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 Posted: Sun Jan 21, 2007 9:46 pm
Leif was normally the stoic sort, the type of man that’s mere presence was intimidating enough to negate the need for him to speak. As Shae led him through the gardens, he remained silent, nodding as he was spoken to. But meanwhile, he cast his glance around, studying his surroundings as a sort of reflex. If there were some sort of attack, he wanted to know the best and quickest routes toward safety. Although he had found an angel here, he had to remain realistic about the sheer volume of people who’d rather kill him than allow him the slightest touch of happiness.
“Yes, well,” he replied, then stopped for a moment. Would he be considered crazy if he told what the purpose of his journey had been? Perhaps, but it was better that than making something else up. Besides, women were supposed to like that sort of thing, and he was beginning to believe it himself. “Do you believe in destiny?”
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Posted: Sun Jan 21, 2007 9:52 pm
Shae paused for a moment, glancing up at the other as he mauled the question over. A slightly hesitant - and perhaps nervous - smile lit up his green eyes. "Truthfully... no. Not really. Although perhaps that is merely because I have yet to see its workings..." he murmured. He thought it was time for an appropriately forlorn sort of sigh, and was happy to supply it.
He glanced up at the other through long, thick red-brown eyelashes, having learned its affect after observing the antics of many love-crazed teens of the court (quite a few of them being his brothers). "But that is just me. Perhaps it really does exist and I am simply blind to it," he said softly, offering the other a small, but elegant, shrug.
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Posted: Sun Jan 21, 2007 10:07 pm
“Ah, you’re a level-headed one, that’s a good thing.” Leif blurted out to Shae, half forgetting what he had originally meant to say. “My father is a very superstitious type, a follower of the old gods.” He sighed as well, then catching sight of those fluttering lashes, looked away, his cheeks flushing ever so slightly in a blush not many had been witness to. “Ah, well... I don’t see any harm in it, except that he drags me into it too often. He has this soothsayer, and she scrys, casts the runes and so forth, and its always ‘send your son over here.’ ‘Send your son to conquer over there’. I swear, every time I finally come home, I’m sent off on some destined journey. I think she just doesn’t like me, personally.” He found himself rambling, and cleared his throat. “I apologize, I must be boring you...”
((You crack me up too. lol Shae is great!))
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Posted: Sun Jan 21, 2007 10:16 pm
((That's fortunate. 8D ))
Shae giggled slightly, rasing a hand to hide his small, and slightly impish, smile. At least he managed to giggle rather than his normal laugh.... And Leif seemed less stoic now that he was out of the public eye (which was a deffinate plus in Shae's opinion. He hated people who seemed to be carved from stone).
"Oh, no, no... You're not boring me at all," he replied with a genuine, if altered (to become more femenine), smile. "I simply wish I had something more interesting to say apart from commenting on the weather, which is, if you haven't noticed, lovely," he supplied with a small smile. "So, until I find something more fitting to adress M'lord with, I am content with listening."
Their tea arrived then and Shae, who was justifiably eager for tea (he loved the stuff), met the servant with a deffinate smile and a small 'thank you.' He blew on it softly, but didn't attempt to drink it because of his overly sensitive tongue.
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Posted: Sun Jan 21, 2007 10:26 pm
“But your voice is so much more melodic than mine,” he replied, only to be interrupted by the arrival of their tea. The servant was met with a cold glare filled with suspicion until the moment he left, as Leif was not in the mood to entertain anyone other than the beauty he was with, and he resented anything that would dare come between him and what he desired. Normally he would try to appear indifferent to the other’s presence, but he was tired and full of excitement. He made no motion to pick up his own cup, but simply shifted his attention back to Shae once they were alone again.
“So, please. Tell me about yourself.”
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Posted: Sun Jan 21, 2007 10:39 pm
Shae had, naturally, noted the look the foreign prince had given the servent - who deserved no such ill treated and who was one of Shae's personal favorites - and was, quietly, seathing. But he kept that to himself and masked his anger with a placid smile.
He allowed a small flush to infiltrate his features and a sudden realisation hit him. "I am ever so sorry... I haven't even given you my name.... I'm Shae... Shae Elise Meera, but I prefure just... just Shae," he murmured softly. He held the tea cup clasped gently between his two perfectly porcelein white hands and blew on it once more before judging it sufficiently cooled. He sipped on it, all the while thinking just how rude it was to suspect one's host of poisoning a simple cup of tea (or at least that is what Shae assumed of Leif's thoughts).
But for a full week he would need to play the part of a perfectly swooning princess and he intended to do so. "I, well... I am not quite sure what else to tell you about myself. As you have seen, I... make a habbit of practicing with daggars. My eldest brother, Erasmus, taught me." He paused then, as if thinking what next to say. "And I like... reading, I suppose. I am so sorry that my introduction must be so... bland, but I am simply struck... speachless." He added imphasis to his last word with a slight flush of his cheeks and, again, that same glance upwards through dense eyelashes.
If Leif couldn't tell that the apparently shy princess was attempting to flirt with him, then he was truly blind.
