Of Kingdoms and Chaos (REWRITING)

Chapter 3

He was staring at her again. She had learned that his name was Kaynen, and that he was a bounty hunter. Almost two days had passed since he had woken up, and he had slept during most of it. He had asked her again, about his wound, but she hadn't replied. A groan from behind her made her turn from preparing the evening meal.

"How are you feeling?" she asked Kaynen, as he struggled to sit up. His wound may have been almost healed, but his body was still weak .

"I have a terrible headache, but other than that, I feel fine." he answered, and then looked at her.

"Can you give me my sword? And where are my knives?"

"Your knives are in a safe place. You don't need them right now, and the same can be said about your sword. It can stay right there, near the door." she told him, without breaking eye contact.

He looked at her with a glare, which almost made her laugh.

"I need my weapons close to me." he declared with a low voice.

"And I need your weapons away from you, at least for now."

"Do you think I will use them to hurt you?"

"I don't know, will you? You are still a stranger to me."

Kaynen sighed, and Lavelina copied him with one of her own.

"Why did you help me? You could have left me there in the stream, but you didn't. Why?" he asked, his voice almost soft and vulnerable.

"Because you needed help."

"That's it?".

"You are the first person I've seen in this forest. You were hurt, and what kind of person would I be if I had just left you there."

She could have also told him, his handsome and vulnerable face was probably also why she couldn't have just left him, but she refrained from telling him that.

"Uh, well thank you. For helping me, and not leaving me there. I owe you my life."

"You don't owe me anything. I wanted to help, and I did. End of story."

Kaynen chuckled, and it made her smile.

"I won't hurt you. I just want you to know that."

"I believe you." she replied with a grin. And she did believe him.

That evening they had a meal together, and for the first time since she was thrown out of her village, she didn't feel alone. In the beginning she had enjoyed the peace and quiet, and had not minded the times she had to eat her meals alone. But over the years, it had become more and more lonely. Even with Pikey and some of the other animals, it still somehow felt like she was missing something. He had told her about his friends, and she had laughed when he told her about his friends Azariah and Elias and his twin. They seemed like really fun people, and Lavelina found herself wishing she could meet them. She had only listened, while he did most of the talking.

"What about you? Do you have any family? Why do you live here, alone? If you don't mind me asking." he asked her, curiously.

"I uh, I'm—," she hesitated, and bit her lip.

"It's okay, you don't have to tell me."

She sighed and gave him a small smile. He return it, and she felt her heart flutter. Why did he look so good? And his smile, why did it make her feel this certain way? She knew about what happened between a man and a woman. She had heard about in her village, and when she had asked her mother, she had told her that one day, she would find someone who would love her even more than she did. Lavelina had wondered about who that would be, and now as she looked at Kaynen, she could see him as the one her mother had told her about. But that would never happen. Once he discovered what she was, and what she could do, he would be probably be repelled. The thought made her sad, and she cleared her throat.