After the dinner at the Leventi manor, Xene had made the sole decision to avoid the place as much and as often as possible. True, it felt as if she were cutting herself off from someone she both cared about and depended on… but something about that night hadn’t sat well with her. Internally, Xene had reasserted that distance was required. Distance had turned into sheer avoidance.

For the last number of days, the princess had found any and every reason to remain as far from Leventi manor as possible. That meant she forced herself to remain as far from Lord Fotios as she could, giving her a chance to both breathe and sort out simultaneous feelings of jealousy and infatuation that had been brewing since the shared meal with Erini. Usually she would take a shopping trip or a chance to attend to the University as an excuse to do anything but settle into Lord Leventi’s company.

It was easier this way.

The space allowed her to think and properly reason with herself before she fell into a trap she would one day regret. Xene had to remind herself multiple times that he was a married lord and she a princess. Nothing could or would happen between them no matter how much her mind wandered in various directions. Yet she still could not shake the memory of the way Lord Fotios had been watching her. The warmth of his words and the conveyed feelings of inferiority that she had caught on his features. It was not right to want such a man, but that did not stop her from actually wanting.

And that was something that scared Xene more deeply than she cared to admit. The distance was needed. The need to live in a world where he didn’t make her world shift from beneath her was vital. She was not some lovesick child, nor would she ever allow herself to be.

In all of her calculations and avoidances, Xene had forgotten to consider the needs of her steed. Her brother’s mare who was now hers. The creature would need to be removed back to the royal stables forthwith and Xene’s whole intention that day was to make such a thing happen. This would be yet another move to distract herself. To put miles between her and the Lord that had started to elicit dangerous thoughts and feelings in the darkened hours of the morning and night. It had all been a poorly calculated step…

But Xene had needed someone to trust.

Just as many times before, a servant lead the princess into the entry hall of the Leventi manor, offering to take her cloak. Xene simply waved them off, “I do not intend to stay long,” Xene commented, fixing the man with a firm stare. “Your master,” she murmured. When the man hesitated, Xene resisted the urge to snap. “Today, please.”

And then the man was gone, either scared off by an irritated princess or hurried in his attempts to locate Lord Fotios.

No. She would not stay long. She would make her intentions known and then have her property taken back to the palati. That would be the end of it. This would be the end of it all.

Fotios of Leventi

The dinner had worked as well as could be expected. There were times in a plan or strategy with a small leap of faith had to be taken. Where you could not predict, down to the moment and instant, how things would play out. You could plot and scheme and manipulate every factor and variable and still there were moments where the pieces would fall where they may and you simply had to bite your tongue and hope that the prior preparation was enough to encourage it in, more or less, the direction you were hoping for. That dinner had been one of those moments.

The young princess of Taengea was a headstrong girl of principle, as much as she was a naive woman of limited experience. The decision to act upon any developed feelings that Fotios had done everything to encourage and nothing to show full acceptance of would need to be hers for anything else would put her on the defensive foot. Therefore, creating a situation that brought to a head her desires - mostly by showing them to be currently held and acted upon by someone else - was a necessary step in manipulating an assertive choice within the young girl. Whether that caused her to break away from the path Fotios had been laying out entirely or sent her marching down it more firmly had been entirely down to her own natural reactions to the evening. Fotios had done what he could and had to see where her decisions would fall.

But from his side of things, Fotios was little concerned whether the woman chose either option over the other. Currently, his plans for himself, Taengea and - more importantly - his closest friend Irakles, were all moving along smoothly enough. Amusingly, right under the nose of the Princess Xene as he had worked on some of the pertinent communications whilst they were sitting in the same study together. In short, he had no real need for the princess as yet besides a small and genuinely intriguing idea of bedding a princess of the kingdom. But so singular a physical desire was never enough for Fotios to act in a way that would bring about great changes to his communications with Xene or the House of Mikaelidas as he had been doing the last few months. The only thing that could move him to invest such time and effort was political gain. And of that Xene offered little at the moment.

But a good schemer was never someone who saw only the current end goal. And having a princess of the realm - a woman who had the trust and ear of the king, eating from the palm of his hand and offering her personal loyalty, was never a thing to foolishly turn down.

As such, the dinner the week before had been a perfect no-lose scenario. Should the princess have decided to break away entirely from their little dance, Fotios was no worse off; no issues raised and no plans foiled. He also hadn't lost anything in the face of the princess herself or overplayed his hand in such a way that his neck would meet a chopping block. On the other hand... if she capitulated to the seeds of desire Fotios had (hopefully) been planting in the back of her mind... well... future political ambitions now had a helping hand and all physical connection with the young princess was just a lovely bonus.

