Weeks passed as the young princess carried out her days normally. She not once saw the lord thief after that full mooned night and against her better judgment, she glanced out a window to see if he was there. Princess Aprill would even stay up late into the night, waiting on her balcony and see if he would show. But soon she stopped doing that, knowing that it was not princess like of her to be looking for a thief. So after a month of not seeing the lord, her grace let her future husband walk with her in the garden. His name was Prince Pietro Maximoff, the only son of the king to the north. This king wanted the immortal blood to be mixed with the purity of the Maximoff blood. And so, the tall, slim, blue eyed, silver haired young man was presented to the princess. Her grace to admit that the Prince was charming, handsome and very polite, as they walked, hand and hand throw the flower beds. Her grace was set in a long, bell dress, the color of the red rose and white trim.

"How are you on this fine day princess." The Prince asked her grace and he reached over to play with a lock of her long hair.

Aprill smiled in turn. "I am well my lord."

"You seem," Her lord started to say. "Distant today, something on your mind?"

She lifted her fan to hide her lips, not wanting him to see the frown that was starting to form. Her grace was still thinking of the mooned night, even if it was still against her judgment to do so. Then something flashed on the corner of her eye. Aprill's eyes lifted to look at the distant forest tree line. The Prince followed her eyes in wonder. "What are you looking at woman?"

Her grace was sure of what she saw, but she had to get closer to make sure. Princess gently pulled away from the Prince. "I must go," She bowed in front of him. "I will see you at dinner my lord." Without listening to the Prince, she ran off out of the garden and in the woods. Her eyes narrowed as the shadows of the trees came over her. Slowly getting used to the darker lighting, she slowly moved forward to see what she would find. She walked for a long time, knowing that there was something or someone in these woods. Why this was such a big deal to her grace was beyond her but she just had to learn what was running free in these woods.

"So you did see me," She turned to her right to see a tall, built man. His hair and eyes were the color of the earth, and didn't look like someone to mess with. The man was taller than her by five inches, with strong features in his face. Chiseled jaw and high cheeks bones, he wore leather hunting gear with a long sword on his belt. "I'm thief Lance, my lord is expecting you, your majesty." The thief pulled back some branches beside him to reveal a stone path that lead up a small hill. He started forward on the path. "This way your grace." Without waiting to see if she was following, the thief turned on to the path and started to walk away from her. Unsure about how to react to this, the princess decided to follow and see what was waiting for her. They walked past tall oaks, old willows, and even a few redwoods. After about twenty minutes, they came to a small clearing. The clearing was filled with small, leather tents with thiefs, both men and woman, walked freely.

"My lord," A short, young brown haired woman ran up to us and gripped her graces escort in a hug. Now she was just as tall as her grace with rich chocolate, shoulder length brown hair. She had large, watery blue eyes, soft skin and thin full lips. "You have returned."

The thief kissed the woman on the cheek. "I told you I would Catherine."

Catherine rolled her eyes. "I told you before Lance, call me Kitty." Then returning his kiss on the cheek, she walked away from him. "Dinner is ready when you are done with the mission."

"That's right," The thief scuffed and turned to look at the princess. "There is you, well don't just stand there, this way."

As her grace followed, she scuffed. "Is that anyway to talk to your future queen?"

Thief Lance laughed. "You're no queen to me."

After passing more and more tents with more and more people, her escort finally stopped at the largest tent in the whole clearing. "Wait here," He murmured without turning to face her and walked into the tent. So she stood there, tapping her foot on the ground and waited to see what would happen next. Then the certain opened and a new thief appeared. He was even shorter than the young maiden, but was mainly for the fact that is was sitting on the ground like a toad. His skin was a sickly pale color, pale yellow eyes and slimy ear length, green hair. The strange thief nodded. "My master is waiting for you, this way your majesty." The thief stepped aside so the Princess could walk inside the tent. Once inside the tent, she could tell that these were thief's that loved the hunt. The heads of bears, wild pigs, wolfs and big cats covered the walls. The pelts of these animals were laid on the floor of the tent. Tables made of redwood and oak lined the walls and were covered with fine jewelry and other riches. At the fair end of the tent stood a massive wooden chair, covered with more animal skins and huge deer antlers on the top. Other small teeth and claws covered legs and on the sides of the arms of this chair.

