A Distant Memory : Part II

"You work as a florist? How old are you? You don't look old enough to work." the young man asked as he looked at the girl who just grabbed the flowers out of his hands. Her expression unfazed even by his question, acting as if she had never heard him.

"Are you ignoring me? Seriously...? I!... I came all this way to... see you..." the young man exclaimed exasperatedly as he stared at the girl in a heated manner, heaving as he tried to calm himself down.

The girl turned her beautiful violet eyes to his clear sapphire eyes as she studied his face. She cocks her head to the side as the corners of her lips lifted into a sweet smile.

"Heh... Hihihihi!" the girl burst out into a fit of giggles as she stared at the young man. His face now twisted with a look of confusion as he stared back at her with his bejewelled sapphire eyes.

"Diane. I'm Diane Orvielle." the girl said as she stretched out her hand towards the young man, plastering a sweet smile on her face as her giggles died down. The smile on her face a genuine one.

"... I'm... Xander..." the young man said as he reached out to grab her outstretched hand, holding it firmly in his own. His eyebrows now rising as his eyes averted from her violet irises to her hand which he now shook.

"Your hand... it's rough... Is it... the flowers?" Xander asked as he finally let go of her hand, feeling the heat from his palm dissipate in the air. His face cringing from his statement that lacked empathy.

"Hmm... I guess so. You were kinda rude though. But... my hands do scar easily... I just took the bandages off recently, so I guess the scars are still healing." Diane replied as she blinked stupidly at her hand that was lined with thorn marks.

It... wasn't an insult, was it? Diane wondered as she stared at her hand, feeling the lack of warmth that she felt whilst Xander had held it in his.

She frowned at the fleeting thought as she shook her head. What is wrong with me? ... I need to get my head out of the gutter... Diane thought to herself as she arranged the flowers neatly in a nearby vase for display.

Xander watched in silence as Diane went about the shop, arranging and tending to the flowers. His eyes falling on her tiny figure.

She looked not much older than 14 years old and yet, the expression she constantly wore was one of a mature adult. Her tiny frame, hugged snugly by her yellow one piece flowed gently as she ran about the shop with ease.

Despite being approached by a burly man who stopped by the shop just to flirt with her, Diane kept a level head and a calm disposition as she rejected his advances.

The man however, did not take it calmly as he started to make a fuss, resulting with him coming up with a commotion. Passersby turned heads as they tried to avoid calming the man down as they wanted nothing to do with the situation.

Xander furrowed his brows and frowned before he moved towards Diane to stop the man. However, he stopped in his tracks when he noticed a raised hand lifted towards him that indicated that Diane had everything under control. 

Xander obliged as he nodded and proceeded to lean back against the tree that he had been under since earlier when he was watching Diane, crossing his arms as he watched her small mouth open and close, her words inaudible from the distance he was at.

The burly man's face flushed red as he suddenly raised his hand, ready to strike Diane. His face contorted in anger and embarrassment from her statement. Diane crouched and raised her arms to protect herself as she squeezed her eyes tightly shut, expecting the heavy blow to land.

As moments passed, Diane dared pry her eyes open as she saw the burly man's face pale with his pupils dilated and shaking. She quickly searched for the reason as to why he was so terrified as her eyes swept the sight before her as it landed on a shiny silver blade pressed against the man's neck.

"Gasp! X-Xander! What are you doing?" Diane yelped as she lowered her arms, covering her mouth in shock. She assumed it was Xander from the slightly short stature as she couldn't see the owner of the blade as the burly man blocked her view.

As the blade was lowered, the burly man quickly reached out to grab Diane hoping to hold her hostage, making her gasp as her arm was grabbed roughly. However, before anything worrisome progressed, the man fell to his knees and was hit on the back of his neck rendering him unconscious.

Silence enveloped the usual hustle and bustle of the marketplace as hordes of onlookers stopped to stare at the scene that unfoldeded.

