I'm a lark of sadness, the wolf of joy. And you, rising in these heights are you a rainbow or are you another wound?

— Adonis

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Him

She quarrels with some of the kids over an apple. They were trying to pluck fruits from the trees and she decided to be a judge when they got into an argument as to whom the fallen apple belonged to.

She puffs her cheeks and stomps her foot as her friend scolds her getting involved into unnecessary rumpus. She has a tendency for always sticking her tiny nose where it doesn't belong. But he will not tell her that. He has no heart upsetting her any further.

She storms to where he's playing with his bow and puts her hands on her hips. He looks at her and she flares her nostrils.

"I was only trying to help," she complains. "But I know how to beat someone who messes with me."

A giggle escapes him at her statement and she glares at him.

"You think I can't?"

He quickly nods his head and pull back his lips. "Yes you can."

She grumbles something inaudible to herself before pointing to his bow and arrows. "Can you teach me how to play with it?"

Her

"What are you doing here?"

The blood on her face makes her hyperaware of the event having unfolded. It doesn't help her anxiety one bit knowing that her offender is lying dead at her feet. She blinks and gapes as she tries to form any coherent sentence. Instead, she can only manage to utter his name.

"Hadi?"

He isn't dressed like how she would see him around the bazar in a plain tunic with an old cloak over it. Instead, he's wearing an armor with a fine cloak this time, his face covered by a cloth and his blue eye patched. It's only the brown eye looking back at her keenly. There's a sword at his hip and the bloody dagger in his hand. His disguise of a poor, dumb beggar is no more. But clearly he still seems to be hiding his identity by the way he has covered up himself.

"Why in your sane mind would you come here when I sent you a message not to?" he asks as he steps closer, and there goes glitch in her mind. She frowns at him.

"You sent me a note to meet you or you'd come to the palace again."

"No, I didn't." He halts and tilts his head. "I wrote to you that I wouldn't be around this place anymore, so not to come looking for me, and not to mention me to anyone."

"That's not what I received," she declines. "You called me malika in that note, and it came with jasmines."

"I referred to you as malika in my note and did send you jasmines, but I didn't write you what you're telling me."

"It had your name under it."

The worry lines on his forehead deepen. "What name?"

"Al Hadi," she says. "I thought it must be you."

"Did I ever write to you with my name before?"

They both look at each other in perplexity. He's thinking behind the mask, already connecting the dots, and her chest tightens at the possibilities of the situation. But they don't get much time to contemplate as more men march down the street towards them with their swords drawn.

"Hand over the girl," one of them demands.

Six of them, Noura quickly counts. Her heart leans to her throat. She who's not as skillful of a fighter and Hadi alone cannot deal with as many. But he steps in front of her and unsheaths his sword.

"Over my dead body."

"Hadi," Noura hushes, "you can't take them all alone, not with one eye and one sword."

"Who are you?" one of the men asks.

"For you, the angel of death," Hadi replies cockily. "What do you want from the girl?"

They don't answer, but simply begin to form a circle around them. Noura moves closer to him. Her consternation chokes her and her fingers twitch. She has nothing for her defense.

"Do you know how to swing a sword?" Hadi inquires.

"Yes, but I've never killed with it before."

"Well then, time to change the unfortunate fact."

He hands her his sword and she has no time to protest as one of the men charges at them. It feels heavy in her hands but she tightens her grip on it. Hadi pulls out another dagger, holding one in each hand, and takes his stance.

"Spare no one," he spits, then leaps forward and ducks as the man swings his sword at him before come behind him to stab him in the neck, and the man falls dead. She nearly throws up at the sight of it.

He proudly wipes his dagger over his thigh. "Now, would you imps come one by one or all at once?"

And they all rush at them at once. Noura feels a shiver run through her and the sword shakes in her hands.

"Great. Let's finish it quicker then," Hadi mocks and swiftly rolls on his feet to stab another man coming towards her, slashing open his abdomin with one dagger and burying the other in his chest before kicking him away.

Her logic seems to be scattered all over the place as she watches him fight, trying to keep the men away from her and manage himself. Two down already. Two at him. And the other two rush towards her.

"Ya Rabbi, help me."

She raises the sword to block an attack before swirling away as the other man bring down his sword too. For a minute it goes on like a dance where she's being being chased and she's only jumping out of the attacking range in her defense. But once she takes control of the situation and it sinks in, she knows there is no escaping the inevitable. Eskander's advice echoes in her ears: if her survival comes at a cost of another life being sacrificed, then let it be.

"Argh!"

