Deception

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Madeline nodded and bent to retrieve her bow and quiver, she slung both onto her back and picked up her travel case. She smiled and took his arm, appreciating the sweet gesture. She turned her head to look at him, "yes Tanzia is a small town and not far." After this she fell silent, and turned her attention inward. She remained silent for quite a while, deep in thought. She was so lost in her thoughts, that it was not surprising when she tripped over a tree root and almost fell over. She steadied herself with Lance's arm, then turned to look at him apologetically "sorry i was daydreaming."

She turned her attention back to the present, determined not to make a fool of herself in front of Lance again. She decided to strike up a conversation, "have you ever been to Tanzia before?" She had been there many times, it was small but a thriving market town. You could get anything you needed for a fair price.

It was filled with strange people, from different neighboring kingdoms. Maddie had always loved visiting it as a child, she loved to see the bards and magicians performing on the streets. She enjoyed the stalls with their strange wares, some were beautiful others were downright creepy. Tanzia also had a few elders, old men who where said to protect the village from evil. They were also great healers, and Madeline had been interested and amazed by their vast knowledge.

She was a little worried that she'd be recognized, but she should be okay if she got out of their fast enough. Her uncle wouldn't notice her absence until at least noon, when he did he'd send guards to find her. She hoped Lance wouldn't be with her if the guards found her, they'd assume he'd either kidnapped her or convinced her to leave with him. Either way they wouldn't listen to her, and he'd be in trouble. She knew he'd leave as soon as they reached the town, but she found herself wanting him to stay a little bit longer.

She turned and smiled at him, "so where will you head once we reach Tanzia?" She asked curiously, he had said he was a wanderer and she wondered if he was from a different kingdom.
 
"Tanzia? Aye, I've been there a couple of times. For the same reason as you, actually. I've gone there for supplies and quick meals. I quite like it there..."

Lance found that he was beginning to ramble about this town. In truth, he often felt like he belonged there. The people were different and didn't always give him odd looks, since there were odd people there as well. Staring at each other usually meant there was admiration. If he didn't have to change his location so often, he'd probably even live there.

Madeline then asked where he would go after she got what she needed. There had to be a decent way of asking if he could travel with her... Otherwise, he'd have to stalk her! That was best avoided. Lance didn't like following women wherever he went. It couldn't be helped that he had a weakness for maidens and would prefer to be a gentleman.

"I... Don't know..." he answered quietly, scratching at the back of his head. "I've no place to go, really."

A sheepish smile touched his lips, his own voice going silent for a while like hers was before this conversation even started. It frustrated him that he couldn't think of anything clever to say. Somehow, he was at a loss for words.
 
Madeline smiled she had no trouble seeing Lance in the town of Tanzia, he'd fit right in. He had no place to go? I wonder why, she thought to herself as they walked. Once more they lapsed into a heavy silence, she thought hard of something to say but nothing came to mind.

She allowed herself to think of her own future, in truth she hadn't much thought were she'd go after Tanzia. She was skilled with a bow, singing and writing so she knew she'd be able to make a living but the question was where? She decided she'd have to leave Albion or risk her uncles wrath, so a whole new kingdom. She considered each kingdom, going over information she'd learned about them from her lessons. Finally she thought of one that would be perfect, at least for the time being.

The Town of in Arrilla the kingdom of Chaelundi was large, and bursting with life. It was a market town like Tanzia but it held many houses, schools, inns and even stages for entertainer to perform for the public. She knew she could have a good life there, at least until she decided what she wanted to do with her life. It was a weeks travel from Tanzia and was quite a dangerous trip, as the roads were plagued by bandits.

((My kingdom/town names are terrible! :P))

This didn't worry her too much, but.... she wouldn't say no to a little company on the road. She turned to Lance, "Lance? I was wondering if you would be so kind as to accompany me on my travel to Arrilla, that is of course if you have the time." She gave him a winning smile, "i would love the company, but i understand if you wish to decline." She said formally, but sincerely.
 
