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We moved swiftly through the rose garden, clouded under a thin black cloak and mask to conceal my status of a ‘defenseless’ princess taking a leisurely stroll. Donning the identity of an assassin, Kelsi blended in the shadows with a dark olive-green shirt and white sleeves underneath, matched with black pants and tall-boots.

“A man of knives I see, outfit strangely suits you.” I mumbled under my breath.

“Hmm? Lady Eilanya, are you in need of something warmer?” Kelsi whispered beside me under her own mask.

“Not at all Kelsi.” I replied, staring up to the fiery orange sky we strolled underneath. “I am truly warm.”

Out here I am free. Not confined to the whims of people’s obsessions, filled to the brim with useless pieces of parchment that I didn’t care about one way or the other. Suffocation that instills perpetual fear to whoever decides to carry on the name of ‘Lavisellion.’ Tortured by the gazes of gold pinned breasts filled with greed and envy.

There is a saying father taught me when I was a child.

‘All that is to come has came, but come as they may go, I will forever stay.’

Words that were shouted and revered to the realm governors trying to get him dethroned when he became ill, lamenting himself as the current king for the future to come.

We approached the end of the estate lot, standing side by side before evolving to full on sprinting down the outskirts of the estate’s cobbled road.

“Lady, where are we headed?” Kelsi asked, matching her pace to be just slightly behind me.

“Hoo, hoo.” I chuckled. “Where to, is indeed the question at hand isn’t it?”

“…Are we to just run aimlessly? If so I-“

“No no, not aimlessly. I do have an end destination, but we shall fill the evening with the mysteries of what this town has to offer. Leaving no stone un-turned” I said in a melodic tone, taking a glance over to Kelsi behind my shoulder. Her eyes surveyed the area, analyzing the shadows of the building overhangs looking for anything of suspicion.

I smirked underneath the silk mask, darting into a crowd of the most populated area in Toukil, Merchant square.

The area was filled with the common folk. Dancers weaving through the crowd with such elegance that it seemed second nature. The iconic smell of fish lingered heavier than ever but no longer seemed to disgust me the same way it did in the beginning. Stalls covering every side of the square, selling items ranging from cheap charms and trinkets to supposed spell-books of Arcanistry.

Every vendor here converses with the other, sparking up relationships that would last a lifetime. I’ve seen it firsthand, the making of a friendship between two strangers who just happened to setting up next to each other. It truly is a sight to witness.

Come night, the square would be completely empty, void of anything resembling the chaos that is right now, except for the occasional pieces of garbage that would litter on the floor.

Scanning the merchandise of each stall while we ran, I spotted an object that sparkled in my interest.

“Kelsi.”

“Yes?”

“You were born in the month of the emerald right?” I asked, eyeing a small green earring.

“That is…correct.” she replied reluctantly.

I quickly picked up the pouched green-earring and the one next to it, presenting them to the vendor.

“Just these please!”

“One of each? How about buying the other part of the pai-“

“Nope! Just these will do.” I reinforced, to the vendor’s hesitancy.

After a quick monetary exchange, I held my open palm over to Kelsi.

“Put this on.”

“Uh. I do not need to receive such a gift.” Kelsi said, taking two steps backwards.

“It’s not a request.” I stated strictly, glaring at her.

Kelsi’s face grew uneasy until finally sighing and conceding, taking the earring and pinning it into her right ear. I followed in suit and pinned the other colored earring into my left ear, revealing a cheap plastic topaz that seemed to gleam shinier than any other cut-gem.

Afterwards, we strolled through crowd matching the pace of those in front of us. Finally reaching the opposite end of Merchant Square, the crowd thinned out and the noise subsiding farther out we went.

“It’s reaching evening milady, let us head back.”

I shook my head sideways in disagreement.

“There is still one place I must go.”

“Where to? Most the stalls have been packed up, the lights of stores are already turning off one by one.”

“Not this place, this place lights up when all else goes dark.” I teased, pulling down my mask for a moment to let out a wide smile.

We continued down a stone path of the dim lit Thorn’s Road with only the sounds of Kelsi’s boots making any apparent noise. We approached further down the street, with a distant door being the only source of light.

Closer we got, the small, bright building got louder and louder. Three steps were now in front of me, leading up to the light emanating door. With each step up I took, I grew more and more anxious.

Was I recognized yesterday?

step

Does it matter if I was?

step

What if they find me here to as well?

step.

The familiar ruckus could be heard, muffled behind the aged wooden door that stood weakly in front of me. I reached for the handle, resting my right hand on it with no motivation to pull down.

“Kelsi let’s g-” I began to say.

