The princess and her knight

Aria thought it would be best not to go asking any questions. Olivia had her own ways, Aria had hers. She also felt like she didn't want to know. "Alright. Thank you." Aria said to Olivia. "I appreciate what you are doing for us." Aria gave her a smile. She lifted herself off of the chair gracefully and pushed the chair in as so no one would run into it. "Idacrous do you mind showing me this room, I am quite tired after our journey earlier today." She turned to him and asked politely.
 
Idacrous echoes Aria's thanks with a nod of his own, to which the courtesan dismisses with a wave of her hand. "Just don't cause me trouble and that will be thank you enough."

"Of course," the knigh speaks, answering both the princess's request and Olivia's statement at the same time. He rises from his seat as Aria does and then proceeds to lead the way out of the kitchen. Before he heads upstairs, the male grabs both satchels from the door where they were left. It is with all their belongings (except their boots) that the male leads the other up the stairs.

Having spent some time here at a younger age, the male knows exactly where the spare bedroom is. Pushing the door open with a free hand, he exposes the princess to a lovely cream-walled bedroom. A king-sized bed is the main piece of furniture, neatly made. Unlike the wooden floor of the hall, this room is covered with a lush cream carpet that kisses the feet that walk across it. A large window offers a street view of the town, though its thick white drapes are currently drawn shut. Other furnishings include a wardrobe that sits beside the door and a small table with two matching chairs.

"Sorry about Olivia. She's a different sort of character." His eyes settle upon the nightgown on the bed. It's a white lacey thing, covering all the right places, albeit a tad short for normal people. Of course.
 
She followed him to the room and surveyed it. She made a smile, of course it was much different from her own room yet she liked it. It may be much smaller than what she was used to but she never needed all the room she got back home in her own bedroom anyway. "It is alright. I understand. I am just glad she accepted us being here. She is being very kind and I respect that, even if her and I have very different views on things." She said this as she looked at the gown on the table. Her's would had been definitely different back home. Must longer, that's for sure. She felt weird thinking about having to wear it.
 
Idacrous smiles at Aria's smile. If anything, she definitely is adaptable to her surroundings. "She's a good friend, even if her actions may be questionable." The male motions towards the bed, welcoming the princess to it while he stays by the door. "You must be tired. Feel free to change, I won't look," he promises.

True to his word, the knight turns his back to the princess, while gently closing the door so that others might not see either.

Meanwhile, another knock is heard downstairs and indistinguishable murmurs can be heard from downstairs. No doubt, Olivia's paying guest has just arrived.
 
At first Aria was hesitate of changing with him still in the room but there wasn't much she could do. Olivia had asked for them to stay in the guest room. She waited a moment and then picked up the night gown. Glancing over at Idacrous to make sure he was still not looking she started to undress the cloths that she had on. At least the night gown may not feel as strange as the cloths she was already were. Although she might have spoken too soon. She slipped into the night gown as quickly as possible. She was right, being that it was a night gown made it worse. She felt nervous to be wearing such a thing in front of one of her knights and it was much shorter than what she normally wore to bed. "I am finished changing now." She told him.
 
Idacrous turns around and finds his cheeks reddening a tad as he blinks. Olivia definitely doesn't buy clothes that do not flatter and this one certainly does. The laced item hugs all the right curves, showing plenty of skin, yet opaque in the more private areas. The entire outfit is a tease and, when coupled with Aria's innocence...well, the courtesan must have done this on purpose. "Uhhh..." He hasn't blushed like this since...the male shakes his head ridding himself of that memory. Luckily, this shake also disconnects his line of vision from the scantily-clad goddess.

"I can..." He takes a deep breath, composing himself. "I can stand guard at the door while you sleep."

Downstairs, Olivia's giggles can be heard as she's no doubtedly entertaining her guest. Moments later, mood music plays...loud enough to drift up the rooms above. The melody is mellow and sensual; yet another one of the courtesan's tools in satisfying her customers.
 
