Chapter98

"Eat something," he said. "You've been out for almost half the night and your body needs energy if you want to make it back to the capital."
She looked at the meat, then at his face, 'he is being strangely casual with me,' she thought. 
Most people outside the royal court would be stammering or bowing if they found themselves sitting across from a princess, but he acted like she was just another person. It felt jarring, but right now, it was also exactly what she needed. She didn't want to be treated like a precious item that needed to be handled carefully.
She reached out and took the food from him with a small nod.
"Thank you."
He let go of the meat and went back to carving his wood piece, "my name is Hajin," he said casually. "And the girl sniffing her food over there is Juna."
Juna's ears twitched fast and she glared at him across the fire, "I am not sniffing it," she said, giving the meat in her hand one last suspicious look before taking a bite. "I am just making sure it's cooked."
Didi watched them interact and felt a tiny bit of the tension leave her shoulders. It was a normal conversation, completely detached from the horrors she had seen a few hours ago, and that normalcy grounded her.
"I am Princess Didi," she said, her voice sounding a little stronger than before.
"Well then, Your Highness," he said, not looking up from the wood. "Get some sleep after you eat. We will head back to the capital at first light."
She sat quietly for a moment, finishing the rest of the meat before looking at him again. 
"Thank you," she said, her voice dropping a little. "For the food, and for getting me out of there."
He stopped carving long enough to meet her eyes and gave a single nod, making it clear she didn't need to say anything else. 
'I really am tired,' she thought, feeling the tension finally drain out of her. The food and the heat from the fire had pushed her body past its limit, so she pulled the blanket up to her chin, lay down on the ground, and drifted off to sleep almost immediately.