𝑡𝑖𝑙𝑙 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑏𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑘 𝑜𝑓 𝑑𝑎𝑤𝑛 | 𝐆𝐈𝐋𝐀𝐍 𝐃𝐀𝐕𝐈𝐃𝐒𝐎𝐍

17⋆☾⋆Cupid's arrow

Like a cat waiting to pounce on its prey, I lurked behind the kitchen window, to see my matchmaking unfold. George and I had been working on the letter yesterday evening and had agreed to meet here today around lunch time, so I could jump in if he needed saving.

The lurky boy wrung his hands nervously as he stood by the kitchen door, waiting for all the other kitchen staff to go out for their second meal of the day. Jenny was always last he'd told me, because she was quickly finishing this or that. With a small blueberry tart she came running to the apprentice scribe and stuffed it in his mouth. He didn't look at all surprised, just mesmerized by the taste. Smelling all of the amazing waves of scents coming from the kitchens, the freshly baked bread, the cakes, the cookies, it made my own regrettably empty stomach growl as well. This morning I hadn't been able to get anything in, the pain of Gilan's absence too present. The flower, he'd always put up in the morning, had started to wither reminding me of how long he'd been gone.

At least those two clueless teenagers, clearly love drunk on eachother, gave me something to fuss about. And it was obvious, so obvious when I saw them together that the two were head over heels for each other. Her little unsure smile while she waited for him to finish chewing gave her away.

"Jenny, how do you do it? Everytime I come in here your cooking gets better, it's music in my mouth! An angel come from heaven grazing my tongue." George mused, looking at the tart as if it were her.

The blonde girl blushed. "Oh stop it, you're just being dramatic," she poked him in the ribs, "they've made you too talkative."

Her gaze fell onto the little book George had in the hand hidden behind his back. Light sparkled in her blue eyes. She swiftly swooped it out and started reading it with her back to him, so he wouldn't be able to reconquer it so soon. "What is this? Your notes?"

Oh the poor George, his cheeks flushed red as fresh strawberries. He shot me a panicked look, because this wasn't according to plan. As she flipped through the pages her grin froze.

"These are all of my recipes," Jenny twirled around, her breath stocking as she beheld all the neatly written instructions she'd told George. That boy was a living miracle, that he'd been able to recall almost all of it. Tears slid down her ivory cheeks and she slammed a hand over her mouth as she read the letter.

I allowed myself to be proud of the letter I'd contributed to. George had just wanted to write 'I love you', but I made him do an essay on why he loves her. Just seemed like that would jerk more emotion, but I had compromised as well because I'd allowed him to still put in those three words at the end as an conclusion.

Through her sobs she sometimes laughed and when she was finished she flung her arms around his neck. For a moment George was completely floored and overwhelmed with so much contact with his love, but in the end he grasped her tightly and buried his face in her neck.

Jenny grabbed his hands and stood on her tip toes as her gaze flickered to his lips. Apparently the confidence talk I'd given the young scribe had worked, because he was the one to close the space in between them.

⋆☾⋆

"Shit. Shit shit shit." Gilan cursed, enclosing the hand of the young woman and yanking her with him.

For the longest time they'd stood in the shadows, not moving, watching the ritual of blood. All that time there had been no indication any of the nine sentinels had any idea of them. But then the leader had smiled drunkenly, the only part of her that was visible her lips, spoken clear as day: "We are grateful for our extra guests."

The two Rangers hadn't known how quickly they had to bolt out of there, the taller one dragging his female apprentice behind him. They sprinted up the flights of stairs, coming into the ruins of a once mighty sinner's church. They pushed through the large crowd to the sides, Gilan already having spotted a hiding place. He pulled her into one of the few things that was still standing which was a dark oaken confessional. There was no seat, only limited space which pressed the two against each other, because the tall man took up most of the room.

Their hearts pounded loud enough for the other to hear. Their gazes glued to the deep leafy colored curtain, the only shield the two had against the sharp daggers from the shouting warriors. And the sole other protection Gilan could think up was one he'd longed for longer than he'd liked to admit.

The girl's hands shook so heavily he decided to take her face into his hands and make her meet his green eyes. Theirs was a look shared by lovers in peril. There was so much dread in hers, but he knew that it was also readable in his, because she hung her arms around his neck and wanted to lay their heads against each other in a last eternal touch.

That wasn't his idea, because he pulled her chin up in stead and made their mouths meet, just as the veil was ripped open. A short apology was mumbled to them, but the two didn't hear it. They drowned in the other's lips like two ships at war, a collision of warmth in a sea of ice. Her breath got stuck in her lungs as she fed on his that roamed freely. Though their eyes remained closed, their hearts were wide open when a bond snapped in place, making them forever long to return to the other.

Only to keep from sinking to the bottom the young Ranger pulled apart, still gazing into her eyes. And she stared back, fearing for the amount of love in his eyes she felt wasn't just. He rasped his throat, his look flickering like candle to her lips. Just for one moment more he told himself. He allowed himself just one more chance to behold the other instrument that had made their symphony as he pursed his own.

He hadn't missed that fear, but mistook it for discomfort. "I'm sorry," he hurried out, silently cursing himself for being such an idiot.

The female followed, laying a hand on his bicep. "It's all right, I know you didn't mean anything by it. It actually saved our asses, I should be on my knees for you right now, actually."

What she hadn't seen was that the Ranger's face had flushed crimson red, his mind completely going blank.

⋆☾⋆

Smiling at the puppy love and satisfied that cupid's arrow had struck, I left the castle. Once he was ready George would come to me to gush about his new relationship, that I was sure of. A moment regret flickered in my heart that I didn't have anyone to talk to when I'd first gone further with my tall Ranger. It didn't really last long enough for me to have talked to it about to a girlfriend, but still it figured it might've been nice. Vacker had always been undecided about, only worried that it might interfere with her charming on Gilan to get more apples.

From atop the hill Redmont stood on, Wensley stretched out far and I was able to oversee every house and barn. Also the one I'd grown up in that seemed so abandoned then. Not that it had ever been a well of life, the opposite was true with the two headstones next to it. I racked my brain to find something that could help me find that what was left of my family. My father wasn't from here, I was sure of that, but my mother came from a nearby village. Which one I didn't know, though there was a small memory of visiting an older man in a manor by the river. Think think think, which?

The puzzle pieces fell together.

A/N:

As promised to SeleneStrange1705 and Fallentomydeath, a first kiss. Ahaha if you thought it would be in the present, then you are mistaken, we are still a good few chapters away from that. Yes I do find myself funny, if anyone was wondering. Question for today will be: What's your favourite school subject?

Mine is probably English or History, both with amazing teachers, but also I'm just good at them so that motivates me more ahah. And Old Greek is definitely up there too.

Xxx. Maddie