Sara was too cold and numb to move, a dull pain spread all over her body while a much stronger one was focused on her belly, she knew what that strong pain was, hunger, she was starving, she wished she could have curled up on herself more to reduce it a little, but she had no control over her body. Being the king’s bastard, she was deprived of titles and wealth. However, her father made sure to provide her with everything she needed to live a respectable and comfortable life, she was always well fed and sheltered, never suffered the hunger nor cold, this led her to grow up isolated and fully dependent on her father, which didn’t do her any good as she had no idea how to face life alone. Sara tried to survive for the first days, economizing her consummation of the few resources she had left, skipping some meals and eating less, saving the woodblocks for the coldest nights only, using candles instead of lamps to save their oil. She did good at first but with the rainy storm the cold became unbearable, and so did the hunger. While under that tree, Sara wasn’t completely unconscious, she was in a weird place in between, the frostbite didn’t allow her to fully lose her conscience while her weakened body and not letting her fully wake up, her eyes were closed but instead of the familiar darkness, she was met with the blinding light again. Feeling herself floating in the white glowing fog, Sara blinked few times, trying to adjust her eyes to the blinding light, once she did, she used the remaining bits left of her energy to look around her. Remembering her latest experience in the river when she was surrounded by the same light, Sara wasn’t surprised to see the same woman again, with her silver hair and gorgeous dress made of small crystal scales intertwined together, the woman’s face was set on a serious expression, her sharp features looking more intimidating that way, the look in her eyes was laced with urgency and she raised her arms again, Sara felt her floating body going rigid, an invisible pressure threated to break her bones as she gasped for air, Sara tried to inhale but it was of no use, looking back at the woman, she knew it was all her doing. Unable to move or resist, she only watched with her panic eyes as the woman motioned with her hands for Sara’s body to go to her. As if being lifted by air, Sara’s body flew toward the woman until she was one step away from her, at this proximity, she was able to see the shocking resemblance, especially when the sharp features started softening up to look just like her, she stared at her own face with both confusion and horror reading the lips silent movement, Sara didn’t need to be a lip reader to know that exact word as it was the simplest. “Run” The light was then swallowed by darkness in a blink of an eyes, until nothing was left of it but a thin line in the far horizon, focusing on that line, Sara slowly saw it widen to involve more colors and shapes, focusing on them, she slowly recognized Eren’s worried face. “God, you scared me…”, Sara wanted to say something to reassure her friend that she was alright, however, the splitting headache and excruciating cramps of her stomach didn’t allow her to, looking at her worriedly, Eren leaned over, putting his arm under her back, he lifted her up gently into a sitting position, careful not to aggravate the headache she was clearly having, placing a fluffy pillow behind her back, he pulled back only to grab the glass of water from the nightstand, placing it in front of her lips with a hand under her chin, he helped her gulp few sips. The water directly eased her sore throat and she was able to talk. “Thank you…” at her words, Eren shook his head while placing the cup back where it was and standing up. “You don’t need to thank me, my fair lady, but you do need to explain what were you doing in the forest during a rain storm. You almost got yourself killed”, Eren tried to keep his words kind but his obvious unhappiness and worry made them sound like an upset scolding, Sara lowered her head, not knowing from where to start. “I...” “Not now, my fair lady, you need to eat something first, wait for me here.”, once he said that, Eren turned and left the room, letting Sara have her time to look at herself, hapy to see she was still  in the same dress, she took her time study the “here” he mentioned. Looking around with curious eyes, she admired the luxurious room she was places in, even in the dim lights she was able to see how beautiful it was, the walls were made of white marble, while the furniture was of a beige and golden color, a very comfortable combination for the eye, the bed she was in was a queen size, the white sheets and covers were made of fine soft fabric which was decorated with delicate golden embroidery, the pillows were the softest on her body, the night stand had a jug and a cup with few beautiful candles in golden assets, few vases were scattered all over the room, with different collections of flowers but mostly white jasmine, her absolute favorites. A double knock on the door pulled Sara out of her brooding, she turned toward the door to see Eren walk inside with a tray in his hands, the delicious smell that jumped to her nose made her stomach grumble loudly to her utter embarrassment. looking down, she placed both of her arms around her belly, her face bright red, she couldn’t even wish that he didn’t hear the loud roaring as it was way too loud, however, the man walked to sit next to her, placing the tray in front of her. “There is no need for you to be embarrassed.” He said while placing a finger under he chin to make her look at him, meeting his golden brown eyes, Sara felt her cheeks burn even brighter, “You were drenched and unconscious, your body needs to recuperate it strength, Please feel free to eat to your heart content.” Offering her an encouraging smile, he let go of her chin to pick up the silver spoon, dipping in in the delicious looking hot soup, he gently blew it before offering it to her. “I can eat by myself...” Sara said, shaking her head in the process only to receive a pointed look, Eren’s almost glare put an end to her attempts to refuse his help and forced her to open her mouth and accept being fed like a little child. “You are still too tired, my fair lady. If I let you eat by yourself, you will be exhausted after a couple of spoons.” Eren said in a gentle tone, his eyes going back to their kind state as he made sure to not over fill the spoons with the soup, feeding her slowly with enough time in between to swallow and digest, without being over stuffed. “I am sorry I didn’t bring you anything else, but I doubt your stomach can receive hard food, I promise to provide you with better meals once you get better.” Eren placed the empty tray on the night stand, sitting back next to Sara who noticed his eyes that lingered a bit on her lips before he raised his hand to slowly and gently wipe something from the corner of her mouth, making her body instantly heat up… “Now my fair lady, should I let you rest a little more or should we begin with our talk?”, Eren’s voice wasn’t persistent but Sara still felt obliged to answer, but not before asking her own questions, even though she trusted her dear friend, she still couldn’t shake the uneasiness of being in an unfamiliar place. “Where are we?” “This is my summer house, it is a small property I own and use when I feel like I need some distance, You were unconscious when I found you, and even looked sick and pale, I couldn’t leave you there as it was too cold and rainy and you were not waking up and I had no idea where you lived either, so I brought you here, I apologize if this is uncomfortable for you.”, Sara’s mouth took the form of an “Oh” as she had all of her answers in one go, except for one, What was he doing there in the first place? Even though it was exactly what she prayed for, he wasn’t supposed to be there during the storm as it was their agreement, and yet he was. “Your turn now, Sara.” Eren waited patiently for her to talk, not having much of a choice, she sighed defeatedly. “I went there in hopes of running into you...” “So, you missed me as well?” Eren said with a bright smile, obviously joking but she couldn’t help but focus on that little detail where he hinted that he went to the river because he missed her. “Now for real, tell me why were you there and why were you depriving yourself of food?” seeing her surprised expression, he gave her the pointed look again, “Please tell me the truth, Sara, I won’t be able to help you unless you do…” “My father is missing, I... was wondering if you could help me find him.” “Well of course my fair lady, when was the last time you saw him?” Eren’s interest was instantly picked at her words, sitting straighter, he waited for her answer... “Three weeks…”, Sara looked at Eren with teary eyes, her voice smaller than before as he looked at her with a deep frown. “Sara, please tell me you did have enough food during these three weeks.”, Eren sighed when she shook her head, “Why haven’t you told me?”, not receiving any answer, Eren didn’t pressure her, he knew it must have been embarrassing for her as she wasn’t the kind of girl who leeched on others. “I will send some men to look for him, do you have an idea where he might be?” “Yes, In the royal castle” “Your father works in the castle?” At her hesitant nod, he asked again, “What is his name and his occupation” Taking a deep breath, Sara hesitated a little before answering him, “Edard Yoren, The king.”