General Kieran stepped back into the Rivera Manor, still harbouring mixed feelings. He was met by one of the lady guests, who was obviously most pleased to see him, with how wide her smile was.

"Oh, there you are!" she chirped. "You disappeared all of a sudden."

Kieran gave her a small polite smile.
"Yes well, I needed some air," he replied without emotion.

"Care to dance?" she asked, and reached for his arm, but he dodged the contact easily.

"I'm sorry, but I need to sit down," Kieran said and glided past her.

Being outside with Elena had made him nearly forget how much of an impact his presence had the moment he'd stroll into a room. He noticed another lady walking towards him, and realised he'd have to act out the previous scene a few more times before he got to the table his brother was sitting at.

Finally escaping the over-eager noble women, he took a seat beside Joshua, who was drinking some wine.

"And where have you been?" Joshua asked. "The ladies in here seem to have made it the evening's quest to have a dance with the Commander's sons." He looked pointedly at Kieran. "You're the only one that's left."

Kieran looked into the crowd and noticed his two other brothers in the dancing frenzy, being pulled from one excited woman to another. Ray seemed to be enjoying himself, and the attention, but Aaron looked like he could barely keep up with all the ever changing dance partners. Aira had joined a separate circle of younger lively ladies; among them, Mara.

"I think I'll pass," said Kieran. To him, dancing was just an excuse for women to assault him.

Except this time, there seemed to be one who held no such motive.

**** **** ****
In the meantime, Elena was hyperventilating in the hallway.

"Oh my goodness, oh my goodness, oh my goodness!" she wailed, pacing back and forth. "Why did he have to show up there of all p-places!"

She had been totally dumb struck upon realising that the person who had held her was General Kieran. At that time, wheels had been turning in her head, and the only thing she'd wanted to do was run away from him. She'd avoided looking at him directly for fear that he might recognise her, and kept on wondering if he had, indeed.

"I'd say that plan worked out even better than you expected."

She remembered his words, and pondered if he thought she was out to get him, like he'd thought years ago. She bit her lower lip and stamped her feet repeatedly.

"What am I going to do!" she wept. "If he has recognised me,then my life is over. He can never forgive me for wh-what I did."

Deciding her best option was to stay in her room until the guests left, she turned quickly, and almost bumped into Lady Victoria, who did not look happy.

She was wearing a magnificent pale pink gown that practically swept the floor, her chiffon sleeves short, to make way for the numerous golden bangles that circled her fore arm. Her golden necklace looked to weigh more than Elena herself, and her bell shaped golden earrings made her lobes hung low.

"Elena Rivera, you are coming with me to the party hall right this instant!" she snapped. Although she was plump and shorter than Elena, her gaze could be rather intimidating.

Elena's eyes widened. "Mother, I cannot!"

"Oh, stop this nonsense!" Victoria raised a palm, and her bangles tingled with the swift motion. "I can see that you are perfectly fine, and there is nothing sickly about you, so come."

"But mother-"

"Can you believe the shock I had when the Commander told me he has never met you?" Victoria asked, her face filled with a mixture of amazement and despair. "You must meet him and his wife now."

She grabbed Elena's wrist and pulled her along, but the latter resisted, using her heels to stop the motion of her body moving forward.

"Mother, please!" she begged, unable to bear having to run into the General yet again.

Victoria turned to her and huffed.

"Elena, he has four sons," she said emphatically. "Four." She raised up four of her fingers and added, "Four handsome and brave sons. You could just pick one!"

Elena's jaw dropped. She'd never imagined her mother would utter those words.

"Who knows?" Victoria continued. "If you're lucky, you could get the General."

"What!" Elena shrieked, her fears escalating. She couldn't imagine becoming part of the Commander's family when she was hiding from his son. Her mother even thinking about making the General her suitor was an abomination.

"I know, it's a long shot," Victoria sighed and looked her up and down. " I mean look at you."

Elena looked down at herself, " What do you mean?" she asked, her brows furrowed.

"No one's good enough for the General." Victoria said. "I'd rather hang myself than bear embarrassment after bringing you to him."

The way she spat out 'you' seemed offensive to Elena.

"For the other three, however, you have a chance," Victoria said more light heartedly, pulling her along once more.

