A/N: This is very much a WIP so I can not promise a consistent schedule like with a Guiding Light but I know people seemed really intrigued by the premise of this story so I already wanted to post the first chapter. I do have around 30K words written and a pretty solidly planned plotline so I do hope to post regularly (of course all dependent on real life etc...)

Thank you to my friend for knowing so well and sending me a female knight art, which triggered this entire thing... Thank you to Turanga4 for beta-reading the first chapter!

Ginny got up and walked back to her horse, Red, to reprise their last stretch towards the castle of Ignotia. She shrugged her leather helmet back on. Other people could not know she was a woman, it was a well-kept secret only a handful of people knew, including Sir Regulus, the knight who had trained her since she was seven.

"Are you nervous?" Regulus asked.

Ginny opened the visor of her helmet so he could see her frown. "Can't possibly be worse than the last assignment, right?" She held onto the saddle and got back on Red.

Regulus mounted his horse too and they continued on their way. "I do implore you not to kill the king of Ignotia."

"It is my job to keep him alive, so I shall not," she replied. "How many assassins does he get anyway that his own guards don't suffice?"

"Only every other week I believe," Regulus responded.

"Well, if you are the last of your line, I suppose it is too tempting just to try?" Ginny wondered out loud.

"Have you met him? King Henry?" Regulus asked.

"No." She shook her head. "We were supposed to before everything went to shit. He is my brother's age," Ginny told him.

"Remember you have to be careful about your identity—your chamber will be right next to his," he reiterated. Ginny wasn't sure why, they had been through all of this already.

"If it worries you so much, why did you put me up for it and not Neville or something…" she asked.

"Because you are my best knight. When it comes to assassins, your agility and quick reflexes really are a benefit. Neville is fine at his current assignment." Regulus looked at her. "I've met the King a few times. I think he is a good person, just as his parents were."

"That's good," Ginny commented half-heartedly. She'd judge for herself when they arrived if he was likeable.

"The ladies seem to find him handsome, like his father was…" he said.

Ginny snorted. "Like I care about that."

"Just saying, if you have to stand guard for the guy, you'll be seeing a lot of him."

Ginny considered it for a moment. "I suppose it wouldn't be the worst to have something nice to look at."

"Maybe this time you won't come back," Regulus mused.

"Wouldn't that be nice?" She smiled. "I started training Colin on fighting on a horse, I think he has a knack for it and he was eager to start. You may want to continue with that," Ginny said.

"Don't tell me how to train my squires!" Regulus objected. "Not sure if knocking him off his horse counts as training."

"Reg, you told me yourself, you need to know how it feels to take a hit in order to be able to dodge it," she said. Regulus was a great knight but the training could be harsh.

"But yes, I will focus on the horse. The boy can swing well from on there," he agreed.

They fell silent now for a bit as they neared the castle.

Ginny looked at the castle as it came into view. It looked about as big as the castle of Harpia but it had been over a decade since she had been there so her memory of it wasn't all that clear anymore. She had heard the gardens of the Ignotian royal castle were quite large and that it served as a sanctuary for several animals. It would be a significant improvement from her previous assignments.

"I still think the castle of Orion is prettier," Regulus commented.

"I think you're biased," she replied. "It looks nice enough."

"Sir Regulus and his knight," one of the royal guards told Harry.

Harry stood up from his desk. "Bring them in."

Sir Regulus came in with his knight. To Harry's surprise, the knight appeared to be more than a head shorter than him. He was clad in leather armour which Harry found an unusual choice but then he noticed the knight moved soundlessly and he suspected that may be the reason why.

"King Henry," Regulus greeted him and his knight bowed his head too in greeting.

"Sir Regulus." Harry greeted him. "You have brought me a knight I see."

"I heard you were in search of a personal guard and my best knight had finished his previous assignment just one month before, so it was the perfect opportunity."

Harry nodded. "Best knight, you say?"

Regulus nodded. "Yes, and you know I don't say that lightly. You see due to his stature, this is not a knight of brute force, but do not underestimate his strength. He is fast, agile, a great climber and good both on foot and on horse. Good for all occasions. The armour was specially developed. It's almost all leather, it's extremely durable and allows him to move quickly and soundlessly and because it's so light-weight, can be worn for long periods of time so it gives him great endurance."