As the days went by without communication from the princess, Fotios had come to decide that she had taken the former choice; to repudiate himself and her connection with him in order to avoid further developments. This told Fotios two things. One; that his plans and schemes had so far worked (else why the need for distance?) and Two; that he could give up on that line of inquiry and focus elsewhere without grief or a damaged reputation.

When a servant came to his study to insist that the Princess Xene was standing in the foyer of his home, therefore, Fotios was mildly surprised. But the unexpectedness of her appearance did not slow or pause his swift change of mind and habits in order to bring any previous plans back on the cards. A good game master always knew when the shift and change with the tide.

It was an afternoon rare to Fotios. One where he had actually been enjoying a day off. Normally, his mind required constant attention and investment. But Fotios had noticed that the day before large changes and the accumulation of plans, was a good day to simply relax with a glass or two of wine. It was too late in the game to make changes and to over analyse the plans already in place only led to anxiety and therefore a greater chance of any plans in place failing. Sometimes it was better to leave something well enough alone, until the right time. And tomorrow as the day of the Senate Meet in the capitol.

As such, Fotios wasn't exactly dressed for company, but his mouth curled at the corner at the idea that this might be a perfect coincidence to take in stride.

Clad in his normal riding pants, with leather boots tied to the knee and a double breasted military cut shirt that was open at the neck, one half swinging down over his chest and offering the V of his collarbone, Fotios' hair had been tied back from his face and he still held his wine glass, his fingertips around its rim, as he dismissed his servant and then headed down the corridors towards the front door of the manor.

Once in sight of the princess, Fotios offered a moment of surprise across his face - as if his servant had informed him of an arrival but not whom they were. He quickly placed the chalice onto the nearest surface as if embarrassed to be caught in a moment of leisure.

"Princess Xene..." Fotios offered, his tone low and hushed. "I had not expected your arrival. Please come in..." He waved a hand to one side to encourage her further into the foyer, despite her already being entirely indoors. "It has been too long since your last visit." He let his mouth spread into a soft smile at her appearance in his home. "To what do I owe the honour?"

Xene had long braced herself for the sight of the Lord Fotios. Always immaculately dressed, the casual nature of his appearance was enough to shock her. The princess swallowed sharply, praying that the Lord Fotios wouldn't notice the silent moment of insecurity... of anxiety. This was not at all what she had expected when she had attended to the Leventi Manor to put an end to all of this.



The jovial attitude and the friendly invitation to enter further into the home immediately placed her on edge, however. Lifting her chin and squaring her shoulders, Xene kept her hands at her sides and stepped no further into the room than she was right at that moment. Tilting her head just slightly, she motioned back toward the door behind her as if it was the only point she needed to make. She wasn't to stay long.



"Lord Leventi," she then greeted, giving the man a slight dip of her head and settling her hands before her. "I cannot stay long. I will be expected back to attend to a dinner before long," the princess commented, once more glancing back to the door. "I have come to collect my mare and have her returned to the palati stables. She will continue her care with the royal stablehands," her tone was firm, her words finite.



There was honestly little else that the princess wanted to convey. In her mind, as soon as the tasks she had described were done in a timely manner, she would find herself once again in the arms of safety. Away from temptation and still with a firm grasp on her chastity. Avoiding him, ending their friendship? It was the only way she knew to ensure that her reputation remained ironclad and her principles even more so.



While one might see her words, her temperament as simply being firm and unyielding, Lord Leventi surely knew her better than that. There was something she was avoiding and Xene intended to avoid any conversation that drew toward her remaining for any longer than she truly had to. There was so much more at stake than just her own reputation. If she was to let them continue down the path that she imagined their friendship moving, her heart would be bared and open. Open to catch heartache and heartsickness, both ailments she was not inclined to experience in her lifetime.



Not to mention the man before her was married and it was completely improper to allow her mind to continue drifting in the directions that it had for weeks now. This was the best decision for the both of them. That was what she reasoned to herself time and time again.

Fotios of Leventi

The princess was a walking contradiction standing the later afternoon light in the foyer of his home. Fotios kept his expression calm as he worked through the information she was giving and - more importantly - what she wasn't saying. The woman stood with determination; straightened shoulders, dominant carriage. Her words were finite and to be addressed without argument. She was offering every evidence that she was cutting off connections with him without any desire to hold onto the contact.

And yet she had come personally.

She was the princess of the realm. She could have sent any number of servants or slaves to relay such a message and have her horse collected. And while she could argue that the animal meant a lot to her and that she wanted to personally monitor the mare's care and transfer, such words would only be excuses. She had been perfectly happy to allow the Leventi family to be in charge of the animals care-taking for the last month.

