You're the guard? (Jen and Romantic)

Alex had to crouch down a little, to help the princess reach easier. "I just didn't want to bother you with such a task." The buckles came loose easily enough and the bottom right side swung open, allowing Alex to pop the helmet up and off. The knight was very dark-skinned, one of the few in the Kingdom. All of them were of the lower castes, so for one to have become a knight meant that there had been a bit of promotion going on in the battlefield.

The dark-skinned knight had bright silvered hair though, clipped close to the head except for the bangs, which now hung in front of Alex's rather effeminate face, on the right side. The knight smiled softly and turned around. "Thank you, my princess. I am sorry for being a bother like this."

Kalia paused for a moment, staring at the other as they turned around with the helmet was taken off. She didn't know what exactly she was expecting, but she knew it wasn't what she was looking at. It wasn't a bad thing, she actually liked it more. The other seemed...feminine. She paused at the thought, could there be a female knight? Were there any? She was never told anything like that, just led to assume that all were male.

Kalia finally seemed to come to her senses and looked away from the other's face, "Uh, it was no bother." She shook her head lightly and looked back at the other, "You're more attractive than I thought." She said softly, blushing and saying, "Based on your voice...I just had a....I'm not disappointed..." She paused and her blush deepened even more.

It was then that Alex had a klutz moment. Listening the the princess stammer about the knight's appearance, Alex fumbled the helmet and dropped it, making loud clattering. The knight grimaced as it rolled under the desk. It could be retrieved later. But it was embarrassing, and made the knight turn away, and hand rubbing the back of the neck. Mutual flustering.

"I uh... I'm sorry? Princess?" Alex coughed lightly, the unmuffled voice also quite feminine. But Alex had passed for quite some time as a boy. That's why Alex had been allowed to fight. That's why Alex had been promoted. It was 'Sir Alex'... Not 'Lady Alexandra'. It was definitely a confusing moment. Hopefully the princess wouldn't figure that the knight was indeed a female and go off running to her father. Who knows what that man would do.

Kalia paused and seemed to connect the dots in a bit. She stood straight but relaxed, she smiled softly and said sweetly, "Now I have one of your secrets too." She smiled sweetly, "You have one of mine, which is Joey." She shook her head and said, "I won't tell anyone if my assumptions are true, I don't even want to confirm my assumptions or anything." She paused and shook her head, "Please be yourself, Alex. I still like the fact that you are assigned to my side instead of any other." She turned and walked over to the bookcase.

She wasn't sure if Alex was really a girl or a guy, and she wouldn't tell anyone of her wonderings or anything. She had her back to the other as she reached up towards one of the higher shelves of the bookcase. Reaching for a book.

"Yeah... Now we've got each other's secrets. We'll just have to trust each other. Though... I think you're the only one that's ever looked at me, and figured it out... And with the armor on from the neck down..." Alex sighed and leaned up against a bookcase, balancing herself on the shelf edge so she wouldn't knock any books around.

"I-I'll get that for you." Alex slipped over and reached up, gingerly pulling out the book. She made sure to handle it with two hands as she was bringing it down so she wouldn't drop it on the princess' head. She held it out to the princess, her metal-covered body so close to hers now.

She smiled, she couldn't help but be happy that she held a secret of the other. She felt special, closer to Alex and that made her extremely happy. Kalia didn't really think anything too much about it, even though she knew that it was probably something that she shouldn't think about. A few thoughts had crossed her mind but she knew that if any action was taken it would mean ruin for Alex. She didn't want to do that to the other.

She couldn't keep a shiver from going through her body when the other came up behind her, getting the book for her. She smiled and looked at Alex as she offered her the book. Kalia took it and said, "Thank you." She moved and kissed Alex lightly on the cheek.

Alex blushed a little at the kiss on the cheek. It wasn't easy at all to see with her skin though. And something Princess Kalia didn't know was that for all intensive purposes beyond physical structure, Alex was a guy. That included attractions and desires.

But she backed away, to make room for the princess. "May I ask what book that is? I did not read the spine as I was getting it down."

((eek.. short))

Kalia got a devilish grin on her face as she hugged the book to her chest as if someone would come bounding into the room and try and steal it away. "It's called Dark Paradise." She looked at the cover of the book, the cover of the hardback actually said Studies of Etiquette. "I put a fake cover on it so that my parents didn't take it away, and they too often look through books that I can reach easily so I put it up higher so they won't find it."

Kalia went towards the desk and opened the book, she was nearly half way done with the book. "You can borrow it if you would like, it is a really good book."

"I might have to sometime... When you've finished, of course..." Alex kept herself back, looking over the Princess' shouder as she read. She was really such a fascinating girl. She would rather study lies than etiquette. And Alex had to agree with it. All the high-and-mighty formal deals and forks-go-here mentality really did wear thin. It was often more fun and useful to just live the life of simplicity.

Smiling Kalia nodded and commenced reading her book. It was a good book, it had action and a bit of romance into it. Pausing she thought aloud, "Sometimes I wish my life was more exciting, like the lives of people in books." Her smile faded and she turned to face the other, "Is it bad to wish for more excitement?" Her eyes were soft and a little sad and calm looking up at the other.

"Well... Princess..." Alex sighed softly. "Excitement comes in many forms. But there's always two sides. Like a good story, there's build up to a climax of exciting action. And there's also the problem surrounding the book. If you're willing to deal with conflict and strife. Yes. Excitement is something to wish for. But if you're scared of getting scolded, and feel you couldn't handle more... You might want to change your wishes...."

"However... I have faith in your strength... Princess."