"Can't you use fire magic to warm yourself up a bit more?" I complained in a quiet voice to Kadence, worried that she would develop frostbite. After all, she was trudging through the knee-deep snow in nothing but a summer dress and coat.

She shook her voice, replying in a normal voice, "I can't control fire magic."

Behind me my knights trailed, still silent from their earlier shock. I tried to ignore their befuddled and disbelieving stares, wishing they hadn't seen me out of character. In the end I had just tried my best to salvage my reputation, calmly throwing around orders in a deep voice. Kadence didn't seem to think it was a good idea. Instead she still conversed in friendly tones, growing more and more amused at the stupefied expressions of my knights and my own pained expression.

I sighed in relief when I finally crossed the border of the town, turning to Kadence and saying in a quiet voice, "You can go to your friends now."

"Nope," She said happily, still walking alongside me and waving to the citizens who poked their heads of their houses, "To hell with your stupid image."

Nobody has ever made me want to strangle them this badly.

I turned to my vice captain, "We're going to go ahead. Prepare the horses and tie the prisoner to one of them. I need to have a word with Knight-Captain Metal."

He saluted, turning and relaying my orders to the still-stupefied knights. I left, not bothering to wait up for Kadence as I strode in the direction of the inn.

"Hey!" She complained from behind me, jogging to keep up, "Slow down a little! My legs aren't as long as yours."

"Do you have any idea what kind of a mess you're making for me?" I snapped, wishing I could rub my eyes.

"Hey, maybe they'll act a bit nicer to you now!" She retorted, "And I seem to remember saving you from getting your leg cut off a moment ago. A little appreciation would be nice."

"I almost got my leg cut off because you were too hasty and stubborn!" I snapped as I crossed the threshold of the inn.

"Kadence?" Wendy cried, looking between us with a horrified expression before ushering Kadence to her side, "What happened?!"

"I'm fine," She murmured in a kind voice, smiling brilliantly.

"But why are you," Wendy lowered her voice in an obvious attempt not to let me hear, "With him?"

"Because he's my friend," She said firmly, staring at Wendy with a stern gaze. She turned and tugged on my arm, ignoring the statue of Wendy as she said, "Let's go."

I nodded silently and lead her up the stairs, knowing nothing I would say would make her stop acting outrageous. Still, I tried by saying in a soft voice, "You should try acting a bit more appropriately. If you're not careful you'll get alienated."

"Urgh," She complained, hitting my arm as we climbed the stairs, "You're too stiff. Try living a little. Tell me it wasn't just a little funny seeing all of your subordinates turn to statues?"

"I have an image to uphold," I said seriously.

She rolled her eyes and nodded, saying condescendingly, "Of course you do."

I sighed, walking to Metal's door and knocking loudly.

"So who are we going to meet next?" She asked in a chipper voice, standing on her tip-toes to peak over my shoulder.

"The Metal Knight," I said simply.

She looked confused, "And that is…?"

"You don't know?" I said, looking at her in shock, "He-"

The door opened, interrupting me. Infront of it stood Metal, clothes and hair in disarray. He looked surprisingly worried until he saw me and let out an explosive sigh, "You're back."

I felt a tinge of pain. I knew I was a bother, but that was a bit much.

"Hey!" Kadence complained from behind me, tugging on my arm in a fussy manner, "I can't see anything! You're too damn big!"

I rolled my eyes and Metal gestured us in, looking confused. His room was a mirror of my own, and I immediately went to sit on one of the couches, rubbing my face in a tired manner. Kadence plopped down next to me, swinging her legs and looking around in a carefree manner.

"This is Kadence," I introduced, not looking up, "Kadence this is the Metal Knight."

"Nice to meet you," She said happily.

"Your clothes are horrid," He muttered absent-mindedly, plopping on the couch opposite us.

"… Excuse me?" Kadence's cold voice rung out, chilling me to the bone.

"What?" Metal asked, looking confused.

She stood, fists clenched, "Wanna say that again, pretty boy?!"

"Kadence," I said hastily, looking at her in surprise, "Calm down. What's gotten into you?"

"Are you both going to pretend he didn't just blatantly insult me?!" She said in an outraged voice.

"He's the Metal Knight," I said slowly, looking at her in confusion, "Of course he did."

"Oh," She said happily, nodding, "Well I suppose that's okay then… DID YOU THINK THAT'S WHAT I'D SAY, DUMMY?" She turned to point at Metal angrily, "APOLOGIZE OR I'LL KNOCK YOUR FACE RIGHT OFF YOUR HEAD, STUPID!"

