Thread: Freshwater Awakening (Rania Lark and darkest_fate)

The sky was the perfect cerulean blue on the day Princess Ivy decided to venture forth outside of the carved stone walls of her castle. The sun had risen with the fiery colours of red and orange as it ascended to it's high noon place directly above the tallest spire of the large palace. The king and queen were growing older with each sunrise and the land knew that the days of the current rulers were in their twilight. Princess Ivy was going to ascend the throne and, despite her unmarried nature, many were looking forward to it. Her personality was one of kindness and gentleness. She was sympathetic to the plight of even her poorest subjects, making it her personal mission to ensure that every person within the kingdom had a warm bed to sleep in at night and enough food to stave off the pains of hunger. However despite this kindness, the Princess was also very protected against the dangers and tribulations of the outside world. Being brought up wanting for nothing, her education had merely taught her the ways of a ruler, not the ways of society that functioned outside the castle walls. Despite her naivety to the world outside, Ivy knew that she would eventually have to depart the protection of the stone walls that surrounding the large palace and surrounding city. She would have to enter the forest to learn of the farmlands and hunting grounds where her people procured their sustenance. She would have to recognize the limits of her power and her world in order to rule effectively. And all of this knowledge led the Princess to that very day. The day she would venture out of the castle, on her own, to explore and come to the reality of her ascension to the throne. Her very own 'walkabout'. Ivy left the castle atop the purest white mare that could be procured from her lands. The horse's name was Eloise and the gentle animal suited the Princess entirely. The Princess rode high atop the horse, her legs shifted to one side of the animal to avoid any impropriety with regards to etiquette should she encounter anyone on the path. Ivy's hair was a fiery red, the colour of the edges of the setting sun as it dipped below the horizon in the evening. Pulled back in a loose braid that began at the base of her neck, gold thread was laced through the auburn tresses, making them sparkle against the noon day sun. A golden circlet was wrapped around her head, resting on the alabaster skin of her forehead as the intricate wrappings created a frame for both her head as well as her face. Her green eyes were wide and innocent, flashing emerald against the brightness of day. Her skin was pale and devoid of any markings or scars indicating a lifetime of hard work or war. She was the quintessential Princess, perfection of face and body while maintaining an innocence of mind. Below her face, Ivy wore a gown made of the softest burgundy velvet. The neckline scooped below her collarbone to rest just atop her breasts, the trim an intricately woven embroidery of red and golden flowers to match the gold and red of her hair and decorations. The dress was held onto her shoulders with two thick straps of the same velvet. Beneath the dress, she wore a white tunic that was tied in various places down her arms, covering them from the sun to avoid any type of tan to mar her skin. A belt of the same intricately woven embroidery rested atop her hips, emphasizing her small waist. The dress flowed down to her feet where another trim of the embroidery encircled the end of the burgundy fabric. Ivy rode deeper and deeper into the forest until a clearing opened up before her, a small river babbled enthusiastically as the water flowed through the path. The water itself was the clearest water the Princess had ever seen while fireflies danced above it, creating a surreal starscape within the flowing river. Ivy was immediately entranced with the beauty as she pulled the horse to a stop at the river's edge. She slid gracefully from the back of the mare and marvelled at the dance like movement of the water and the fireflies.