Amaryllis guided the mana to her shadow and the shadows around her. The gloomy annex held more than enough for her to borrow without anything seeming amiss. She carefully wrapped them around her body. 

The shadow cloak kept her hidden from sight and muffled her steps. Even if she passed someone in the hallway no one would notice her. She couldn’t hide the doors opening, but that was manageable with a bit of careful listening.

Luckily, she didn’t need to test her magic too much since she didn’t cross paths with anyone on her way to the garden. The back door the servants used to sneak out for breaks was unlocked and unguarded. Amaryllis quickly closed it behind her and took a few steps away on the off chance someone came by. She had never snuck out before and her heart was racing. She placed her palm over it to try to steady herself. 

Peering into the darkness she spied no one. The moon was barely a sliver in the sky above, but it was enough to show the silhouettes of her surroundings. The garden behind the annex was sparse. A well-manicured lawn, flower beds, and a few benches near the forest’s edge were all that was there. 

Knowing that they would immediately be caught if she sat on the benches, Amaryllis headed to the nearby forest. While she had no indecent desires with this meeting, there would be an immediate scandal if she were caught alone with any man this late at night. Even worse if it was a visiting knight. Better for them to be in the woods. 

There was a small clearing not too far from the back garden that would be a nice place to talk privately. It wouldn’t be hard to reach once Sir Vincent arrived. Maybe two minutes of walking, if that. 

She selected a tree with a broad trunk next to the garden’s edge and leaned against it. With her plan decided she settled in. It wouldn’t be pleasant to wait in the dark, but, if she was right, it would be worth it. 

Besides, she wasn’t so arrogant as to think he’d rush out to meet her. She may be a duke’s daughter, but she was no stunning beauty. The women at the party had easily outshone her. Even Veronica, who had still not fully grown into her looks, already surpassed her. 

Between dancing with the women who had already made their interests very clear and an inappropriate meeting in a cold garden, she knew what he would pick.

Amaryllis didn’t know how much time passed before she heard the faint crunching of leaves. The silhouette of a large figure made its way to the back garden. She was thoroughly chilled by that point and had her arms wrapped around herself. The figure stopped at the edge of the garden. She hastily let the shadows go and felt them drift off into the night.

The head slowly turned before stopping as he spotted her. His footsteps were silent as he closed the distance between them. Amaryllis wondered if he’d purposefully made noise so she’d known he was there.

“Hello,” she said awkwardly when he stopped before her.

“You wished to speak with me?” his tone was emotionless, worryingly so, and she couldn’t help but bite her lip.

Had she been too presumptuous? Perhaps he’d thought he couldn’t turn down a request from the host’s daughter. He was a high-ranking knight, but he was still a commoner after all. Did he think she was abusing her power? 

The dim light and his height hid his expressions from her. She feared he found her foolish, or perhaps wanton, for asking to meet like this.

“Yes, I, um,” she swallowed and tried to calm her pounding heart as she stumbled over her words. “I just, it was you, wasn’t it? You’re the one who saved me from that monster when we were children. Right?”

A long silence stretched between them. She was unable to bear it with any form of grace, twirling a curl nervously around one finger while she waited for a reply. 

Why was he taking so long to say something? If it wasn’t him, shouldn’t he just deny it and be done with it? Perhaps he was worried about embarrassing her and was trying to think of a tactful reply. Or he was so dumbfounded by her foolishness that he was at a loss for words. 

She was struggling to break the awkward silence when he finally spoke, his voice impossibly soft.

“I didn’t think you’d remember.”

“It’s hard to forget,” Amaryllis smiled and blushed. 

He was suddenly far less frightening now that she was certain he was her savior and a touch of warmth had started to fill his voice.

“I worried something terrible had happened when you disappeared, but then I started hearing tales about you. I wondered if you were the same person.”

“You worried about me?” he couldn’t hide the surprise in his voice.

“Well, yes,” Amaryllis bit her lip, worried he was insulted at the idea of a tiny woman fretting over a knight who was clearly more than capable of taking care of himself. “You were just . . .gone. I am not . . . completely ignorant to how my father is so I wondered if .  . .”

She trailed off, unwilling to say aloud that she believed her father capable of both having a child killed and capable of killing off the person who had saved the life of his daughter. To her relief, Sir Vincent merely nodded and didn’t press her further.

“Anyways, I just, um, wanted a private moment,” she floundered as the silence stretched between them. “If you want to talk there’s a clearing nearby so . . .”

She trailed off, gesturing awkwardly into the woods. Sir Vincent hesitated for a moment before stepping beside her and offering his hand. The escort was unexpected, making her feel bashful. She timidly placed her hand on his and was about to steer them to the clearing when he stiffened.

“How long have you been out here?” his voice had grown sharp, startling her. “You’re freezing.”

“Just a bit,” Amaryllis pulled her hand back, embarrassed. He released her after resisting for a moment. “I was afraid I’d miss you if you came.”

“Blasted fools kept me in there too long trying to introduce me to every noble and their brother.” 

Sir Vincent grumbled as he slipped off his jacket and gently draped it over her shoulders.

“Oh, thank you,” she felt her blush deepen.

