The RHPK

Chapter 9- Run, Run, Run

Chapter 9- Run, Run, Run

When the Pink Knight finally awoken from her long, painful slumber, she was greeted by the merchant Paul and the blacksmith Samuel. They were discussing something about swords and about when Paul was going to return to the mountains to sell some goods. The RHPK rubbed her aching head and sat up straight to look around. It was the castle infirmary, where many doctors and nurses raced around, tending to injured soldiers.

"'Mornin'," Samuel said, smirking.

The Pink Knight gawked at him. Paul smiled and gave her a warm look.

"Glad you're up. We got some fruit," the merchant said, holding up a basket filled with grapes, apples, and berries. She took it and stared at the fruit in awe. She had never received anything like that before, and she was instinctively groping around where her pocket usually was to get some pic.

"Pic," she said, still trying to reach for some. They both laughed.

"It's a gift, Pink Knight," Samuel teased. She looked at them strangely.

Paul frowned. "Like, for free," he said.

"Free?" she asked.

"You don't pay for it."

"Oh."

"So, y' wanna explain what happened?" Samuel asked.

"A Fur Clan soldier punched me in the rib and I hit a tree with my back," she said bluntly.

"But everyone was dead," Paul retorted.

"I killed them after the punch. And one was alive, but he ran away."

"How exactly? Your injuries are pretty serious."

"I don't know."

Paul started to ponder over how someone-- even someone as powerful as the Pink Knight-- could possibly cause such destruction with injuries such as the ones she had.

They sat in silence as Paul and Samuel thought about how she managed to kill all those Fur Clan soldiers.

The Pink Knight didn't really care as long as she managed to take them down.  She just sat and watched their scrunched up faces as they cogitated. 

"When can I leave?" the RHPK asked mindlessly. Their attention turned back to her with confused expressions.

"Not anytime soon. You're badly injured," Paul said.

"But the princesses--"

"The King is putting his best soldiers on the job."

"No..." 

"That's good for ya, ain't it?" Samuel asked, raising an eyebrow and taking an apple from the fruit basket.

The Pink Knight wiped away two tears from her cheek and curled her trembling fingers around a peach. She turned the fuzzy fruit over in her hands before taking a small bite out of it. The sweet and tangy juice flowed into her mouth and dripped down her chin as she devoured the peach. 

When she finished her fruit, she looked at the pit. 

"What does this do?" she asked quietly, holding up the seed. 

"It's a peach seed that grows new peaches," Paul said.

She dropped it on the wooden floor and watched it fall between the gaps in the wooden planks. Going on her quest seemed like the most important thing at that moment.

"I want to leave," she said, munching on a ripe red strawberry. Paul shook his head.

"Kid, ya can't leave. What's so important, eh?" Samuel asked.