True Knight

Chapter 10

Chapter 10:

The night had already blown through the woods, arching overhead and covering the blistering sun. They had moved locations from where the attack happened. During the move, the soldiers who were not injured used special leaves to cover their scent and they removed footprints from the ground. Though it wouldn't do much, it would cover just enough so that people of no expertise could track them down.

As the night had bore down upon them, they decided to cross the river losing their scent if anything were to chase them, only to wind up in a clearing not so far from the river that had passed. The injured soldiers were placed nearby, resting their souls for the journey ahead.

The only person awake is Ari, or so she thought.

Ari stands by the river, eyes peering out into the distant darkness. The faded light from the moon gives the shades of the shapes in the darkness a sullen mood, a dull and dark hue of blue grasping the edges of the clear cut woods. Ari closes her eyes for a moment thinking about her decisions and replaying memories until she realizes that someone was behind her.

He clears his throat slightly, presenting his presence. He doesn't know if he should be here or not, but his slight affection for her forced him to find her wherever she may be. As he nears her, she gives him a sigh as she leans against the oak tree. He decides to lean on the other side, giving her the certain space she needs. The silence between them tenses and she turns to face him.

"Do you need something?" Ari roughly says.

"No, not really."

She turns back to look at the moon. For some reason, it feels nice having him there, even if they don't talk. Even if they do talk, it wouldn't matter.

"Do you miss him?"

Shocked, she turns to look at his face. No one really knows their relationship truly, especially someone like Nathaniel.

"I know because I've seen you two. It's obvious."

"Not really." She replies slowly, the shock draining from her face.

The silence carries on. Nathaniel decides not to further his questioning and quiets his curious mind. Ari smiles with embarrassment at the first time they met but doesn't bring it up.

"The moon is beautiful." He whispers in awe.

"Yes, it most certainly is."

"Remember..."

"I remember it well." Ari cuts in.

He chuckles gently. Ari curiously gazes at him, noticing his chiseled jaw, high cheekbones with the indented dimples lying with his bright smile. His hair curves slightly around the glow behind his eyes. She looks away as he turns to look at her.

"You should get some sleep. I'll keep watch." Nathaniel gestures.

Ari doesn't reply, not wanting to argue not wanting him to think that she will agree to his command, but she knows that he doesn't think that way. She walks away into the woods back to the camp, his gaze following after until she disappears into the night.

----

There has been no trouble since the first attack. Either the attacker decided to stalk them or ran in defeat. Ari and the rest of the soldiers ride into the nearest town in seek of resupplying. Nathaniel had ordered the injured men to go into the nearest medic as the others venture to gain more supply. Units of soldiers left the party to go into the markets and were ordered to meet back at Howard's Hotel where Ari and Nathaniel are.

Nathaniel closes the door of their hotel room, several guards placed outside. He looks at Ari sitting on the big white blanketed bed, her eyes drooping and shadows enticingly smearing across her beautiful features. He thinks they make her look hauntingly beautiful, whereas others would say she looked quite featureless. Ari looks up at him, briefly meeting his eyes. She doesn't know how to feel about him. He is a stranger to her, one she has gotten to know since the day he came into her life. He was strange, yet somewhat mysteriously handsome when she had seen clarity of his full figure. It shook her spirits when they first saw each other. It almost scared her enough to resent him. The silence falls over them as usual, but their eyes never falter.

"You should rest." Nathaniel says, still standing by the door he had closed as if afraid to move closer into her presence.

Ari falls back onto the bed without a response and then shoots back up again after a while. Nathaniel pulls out his watch crested with his family crest, a possible heirloom. He then pulls out a small locket. Seeming to not have noticed Ari's calculating stares, he peers somewhat longingly at the object. She hasn't seen a look of nostalgia on his face before, despite her having not only knowing him for so long.

"What time is it?" Ari asks, slowly gaining the courage and time to ask him the question of what those items are.

Nathaniel, startled, looks at her as he shoves the locket into his pocket. He opens his pocket watch again, as if he hadn't looked at it before.

"Two before dusk."

She nods slowly, looks to the ground, and then back at him.

"You should sit. You're tired aren't you."

He licks his lips. The air is tense and he feels as though he can't stand too close to her. It's as if he lost all confidence once everyone had gone but them. It hasn't happened before, but the unrefined look in her face, the smears of dirt dripping down her clothes, and the fearless eyes of her draws him in. Nathaniel slowly walks over, the cracks of his shoes click against the wooden tiles as he slumps down onto the chair across from her. Ari follows his every movement, her eyes glancing at his figure every now and then, noticing things she hadn't before, the way his lips seem to pucker, his chiseled right jaws, and his elegant eyes. She opens her mouth to ask him a question she knew she shouldn't.

"What was that?"

"What was what?"

"That." She says, gesturing towards the pocket where he had shoved the necklace into.

Nathaniel looks intensely down, as if affected by her words. He doesn't know what to say. His cheeks flare up not from embarrassment but from anger. He isn't angry at her in particular, but of the memories of the questioned asked.

"I'm-"

A loud crash explodes from outside. Ari and Nathaniel look outside the window shocked at the incident. Flames erupt on a building across town. They can see it happening, the fumes streaming across their window and into the air. Ari scans the entire section of the town they can see. A figure in dark clothing can be seen. It dashes across the surprised and terror struck people down there. Ari snaps her eyes to Nathaniel and he does the exact same.

"Let's go."

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I'm so sorry about the no updates! It's been so hard but I'm trying to. I hope you like this chapter and please keep supporting this story! Comment and give me feedback! Thank you!