***** ***** *****

Kieran couldn't stop thinking about the deep blue eyes that had trapped him back in the gardens. Somehow, he felt like he knew them, and that he'd been trapped by them once before. It was all too familiar. Everything about Elena was all too familiar, and it vexed him to no end that he couldn't solve this puzzle.
Frustrated, he ran his fingers through his hair.

"What's gotten you so pensive?" Aaron asked as he sat down beside Kieran, nearly out of breath.

"Finally given up?" Joshua asked Aaron.

"It's a battlefield out there," Aaron replied. "I don't know how Ray and Aira are still going."

Joshua snickered. "Here comes Aira."

Aira returned to the table and threw herself in the chair next to Joshua in a rather un-lady like manner, and fanned herself with her hand.

"Had enough fun yet?" Joshua asked her. "Ready to go home now?"

"I'm definetly through," Aira resigned. "Where's father and mother?"

"Over there, with the Riveras" Aaron said, nodding his head towards the east.

They all followed Aaron's motion and saw the Commander and his wife, Alyssa, standing together with Lord Rivera, his wife, and Elena.

"Oh," Aira said, "it's like I haven't seen Elena all night. I wonder where she's been."

Kieran looked over at his sister and asked, "How well do you know her?"

"Not very well. I've met her only once before," Aira replied and smiled wide, her brown eyes twinkling. "But I like her. She's very nice."

"Since when do you ask about women outside of a mission?" Aaron asked Kieran suspiciously. Joshua also looked at him curiously.

Kieran didn't answer.

"Since one's gotten my attention." He thought to himself, and reached for his wine chalice.

***** ***** *****

After all the guests had left and their parents had retired to their bedroom, the daughters held a meeting in Elena's room.

As she sat on her bed twiddling her thumbs, Elena could feel her younger sister's sharp gaze piercing her from her position against the wall.

"Well clearly there's only one thing you can do," Mara spoke up, folding her arms. "Just act natural."

"Mara!" Elena whined.

"What?" Mara shrugged. "The Hammedatha household now knows you, which means if the Commander invites us over there, there's no way you can decline. There's no more running, Elena. If you happen to face the General again, just let it be. And whatever events follow, shall follow."

Elena was quiet.

"I think you should just face him and clear up your misunderstandings once and for all." Anne suggested. She was standing next to Mara.

"She can't do that if she turns into a stuttering ball of scaredy cat everytime she sees him." Mara said, rolling her eyes.

"Okay, then how about this," Anne said. "The next time you meet him, try and figure out if he remembers you, or what happened between you two."

Elena looked up at her cousin.

"If he doesn't, then you get a chance to start over. Clean slate," Anne advised. "You act like nothing happened."

"And what if he remembers?" Mara asked.

"He won't," Anne stated firmly.

"Yeah but what if?" Mara insisted.

Anne sighed and looked at Elena, "If he remembers, then you just have to apologise," she said and sat down beside her. "Look, I know you're scared that he might hold a grudge against you, but you can't run forever. What you did was unintentional, right?"

Elena nodded.

"But does he know that?"

Elena shook her head no.

"Then you just have to tell him," Anne said with a smile that comforted her. "If you tell him how you really feel and apologise sincerely, he'll listen, and he'll forgive you."

"How can you be so sure?" Elena asked, softly.

"Because it's you, dear cousin," Anne placed a palm on Elena's cheek, tenderly.

"Yeah!" Mara agreed with deep enthusiasm. "You're like, the most sincere person I know. And anyone who can't see your pure heart, is a complete dunderhead."

Elena chuckled at those words.

***** ***** *****
The next morning, Kieran decided to take a stroll in the city, and left his horse with a trusted blacksmith.
He'd been away from it for months, on a quest to assist the kingdom of Aldor in a fall out with a neighbouring nation. Kieran's main purpose was to serve the Prince in military, administration and espionage matters, and his highness' wish had been to come to the aid of an old friend.

Led by Kieran, the Prince's Guard, meant to protect, serve and assist the Crown Prince in such operations, had departed with him and emerged successful. After a victorious battle with the nation, a Treaty of Understanding had been signed.

This duty to the royals of Rievelt ran in the Hammedatha bloodline for generations. Before being the Commander to the Royal Army, Xerthes Hammedatha had been General of the Prince's Guard when King Amos was Crown Prince.

