[center][h1][sub][color=Purple][b][u]J A U N A  |  K A R Y S T A N E[/u][/b][/color][/sub][/h1][/center]

[indent][indent]The bright morning sun slanted through the castle window to hit Jauna's pale, almond-shaped face smack in the center.  A bright blue sparrow with a white belly chirped loudly outside that window from its perch on the stone sill.  The sound finally moved the sixteen-year-old to sleepily open her eyes, then immediately flinch at the harsh sunlight.  [i]Oh crap, the prince is leaving today.  I don't want to be late![/i] The thought flooded in and she slid off the bed a heartbeat later in her rosy pink nightclothes.  

Ambling over to the full length mirror in the small but moderately opulent room that was her own, Jauna Karystane was forced to spend the next five to ten minutes brushing and unsnarling her fantastical crimson bedhead.  Each strand seemed like a miniature fiery snake that fought her and practically hissed with each stroke.  For the umpteenth time, she considered cutting it but couldn't bear to part with the locks. 

Upon completing her morning ablutions at the wash basin in the corner, she dressed in a loose-fitting, comfortable red kimono with a floral vine-like pattern.  On her feet went even more comfortable traveling moccasins.  She was thankful that heels weren't required while traveling, though hopefully they would not have to walk.  At the door to her chambers, she regarded the black-bladed hand-and-a-half sword with the round blue sapphire embedded in its hilt.  The sword, her father's sword, always conjured up memories whenever she looked at it, the few happy ones from when she was small were always far outshadowed by the announcement of her knightly father's death at King Estali's side in Blackwater.  

With no more than a moment's hesitation, the noble young lady grabbed a decorative pink silk sash from the hook on her door and tied it around her waste.  She hooked the sword in its plain tan leather scabbard onto the belt and headed down next to the library where she had been told the night before to meet for their departure.  Upon her arrival, Prince Eli waved at her. [i]Wow he must be in a good mood today,[/i] she thought absently as she grinned back at him, his excitement mirrored on her own face.  

She inventoried herself to make sure she had everything she wished to bring.  Though she had no handmaidens or servants like a member of the royal family did, it was just as well since aside from a basic ladies' wardrobe, she didn't need anything for herself aside from her father's sword and a belt to carry it on.  She wasn't entirely as vain as the other girls in the castle, Layla, Hessie, and Caroline to name but few.  No doubt if they had been traveling with the prince's party, they would have demanded one or more huge trunks.  Jauna chuckled to herself at the thought, then quickly stifled it as she spied the prince exiting the library and speaking to Rhea, a wyvern rider who Jauna had always envied the confidence, responsibilities, and body of.  Truth be told, she was pretty sure Rhea was older than both she and the prince, but that hadn't stopped Jauna from wanting to tag along with the prince on his first real adventure outside the castle lest he suddenly get the notion to have a dalliance with some older, experienced maid.  

Try as she might, Jauna could not quite completely dismiss that thought as, despite wyvern riders being a bit too...militaristic for the court ladies' tastes, that didn't mean they weren't still desirable physically.  Feigning indifference, she couldn't help herself from running a casual glance up and down the larger woman's gleaming armor and feeling multiple twinges of jealousy in her gut.  Jauna fervently hoped that she might get her own horse on their ride out of the castle and that the wyvern rider stayed far up in the skies for now.  Or better yet, get to ride double with a hunky guard.  Then again, she could just ride double with Eli and listen and nod and smile as he prattled on for hours about his latest magical tome research.  Or they could all be crammed up in a carriage.  She was surprised by how ill-informed she was of the transportation provided on this little exposé.
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[@LordVoldemort] [@Ambra]
[s]Also 300th post. Yay![/s]