The stairs were empty at this time of day, and Kaden ran so quickly she thought she would fall. She didn't have much more time to tell her father before they had to leave. She didn't know if she'd have time later today, and they were leaving early in the morning. She ran down a hallway, panting as she took a break, and found what she was looking for at the end of the corridor.

Smiling, she knocked on the old door, and heard faint footsteps; then fiddling with the handle, and then saw those familiar blue eyes.

"Hello, my King." Kaden said with a grin.

"Hello, Kaden. Nice to see you." He replied with a grin of his own.

"Nice to see you, too. I have something I'd like to speak to you about." She said, putting on the same act she did every time she came here, even though there wasn't anyone around. They couldn't take any chances.

"Come in, then." He closed the door behind her, and immediately spelled the room. "Are you here to talk to me about the trip? It's a little late. You leave tomorrow. I've already arranged a group of knights to go with you, and a few other people, and everything is planned already."

"Is there still room for one more? I've invited a friend." She said, looking him in the eye. "He's a squire, so I thought you could give the go ahead."

"A squire? Kaden, I don't know if I can-"

"Please? He really wants to go, and you already told me I could bring anyone I wanted." She pleaded.

"Well, I didn't exactly say it like that..."

"No, but I already told him he could go." He gave her a disappointed glare, and then slowly smiled. "And, anyways, it would be an extremely great learning experience for him, being out with all these knights and such. He would come back a better squire than he was!"

"Alright, alright, no need to keep convincing me. I'll just have to tell his training masters." Kaden jumped up and down, and ran to hug her father. His eyes brightened and he kissed her on the forehead. "You're acting like a six year old, you know."

"Am I? Well, I guess I am. I'm just happy, that's all." She smiled again.

"Oh, and what is this squire's name?"

"His name is Damek."

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"So who did you say is going with us?" Damek asked her again. They were in his rooms again, and Kaden was helping him pack a few things. His rooms were a mess, again, and Kaden couldn't help but make a mental note to clean this up after they were done packing.

"The King is sending a group of knights with us so that we'll be safe on the trip." She said, still distracted by the mess.

"I still can't believe that the King, the actual King, asked you to go on a trip for him!" He said, picking up a pair of breeches and stuffing them in his pack. Kaden took them back out, folded them, and set them neatly in the pack. "I mean, aren't you surprised, or delighted, or excited?"

"Well, this isn't the first time."

"What??" Damek stopped, and stared at her. She just kept picking things up and putting them away, or deciding to put some in the pack.

"It was last year. You remember the Shang Wolf, right?"

"Oh, Gods, do I ever. He was so rough on the squires, he nearly killed some of us. At least I learned a lot." He imitated a move Kaden recognized, and laughed at his own joke. "What about him?"

"You remember his sudden death?"

"Yeah, I remember that, too." He said, sitting down on his bed.

"Damek, get up and pack your sanitary things." Kaden tucked a piece of black hair behind her ear, and walked over to the bed to neaten the sheets. "The King asked me to keep an eye out for him, because he suspected something about the Wolf. So, I did. And one night I followed him out of his room, into the room that contained the Dominion Jewel, and he tried to steal it. It killed him."

"What killed him?" Damek asked.

"The Dominion Jewel. It burned him, and he died in my arms." Kaden gave Damek his pack, and then started picking up scattered clothing on the floor and putting it away.

"That's amazing." Kaden gave him a condescending look. "Well, not amazing, but... wow. That would be such an experience." Kaden didn't look impressed. She shook her head. "No, you know what I mean, right? I mean, it would be so strange but interesting. I can't believe-"

"Enough, Damek. Can we talk about something else?"

"Sure. Sorry if I upset you." He walked up to her and put his arms around her waist. She stopped what she was doing - picking up a pair of shoes - and looked into his blue eyes. He slowly lowered his lips to hers, and gently kissed her. His lips were warm and moist. She wrapped her arms around his waist, and kissed him more.

"You didn't upset me." She said when they pulled away. "It wasn't a very good experience, I just don't like talking about it."

"It doesn't matter. I don't need to know." Kaden smiled, and realized that when Damek said things like that it made him sound so much more mature. She lay in his embrace for a little bit longer. "I am really happy you invited me on this trip. What exactly are we doing?" Kaden sighed.

"Well, the King said that people in Goldenlake are complaining about a Falcon acting like a human. He just wants me to check it out. We can be sleuths together." They laughed.

"It sounds like it could be fun. I've never been on an adventure like this before."

"Well, neither have I. But who knows what we'll find out." You don't know so much about me, Damek. I have been through so much, this is nothing new to me. Kaden thought. Little did she know.

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A/N: So, this is new! YAY. My writing's back. I am so happy. I really want to finish this book and I'm excited to be writing again. It feels like spring, and I feel fresh and ready for new writing. It may not be that good, because it may have been in a hurry, but I like it... sort of.

Review anyways!

And, hopefully the next chapter will be up today too. :)

- Abiona Marchand