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Posted: Sun Jan 21, 2007 10:57 pm
It was a habit that Shae would notice time and time again, as it wouldn’t just be a servant that would get his silent, menacing stare, but most anyone else, regardless of their station, if they approached at just the wrong moment. He was used to ignoring women who were needlessly flattering him, but Shae wasn’t exactly the same as those run of the mill women, and the slightest inference that the princess might be attracted to him was enough to fill him with the fluttering sensation of lovesickness.
Not that such a thing would show on his expression. No, Leif was determined to remain cool and calm. Casually, he reached down to grip his own cup of tea, then took a hearty drink - only to discover how hot it was. Still, he didn’t want to embarrass himself, despite how he gave himself away through the furrowing of his brow, and how he was hesitant to swallow it. Finally, he did, then set the cup back down - the better to take a drink later, when it had cooled off more, and he attempted a smile. No one would have pegged him for the awkward type, but for once he wanted to make a good impression, rather than just resort to taking what he wanted and dealing with the aftermath later.
“Ah, that’s... some of the better tea I’ve had...”
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Posted: Sun Jan 21, 2007 11:09 pm
((I'm assuming that they're sitting down at a small table now? xD;;; ))
Well, at least he had attempted to drink it, even if it seemed rather forced. Shae's expression brightened ever so slightly. So perhaps he didn't suspect Shae or his family of trying to poison him... "Yes, well... I am rather fond of tea, as is my family, and I am rather proud to say that our teas are quite renowned," he said with a small, but prideful, smile.
He set his cup down on the table slowly so that it was silent and then spread his figers out over the tabletop before they curled loosely.
"So, please... do tell me about yourself. I am ever so curious about - well, everything. I have never visited another kingdom before, I am afraid, and am thus quite in the dark." It was true - and he was quite curious. The affect was that his voice sounded politely inquisitive - but also much more natural than before.
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Posted: Tue Jan 23, 2007 10:40 pm
Despite his wordiness early, Leif wasn’t exactly considered to be the most social individual in the known world. He had also never come across a situation when he had to tell someone about himself. Usually, they already knew his likes and dislikes, his temperament and skills. The roof of his mouth still hurt, and he had no idea what to say - until Shae brought up never leaving the country.
“You’ve never left here, Chver? Well, it is a nice place. I haven’t been here long, but I can tell that it is, at least, very vibrant.” He had no idea about the cultural aspects of it, but he wasn’t into tapestries and paintings and that sort of thing, at least not very. “But it’s very important for one to travel. Solveig is glory itself, with sunsets violet and gold, and endless fields, and the castle... well, when you see it, you’ll know why I could never call any other place home.” His eyes wistful and dreamfilled, Leif looked off into the distance before he shifted his glance back to Shae. “But, the places I’ve seen, the battles I’ve fought, every one was worth it. I would make certain you’d see every beautiful thing I have.”
It was an odd promise to make, and he said it while peering at her with an intensity that spoke of honesty and adoration. “That is, if you’d come with me.” It wasn’t quite a proposal, but it borderlined on one, and he punctuated it with another sip from his now cooler tea.
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Posted: Wed Jan 24, 2007 6:27 pm
Shae nodded slowly, made to feel slightly akward by the other's reverie - and his proposition. At the very least he was a passionate man (although not much could be said for his ability of requesting before demanding -- or his subtlety). All in all, he seemed... blunt and rather one-sided. Hopefully, Shae would be proven wrong in his judgements, but... he wasn't sure.
"As you earlier guessed my true identity, I shall be accompanying you through the week," he responded with a slight upwards-curve of one side of his mouth. "I should wish to see some other part of the world than my own kingdom, but I would not wish to do so if it at all interfered with anything you might have planned?" Shae had decided to play the part of the ever-curteous, withdraw and shy princess -- and he was doing, in his opinion, a rather good job of it.
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Posted: Wed Jan 24, 2007 6:55 pm
Leif was the only son of a very powerful family. Asking for things wasn’t exactly the norm for him, but he wasn’t so obtuse as to think that he could demand things from anyone he wanted - especially when that someone was a princess of another realm. Women were always particularly difficult, which is why he didn’t bother with them very often. “You... want to leave the country with me?” One could almost see his mind at work, figuring calculations and determining the exact how-to of it all. One week wasn’t exactly a lot of time. If one traveled at his pace, there were a lot of places one could go and return back to Chver under that time span - but realistically, they would have to go at a much slower rate of speed, and not many of the nearby kingdoms would exactly be glad to see him. But he wasn’t exactly the type of man who’d let that stop him.
“Well,” he mused, twisting a long tendril of hair around his finger, “There is a small village about a day and a half south of here. I passed it on my journey... However, with you, and an appropriate escort for your highness, I would say it would take a little over two nights to reach it. We’d likely run into my entourage before we arrived.” He paused, then tugged on his hair a little, obviously some sort of nervous habit. “It might not be much, but I hear that they have excellent milk candy. But then again, I’d be just as happy staying here in Chver with you, if that is what you so please. I am, as I said before, at your highness’s service.”
