She had no idea where she was heading too. All she knew was that her rage-fueled steps were bringing her away from him, away from his harsh words, away from her bitter heart.

The crowd was still packed at the edge of the evening, but she didn't care anymore and pushed past everyone in her way, spurring some "hey!" in her wake.

She turned her gaze to the side, and her heart dropped. The young couple from earlier were still adoring each other in their loving gazes before their lips met. She looked away, her chest tightening. She would stop somewhere where nobody would bother stirring her.

Who did Lach think he was anyway? He practically knew nothing about her, and he just assumed what most people would of a Princess shielded for ten long years in a castle. Amaya's face fell.

And he was right.

Still, he had no business talking to her the way he did, especially since she wanted to be and do better. She sighed as her steps faltered. She naively thought it would be different with him.

When they met at the stables, and her status was unknown in their interactions, he oozed kindness and warmth and something so utterly familiar. It was as if she was coming back to a feeling that had been buried in her for so long. He felt like Spring and its myriad of colorful flowers and the clear blue sky. It lingered on her for days, and when their lips almost met, it was as if all the flowers were about to bloom all at once and-

"It was a mistake."

The rim of her eyes burned, and the crowd became blurry. She might as well be lost now, but she couldn't care any less. The matter was she needed to be far from him, from her pain, from the way her heart had grown so full just to be torn apart in such a rude and reckless way.

Something bumped into her, and she turned to a man at least seven feet tall, built like a bear with a bald head adorned with intricate, foreign symbols. Amaya took a step back. "I am sorry." His stare bored into her until his lips cracked into a smile, showing the rows of jagged yellow teeth so crooked it seemed like he was perpetually snarling.

"Of course, beautiful lady." He stepped away and extended his hand, like a gentleman would, to let her pass. The man next to him had a cold, calculated blue stare, shadowed under a weathered sailor hat. In his hand was a piece of paper with a sketch of a man on it. She narrowed her eyes, trying to decipher who it was.

"What is it, young lady?" The bear asked. "Do you know that man?" He took the paper and held it before her. Her eyes widened. Lach. Those slim features, that nose, those almond eyes. It was Lach. She shook her head quickly. The man sighed and turned away, but the other's blue stare was still piercing on her. "The quicker we find him, the quicker we can get paid and get out of here." She turned back to the man. "At least, working for that shitty Lord and even shittier King has some rewards."

Amaya frowned. "Disrespecting the King means death punishment," she declared.

The man turned his body entirely towards her and put his hands on his waist. He laughed a stuffy snarl. "You are still here?"

"What Lord are you talking about?"

Cold blue gaze stared at her. "Never told you to not get into grown men's business, little girl?. Go play away."

"Why are you looking for that man?" She asked, pointing to the sketch.

The bear's eyebrows knitted deeply before he smirked. "I see." He laughed, massaging his face. "I know a place where nobody will bother us, so you can ask me all the questions you want." He placed a hand on her shoulder, and she gasped, trying to escape, but his grip was firm.

"Release me!"

The man's laugh danced into a smoke in the street before something wet landed on his face. His delighted expression dropped to something deadly as he wiped his face. "What did you do?" Amaya stilled, seeing the red rage taking over the veins of his eyes. His hand rose, "You will see you little cun-

She braced herself, ready for the impact, eyes closed tightly, but it never came. She looked up. The bear's companion had stopped him mid-way. Wait, don't you see it?"

"What?"

"That's her."

The man frowned. "Who?"

"The girl!"

The bear's eyes widened in realization, and he let out a scattered, rumbling laugh as if he had just won a hundred thousand gold coins. And he might have. "I am not-"Amaya tried, but both men stared at her.

"Fortune is ours." His smile turned unnaturally large, like a demon.

Panic swallowed Amaya whole.

**

Lach dropped down on a barrel near the tavern they had just been kicked out, still shielding his face as he groaned in frustration.

Bett eyed him with a scowl. "If you guys would stop bickering like hungry dogs, then we would find a solution quicker to that shit."

Lach shook his head. "She doesn't know what she is talking about. She doesn't know anything about the outside world, and still, she thinks she knows how to handle these kinds of things."

Bett narrowed their gaze. "It didn't seem like you knew how to handle it either."

Lach's eyes snapped to them. "It's not the same."

"Isn't it?" Bett asked.

Lach sighed. "It doesn't matter because she is gone."

"Then let's find her." Bett stood before him. "Igor sent me here for a specific reason, and you aren't about to screw everything up because you don't know how to communicate."

"You can talk," Lach said.

Bett shrugged. "I am not the one gone."

"What do you want me to do?" he asked an edge of desperation in his voice. "I don't believe she would want to see me again after what I said." His eyes veiled with darkness.

