The Red Cape

IX.

"Hunter."

Rose's voice echoed softly across the room from where she was sitting, on a beautiful bench with a blue, velvet top, in the middle of a lovely sitting room. It had large, tall windows overlooking the kingdom.

Hunter was seated on a sofa that had an identical pair across from it, and two armchairs beside it, all furnished with silver and blue velvet. There was a big rug in the middle of the room with intricate designs woven into it.

There were two benches backed against the two walls, one of which Rose was seated upon, and a wide set armoire with a mirror hung above it against another wall. There were two doors that led to separate bed chambers; as they were told.

"Hunter, please," Rose's voices echoed again, "Speak to me."

But, he didn't respond. He was staring at the floor beneath him, his elbows rested upon his knees and his hands in fists on the sides of his face.

Rose arose from the bench and walked to where Hunter was sitting. Her shoes tapped the crystal floors as she stepped. She sat beside Hunter, and reached her hand out, as though to put it around his shoulder, but withdrew it and turned away.

"Why?" Hunter said after a few moments.

"What?" Rose turned her face toward him suddenly.

"Why did you have to lie?" Hunter asked her, lifting his head to face her, "After I told you nothing but the truth? And how do you know the king? Was the two of us getting captured part of this grand plan of yours." He huffed and turned away from her.

"I'm sorry, I-"

"How do I know I can trust you if I don't even know you?" Hunter interrupted her.

"You don't want to know me," Rose warned.

"See, that's where you're wrong." Hunter said. "I do."

"Then I'll tell you," Rose said.

"Tell me what?"

"The truth."

Hunter nodded.

Rose took a deep breath and began, "I was born in the Kingdom of Eserèe. I lived in the village with my parents and my brother. Do you know of the draft in Eserèe?"

Hunter shook his head.

"When Queen Noire came to power, she creates a draft for all the children in the village to be recruited and trained to be in the army she was building by fourteen years of age. Boys and girls." She brushed a bit of hair behind her ear. "My parents- they didn't want my brother and I to join. They hated Queen Noire- everyone did. They knew the danger we were to face if we joined. They also knew the penalty for disobeying the law.

"They found ways around it, and it worked for about two years after my brother had reached fourteen. Once I had though, they couldn't protect me. The Queen found me and then, even worse, she found that my brother had been evading the draft through my parents' protection. So, she killed them." Rose wiped a tear from her cheek, "My brother and I were trained to fight, though I didn't see him often, Queen Noire separated us. I was furious with her, as you can probably imagine. I wanted her dead, but I couldn't have that, so I stole from her supply of riches she kept in the vaults below her castle, to make her angry."

"That's where you got the crystal you gave to King Alexander," Hunter realized, "And the Quols."

Rose nodded. "She caught me a few times, and punished me severely. She hated me more than any other soldier in her regime. Four years later, when I was eighteen, I was sent into battle. My brother had been sent two years before me. And I wasn't even sure he was still alive then, I hadn't seen him since the year before. When I was sent into battle, the mission was conquer a near by kingdom, because, as you know, Queen Noire is always looking to expand her reign," Rose said bitterly.

"I didn't want to follow the mission whatsoever, I was filled with desire for vengeance, so I snuck to the castle. The Queen's brother was there, sitting in one of the rooms with her. He had been depriving the villagers of food and provisions to gain more money for himself and his wretched sister. I climbed up to the terrace and shot him with my bow and arrow through the window and killed him," Rose took a shaky breath, "The Queen found me on the terrace and captured me. She kept me down in the dungeon, not bringing me food or water and torturing me in raging fits. I was almost dead. Then, my brother rescued me. He took me to Castelle, where there was the secret camp of the Resistance, the rebellion of Queen Noire. My brother had already joined, soon, I did too. We then trained and developed battle strategies and battled, to work to overthrow Queen Noire..."she faded.

"How come you aren't there still?" Hunter asked softly.

Rose paled, "Queen Noire found me again and kidnapped me. I eventually outwitted the guards at her palace and escaped. Then I found you," she looked at Hunter and took a deep breath. "I'm sorry I lied to you, Hunter, I should never have done that, I don't know what I would have done without-"

Hunter pulled her close to him and pressed his lips to hers, and kissed her.

They finally broke apart, and Hunter broke into a smile.

"Apology accepted," he said.

Rose smiled softly and kissed him again.

"I was only trying to protect you," she said.

"Never try to protect me again," Hunter warned jokingly.

"I'll make no promises," Rose responded, "Except that I won't lie to you."

Hunter nodded, "Good."

He leaned in to kiss her again, but Rose turned away.

"We need to stop, we leave at dawn," Rose said.

"Alright," Hunter got up from the sofa and then bent down and kissed Rose on the cheek.

"Goodnight," he said softly into her ear.

"Goodnight," she responded, then also rose from the sofa and walked into her bed chamber.