Harry listened intently and nodded as Regulus spoke. "Wouldn't that make him more susceptible to injuries?" A knight that was out after one attack would not be very useful.

"It is sturdy enough to deflect most attacks and he is very quick so it is not a major concern," Regulus told him. He looked confident in the knight's abilities and Harry had never known Regulus to oversell. He was a man of his word.

"Good to know."

"There are just two things," Regulus said now.

Of course there was always something.

"He does not speak and never takes off his helmet," he said as if it was not a major concern.

It was a little odd for sure. "Can't or won't speak?" he asked.

"Won't. It's non-negotiable, I am afraid, part of his contract."

Harry nodded. The terms, though odd, seemed acceptable – Regulus' best knight did not need to speak if he kept Harry alive.

"He uses hand signs on occasion. They're easy enough," Regulus assured him.

"Very well then. Leave the contract with my advisor. When can he start?"

"Right away, sir."

"His name?" he asked now.

"Knight Gwyn."

"Thank you, sir Regulus, always a pleasure doing business with you." He turned to his new knight. "You can settle in, please return when you are ready."

Knight Gwyn nodded.

They walked to a quiet spot. Ginny opened the visor of her helmet and looked at Regulus.

"Told you he'd be a good one," he told her.

"Why is he so interested in whether I can talk or not?" Ginny wondered. No one had cared to ask that question before.

"Oh, frankly I think he is lonely. He's been guarded ever since his parents died a decade ago," he replied.

"Well, that I can relate to," Ginny replied, her own parents having died fifteen years ago.

"I guess it's goodbye for now. I will come by in a few weeks but you know where to find me in case of trouble," he told her.

"I'm a big knight now, Reg, I can take care of myself," she reassured him. There was always a certain unease with new assignments, but she was sure she would settle in soon enough. At least King Henry did not seem as keen on war as the first Lord she served, where she'd fought battle after battle.

'You are. You can." Regulus hugged her. "Take care. don't get killed."

"I'll try not to," she retorted.

She returned to the hallway and followed the servant that was waiting for her up the stairs to her new chamber.

It was a pretty decent room for a knight. It wasn't very elaborate but it was more than she was used to. Then she noticed that her chamber wasn't just adjacent to the king's; it was adjoining. There was a door right beside the bed leading into the king's chambers she could barely look into.

This was worrying as this would make hiding her identity even more difficult and she'd have to make sure to rise on time to be ahead of the king and any servants that could barge in. She was determined to learn his usual schedule quickly so she could get ready before he even woke up.

The servant left to let her settle in. She closed the door and sat down on the bed for a moment and took a deep breath. This would be her new home for the coming weeks until something inevitably would go wrong. There were worse places to stay than a castle.

She put her helmet back on and went to retrieve her horse. She followed the path beside the castle towards the stables.

A giant man walked up to her. He wore his hair long and messy and had a large beard. She halted.

"Hi, you must be the new knight!" he said.

Ginny nodded carefully as she looked at him. He was almost twice her height.

"Right, King Henry told me you don't talk. Not to worry, I can talk for two. My name is Hagrid, I am the caretaker of the ground and creatures of the castle. Let me lead you to the stables."

Ginny followed Hagrid into the stables. While he was an impressive size, she quickly learned he had a heart of gold as he rattled on about the herd of deer and the colony of cats that were under his care.

"What's your horse's name?" Hagrid asked.

Ginny pointed at the embroidery on the saddle blanket.

"Red!" Hagrid said after he bent down to read. "Right, I guess that makes sense, considering that gorgeous red coat." He pointed towards an empty stall. "She can stay here. I maintain all the horses but if there is anything specific, don't hesitate to let me know."

Ginny nodded and led Red into the stall.

"I will leave you to get settled, I will be just around the corner, checking on the cats, we love giving them some extra treats although they can catch plenty of mice around here…" Hagrid smiled and walked out of the stables.

Ginny opened her visor and petted Red. "Fanciest stables you've stayed at, don't you think?" she said.

She took the saddle and reins off and put them on the rack. "Let's see who your new friends are, huh?"

