with her slip away like I did."
"With that, he fell silent, letting Furlan /br /Was he really in love with Isabel?
He would just have to wing it, he supposed.
