Let's Go!

Ariella leaned back in her seat as the carriage rolled and clattered along the path toward the castle. She fiddled with the brim of her small brimmed hat as she glanced around the opulent interior again. She was riding in the carriage because she didn't have a horse... and she was a girl. The fact that they thought her so delicate made her slightly angry, she was not an ordinary woman.

She felt the carriage jolt as it hit a bump and steadied herself automatically, her eyes falling to her legs. Her hose clad legs.

She smirked as she thought back to the reaction she had gotten from the King's attendants when she had walked up to the carriage in patched up hose with matching patched up, belted tunic. She wore boots instead of the soft slippers that were popular with women and her hair barely touched the middle of her neck. Her hat had a small, upturned brim, going against all current fashions.

Ariella glanced at Erick before returning to the contemplation of her attire. She couldn't blame the people for being surprised at what she was wearing, it was the last thing you'd expect to see a princess wearing after all.

A princess huh? It was still a shock to Ariella to think of what had happened in the space of a few hours. Ariella Oakdaughter, as she had been called, had been found under a large oak when she was twelve years old, with nothing to her name but a torn dress and a well made hunting bow.... and no memory other than her name.

She had discovered that she knew how to make wooden weapons, but nothing else. Oh, and she could talk to animals, but that was what had gotten her into this situation in the first place.

Ariella brushed a strand of her midnight black hair out of her face as she thought, exaining her calloused hands with her sharp blue eyes. She had gone into the woods to gather wood for a bow when she had heard a shout for help. Swiftly heading in the direction of the sound, she had come across an injured man surrounded by wolves.

She had stepped in, naturally. She had spoken to the pack Alpha, whom she had fought before, and gotten him to agree to back down after a sharp rap on the head with her staff. As the wolves had retreated, she had looked the man over, assessing his injuries. After she had bound a couple of the more severe ones, she had hoisted the man to his feet and taken him back to Erick's shop.

She hadn't known the man was the King. She just thought that he was a traveler that had wandered into the wolves territory. When he had told her of his status.... oh boy. She had been shocked at his gratitude, and his offere to adopt her into his family. How did you tell the King no when he offered you something like that?

Obviously you didn't, because she was now sitting in the King's carriage, with her best friend, and headed to the castle as the King's adopted daughter.

Oh, joy.

Erick Felt terribly out of place at the moment. Here he sat, a young grizzled black smith with calloused and scarred hand sitting on a tuffted bench within what has behaps that grandest display of oppulence her had ever seen. The kings a offerd him an extra pair of his clothing so that he would now look his noble part, however the moment he attempted to move a sicken tear had made its self known. So he found him self as he was always, clad in a reinforced linen shirt, leather pants and apron and gigantic and dusty black boots.

Compounding his discomfot was the Malicious stare being diracted to what could only be described as a gigantic pile of lace that sat next to him. He could clearly remeber the look on Ariellas face when the king servents had presented it to her and then insited that she wear for it. He half suspected that she would grab the knife she had on her person and would attempt to disembowl the frilly montrosity.

"I hope this journey wont be a long one" The large man aloud to no one in particular, the jostling of the carriage was not agreeing with him.

Ariella glanced up at Erick, "You and me both," she said, looking again at the silver, frilly, gown she had been presented with earlier that day. She prayed to the heavens that no one attempted to force something like that on her ever again, though she knew it was most likely a vain hope.

"By the way," she said, looking at Erick curiously, "Why didn't you wear the clothes they sent you? I'm sure your reasons are different than mine."

The large man Grimmiced at his friends queery befor reaching under his seat and producing a blouse with large tears along the back and were the arms meet the body.

"Me and the shirt had a disagreement about my ability to move, I won" Erick said solemly as he stuck a sasuage like fingers into the one holes.

Ariella released a bell-like peel of laughter as she looked at the ruined fabric, "They shouldn't have even tried!" she said as she stifled her laughter, "Your clothes will all have to be custom made to fit you!" with that she fell into a fit of uncontrolled giggles.

Ericks brow forwed as he heard his friend laugh at the shirts expense, a shirt that not doubt cost more than his house simply on the virture that it had been sold to a noble in the city.

"You are a terrible person, I hope your aware of that" he said dryly

Ariella gave him a look, "Of course I know," she said airly, "I do it completely on purpose. Besides," she looked at the torn shirt and then at the dress, "It looks better than mine, even when it is ruined. If they ever try to force me into something that frilly ever again, heads are going to roll."

A smile creeped onto Ericks at Ariellas last comment "Look on the bright side now you can have other people do the decapitating for" he mused aloud.

"But then again we have always been the hands on type" he said, his voice trailing off as other random thoughts slowly over took his mind.

"But it's not nearly as satisfying if I don't do it myself!" Ariella said in a mock distressed tone, "I couldn't let anyone but myself do it!"

Ariella glanced out the window of the carriage as it rolled through the countryside, "What exactly did we do to deserve this again?" she asked her friend as she returned her gaze to him.