Somewhere in the back of her mind, she had wanted to come herself. Even if she personally didn't register that fact.

Scenting victory but realising that such an achievement was still on the fence, the young princess' logic currently controlling her emotions, Fotios knew he had several cards to play that wouldn't tip his hand or push too far.

Because that was the beauty of his enacted plan so far...

He had done nothing to indicate an open advance or interest in the princess. A look here, a comment there... the touching of her hand as he bid her farewell with great propriety. Not a single moment between them could be pointed at as an intentional seduction. By anyone else, or even herself. He had encouraged without offering any confirmed feelings of his own. Whether she was totally ignorant that he might be interested, or she had sensed deeper meaning in his glances, it didn't matter. What mattered was that she couldn't be sure. And that meant he could play the role of confidant and friend until the point where she decided to severe their contact without ever appearing to be manipulative...

When the young princess addressed him formally as the "Lord Leventi", Fotios allowed his brows to flicker upwards for just a moment, his features to loosen a little in surprise. For she had been addressing him far more familiarly than such a comment not so long ago...

When she commented that she couldn't stay long, Fotios offered a hand to his chest and a shallow bow of acceptance, simultaneously forgiving her for any rude departures but also offering pure subservience - a message that she was welcome to come and go as she wished, of course.

It was as she commented on collecting her mare that he looked up quickly but not sharply, simply surprise rather than worry. He straightened and listened to her with a calm expression as she stated that the horse was to return to the royal palace and be cared for there. The animal was the strongest excuse the two of them had for continued contact and Fotios was aware that such a break would indeed by the end of any plans he might have had for the princess. While this wasn't a huge issue to him at the current time, it seemed a shame to waste the opportunity of the princesses' loyalty without a word of protest. Not that he would phrase it as protest of course...

"But of course, Princess." Fotios offered with another shallow bow of acceptance. "By all means, the animal is yours and I can have her prepared for departure immediately."

With a sharp order down the corridor that had a serving woman hurrying to join them in the foyer, Fotios gave his orders quickly and impersonally.

"Speak to the stable master. Have the Princess Xene's mare groomed and prepared for travel directly." He ordered and the young woman dipped into a reverent curtsy before heading around Xene - another curtsy being offered as she went - and out into the yard where she could find the appropriate man to speak to.

Once they were alone again, Fotios turned to glance at the woman before him. He tilted his head a little, his shirt falling a little further along his shoulder line and his brow drawing down into a frown of hurt puzzlement.

"You are always welcome to use our stables as you do and don't require, Princess... I could have had the mare sent to you whenever you wished." Fotios offered. "But, might I ask why the sudden change of mind?" His frown dipped a little lower, as he shifted his weight consideringly. "Have I offended you, in some way?"

Well.

This was going much easier than Xene had expected. The need to suddenly find herself free of the emotions that had long rooted themselves in her mind was overwhelming. And Fotios was making it easy to make that escape. He appeared as nothing but willing to let her remove her property from his home, easily allowing her to put the distance between them that she needed to feel.

She needed to feel that absence. That loss of connection. Simply because it felt... too strong. Too all-consuming. Whatever she had convinced herself about the Lord Leventi was wrong and she could not pursue it. He was married and she a princess. It was not right nor proper for her to feel anything of what she had spent days past debating.

Fotios gave no outward appearance of interest, but some of his actions spoke very much while appearing to mean very little. In her mind, this was confirmation enough that everything stopped here. Halted. Shattered like Stephanos had shattered the statue of Hera upon her bedroom floor. Lifting her chin, Xene kept a venerable distance from Fotios. If he moved, so did she.

When all of the orders were given and they were alone once more, Xene fixed her gaze to the Lord. She did her best to ignore the casualty of his attire and the way that his shirt drifted lower. But it was not that that caught her attention most of all. The expression of hurt that he wore so plainly, just like his clothing, was what Xene found herself steeling against. Breathing through her nose, the princess kept both of her hands at her sides, keeping her gaze fixed on his eyes rather than his mouth.

It felt as if the tables were turning out of her favor. He was aware of what buttons to push and how. Xene didn't like this. Not at all.

"You have not offended me, Lord Leventi," Xene confirmed carefully, keeping her shoulders back in order to give the impression of her complete confidence. "There are simply circumstances beyond my control that require my full attention from here on out," her thoughts flashed back to the guard standing outside waiting for her return. He was certainly one of her highest priorities. "I feel it best to keep the mare close at hand should I require her in the coming days," Xene noted calmly, her blue gaze turning guarded and impassive.

