The Pink Haired Witch

Ren stood at the door, still expecting Kiera to eventually answer. Though, the impending silence slowly sunk in. Ren looked around, walking on the outside to look for him. "Kiera? Are you home?" He raised his voice, hoping to get a response. *Huh, guess he's not...* Ren slowly turned and was surprised by the unruly sight, he yelped, almost dropping the bag. "Kiera...?" Kiera was seen in the distance, panting. Ren tried to look at him, seeing an unexpectedly large shadowy figure behind him. Kiera looked up and finally noticed Ren, yelling at him. "RUN!!!" Kiera's arms flailed as he barely managed to get past him. Although, Ren stood there and placed the bag down, reaching for his sword. The large shadow figure slowly stepped out from the forest and entered his view. It was a creature that seemed to be a mixture of a reptile, mammal, and even insect. Ren waited until it began dashing straight towards him, to instantly strike his sword. It happened so quick that whatever noise the creature made had come to a complete silence. Ren sighed and looked back at the unusually suspicious body he sliced in half. Kiera was nowhere to be seen, so Ren grabbed the bag and went inside the log cabin through the backdoor. He glanced around, looking for the bedroom again. Kiera was finally spotted, curled up in the corner, trembling. "Hey, hey, hey," Ren quickly walked over to him, speaking softly. "It's okay, you're okay." He saw Kiera's eyes with such a fright behind them. "Kiera..." Ren was unsure of what to do in order to comfort him.

Kiera slowly rose as he leaned against the wall, still shaking. "Is it... gone...?" He tried to avoid looking directly at Ren. Glancing toward the window, praying that it's over. In concern, Ren gently wrapped his arms around Kiera. The subtle embrace was enough to make anyone think that there was more going on with the two. "It's gone; I took care of it." Ren continued to speak softly towards Kiera. He reassured that the creature was no more. "It's alright now, I'm here." Ren lightly pet his head, still attempting to comfort him. Kiera took a moment and cried, with feeling of relief. This came along with a heavy feeling being lifted in such a moment. He was alone for so long that he never thought a moment of warmth would ever come again. Ren stopped for a bit, looking down at him, noticing he stopped crying. "You feel any better?" His voice remained the same, soft and gentle.

Kiera ended up speaking with the clear fact that he sounded like a weeping child. "You're cold..." He then knocked his knuckles on Ren's armor. Ren felt embarrassed at this fact, not realizing he still had his armor on while trying to hug Kiera. "Thanks anyway..." Kiera wiped his face, turning away. He walked off limping from a severely injured leg.

"Your leg!" Ren stopped him from walking, then picked him up just like earlier. "Just tell me what you need, and I'll get it for you." He carefully placed him onto the bed but as sitting. Ren quickly remembered the rabbits at the door. "Wait! I'll be right back!" He rushed to the door, seeing them in the same position as before, untouched. *Phew... That was close...* He rushed back inside to see Kiera still sitting at the edge of the bed. Ren placed the rabbits inside the mini fridge freezer area. "Alright, lemme patch that up for you." He took out the pouch again and placed the herb, finishing up with wrapping around the bandage. It came out much better than before, which made him pleased. He smiled and looked at Kiera the same. "Hey, that's a lot better now!" He laughed, sharing the good feeling with him.

Kiera slightly blushed and tried not to look directly at him. "Thank you... again..." He cleared his voice as his hand rose to cover his face more. "Um- I guess I really can't do much with an injury like this." Kiera was a bit stubborn to admit it, it had shown. "... Help... is... appreciated..." He sighed in a struggle to utter those words. Then, finally taking another look at Ren, his eyes widened, and he blushed even harder.

Ren's eyes sparkled with such delight and a smile grew. "Anytime!" He slightly tilted head to the side, happily standing. "I'll have to get going now again, but until then..." Ren walked to pick up the bag he left near the minifridge. "This will be your food!" He took out the groceries and placed each inside. "Just enough for a proper meal for now...." He finished and folded the bag, placing it to the side.