[Better than I can do. XD Thinking of town names are not easy.]

Lance would not have refused her request, but that smile made it impossible to resist. Much as he didn't want to admit it, he'd probably do a whole list of things she asked, if she ever did. He was a gentleman true and through, even to the women he disliked. Lance even made his Lord promise he'd not ask him to hurt this girl. Laying even a single finger on her with the intention of being harmful simply wasn't allowed!

"Of course, my dear!" he answered enthusiastically, to show he wasn't at all dreary about the idea. "I'll see to it you're journey is a successful one." A charming smile of his own was made, his eyes seeming to glitter with excitement.

Hopefully, escorting her would come with no inconveniences. There were other villains out there who would go to great lengths to steal something from a lady. Whoever they were, he'd valiantly defend her from them, but there were just so many obstacles on a path to some place so far away!

"Why Arrilla?" he asked curiously.
 
Madeline grinned at his eager acceptance, it looked like she wasn't the only one enjoying the others company. She blushed a little at being called my dear, "excellent thank you." She was secretly complimented that she had gotten him to say yes with just a smile, and treated him to it again. Many things could be gained with a smile, and apparently Lance's favour was one of them.

She too found herself won over by his smile, it was charming and light up his face. She loved it and hoped he'd smile like that more often, she believed that he would stay true to his word in making her journey a success. She nodded and wondered if he'd be able to keep that promise, "i hope it isn't too dangerous."

When he asked why she had chosen Arrilla, she pondered quietly for a moment. She turned to look at him and shrugged lightly, "its like a larger version of Tanzia and it has plenty of places to live and earn money." She stepped lightly over a tree root before continuing, "they have archery contests and stages for bards and poets to perform." "So i could earn a living with my bow, my writing or my singing." She said singing a little shyly, even though she had a beautiful voice she had not sung for many people.

She turned to Lance and laughed a little, "failing all those things i have a way with horses, so i could always be a stable hand." She knew it sounded funny, as it looked like she'd never done a days hard labor in her life but she was strong and certain she could handle it.
She didn't mention that the people of Arrilla would not know her as the princess of Albion, as they paid little attention to other kingdoms affairs. So she could live like a normal person, and so her uncle wouldn't find her.

Maddie stared in awe at the beautiful purple flowers that now surrounded them as they walked, she breathed in and sighed contently at their soothing scent. She realized they must be getting close to Tanzia, as these flowers grew wild along their border. She reached out to pick one, but hastily retracted her hand as she pricked her finger on a thorn. She frowned and sucked her sore finger, then she looked at Lance and smiled embarrassed "i forgot about their thorns.
 
When she mentioned danger, Lance only smiled. Nothing was ever completely safe in the world, especially if you were journeying alone to a distant location. Madeline seemed to know her way around, however he questioned her survival skills. She knew how to make a fire, probably even knew how to cook! This girl even shot a blood thirsty monster in the head. Could she stand up to a band of thieves, though? Lance knew how those fiends treated women they robbed. None of it was respectful... Just thinking about it made his blood boil.

"Singing?" he asked curiously, his smile turning smug. Perhaps it was an effort to make her feel more shy; it was rather cute. More than that, he was interested in her. She already had a beautiful voice! Hopefully, before their paths separated, he could have it be music to his ears. There was no doubt in his mind that she could make some fine tunes.

"Sounds like you've got everything all planned out," Lance then commented, impressed with how well thought out her new life was. If one thing didn't work out, she had a back up plan, and then another back up plan.

Soon, they encountered a field of flowers all coloured beautifully with purple. He watched with an amused look at she left his side to kneel to the plants, taking in their scent. Lance then squinted his eyes when she pricked her finger on one of the thorns. Much as he didn't want to laugh, he did make a small chuckle whilst shaking his head.

