Irulan was hastily walking down the dim stone corridor. Her sky blue dress
was swishing and trailing behind her. Guards were standing stonily with
regular intervals and although they did not move a hair, she could feel
them watching her walking by. She resisted the impulse to run, though.
Always better not to draw too much attention. She moved her chin a bit
higher and tried to look as determined and royal as possible. Not that
anyone would dare to stop her and ask questions, but she did not want
anybody's mind to linger for too long on the issue why the princess herself
was here when the party was yet so young.
Upon arriving at her chamber a few minutes later she cast a last glance towards the corridor and let herself in. She quickly barred the door and exhaled loudly. "Finally!" she murmured, "I thought I would really have to stay there all bloody night!" Fortunately they had decided to move the party outside sooner, to catch the beautiful view of the full moon and the star scattered night sky. The guests would be strolling in one of the infamous vast gardens of the castle, sipping their drinks and listening to the most talented musicians playing softly in the farther end of the garden wall. And of course no better opportunity to get lost than that!
Irulan quickly discarded her gown and started to dress up for the occasion. She put on her trousers and her soft boots, her leather vest and on top of that a loose shirt. She braided her hair and tucked it underneath the piece of cloth she used to make herself a turban. Irulan unbarred the door to her chamber and hid her gown in one of the many chests in the room. She moved to the window and carefully looked out. She could hear the faint music from the party that was held in the garden close by. Fortunately her window did not oversee that particular garden. Then she used the lose end of her turban to veil her face loosely. She looked and checked herself in the mirror. The costume was obviously a local outfit for an average male - minus the head piece and veil. However, veiling your face was not as uncommon here as in many other countries.
She grasped one of the thicker branches of the vine that was surrounding her window and pulled herself out. She had climbed this vine up and down so many times, she needed neither light nor to look. Her feet touched the ground in a few seconds. She quickly glanced around and making almost no sound at all advanced to the corner of the wall. She looked carefully around. The guards were walking back and fro about a hundred feet away from her. She waited until they faced each other and then quickly sneaked to the outer wall of the castle that was lying across her. The castle walls were all hidden behind a dense array of bushes and trees. It was a little wood that got thicker one got to the wall and looking from a distance, it helped the eye and the mind to believe that there were no walls at all, and that the castle was merged with the thick woods that lay around it. Moving along this path now, she quickly found the spot she was looking for. She removed the loose bush and ducked in, placed the bush back and then carefully looked out the other side of the wall.
The city was as bright as ever. Thick candles and torches lined up the street, hovering above the ground and flickering in the breeze. A usual crowd was walking up and down the broad street that ran along the castle wall. The street was packed with wooden buildings that served as stores for anything from the most common to the least imaginable. The castle was built on a steep hill with the city around it. Therefore, her hole in the castle wall was just located at the back of the second store of such a shack. It had been empty for years now, rather a storehouse for old and rusted farming equipment. It was farther back from the street and nobody visited it. She quickly walked out and towards the street. Soon she was walking among the local crowd towards the race ground, smiling happily underneath her veil.
Legolas was confused to say the least. This was strange indeed. His elven eyes could see very well in the dark, so he knew that it was indeed Princess Irulan who just had walked out of the castle, but he was confused about her reasons nevertheless. He had decided to walk off from the crowd a little bit to enjoy the warm summer night in one of the many gardens of the palace that were silent and dark now when he saw her face up on the window. It was distinctively her face, and yet she was dressed in a rather unusual fashion. He was glad to see her. She seemed very forthcoming and true in character. It was his observation that -especially in royal circles- pretense was even more common than usual in the world of men. Yet Princess Irulan seemed to be someone who felt no need for pretense. He had watched her on the dinner table and she seemed rather bored and lost. He would have joined her at her side to talk then, but as honor guest of King Kanduin himself, he was forced to remain in his seat and attend the conversation. He thought about showing himself now and inviting her down for a conversation when she veiled her face and started to climb down the vine that reached to her window.
Then Legolas felt something very strange (strange, for he had not felt a similar feeling for a very very long time). His intrigue faded into what men call surprise. Little did he know that he, along with every other person who shared a piece of Irulan's life, would be feeling it more and more as he remained close to her. Surprise was Irulan's very skin, her aura. Like a candle, unaware of its own light, she was shining brightly. It just needed the right eye to see.
So he did not hesitate in following her. She was walking among the crowd on one of the main streets and he fell in behind her, always keeping a safe distance, although he knew that she could not pick him out on such a crowded street. Besides, she seemed to be sure that she was not followed and was not looking around. He was aware that he was drawing a bit more than usual attention to himself because of his elven appearance, and yet the locals knew that elves had been invited to the castle today, so his presence in the city was only perceived as a curious surprise. The people usually cast a glance at him and then quickly moved out of his way. So he had no difficulty in pursuing the strange girl who was swiftly walking farther away from the castle.
