Sienna - Kurulus Osman

13

Sienna sighed wearily and dabbed the cloth on her chest as she treaded to her room. She took a left at the intersection ahead and, as the only guards were at the ends of the hall, knocked on the second door to her left, hoping Derya wasn't asleep as she wished before. When no one answered, she knocked a little louder and said in a low voice, "Derya, it's me, Sienna. Open the door please."

It didn't open.

Sienna sighed heavily and glanced at the guards; they were not paying attention to her. She turned the knob and gave the door a slight push, but it was locked. Then, she remembered she kept the keys. And a thought made her stomach twist. "If I kept the keys...how did she come out?" She knocked again, but it was no use. "Maybe...maybe there's a lock on the inside too," she reasoned, pulling out the key in her armour and jamming it in the door. She turned the key, but nothing happened. "Jesus Christ, what the hell is going on?!" she whisper-yelled, now beginning to get frustrated and concerned. "Derya, open up!" She didn't care who heard anymore. She slammed her hand against the wood and winced. Putting more pressure on the wound, she muttered, "No...not now. Please, Derya. Open the door...or everyone will know you're here."

It still didn't open. Sienna cursed as the guards started heading her way. "What happened, Komutan?" one of them asked, glancing at the door.

"Nothing, I think I have the wrong keys. I...uh...locked myself out." She chuckled nervously, hoping this act would get them to leave, but it only made them hang around longer.

"Oh, well I'm sure there are tons of rooms fit for you in this fortress," the other soldier suggested. "Why don't you-"

"No," she snapped, and he shut his mouth. "It's alright. You may leave. I'll figure something out."

Hesitantly, they obeyed and left her. Knowing it would be useless, she tried the keys again, then knocked on the door when it didn't work. After a few moments of thumping her head against the door, she remembered the window in the room and rushed out and around the castle, forcing herself to endure the pain of her wound.

She searched the back of the castle and squinted her eyes through the windows to see at last a crimson and ebony bedroom. Without thinking twice, she placed her hand on the dusty grey bricks and grabbed one with her foot on another; she would climb. No one could know about Derya, and especially- as selfish as it sounded- the fact that it was their own commander who smuggled an orphan into their castle. She took a deep breath and after a few tries, found her footing and began to climb. The window was only a few feet up, and all she needed to do was peek in for Derya and tap the glass. Since it was the back of the fortress and there was a barrier around the castle to stop outsiders, no one would see her climbing. Although, there were a few archers standing guard with their backs turned. All she could do was hope they didn't look, and for that, she would need to be dead silent.

After what seemed like endless torture, she could see through the window of their bedroom. Her face sweaty and her breath laboured, Sienna brought her hand to the window and tapped it. When no one answered, she looked for a way to pull it open, but her efforts were useless as she accidentally stepped on a brick that was too flat against the wall, and her foot slipped. "Shit," she cursed as it was too late to hang on to the window. She fell.

But something stopped her fall. Someone, Sienna noticed, as the mystery grip on her arms tightened. Her back was turned against the person who caught her and slowly let her feet touch the ground. A clearing of throat was made, and Sienna squeezed her eyes shut as she recognized the annoyed gesture. "Nikola," she whispered, slowly turning around to meet his stern blue-grey eyes. She smiled nervously as he raised a brow at her, then she looked beside him to see the guards she had spoken to in the corridors. She shot them a dirty look, making them hang their heads.