The main reason Xerthes wanted his eldest son married soon was so he could have a grandson early, so he could pass the first stage of training by the time the current Prince bore a son.
Kieran was against this reasoning since he wasn't that much older than Crown Prince Luke, yet their relationship worked out just fine.

Nevertheless, Xerthes' mind could not be changed no matter how many times Kieran argued with him.

As Kieran strolled in the streets, the people would greet him, bowing with respect. He'd missed his hometown, and it always felt nice to have somewhere familiar to return to after a long stressing quest. He stood in place, breathing in the city scent. It smelt of gold coins, iron, bread and hard work.

He looked around at the merchants chatting and carrying out business as usual at the sides of the busy street, and at the bakers transporting the morning bread on carts as they carried out deliveries.

He was glancing through the crowd and made a double take, to make sure he wasn't hallucinating her.

Elena was moving through the crowd, walking in his direction. She was wearing a pale purple dress with long sleeves, wide at the elbows, and a grey velvet cloak wrapped around her. Her dark hair fell over her shoulders and bossom, a few locks at either side braided and held at the back of her head. This time the flowers in her braids were violet.

Her attention wasn't drawn to her surroundings, but to her open palms - or atleast something in them. She was smiling.

Kieran did not move from his position as she drew nearer to him. He wondered whether she was conscious enough to avoid bumping into him, or she was completely oblivious.

As she approached where he stood, her eyes never leaving her palms, Kieran realised it was the latter, and stepped aside to let her pass, thus avoiding the imminent collision.

Kieran turned around. Her back was to him again. She'd dismissed his presence again. It irked him.

"Excuse me," he called out, and she halted.

She turned her head, wondering if it was her that was being called out to, but upon seeing the General somewhat glaring at her, she panicked and quickly turned away from him.

Kieran snorted.
"Lady Elena, is it?" he asked, clearly displeased with her little ignoring motion. "I'm starting to think that your usual reaction whenever you see me is to not see me."

Elena shuddered as she heard his footsteps draw closer, the sound accentuated by his thick boots.

"Now tell me," Kieran continued. "Why won't you look at me?"

Elena recalled what Anne and Mara had told her the previous night. Face him and clear up the misunderstandings. But first, check if he remembers.
She took a deep breath to calm her nerves, then turned around to face him.

"Last night, you couldn't look at me even as I talked to to you. And today you turn your head away when I call out to you," said Kieran, looking over her form curiously. "Why is that?"

"B-because," Elena said, "I just don't w-want to look at you."

Kieran's eyebrows shot up in disbelief, and his lips parted in shock.
He'd always believed himself to be a man who wasn't egotistical, but at that moment, he could not believe the words that had just come out of her mouth. He looked away and sniggered, stunned. Because which woman, in her right mind, wouldn't want to look at him?

He looked back at Elena, regarding her very much unblushing face. "I beg your pardon?"

"I said I don't want to look at you." She repeated it clearly this time, without a stutter, and twice; twice had something that felt like his ego been injured.

He'd wanted to further ask why, and try to convince her that she was lying to herself, but when he regarded her face, he saw the tired expression she wore. It seemed almost disgusted. Did he look all that repulsive to her?

Elena was at odds with herself, but now she felt disgusted with herself for not having enough courage to tell him everything. Instead, she bore cold feet.

"I...I have to go," she said, lowering her gaze and stepping back from him.

"Wait," Kieran said, though gritted teeth.

"What now?" Elena cried in her thoughts.

"I get it, maybe you have different taste," Kieran said with a strained nod of his head, and asked hesitantly, "But am I really that ugly?"

Surprised, Elena looked up at him. "Huh?"

"For you to frown and fold your face like that," he clarified. He was a bit embarrassed to ask such a question, but he could not help it. She was driving him up a wall.

Elena blinked. Did he think that she wasn't looking at him all this time because she thought he was ugly?
If that were the case, it meant he wasn't intentionally haunting her for her past mistakes; he was concerned more about his looks, and got upset over someone not appreciating them. She relaxed at these thoughts.

"You are asking me if you are ugly," Elena said, slowly. "Are you really that vain, sir?"

