Member
[Adorabella]
Bride of Unknown [@"character player"] and Sister Bride of Unknown [@"character player"]Interacting with: n/a [@"character player"]
She was just beginning to settle into her life. Travelling a long way from the village which had been her childhood home to realize her destiny and become a part of the noble class of Gems. It had been quite rocky at first but she refused to let slips and mistakes stand in her way. After all, if one was going to do something they should do it properly. It was just so difficult to get down the nuances of court life, not that she had been to court, and understand the politics of it. She also had to remember not to use the slang she had grown up within her village, which could be tough.
Her parents’ house was the largest she had ever seen in her life, though it was not the largest in the city by far. It was there she sat, in the beautiful gardens. A large tree supported her back, giving them shade from the warm rays of the sun. In her hands a picture book was open and from it, she read while her sleeping brother rested in her lap. The small child had been her blessing. He was not someone who judged or corrected her. Adorabella could only have felt more peace if she were sitting at the creek which ran through the forest near her home village.
The sounds of terror told her something was amiss. In the distance, she could hear sobbing and crying. Screaming. Begging. It came so soon. She prayed she would have more time to spend with her family. She prayed she would not be taken from them.
Slowly she moved the sleeping child from her lap, laying him gently in the grass amongst the beautiful flowers which grew around them. She crept toward the front of her family’s property cautiously, wondering if she would see the Drakken. Adorabella knew them only by their name and the terrible visage described to her by the townsfolk. Even her parents told her the horror stories. They had all seemed as just that, stories to her.
Alas, it was the Drakken. She could see the cart moving down the cobbled road toward the estates. Their features were harsh and they seemed so much larger than had ever been described to her. She fled, scooping Drasyl into her arms and rushing toward the house as quickly as she could. “Mmm… What…?” he mumbled, sleepily opening his eyes as he clung to his sister.
“Sssssh,” she murmured back. “We’re going inside.” Once behind the safety of her family’s walls she gave the boy to one of the servants. Her mother came down the stairs, finely dressed as always.
“It’s happening,” her mother said in a panic.
“I know.” Adorabella fell into her mother’s embrace. Olynna appeared from a side door, tears streaming down her face. She also hugged Adorabella tightly.
The door burst open and there stood a Drakken man. His face was grim and stoic. “Come,” he said simply. The deepness of his voice reverberated through her chest and made her heart skip in terror. Adorabella began to feel the tears rush down her own face. She felt she had only just gotten here. She didn’t have enough time! This simply wasn’t fair.
“Please,” she begged him. “Please, let me stay.”
“No, go pack yourself a small trunk of belongings. You have five minutes.”
She sighed tearfully and hurried up the stairs. Olynna rushed after her to help her pack. Her mother had crumpled onto the ground and stayed still. The two women rushed about, picking fine dresses, jewelry, and toiletries. In the trunk she also placed the picture book. It was Drasyl’s favorite and she wanted it to always have to remember him by.
The two women carried down the trunk. Her mother was being worried over by servants but she did not awake. A bit of anger crept into the pit of her stomach. The woman who had given her away at birth to protect her from this could not even find the strength to give her a proper goodbye. Adorabella felt two tiny arms around her legs. “Don’t go,” Drasyl managed to get out through heavy sobs. The anger she felt dissolved into a deep hopelessness. Drasyl, the dearest love of her life. She would not see him again.
“I have to. I do not have a choice.” In an effort to comfort him she found she could speak through her tears. She set the trunk down and knelt to envelop Drasyl in her arms. She hugged him tightly. “Know I love you very much and I hope that one day we will meet again.” She kissed his forehead. When she stood she scooped up her brother and turned to Olynna and said, “Take care of him please.” She handed Drasyl over though he tried desperately to cling to his sister.
“We haven’t got all day. Get going,” the Drakken growled. She heaved up her trunk, and without turning back followed the Drakken out of the house.
The shock of her situation dried her tears. She had no room left to feel an emotion and stared blankly out at her Gem sisters being forced away from their families. So many different expressions of grief sat around her. She couldn’t look at them. Normally she would have wanted to offer comfort but she could not think.
After a day of travel, she began to come out of her stupor. She spent the rest of the ride studying the landscape and searching the horizon for animals. What could she hunt? What plants did she recognize? Could she live off of this land? As they drew closer and closer to the castle she began to feel more despair. The place was so barren. There was no chance for her to survive here. She would have to rely on the monsters who had taken her. Bitterly, she thought of her naivete in thinking they were naught but fairytales. How could she have been so stupid? She felt anger at herself. Then anger at the Drakken. Then she resigned to her fate. This was to be her life now. She had always known this could happen. She closed her eyes and prayed.
When she opened her eyes again they had made it to the palace. It was daunting, macabre, and beautiful in a way. The mountains towered around it all snowcapped and steadfast. They even made the castle feel small. That was until they approached the soaring spires and massive wall. Could she bring herself to enjoy her life here? She supposed all it would take was a positive attitude. She had to find things she liked. Try new things. This world could be just as much of a home…. Couldn’t it?
In a tired blur, she listened to the speech. She allowed herself to be ushered into her room. She went over the directions she had been given over and over until even the words existed behind her eyelids. She just had to find some normalcy. Adorabella began to explore the room. It was very simple. There were a bed and an old vanity with a faded mirror in which it was hard to see her reflection. The single slit of a window showed the town, the wall ramparts, and the staring mountains. Behind a partition, she found a small basin with cold water.
Normalcy. She began to undress and using her skill with water allowed it to flow over her body. It danced away the dirt from her long travel and cooled her body. She normally hated the cold but it was fitting. It was a sensation. It was something she recognized.
She washed her hair, removing days’ worth of dirt. The water she deposited back into the bowl was nearly black. With her fingers began to brush the water out of her hair, drying it. Finally, she turned toward the bed where she pulled back the covers and buried herself in the warmth. She did not turn out the lights. She was much too tired. Too afraid.
Force of habit caused her to awaken before the sun. She brushed her fingers through her amethyst curls, arranging them neatly in the mirror as well as she could. The clothing left on her bed was as dull and lifeless as the landscape. She loathed the blandness of them. From her clothes from the day before she retrieved a bright coloured sash. It was dyed with floral patterns and from tassels at its ends hung small beads of sapphire and silver bells. She wrapped It around her waist to fit her curvaceous form. The outfit now gave her shape and some colour.
Adorabella stood by the window and watched for the sun to rise. Over the mountains, a burst of colour came. Sunrise here was the same as sunrise at home. Each delicate colour blended into each other. It brought life to the rocks. Her heart fluttered with hope. Here, she could love the sunrise just as much. She prayed and promised to greet its splendour every morning.
She was dashed from her reverie when the door burst open with a Drakken man barking orders at her. She would not allow his words to frighten her. Obediently she followed other Gems as they made their way to the breakfast hall. She recognized some food and so many she did not. Taking a spot as near to the warmth of a fire as she could, she began to place some of the delicious fruits and odd delicacies on her plate. If she were to grow accustomed to life here she would have to begin somewhere small. She had the sunrise. Perhaps she could find delicious new foods she could enjoy.
Slowly she made her way through the small portions on her plate. Adorabella did not waste food so she did not take more than she was willing to try of the new things. That which she liked she took a little more and that which she did not she forced down her throat before memorizing what the dish looked like.