As the pale thief hoped over to sit beside the chair, thief Lance was kneeling before it. "The princess, unharmed as you wished my lord."

"Good Lance I knew that you wouldn't fail," A deep voice spoke and slowly the man stood from the chair, her grace snarled. "You may join your wife now Lance."

Thief Lance rose and bowed. "Thank you, lord Dukes." And slowly, the tall thief took his leave but stood at the entrance, watching what was happening.

"You again!" Her grace continued to snarl as she looked up into the face of the lord thief. "How dare you bring me here!"

The toad like thief trembled beside lord Dukes. "I told you this was a bad idea master."

"Relax, Todd," His master replied with a chuckle. "All is well,"

"Well," Her grace screeched. "Everything is not well, how dare you kidnap me."

"Kidnap you, your grace," The lord thief sounded puzzled. "Why I did no such thing, you came on your own will," When her grace hissed, Fredrick shook his head. "Didn't you wonder why Lance was so keen on leaving and not seeing if you were there?" She looked away from him, not willing to answer. "I told thief Lance to let you see him, tell you that his lord was waiting for you and just walk back to camp. He didn't force you here," A humors smile pulled the corners of his mouth. "I guess you could say you forced yourself here."

Aprill snorted and looked back into his brown eyes. "What do you want from me lord…Dukes is it?"

He bowed before her. "Fredrick Dukes, at your service your grace," He sat back in his chair. The lord thief held a fisted hand under his chin. "And I simply want your company Aprill."

"It's Princess Aprill to you Thief Lord Dukes," She corrected him firmly. "And I'm clearing in no dress suited to hick in the woods."

He bowed his head. "My apologize Princess Aprill," Correcting himself and put a humors tone of voice when he said princess. "And as for your dressing, just say the word and I shall get the finest dresser in camp to make you cloths."

Her eyes narrowed. "This whole camp is your, you ran it."

Fredrick grinned. "Todd doesn't call me master and Lance doesn't call me lord for nothing your grace." He rose from the massive chair and walked so that he stood right in front of her. This was the first time that they were face to face, within three feet from each other, and the heat that rolled off the thief's body made the princess shiver. Her sharp scene of smell picked up on his watered pine scent. Dukes smiled to himself at the sight of her hesitation, he also saw the wild tigerlily that he gave to her in her thick hair. The lord thief knew that he was getting closer to his dream wish, bowing again, he gently took a lock of her hair. Her grace was not expecting the lord to do this and she should have stepped away but she couldn't move her feet. She closed her eyes as the thief raised her hair to his nose and took a deep breath. Fredrick licked his lower lip softly, she smelled so heavenly, of fresh water from the spring and wild lavender. He let go of her hair and bent in a deep bow, to the point that he was kneeling before the princess.

The princess opened her eyes and looked down at the lord in surprise. "Lord Dukes?"

Timid thief Todd hoped forward to stair at his master in disbelief. "Master what are you doing, you should not have kneel to anyone…"

"Silence Todd," Fredrick snapped and turned back to Aprill. "Say the word your grace, and my camp's will is at your command."

She looked from the timid thief, who was scowling at her, to the thief Lance, who was standing behind her and scowling at her also. Then she turned back to the lord of this camp, the first man to give her this much respect and willing call her by her name, Aprill. Beside herself she smiled, took a jeweled sword from the table and placed the point over his left shoulder. The timid thief gasped and thief Lance started forward as her grace spoke. "New cloths would be nice my lord."

Fredrick looked up at her as he rose and held the blade of the sword in his massive hand. "Then new cloths you shale get my lady."