"I will answer, Iyana. Ask me anything you wish." Why was he using big words now? And flowery sentences? Maybe, when he answered her question she was so embarrassed to ask, she would answer his question. Perhaps he already knew the answer. But he could see that this question was not a thing she normally liked to discuss, and it pained her to even ask this of a person.
"What status are you, good Keldf? Are you commoner? And if you are, what are you of that?" Well, there it was. She had asked the question in a less insulting way than 'Are you a thief?'. Because asking a question like that would not only destroy the connection they seemed to have, but dishonor them both.
Well, now Keldf knew that Iyana was not a village woman. No one from the town would call their fellow citizens 'commoners'. "I am a commoner. A common…" he gulped, having to say this in front of the woman he so readily claimed loyalty to in his mind, "thief, I believe the word is." There. Out with it and now he was definitely about to leave. He stood up. "I thank you for speaking to me, Iyana."
"Why are you leaving?" Just because he was a thief didn't mean he wasn't a good person. Well, in her way of being raised, it did. But she can change the way she thinks if she wants. She had to be open minded. She had to be!
The touch of her hand on his arm had never left, but now it seemed comforting in a strange sort of way. "Why am I leaving? Because I know I should not be here. Because if anyone finds me with you, they will lock me up so only a pardon from the King himself can free me." He smiled at her and began walking away.
Iyana grabbed his hand and squeezed it. "Why do you believe that?" He must recognize her, she realized. He must know that she is royalty, otherwise why would he say something like that? But she didn't want him to know; she wanted to talk with someone without having them feel obligated to tolerate her. But this man seemed to like her well enough. She still didn't want to ruin it all by admitting she was going against her father, the king's, word.
"Because I know you are not a villager. You are some kind of noble, I know, for some reason I can see it. Iyana, I cannot stay. You must understand." He hated saying those words. He despised the words and hated his lips for letting them pass.
"No." It was plain enough. No. She didn't want him to go. He was the closest thing to a friend that she had ever had and she wasn't about to loose him now. But when you are with a friend, do you always have the urge to hold them close? And she hardly knew this man.
"Dear Iyana," he couldn't believe he was speaking this way. A moment ago, he had been a thief, enjoying the marketplace because that was the prime place for money that people would not miss as much. "I must. As I said, if a guard was to find me with a noble--and since you do not deny it, I am assuming it is true--, I will be sent to the royal dungeon where only the King could save me."
"No, you will not." She didn't know why she wanted him to stay so badly. She should probably be running away from this man in fear, yet the tenderness in his eyes conveyed that he would never harm her, no matter what she did to him. Not that she would do anything; violence wasn't her way. "I cannot let you leave without knowing I will see you again." Now she felt foolish for speaking out like that.
When it came to women, Keldf really had no clue what was going on in their minds. "How can you deny that I will be sent to the dungeons? Iyana, I have been to prisons and escaped--" Why was he saying this? Was he trying to scare her away? "And I know these things. Only a royal word could save me. And as for seeing you again, Iyana. You know I cannot. You know that, and don't think I don't want it otherwise." Why was he speaking like that? Why was he being so cruel? He could see it in her eyes that she truly did not want him to leave. "I'm sorry."
"They could not keep you, Keldf." She took a deep breath and chose her next sentence carefully so as not to directly imply her heritage. "I would not let them."
"You cannot go against the law." He sat back down and that seemed to please her. At least, maybe, she would forgive him for his cruelty.
Iyana sighed. "Where will you be? Will you stay in the city always? Or do you travel?"
"I travel, mostly, Iyana. To stay in one place is too dangerous." He wished he didn't have to leave. But Keldf knew that staying was certain death or imprisonment for the rest of his life in a dank cell, never to see the light of day.
"But you must stay in the city longer. And you can visit me--though I don't know how much you'd think of it considering--" she stopped herself. She was going to finish: 'how much you don't want to get in trouble just for being seen in the same park with me, thinking I'm just an ordinary noble'. She left the sentence hang, for she could not think of a proper way of answering that.
They were silent for a very long time.
Keldf decided he was just going to say it. He had spent his whole life being blunt and he wasn't about to start avoiding things just because his stomach did gymnastics in front of a woman. But it was a lot harder saying it that he thought it would have been. "My loyalty is to you." That was all he could manage to choke out. Her reaction seemed to show that Keldf had said something wrong.
Iyana was taken aback. He had just pledged loyalty to her? What did that mean? Did that...? She didn't need to finish that though. "Keldf, I must see you tomorrow. May we meet somewhere near the castle's main tower?"
Keldf's eyes widened. "You live near the main tower?" She must be higher up than he had originally though.
"Will you meet me there?" She could think of a few places to meet him where they wouldn't be seen and it wouldn't seem as if that is where she had come from.
"Of course I will, Iyana." His loyalty was to her, of course. But why near the main tower? There was no more dangerous a place than the main tower, and he was sure Iyana knew it. But why would she choose that spot unless she lived in or near there?
Iyana smiled. "I will be outside the North Gate at midnight." That seemed like a safe time. The Night Watch would be at the South Gate by then, and they could sneak somewhere before the guards' rounds took them near the North. "Will you be there?"
"Yes, dear Iyana. I will be there." He didn't know what he was getting into, and he probably didn't want to know. What was this woman trying to do? She was dragging him into the most dangerous part of the city for him, but he couldn't say no. He just couldn't. Well, no harm done unless he was caught. But she would defend him, he was sure.
"I will see you there, then, Keldf. I am looking forward to it." And she truly was.
"As am I." Again, he looked into her eyes and held her hand. Then, he stood up. "But I truly must be going, regretfully. I will see you tonight."
"Tonight," she repeated and smiled a warm smile. She could hardly wait.
Then, he let go of her hand and slowly walked away, thinking over what kind of situation he had just put himself into. For once in his life, he smiled for no apparent reason other than that he was alive.
That afternoon--it was nearly evening, Iyana was catching up on her history lessons while she overheard the guards' talk outside of her door. They normally talked, and sometimes it was rather informative. She really was only listening with one ear while her full mind was paying attention to her lessons.
They had been adding more security as of late, and Iyana really didn't understand why. She only hoped that it wouldn't hinder her midnight meeting with Keldf. Because she knew that he knew that she knew that if he was caught, he could be thrown in prison or killed for being seen with her.