"V...Vain?" His grimace showed that the word left a sour taste in his mouth. "I am not vain."

Elena eyed him suspiciously.
"You are upset at the idea of someone thinking you are ugly," she said. "That means you cherish and care a lot about how you look."

"I am not upset," Kieran denied, frustration coating his voice.

"You are. It's written all over your face!" Elena claimed, nodding her head towards his countenance.

"Am not!" Kieran almost yelled. He balled his hand into a fist and growled.

Elena chuckled a bit, amused.
"Then calm down and stop growling," she said. "You'll turn into a bear."

Kieran looked at her, surprised by her statement. Her face looked much calmer now, a tiny smile tugging at the corner of her lips.

The air around them became more comfortable when she used that light hearted tone, and Kieran found himself relaxing as well.

"Listen, Lady Elena." Kieran started. "Last night, I met you for the first time and your reaction was...a bit unexpected."

Elena gasped.
"First time?" She thought, "Does that mean he does not remember me from before?"

"Okay, it was quite unexpected," Kieran corrected his statement. "I had imagined things would go more...smoothly with you."

Elena then remembered her actions from the previous night, and was filled with regret; now that she'd found out he didn't remember her. Of course if it had been anyone else in his shoes, the person would have also been taken aback by her actions and gotten a wrong impression.

"General..." Her sentence trailed off as she realised it difficult to explain herself to him.

"So you do know me after all," Kieran said, gazing at her intently. "I had thought that maybe it was because I was a complete stranger to you, and you don't act familiar with strangers. But it turns out you know me in my position, yet you still ignored me;not only yesterday but today as well."

Elena was stuck. She gulped, and felt her nervousness returning. Running away right then was really not an option.

"I'm sorry," she blurted out. She looked at her twiddling fingers as she spoke, "I nuh-know that m-my actions must have come off as r-r-ruuuh.." She paused to take a breath before completing the word, "Rude to you."

Kieran could see in her face that she was making an effort to speak.

"B-but it had nothing to do with how you look," Elena continued. "You j-just startled me. I startle very easily, you see. And when I get too startled, I go into a p-pa-paah..." She paused and breathed again. "Panic. Then I lose words."

"That is why you stutter?" Kieran asked.

"I stutter when I'm nervous," Elena confessed. "S-so I prefer to avoid the situation than face it."

She looked up at him. Her eyebrows were furrowed with worry, her big blue eyes somber. Kieran thought that had she committed a crime, that look would be enough for him to forgive her everything.

Elena was about to tell him the reason why she had panicked, and thus confess her crimes from the past, but Kieran spoke first.

"Alright then," He nodded. "It's fine. I understand, so you need not explain further."

Elena raised her eyebrows.

"You can relax now," Kieran said. "I'm completely harmless...and so are you." He said the last words quietly.

"Pardon?"

Kieran shook his head. "It's nothing," he said, then stretched out his hand towards her. Elena looked at his hand, then looked up at him, her brows knitted in confusion.

"Take this as a redo of our previous meeting," Kieran explained. "It's nice to meet you, lady Elena."

Hesitantly, Elena shifted the necklace she was holding into her left hand, and slipped her right hand into Kieran's awaiting one. "You too, General."

Her hand was warm and soft to the touch. He gazed into her eyes and smiled, thankful that she wasn't giggling or acting coy. If felt good to meet a normal girl for a change.

***** ***** *****

Elena arrived at home, her mind still processing what had happened with the General.

"Why do you look so absent-minded?" Anne's voice brought her back to the present.

As her cousin approached from the direction of the kitchen, Elena quickly hid the necklace behind her back. It was, afterall, her engagement gift to Anne, and she couldn't let her see it before the engagement actually happened.

"Are you alright?" Anne asked, now standing infront of Elena.

"Actually..." Elena said, "I met the General."

"What!" Mara's shrill shriek came before Anne's reaction. She came rushing from the hallway that led to the kitchen, and was at her Elena's side in two seconds.

"That was earlier than expected!" she exclaimed, and nodded towards Elena, her eyes wide with anticipation."So how did it go?"

The two girls listened attentively as Elena recounted the events that had occurred that morning.

"Oh my goodness," Mara said excitedly. "That General Kieran is actually a pretty decent guy. He's quite understanding, don't you think?"