Ginny closed the stall and walked on. One stall was bigger than the other's and she assumed it was the king's horse. She approached it and saw a beautiful black stallion with a proud stance and a long black flowing mane. He had one white marking on his forehead. He immediately approached her.

"Aren't you a handsome boy?" Ginny said as she petted him. She glanced to see his name and then back up to the marking on his head. "Lightning, how original. Then again, who am I to talk?"

Lightning seemed to take a liking to her and asked for more pets.

"You better get along with Red, you'll be seeing a lot more of her. I promise she is really nice but I bet you are a gentleman, aren't you?"

Lightning seemed to take well to her cooing. She petted him for a little longer before moving on to the rest of the horses. The horse in the next stall seemed to turn away from her as she approached. She glanced at the name.

"Prongs? What's wrong?" She gave up when he turned his head away from her. "Alright, you don't have to like me."

She walked on and past the other horses and circled back to Red, who had already found her food.

"Looks like you're already settled in. I'll check back on you tomorrow." She closed the visor and went back to Hagrid.

"All settled?"

She nodded and bent down as a cat came up to her. He looked to be ancient, with a wise grumpy look on his face as he pushed against her leg.

"That's Ce," Hagrid said. "First cat I ever raised here in the castle. Poor kitten he was then… now he is the oldest of the group. Spoiled rotten."

Ginny smiled to herself and bent down to pet Ce, who meowed at her. She scratched under his chin and he started purring loudly. She remained there for a while petting Ce, then stood back up.

"I am glad you are here, King Henry truly needs a knight." He shook his head, his dark eyes watery. "I still remember the day his parents died… I don't know what I'd do if he got killed too."

Ginny stepped to him and patted his arm, not quite able to reach his shoulder comfortably.

"Thanks, lad," Hagrid said, taking a deep breath and focusing back on the cats.

She stepped back and waved a short goodbye and entered the castle again.

She knocked on the door to his office.

"Enter."

She stepped inside and looked at the King once again. He was just a year older than her, jet black hair standing uncharacteristically messy for a king, but it somehow suited him. Green eyes piercing, compelling. He was tall too and lean for a king. He stood as she entered. She wondered what Regulus said, about the king being lonely and she suspected he was right.

She walked to the middle of the room and halted. She bowed her head.

"Sir Gwyn."

Not quite.

"You will start tomorrow morning. I expect you to join on any visits outside of the castle. Within the castle whenever there are guests nearby, especially at parties, lunches, councils… I have guards posted in the hallway outside my chambers but assassins are quite persistent. If attacked at night, I expect you to be ready."

This last part could become an issue, but she hoped if she saved his life he might be forgiving about her gender. She hoped it would not be necessary at all.

"I may ask you to stand guard on special occasions. Any other time you are free to rest, conduct training as you see fit. I suspect you agree?"

She nodded firmly. Nothing she hadn't done before.

"You won't talk at all?"

Ginny suspected this might become an issue, but she could not speak without revealing she was a woman. She shook her head.

"Do you read and write?"

She nodded her head yes.

"Good to know. I will introduce you to the head of my guard. You won't report to him, you only report to me but you may have to work together," King Henry said.

Ginny followed him through the hallways, looking around and trying to tell the hallways apart. King Henry knocked on a door.

It was opened by a rather gruff-looking man.

"King Henry," he greeted, bowing his head as the king walked into the room.

Ginny followed him inside and looked at the man. He was at least sixty. He had a fake leg and an eye patch and scars on every piece of skin she could see. Ginny had a few scars of her own, but she was still a long way from looking like that.

"This is Sir Alastor," Harry introduced him.

Ginny had heard the name before. He was an impressive knight as far as she knew.

"Alastor, this is my new personal guard, Sir Gwyn," Harry said, pointing towards her.

"Let me look," Alastor said, turning his surly face to her.

"He does not speak," King Harry informed him.

"That's good, some of them talk a little too much, especially the young ones," Alastor said with a gruff chuckle. "How old are you?"

Ginny lifted her hands, flashing all fingers twice and then raising one finger.

"Twenty-one, that is pretty young too," Alastor commented. He walked around her with surprising ease considering he was missing the lower half of one leg. The prosthetic did not seem to slow him down. "Good posture."

Ginny felt him move and she pulled out her sword and barred Alastor's sword. The old guard looked impressed.

