Left alone, Scarlett continued to observe the proceedings in the hall with moderate disinterest. She was worried about Sander. He’d been more troubled than usual. They hadn’t had a chance to sit down and discuss his powers properly yet – maybe that would ease his mind? Still, he brooded on Emilia so much, and now with what happened to Avi, it was plain to see what a mess he was.

She sighed and scratched her head. She still wasn’t sure why she’d felt so compelled to bring him along on her mission. Sure, she’d said that it would be safer with her than to leave him as a target in his sister’s home, but really, she could have found somewhere safe for him along the way and left him there. Certainly, fighting vampires wasn’t anybody’s idea of ‘safe’.

She let her gaze pass aimlessly across the hall until it fell on a particular face, peaking in from an open entryway. Their eyes met, and then the face disappeared. Curious, and with nothing better to do, Scarlett made her way across the room and out through the side entrance. As the Lunar Knight stepped out into the passage, she found herself face to face with a young girl.

Her hair was fair, fairer than Scarlett’s own even, to the point of being almost white, and it was tied up in two bunches which gave her a very childish appearance. Coupled with a white, strappy, summer dress embroidered with gold, sandals and an undeveloped body, she really did look quite young. Scarlett approached the girl, who drew back shyly.

“Hey, what’s your name?” she asked, crouching down in front of the girl.

“I-Istar,” she replied, clearly wary. Her emerald eyes and white hair were a shock against her olive skin.

Scarlett smiled. “Are your parents nearby?”

The Lunar Knight could only imagine that this child was lost – it would explain her anxious demeanour. The girl shook her head.

“Daddy’s in the gardens.”

Scarlett’s mind ticked over. Only the king and a select few others were allowed to step foot in the famed gardens.

“Are you the princess, by any chance?”

The girl seemed unsure for a moment, but then slowly nodded. What the hell was such an important child doing wandering around alone? Then, without another word, the girl bolted. Instinctively, Scarlett chased after her. The princess disappeared around the corner. Scarlett was right on her tail, but as she rounded the bend, the girl was nowhere to be seen.

“Huh?”

Her ears pricked at a sound behind her. She spun around and caught a glimpse of the girl running back the way they’d come. With a glance to her left, she found a small alcove in the wall. The child knew the palace well, it seemed. She sprinted after her. She passed some guards that gave her an odd look, but she simply waved and continued her pursuit.

Scarlett stopped as she entered a large, open courtyard, entrances to different parts of the palace surrounding the space. In the centre of the courtyard, was a stone bench in the shade of some palm trees, where Istar lay flopped over the seat’s back laughing and panting. The stones slabs of the courtyard floor were set about a metre below the ground around them, and beside each doorway along the raised walkway stood a pair of armed guards, eyeing Scarlett suspiciously.

She approached the princess without paying the guardsmen much attention. “Caught you.”

“I got tired of running,” she replied, averting her eyes.

Scarlett smiled and took a seat beside the girl. Facing them directly was a large stone statue. Scarlett wasn’t especially well versed in the lore or religion of Babel, but she supposed it was the ‘Bel’ Basil had mentioned.

“Do you often wander around the palace on your own?”

She nodded. “There aren’t any girls my age living here at the moment. Well, there’s Dara but Gobryas always scolds me for playing with the servants’ children.”

“Gobryas?”

“My fiancé,” she mumbled, looking somewhat embarrassed.

It was then that Scarlett, for the first time, noticed the sparkling ring the girl bore on her left hand. Her eyes widened. Perhaps this kid was older than she thought. That, or the Babelonian royalty had some very traditionalistic practices.

“I’m fifteen,” Istar said, as if reading her thoughts. “I’m a bit small for my age…”

The princess was downcast as she spoke. Scarlett placed a hand on her back.

“Nothing wrong with that.”

“Hey, are you married yet?” the girl asked.

Scarlett reddened. “No, no, definitely not I – I’m a knight. I don’t have time for that kind of thing.”

She folded her arms and looked away from the girl. What had made her ask that? Istar laughed.

“Now you’re the one acting like a kid,” she said.

Scarlett wasn’t sure how to respond. The girl was quicker than she’d anticipated. Honestly, she couldn’t remember the last time she’d chatted with someone Istar’s age, so maybe she was just out of touch.

“Hehe…” She rubbed awkwardly at her head.

“Say, you don’t look much like a knight to me.”

Scarlett was in her casual wear, so she supposed she looked like a rather ordinary nineteen-year-old.

“Want to see something cool?” she asked with a grin.

Istar’s face brightened. “Yeah!”

Scarlett indicated for her to come closer, then held out her hand. “Watch this.”

With a flash of green light, a metal gauntlet materialised around her outstretched hand. From the look on Istar’s face she was clearly encapsulated.

“Whoa that was ama–”

“My lady,” said a guard, cutting Istar off as he approached, his rifle held ready.

The princess turned to the man with an irritated expression.

“Leave us,” she said, with a wave of her hand. “This is my friend, er–”

“Scarlett.”

“Scarlett,” the girl repeated proudly.

The Lunar Knight chuckled. The girl evidently enjoyed throwing her authority around when she was given half a chance to.

“O-of course,” the man replied, backing away with an awkward expression.

“You really are the princess.”

“You thought otherwise?”

“No, it’s just, well, nobody expects to meet a princess.”

“I suppose, when you put it like that…”

Scarlett dematerialised her gauntlet and then leaned back in the bench. “I did meet a princess once. Well, not so much met, but rather, saw in passing. Anastasia, one of the daughters of the New Spartan King of Magic. She was amongst those observing an exhibition match between the junior knights.”

“You’re from the Lunar Colonies?” the princess asked, wide-eyed.

“Hmph, you know your cosmology,” Scarlett replied, impressed.

“I’d love to know more ab–”

The sound of a large but distant clock, striking the hour, echoed through the courtyard.

“Oh, I have to get going,” Istar said, getting to her feet. “Would you meet me here again tomorrow?”

Scarlett couldn’t think of any reason not to, and she’d oddly enjoyed their talk. Besides, the pleading look the girl gave her was hard to refuse.

“Sure.”

The princess was beaming as she dashed off with a wave goodbye. Scarlett smiled too; but then, catching a glimpse of something, her cheery expression was replaced with a frown. It was only for an instant, so she couldn’t be sure, but she swore she’d seen bruising along the base of the girl’s neck.