Elena shrugged, her eyes searching the ground. "I guess so."

"Now that he doesn't remember, will you tell him anyway?"Anne asked.

"Hey hey hey, why would she tell him?" Mara chided. "All her problems have been solved, so she can have a fresh start with him."

"That might be true," said Anne. "But cousin," Her hand fell on Elena's shoulder as she asked, "Will you be able to deal with the guilt of staying quiet?"

Elena's shoulders slumped, worry befalling her.

"Ugh, come on!" Mara groaned. "It was just a tiny incident that happened a long time ago. So trivial that Kieran even forgot about it. There's no need for her to feel guilty about anything."

"It may seem tiny to you but it's a big deal for your sister," Anne said. "So Elena, how do you feel?"

Elena sighed. "I don't know."

"Well you're going to have to make that decision quickly," said Anne, "about whether you should tell him or not."

Anne was right. Just before lunch, a letter from the castle arrived at the Rivera Manor; it was an invite from the King himself for the Riveras to attend a celebration in the Prince's honor for handling the recent international dispute well, and also formally welcoming the Prince's Guard from their long quest.

The celebration was to take place in two days, within the castle.
The Riveras were thrilled about attending, except Elena, who worried about what she would say to Kieran when she met him again.

***** ***** ***** *****

Members of the nobility filled the designated castle walls two evenings later, the extravagant ball room crawling with ladies and gentlemen dressed in the finest of silk, chatting away amidst pompous laughter.

"I dislike everyone here." Kieran told Prince Luke as they stood separately from the mingling crowd.

Luke smirked. He was a blond, with pale blue eyes and dimples, which were his most distinguishing feature, aside from the clear fact that he wasn't exactly blessed with height. Other than his fancy clothes and soft leather boots, he wore his golden crown, and settled for a cashmere cloak instead of the royal red cape, which, he was not found of.

He was unlike Kieran, who barely moved anywhere without his General's attire (aside from the full armour) or sword.

"Of course," The prince said, "since you are, after all, Captain Closed-off."

Kieran looked down at Luke, and Luke smirked up at him.

"Ice Princess." said Luke.

"Pint-size." Kieran quickly countered.

Luke scoffed. "Your sister's abusive nature is rubbing off on you, I see."
He was not amused by the nickname that Aira had so cleverly come up with, as his voice was dripping with distaste.

Kieran smiled. "You know, it's quite hard for me to disagree with a fact," he said. "The entire family's calling you that now, by the way."

Luke widened his eyes at him in disbelief. "Are you serious?"

Kieran exposed a toothy smile and shrugged. "It's catchy."

"Aargh. She just runs her mouth recklessly, especially when there's no need," Luke complained. "Next thing I know, the rest of my Guard is disrespecting me behind my back. You better not let that name catch on, Kieran."

Kieran laughed. "I'm afraid that's out of my job description, sire."

Luke glared at him.

"But I'll inform my brothers about your worry."

"That little rascal of yours is the biggest problem," said Luke, trying not to sound angry every time he even thought about Aira. His eyes scanned the crowd and he asked, "Where is she, anyway?"

"You know Aira," Kieran said. "She must be running about, playing somewhere."

Luke rolled his eyes. "Of course," he muttered. "She's quite the explorer."

He could already imagine her poking around in the artillery room, showing off her weapon handling skills to her little friends. Then she'd probably end up re-arranging the room in the process. He knew from all the missions he'd been on with her that she liked to wander wherever she pleased, especially if it were somewhere new. She sees something she's never seen before, she just has to get all up in it's business.

Luke and Aira's relationship was a little rough around the edges. It was filled with insults, bickering, and sometimes throwing of items where necessary. The main cause of this seemed to do with the fact that she almost always never did listen to him, even though he was technically her boss.

"What about your sister?" Kieran asked. "I haven't seen her around either."

"Oh right," Luke said. "Father told me she went on a visit to J'bel. Should be back in a few days. Why?" He smiled sneakily at Kieran. "You want to marry her?"

Kieran gave the prince a look. "Don't even joke about that, Lukas."

Luke laughed. He didn't mind when Kieran addressed him by name, since they were friends after all.

"Why not?" Luke asked. "I thought your father was pressuring you to bring a bride home. And if not my superb and amazing sister, then who else?"

