Written in her Stars

°☆•Four•☆°

Enya

She could sense his wolf lurking in the forest beyond the orchard the moment she opened her eyes in the morning. He was waiting for her patiently, aware that she knew that he was there even without being able to shift within her father's castle and connect her mind to his. 

The knowledge of Lear's closeness tugged at the corners of her lips, bringing the always rarer smile to her face despite everything-- the past week had been one of the hardest her father had ever forced her to live through. But Lear was here now, here for her because he had missed her just as much as she had missed him, and those awful past six days, almost one hundred and fifty hours composed of uncountable and interminable seconds were already fading into a vague memory which Enya could push into the margins of her mind. They were gone, they didn't matter anymore, nothing did, only Lear, only this moment in time.

If only she could just run outside and join him immediately... But it was impossible, Enya mused as she got out of her bed. Right now, she would have to be happy with a glimpse of his black fur in the distance, in the deep shadows under the trees... However, she didn't get even that as she tiptoed, barefooted, across the cold stone floor of her chamber, and peeked through the window; he was hidden too well today. She would have to wait until she found a perfect occasion to steal outside.

Enya washed quickly, using the cold water in the basin placed on the round table set between the windows to banish the last traces of sleep from her face, then, dismissing the maid who had come to wake her up, chose one of the simplest dresses she possessed from the wooden chest placed at the foot of her bed, one that she could shed in seconds before morphing later. 

Another knock on the door scattered her fantasies about her afternoon with Lear as she brushed her hair; the appearance of her lady-in-waiting followed by a maid bringing her breakfast sent a quick blush to her cheeks. The strict, middle-aged woman had been chosen for her by her stepmother and approved by her father, she was their eyes and their breath upon the back of Enya's neck whenever she was out of their sight. She knew Enya so well that she could almost read her thoughts, and Enya preferred not to let her mind stroll to Lear in her presence. 

"Good morning, Your Highness," Lady Ada greeted with a forced smile and a perfunctory curtsy, her features folding quickly into her typical scowl as her eyes scanned the sky blue dress Enya had already donned. 

But she had come too late today; if she asked Enya to change now, she would cause her to arrive tardy to her lessons, and that was out of the question. Enya raised her chin and narrowed her eyes at Lady Ada in the large mirror which she had set upon the chest containing her clothes defiantly, when the woman settled on taking the silver comb from her and arranging at least her hair the way she and the queen preferred, into a low bun sitting at the nape of her neck, so tight that not even one shiny blond strand would escape it until the night. Unless Enya would shift, of course; not even Ada's skills could resist her changing forms.

"Your magic teachers are already waiting for you, my lady. Then it's politics and history, and geography in the afternoon," the woman informed her. 

Enya sighed, partly because of the pain her lady-in-waiting was causing her by pulling at her hair with unnecessary force, and partly because of the thought that she would have to sit through the lessons she would not be able to focus on knowing that Lear was waiting for her. Oh well, she couldn't avoid the morning lessons, but she wouldn't attend geography today for sure; she would leave the castle before lunch...

She sat down to her breakfast once the woman finished with her hair, and nibbled at her food without paying any attention to what she was eating while she forced herself to listen to Ada who was telling her whom of the young lords-- his selection of eligible magicians whom he deemed worthy of playing at his only daughter's suitors until he chose the one he liked the most and tried to force her to marry him-- the king invited for tonight's dinner. 

"You must definitely change before dinner, Lady Enya. You can't possibly meet Lord  Landon wearing this gown! Your father wouldn't approve..."

"I know, I know, Ada, I promise I'll change," Enya tried to appease the woman with a sweet smile, standing up from her unfinished meal and walking towards the door, leaving her behind. "I'll do everything you'll want me to do. But may I, please, have my lunch served here? I have a headache, you see, I couldn't stand to sit in the Great Hall even at lunchtime. If I'm supposed to meet Lord Landon tonight, I'd like to rest a little before." She knew that Ada would comply, not as much for Enya as for Landon. She would never alow her to meet him wearing such a simple dress.

"Of course, my lady," Ada agreed easily, momentarily confused by Enya's unexpected obedience. 

Enya giggled at the small victory as she let the door of her chamber shut between her and Ada. Lord Landon, the eldest son of the king of the neighbouring kingdom, was a favourite with everyone at her father's court, it seemed. No one was immune to his charm; he was gallant, polite, and intelligent, a young man of a calm and regal demeanour, and he always tried to make Enya smile. If her father didn't scheme to marry her off to him, she would gladly consider the young magician her friend.

She shook her head, dismissing her thoughts of Landon, replacing them with images of Lear as she rushed down the torch-lit corridor, its walls hang with thick tapestries to ward of the damp coldness seeping from them, towards the staircase, then another corridor leading to the castle's library, her eyes strolling to the guards who stood silent like statutes along the stone walls-- their number seemed to have doubled since her last meeting with Lear. It was becoming always more difficult to sneak outside unnoticed. 

But it didn't matter, no one, not even her father could stand between her and Lear, she thought as she rushed, forgetting to knock, into the library where her magic teachers, two black clad, formidable looking old men, were already waiting for her.

As always, when she knew that Lear was waiting for her, Enya could not concentrate; the lesson was lost on her. Faking interest in what the two men were telling, and showing her, she watched them perform magic, then failed promptly to imitate their actions when asked, making them sigh in unison out of habit as much as out of real frustration. She could sense that deep inside, they had both given up a long time ago, they didn't believe that she would ever learn anything. And as much as this realisation bothered her a little normally, she didn't mind at all today; she could only think of Lear. He didn't care whether she could perform magic or not.

Enya hardly noticed when the lesson finished and the men left the library and were immediately replaced by another, younger magician who taught her politics and history. She managed to concentrate a little better on these subjects not only because she preferred them to magic, but rather because they were scheduled closer to the hour when she would be released for lunch, when she would leave the cold library impenetrable to the sunshine reigning outside and join her mate for the long, unforgettable afternoon outdoors...

"You may go, Princess," the teacher's voice pulled her from her reverie. 

She turned towards him, finding him looking out of the window in silence just like she had been, realising that she had no idea when he had stopped talking to her. Just like her magic teachers, he had given up... but she would worry about her education another time.

"I'm sorry," she muttered. "Thank you."

Then she half-ran to the door and opened it silently, checking for guards or anyone else who might see her walking out of the library. When she saw no one, she let the door close behind her just as silently as she had opened it and slipped beyond a tapestry concealing a staircase that led to one of the several castle's courtyards.

Producing an orb of purple light in the palm of her left hand, Enya gathered the folds of her too long dress in the other and rushed through the semi-darkness, feeling bad for not being brave enough to pass by her brothers' nursery before leaving. But the risk of meeting Leonore there, coming to check on her sons before joining her husband for lunch, was too great. Should her stepmother see her, she would want Enya to dine in the Great Hall, and no excuse of a headache would help her.

So, Enya doused the unpleasant feeling of guilt by her excitement about the fast approaching encounter with Lear as she ran down the stairs, then slid along the shady walls of the courtyards unnoticed by anyone, and finally bolted through the arched door set in the sunlit sand coloured wall, her portal to, even though only temporary, freedom and happiness.