"You and yours have done an excellent job caring for her," she finally conceded, leaving it at that. When the servant returned to note that the mare was prepared, Xene gave a slight bow to the lord, starting to turn on her heel in order to make her escape. The sooner she was out of this home, the sooner she could return to her stable frame of mind. The frame of mind that wasn't thinking of the Lord Leventi as anything more than the loyal, resourceful man he played himself off to be.

Fotios of Leventi

Fotios watched as the young woman struggled to control her feelings. Her face was kept under firm control which he felt he had to at least admire, but his sharp gaze noted her shoulders and stance and how it seemed to become a little stonier with each sentence - how she lost her casual air and seemed to now be putting on her assurance.

He was mildly disappointed when she turned to leave, establishing their connection as over. The dance had been fun up until now but he wasn't about to push it and ruin any hopes of a future scenario. He had gained a little information over the weeks from her regarding Stephanos' personal matters and, in passing them along to Irakles, they had become useful pointers in how to build some form of allegation against him - pointers that Fotios had twisted and changed on delivery so that they wouldn't strike any sense of recognition in the princess upon hearing them. The chain would never be traced through himself.

So, whilst it wasn't everything he had expected to get out of the connection with the young princess, it would have to do for now and wasn't a total waste of his efforts. Which meant that, as the princess turned to leave and headed out into the courtyard, Fotios made no efforts or attempts to stop her. Instead, he simply followed her out to where her horse was being tacked up in the open, paved space by the stables, ready for her departure.

It was as they were coming to stand beside the creature and Fotios turned to the young woman to offer her a formal bow and goodbye, that Fate seemed to have other plans for the two of them and when exactly it was decided that their connection was to be severed.

The presence of their master within the courtyard had sent the servants' efficient pace to a higher level and, without realising the other was appearing from around the corner of the stables, two slave hands quickly strode into the path of one another. One was loaded down with bedding for the horses, so the disruption simply sent straw in every direction, but the other had been carrying several buckets of water. The collision had them throwing their arms forward and back as they fell onto their rear, their grip loosening and one of the buckets flying several feet into the air before landing with an almighty twang that caused the entire populace of the Leventi yard to jump - Fotios and Xene included - not to mention the horse they were standing beside.

Moving quickly to secure the princess's safety, Fotios reached out to grasp hold of both of her upper arms and moved her several steps to her left and away from the horse as the mare suddenly bucked, whinnied in fright and was set into a gallop across the yard, through an open gate and into the fields of the Leventi estate beyond.

Fotios watched as the creature stormed off, losing the saddle that had only been half secured as it went, with its reins streaming out behind, unhandled and uncontrolled.

Fotios let out a soft sigh as he released his hold on the princess and too a respectable step back.

"Have my horse brought!" Fotios called to the nearest stable hand as the others hurried to clean up the mess that the slaves had left. Glancing at the woman beside him, Fotios offered a reassuring smile that didn't fully light his eyes and reached up a hand as if to touch her shoulder in comfort but stopped the motion mid-air and removed the hand that he clearly thought might be offensive. "I'll fetch her unharmed, princess." He told her with a nod that had a touch of promise about it. "You're welcome to accompany me - I can request another horse... But, if you would like to wait inside for my return, I understand."

His words were carefully chosen. Indicating that he suspected she wanted nothing of his company anymore and that the realisation was an unwelcome surprise...

Xene was so close to making it out of there. And honestly, she silently cursed the fates for pulling her back into a direction that she had been trying so desperately to avoid. She cursed the servants, the stablehands, and every single clumsy step that they took. It was as if everything had moved in slow motion. Almost as if time had stopped entirely.

She saw it happening before it happened. The two men running into one another. Straw and water flew in every direction. She and Lord Leventi jumped out of surprise and Xene was about to march straight for her mare, knowing from many talks with Zacharias in the past that horses could spook easily. It was simply the spooking of her mare that she did not fully expect as the creature was generally very calm.

She did not expect the creature to rear back and escape. She did not expect Lord Leventi's hands on her, pulling her out of the way and to safety. Too stunned and confused to pull away, Xene found herself looking up into Fotios' face, her composure slipping slightly. What if she had been on her mare? No. No. She must not think that way.

Her entire focus should have been on fetching her horse and warding off the slight flutter of butterflies in her stomach in the presence of the lord she was trying so hard to avoid.

When Fotios stated that he would fetch her mare for her, Xene started to protest, her brows furrowed. He would not go alone. She wasn't going to let him leave her behind. It was not his horse to care for anymore. "Nonsense," she turned her gaze toward one of the slaves, making a motion that told them not to argue with her. "Fetch me a horse. I'll accompany your lord," Xene finally noted, glancing back to Heron.