"That's the thing," Kieran said, his tone turning grave. He regarded the noblemen and women and continued, "I can't marry your sister, but I don't have options. And I hate the feeling of pressure, especially from my father."

Luke looked at his friend. He knew why Kieran couldn't marry his sister even though they were good friends and worked well with each other; but in this case, it seemed he didn't have much of a choice.

"Kieran," said Luke. "I know none of the women in this room subscribe to your notion of an ideal life partner. But is your personal space so important that you'll prioritise it over love?"

Kieran looked at him and replied, "Yes."

There was a brief moment of silence, and the General spoke once more,

"I don't need someone to love me, or smother me with her affections, or never leave my side whether I'm home or out of home. I need someone who won't see me as a god, who won't cry or wail whenever I leave home for a mission, who won't brag about who her husband is to every Tom, Dick and Harry."

He paused and added, "I need someone who won't pay me attention; whose life won't revolve around me."

Luke sighed. "Might as well marry a man then," he joked, "cause I know not of such a woman. Do you?"

Kieran was about to reply in the negative, when he suddenly remembered her words.

"I said I don't want to look at you."

And he looked like realisation had just dawned on him. He remembered how Elena had ignored him and dismissed his presence, and eventhough she had admitted that it was because she was startled, he remembered her face being unaffected by who he was, and how her reaction had been different and normal.

As he stared into space, engulfed in his memories, a couple of people shifted from their positions in the room, and she appeared in that moment, looking ravishing in a midnight blue gown. She wore no jewellery, but seemed to outshine every other female in the room. It was as though she'd drifted from his memories and made herself real infront of his eyes.

He blinked, and she was still there, smiling warmly at whoever it was that stood with her; for in his eyes, the rest of the people were but blurs, and the only clear image they focused on was Elena.

"Kieran?" He didn't hear Luke call out to him, and before he knew it, his feet moved forth before his mind thought. He walked, his limbs being led by a sense of feeling; a rush that made him want to be close to her.

He was nearly at his destination when he was stopped by Ray suddenly jumping infront of him. His beaming face completely blocked out the rest of his view.

"Bro!" Ray exclaimed. "You have got to try the plums here. They're foreign!"

"Huh?" Kieran blinked, finally torn of his trance. He tilted his head and looked over his youngest brother's shoulder, but saw no sign of Elena.

Ray turned around.
"Who're you looking for?" He asked curiously.

Kieran's eyes roamed the area for a while before replying, "No one."
He let his brother take him by the arm as he looked around, wondering where she had disappeared to.

***** ***** ***** *****

As Kieran sat with his siblings, he did not join in the conversation but was in deep thought about the idea he'd just had- to make Elena Rivera his wife.
He had just met her, but his instincts were telling him to go through with it.

She was the eldest daughter of a distinguished family, but more importantly, she seemed to meet his personal criteria. He just had to be sure she wasn't attracted to him before he tried anything with her, and that meant he had to test her first.

A while later, he saw the Rivera daughters join two others at a table across from where he sat. He watched Elena sit and delightfully start to chat with the other two ladies. They had previously been stealing glances at Kieran, much like the rest of the ladies in the room. All he had to do was catch Elena doing the same.

He picked up a strawberry from the fruit platter and ate, ready to play the game and inevitably win.

It wasn't long before he caught the younger sister first, except she nudged Elena, who turned her head to the side and looked at him as well.
It was the first time their eyes had met that evening, and Kieran, wearing a half-smile, nodded his head as a silent greeting. Mara grinned and Anne smiled pleasantly, but Elena simply returned the nod, and nothing more.

Unfortunately or fortunately for Kieran, that seemed to be the last time he met her eyes. She didn't look back at his table; not during the meal, nor the entertainment. She simply went on enjoying her evening, occasionally chatting with her friends, and being mesmerized by the fire dancers, as well as laughing at the jester's jokes.

Aaron leaned in closer to Kieran.
"Hey brother," he said. "You've been regularly observing the Rivera table ever since those daughters sat down. See anything you like?"

Kieran turned his head and looked at Aaron, who was grinning and raising his eyebrows suggestively.

"Don't be a menace." Kieran said to him, unfazed by his tease.