He nodded, satisfied with how quickly she’d accepted the gesture. The warmth on her cheeks matched the warmth coming from his jacket. She wondered just how hot he was for his jacket to hold so much heat. Were all men like that?

“Um, it’s not far,” Amaryllis started walking.

Sir Vincent followed half a step behind as she led the way to the clearing. A downed tree at the edge served as a natural bench and she hurried to it. The quick walk had not given her time to recover from how flustered he’d made her. 

All the things she had imagined saying to him were gone. Lost to the night like the shadows she had let go.

The log was relatively clean, but a few fallen leaves dusted it. She brushed them off and sat at one end. The knight hesitated for a moment before settling himself on the opposite side. 

Amaryllis grimaced as she realized just how utterly unbecoming this meeting was. Not only had she asked to meet alone, at night. She had led him to a log in the woods of all things. Could she be any further from the refined noblewoman she was supposed to be? Scrambling for anything to fill the awkward silence she blurted out the first question she could think of.

“Those little carvings and pretty rocks, were they you too?”

“Yeah,” he cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his neck. “I didn’t know you figured that out too.”

The tensions between them seemed to fully dissipate with his admission and she relaxed.

“Well, they stopped appearing after you left,” she snorted. “I may have been a child but I wasn’t that stupid.”

“Fair enough,” he chuckled. “I did appreciate the treats you left me in exchange.”

“I always picked my favorites for you.”

The little treasure swap had been one of her favorite things when she was little. At some point she had discovered small, rough wood carvings of animals or pretty pebbles under one of the benches in the back garden. The sound of a rickety cart had been the only sign of whoever had left them, but he’d always been too fast for her to catch. To show her thanks, she’d started leaving snacks in return.

“Maybe that’s why I have a fondness for almonds and apples.”

“I’m glad I didn’t leave something you hated,” she smiled when she recalled that poached apples had been on the menu earlier. “Do you still make carvings?”

“No, I let that go after I took up the sword,” he patted the blade at his waist. “I wasn’t very good at carving anyways.”

“I still liked them,” she paused before admitting a secret. “I still have two. The dog and a bird. My nursemaid got rid of the rest when she decided I was too old for such things, but I managed to keep those hidden away.”

“I figured you would have forgotten them altogether.” 

He sounded cautious and she suddenly wished that there was more light. What expression was he making? She turned to look up at him, but his posture gave away nothing. Annoyed she couldn’t keep from grumbling.

“You seem to doubt my memory and my intelligence.”

A rueful smile pulled at her lips. She was used to being underestimated, but this sense of disappointment filling her was strange. They had been so young, yet he had still noticed that she was lacking.

“No, it’s not that, I-“

He tried to defend himself. She almost told him not to bother. That she understood. 

As she searched for something to say that wouldn’t embarrass herself even further, Sir Vincent let out a deep sigh.

“It’s just, I was just a lowly commoner boy. I’m sure you’ve received better gifts from suitors since then.”

Amaryllis almost snorted. Better gifts? Suitors? If anything of the sort had happened, they were given directly to her father and she never saw them.

“Maybe, but no one else has ever made me anything by hand,” she shrugged, hoping her tone was casual enough to hide her embarrassment.

“So, you prefer thoughtful gifts to expensive ones?”

“I suppose I do.”

She had never really thought about it. The gifts she received were reflections of how people wanted her father to view them. They had little to do with her. She was just their excuse to build rapport with the duke. Save a few things from her nursemaid and siblings, Sir Vincent was the only one to have ever consistently given her things.

“I prefer that too. Either that or something useful.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

An easy silence settled around them. The crickets chirped somewhere nearby, and the wind gently rustled the leaves above them. A hooting owl sent something scurrying in the underbrush before a quiet cry signaled its death.

“It’s late,” Sir Vincent got to his feet and offered his hand. “Let me escort you back.”

“Thank you, my apologies for keeping you.”

Amaryllis placed her hand in his and followed as he easily led them through the dark. They reached the edge of the garden, and she stopped, inadvertently tugging on his hand. 

Her heart had fluttered briefly when he’d offered to escort her again. Now she felt like ice water had been dumped over her when she thought of him seeing her shabby robe or her tiny chambers. Even the fact that she stayed in the annex could be seen as shameful if he realized she was kept there so she’d stay out of the way.

“I might get in trouble if I’m seen with a man so late,” she muttered, looking away from his curious stare. 

She felt him stiffen and looked up, worried he thought she didn’t want to be with him. Now that the moon wasn’t blocked by branches, she could just make out his face in the dim night light. His expression was completely impassive. She had no idea what he was thinking as he studied her.

“I’ll watch you go into the annex then,” he said quietly. “Just to make sure you get in safely.”

Amaryllis bit back a scoff, thinking it a silly concern since she could see the annex from where they stood. But the idea of him wanting to, of him caring, also warmed her heart more than his jacket had warmed her body. So, she meekly nodded and slipped off his coat.

“Thank you,” she whispered.

Sir Vincent hesitated for a moment, placing his hand on hers as he took the coat back.

“When we come back after beating the raiders . . . There’ll be a victory banquet. May I come talk to you again?”

“I’d like that,” Amaryllis gently squeezed the hand that held hers.

“Until next time then,” he gently raised her hand and brushed his lips across the back of it.

"Be safe, Sir Vincent."