Aria gives a smile to her knight. "I do not see the need in standing guard at a place like this. You can stay in here, I do not mind." She said. Of course she never thought about if that would be awkward for him or not, considering the outfit she was wearing now. She just didn't want him to be standing around for no reason, after all he would need his rest too. They had more of a journey to go on after today. The faint music made things even more odd but Aria tried to shake all of it off and smiled at him like she normally did. "Plus you remember what Olivia said, to stay in the guest room. You would be out of the guest room. I do not want to disobey her rules, it is her home after all."
 
Idacrous was ashamed of the thoughts running through his mind and since he had nothing to do just standing by the door, the knight takes a path across the room and to the window. His line of path takes him past the female, at which point he takes a sharp intake of air. He has a very sensitive nose and thought he had grown accustomed to the girl's scent. However, now with all the mud washed off her, the lack of roasted chicken odor, and the fact that her skin is so exposed, the scent is so much more fierce.

What is this? Has Olivia's words really gotten to me?

The knight reaches for the drapes with his right hand, clenching the fabric tightly. Just so as to seem like he is doing something, he parts the drape just slightly and pretends to look outside. However, he is much too absorbed in his own mind to really look at the darkness outside. Closing his eyes, he tries to calm the nerves caused by the pitter patter of the rain outside. In a controlled manner, he manages, "Don't let me keep you from sleep." It's about all he can manage at this point.

That music. Did she weave her magic into it? Or is it me? Damnit. Calm yourself, Idacrous.
 
She sat down on one of the sides of the bed her back away from her. She paused there for a moment not moving. She glanced over her shoulder at him for a few seconds then turned away. She slowly grabbed the covers from the made bed and slide them away so she could get into the bed. Once there she pulled the covers back over herself. They felt warm on her body and comforting. "I am sure I can sleep just fine with you here. After all you are here to protect me." Aria said as she lay on her back still facing away from him. She pulled the covers close to her face, her long hair scattered around the top of the bed. "Thank you for being so protective and kind to me."
 
Idacrous was so concentrated that the princess's words barely registered in his mind. When they finally did, the knight turned his head slowly to regard the other. Covered and ready to fall asleep, the male is slowly able to clear his mind once more. Sliding the drapes closed behind him, the male slides himself to a seated position with his back against the wall. It has been a long day, and slowly but surely, the male drifts to sleep.

The knight wouldn't wake until a couple rays of sunlight manage to slip through the thick drapes and decorate the room in lines. Even then, the half-clothed male shifts only slightly, a slight grumble made as he turns away from the sunlight.
 
Aria thought that she would have trouble falling to sleep being in such a different place than her own home. At least it was better than the cave they were in the night before. Yet Aria feel asleep quickly, much more easily than she thought she would. She always seemed to sleep peacefully, never really moving around to much. If she did it seemed even elegant while she wasn't even conscious; maybe all the rules she had to follow while awake she had learned so much that it is only natural for her now. When the sun started to come through the curtains her eyes opened slowly, opening and closing a couple times. Once she finally got them to stay open she lifted herself into a sitting position on the bed. From there she saw Idacrous asleep, leaning on the side of the wall and sitting on the ground. She made a smile, he looked peaceful there himself. Little did she realize she was staring at him, while he was still asleep.
 
Idacrous sleeps for another ten to fifteen minutes longer, giving Aria all the time in the world to observe him. The male appears peaceful, his muscled chest rising and falling in a regular motion while his eyes remain veiled to the world. In time, the knight stirs once more, though this time not in response to the sunlight, but instead in response to his own internal clock.

Stretching, the male awakes to the princess looking at him, which at first causes concern. Shaking his hand, the knight runs his right hand through his hair while taking a deep breath. "Everything alright?" Since the princess is sitting up, he can spy a bit of that lace undergown and, coupled with the beauty of the sunlight streaming into the cream-coloured room...well, it's almost angelic. He knows better than to stare at her this time though, instead swerving his gaze to the window.
 
Aria seemed startled a bit at his words. "Oh, yes everything is fine." She said as she turned away from him realizing what she had been doing. Her face was had a slight red to it. "Sorry." She then said yet unsure why. She just couldn't think of anything else to say in this situation. Again situations she didn't know how to handle, they should really teach these things to princesses, it's still good to know. "Did you have a nice sleep, I hope."
 
