Neighboring Lands

A Late-Night Trip

A few days have passed since our epic match in the tub, the maids seem to suspect something, but never elaborate on the situation; only looking between Damian and I with a knowing grin. But who knows what they think happened, ' we were just wrestling in a bathtub naked...Oh okay, yeah that does sound bad. Mark that down as something I will never mention to another soul. Until it serves as something funny to lighten the mood.' A new symptom has popped up leaving me baffled. I have mentioned it to Damian and he is equally stumped as to what could be causing it. Although it does leave the both of us worried and uneasy. As I sit there, minding my own business, dressed in my altered clothing Damian was kind enough to create; cold air nipping at my skin as I sit in the open window of the observatory. The night sky above me twinkles with starlight; rainbow lights danced above my head. Hands. Hands that are around the same size as mine grab hold of my arms, the feeling of something soft brushing against the skin of my side, under my clothing. My body recoils at the feeling, yet as the feeling of thick arms wrapping around me appears, I find myself relaxing. Something about the hold feels familiar and comforting like I know this hold.

I can feel the softness of something sliding across my body as if scrubbing me, I feel the shifting of my hair, yet when I check it has not moved. My clothing does not seem to move nor wrinkle either with the movement and hold that I feel against my skin. This is the second time today that I have felt this, once early in the morning, the other now occurring late at night. I slowly make my way into the observatory, the large telescope in the center of the room gleaning in the low light that surrounds me. With curiosity, I slowly approach it, peeking through to see the stars above us; I take a seat on the attached chair, flipping a switch to adjust the telescope and chair. Pushing at the buttons I angle the telescope in different directions to see around my kingdom; this is one of the only times I can check on my people, aside from the ceremonies where I am escorted everywhere. I shift my attention to the large forest surrounding the city below the castle; watching the sparks of lights dancing around in the foggy mist. A small smile spreads across my face as I watch the wisps, not knowing how much I would miss the mischievous spirit in my time away. I angle the telescope to peer closer to a mountain range off in the distance, enjoying watching the large serpent slithering up the side of the frosted tops. The serpent itself towers over the trees around the mountain, yet the mountain dwarfs the large beast. My mind looks back to the Divine Beast, finding some kind of poetic justice that we have our own 'Divine Beast.'

Shifting the view of the telescope I look up towards the moon, studying the bumpy features. "Damian always says that the discolored part of the moon is called The Man on The Moon, but I don't see it. Never could and never will, probably." I glare at the moon as I try to decipher the man. "Ugh, nope." I return the telescope to its original position before leaning against my hand, my mind racing as the feeling of being scrubbed finally stops; a warmth taking over my body before the phantom feelings stop. 'I hate when he goes to visit his family, I wish I could go too. Maybe I should sneak out. I'm sure I could do it on my own.' I find myself thinking to myself. Weighing my options I decided that I will sneak out, if not to see Damian and his family, to experience life in my own kingdom. Nodding my head to myself I rush out of the observatory and to my chamber. Rifling through my wardrobe I find an inconspicuous coat, black fur-layered pants, and a cloak. They seem to be made by someone not well experienced in the art of tailoring. Searching my mind for a memory of when I received these, my eyes widened. 'That's right! Damian made these when he was first starting to make his own clothing; as a surprise for his mom. He wanted to throw these out...and I begged him for them.' I quickly kick my boots off and shimmy my way into the pants, slip my boots back on, then throw my coat and cloak on. Flipping the hood of the cloak on, I lock my chamber door before flinging the door to the balcony open. The windowed doors bang against the wall before closing behind me as I step out. Snow crunches under my feet as I peer around for the safest way down. Icey wind whips my clothing around as I approach the stone railing. Lifting myself up and over, my bare hands grip the ice-covered stone, slowly I climb down off of the balcony to the uneven stones of the castle walls. My hands and feet slide against the stone, nearly sending me plummeting to the ground; but pushing on I finally manage to touch the ground, relieving a pant of exhaustion.