The girl startled when Destrian approached her. Her cat was much more eager to greet him. It jumped down from her shoulder and nuzzled his leg affectionately. He laughed and knelt down to pet the animal. Its fondness of him was amusing. If only the aristocrats could be so innocent, rather than always having ulterior motives when they tried to win him over. Wouldn’t that be something?

[b]“It… seems we have met again,”[/b] the girl spoke up. She sounded nervous. [b]“And… what are you doing out here in the woods again, Your Highness? Oh, I… um… mean Destrian?”[/b]

“My men and I had good luck in this area when we hunted yesterday,” Destrian replied as he picked up the girl’s cat and stood up, cradling it in his arms. “I thought it might be worth our time to try again. With the ball coming up, we need as much venison as we can get…” He paused and tilted his head slightly. “Oh, but you don’t know about that.”

Part of Destrian felt a sense of relief. The fact that this girl was so set apart from the gossip about him in the kingdom was nice. Still, he decided he ought to tell her about the ball since he had already brought it up. No point in being vague.

“My father is throwing a ball in two days,” Destrian said, stepping over to return the cat to its owner. “He’s trying to… improve relations with the neighboring kingdoms, so members of the other royal families have all been invited. I think he’s making this into a bigger deal than it needs to be, but my father has always been a bit eccentric when it comes to foreign relations. He loves to impress the neighbors.”  He laughed again and then paused as another thought came to him. “You know, we could use a talented singer such as yourself. The King already has a small band of musicians, but I believe he has yet to choose a vocalist. You could have a chance to see the palace.” Destrian’s voice took on a luring tone. “Of course, we would pay you handsomely for your services, and there will be plenty of guards. I can assure you that you will be perfectly safe. Your mother would be fine with that, wouldn’t she?”