Bittersweet

Chapter 1: Snow White Girl

Kevin Regnard had taken Sir Sinclair's youngest daughter out to town on his master's orders, the little girl holding his hand and smiling brightly as the two of them walked around. Kevin himself was smiling slightly, content with there being no imminent danger. Then something -no, someone caught his eye. A pale girl who looked about sixteen had snitched a few apples from the fruit vendor, the merchant manning the stand yelling angrily at her as she ran off with a light and lovely laugh. He supposed the two guards who had heard the commotion would catch her as an excuse to dutifully watch over the Sinclair child. As she flitted out of his sight behind some corner, he had the oddest feeling he would see her again.

"Kevin. Kevin, what are you staring at?" the young Sinclair girl asked, tugging at his sleeve. Kevin looked down at her and smiled reassuringly.

"Nothing. Are you ready to return home?" Kevin replied.

"Yes! I'd like to see Father again," the girl chirped.

-- --
The girl ran off as soon as she had taken six apples from the fruit vendor, laughing as the one manning it yelled at her to return the fruit immediately. Two guards had heard the commotion and shouted for her to stop as they started to chase after her. As she ran off, her silver eyes caught sight of a man with a little girl. He was looking at her differently from the other commoners, as if he would chase after her had he not been with the little girl by his side and was adamant in his duty. As she flitted out of his sight and lost sight of him in the process, she had the feeling she would see him again.

"Can't catch me! Can't catch me!~" she sang at the guards chasing her. She skirted round another corner and the two guards were baffled by her disappearance when they had seen she was not there. She gave a silent giggle in amusement as she stared down at them from the roof. When they'd left, she hopped down and made her merry way to her intended destination with the apples.

-- --
Kevin let a sigh slip past his lips. The image of that girl stealing the fruit was fresh in his mind still and he found that he didn't want to forget her. His lips now formed a thin line as he silently scolded himself; as a knight serving the Sinclair household, he shouldn't be thinking these things.

"Kevin, is something the matter? You seem occupied in thought," Sir Roman Sinclair, his master, said. He snapped out of his thoughts and looked to his master.

"No, Sir. Nothing is the matter," Kevin answered. A lie, he'd lied, but it was a half truth. Nothing was exactly the matter, as he'd said, but he was troubled that he could not stop thinking of that girl when he had a job to do. Besides, he tried to reason with himself, a knight should not take interest in a thief.

"Why don't you go take a walk. Relax a little," Roman ordered. Kevin's eyes widened.

"Sir, are you sure?" he asked. Roman nodded.

"Quite sure. You seem troubled, and I believe taking a walk on your own would do to relieve some stress," his master said.

"But will you and the family be all right without me? What if something happens while I'm gone?" Kevin argued. Roman chuckled.

"It's all right, Kevin. You needn't be so worried. Go, relax a little for once," he said.

"Yes, Sir," Kevin complied a bit reluctantly, bowing his head. He then left.

-- --
The girl had reached where she'd been headed and sighed happily. Her smile was contagious as she approached the five children. Their eyes brightened at the sight of her and they ran up to her. All five children resembled each other in appearance, all five were dirty with frayed clothes, all five were also orphaned. The white-haired, silver-eyed girl didn't like how others looked at such children. She felt this way because she knew what it was like to be judged without being known.