Upon arriving at her chamber a few minutes later she cast a last glance towards the corridor and let herself in. She quickly barred the door and exhaled loudly. "Finally!" she murmured, "I thought I would really have to stay there all bloody night!" Fortunately they had decided to move the party outside sooner, to catch the beautiful view of the full moon and the star scattered night sky. The guests would be strolling in one of the infamous vast gardens of the castle, sipping their drinks and listening to the most talented musicians playing softly in the farther end of the garden wall. And of course no better opportunity to get lost than that!
Irulan quickly discarded her gown and started to dress up for the occasion. She put on her trousers and her soft boots, her leather vest and on top of that a loose shirt. She braided her hair and tucked it underneath the piece of cloth she used to make herself a turban. Irulan unbarred the door to her chamber and hid her gown in one of the many chests in the room. She moved to the window and carefully looked out. She could hear the faint music from the party that was held in the garden close by. Fortunately her window did not oversee that particular garden. Then she used the lose end of her turban to veil her face loosely. She looked and checked herself in the mirror. The costume was obviously a local outfit for an average male - minus the head piece and veil. However, veiling your face was not as uncommon here as in many other countries.
She grasped one of the thicker branches of the vine that was surrounding her window and pulled herself out. She had climbed this vine up and down so many times, she needed neither light nor to look. Her feet touched the ground in a few seconds. She quickly glanced around and making almost no sound at all advanced to the corner of the wall. She looked carefully around. The guards were walking back and fro about a hundred feet away from her. She waited until they faced each other and then quickly sneaked to the outer wall of the castle that was lying across her. The castle walls were all hidden behind a dense array of bushes and trees. It was a little wood that got thicker one got to the wall and looking from a distance, it helped the eye and the mind to believe that there were no walls at all, and that the castle was merged with the thick woods that lay around it. Moving along this path now, she quickly found the spot she was looking for. She removed the loose bush and ducked in, placed the bush back and then carefully looked out the other side of the wall.
The city was as bright as ever. Thick candles and torches lined up the street, hovering above the ground and flickering in the breeze. A usual crowd was walking up and down the broad street that ran along the castle wall. The street was packed with wooden buildings that served as stores for anything from the most common to the least imaginable. The castle was built on a steep hill with the city around it. Therefore, her hole in the castle wall was just located at the back of the second store of such a shack. It had been empty for years now, rather a storehouse for old and rusted farming equipment. It was farther back from the street and nobody visited it. She quickly walked out and towards the street. Soon she was walking among the local crowd towards the race ground, smiling happily underneath her veil.
Legolas was confused to say the least. This was strange indeed. His elven eyes could see very well in the dark, so he knew that it was indeed Princess Irulan who just had walked out of the castle, but he was confused about her reasons nevertheless. He had decided to walk off from the crowd a little bit to enjoy the warm summer night in one of the many gardens of the palace that were silent and dark now when he saw her face up on the window. It was distinctively her face, and yet she was dressed in a rather unusual fashion. He was glad to see her. She seemed very forthcoming and true in character. It was his observation that -especially in royal circles- pretense was even more common than usual in the world of men. Yet Princess Irulan seemed to be someone who felt no need for pretense. He had watched her on the dinner table and she seemed rather bored and lost. He would have joined her at her side to talk then, but as honor guest of King Kanduin himself, he was forced to remain in his seat and attend the conversation. He thought about showing himself now and inviting her down for a conversation when she veiled her face and started to climb down the vine that reached to her window.
Then Legolas felt something very strange (strange, for he had not felt a similar feeling for a very very long time). His intrigue faded into what men call surprise. Little did he know that he, along with every other person who shared a piece of Irulan's life, would be feeling it more and more as he remained close to her. Surprise was Irulan's very skin, her aura. Like a candle, unaware of its own light, she was shining brightly. It just needed the right eye to see.
So he did not hesitate in following her. She was walking among the crowd on one of the main streets and he fell in behind her, always keeping a safe distance, although he knew that she could not pick him out on such a crowded street. Besides, she seemed to be sure that she was not followed and was not looking around. He was aware that he was drawing a bit more than usual attention to himself because of his elven appearance, and yet the locals knew that elves had been invited to the castle today, so his presence in the city was only perceived as a curious surprise. The people usually cast a glance at him and then quickly moved out of his way. So he had no difficulty in pursuing the strange girl who was swiftly walking farther away from the castle.