"He had been passing through this land -about a year ago -and he was found associating with a widespread group of bandits that plague our country -"

Here Tass nearly choked -from laughter, Rynere assumed -but didn't try to protest.

"He was brought to the dungeon, but managed to escape. We later found him in the kitchen, making friends with the cook, and put him back in his cell with extra guards. But no matter what we did, we could never keep him there."

Tass smirked.

"The last straw was when I found him in the gathering room -where I and my family rest after stressful days. He was sitting on a couch and conversing quite freely with my daughter!"

Rynere stared at Tass. He was laughing. Silently.

"He denied the fact that he had made her attracted to him, but it grew more obvious every day -he stayed in his cell but my daughter wouldn't stop talking about him -"

Tass couldn't contain his mirth any longer and burst out laughing.

"Silence!" the king roared.

Tass seemed to be doing his best to quiet down, but he was failing. Miserably.

"So you're saying that he was purposefully making your daughter fall in love with him?" Rynere could imagine quite a few things about Tass, but not something that drastic.

"Absolutely! The knave refused to admit it, but I could see it in his eye -"

That didn't help Tass with obeying the command of silence. At all.

"Do you have a different tale?" the king growled.

Tass regained his composure enough to emphatically answer. "Absolutely."

"Tell it, then!"

Rynere didn't hear the story from Tass's side until a day or two later. Right after the king's command for him to tell it, a girl -about seventeen or eighteen years old, with beautiful golden hair and sapphire blue eyes -ran into the room.

"Father!" she said breathlessly, hurrying up to the king. "Did you hear? Mother wanted me to tell y -what's going on?" she looked around questioning, and then her eyes fell on Tass and lit up.

"Oh, Father!"

"Sylver!" he snapped. "Leave! Now! Guards, take Jinx to the gallows. You two -" he waved at Rynere, Danid, and Karoy. "Leave my land! I never want to see your faces again!"

"You're going to kill him, Father?" Rynere heard Sylver say -heartbrokenly -as Tass was dragged away and Danid and Karoy led her out of the throne room.