"Warm today." Leo remarked, crossing his arms over his chest plate as he leaned slightly against the castle wall. "Won't be long now before the ladies of the court start showing a little more skin. Their necklines scoop just a bit lower, their dresses become just a bit airier…" Lux, who was only half-listening to Leo smiled and waved at some of the ladies walking out of the castle. They giggled from behind their fans. They were pretty, perhaps some of the king's potential mistresses. There were quite a few visiting today under the guise of some political occasion. They were swarming all over the castle, all anxious to gain the devotion of the opulent bachelor king.
"Tell me you haven't bedded a single woman to arrive through those gates." Leo demanded, not letting the flirtation go unnoticed.
"I haven't." Lux replied frankly.
"Why not? They seem to like you well enough." It was true, the noble women did eye Lux from time to time. It had to be the boyish charm, or the way that none of the other guards were as fresh-faced and handsome as bright-eyed firm-chinned Lux. What those women didn't know, of course- what nobody knew- is that Lux was actually a girl.
"Perhaps no one has caught my eye." Lux offered. Leo scoffed.
"Well come summer your tune will change, I'll promise you that. A woman in translucent silk is far harder to ignore than a woman in wool."
"Perhaps you're right." Lux humored, scratching her neck as she pushed off of the wall. As a woman in chainmail, she wasn't entirely sure what to think of that statement. "I think I'll take my perimeter round now. Enjoy the view, Leo." She gave him a playful punch in the shoulder before heading off.
It was the warmest day they had received in some time and she smiled broadly as she walked, feeling the light heat against her face. Her hair had a healthy golden glow and her skin, although light, had a warm undertone from many days in the sun. Ground perimeter was not such a bad post. There was always a lot to see, watching people come and go at the front gate, or skirting the grounds admiring the nature. Lux had been stationed at the palace five months now. Not quite long enough to be assigned to the front gate or any of the royal family's personal detail, but long enough to know the castle and its grounds frontwards and backwards.
As the palace was huge, it took her several minutes to make it to the back lawn of the castle. There was a row of rose bushes and a man painting some feet away. Then something glinting from far above caught Lux's eye. It was a vase, imported from the East, heavy but very breakable. It was sitting on the ledge of a window four stories up and it seemed to be moving. Yes, it was most definitely inching forward. Perplexed, she traced her eyes directly down and noticed something white and silver glinting behind the rose bush.
Lux wasn't particularly clever, but at that moment something in her gut just… understood. A low scraping sound came from high above and she leapt into action. Shoving the man out of the way, Lux grabbed the freshly wet canvas off of the easel and darted for the bushes. She reached out, pulled Princess Kelsii to her, wrapped an arm around her waist, and threw both of them to the ground at the base of another rose bush a few feet away. Her left hand and forearm held the canvas up as a shield. As if on cue, the heavy vase smashed into the ground right where Kelsii had been hiding merely a moment before and several deadly sharp shards flew out and lodged themselves deep in Lux's makeshift shield. The painter stood aghast.
Lux waited a moment in case of a second attack and then tossed the gored canvas aside before unwrapping her arm from around the princess's waist. "Princess Kelsii... My lady, are you alright?" She asked, blue eyes wide with adrenaline. Lux had a few cuts on her face and arms from the rose thorns, her blonde hair was disheveled and she was covered in leaves and dirt. The princess looked much the same. They looked as if they had been rolling in the leaves together for some time. It occurred to Lux that this was the first time she had ever seen the Princess at a distance of less than 500 feet. She was... absolutely stunning.