"You really didn't have to-" Kiera tried to object to his kindness but realized that wouldn't change anything. "You wanted to, but you really didn't have to." Kiera had a subtle smile while Ren was still facing the other way. As soon as he saw him turning, he looked away.

Ren walked over to him and pat his head before rushing himself out. "I'll come back tomorrow!" He quickly ran out and ran back home. Kiera was left on the bed, looking at the bandage on his leg. He chuckled and slowly tightened it, thinking of how cute Ren was. "Seriously...." Kiera covered his face with his hands, heart racing.

As Ren returned home, he was almost completely tackled by his butler, Sebastian. "Young Master! You've finally returned!" Sebastian checked every inch of Ren's body, reassuring that he wasn't injured. With a sharp sigh, he straightened his posture to stand in front of him. "Must I continue to repeat myself, Young Master..." He held a strand of long pink hair in his white glove. "In order to keep your identity a secret you must never interact with the people outside the city unless it is by order of the household!" He inspected the strand of hair and realized that this may not just be a simple strand. "Young Master..." Ren looked away and avoided the topic as he walked off to his room. "Young Master!!! You come back here; you are not going to keep this hair a mystery!" Sebastian followed into his room, still holding the strand of hair. "Well, if you are swindling women at your age already... Wait! You are the worst romancer!" He finally dropped the piece of hair and walked around to gather his own things. "Well, Young Master, we must be off now." He gathered a pair of small blades to hold on the side if his waist. "You have unfinished training!" Sebastian continued as he dragged Ren back outside, venturing into the city. "Remember, you have the rest if this week to finish your training hours with me!" His stern words nagged at Ren as they made their way to the castle's open training grounds.

Throughout Ren's mind, he only thought of the helpless Kiera. Sebastian prepared himself as they entered through the front gates. Ren was still unfocused and was caught off guard while Sebastian instantly swung a dagger to his face. Ren barely dogged and was left with a small cut on the cheek. "Sebastian, what the?!" He couldn't even see most of the sudden movement.

"At least you still have your reflexes." Sebastian sighed. "The last thing we need is you growing soft from a woman." Ren slightly felt off, but he knew Sebastian was right, at least half right. "You really found a woman?!" Sebastian's eyes widened at the thought. "Ren! You haven't spoken a word since you returned!" He shook him by the shoulders. Attempting to get anything out of him. What was going on through his mind was mostly Kiera, then he hesitated to utter a word. ".... Yes...?" Ren's voice trailed off in the silence of the training grounds.

There was still no one else there, Sebastian had brought him earlier to avoid interacting with the royal knights who usually train throughout the day. "You have not denied a single word and yes is all I get?!" Sebastian went off again and asked all about this unknown person he had suddenly taken interest in. "At least you know you must still continue training for the throne. If not, you may be kicked out of the household just as your stepmother insists..." It hadn't even occurred to Ren until Sebastian reminded him of the fact. Though, it was a serious situation, and Ren finally went into a fighting stance and drew his sword. "There is the Ren I know." Sebastian took his own stance as he took out his daggers. "Begin!" The two fiercely battled inside the training grounds. Dripping in sweat, they went on for hours. While they stopped around the evening, royal knights began swarming in. Ren and Sebastian barely made it out unseen, going back to the mansion. Inside Ren's office, he sagged his body in the chair, exhausted. "I shall prepare a warm bath for you, Young Master." Sebastian bowed and left to do his job. Ren barely nodded as he heard him leave. Sebastian was not allowed to call Ren by his name unless they were alone, outside the family mansion. Sebastian was always loyal and insightful to Ren, making sure he was never in harm's way. Minutes pass and Ren sat up, looking at the piles of paperwork on his desk. *I hate this... Now that I met Kiera, I just want to be around him. Not dealing with becoming heir to the throne...* He sighed and fiddled with a pen, rolling it around. Sebastian suddenly appeared at the door and startled Ren. "Your bath is ready, Young Master." He bowed again and gestured to go. Ren got up from his chair and sluggishly walked over to the washroom. Sebastian is a first-class fire mage, so he uses heat magic to warm the bath faster. He is indeed brilliant at his job, nonetheless. As the night seeped in, Ren rested in the warm bath, comfortably leaning out. He glanced through the window that had shown the starry sky. Kiera continued to go through his mind, even remembering him because of the shining night. "Young Master... If you have any interest, then you must let this person know." Sebastian sighed as he stood near the door. "Although, I doubt you have known them long enough to make it official." He knew Ren better than anyone, the mere fact that he was outgoing would have him figured out. Ren was always so cheerful with strangers without realizing. Sebastian sees Ren as the type to fall in love quickly as seen in past situations. "Just like Diane, Yorsh, Hannah, Lilly, or even-" Sebastian was cut off by Ren splashing water at him, he dodged and cleared his voice. "Of course, these were past interests, I feel you have something to say, Young Master."