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Posted: Sat Jan 27, 2007 7:59 am
A small frown formed on the prince's lips, and his thin eyebrows creased to match it as he glanced up at the other. "I can ride a horse perfectly well on my own, if that is what you are implying. I may be a princess, but I do not need some sort of... royal procession everywhere I go. And if I have never been outside Chver, then what danger could I possibly be in? Surely I would be unrecognised." It was rather obvious that the 'princess' wished to go far beyond 'a small village about a day and a half away with milk candy.'
Had he been thinking, he likely would have settled back down again and apologized... But Shae, scheming or not, had his pride and had always had his pride.
He stood up abruptly, an odd smile on his lips, and placed one hand on each of his hips. "You know what? I want to leave. And I would like to leave now." He turned then and started over towards the palace. He glanced back at Leif and, that odd grin on his lips, he said, "I'm going to get dressed into something more suitable." And with that, continued. He quite obviously expected Leif to follow him because he didn't look back after that and he had, as he spoke, beckoned ever so slightly to the other with his hand.
(( 8D;;; ))
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Posted: Sat Jan 27, 2007 9:26 pm
“That was not what I was im...” Whatever argument Leif had, it seemed to be of no use. He had never dealt with a person like Shae, mesmerizing in their every movement, unrelenting in their opinion yet playful in demeanor. There were a lot of issues he wanted to bring up, and he did so, or at least tried to as he followed his dear princess. “But you see, I am a man, and well, it is always in a lady’s best interest to have a third.... and simply because you haven’t been outside of Chver doesn’t mean that there aren’t people who won’t recognize you.... And I have many enemies...”
But then, in a moment of clarity, he realized where they could go. Perhaps it was the way those braids bounced, or the glint in Shae’s eyes as they met his. Leif no longer wanted to come up with excuses as to why they couldn’t go alone. He was wholly infatuated, and it was clear within this short time who was the one who called the shots. “Well..” he relented, quickening his stride so that he walked beside the one that he courted, “Make sure you wear something warm.”
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Posted: Sun Jan 28, 2007 8:06 am
((Uke power. lol cool ))
Shae nodded happily, turning his head slightly to the side to hide his small half-smirk-half-grin from the other. But the time he had glanced over towards the other, it had been replaced with a regular, althoug triumphant, smile. "That's more like it," he chirped happily. "I shouldn't be too long. Just some things for the way..." Which meant clothes. Girls' clothes. It was very lucky that he had already been planning to be a princess for the week and thus had an entire wardrobe of princess' clothes from the very grandest dresses all the way down to riding and work clothes (just in case he ended up following whoever it was home to a day of work on the farm).
After a brisk pace across the garden, they came to the castle. He then turned to Leif. This was.. an interesting situation. He would likely need the prince to help him pack... but if the other saw his room, he just might figure it all out... Well, maybe. His room was always immaculately clean and his men's clothes had been put away (for now).... And the decor wasn't exactly princely... but not princessly, really, either... It was green.
"M'lord, I am... not quite certain what to pack, so perhaps...?" He was speaking and walking at the same time, leading the other down a large, long hallway. And then he stopped in front of an elaborate door of mahogany. He opened it to reveal his room - large, but ot overly so. He prefured the smaller of the rooms as they were rather more private (or so he felt). The walls were a sponged pale green ranging from shades of apple to mint and forest greens. There were many windows inside, each with thin white curtains, and light was streaming inside.
He continued on to his closet (which was filled with a princess' clothes) and opened the doors into it.
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Posted: Sun Jan 28, 2007 4:14 pm
((Yes, Shae is quite the rapscallion. surprised ))
Leif had been so distracted by the idea of what he could possibly do to entertain the princess on their trip, that he didn’t exactly realize where they were going. Shae could have very well led him down to the dungeon, and he wouldn’t have noticed until the door slammed behind him - but this was not such a dank and terrible place. Instead, he had arrived in heaven - Shae’s bedroom. If there was anything unusual about it, he didn’t notice, as his glance automatically looked upon the ceiling - ever the gentleman when it came to the mysteries of a lady. “Oh... this is... your room...” he stated, trying to hide his embarrassment. Normally, he wouldn’t even flinch, but being allowed into the sanctity of Shae’s private room was quite the boon to him.
“Hmmn, your attire, is it.” It made sense to him. He would know the terrain and climate better than Shae would. As he stopped in front of the closet, he inhaled deeply, then sighed. “All of these must be new,” he reached in and touched the sleeve of one of the work dresses. Not exactly what he had figured, but this princess was peculiar - perhaps into helping the servants maintain the grounds. “None of them carry your scent.” There was a look in his eye that seemed a bit suspicious, but it didn’t linger as he cast his glance back within. He had thought of this as some sort of military necessity, but now as he was confronted with velvets and laces, all he could do was imagine Shae posing for him in each different one. He saw a row of white and tactfully avoided it. No need to idle on the underpinnings. “Well how about... this one?” he asked, picking out a dress that seemed durable but not too ornate. “And a cloak, of course. Do you have one in here?”
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