theprofessorlives

Blessed are those who hear...(FaithfulMuse/Professor)

Ada's eyes flashed with hurt for just a moment at Ariana' sharp reply, but she knew that her sister had every right to demand her release. She needed to experience life to the fullest extend she could...and if that meant going against her parents strictest wishes, so be it. It wasn't as if they would put Ada to death for this, although Father may decide to cast Ada out of the castle for a few weeks to "teach her a lesson". The princess blew out a sigh as she looked up at Volgorl, telling him:
"There are a network of tunnels below the castle that you can utilize to get out. Take the stairs all the way down to the ground floor and head left. Once at the end of the hall, you'll reach a wooden door with a guard. I think you can pull rank from there to get what you need. I'll cover for you as long as I can, but sooner or later they will find out."
"We'll be long gone by then."
"Good..." Ada shifted her gaze from Volgorl to her sister, tears beginning to creep out of her eyelids as she embraced her sister's lithe frame. She released her after a few moments, writing on the pad:
"I love you. Don't forget me, dear sister." The princess rose, handing the writing pad to Volgorl.
"Take care of her."
"Of course. She will be safe." Ada nodded, walking out of the room quickly. Volgorl then beckoned for Ariana to rise, extending his hand for her to take. Once her hand was in his, he pointed to the stairs before leading her down the stone steps as fast as he could. Once on the ground floor, he paused for a moment, writing on the tablet:
"We have to go to the left. Just stay close."

Blessed are those who hear...(FaithfulMuse/Professor)

"She cannot leave, Captain! She is our responsibility, not yours!" Ada exclaimed, the princess' face flushed with anger. How dare this man attempt try to interfere in business that was not his own! Who did he think he was?! She would have to get him away from Ariana and ensure that no more seeds of false hope were implanted in her mind.
"Now, Captain, please leave before I summon the guard and take you away for conspiring treason."
"Ada, you don't want to do that." Ada's hands trembled slightly, the young woman glancing at her sister. Ariana's eyes held hope for what seemed like the first time in her life. Finally there was a way to escape from this prison, the ability to experience the open world that Ada had only tried to describe through the pitiful medium of words. How could she deny her sister this? The Captain was a good man and she knew this...
"No...no I don't." She walked to her sister and knelt beside her, retrieving the writing pad and inscribing the following message:
"Darling, sister, do you want to go with this man? You barely know him...yet I know he can take care of you. Give me your word and I will ensure that you two escape this place, but I must see that you want to go. Do you?"

Blessed are those who hear...(FaithfulMuse/Professor)

Sounds great to me!

Blessed are those who hear...(FaithfulMuse/Professor)

Ok, so my question is this: what kind of adventure do you want these two to go on? I've got a few ideas:

-The duo can go on the run and hide out in a small village. Remnants of the rakya discover Vol and Ariana and try to kidnap the princess. Mayhem and carnage ensue, ending up in Ariana's capture. Vol goes to rescue her, she sees he cares for her, etc.

-They can pursue a cure for her deafness from a mage located on the edge of civilization, said mage desiring to enlist the two of them in a quest to stop a band of rogue mages from taking over the realm.

What do you think?

Blessed are those who hear...(FaithfulMuse/Professor)

Volgorl's eyes widened slightly at the shocking revelation. The king and queen were this girls parents? He didn't want to believe it, but her appearance, upon further inspection, bore a similar one to that of Ada and Katherine. The shimmery brown hair, the bright eyes...she was of Royal blood and yet she was locked away in a small room because of what? A disability? He couldn't believe the King and Queen would consent to such a horrendous arrangement. He would have to speak to the King further on this matter. He picked up the writing pad and wrote:
"This is not right, my lady. Please allow me to speak to the King on your behalf." Volgorl heard footsteps behind him just as he handed her the pad...

"Oh no." Ada looked with pity upon her sister, then to the Captain, who apparently from the looks of things had been engaging in conversation with her ill-fated sister.
"Please, Captain, let me explain..."
"Explain what? Your sister has been forced to spend her days in this prison cell with no reasonable explanation! Why is this?"
"Captain..." Ada looked down at the ground, taking in a deep breath before explaining:
"We are the Royal family. We..." She swallowed a growing lump in her throat.
"My parents could not allow Ariana to be seen because it would have brought shame on the family's image. We could not be seen as weak, especially in our royal bloodline." Volgorl could only shake his head, rising to his feet as he proclaimed:
"I must speak with your King."
"I ask that you do not."
"You cannot stop me."
"Do you think I wish to? I want my dear sister to break free of her chains, but my parents will not hear even our pleas. Why would they hear yours?" Vol grimaced, looking down at Ariana, his mind then drumming up a solution. He took the writing pad and wrote out the following:
"Do you want me to take you away from here?"

Blessed are those who hear...(FaithfulMuse/Professor)

They? It seemed like she was being vague on purpose as to the identity of her captors. He scribbled the following message on the notepad:
"Who is 'They', Ariana? Who's trying to keep you locked up like this? Please tell me." Vol was running out of room on the first page, so he flipped to the next and completed the message:
"I can do all that I can to free you from this, but I must know who has done this and for what reasons."