I expected Metal to get angry, but instead he began to laugh softly, "Alright, Alright. I'm sorry. Geez."

She plopped back onto the couch, arms crossed and sulking, "Meany."

"Kadence," I said in an exasperated voice, "You can't keep threatening to hit people."

"I'll hit you in a moment," She muttered, enticing further laughter from Metal.

"Who exactly are you?" Metal asked, staring at her in wonder, "If my platoon had half your fire…"

"I'm Kadence," She said, grinning, "I live around these parts and incidentally," She threw me a dirty look before continuing smugly, "I just saved your stupid friend from getting his leg cut off and captured the necromancer in the process."

We both looked uncomfortable, prompting her to tilt her side and ask in a childish voice, "What?"

"Nothing," I said quickly motioning for her to shut up. Then I turned to Metal and said in a loud voice, "As you can see the Necromancer has been captured, so we can return to the Church in the morning."

"What?!" Kadence exclaimed, looking at me in dread, "Do you have to go back right away?! I thought you'd stay for awhile, at least!"

"No," I said firmly, "We need to get the criminal back for his trial as soon as possible."

"Then," She looked torn before standing and saying in an excited voice, "I'll come with! I've been wanting to visit the South anyway!"

"Definitely not!" I shot down her idea, "You have your brother to wait for here."

"Brother would definitely understand!" She said loudly, glaring at me, "Don't think you can stop me!"

"Why are you stubborn?!" I demanded, standing as well, "You can't just go running off with strangers whenever you feel like it!"

"You're not a stranger, Stupid!" She yelled, glaring at me fiercely, "You're my friend! And I promised I'd come back with you to beat some sense into those other idiots!"

I looked at her incredulously, "You have to be kidding! You have friends and family here. You can't just leave them!"

"I'll do whatever I damn well please!" She shouted, turning and storming out.

"I like her," Metal commented, staring at the swinging door with awe.

"Don't you start!" I snapped before realizing I had just talked back to him. He stared at me in shock as I promptly left, resisting the urge to bang my head on the door as I did so. When I reached the hallway I called out, "Kadence!"

"Yeah?" She replied, leaning to the side of the door and looking at me curiously.

I sighed sharply, turning to her and saying, "You can't come tomorrow. I'm sorry, but you need to understand that."

She rolled her eyes, ignoring my comment, "I'll have to bunk with you tonight. I can't head back to mine at this hour, and all the other rooms are occupied."

I rubbed my eyes, "Of course you do. Fine, I've got things to do tonight anyway."

I lead her to the room, watching as she threw herself onto one of the couches with a tired sigh, "For such a nice Inn, it's so cold in here."

I stared at her in confusion, "What are you talking about? It's perfectly warm…" My eyes widened in realization and I hurried over to where she sat, grabbing her hands and cursing under my breath.

"Hey!" She exclaimed in a surprised manner, "What are you d-"

"You're freezing!" I interrupted angrily, crossing the room and entering the bedroom. I ripped the blankets off the bed and returned, wrapping them around her quickly, "I'll start a fire and go get a bath, so jus-"

"No," She said hurriedly, "Just go get the bath, please."

I obeyed reluctantly, feet padding on the staircase silently as I descended in a hurried manner. When I reached the bottom I walked to the bar, recognizing a familiar figure. I called out, "Wendy? Would you mind sending a hot bath to my quarters as quickly as possible?"

She looked terrified when I addressed her by her name, and she nodded quickly and left to do so. I nodded to myself and ascended the staircase again, bumping into two of my surprised knights. I paid them no heed as I continued to my rooms. When I finally pushed open the door Kadence's was sleeping quietly, rugged up in the blankets.

I shook her awake softly, saying, "You shouldn't fall asleep. I don't know how bad the frost was."

She nodded, half-lidded and yawning, "Hey," She said from around the yawn, "Why was that fellow earlier so rude? Are my clothes really that bad?"

I shook my head, amused as I replied, "He just plays the part of the Metal Knight well."

"And what's the role of the Metal Knight?" She asked quietly, snuggling into the blankets with a look of bliss.

"Well, he's supposed to be… insulting, I suppose," I said slowly, staring at her in confusion, "You act like you've never heard of the Twelve Holy Knights."

She snorted indelicately, "The what? Sounds like a bad band."

