He walks over and sits next to her. They remain in silence for a few moments before he says, "So when exactly am I suppose to announce our engagement again, dearest?"
She laughs, "Not for another week or so. I mean, we have to make this believable don't we?"
"Well, your act is quite convincing. Are you sure that you're not an actual duchess?"
She raises an eyebrow, "Positive."
They remain in silence once more.
"Don't you get bored of this life, Rivie?"
"Everyday. Which is why I go beyond the palace walls."
"How dull it must be... To be a high class lady... No adventure, no freedom, wearing these, urghhh, god awful dresses."
He turns to her and flashes another one of his charming smiles, "I think you look quite lovely in this one."
And she blushes slightly. The young girl didn't even know that she could do such a thing! She turns her face away, not wanting to show him how vulnerable she could be. She did not want to be known as weak... Never again...
She stands up, looks at him right in the eye and says, "You don't have to charm me Rivie... We're already getting engaged anyway."
And then she quickly walks away, leaving him to just stare at the back of her gown.
-----
Mal taps against the walls and listens intently for an internal sort of echoing. She had picked up this skill from an old friend long ago. It still proves to be a handy bit of knowledge when she's looking to make a quick escape. Her small stature made it quite easy too.
She still couldn't quite figure out what it was she looking for exactly....
Her hand was already getting numb from the repetitive movement when suddenly she heard the familiar sound that she was searching for. She wipes away the layer of dust from a particular brick to see a symbol staring back at her. A sort of upside down heart with an X in the middle.
She leans her head against the symbol as she tries to remember where she's seen this before. Was it from her childhood? Had this been coded to her in some way before?
As a million thoughts and memories race through her head, she could hear footsteps approaching. Quickly she notes down the location of the symbol, wipes away the dust from her forehead and walks away from the location, putting on the best 'I'm lost' face that she could muster.
"Well, well, what do we have here? A lost little lamb?", a voice erupts a few feet away from her.
Mal looks up to see an unfamiliar figure. Blue eyes, jet black hair and a face that girls in the kingdom would swoon over. She did not like the looks of him. He gave the impression of being a slippery eel.
Still, she curtsies and addresses him appropriately, "My apologies good sir, I have no idea as to who you are but I am indeed just a tad lost in this massive castle."
He moves closer to her and traces his fingers down her bare arm, which on the inside causes her to shiver and hurl at the same time.
"My name is Prince Arizel. I'm Prince Riverqo's cousin," he responds as he smiles at her suggestively.
The seriousness of the situation finally dawns on Mal.
"Lovely to meet you, Prince Arizel. I really should go. Prince Riverqo is expecting me," she replies with a hopefully, convincing lie and is about to walk away when he grabs her by the arm forcefully.
"Ah, you're not going anywhere..."
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