After a while, both girls find themselves exhausted. Despite the fact that they stopped running as soon as they were out of the line of sight of the kingdom, they quickly ran out of energy.

"Do you think we're safe to stay here for the rest of the night?" Rio questions as she tries to catch her breath, leaning over exhaustedly with one hand resting on the side of a tree.

"I think we're fine," Maya responds, trying to catch her breath herself. Though, she is in better state than Rio. It seems that through her spoiled lifestyle, she does not seem to have a fit bone in her body.

Of course, she's used to having everything done for her. Going from riches to rags will sure be hard on her.

"It doesn't seem like anyone followed us, so we're safe," Maya continues to confirm. "I don't think they've even noticed we're gone yet," she laughs in between heavy breaths. 

Rio lets out a sigh of relief, slowly lowering herself to sit down with her back resting against the trunk of the tree. Maya steps over and sits down next to her.

"We can rest well knowing you get to live and we get to love each other freely," Rio turns her head to Maya, smiling warmly at her. 

"Yep," Maya smiles back at her before resting her head against Rio's shoulder. "Though, now that everything is settled, there's something I'm wondering."

"What is it, darling?" Rio responds with nothing but love in her tone, wrapping an arm around Maya.

"Why the hell did you tell your father the truth?" Maya questions. She doesn't sound angry, but confused. "I think my lie could've worked."

"I know my father well..." Rio sighs, looking off into the distant forest, which has turned foggy in the cold night hours. "And if I lied, he wouldn't have believed it at all," she admits. "He was already suspecting I liked girls, plus he had no reason to not believe Mark. The marriage was going to end the war, after all, so why would Mark want to lie to ruin that?"

"Damn, how did he suspect that?" Maya asks curiously, wondering what led the king to think that of Rio.

"So..." she begins, resting her head on top of Maya's. "You know how I rejected every single prince that was offered to me, right?" She mentions, giggling a little at the thought. "I think I've rejected like twenty, but that's besides the point," she continues on with the story. "One of the princes that tried to win me over had a sister who tagged along on their journey to visit our kingdom. I... think my father noticed I was eyeing the princess more than the prince and... he asked me if I was a homoual," she laughs, which leads Maya to laugh as well.

"I guess you weren't subtle enough!" Maya laughs, lifting her head from Rio's shoulder and giving her a playful shove.

"I tried my hardest, but she was so pretty! And so kind and energetic..." Rio begins to fondly reminiscence about princess she once fancied until Maya gently hits her on her arm. She whips her head over to look back at Maya, furrowing her brows.

"Hey! What was that for?!" Rio asks. She pretends to be angry, but she's just smiling.

"You shouldn't think about any women other than me!" Maya teases. "But I'm glad you didn't fall into that temptation so you could end up with me instead!"

"Jealous, huh?" Rio laughs. "That was two years ago, there's no one I want more than you. I risked everything to save you!"

"I know, baby," Maya laughs, leaning her head back on Rio's shoulder. "I'm just teasing."

It is very cold out, considering winter has arrived. Both Rio and Maya are shivering. But Maya who is used to being cold in the winter is doing a much better job at handling it than Rio.

"You're shaking a lot..." Maya points out, lifting her head to get a better look at her girlfriend.

"I-I know," Rio responds in between shivers. "I-I could really go for a blanket or warm tea right about now..."

Oh, how she isn't adapted to winter in its full force.

"You're lucky you had access to enough of that growing up," Maya points out, smiling at her despite shivering as well. "But don't worry, I'll be your blanket," she giggles, shifting so she was laying on top of Rio. She rests her head against Rio's chest and lets the rest of her body lay on top of Rio like a blanket.

Rio already feels warmer due to this gesture. She smiles through the cold and holds Maya close to her body.

"Wait a minute," a lightbulb suddenly goes off in Maya's head. She slowly gets up off of Rio, who