"And are you fine with that?" Lach's muscles tensed. No, he wasn't fine with it. He hadn't meant to be so harsh and to upset her, but at that moment, he thought it was what needed to be said. She needed to understand that the real world wasn't managed like a court. This was no high monarchy where you could get your way through with witty arguments and politics. No, this was the actual word, and a misused word could cost you your life or even worse. Why couldn't she understand that? Putting herself in danger wouldn't help at all. He sighed, passing a frustrating hand through his dark strands.

His features hardened as he remembered what she said. "It's not mine to choose," Lach answered at last. She wanted to go her way then suit herself.

Bett groaned. "Be honest and stop lying to yourself about what you really feel!"

"Do you fancy yourself a reader in the human mind? You tried to kill us, Bett." Lach scoffed.

"How many times should I tell you that I wasn't trying to kill you. I was trying to rob you. These are not the same, horseman."

"You still attacked us, and now you want to talk about my feelings?" Lach rolled his eyes.

"Listen, Horseman." The finger pointed at him made Lach jerk. "I am here with you now, and the only person that can get us out of this shit is gone, and if I don't go back to Igor with that fucking price and the assurance that we will go out of this forest, then I might kill you for real this time," They sent him an icy glare. "Now get up. We need to find her before she gets herself into trouble."

Lach sighed. They were right. He needed to see the bigger picture. The faces of his mother and brother appeared in front of him. He was doing this for them.

Only them.

He stood up. "Let's find her."

**

Dark and stuffy.

She could barely breathe inside the bag, masking her face.

She was dragged into a dark, damp, and narrow corner. She saw the bear's face before a bag dived into the darkness. She screamed her heart out, but the cold sharpness of steel made her gobble back her screams. "Scream, and I will slit your throat." Her chest heaved.

Her fists and ankles were tight together, and she was thrown on the bear's shoulder. She twisted her body from side to side until his big hands caged her frame with a tight grip that would undoubtedly add to the bruises on her body. "Stop moving!"

A deep, rough voice joined in. "You sure it's her?"

"Certain. She fits the description of the Lord gave us."

"What do you want?" She cried. "I can give it to you. If you want gold, my Father can give it to you. Please release me!" She went on despite that dreading feeling inside her stomach. She was thrown on the cold cobblestones, and silence fell as heavy steps rose, approaching slowly. The radiation of a strong presence stopped next to her, and she stiffened.

A pressure on her throat made her gasp. Fingers printed on her neck as she choked, and her whole body was paralyzed by the silent threat. The fingers pressed into her trachea, and she let out a cry. "Your father can't do any of that anymore."

He let go of her, and she coughed, but breathing was heavy and hot in the bag.

"What do we want?" She recognized the bear's gravy voice. His nauseous breath attacked her nose as his face was too closed. "Is you." he finished in a sadistic tone, and then, the impending doom of her fate stared at her like evidence.

"Let's wait for the carriage. It's coming soon." The added voice said. "And soon, fortune will be yours."

The clacking of hooves and the rattling of a carriage thundered the alley. "They are here!" Amaya's heart drained on the floor.

Swift stomping rose, and someone gasped. "What?!" Thuds, bangs, and screams echoed in the alley. "What is it?" A man shrieked, and Amaya froze, gathering her body close.

"Who is- Ahg! Something smashed hard.

"Gentlemen. Did we ever tell you to not raise a hand on a woman?" A female voice spoke.

"Captain- sorry-AH!" A crack, followed by a heart-wrenching sound.

Steps echoed before Amaya, and the bag was removed. She looked up to see a woman with a lithe and agile figure, like a dancer. She had long dark hair put into a ponytail under a sailor hat. Her skin was like a bronze coin, and her face was littered with dark dots. She had a forest green cloak over a fitted tunic and pants. She wore knee-high bruised boots and a smile littered with gold teeth. Amaya blinked.

She quickly cut her ropes and helped Amaya to her feet. That's when she saw them. The three men were lying on the floor, bleeding and bruised. "Oh, don't worry, they are not dead." She said. "Just a little knocked out." Amaya looked at her, stunned.

**

"Did you see this woman? She is tall like that," Lach stopped his hand in the middle of his chest. "She wears a beige dress and has short curly hair-" The passerby shook his head and moved down the street quickly. They had walked through the streets again and again, asking everyone if she was seen, but nothing.

She wasn't there. They even went back to the stable, and Aurora was still in her stall. Lach's heart started to thud. What if something happened to her? The stony realization hit him, spurring a cold sweat across his back. Not again. Not because of him. His chest was sent into a frenzy of heaving. Not again.

He whirled on himself, the world becoming blurry and dark, his breath becoming staggered.

"Hey," he felt someone grabbing his shoulder. "We will find her." It was Bett. Lach nodded, but Bett's eyes grew wide. "She is there!" Lach followed their pointed finger.

A woman stood in the middle of the street. The beige dress, the curls, her face.

"Amaya!" He ran towards her, and his steps faltered when he saw the woman. He froze. "Kristina?"

"Hi, Lach." She smiled.