She swings the swords full force and cuts the man's arm. His sword falls from his hand and she swings hers back up to cut him across his torso and chest. He falls to the ground and she doesn't give it a thought whether he's alive anymore or not.

His friend immediately takes his places and strikes at her. Noura dodges each of his attempts but they only keep coming more strongly. Their swords clash and he pushes against her. She grips her weapon more tightly but eventually feels her arms giving up on her. Her breaths start coming in short pants and the man forcibly shoves her back. She stumbles and he hits the swords out of her hand. The sound of the metal rings in the air. Noura falls backwards on the ground and he comes to tower over her.

And then a dagger comes flying to embed right in his neck and he falls to the ground besides her. She quickly scrambles away from him, shell-shocked and lost.

"Done and dusted."

She looks up at Hadi and he offers her his hand. She doesn't take it, pushing herself up and dusting her dress which is covered in more than just dirt. He retracts his hand and goes to pick up his sword.

"Sadly no one's left for interrogation," he remarks.

"There was one I injured earlier, but he has probably escaped by now."

Hadi sheaths his sword and turns to her. He looks uninjured, no sight of a single scratch, neither a sign of exhaustion. Taking down five out of six men with one eye and two daggers seemed too easy for him. Noura realizes she underestimated him. He never was a mere beggar to begin with.

"Someone replaced my note with a fake one," he states. "Someone who knew I've been sending them to you. And not only that, but knows me too. They knew you're meeting me, and so they sent these men after you."

He walks towards her and she cannot form any thoughts once again, his conclusion hitting her hard.

"You told someone about me?"

She shakes her head. "No one besides Annas and Hafez know you. I didn't even utter your name to anyone."

"No, not them. Annas is my slave, and Hafez can die for Eskander. They're both loyal." He glances around warily. "Who did you come here with?"

"One of the royal guards."

"Name him."

Noura hesitates, wondering if she should tell him. She's not sure how much she should trust the man. He could be Eskander's friend and has saved her life, but he's still a man unknown to her behind the pretense. Then weighing her options, she decides to tell him the truth.

"Adam."

His eyebrows go up in surprise. "The caliph's pet?"

Noura makes a displeased face. "You know him?"

"Who doesn't know the notorious executioner of Baghdad?" He chuckles darkly and nods in the other direction. "Come with me. I'll send you back to the palace."

"And Adam?"

"I can't risk him seeing me, so I can't escort you back. But I can't let you go back alone either. There could be still vultures on hunt for you."

"But he'll be looking for me."

"Let him suffer a little for all the torture he puts people through." He walks past her down the pathway. "Come."

She stays rooted to her place, reluctant to follow him, not knowing where he's taking her. He glances at her over his shoulders.

"Still not trusting me?"

Her shoulder drops in resignation. She sighs and follows after him. "What about these bodies?"

"Food for dogs," he replies carelessly.

"Where are we going?"

"Somewhere safer."

"Very specific. This eased my worries."

"Put a little faith in me."

"Your previous deceit makes it difficult. I thought of you to be a harmless poor man. But now I don't know who you are anymore. A spy, a soldier, or a merchant?"

"I'm actually all of those."

She hears the smirk in his voice. He slows down his pace so they're walking side by side. He pulls his hood forward over his head and removes the eye patch. Now both of those orbs can bore into hers. The contrast of them stuns her for a moment. She blinks and looks away.

"How come?" Noura asks.

He shrugs nonchalantly. "I was working as a spy in the bazar to collect information of use to me. I've fought in wars as a soldier and I kill for benefit. As for a merchant, I trade into buying people's loyalty with gold."

She stares at him, taken aback by his honestly and in disbelief of his profession. "What good are sold out people to you?"

"They're no good to me, but I don't buy them for myself. I buy them out of other's business so they're no good to them either."

"Ruthless," she comments. "Who do you spy for?"

She knows the answer to her question but she wants to know how far he can go opening up to her. Hadi lets out an amused laugh and parallels her gaze.

"Who do you think?"

"I don't know," she feigns innocence. "And I don't understand why you would tell all this so frankly."

"Because you wouldn't rat me out."

"How are you so sure?"

"I know you wouldn't endanger Eskander's life, now would you?"

Noura stops walking abruptly. He does so too and turns to her. She takes a steps away and clenches her fists.

"I thought you're Eskander's friend."

"I am."

"You're using him to keep my mouth shut." She scowls.

"You're taking it the wrong way," he tries to explain, gingerly moving nearer. "I'm in hiding because I'm a wanted man. If Eskander is found to have any association with me, he'll pay the price for it too. So the wise thing in the given circumstances is to keep it all a secret."

