From Crime To Court

Chapter 18

▪️A L E S S I O▪️

"Holy fuck..." I muttered under my breath.

The moonlit path back towards the tournament grounds stretched endlessly, each step resonating with the weight of revelations that had shattered my understanding of Sereno. I knew that my squire harboured secrets, but the truth I now faced was beyond my wildest imagination.

Never in my wildest dreams could I have fathomed that one of those concealed mysteries was the revelation that he was, in fact, a woman.

A few minutes later, we were safely ensconced within the sanctuary of my pavilion, the clamour of the tournament area and its jubilant celebrations fading into oblivion. The vibrant tapestry of the outside world ceased to matter as I stood there, my gaze fixated on Serena.

Her disguise, meticulously crafted for survival in the world of knights and squires, had crumbled away, laying bare the woman beneath. Shock held me captive while I grappled with the enormity of the truth of who she really was, leaving me caught between the reverberations of the past and the uncharted territory of our shared future.

"Serena..." I murmured, the name catching in my throat like an unfamiliar melody.

For so long, the echo of "Sereno" had rolled off my tongue effortlessly, a name woven into the fabric of our shared secrets and whispered confidences. Saying her real name felt like traversing unfamiliar terrain, each syllable an unexplored path that seemed to carry the weight of revelation.

Now, as the truth unveiled itself, the simple act of uttering her true name felt strangely foreign, as if I had unknowingly become entangled in a web of deception spun by the alias we had both grown accustomed to.

The shift from Sereno to Serena marked not just a disclosure of gender but an unravelling of the carefully crafted identity we had forged together. The pavilion, once a sanctuary, now echoed with the unfamiliar cadence of truth, and I stood there, grappling with the realization that our shared journey had taken an unexpected turn.

"Yes?" she responded, her voice a gentle tug that pulled me my thoughts.

I shook my head and remained quiet, opting to retract the words that had poised themselves on the tip of my tongue.

A heavy silence descended upon us, the unspoken words hanging in the air like a haunting melody. My emotions waged war within me, torn between the love I had felt for Sereno and the reality of the elaborate charade.

Serena looked at me, the vulnerability in her gaze mirroring the soft parting of the coat that she wore. Unlike other times in the past, she made no effort to hide her body this time. For a heartbeat, I allowed myself to take in the details that had eluded me until now. Finally, I spoke, my voice a mere whisper in the quiet.

"Listen..." I said gently, "The mystery surrounding you has always intrigued me, but this revelation, I honestly don't know what to make of all of this."

"I never meant to keep you in the dark," she admitted softly. "It was my way of trying to navigate a world that wouldn't understand me. But now, I fear the consequences of this truth."

As Serena's soft admission hung in the air, I stood there, a contemplative expression etched on my face. Even though I tried, I was unable to formulate words that could adequately convey the maelstrom of thoughts cascading through my mind.

With a shake of my head, I stepped away, offering her a moment of solitude to refresh herself with a quick bath and a change of clothes.

The decision to grant her privacy was rooted in a desire to honour the delicate balance of our connection. The subtle echoes of water and the rustle of fabric from behind the closed flap played like a delicate melody, one that taunted me.