Within three days, Natasha had improved enough to leave her bed. Darius gave her a new set of clothes, and she was able to wander the corridors and gardens by herself. But the one thing that troubled her was Darren's absence. Since the morning when she'd first awoken in Oxford, she had not seen Darren at all. It was as if her rescuer had simply disappeared.She had asked Darius where his son could be, but Darius had no answer. Darren was gone without a trace.
Natasha desired to speak with Darren again, and properly thank him for saving her life. But she also just wanted to see the handsome boy once more. She could not explain it, but she felt a deep connection to Darren, either forged by the lifesaving bond or some other power. She knew that Darren was someone special. Someone she had to see again.
It wasn't until the sixth day after Natasha had recovered that Darren returned to Oxford. He rode up the same path where Natasha had been found, dragging a net filled with the heads of orcs behind him. All twenty of them.
'Here are your orcs!' he called to Natasha. 'I found them hiding out in a cave not far from here.'
Natasha stared in surprise, eyes going wide. 'You killed... all of them by yourself?'
'I cannot let such dangerous creatures roam free in our lands,' Darren replied. 'And I did it for you. They nearly killed you. I do not want anything like that to happen again.'
Natasha could feel her heart pounding as Darren spoke. Darren killed those orcs... for her. Before she could stop herself, she leapt at Darren and threw her arms around his neck, kissing the brave boy on the cheeks.
Darren laughed in surprise, but did not pull away. 'What was that for?'
'Just a thank you,' Natasha said. She smiled, but when she saw the suddenly serious look in Darren's eyes, the smile faded. 'What is wrong?' She asked, worried.
'Natasha,'said Darren, 'I have to confess something to you. That first morning you were here... I thought you were so beautiful. I wanted to kiss you then, but I did not know how you would react.
Natasha gasped in shock. 'Kiss... me?'
'I told myself I must not, because of the terrible ordeal you had just suffered. It was not the right time. But these past few days while I was gone, I could think only of you the entire time. And now...'
'Darren...' Natasha sighed his name. 'I thought about you too. All the time, while you were gone. I was worried I would never see you again.'
Darren lifted his hand to gently stroke Natasha on the cheek. 'I am sorry I ran off like that. I should have said something to you.'
Taking a deep breath, Natasha said, 'Darren, there is something I have been considering over the past several days. I think we were meant to find each other. What happened to me... it was no accident of fate. I was meant to come here. You were meant to rescue me.'
A bright smile broke across Darren's face as soon as Natasha had spoken. 'You know,' he said, 'I had been thinking the same thing! That night when I found you I had been worried an unable to think. Some strange power led me out to the terrace, and that was when I saw you.'
Natasha took Darren's hand. 'So you think... we are meant to be together?'
'I have no doubt of it.' Slowly, Darren leaned in and kissed Natasha softly on the lips. 'I love you,' he whispered.
'I love you too, Darren,' Natasha whispered in return.