"Quick reflexes. Constant vigilance." He nodded approvingly. "Regulus knows how to pass on his talents." He looked at her directly. "If there are any details to know, I will brief you beforehand. I will let the guards know that when it comes to the King's safety, they should follow your lead if I am not there."

Ginny was surprised she was trusted with that responsibility right off the bat but she had been handling pages and squires long enough to take that on. She nodded, confirming she had heard him.

Harry watched as the knight stood, unmoving. Harry dismissed Alastor and gestured to the knight to come with him. He walked a few metres and then turned to his knight.

"You are off for the rest of the day, feel free to get to know the castle. I promise it isn't too confusing once you get the hang of it. You'll be tracking me most of the time and I do know my way around so it is not like you'll get lost." He smiled at his comment, left to guess whether the knight found that funny.

He was about to dismiss him but then added one more thing. "One of the guards, Ernest, he'll attempt to test you. Shouldn't be an issue for you I suspect but thought I'd warn you." He wasn't why he was telling the knight this. He just felt a kind of kinship with this knight he could not quite place and he wanted him to have a good start. "Thank you. You start tomorrow around 8."

Harry watched as the knight bowed his head and then turned on his heels and walked off. He had been very impressed that Gwyn had been able to bar Alastor's attack; at least half his guards had failed such a test. It immediately made him feel secure with the knight's abilities. At the very least it would be some improvement to his safety.

Gwyn moved away and rounded the corner so soundlessly that it would have seemed he may have simply disappeared if Harry had not been watching. He wished he could talk to the knight, ask him where he came from, and what he had done previously but Regulus had made it clear, the knight would not talk. Harry nodded to himself, trying to accept the fact and returned to his office, still pondering his new knight.

Ginny walked around until she found the kitchens. She had learned that sneaking in there at odd times gave her the best chance of being ignored or undetected. She walked through it, grabbed a bread roll and settled in a dark corner before opening her visor to nibble on it.

It was quiet in this part of the kitchen and so she relaxed a bit as she enjoyed the bread roll. It was freshly baked and still slightly warm. She was used to a wide variety of foods by now, but she suspected a royal castle would have excellent food.

Someone walked towards her corner and she closed her visor even though her face was hidden in the shadow. When she moved, the person looked up. It was one of the cooks, a middle-aged woman with a friendly face.

"Oh, hi there!" she greeted Ginny. "Didn't mean to scare you!"

She shook her head, trying to assure the cook she was alright.

"You must be the new knight!" she said.

News sure travelled fast in this castle.

"You shouldn't be eating like that. Take that helmet off and sit at the table, I will get you one of the cloaks with a big hood, if you don't want to show your face."

And the woman walked off. Ginny was quite surprised by the kindness she was being shown. It was in such stark contrast with her last assignment.

The woman came back with the cloak and handed it to her. She pulled it over her head and then carefully took her helmet off in the shadows while the woman busied herself with some vegetables. Ginny walked towards the table and sat down with her piece of bread.

"There's fresh pudding as well, would you like some?"

She nodded and the woman disappeared once again. A moment later, a bowl of pudding was placed in front of her.

"I am Lucretia, you must be Gwyn?" she asked in a friendly tone.

Ginny nodded. She took the spoon and put some pudding into her mouth. It was so incredibly sweet and delicious. She immediately took another spoonful. She looked at Lucretia from under her hood, who nodded approvingly.

"You knights use a lot of energy, have to feed you well!" she commented, returning to her vegetables, slicing them quickly. "I'll set some food apart for you if you want to come in later."

When Ginny finally returned to her chamber, she was quite overwhelmed by the warm welcome she had received. No one seemed particularly bothered by the fact she didn't take her helmet off nor talked. The king seemed a little intrigued by it but he had not pressed on the matter either.

Ginny listened intently as she heard King Henry enter his chambers. She could hear him walking around as he got ready for bed. Only when she was certain he was in bed, did she start to change. She slipped on her nightshirt and took her dagger out and tucked it under the pillow, keeping her fingers on the hilt.

She woke up from every noise, every sound foreign, and so when she finally stepped out of bed, she did not feel well-rested. This was however mitigated by the fact that this was looking to be her best assignment yet.