[center]Alexander James Francis Maximillion Nightingale[/center]


Alexander blinked. He paused for a time. He looked right at Princess Rosalind and was silent for a moment. He just simply...stared, well, for a moment or two at least. Then, he finally spoke. 


"Princess....."

His voice was barely above a whisper as he said that. Suddenly, the king found himself on the cot once more. The ones tending to him had taken advantage of his suddenly distracted state and got him back down onto that cot without a fight. It had all happened so fast, on top of everything else.  He made one attempt to get back up, but somehow he had been restrained. Guards who had stayed behind, by choice, had helped those servants, and they, themselves, would get an earful later for not doing their proper jobs. Anyway, the king sighed and would finally stop struggling after a time. He frowned though, eyes narrowed and such as he looked at them all. Well....except for the princess. He found himself unable to look at her like that, at all. 



"..........................."




The king was not sure what to say at that point. It seemed like she truly cared about him now, which would be a first for him, obviously. For a time, he had actually been distracted from the matter at hand, concerning the maid. He barely noticed the shadows or anything of the like at all at that moment. He blinked when he felt her hand in his. He glanced at their hands, silent for a time. This time she had grabbed his, rather than the other way around, which he actually felt was quite nice. He actually very nearly smiled, not faintly but bigger than that, for a moment. Soon enough, he would be snapped out of it. It seemed to happen quite quickly, and for the first time he would seemingly be caught of guard. 




Loud voices could be heard. The king made another attempt, but to at least be in a seated position, as he tried to look in the direction in which the voices had come from. It sounded like those guards. He frowned and started to narrow his eyes again. A female voice had soon followed as he did that. Soon enough, a person who appeared to be a maid was dragged towards the tent, and at least within his eyesight, since he was not being allowed to get up even though he was the king and ruled that land. The guards had soon told him she had been caught and he simply nodded at first, his eyes still narrowed. 



"This one....still worked for the castle....."



Alexander had permitted her to still work at the castle, but he assigned her to tasks and areas where they were to NEVER encounter each other, like the farthest corners of the dungeons to clean, or the newly built prison towers to be maintained and cleaned and such. He had not seen her in person in many a moon(many years.) This was after she had approached him during a 'celebration of his birth' and had asked to be considered for courtship, and he had rejected her. She was not to be his, and he had explained to her that much, but she had appeared quite upset and he knew he had to create some distance if she was to maintain employment. He had given her a second chance, another first, and for any king. This was now something he was coming to regret doing, and quickly. He took a deep breath and finally spoke. 




"Place her in one of the many prison towers she helped to maintain until we can settle this situation. Then...if she confesses and we get the answers we seek, she will be let go....into exile."


He put emphasis on that last part. Anyway, he soon glanced back at Rosalind. 


"I am sorry....for all of this....milady." 



He was....sincere! Gasps could be heard from those who were there, those who were listening. Who was this male?! Where was there king?! Something was.....different....truly....different.