"No, he wasn't with me and I know Helena has no interest in him, so there's no way those two are talking." Ada breathed out a light sigh, scanning the ever growing populace of the banquet and knew that she would have to find him somehow so that her royal parents would not only be pleased, but saved from the embarrassment of not having one of the supreme guests of honor vacant at a banquet specifically honoring him and his men.
"Hold down the fort, would you, dear? I need to find our Captain." With that, Ada glided out of the room and up towards the Captain's quarters.

Blessed are those who hear...(FaithfulMuse/Professor)

"Ariana...what a pretty name." He said this sentiment aloud before writing it on the pad, a smile playing across his face. It was at this point that Vol noted her eyes: they were...well, in a word, gorgeous. They were the lightest tint of blue, almost silver in appearance. He could see just by making eye contact with her that there was a sadness in her gaze, a profound depression that had existed for a lengthy period of time. Vol had seen that same gaze in his solders on long campaigns, especially the latest one. It was a gaze that conveyed extended suffering, yet there was a twinkle that brightened her eyes. Flipping the writing pad, he wrote:
"Ariana, why are you in this room? It's rather depressing here. Are you here against your will?"

The banquet was just now underway and Ada was worried. She hadn't seen the Captain since their flirtatious excursion in the gardens a few hours ago with her and and her sister. Her father and mother appeared to be lost in greeting the guests, so it gave her some time to scour the immediate area for the guest of honor. She approached Katherine, who stood a few feet away and whispered:
"Sister, where is Volgorl?"

Blessed are those who hear...(FaithfulMuse/Professor)

Volgorl nodded with an apologetic smile crossing his lips, the captain taking the writing pad from her gently and inscribing the words:
"My name is Volgorl. I am a Captain in the Royal guard and a guest of the Royal family. What is your name?" It was odd to communicate with someone like this, but Volgorl admired the fact that this young lady didn't want her disability to totally disavow her of any communication with others. Even if it was written, she could still "hear" ideas and concepts. Vol still had a number of thoughts swirling in his mind, two of them coming to the fore of his mind:

Who was this girl?
Why was she locked up in the castle like a prisoner?

She could be a prisoner of war, a young girl being held here from a rival kingdom. If that was the case, Vol would have to speak with the King and demand some sort of explanation for why a young woman, a deaf one at that, was locked away like a criminal.

Blessed are those who hear...(FaithfulMuse/Professor)

The guestroom that Volgorl had stumbled upon was furnished rather basically and blandly, as if this were the last guestroom built and the workers had run out of ornate furniture, said workers having to steal from commoners to ensure that the royal house had every room furnished. There was only one window that was fixed rather high, almost touching the ceiling, faint rays of sunlight touching the floor. While the guestroom itself was an oddity, the young woman in it was even more of a strange sighting. She wore a faded dress that covered most of her body, her skin pale and almost lifeless in appearance. When Volgorl had come in, she had been looking out the window, which allowed the captain to see her gloomy expression. Who was this? And why was Ada here?
"Excuse me...forgive me for the intrusion, but I couldn't help but notice the rather lonely room here at the end of the hall. My name is Volgorl and I am a Captain in the Royal Guard. Who might you be?" When there wasn't an answer after what seemed like an eternity, Vol spoke again:
"I'm sorry if I offended you by walking in, but my lady, you do not look well. Is there something I can do to help you?"

Still nothing.

It was then that Vol noticed a writing pad nearby...

Blessed are those who hear...(FaithfulMuse/Professor)

"It would be my pleasure..."

The next hour or so featured heavily socializing between the princesses and Volgorl, the conversation vacillating between old war stories that the princesses reacted to rather strongly(gasps, giggles, and all sorts of expressions that made Vol slightly happy he had stayed) and the princesses regaling him with tales of the Royal family. After the hour passed, Vol was led to his quarters, which featured a beautiful bed chamber with a four poster bed, an ornate wooden dresser and a fireplace among other luxuries. There was to be a banquet that night honoring the return of all those from the battle of the Rakya and those who fell during the conflict. It would be a perfect time for Vol to interact with both princesses one on one and evaluate their character even further. So far, it was quite a tie. They were charming, well-mannered, great listeners...he was beginning to actually enjoy staying at the castle.

Dressed in formal attire, Vol began his trek from the third floor quarters down to the main hall. As he walked down the long stone hallway to the staircase at the end of the corridor, he noted Princess Ada exiting a door near the staircase, her shoulders stooped. She started for the staircase, but stopped for a moment, her frame rising and falling dramatically for a moment before she straightened her stance and continued her walk. Once Ada was out of sight, Vol approached the door that Ada had emerged from. It was an unremarkable wooden door with a latch and a slot for where a peephole was installed. It honestly looked like the entrance to an empty guest room, but what could have caused Ada's reaction? Vol placed his hand on the door and pushed gently, the door not giving way. He knew he should stop, but something told him to continue to press. He pushed harder and the door opened to reveal something he had not expected...

______________________-

"Oh darling...how I wish you could understand." Ada placed a hand on her sister's cheek, a soft smile playing across her royal countenance. She stroked her cheek twice before retrieving the writing pad next to her and inscribing the message: "I must go and entertain. I will be back to talk some more." Once the message was written, she kissed her sister on the forehead.
"You don't deserve this." Ada rested her chin on the top of her sisters head, breathing out a sigh. Ever since she had been born, Ada had loved her more than all the others, had been there for her when no one else would. She would never stop loving her. No matter what. With another depressed sigh, she turned around and walked out of the room.