Alina was not in any way calm. She could not lose that dagger. It was the last thing she had from her father, But it seemed she had lost track of it anyway. She had to find it quickly before it was gone forever. However, she didn't have the slightest idea where to start, as she didn't know who took it. She decided to start at the knife shop across the street. Maybe someone had found it and thought that it belonged to them.

She walked across the path to the shop on the other side, trying to act like she had nothing on her mind. Freaking out would only cause suspicion to befall her. She didn't want to be noticed by anyone. She just wanted to get her dagger back and slip away as if she was never there.

As she entered the shop, she saw a man in the back. He was probably around fifty years old. He was wearing a pair of brown pants and a red shirt under a light brown jacket and boots. He saw her come in a waved her over. She crossed the room casually, acting as if she was in no rush at all.

"Good afternoon. Is there anything, in particular, you're looking for?" he asked. He seemed nice enough, smiling continuously like he didn't have a care in the world. Alina sometimes wished she could be like that. She knew, however, that she could never have that kind of life. She was too busy sneaking around the city and hiding her true self. She didn't have the time to enjoy life.

"I was wondering if anyone turned in a dagger here. I lost one outside and I thought maybe someone had found it." she lied. She had become quite good at that over the years, lying. It needed to come naturally to an assassin. She used to practice by telling outrageous stories and trying to make people believe them. It was actually really fun sometimes.

"I'm sorry, no one turned in anything. But good luck in finding it." he told her, sounding genuinely upset at not being able to help her.

"Thanks anyway." She said. She may be an assassin, but her dad taught her to have manners and be a good person. And she is, other than the killing thing.

Then she left. She would keep looking the next day when she had calmed down a little. For now, she would take a hot bath at her house to soothe her nerves.

***

As he left the theater, he was thinking about Alina as a flash of metal caught his eye. He stooped down to get whatever it was out of the bush and pulled out a dagger. It was silver with gold engravings and a gold hilt shaped like the head of a horse. It looked somewhat expensive. Whoever owned it wasn't overly poor, but probably didn't live in the castle either.

As he looked at it he realized something. It was exactly like the blade the infamous Alina Kingston used before she disappeared three years ago. But what would it be doing outside the theater?

He realized that if he didn't leave now he and Vega might be seen together. As he walked away, he saw Vega leaving. She bent down to the bush, before standing around and looking around wildly, then wiping her face of any sense of panic. He then left. But why would Vega be alarmed at the same bush that he pulled the knife out of? Unless... No. Not possible. His friend, Vega Terrese, could not be the notorious killer Alina Kingston. She said that he knew every part of her, but he couldn't if she was really Alina, and then she would be lying. She wouldn't really tell him such a big lie, would she?

The more he thought about it though, the more sense it made. He hadn't found any trace of anyone named Vega Terrese anywhere. He had thought that maybe she just didn't get out a lot, but she could've just given him a fake name. Of course, she wouldn't tell him her real name, if she was Alina. His father would've had her executed. And if she had told him after, he doesn't know what he would've done. It probably wouldn't have been good. He hadn't yet gotten to know her. Now he knows that she's not really a bad person.

She had told him once that she actually disliked killing. However, she didn't have many other skills, none that would be useful to make a living. No one had taught her how to cook well or sew clothing. She never had a mother to do that for her. So she continued on doing what she hated.

He decided that if she was Alina, he would accept her. However, he wouldn't confront her about it. If she wanted to tell him eventually, she would. But for now, she could go on keeping her secrets.

As he had this thought, he reached the castle. He had not realized how far he had walked, and almost ran into the gates. The guards let him in, and he headed up to his rooms. He had an entire hall to himself, even though some visitors rooms were in the area. Nobody wanted to take the rooms in fear of annoying him. It was one of the perks of being prince, although he wished people didn't think so badly of him. When he became king, he wanted to be the kind of royal people didn't fear. His father was definitely an intimidating person, and that wasn't the public image he wanted.

He walked into his room and debated where to put the knife. He settled for the top drawer of his dresser. His servant was instructed not to go through it. It was for personal items he wanted to keep away from the eyes of others.

He then walked out of his room to dinner, thinking of all the things he'd learned that day.