"What crime have you committed to be wanted?" Her tone goes terse with a tinge of fear. "Who are you actually?"

"I thought my eyes get me in trouble all the time because they give away my identity to those who have ever known me. So I've to keep them covered to stay unknown to the world." He lowers the cloth from his face and grins ironically. "But here I bare myself to you and you still ask me who I am."

She gazes up at him, brows met in concentration, searching those eccentric orbs, hoping to find the missing pieces of their entangled past he claims to share with her. But like always, she comes empty handed.

"I've never known anyone by the name of Hadi before, so I know if I've ever known you, that isn't your name then," she insists and his grin turns wider and roguish.

"I recognized you when I saw you with Eskander in the bazar the first time you came here with him. I wouldn't have recognized you either if it wasn't for him."

"Well, what do you want from me?" she demands straightforwardly. "Why the flowers and the notes?"

"Did you mind?"

"Yes."

"Too bad, I'm stubborn," he retorts playfully, earning a glare from her. "I feel freed with you," he confesses. "You had no expectations of me. You spilled my milk, approached me and was kind to me. For the first time in my life, someone was genuine to me. You didn't try to judge me or take advantage of my apparent poor status but instead recompensed my loss."

Noura chews hers lip in confusion, not understanding how any of it relates to everything.

"And besides," he adds with a smile, "you were a special girl as a child."

She arches an eyebrow and crosses her arms. "Flattery won't get you anywhere, not with me."

This gets a laugh from him. "Oh, I know, malika. This attitude of yours is what's queenly to me. I know you can't be wooed easily."

"And why would you want to woo me?"

He simply continues his walk down the pathway. She has no option but to follow after him.

"I've known many women in my life," he tells her. "And nearly all of them fitted into two categories: the desperate, bland type. And the cunning, manipulative type. Where would you fit?"

"No where in your imaginations."

Another laugh comes from him, another fleeting glance. "That's your answer, sweet one. That's why I want to woo you."

She frowns, not liking the direction of the conversation. "You don't know me as well."

"But I want to."

"Don't bother. I'm not interested."

"Why not?" They stop at a street where a horse is tied, probably his, as he pets its mane. "You're interested in someone else?"

"Yes, I'm interested in going back to my home, and not the palace." She peers around. The sun has already begun slipping down to the horizon. "You'll take me back to the palace?"

"Not me."

"Then who?"

As if to find her answer, they hear distant sound of horses approaching. When they come near them, the men dismount their horses and one of them makes his way towards them. Noura doesn't recognize him at first with his face covered until he comes to stop by them. When their gazes lock, his eyes widen, and so do hers.

"Fereydun?"

"Noura?"

Hadi smiles naively between them. "The lady got into a little trouble. Someone send men after her. I found her and brought her with myself. Thought since she's Eskander's family, it's best to send her back with you."

"What?" Fereydun studies her appearance, urgency and worry instantly coloring his orbs. "Are you alright?"

"Long story," she deflects sheepishly. "I'm unharmed, thanks to the kind sir here."

The corners of Hadi's mouth twitch up before he purses his lips in a thin line. "My pleasure, sayidati."

"Who did you come here with?" Fereydun asks.

"Adam."

"Where is he?"

"I don't know. I lost him at the bazar."

"And Hafez?"

"I didn't bring him with me."

He frowns in disapproval before turning to Hadi. "I'm glad you found her."

"Me too."

He tips his head gratefully at him before motioning over his men. "Escort the lady back to the palace."

One of them brings forth a horse for her. Noura looks at Hadi. "Thank you."

He replies with a smile before advising, "Watch out for the people around you, sayidati."

She nods and turns away from him, mounting the horse. Fereydun comes forward towards her.

"What about Adam?" she asks.

"He'll be informed." He then directs to one of his men. "Take the lady to general Eskander. Update him on the matter."

Noura wants to protest. She wants to request Fereydun not to tell him. Eskander shouldn't know. She has no excuses to give him, no explanation or whatsoever, but finds herself tongue-tied. She feels as if this time she's helpless against her fate.

The man tips his head at Fereydun. "As you say, sayidi."

Two of them mount their horses, preparing to take her back to the palace, and one stays behind with Fereydun. Her eyes connect with Hadi for the last time. They unhinge her with their vehemence, the cold-blooded beast which resides behind his smiles and easy, candid demeanor, a glimpse of which she has seen today. Yet still, they hold a familiarity she cannot shake off. One day or the other, she'll solve his riddle too.

The reins snap. The wind whooshes past her. And she leaves him behind her-- until she sees him again.

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Busy preparing for my finals, writing has to slow down.

So, any theories?

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