The Wings of the Beautifully Fallen

Chapter 3: Illiana

Chapter 3: Illiana

I stared at the man in horror, wondering if I had ever seen him before. If he had a relation to my father and if he had recognized me. He offered me a soft smile as he walked towards me, his dark brown eyes staring at me. The man was nothing like I had ever seen before. He was larger in size, but not because he was overweight. Rather, he looked buff, but not extremely so like some of the knights that we had. He was leaner but it was obvious that he was fairly strong.

"I hope I did not interrupt anything important, madam." He told me, his hand rubbing the back of his neck nervously. The tone of his voice was gentle, like he was genuinely worried that he had bothered me. But that didn't make any sense, why would any man be worried about a female? Was a man not in charge at all times? "I was just taking a walk to stretch my legs and came across this place, I really had no idea that someone else was here."

He stopped about an arm length away from me, his smile still playing on his lips as he stared down at me. It took me a moment to realize that he was a little over a head taller than me. I took a step back, debating if I should leave and hope that nothing bad would come of this. Why? Why of all days that I would be discovered here, why would it be today? I just needed to escape and to think, not to get into more trouble than I already was.

We stood there for a moment, neither of us saying anything and yet, my mind would not shut up.

Leave. It told me time and time again. Run away. Get away from him and hope that it will all work out the way it should.

The man chuckled softly before bowing, bending at the waist with his floating in front of him. "Forgive me, I am sure my sudden appearance has startled you. My name is Reginald and I am not from around here. My parents and I are here to visit an old family friend and so my time here is short." Straightening himself, he smiled again, the same gentle smile before.

What was wrong with him? He acted nothing like a man, at least not how I expected him too. Father had always told me that men would have control over everything, that they would never even ask a woman anything. But this man was different, he almost seemed like he meant every word he said.

"May I ask your name?" Reginald questioned, he held his hand out in front of him and I stared at it in confusion. Silence followed again before he sighed, his eyes staring at me curiously.

"I-Illiana." I whispered and he blinked a few times in confusion.

"Is Illiana a common name around here?" He asked and I shrugged, unable to answer. Why was he asking so many things? And why was he asking me? Wouldn't it be better to ask a man or someone who he could speak with? "Forgive me, it is just that I know the eldest princess is also named Illiana. Do you know her?"

Do I know her? How could I answer that? Of course I knew her, I was her. But I could not tell him that, not in case my father hears about it. If Father knew that I was sneaking out of the palace, the punishment would be insane. I most likely would not even survive it.

"You do not speak much, do you?" He asked and I shook my head. He chuckled softly. "I apologize if I scared you, I promise that was not my intention."

"I-it is fine." I muttered before stepping backwards, my arms circling my waist as I stared down at the ground. "I-I should go though."

"Must you?" Reginald demanded and took a step forward. "I would hate for you to leave because of me. I wouldn't want to ruin your time."

"I-"

His hand slid into mind, holding it gently, but firmly as he smiled down at me. "There's more than enough room for the both of us and it would be good to get to know some of the locals, don't you think?"