"Poor dear," he sighed, reaching out for her hand to move it away from her mouth. Lance's gloved index finger went to her palm and ran upwards to uncurl her fingers, the damaged one instantly catching his eye. There was a pool of blood, as well as irritated skin, but nothing too harmful that he could see. "I'm sorry. Should I patch this for you?"

He was no doctor, but knew basics when it came to things like this. Not offering to help her would have been impolite, anyway!
 
Madeline laughed softly at his smug smile, "yes believe it or not i can sing." She attributed his smile to disbelief, well she'd prove her singing skill to him. Either that or he was teasing her, she didn't mind as she was used to being teased.

She nodded in response to his comment, "i felt it safer to have everything planned out, leaves less room for trouble." She wondered as to the meaning in his comment, was he teasing her again? Or did he mean it as a compliment? She turned to him with a grumpy expression on her face when he laughed at her, "its so nice to know you care." She said and then after a moment laughed, so he'd know she was only teasing him.

She felt a little irritated when he sighed and said poor dear, his tone of voice made it sound as if he were speaking to a child. That is one of the reasons she left home in the first place, she hated being treated as though she couldn't do anything. She admitted to herself how foolish she must look, being injured by a pretty flower. However it still bugged her, she allowed him to examine her hand but shook her head when he spoke of patching it. She withdrew her hand from his, "no thank you I'll do it myself."

So she stopped for a moment to retrieve a small strip of cloth, and some form of green paste for her bag. She rubbed a little paste on her injured finger then used the strip of cloth as a bandage, then she returned the paste to her bag and retook Lance's arm. The paste was made of various plants, she had taken it and a number of other items from the castle healers. The paste was for preventing infection, and soothing raw skin. Maddie felt satisfied she had shown Lance she wasn't useless, but also felt a little guilty at refusing his offer of help.

She decide to ease the growing silence between them so she started to sing, softly and only loud enough so Lance could hear. She sang an old Albion song, her voice was beautiful though soft and a little tentative. She avoided looking at him, and simply gazed at the road ahead whilst they walked. When she had finished she turned to look at him, "opinion?" She asked with with a shy smile on her lips, she patiently awaited his answer but was distracted for moment when she spotted Tanzia ahead.

It was already full of life as people hurried about buying and selling, always bartering for a better price. She spotted a number of stalls that she'd need to visit for supplies for their trip to Arrilla, and so she turned to Lance "i have some things i need to get befre we head off." She glanced at him and noticed for the first time that he wasn't carrying any bags, "is there anything you need?" She asked politely, if there was she was more than willing to pay for it.
 
Lance only made a respectful nod when she insisted she take care of her finger herself. He was raised to be well mannered around women and always offer his assistance when he knew he could offer it. Therefore, there was no blaming him for always lending a hand. He wasn't about to change that behaviour; he liked to help people. When he wasn't killing people... 'It's like I have double personalities.' he thought to himself amusingly. While in his thoughts, he plucked one of the flowers from the ground, his glove protecting his skin from the thorns.

There was a smile on his face when she took his arm again, their journey continuing as it should. Music then filled his ears; some of the sweetest he's ever heard. Madeline even asked for his opinion! For just a moment, he paused their walking to look at her, his free hand offering that flower he picked minutes ago. Lance was even mindful not to remind her of the thorns so she'd not repeat what happened already.

"Beautiful," he commented. The compliment was simple, even an understatement, but it was a perfect way of describing it.

They were only feet away from Tanzia's entrance. Hopefully, her shopping wouldn't take too long. Lance didn't like to stay in one spot for too long, especially since there was news of attacks he was involved with. Still, he told her: "Take your time."

It was true, he traveled lightly. All he had was a small pack hanging from his shoulder, which hid in his cloak anyway. To his knowledge, there was nothing in particular that he needed. Besides, he trusted Madeline's selection of what they'd need after leaving here. She was an intelligent girl who knew the basics for camping; she even had medical remedies.

"Nothing, Miss Madeline. Allow me to just carry your things," he offered happily.
 
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