"I'm definitely going to talk to you about this later," Aaron said gravely to an unresponsive Kieran and leaned back in his chair.

The only other time Kieran's eyes met Elena's was when King Amos proposed a toast, and Kieran was called to stand next to him and the Prince. Of course that meant everyone else was now looking at them, and it didn't count that Elena was part of everyone else.

Once the King had given his congratulatory speech, everyone clanked their chalices together and drank to The Crown Prince and his Guard.

Kieran walked back to his table, and had just drawn his chair back to sit, when he noticed Elena missing from her table.

He chuckled to himself. "Has she gone to dance on walls again?"

He pushed his chair back in, and excusing himself, left to find her. It wasn't because he felt the need to see and talk to her up close, he reminded himself, he just had to test her.

Kieran turned into the hallway that led outside the castle, but stopped when he saw Elena standing in the middle of the hallway, her back facing him. For once, he wished they'd meet when she was already looking at him.

He wondered why she was just standing there alone, and he slowly approached her. Looking at the small flora planted in the small braids at the back of her head, he thought she must have really liked flowers.

He stepped towards her until he was close enough for their bodies to touch, and that is when Elena abruptly turned on her heel, and seeing a body there, gasped in surprise and looked up, only to find Kieran's cyan eyes gazing down at her. Her breath hitched, as she was shocked to see the person she had been escaping from, right infront of her. He was so close, she could smell his musk.

Meanwhile Kieran was drawn into her blue eyes once more, and was nearly trapped into losing his speech but for Elena hastily stepping back from him.
It was her eyes especially that puzzled him, for each time he looked into them, he felt he knew them, knew her. But how?

"Sorry, sir," Elena murmured, her eyes searching the floor. "I didn't know you w-w-were there."

"Why are you apologising? It's not like you knocked me over." said Kieran. "Besides, it is I who appeared out of nowhere."

Elena still had not come to a decision about whether to tell him bout the past or not, and seeing him that night hadn't been helpful, so she'd left the room where his presence had been suffocating her, and come out to clear her mind, but it seemed that the odds were against her.
Was meeting him there a sign that she should tell him, after all?

No, she wasn't ready yet.

"Then..." Elena said, "if you'll excuse me..."

She made to go around him and return to her sisters, except he stepped in her way. She looked up at him inquisitively. He was smirking.

Like he'd thought, Elena seemed uninterested in staying and chatting with him, but he had to be sure. He wasn't planning on letting her go that easily.

"Why don't you stay a while?" he asked. "We could talk."

"About what?" She asked cautiously.

Kieran shrugged.
"Anything," he replied, watching for her reaction. "It'll be just you and me. We can even go outside and sit under the stars. And we'll talk about anything you want to." He then smiled what he presumed was his most charming smile.

He waited for her to swoon and take him by the arm, but she did not. Instead, she wore what looked like a horrified expression on her face.

"I...", she said, shifting uncomfortably. "I'd rather n-not."

Noticing her stutter, he thought he must have come on to her strongly and suddenly. Curiously, he asked, "Do you not like the idea of sitting and talking with me...alone?"

Elena's face scrunched up apologetically. She wasn't ready to tell him. The idea of sitting and talking with him as though everything was good between them made her guilty and uncomfortable. She just had to avoid him until she was ready.

"Sorry, sir. I...I'd rather n-not," she repeated, without looking at him. She made to leave, and Kieran stepped in her way again.

"Then," he said hastily, "could you atleast save me a dance?"

That was it. That had to be it. The ultimate move that no girl, not even her, could refuse. The mere thought of dancing with the General would atleast turn her cheeks pink.
However, instead of turning beet red, Kieran saw Elena turn visibly pale.

"Huh?" She gasped. Why was he making things even harder for her? There was no way she could dance happily with him yet she had ruined his young life!

"S-sorry, sir," she said, and Kieran wondered if saying those words would make impending rejection hurt any less.

"I...I'd rather n-not," she added the same phrase, and as she excused herself, Kieran did not stop her. Instead, he turned and watched her walk away, nay, flee from his presence as though she thought it a good riddance.

She had rejected him thrice now. He was both stunned and amused. Much so, that he laughed at himself.

And now, he was going to figure out how he was to propose to her.