The Thieving knight (Book 3)

The silver night (6/12)

 "Whoa!" exclaimed Galahad. The space was full of different food. There were pieces of meat, hams, salamis, and sausages hanging around the walls. The shelves were full of various fruits and vegetables. Many of them were foreign to him. "What is this?" he picked a big oval piece that had a green-yellow-red peel.

"It's called mango and it's a fruit."

"How do you eat it?" He was checking it, not sure if he can take a bite.

"First, you have to peel it," Mephiles took the fruit and used his tentacles to get rid of it. "Then it's better to cut it into smaller pieces so it's easier to chew." Galahad was watching him do it and was amazed. He knew so much about it.

"How did you obtain it?" he asked, once he put the bowl, he found here, down letting Mephiles to put the cut pieces inside. He immediately started to eat, enjoying the new taste.

"I think I picked it during my travels some century ago."

Galahad's face turned pale and he slowly gulped. "A century? But... But..." He looked at the fruit. It tasted so fresh.

Mephiles chuckled a bit. "Eat what you want, there is a spell on this room that keeps everything fresh."

"Really?" When Galahad thought about it a bit, it sure was strange there was nothing rotten as this wasn't the ideal place to conserve the foodstuff. He slowly ate and once he finished it, he checked other stuff here. He was actually interested in the fruits more than in the meat itself.

He also found the rice fascinating. Mephiles even knew how to cook it... or like he knew how to prepare anything here. He explained he learned it from different people. Thinking about it now, he was surprised he actually cared enough... instead of to kill them and be done with it.

The late breakfast was tasty. Once it was over, Mephiles left, letting the knight explore the place to his heart's content. He truly wondered around finding pieces of stone and other stuff. What surprised him was the stones were slowly turning into an ash. Such process should take centuries at best.

At the lunch he returned to the supply room, getting something to eat and drink a tea. He could try the vine, but he hated the taste. The meal was good, but he felt lonely when Mephiles wasn't with him. He shook his head. 'I shouldn't be missing my enemy.' He finished his meal, going back to the garden. There he felt at ease. He could endlessly walk, discover flowers and other plants. During his time as a squire, he was ridiculed by other for showing interest in flowers.

Before he noticed it, the night slowly fell down. He actually noticed the light here turned dim and when he checked the outside it was corresponding to the real sky. When he came here for the first time it was shining during the night as well. 'Did he adjust it so I could sleep?'

Tho he was tired, he didn't want to sleep. There was this one thing on his mind, that kept bugging him. He headed back to the treasury room, not taking into account the hills of riches all around. His target was the gown. It was still there. He gulped, feeling his blood to rush into his limbs.

He looked around, checking the area, but the coast was clear. He quickly put down his clothes and with the help of his psychic powers he put the dress on. He felt blush burning his face and he felt even more of it while watching himself in the mirror, putting a tiara in his quills. He looked like a princess.

He tried to do a curtsy, then he looked at himself from different angles, even smiling a bit. He did few dancing steps, finally feeling at ease. He lifted his skirt making few spins, the sleeves fluttered around him. He made few more spins before stopping and seeing his excited face.

He came closer to the mirror, touching its cold surface. He lowered his head. A tear appeared in his eye and a gentle dark hand wiped it away. He jerked, jumping to the side, stepping on the hem of the dress losing a balance. Mephiles' tentacles shielded him from the fall, catching him in the midair.

The knight covered his face, being redder than any time before. He curled up, shaking like crazy.

"Why are you so scared?" asked the not so devilish knight, touching his arms. It was supposed to soothe him, but he got even more scared, curling even more. He petted his quills, feeling his body is still shaking.

"Don't I just disgust you?"

"Why?"

"A knight is wearing a dress..." he voice was so silent.

"You are beautiful," he gently touched his quills.

Galahad slowly peeked out, blushing. He averted his eyes, remembering a certain memory from his childhood. He was sent to knight school to learn how to be a proper knight. He started like a page before he could be the squire. From his class, he was the weakest looking and so they started to bully him.

Once they dragged him out behind the school and forced to wear a servant's dress. They made him look into a mirror, laughing at him he is just like a girl. He stared at himself... finding... it pleasing. Before he could understand what he felt, a teacher caught them. All of them were punished, but especially Galahad for letting them do it. The teachers were getting tough with them so they could be splendid knights.

The image got blurry, reminding him how often he dreamed of being a woman, not having to use weapons and being nice and pretty. Galahad looked back at Mephiles, revealing his face a bit, putting his arms down.