Thread: The Urchin and the Prince [Ava & Eyesoffire]

The ground was as solid and unforgiving as before, halting the momentum of her fall with prompt abruptness. She expected pain, the sharp stab ushered in by her fragile figuring slamming into the frozen earth, but all she felt was a heavy numbness, a deep cold that sunk into her very bones. All her energy had been exhausted in the walk up here, she didn't have the strength to lift herself and so she lay still. The guards' voices sounded distant, muffled and far away, before a rough boot dug into her side, rolling her onto her back carelessly. Perhaps her lack of movement had concerned the guards enough to check that she was still alive, but any further interference, help or hindrance, was interrupted by the arrival of a large blurred shape that looked remotely horse shaped. Perhaps if she had known who sat peering down at her, she would have felt some form of comfort, but instead all that settled over her was a uneasy sense of dread. Figures suddenly loomed over her, hands taking hold of her arms and dragging her upward, off the frozen earth until her feet were hanging in mid-air. The heavy stone archway of the gate towered over them as they passed beneath it, armoured boots thudding rhythmically against the ground as they carried her off to her fate. Ells assumed that she was bound for the cells a straw-covered floor to sleep on, stale bread and water to eat - it sounded like heaven. So you can imagine the girl's surprise when she was carried into the expansive room that housed the palace kitchens, the warmth of a large and well-built fireplace washing over her as they stepped through the door. Even at this late hour servants were busy peeling, chopping and dicing while a rather portly red faced woman, who appeared to be very much in charge, kept a watchful eye on them all. Upon the arrival of the two palace guards and the bundle of ragged cloth, she turned and looked over them, clucking like a disapproving mother. Prince Crispin wished her to be brought here, he probably wants her fed... The cook cut him off with the wave of a dismissive hand and directed them to the end of a long table nearest the fire, Sit her there, Rebecca fetch a couple slices of one of the loaves we baked early, and a few good thick slices of cheese...quickly now. One of the servants scurried into action, abandoning her previous task to fetch the necessary items as the guards dragged Ells round and deposited her upon one of the benches. Emily, a blanket for our guest, hmm? She looks chilled to the bone. Stubby fingers pushed back the tangled mop of Ells hair, the woman's kind eyes settling upon the urchin's face as violent shivers shook her slim body. Within a matter of moments the girl was bundled up in a thick blanket, sitting next to a roaring fire with a plate of two slices of bread as thick as the cook's finger and several slices of cheese equally thick. The cook also poured a rather generous amount of honeyed mead into a tankard and set this before Ells as well, a fact that left the two guards grumbling between themselves as they stood in the corridor awaiting to be dismissed. As of yet she hadn't touched any of it, despite the hunger the knotted her stomach. Instead she sat, hunched over the table with the blanket pulled tightly about herself, teeth chattering faintly as her eyes sweep feverishly from person to person.