Ren sighed and waited a moment for this mind to recollect itself. "It is not the same, this is different. I say this proudly!" Ren glared at him, pouting. "They are also neither male or female." He crossed his arms while still in the bath. To Sebastian's surprise, he could tell that Ren was not lying, since he quite almost never does. He was unsure of this unique person he described, then it came to a sudden shock, Sebastian knew something relating to this. "Young Master, I want you to listen to me very carefully. I will never repeat this." Sebastian's tone grew cold, sending a slight shiver down Ren's spine. "Avoid making contact with this person at any cost." He rarely ever sounded so chilling, which did scare Ren. This would stick to him as a sign of warning, he felt quite uneasy until Sebastian spoke once more. "That is unless they prove to be no threat to my young master." His tone was finally back to normal, lightening the mood a bit. Sebastian placed a towel next to the bath and a change of clothes. Ren slowly lifted himself to step out of the bath and grabbed the towel, drying off. He got dressed and headed back to his office, trying to deal with all the piled-up paperwork. *Well, surely, they don't expect me to travel around…* Most of the paperwork consisted of villages that were far from the kingdom, but they looked rather urgent. The family was making Ren do a multitude of their own paperwork, expecting him to juggle it along with training and possibly making acquaintances. He was in line for the battle to gain the next heir to the throne. This was not just of combat but of the sheer mental capacity to run the kingdom through thick understanding. There were a select few specifically invited to compete amongst lords and commoners equally. Ren sighed and fixated on his paperwork and finished with ease, placing each in organized folders. "I am done for the night…" He yawned and stood, walking out of the office and to his room next door. Sebastian continued to follow just a few steps behind. "Sebastian, do I have anything other than the earlier training for tomorrow?" Ren asked as he looked at the wide calendar board on the wall.

Sebastian took out a sticker and placed it on the board, it was blue. "There is only early training for tomorrow because it will be the second day of the week. Training will be shorter as well, for your free time, only 3 hours, beginning around 5:00 and ending 7:00. Nothing more than that, Young Master." He took a pen to mark the day. Ren plopped his body onto the bed and let out a stressed sigh, almost like he'd been holding it in all evening. "Is something the matter, Young Master?" Sebastian asked as he put his pen away, tucking it inside a pocket. Ren's body shifted to lie on its side, and he rested his head with his arm. "Sebastian, have you ever fallen in love, so in love that you would do anything for that love interest?" Ren's tone was sincere with a hint of pure curiosity and wonder. Sebastian cleared his voice and responded bluntly. "If I would have done that, I would not be here, Young Master. Now, you must begin resting, it is getting late." He walked to the door and looked back at Ren. "Be careful after training tomorrow… Rest well, Young Master." He lowered his head and gently shut the door. Ren rested as his body sunk into a deep sleep.