Kelsi reached for the handle and pushed down, revealing the familiar scenery of all the nights I’ve been before. She beckoned me in to which I obliged, taking a small step inside. A seemingly empty table beside the door laid bare with only the clear glasses of ale knocked over on the surface. I slid into the closest seat while Kelsi promptly followed to sit at the opposite end of the table.

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“It reeks of alcohol.” Kelsi stated, scanning the room.

“Wouldn’t you say it’s more of a charm?”

“I never would have thought the, ahem, ‘Princess of the east Eilanya Lavisellion’ would have preferred the smell of drunkards than to that of the lavender scented room in the estate.”

“I would prefer anything over the daily routine of reviewing trade agreements between the squabbles of merchants and nobles. This place just simply amuses.”

“Amusement? Who would have known that the, ahem, ‘Princess of -‘”

“Stop that!” I shouted, ashamed to be flustered by her teases.

I scanned the room for myself to see if the three tattooed men from yesterday came to make a visit once again. The regular drunken fishermen toasting and spilling drinks as usual, always seeming to fill up the whole room with their barbaric laughter. The occasional nobleman who waltz in with two females under each arm, seating himself in the middle of the pub, attempting to show off the amount of wealth he accumulated by speaking a loud, obnoxious tone.

“Ah. This really is peace.” I whispered to myself, basking in the familiarity that is Toukil Pub.

“…If you say so milady.” Kelsi said, promptly sitting straight with her eyes closed.

I let out a deep sigh of relief, only to be met with an unexpected gust of wind cold enough to freeze over the realm. I glanced at Kelsi who sat with the same unchanging expression, but seeming to be shivering a bit.

A dark red haired boy walked hand in hand with a sleek, golden-hair girl beside her covered in ragged cloth and scarves up to their noses. They walked towards the front of the pub and took their seats at the counter, propping the little red head onto her lap. They seemed to exchange a few greetings with the old barkeeper behind the counter, pouring them a drink that steamed from the contents within.

The owner glanced in my direction and smiled, proceeding to pour more drinks. He limply walked over with a mug in each hand, standing beside our table with a gruff look. Kelsi readied her hand to the hilt of her sword attached to her belt underneath, ready to counter in a moment’s notice.

“Easy, easy ‘ere. I ain’t searchin’ fo’ any trouble lass.” The old man bellowed, place the drinks respectively in front of us.

I locked eyes with Kelsi, putting herself at ease.

“The amount o’ times I reckon you been ‘ere is ove’ fou’ if memory serves me well.” The man bowed his head in a subtle manner. “Yer majesty.” He harshly whispered, before lifting his head up and walking back behind the counter

I shot a look to Kelsi, panicking over the concealment of my identity who then glanced over to the long strands of hair that overflowed out the hood. I tucked the silver hair more tightly underneath the cowl, making sure not a single strand made an appearance.

“He seems to be aware of your status, take more caution in revealing your traits milady.” Kelsi scolded, resting her hands away from her sword to take a sip of the hot drink in front of her.

For a moment, it seemed like her expression relaxed into that of one who wasn’t a battle crazy knight. She nodded her head in silent agreement before continuing to take larger sips of the drink.

With my mind set in slight ease, I took a hold of the warm clay-mug with both hands and brought it close to my lips. Citrus. The fragrance of a citrus aroma was lightly hinted, dancing in the smoke stemming from the drink. I tilted the mug slightly to take a sip, it was unknown. A type of tea unknown to me was indeed rare. The lingering taste of ginger took over while the citrus battled it in flavor.

With my undivided attention on the citrus tea, a note strung snuck its way into the left side of my ear. Slowly the notes filled the air, stringing itself along into a tranquil melody. The music circled my head in harmony, seeming to slow the motions of the pub into a pause. The sound was faint but it didn’t matter, drowned out all other sources of noise and focused solely on the strings being strung.

A beautiful sound, addicted to the harmonizing notes of music.

“Eilanya…”

A distant voice called out to me.

“Eilanya!”

“What!” I exclaimed, opening my eyes to the worried face of Kelsi standing semi-up. “Ah, forgive me.”

“Are you feeling alright?” Sitting back down in relief.

I paused for a bit. “I was merely lost in thought is all, I am fine.”

Kelsi stared at me for a few moments, before relaxing to her previous position with the drink in her hand.

“I’m glad, truly. Accompanying you here may just be my greatest feat.”

“Nonsense, you are an exceptional knight of the realm.” I teased, taking my own sips from the mug in front of me.

“You seem to forget, I am no longer Ser Kelsi.”

I paused, leaving the mug to my lips while I gulped the remains of what was inside.

“Yes, yes, whatever you say…milady.” I teased, setting the mug down gently.

The night went on just like that, in our comfortable silence while the music became more and more pronounced. The playing of the lute never appeared to cease, with each song wrapping the melody tightly within the confines of this room. Seconds went by, minutes faded into hours which in turn ended up with just six people left in the room.

