Here's the next chapter for you guys. Believe it or not, but we're nearing the end :-P. Thanks for all your feedback. Sorry for any spelling or grammar mistakes. Hope you like it :-)

When Keyla woke again, she was alone. Dastan - she remembered - had gone to tell Tamina and it seemed bis had finally given in to his exhaustion and had gone to sleep. Looking to the doorway that lead to the balcony she could see it had to be the middle of the night already. She could see the stars in the dark sky outside through the thin curtains. A few torches illuminated the room she was in, casting unsteady shadows on the wall.

She felt weak but not exactly tired any more. She would have liked to get up and maybe walk around a little, step out onto the balcony and enjoy the cool night air but she knew she was not supposed to get up and for once she was willing to listen to her friends. Her injured leg throbbed and there would probably be pain if she tried to put pressure on it... If she would not be able to walk on her own and fell and Dastan and Bis would find her helpless on the ground the next morning she would never hear the end of it... staying in bed definitely was the safest option...

She tried to relax but she could not bring herself to close her eyes and fall asleep again. So much had happened in the last couple of days since she had come to Alamut... It was hard to actually believe it... She sighed softly and debated the idea of getting up once again. Her mind was quickly occupied by something else though when she believed to see a shadow moving in the semidark of the room... It was getting closer and in that moment Keyla wished for some kind of weapon... But only until she realized who it was that was sneaking up on her.

"Princess?"

Princess Tamina smiled at her and sat down on her bed carefully. Somehow Keyla had not expected the princess to show up here and she wasn't even sure why that was. Dastan had told her the princess had asked about her but Keyla had beenn sure it was only curtesy... She only had vague memories of the attack on her and the fight but she knew Tamina had saved her life, not the other way round... For her to be here now... it actually surprised Keyla and the smile on the princess's face surprised her even more.

"I would really like it if you call me Tamina. I think saving my life like that earns you that."

She was smiling mischievously and Keyla knew the princess wasn't being serious. She hadn't meant that Keyla actually needed to earn the right to call her by her name instead of her title. She felt strangely befriended to the woman she had only met a couple of days ago and to her own surprise she liked that feeling. But she could not let the statement just linger like that. She had never done aynthing to save the other woman's life. Keyla shook her head softly.

"Well then, Tamina, I did not save your life. You managed to do that all by yourself."

"You risked your life for me, Keyla. I can never make that up to you ever."

"You don't need to."

Keyla felt embarrassed hearing the Alamutian princess thank her like this and she wondered if Dastan had anything to do with this late night visit. She didn't dare to ask though. She didn't want to insult Tamina. The two just sat in the dark in silence for a long moment and Keyla didn't know what to do or say right now. She had never really been good at this small talk thing and even though Dastan had been adopted by king Sharaman she had no idea how to talk to royalty. She had always stayed away from the Persian royal family and with Dastan it was different...

She glanced at the princess from time to time, hoping she would be the first to say something because Keyla's mind felt like it was completely blank at the moment. She felt almost relieved when Tamina finally looked at her with a thoughtful expression on her face. Her change of subjects however took Keyla by surprise.

"I have a proposition for you."

"A proposition?"

"A job offer to be exact."

Keyla sighed soundlessly. She really didn't mean to insult the princess or hurt her feelings in any way but whatever this job offer she was talking about was about, Keyla just knew she couldn't do it. It was the one thing she had fought Dastan about all these years back when he had offered her and Bis a place along the royal family. She had never wanted this and she didn't want it would never work for nobility - not ever. She couldn't. She shook her head gently and offered a smile to Tamina.

"Dastan obviously never told you much about me."

"No he didn't."

"Well if he had you would know that I'm not very fond of palaces and royalty. I was offered a place at the palace in Nasaf once and I declined."

"This is different."

"Why? Are you not the royal leader of this land and are you not asking me to move into the palace to become your servant?"

"No. I ask you to become my guardian."

Keyla was taken completely off guard by the suggestion. The Alamutian princess truly wanted her for her guard? Her personal guardian? That didn't make any sense ... She hadn't been able to protect her from the traitor, had actually needed Tamina's help to stay alive and still she wanted her to protect her. This had to be some kind of mistake or maybe a very elaborate joke Keyla just didn't understand. She shook her head in disbelieve.

"But that's crazy! You have palace guards and soldiers both Alamutian and Persian. What would you need me for?"

"You have already proven yourself capable of protecting both me and prince Dastan from harm. And unlike any of the Persian soldiers in my city, I do trust you."

"But that's not all there is to it, am I right?"

Keyla couldn't tell where the sudden realization came from but she just knew there was more to it than Tamina was actually willing to tell her. It was something in the princess's demeanor, something in her voice that told Keyla it was not only about this job offer. She curiously looked at the princess half expected her to deny it but instead Tamina shook her head slowly, looking for the right words to say to explain.

"No. It's hard to explain... Ever since I met prince Dastan I felt that he knew more about me than he should, that there was some sort of connection between us I should know about but did not... I want a chance to... even it out."

"And that's what you want me for?"

"You have known him all your life, Keyla. You grew up with him, you have been through a lot with him. You could tell me stories about him."

"Good and bad ones, yes."

"I know it's a strange thing to ask of you but I want to be honest. I don't only want you as my guardian but as a confidant, somebody I can rely on, somebody who will help me get to know and understand the man I agreed to marry... Would you be willing to do that for me?"

Keyla took a deep breath. The princess was flattering her with her words but Keyla was sure Tamina knew that. She felt a little but like a traitor herself now - like she was betraying the trust Dastan had in her. Of course that was nonesense because he and Tamina were to be married and if he didn't want Keyla to stay there was no way Tamina would make him change his mind. Keyla was sure he had been aware of the princess's plans at least to a certain extent. But still she was not sure if this was a good idea...

"I... I don't know..."

Silence fell between them as Keyla took a moment to gather her thoughts. She just wasn't sure what to feel, what to think... this whole proposal had come completely unexpected for her and she couldn't just decide from one minute to the next. She needed time...

"I have never wanted a life at the palace. Dastan offered it to me when the king first took him in but I declined. I was furious with him for even suggesting it because I did NOT want to be a servant to the royal family. The king had adopted him but all I would have been was some... streetwise upstage everybody would look down on and would smile about. I didn't want that, I wouldn't have been able to take it... And I... I couldn't serve the Persian royal family even if that meant leaving my two best friends in the world..."

"Why?"

"It's..."

She had been about to say that it was none of her business but Keyla kept that comment to herself. Tamina wasn't trying to intrude, she just tried to understand her and Keyla had no right to insult her like this. Maybe Tamina treated her like an equal, like a friend even but she was and always would be a princess and the rooyal leader of this city. She would always have to be caredul with her choice of words around her and that was exactly what Keyla did right now - chosing her words wisely.

"... nothing I would want to talk about."

"But this is not the Persian royal family. This is Alamut. You would be serving me and you would be with your friends. Isn't it worth to at least think about it?"

"Actually, you're right. It is. And I will."

Tamina nodded, a satisfied little smile appearing on her face and gently squeezed Keyla's hand before getting up from her bed. Keyla wasn't sure how to feel in that moment.. It was a little awkward to her as she felt like the princess firmly believed she would agree to her proposal but Keyla really meant what she had said. She needed to think about this... Tamina's voice showed neither triumph nor impatience though - just friendliness and that meant to calm Keyla a little.

"I will leave you alone then. I will be back in the morning. Sleep well, Keyla."

"Good night, pri... Tamina..."