The man's expression was completely stoic, but his glaze slid to her. He gave the slightest of nods, shifting his weight in order to stand more at her back. "I am fine," she said as she turned her gaze back ahead. Heron straightened slightly and then took two steps back, saying absolutely nothing. His gaze remained on Lord Leventi, however, conveying that he had no qualms about raising arms against even a lord if it came to the safety of the princess.

With a horse being saddled for her and then finally brought to her, Xene was already at the very edge of her patience. She took no help in mounting the stallion, nor did she say much of anything until she was properly settled and had firm hold on the reins of the horse. Watching Fotios, she nodded her affirmation that she was ready, "If you will lead us, Lord Leventi," she said calmly. Holding her chin high, she worked at keeping her resolve.

They would solve the issue of the fleeing mare and then she would ride off of his lands. Xene desperately needed the feeling of peace it would bring her. Instead of the constant inner turmoil she had been feeling for weeks on end.

Fotios of Leventi

Fotios smiled within his own mind when the princess insisted that she would attend unto the horse with him. Luckily, he had been a courtier for so very many more years than the youthful princess and, as such, was better at hiding his thoughts and expressions behind a mask of nearly whichever expression he chose to use. For whilst he could tell, from her stature and her imperious manner of insisting that her guardsman stayed behind, that her instincts were doing everything in their power to keep her within his close proximity, Fotios was offered no such telling hints in his manner and tone of his own true thoughts ruminated upon.

Instead, he was the picture of a concerned confidant and aide as he opened his mouth with a tone of concern.

"My princess, the horse is startled. She might not be calm until a little time passes." He snapped his fingers at a servant to have his horse brought to him quickly. "It may be dangerous for you to-" His words were cut off by her assertions that he was to lead the way and send the both of them into the field after her mare.

His duty done and his concerns verbalised, Fotios snapped his teeth together, cutting off his protestations smoothly and with dignity, before he offered a shallow bow and then reached up to his hair. Unfastening the leather tie that held back half of his longer than average locks, Fotios twisted the rest up together and re-secured it, this time with all it pulled back from his face. He tied it into a tight bun and then readjusted his shirt to fasten it more securely at the neck. By this time, his horse had been brought and he was able to saddle up beside the princess.

With a turn in her direction and a look in his eye that he attempted to offer as much concern to as he could, Fotios opened his mouth but snapped it shut again at her determined expression. Nodding, he kicked his gelding into forward motion and, with a quick glance over his shoulder to ensure the princess was with him but not so close that she might fall prey to danger, Fotios led the two of them out and into the grassy fields of the Leventi estates grounds.

The mare was easy enough to find for it was a startling white against the greenery of Fotios' lands. What was less convenient was the distance she had travelled in her fright. In fear, horses ran in straight directions, never veering left or right and charging forwards despite possible obstacles along their chosen path. As such, the creature had managed to ride herself out and across the rolling lawns towards an area of shallow woodland.

His eyes narrowing at the jutting and abrupt movement of the animal in the distance, Fotios kicked his own mount a little faster.

By the time he was close enough to see, Fotios realised he was right in his assumptions that the reins of Xene's mare had become entangled in the bracken and bramble it had tried to gallop through and the creature now struggled with great alarm, trying to pull its head free from the harness that now restrained her.

As the two of them pulled up close to the trees but at a safe distance from the animals swinging hindquarters and long legs that could potentially kick out at either of them, Fotios dismounted from his horse and, before the princess could attempt to do the same, turned his voice hard, a hand out to stop her progress.

"No." He told her, in a tone far harder than he had used with her before but still soft in sentiment. "You insisted on riding here, but please..." His eyes turned beseeching. "You might not trust me as you once did, princess, for whatever reason you choose but please... trust me now. This animal is not safe and I would not have you near her for all the silks of the mainland. I will deal with her."

And lowering his hand, hoping that the woman stayed where she was aboard her borrowed ride, Fotios turned to assess the frightened mare.

It took a little time, careful steps, a soft tutting noise from Fotios' tongue and hands held out in a clearly un-threatening manner, as he approached from the horse's head, side stepping and shifting to remain in her vision as she fought the restraints. It took a few minutes but, eventually, Fotios was able to reach out for the head harness and bring the animal to heel, his hands and fingers soft over her snout and neck as he brought her to a place of calm with his touch and the soft, soothing noises he murmured.