"Lord, I dont even know" Erick sighed as he rubbed a hand over his face "I thought we were just acting like decent people" He said looking back at Ariella.

"I mean a decent as I could be when Im running a hot iron across a mans wound" he said as he nodded toward the Kings horse.

Ariella cringed, "I know. When I came across him in the woods I thought he was just some traveler that had wandered into the wolves territory," she admitted, "I didn't know he was the King! I woulld have helped him regardless of his status of course, but..." she let her words trail off as she looked out the window, "And besides that, what kind of guy offers to adopt you when you refuse payment? It doesn't make sense! And it's not like you can tell the King 'Thanks but no thanks'...."

Erick couldnt help but laugh at Ariellas comperative squimishness. "I would say 'c'est la vie' but that might be pushing the phrase to its breaking point" he said with a small chuckle as he watched the country side role by. Watching the horizone was for easyer on his stomach the keeping his gaze inside the carriage.

"So what would you like to when you get to the city?" He asked his friend befor returning his gaze out side.

Ariella squirmed at his question, "I.... honestly don't know," she admitted quietly, "The woods and the shop are all I've ever really known... I don't even really know what the city is like. Sometimes I wonder if I came from a place like the city but..." she shrugged, "Anyway, what do you want to do when we get there?"

"Id like to try my hand at gold smithing, I doubt it would be proper for a Noble to dirty his hands as much as I have in my life so far" Erick said with a sigh "But it might be nice to make something dainty for change" He said befor pausing for a long time. "Lifes going to be very different now isnt it?"

Ariella looked at her friend and nodded, "Definitely," she said, "But I don't care what other people think. I'm going to keep my woodworking and my bow practice. I'm not changing who I am for anyone. I don't have to."

"This wont be the same little town were we can just beat people senseless and them have them get over it" He warned Ariella. Some times the girl could be more stubborn than Ox.

"These people will spead vicous rumors becuase your smiled at them less than someone else"

Ariella sighed, "I know," she told him with a rueful smile, "But there were a lot of vicious rumors spread in the village too, remember? About my origins...." she looked out the window, thinking back. Ariella was thick-skinned, more than most, but not by choice. She had become that way because she didn't have a choice, because the villagers thought that she was the daughter of a **, or maybe just a bastard child, or even the daughter of a witch.

"True, but now I wont be able to beat every person that say something bad about you. " Erick said with a sigh. "My self exluded ofcourse" he said on a much brighter note.

Ariella gave Erick a sad smile, "No,", she corrected imperiously, "I get to hurt you when you say something bad about me," then she became serious, "I know it won't be easy to get through this change," she said, "But we'll be alright... I'm sure of it. It can't be that hard to be Royal, right?"

"I dont know, sitting and having people wait on you hand and foot sounds kinda a difficult" Erick said mockly "BUT IM UP TO THE CHALLANGE" He yelled as if he were going into battle.

"But in all seriousness" he said quickly changing his tone to serious one. "Weve got no idea what were in for and Im sure that there are plenty of noble that would wish us failur out of envy for our status" he said befor pausing "After all weve gone from mere craftsmen to the highest none ruling rank possible in a single day".

Ariella frowned as she thought about that. Then a thought dawned on her that left her utterly horrified. Soon after the first thought hit, a second one smashed into her and she knew, she just knew, that this was going to be a very.... interesting experience.

Erick took note of the look that had formed on Ariellas face, and he was fairly sure of what was on here mind. "Look it may be hard, but we both know that weve got the willpower needed to push through what ever these nobles throw at us" He said with a small grin in hopes of putting his friend at ease.

Ariella shook her head, "I'm not afraid of them," she told him, "I'm afraid of the other things that come with this positions. The first would be etiquette lessons. and the second..." her voice trailed off as she shuddered in horror again.

"The dresses..." he whispered suddenly next to her with a sadistic grin upon his face. He knew that Ariella was not at peace with the idea of feminimity, and that a very thought of her acting like a proper lady was truly horrifying.

"Those too," she admitted, "But I'm more worried about the fact that we'll both get a full contingent of bodyguards devoted to protecting our lives at all costs... and never letting us out of their sight." she pointed this fact out ruefully, as it showed how restricted their movements would soon become.

"But think of the fun we could have if we got into fights with them and each other" he said as he imagined the gaurd awkardly shuffling about as theryre charges attacked each other with swords and various other weapons.

"You should imagine how hard it's going to be to get them to let you work in a smithy," she pointed out with a smirk, "Letting the precious prince work in an enviornment where he could get injured? Perish the thought!"

"THEN I SHALL SET THEM A BLAZE!" He shouted, imagining to prostect of being locked out of his smithy. He found the idea silly to be truthfull, they let fargile nobles play around with swords as hobbies after all why would they let an artizen practice his craft?

Ariella smiled at him, "I'd like to see them try and stop me, I really would," her smile turned into a smirk, "Especially when they'll be wearing armor and I'll be unburdened by anything." Her grin was wolfish, "and I can climb some pretty high trees."

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