"You," I said, eyes wide, "You actually don't know. That makes so much sense!" I said, slapping myself in the face, "That's why you weren't terrified of me. But how-"

I was interrupted by a startled noise by the door. In the doorway stood Wendy, carrying a steaming bucket of water and looking between us in horror and bewilderment. I stood and walked over, trying not to feel burnt when she recoiled. I took the bucket of water with a quick word of thanks and moved to the bathroom, dumping in its' contents. It filled the bathtub half-way, which I decided was sufficient.

When I returned to the main room Wendy was close to Kadence, speaking in hushed tones. When she saw me she froze, all but running out of the room.

"Well," I said slowly, staring at her departing form, "The bath is ready. I'll leave so you can-"

"No," She said quickly, standing and walking to the bathroom, "Stay. Talk to me awhile."

"Are you sure?" I asked, bewildered. Wouldn't most people want completely privacy?

She nodded quietly, closing the bathroom door behind herself as she called out, "You better not leave, or I'll kick your butt!"

I sighed and obliged, sitting to lean against the door, asking, "What do you want to talk about?"

"Who were those Twelve thingy-ma-bobs you were talking about earlier?" She called out, followed by a splash.

"Twelve Holy Knights," I said patiently, not bothering to question her lack of knowledge, "They're my comrades."

"Who are they? What are they like?" She asked curiously.

"Well. There's me, the Judgment Knight. Every Judgment Knight is supposed to pass judgment. Which means sentencing, punishment and persecution," I started, interrupted by her laugh. I continued, ignoring her, "The Judgment Knight should have black hair, dark eyes and a constant frown. The Twelve Holy Knights is divided into two sections, 'Good and Warm-Hearted' and the 'Cruel and Cold-Hearted'. I'm the head of the Cruel and Cold-Hearted section."

"Hey!" She exclaimed, sounding outraged, "Isn't that a bit mean?!"

"It's the way it's always been," I said tolerantly, continuing, "The Knights in my faction are the Metal Knight, Ice Knight, Moon Knight, Hell Knight and Stone Knight. The Metal Knight is supposed to insult and be rude. The whole continent knows that the Metal Knight can talk to you for three minutes, causing you to lose three years of life," She snorted at this, "The Ice Knight is cold, in all aspects. He has blue-white hair, pale skin and no facial expression. The Moon Knight is conceited, so he's always looking down on people. He also has purple hair. The Hell Knight is," I paused, not quite sure, "He's a spy, I suppose. I don't know too much about him, to be honest," I said sheepishly, "And the Stone Knight is stubborn."

"Would I make a good Stone Knight?" She mused, no doubt grinning cheekily.

"Maybe. But none of the Knights are female."

"Isn't that a bit sexist?" She grumbled, "Fine then! What about the other faction?"

"The other faction has Leaf Knight, who's notorious for being kind and nature-loving. Then there's Cloud, who's renowned for being a drifter. It's quite frightening actually; occasionally he disappears into thin air. Then there's Earth Knight, who's known for being horrible with women but very kind and loyal," She laughed, "Then there's Blaze Knight, who's notorious for being loud and brazen. You'd actually make a good Blaze Knight too, except the Blaze Knights' hair is red," I added wryly, not getting a reply before I continued, "And Storm, who's a carefree womanizer. He has blue hair and a quick smile."

"They all sound a little far-fetched," She admitted, splashing, "But that's only eleven. Who's the other?"

I paused, torn before continuing, "The Sun Knight. He's the epitome of perfection. He's kind and benevolent. He never indulges himself, and he practically lives for the Twelve Holy Knights."

"Caelan?" She asked, startling me, "Hm. His name doesn't fit his title," She mused, and I heard the sound of her exiting the bath.

"What do you mean?" I asked, confused.

"Caelan means Ice-Flower. It clashes with the whole image of 'Sun'," She continued, cracking open the door and stepping out. She was wearing the dress again which was (thankfully) dry.

"I didn't know that," I admitted.

"I still like you the best though," She grinned wickedly, "O' Cruel and Cold-Hearted Judgment Knight. I'm curious though, why would you choose to become somebody who is hated?"

"For the people," I explained simply, "They look up to the Twelve Holy Knights. We're their pillars. It might be hard, but it's my duty."

"I don't like that," She said, frowning, "What about you? What about your feelings?"

I shrugged helplessly, not meeting her eye, "I have nothing else to live for. The Church is my life."