The barkeep, then the golden-haired girl with the boy, then Kelsi and I. But far into the corner, sat the musician slunk into the shadows.

“Lady, It’s time now.” Kelsi stated promptly, which I in turned nodded to agree to with her.

Just when were about to stand up, the same feeling of freezing wind blew inside more abruptly, revealing the presence of a guard in its wake.

A night guard? Did he come to laze around on patrol? The nerve.

A lanky man geared from head to toe strolled over to the counter. Midnight-blue dyed leather armor with a crescent mood on etched into the shoulder. Kelsi stood up ready to leave, but I lifted my hand up, beckoning her to wait just a moment.

“What’s the name girl?” The guard slurred to the two at the counter.

The two didn’t reply but instead, moved a seat away from him.

“Not the talking type ey?” He walked closer towards her, jerking her arm off the stool to make her stand.

A clattering and falling of chairs could be heard from the corner, the lute player appeared beside her scarily fast. The girl reassessed herself in front of the guard, appearing to calm the musician down with her other hand.

“The name is Key, sir. I apologize if my silence has offended the fragile ego you hold oh so dear.” She said mockingly.

“Eh? Well you know what, I am offended.” The guard replied smugly, spitting after each word. “So why don’t you come with me and have a little chat about…mutual respect.” He placed his dirty hand onto her shoulder, gripping the cloth tightly, wrinkling up the white dress she wore underneath.

The little boy ran from behind her legs, kicking rapidly to the guard’s boots.

“Hmm?” As fiercely as the boy looked kicking, the disgusting filth of which was the guard, brought down the back of his hand in such force, knocking the kid down to the ground echoing the sound of a hammer. “Little brat.”

“Rey!” The two shouted in sync.

Key struggled to break from the tight grip on her shoulder, using both hands to force him away.

“Die.” The musician mumbled, who rushed to take a hold of a stool, swinging aimlessly at the guard, making a clink on the armor with each contact.

However, the guard barely seemed to note. With one last swing, he brought the stool over his helmet, breaking the wood to pieces leaving only a scratch on the armor. A silence fell over the pub in disbelief, leaving only the creaking of mice scurrying around in the walls to be heard.

“Ah. Ah! This was my shiniest piece of armor you shit.” The guard brought his left clenched armored-hand from beside him and swiftly punched him in the gut with fierce intensity.

With only a slight groan, the musician fell onto the floor gasping for air. But that wasn’t all, the guard let go Key and began to kick ferociously at the guy in the same spot with his padded boots.

_This is horrid. I can stop them. This appalling scene in front of me needs to be surrendered. _ I began to stand up, only to be stopped by Kelsi who held down my hand to the table, mouthing words of disagreement. How could a guard paid by the royal estate funds be so disgusting.

We looked on, making grimace with each kick [the guard] being more relentless than the other. Eventually the gasping stopped, leaving only the sounds of the thuds.

“The lad has ‘ad enough, ‘ere I’ll even give you extra if you leave now.” the barkeep said, trying to reason with him, only to be met with deaf ears.

Key sorrowfully embraced the unconscious Rey on the floor, flinching with each kick being made.

Water welled up in my eyes, falling down onto Kelsi’s hand still on top of mine. I looked at Kelsi with an unsightly face, and begged for her to do something. I don’t know if Kelsi understood, but she nodded and stood up, placing her hand once again at the hilt of her sword.

“Tsk.” he [the guard] let out. “My appetite is ruined.” He landed one last final kick before making his way to the door. “I am very ah, displeased, with this establishment and am looking forward to see it return to it’s ah, former glory.” He turned the door handle open and let himself out, leaving only uncomfortable silence before him.

I began my way to the three at the counter, but Kelsi held a tight grip around my wrist. She briskly walked out of the pub, dragging me with her. When we reached outside, Kelsi continued her fast pace towards the estate, with only tears trailing behind me in the wind. The street lights seemed to flicker between the fluttering of my eyes, blurring the images of what was in front of me.

Punctured into my head was the image of visible pain. Ah, I almost forgot.

There’s not a single person who genuinely cares for someone. It’s all in order to be used as a stepping tool in life’s hierarchy. Noble heirs who’ve come to sit down and become ‘friends’ is all a ploy. We would drink tea, have a couple laughs, talk about how the nature of the slums were simple rose shrubs that needed tending to but, it was all a farce. No one can be trusted. This is my way of thinking to reach my ideal self, to not be used I must be the first to make advantageous of what’s in front of me. No matter the situation, I always thrived and thrived to come out on the other side unscathed in their disgusting intentions. Screw everyone else.

“And thus, once again I go back to whence I came.”