Diane stared at Xander, her face frozen with her mouth agape in surprise. Xander had a nonchalant expression on his face as he stared at the fallen man before averting his eyes to return the gaze he felt from Diane.

"... Why are you looking at me like that?" Xander asked as he creased his brows, not expecting Diane to look so astonished. 

"... You just... knocked out a full grown man... Who is... twice your size..." Diane breathed out as she lowered her hands, voice shaking a little.

Who is he? How is a boy who looks about my age able to do such a thing? He can't be normal... I'm sure it would take at least three men to suppress that man... but he... he did it all on his own... He is... dangerous... Diane's thoughts wandered about as her expression stiffened. 

"So? He was just big. But that's all. With proper training, anyone could do it. I just hit a few vital spots and he's off to dream land." Xander replied casually as he folded his arms behind his neck as he grinned cockily at Diane.

"... Oh... I see." Diane replied as she calmed herself. He probably had training or something before... maybe what he said is plausible... after all... he DID save me. Diane thought to herself as she stared blankly at Xander.

"...ming." Xander's voice filled the air as Diane snapped out of her thoughts. Xander had poked her forehead lightly as his face was right in front of hers, making her gasp in surprise as she pushed him away quickly.

"Ouch! That's like, the third time I got pushed on the ground by you! I can't believe..." Xander exclaimed before he shut his mouth. His eyes falling on Diane as she covered her flushed red face, turning away from him.

Xander smirked as he resigned himself to his fate and sat on the ground as he stared at Diane, etching her adorable reaction in his memory. How adorable... A fleeting thought passed through his mind as Xander found himself surprised at the thought.

***

Time went by quicker than expected as the palace guard found Xander and quickly brought him back to the palace, leaving Diane confused as she exited the store excitedly with a bouquet of flowers as she looked around the vicinity of the shop for any sight of her new friend.

Her expression morphed into one of disappointment as she found Xander gone. She had expected him to wait for her shift to be over to hang out. Diane had originally planned to thank Xander for helping her out during the commotion after her shift but he had already left. Her mood sunk as she sighed and thanked her boss, waving unenthusiastically as she walked off solemnly. 

Xander of course kicked and screamed as he was brought back to the palace, but nobody dared interfere as the palace guard who swept Xander off his feet and onto his shoulder like a sack was none other than Gloucester, Xander's only best friend throughout the whole palace and the one knight in the kingdom who has aided the king to obtain countless victories. Hence, why nobody dared speak up even though it seemed like Xander was being abducted in broad daylight.

"Oh, come on! Put me down!!! This is embarrassing! Not to mention, your shoulder is digging into my stomach! It's crushing it! I swear I'm going to get indigestion later!" Xander grumbled as he hit his best friend's shoulders, frantically kicking his legs as a means of escape. However, Gloucester didn't budge.

"Your Majesty... Please stay still, we're nearly back at the palace. You wouldn't prefer for me to carry you like a princess... would you?" Gloucester asked as he slowed his pace, tightening his hold on Xander's thigh.

"... Fine. Fine. I can only imagine what the servants would think if they saw me like that... Carrying me this way is fine." Xander sighed as he stopped struggling, resigning himself to his fate.

"Well, for what it's worth. I can let you sneak out on a daily basis."

"What?! ... Are you serious, Glo?" 

"Hmphm. Yes, of course. I'm always serious."

"... What's the catch?"

"You can only leave for two hours..."

"Deal!"

"However! Your assignments and training must be completed flawlessly before you leave. I'll be checking your work beforehand."

"Ugh. Fine." Xander groaned a reply as he rolled his eyes, draping his body lazily over his friend's shoulder as he sighed. 

Gloucester smiled as he reached the castle gates, nodding his head as the palace guards saluted him before opening the gates. 

Xander turned his eyes towards the view before him as he felt Gloucester walk forward into the castle. The view of the capital city, fading into the distance.