It wasn't until he was perfectly certain that the mare was calm, then he then reached out to yank the reins free from the foliage in which they had gotten stuck, dusted the pieces of twig and leaves from the leather banding and then turned to look towards the princess.

He glanced at the mare and then back as if considering and then deciding - "She will be safe to ride back." He confirmed before attaching the mare's reins to that of his own gelding. "I'll guide her back into the courtyard - there should be no problem, now that she's calm."

He turned to stand beside the princess Xene and the horse she currently rode.

"If you would care for the ride, that is." He asked holding out a hand to aid her in her dismount so that she could change to her own horse for the return journey that would be ridden at, hopefully, a far more sedate pace.

The ride was easy and Xene did not find herself so at odds with her feelings as had when she had first attended to the Leventi manor. Lord Fotios acted as he always did. With chivalry and striking intelligence. The handling of his horse as they followed after her mare was admirable, but then again, she always admired his ability to ride. How incredibly easy it all seemed to be for him. This was a man who had been raised upon the backs of horses. Silently, Xene wished that she might someday hold the level of skill that Lord Fotios did. The same ease and comfort, as well.

When they reached her bucking, terrified mare, Xene was ready to dismount. The sharp words from Fotios made her freeze in her saddle, blue eyes remaining on his form as a mixture of feelings coursed through her veins. The allure of the sharp order and the way that he pleaded with her to remain atop her borrowed horse. For a moment, she forgot how to breathe properly. This was the very reason she needed to put distance between herself and the lord. His words were having too much of an effect on her.

Instead of saying anything in response, Xene only nodded, her blue gaze completely unreadable save for the slightly pointed glance to her panicking mare. Fotios moved away to calm the creature and Xene watched his every move. Every shift of his hands against the mare's flank. Every single little murmur he made to calm the creature. Xene remained hyper-focused on the man, hardly paying attention to the true reason that they were there. She was aware of her mare, but she was more aware of him than anything else around her.

Fotios' words broke her easily from her razor-sharp focus and she lifted her gaze back to his face as if she hadn't been watching him like a hawk. A picture of propriety and grace. Just as was expected of her. The offer of her to ride her mare back was welcomed and appreciated and the princess started to shift on the borrowed horse, remembering that she actually needed to speak to the man before her. "Of course. Shall I guide the other horse?" she questioned as she started to slide down off of her horse.

It was awful really. The horse she had borrowed from the Leventi Lord was considerably larger than her own mare. She was used to mounting and dismounting her own beautiful creature and had not at all considered the different distance to the ground. A taller horse, a longer drop to solid ground. So even when Xene took his hand to help her down, she landed sharply, and very very wrong, onto her left ankle and it rolled painfully, the princess cried out. She didn't remember hitting the ground but she was very aware of the searing hot pain in her foot and ankle.

Xene had to bite back bitter curses that the god might smite her for, or worse, Fotios might frown disapprovingly at. "Oh gods," she whimpered from the grass, her teeth gritting and tears stinging her eyes. She shifted herself back up into a sitting position, swallowing hard. What if she had broken it? She could be lame for the rest of her life if it were not cared for properly. Blue eyes lifted to the Leventi lord, fear flashing in her gaze for only a moment as she tried to grasp for her bearings.

Fotios of Leventi

When Fotios turned back to the princess upon calming her animal, he needed not to know if she had been watching him. Her silence on the matter, as he had pacified the creature, was all he needed to know that she had been paying attention to his every move. And whilst he would be lying if he said he hadn't been handling the mare with skill and talent in order to impress her, it was also no untruth that he would have handled the animal in exactly the same way had she not been there. Some might have considered Fotios to be a cruel or unfeeling man, simply because he was ambitious and able to use the feelings of others to his advantage. But he was no sociopathic monster. He cared enough for the humans around him to want what was best for him and his kin and his instinct and care for horses was true enough. There was no sense in damaging an animal like the princess' mare for the sake of discontent or lack of an audience. He was not so heartless as that.

So, upon her being calm and his own steps carrying him back towards the princess in order to aid her down from the back of her mount, Fotios's hands were divided. His right held the reins of both the mare and his own steed, whilst his left was held out as a token aid - a balancing platform for the princess to get herself to the ground. When she landed awkwardly and stumbled, Fotios hadn't the slack on the leather to move his other hand to help her and despite shaking his fingers free from the wrapped strands hurriedly, the delay meant that he was unable to take hold of the princess as she fell. His right hand latched around her fingers and his other - finally liberated from the reins - reached to help support her. He stepped forward to try and brace her weight... but the best he was able to do was to ensure that the princess landed to the grass with a softness rather than a heavy bump, unable to stop the descent itself. It happened within just a few seconds: her dismount, his attempts to have the hands free to help her, and then her fall. And by the time it was over, Fotios was standing braced with a foot either side of Xene's knees, his arms cross in front of him, with one hand over hers and the other on her opposing elbow. He had managed to lower her carefully but there had been nothing he could do to halt her eventual progress to the ground.

