"?!"
Neither of the women moved.
The weight of Clarina beneath her was firm, almost grounding in its unexpected steadiness.
Penelope could feel the knight's calm, measured breaths against her skin, the faint metallic scent of her sword belt mingling with a softer undertone that was perhaps a hint of lavender lingering from Clarina's cloak.
For a split second, time seemed to slow.
"So I wasn't wrong…? You really are being needy, m'lady."
"M-M-M'lady?!"
Penelope scrambled to her feet, thoroughly flustered by what had just happened. She hated that "m'lady" of hers, that infuriatingly stern expression that always seemed to soften whenever their eyes met.
She hated it, and she had no idea why.
"Stop looking so surprised," Clarina said, trying to rise up herself. "I'm not here to humiliate you."
"Then… why?"
"Because I don't like you. But I do respect you."
