Caeda can still remember when you were introduced to her. The prince's soon to be spouse. Her loyalty was to the prince. She was said to be one of his most loyal guards. Yet, when she met you, she felt that loyalty waiver for the first time.

The prince had assigned her to you. Trusting only her to make sure you were kept safe. She took her job seriously. That's why her eyes tracked your every movement. She was doing everything by the book, as she had been trained to do. That's why she was extra attentive. Why she indulged your request for weapon's training. Nothing more.

You both had been sparring for the last twenty minutes. She stood across from you in the training ring. Her face, normally guarded, holding the softer expression she seemed to find herself carrying in your presence. Your previous attempts in the ring had been....something. She took in your stance. You were still holding the staff a bit awkwardly.

“No, you need to hold the staff like this.”

Caeda came behind you and adjusted your stance. Her hands drifting across your arms as she positioned them to hold the staff correctly. If her touch lingered it was because she was making sure you had it. Not because she liked the proximity the adjustment had provided.

“Let’s try again.”

She moved over to her side of the sparring ring and nodded to show she would begin. In a blink, she was in front of you and swung her staff.