Making no noise in the affair besides a startled "Whoa.." as she princess had cried out in pain, stumbled and fallen, Fotios was silent still now, as he breathed a little heavily from the surprise of it all.

The horses he had been holding onto had been startled by his shaking of the reins and stepped hurriedly away from the two humans, whilst her own ride had moved a few steps to avoid the falling princess and her sharp noises of surprise. He paid the animals no mind. Taking a calming breath that she hadn't hit her head in the fall or, worse still, fallen beneath the horse's hooves. Fotios' jaw tightened with tension but his gaze was strong and true as he aided her in sitting further upright. His fingers held firm around her own and his other hand became a strong support under her elbow, aiding her in sitting up from her grassy bed.

He noted the strained expression on Xene's face quickly and her look of concern darted his way. At least the girl still trusted him enough to turn to him for reassurance in a moment of panic; even if he was the only one standing with her in a field. Careful as he stepped back at her ascent, his feet now even with her ankles, Fotios made a calming noise in the back of his throat before speaking...

"You're okay." He told her, his language dropping to informal and his tone softer than he'd ever used on the girl before. She had had a tumble and the shock was usually more hurtful than any injury. She was feeling vulnerable and needed a comforting voice that Fotios was happy to provide. "You're alright... Where does it hurt, princess?" He asked her, his question light in tone so as not to panic her. "I can check it for you."

After waiting for her reply and direction, Fotios rubbed his thumbs over her arm and hand in comfort before slowly letting her go, one grip at a time, his eyes on hers and his chin dipping in an encouraging nod that his release of her didn’t mean he was disappearing. Stepping further back once more and dropping to one knee, Fotios looked down towards Xene's left foot and, after glancing towards her in an effort to show a lack of threat, he reached out to wrap his fingers around her lower calf; careful not to move his touch too far down towards her sore ankle.

"I need to assess the bones." He told her, as he very gently lifted her leg, her skirts pooling down around her knees. He reached out with the palm of his right hand and placed ball to sole, his fingers wrapping over the top of her foot. Very carefully and unfeasibly slowly, Fotios put pressure onto the underside of Xene's foot and encourage it around in a slow circle to ensure the ankle joint wasn't broken and working well. He knew it would be uncomfortable for the girl but he also knew the release of tension would be a little cathartic. A pain with a hint of pleasure. He glanced up at the princess and met her gaze as he tested the joint again, his touch commanding but not forceful and his lips murmuring words of assurance and comfort as he worked...

The confusion of falling had always been one of the worst things that Xene had ever felt in her life. Years ago, when she was shorter, younger, and bouncier, more prone to energetic tendencies and tormenting her elder brothers, Xene had taken quite a few spills. Scraped knees and elbows, grass stains on her dresses. These things had not been so uncommon when Xene was yet a child.

The princess had hated the uncertainty of falling then, and she still hated it now. She despised the way that her stomach seemed to leap into her throat and how she could never truly figure out where to put her hands or how to shift her body to take the least amount of impact. As a little girl, she had done her share of shoving and being shoved, falling forward and backward, to the side, through the air, into the fountain. And every time it was the same uncomfortable, unyielding feeling. The spinning head, the plummeting stomach, the sharp, sudden pains that came with hitting the ground in any way.

Gaia was always so unforgiving when her own denziens fell to her breast.

This drop to the earth was softer, though. Hands, protective and intent on shielding her from the unyielding harshness of dirt underfoot, grabbed at her. Guided her. What could have been a much more painful fall was less sharp, less biting and frustrating. Her stomach didn't rise into her throat, she felt little pain up the small of her back, and Xene found herself gazing up into the face of the one person she had found she could trust.

And suddenly the princess felt like such a horrid, cruel woman. To shrug off the friendship and the confidence that Fotios had long gifted her, leaving himself open to embrace her silent desire for friendship and companionship. In the wake of her father's and brother's passing, Xene had come to respect and enjoy the company of the Leventi lord.

Her ostentatious display of attempting to leave him behind. The silent and vulgar plea for him to chase her. For him to fight to keep their friendship and the closeness that had been forged in the last weeks. It almost turned her stomach to know that she could be so brash and heedless of what had been built between the two of them.

