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They were on a cart once more, but this time, his little nun was not outside guiding a donkey under the cracking sun. No, she sitting with him on the cart, crates and parcels stood between them, and by the look on her face, this was a good thing.
Her habit could cast a shadow on her face, hiding her eyes, but not the fact that she was crying. Since yesterday, this was all she could do when they were alone. He could not resent her for it, she was such a delicate thing for a hired assassin, he could snap her neck if he wanted to, and he almost did.
The sound of her sobs served to remind him that she was no assassin, in a worst case scenario, she was just a girl who was forced to try and distract him enough so a real attempt on his life would not be noticed by him.
Moving in a faster pace due to the fact that there was an actual horse pulling the cart and not a donkey with a nun guiding it, Guiliano was sure that it wouldn't be too long before they arrived on Rome. And he had to be sure of his convictions if he were to survive in there, his enemies sharped their knifes while he recovered from his poisoning, and his body wasn't like it used to be, and probably never will be.
A rustle of hands by his side draw his attention to his nun just as she extracted an apple out of her pouch and a smallish knife to go with it. There was a charm in seeing her fingers work, making the peel come off as a whole. The monkey he acquired for his own safety ate the peel she offered to it, and for a second, it was almost as if her crying had stopped. Which was all part of his imagination, as of the low sounds of her sobs came back as her hand offered the apple to him.
Looking at the monkey and being sure of the lack of poison in the offered fruit, Guiliano reaches out to it, making sure to have both his hand around hers before taking the apple from her, he could even run his fingers over her wrists and its soft skin, a difference from her hands, marked by labor.
In a stiff movement, the girl pulled back, leaving the apple on his hand and retreating to her corner of the cart, where she used some crates as shield and his monkey as company. Since the morning, this was her behavior when around him, and when he peaked at her from around a corner, he could see that she was a bit nervous at best.
"Girl" suddenly bothered by her silence, decides to at least make her stop her senseless sobbing and answer his questions.
"Yes, Cardinal" no wait in her answer, even in her deep fear, she was ready to act according to his needs, and that was all he expected from her. But the form of treatment she used for him had to go.
"You must call me Father, now that we're heading to Rome" with surprise, she rises her head and look straight into my eyes. Her face was red from all the crying, and her eyes had a dark ring around them, making her look sick, only her eyes still held the same sparkle. She was smart, she could follow his instructions with precision, and that was what mattered. "And now, you must tell me your name, Sister"
"I am Alicia, F-Father" the redness of her face got deeper while she averted her eyes. She was just a little girl, not willful and knowing like the others at the convent. She could be molded to his will.
"Well, Alicia, dry up those eyes and keep your tears to your moments of privacy, Rome does not welcome open sings of weakness."
With a curt nod from her, Guiliano became sure of her usefulness. Like he once was, others will be unsuspecting of her delicate face, so she would be able to aid him in more trivial matters without pressing dangers being presented to her. His little nun would be most useful, yes.