King William: JESSINA!!!
The king stormed into his daughter's room with a loud bellow and a purple face, waking his slumbering child.
King William: WHERE IS SHE?!?!
Jessina sat up in her bed as her mother and the two suitors came in behind the enraged monarch.
Jessina: I don't know what you...
King William: You know damn well what I'm talking about! Your sister is missing, and you helped her escape!
Jessina: But I...
Aderas: Tell us the truth! You know what you've done!
The princess jumped from her bed and clenched her hands into fists.
Jessina: IF I HAD HELPED HER ESCAPE, THEN I'D BE GONE WITH HER!
The king was taken aback by his daughter's statement, almost not wanting to believe it, though he knew it was true. He just stood there, his anger pulsating through his body.
Queen Elise: William, dear...I don't think she did anything...
The king turned to his wife, who was pleading for him to let her be. He just scowled at her, then at his daughter. He fled from the room, then yelled outside to the guards at their posts:
King William:First of all, Jessina does not leave this room without an escort! Secondly, deploy soldiers all over the Central Kingdom! Search every inch of every town within! No one gets through the walls without a warrent! I want my daughter back, and I want her back now!
His voice stopped booming as a cluster of "Yessirs!" And "Right away, sirs!" were echoing through the walls and footstepps began to disperse in the halls.
Lissabelle had been tangled in the web of tunnels for hours. Every few hundred yards, the path forked into two different paths. This meant that she had to choose the correct path every time, otherwise she would end up in a dead end. She had come to twelve forks: eight turned out to be wrong the first time, causing her to turn around and go all the way back.
She breathed heavily as she dragged on, her breaths getting shorter with every step. The hem of her pink gown was worn, torn, and dirty due to the dragging of her feet. She felt like she was going to collapse at any moment, but she needed to move on.
Lissabelle: (I...I must keep going... I need to be close.... How much longer could these tunnels be?)
She sighed and kept walking, coming to yet another fork in the path.
Lissabelle: (Well....I went right at the left fork and i was correct.... So I'll go right this time....)
So she did, breathing heavily and trudging down the dark, dank, dreary tunnel.
Aderas: Stupid girl!
He walked into his cousin's bedroom, slamming the door behind him.
Aderas: She was ordered to be my wife! She cannot run away from me!
Aidan: Cuz...
Aderas: Who does she think she is?
Aidan: Cuz....
Aderas: I'm going to find her and bring her back! She will be mine, and that's the end of it!
Aidan: CUZ! You can't obsess over this! She does not love you. She hates you. You're never going to get her....
Aderas: Oh I'm going to get her if i have to force her!
Aidan: You mean you... Cuz, you'll be arrested for that, you do know?
Aderas: No. I'm future King of the West. I'm above the law. I can do whatever the hell I want!
Aidan: So you're going to force a poor little girl to marry you?
Aderas: Why yes, of course.
He smirked devilishly.
Aderas: Now if you don't mind, I'm off to find my princess and return her to her fiancee.
The spoiled prince walked out of the room and slammed the door behind him, leaving his cousin shaking his head in shame.
Lissabelle: (Oh no... Not another....)
She took another deep breath as she approached another dead end.
Lissabelle: (I've been stuck down here for hours....I can't breathe....I'm exhausted.... I'm never getting out of here...)
She breathed heavily as she began to sob, slamming her heand against the dirty wall of the tunnel in frustration.
Lissabelle: (I...I can't go on...)
With an exhausted groan, she collapsed to the ground, still struggling for air.
Lissabelle: (I'm never going to....)
Juliette: Cal, darling, put that silly sword down and come help me!
She heard a muffled voice from above her.
Cal: Yes, mum...
A hesitant reply came from the second person. Lissabelle sat up and looked straight up where the voices were coming from and saw a square beam of light: She had found the exit. She sighed with relief and got to her feet, then pushed the center of the square trap door upwards. The sunrise had never looked so beautiful.
Lissabelle: Finally....
Cal: Mum, did you just say something?
A voice came from a boy sitting on a merchant cart a few yards away. Lissabelle looked over, to make sure they weren't paying attention to the direction in which she was standing.
Juliette: No...
Cal: Coulda sworn you did...
The princess climbed slowly out of the tunnel, then closed the trap door, which had already been hidden by many tangled vines and roots over the long years. She was glad she didn't have to rush to hide it from the eyes of market vendors. Now she just had to try and catch her breath before she fainted.
Juliette: Sometimes I worry about you... Now could you hand me that "open" sign next to you?
Cal: Oh, sure....
He reached for the small wooden sign, but his eyes met first an odd sight: the lovely figure of a small, pale, young girl with shining hazel eyes and wavy burgundy hair stepping slowly closer and closer with deep, uneasy breaths. She stopped as their eyes met, just a few feet away, gazing into the face of the boy in his late teens, with his light brown hair, glowing blue eyes, and charismatic smile. She just smiled back, still breathing uneasily.
Cal: Miss...are... Are you okay?
He inquired, noticing her fragile state. She nodded once, then her vision blurred...
Cal: Miss?
Her knees buckled and her world went dark as she fell to the ground unconcious. The last thing she saw was the young man rushing forward and extending his arms to catch her.
-PREVIEW!-
Mikona: Puu! I'm here to help Starlite give a preview for her next chapter!
What's this? Aidan wants to take Jessina for a walk? Oh boy.... And who's this boy that took Lissabelle in? He seems to think fondly of her... *giggles*
Next time, Chapter 4, The Rodentlike Rescuer and the Merciful Merchant!
Mikona can't wait!
Mikona: Puu! I'm here to help Starlite give a preview for her next chapter!
What's this? Aidan wants to take Jessina for a walk? Oh boy.... And who's this boy that took Lissabelle in? He seems to think fondly of her... *giggles*
Next time, Chapter 4, The Rodentlike Rescuer and the Merciful Merchant!
Mikona can't wait!