Xene's gaze was locked onto the form of Lord Fotios, hardly aware of his touch on her person. Entirely unoffended, she did not let her gaze dart in one direction, nor the other. For a moment, she could think of nothing to say and nothing to feel besides disgust for her own behavior. But it was the delicate trailing of his hands down her calf and to her foot. The slow circular rolling of her ankle that brought her back to an intense and somewhat painful reality.

Hissing, Xene lurched forward a bit, wanting to reach for her own ankle, though she refrained. "It hurts when you move it," Xene found her voice, having to swallow her pride and admit that, yes, she was injured. It made her a bit bitter to know that she had injured herself simply dismounting a horse incorrectly. Because Fotios had taught her thr proper way time and time again and the one time he was not there to steady her, she found herself cursing her dependence on him.

That dependence that had been growing steadily over the weeks that they spent holed up together in his office or holding quiet, meaningful, and enlightening conversation. She would miss it desperately if she were to push him away now, especially after showing so much care and kindness toward her. The change in his tone had been surprising, and she might have been irked that he spoke to her as if he were speaking to one of the equine creatures close by... but Xene was not that type of woman.

The princess didn't know if she could fault him for anything at all at this point. Everything was on her. Her shoulders. Her choices.

She had let herself fall more than just physically. But the sense of falling for Lord Fotios had been gradual. There had been no butterflies in her stomach, no heart in her throat, no painful landing, and no stars filling her vision. There had been only him and a slow descent into feelings she did not know she could feel for anyone at all.

Who better than her closest confidant? What did it matter if he was married if she didn't act on any of it. Which she really had had no plans to, and continued to remind herself that it was such a horrible idea to even consider it.

Shifting a little to sit up more, Xene let her gaze fall back to her ankle and his attempts to figure out if it was broken or just strained. "Maybe I should stand and see if I can bear weight," Xene suggested carefully, reaching one hand out to Fotios. "Then perhaps some wine in the sunroom... if you can forgive a dutiful and misguided friend."

Fotios of Leventi

"It hurts when you move it..."

The words were spoken with a calm tone but the smallest hint of pain beneath was not lost on Fotios. The girl was in pain but not a large amount of it. And he felt no clicking or jostling of the bones as he moved her foot. His finger circled over the top of her foot and guided her into pointing her toes, then his palm was placed again against her sole and shifted the foot up the opposing way. He murmured a noise of affirmation when she said it was painful and he glanced up at her face multiple times as if to check as and how her comments of pain might shift into something more agonising. He was here to help and assess her injury, after all. Not make it worse.

"I don't believe it's broken." Fotios told her in as assuring a tone as he could. "The bones feel fine and while it clearly hurts, everything is moving as it should."

When she suggested standing up and seeing if she could put weight on it, Fotios nodded at the suggestion, clearly marking it as a good one. But he paused her efforts to sit up further with an outplaced hand, his palm facing towards her.

"Hold on..." He encouraged, turning his attentions back to her foot as he removed the necktie he wore at his throat. Shaking it out and folding it carefully into a workable strip, Fotios placed the tips of his fingers to the underside of Xene's ankle once more and lifted her foot. He balanced her heel upon his downturned thigh and began to quickly wrap the accessory around her foot and ankle. "This will give it a little additional support so that if your ankle can't bear the weight, you won't do it more damage." He told her, showing absolutely no consideration of the silken material as he lowered her foot to the dusty ground.

When she was ready to be aided back up to her feet, Fotios stood, brushed off his kneed with a few decisive sweeps of his hand against the fabric and then moved into place above her. He kept one foot by her ankles, moved his other to beside her hips so he had a wide base of support and then began to reach down in order to help her to standing once more. As he did so, however, he paused, her words interrupting his motions. He watched her for a moment, holding her gaze. And before her eyes his features softened. He tilted his head and his smile snuck across his lips.

”Are you planning on inviting someone else for wine, Princess?” He asked her with a tone of humour and dismissive comedy. ”I see no-one misguided here.” His words were clearly a mark of flippancy over her apology. He was not permitting her to admit fault in her behaviour. The perfect friend and confidant.

That settled, Fotios reached to secure his long and slim hands around her upper arms as she lifted her touch to his. Her hands settled upon his biceps, his own beneath hers. He threw his strength into his waist and lifted Xene, his feet holding true and drawing her up to her full height. She stumbled a little for a moment, her balance off because of her foot and suddenly her face was incredibly close to his and Fotios froze. His hold didn’t relinquish and kept her steady. His gaze never broke hers. But his lips seem to part and then press together with awkwardness, his throat moved with his swallow and his chest had stopped moving, his breath trapped in his lungs at her closeness…