Idacrous nods with an uneasy smile. "The sleep was well needed." Pushing himself to a stand, his long strides carry him to the door. Hand outstretched, he turns the knob as he looks over his shoulder to sideglance at the female. "Take your time changing. I'll grab us some breakfast." The male then exits and heads down the stairs.

Olivia is long gone and so is the mess from yesterday: the doorway is clean, the dishes are done, their shoes are clean, but their soiled clothes are nowhere to be found. The fact doesn't seem to disturb Idacrous too much and he can only hope the princess was not too attached to her dress. In no time, the knight finds his way back to the kitchen. Not much of a cook, he manages to scrounge up some bread, ham, and jam from his friend's storage. Placing all this on the table, he then moves to find the plates and utensils.
 
Once Idacrous left Aria pulled the covers off of her and makes her way off of the bed. She steps to the window and looked out for a moment. The sun was shining, it made the town look much better than what it had the day before; other than the puddles on the ground. She walked away from the window and took her time changing out of the gown and into other cloths. She found a brush and hoping that it wouldn't be too much of a bother for her to use it for a few, she brushed her long hair gently as to not pull any tangles that may have gotten in it. After a little it seemed her hair was tangle free and smoothed out. She set the brush down and headed back down stairs to Idacrous in the kitchen.
 
Idacrous could hear Aria coming down the stairs and, as she rounds the corner, motions towards the food. "Eat up. We're going to get you some...normal...clothes after this." He places two plates on the table: one for each of them. The male then moves to pull a chair out for the other, just like last night. It is only once she has sat down that he does the same.

"It's not much, but it's all I could find without having to cook. Help yourself." The male keeps his hands to himself until she starts eating, at which point he would help himself to some bread and jam, followed by a slice of ham.

"Is there anything that you wanted from the market today?"
 
Aria takes her seat. She looked at the food. "I think this is just fine." She said to him and picked some of the food to put on her plate. "I cannot think of anything." She answered to his question after she took a bit of the bread with jam on it. "There is nothing I believe I need, unless you feel like we need anything on our travels..." She made a pause. "Well, of course like you said I would like some different clothing. I just do not really feel comfortable in these." She looked down at what she was wearing then away as quickly as possible to eat some more. "I am not used to clothing like what Miss Olivia wears."
 
"Nor should you ever be," Idacrous states between mouthfuls. "She sells her body for a living and her clothes..." He takes another mouthful of bread, chewing it slowly before continuing. "Her clothes aim to elicit a certain...desire...from men." He washes down the breakfast with some water before reaching forward with a fork to get some more ham. "It's a powerful tool, you know? Your body. Not one I hope you'll ever have to use."

Finishing the ham, the knight leans backwards in his chair with contentment. It's good to have a full stomach and, the male glances at Aria with a smile, he's doing a good job of keeping the princess alive and well so far. He can't grow overly attached though. His goal is clear: get the princess to her prince and then return to the kingdom by the King's side. Last night was far too close of a call.
 
Aria finished up her breakfast. "Do not worry, I do not see that happening. I was raised as a proper lady. I will go around pushing my body on to men." She said to him. She looked at the plates on the table for a moment, usually she always had other clean them away from the table. To most people it was a chore that they didn't like doing yet she wanted to know what it was like. With that thought in mind she got up out of her seat and began picking up the empty dishes off the table with a smile. She walked over with them to the sink and turned on the water. "Now let's see. I need soap right?" She said to herself as she looked around to find the soap. Once she found it she tried cleaning the dishes as best as she could remembering watching one of her servants doing it back a few years ago at the castle.
 
Idacrous drops his jaw, completely shocked at the princess's initiative in doing the dishes. He stares at Aria for a good moment, allowing the full surprise of the matter sink into him before he rises. "You're definitely something else," is spoken with a bemused shake of his head as he makes his way out of the kitchen. "I'll get things ready while you wash and then we can head out," is thrown over his shoulder.

For a split second, the knight is transported back in time...a time where he had a family to call his own. A mother. A father. He sighs. That time has long passed, but here he is with a princess in the place he once called home. It felt...happy. The male heads up the stairs to collect their satchels. Too bad happiness is always so short-lived.