The Knight would never forget the first time he felt her mana. When his Princess healed him, it was such a gentle, soothing, utterly soul wrenching experience. How could he ever forget being at the lowest a person could be, and waking up to being in her arms surrounded in light? When he opened his eyes, he knew he’d never see a more beautiful person in his entire life. He thought he’d be jealous when the world would finally see her like this.

He felt her mana releasing immediately, it was like feeling the sun on his back. She was at the foot of a hill that was a wall of mud, ready to slide and crush her. At the last moment flowers sprung up, locking everything in place. He was trying to help a group of people evacuate, but he had to take a moment to be in awe of her. The villagers with him gasped.

“An angel,” a woman whispered. She was. Rather than be upset or possessive upon others seeing his Princess like this, he felt a measure of pride. Finally, people would see her for who she was. In that state, glowing, she scarcely seemed to touch the water.

“I have to get you out of here. The Princess is sacrificing a lot to make sure you have a home to return to, so let’s get you all to safety,” he said. He knew his job, he had to ensure everyone was rescued.

The Archmage told him that even though his mana was minimal, it was enough that he could resonate with the right people and he’d be more acutely aware of them than others. She left decidedly unspoken that one of the people he resonated with was the Princess. At first it manifested in knowing her general moods and he could approximate where she was. Slowly his powers refined and were especially sharp whenever it came to her. He could read her emotions with even more clarity so he knew how to help her.

As a result he knew her well, the good and the bad. He knew how she shut down when overwhelmed, how she would procrastinate, she would bottle up her feelings and then all of a sudden speak rashly. He also knew how she worked tirelessly on behalf of her people, even if many found her intimidating due to her status. No matter how overwhelming it was for her, she found the energy to interact with her subjects. The reason it was overwhelming was because she cared. She wanted to hear them all, and her compassion knew no limits.

Perhaps the most dangerous thing he knew about his beloved Princess was that he was a source of comfort and happiness to her. He wished it was just a platonic admiration, but he knew for a fact that it was beyond that. The Knight couldn’t deny that the feeling was mutual. The change to love was so gradual, he scarcely noticed it. All he knew was that one day, he could feel an intense and inviting feeling from her. Like he was out in the cold and she had thrown open the door to a warm and cozy home. It was hard to resist.

Suddenly her wide, green eyes framed with long lashes beckoned him, her lips seemed so much pinker and softer, the gentle blush of her cheeks made him wish he could just give her one kiss and hold her close.

After he made sure everyone was safe, he knew exactly where to find her. Not just because of being able to sense her mana or his empathic powers, but because he knew her so well, there was only one thing she’d save for last. The tree where her parents met. It was the one plant that wasn’t necessary for the people’s safety and yet it was important to her. The tree grew once again, old and tall, the branches wide and embracing, providing cover from the rain. Her flow state abated only slightly as she saw him. She wanted to know if her work was done. He knew what he had to do, she could read his mind if he made contact with her. He held her hands and, though he didn’t have to, he pressed his forehead against hers. He figured she wouldn’t mind. He knew he said something reassuring, sometimes hearing his voice helped to ground her.

She looked up at him, her eyes slowly losing their glow, she started to wobble a little and he caught her. The woman he loved had exhausted all her energy on behalf of others and was about to collapse in the middle of a street full of muddy water. He wrapped her in his cape. She was beautiful and glowing even after all her mana faded. He carried her, trudging through water shielding her from the rain. Above the roaring winds, all he could hear was her soul, raw from being stripped from so much mana, calling to him, craving him. He could scarcely endure this. Normally, he could merely get an impression of her feelings, there was always a bit of a barrier keeping him from experiencing them in full force and affecting him too much. Maybe they both had their powers amplified, because he was experiencing every breathless, heady, dizzy, heart pounding aspect of love and it was crippling and affecting him physically, he was shaking at the force of it. He could have carried his Princess through a fire, but he could not bear feeling all her feelings for him, not when he could barely manage his own for her. He held her close and spoke, unsure if she could hear.

“Please, have some mercy on me, my Princess. I just want to take care of you and keep you safe and I can’t face these emotions right now,” he said. She must have understood, maybe she passed out completely, but the symptoms faded quickly and he could finally breathe without trouble. Once he arrived at their designated safehouse, he could tell there were already many people with many questions. He managed to answer what he could and shut down what was unnecessary at the time. His Princess needed rest.

She had a small, quiet room, a few young women cleaned her up and dressed her in dry clothes. She was settled into a bed and he held her hand as she rested. Soon the world would be aware that his Princess could cause plants to grow on a grand scale. Soon the citizens would figure out why their country never suffered from the continent-wide famine and put two and two together. He would ignore that for now. He could only focus on her immediate well being. She was fine, this happened when she used her powers like this. Her tiny hand seemed so small in his. Why did such a small person have to shoulder such a large burden, why couldn’t he do it for her?

He kissed her hand over and over again. From this point forward, he’d have to find a way to be more honest with his feelings. He loved her so much, as more than just his Princess, more than the person who saved his life, just as herself. He wanted to do whatever he could to give her the happiness she deserved.

“My Princess, when you wake up, you have to tell me what I can do to make you happy,” he said. “Promise me you’ll tell me.”

He held her hand to his forehead. He wouldn’t waste his time holding back from her anymore.

The sun peeked through the window. The storm was over. She sat up slowly and glanced at her surroundings. She was home. The Princess frowned and narrowed her eyes. What happened? The lady in waiting that entered dropped her tray.

“She’s awake!” she shouted. She hurried off. The Princess sighed and tried to stand up. What happened to the people? Had the water receded? Had recovery and reconstruction began? She hobbled over to the door and came face to face with her Knight (well, face to chest was more like it, he was so tall). He smiled warmly and picked her up.

“Good morning, Princess,” he said. This was different. There was a soft sparkle in his eyes when he looked at her, he held her closer. Even when he set her back in her bed, he didn’t rush to release her like she was made of hot glass. He kneeled and kissed her hand so tenderly that her entire face flushed. Why was everything so different?

“I’ll let the others give you a more detailed report, but everything you’ve arranged is working well. You picked the right people to handle everything, I’ve been following up while you were recovering,” he said.

“How long was I out?” she asked.

“Five days,” he said.

“Five days!”

“You did a lot. You saved so many people. I think passing out for five days is to be expected,” he said.

She sighed and he laughed and tucked a lock of her hair behind her ear. This also made her flush.

“What’s different about you? What happened?” she asked. It was his turn to blush and that made her eyes widen and her heart race. He leaned over.

“Do you want to sneak out?” he asked. She nodded enthusiastically.

“Well, it’d cause too much of a commotion now, but I think we can get out in the afternoon,” he said.

“I look forward to it,” she said softly. He kissed her hand again, before he left her to be waited on by her ladies. She had no idea what had changed, but she was curious. She hoped he would finally listen to the way her heart called for him, but that seemed too good to be true.