It was about time.
Years of planning and getting ready for that very moment were about to take place. Sakura looked about her room, no, her prison. A frown pulled on her lips as she eyed every inch of the space that had been the only thing she'd known for almost ten years. The bed in the center of the room with its four tall mahogany posts. The closet that held all of her clothing which she'd only ever worn three dresses from. A writing desk that she never used, except to sit at and ponder how she was going to free herself.
It had taken several years to accumulate what she needed. Hiding sheets from the nursemaid who tended to her room every so often, but not so much that it was suspicious. Gathering up old clothes from a couple of the servants in the castle whose rooms were close to her own. Finally, making requests for cloth that she knew she would be granted and from that making the rest of her clothing that she would wear when leaving the castle. She didn't want anyone recognizing her right off the bat as soon as she stepped foot outside of the palace walls.
Not that anyone would, though. Sakura thought to herself as she turned to the window. She'd never been let out of the castle before and even rarely ever allowed to wander the halls of her palace. It had taken place when she was about five years old. One of the maids had been carrying a tray of dishware and Sakura had startled the poor woman by coming around a corner too fast as she'd been playing. The young princess had crashed into the woman's legs and they both got tangled up. In order to not fall upon the small princess, the maid dropped the platter she'd been carrying and the dishes broke all around Sakura, scaring her.
Sakura wasn't entirely sure what had happened after that, all she could remember was feeling a lot of pain in her chest and then nothing afterwards. Since then she'd been locked into her room, her mother's only reasons were that she was very fragile and that she was being taken care of in this way.
Shaking her head, the princess cleared the memory and went to where she'd stashed all the sheets that she'd tied together. Dragging it all out from a well concealed place underneath the head of the bed, she tied the end of it to one of the bed posts and pulled on it heavily. When it didn't give out, she nodded her head in satisfaction and released her hold on it. The last preparation was for her to change clothes. Currently she was wearing a bright red silken dress and her hair was done up, pulled away from her face to show the flowering mark on her forehead. Undoing her hair, she let the long black silken locks fall, covering the mark perfectly.
Stripping from the dress, she pulled out the commoners clothes that she'd prepared. First a pair of leather pants, over that a white and brown skirt that was cut in such a fashion that the front of it only came down to mid thigh while the back was down to just above her knees. Tall boots came on over the pants, their leather warm against her feet. A white commoners shirt was next, and over that was a leather vest that pulled it all together. Catching her reflection in a tall mirror just across from her, she eyed the appearance with careful scrutiny. Satisfied with how it looked, she grabbed the sheets and threw them out of her window.
She frowned a bit, wish there was a better way to do this.... Leaning out the window she looked around to make sure that there was no one around. It was nearing the end of the day, the sunlight casting it's orange glow on the other side of the castle and thus where her room was, the shadows were much darker. Climbing up onto the edge of her window, she gripped the sheets that would take her three stories down the side of the castle wall. Straddling the sheets, she took one look over her shoulder and ground her teeth.
For a brief moment, her body shook uncontrollably. Facing the wall again, she took a deep breath and stepped off the ledge of her window. Leaning backwards, she started walking down the side of the stone wall. Thankfully, there weren't any other large windows down below her room, only the small occasional one here and there. Halfway down, she felt the sheets slacken a bit, jolting her body. Her heart jumped to her throat and she feared for a moment that she would begin to feel the pain that she hadn't felt in a few months. The attacks were rare, but every now and then when she was feeling particularly upset it would flare up.
Was this going to be too much for her? No. She shook her head and continued downwards. Freedom wasn't too much farther and she would have it even if it cost her. Nearing the bottom, the sheets finally gave, the knots loosening as she'd climbed down. A bit of a sharp gasp filled her throat as she fell the last few feet. Thankfully she hadn't been that high up and the bushes softened her fall. Tangled up in leaves, vines and a some thorns, she groaned slightly before sitting up. Brushing her fingers through her hair, she worked to free the small sticks and leaves that had tangled there.
Standing up, Sakura turned and caught sight of a carriage that was sitting not too far from where she'd come down at. Her heart leapt with elation and joy. My escape! Looking left and right, she quickly skirted towards the carriage and jumped into the back of it just as she heard voices from the palace entrance. Ducking down between two large boxes, she settled there with her heart pounding rapidly. Closing her eyes, she focused on calming herself quickly and hoped that whoever it was wouldn't notice her until she was far from the palace.
"Thank you for your trouble, mercenary," the Queen's adviser called as Shyc left the castle. He waved back at the man without saying a word or turning around, taking the steps two at a time.
He walked out back to the carriage that he'd been driving, a smile on his pale features, bright green eyes dancing with the usual mischief. The delivery to the castle had been taken care of and a couple of the palace guards were escorting him back to the cart. Shyc wondered what it was that the Queen had wanted, and what was in the box that he'd just delivered to her, but he knew it was best not to ask. They never asked. They were employed by her to do as she said and not ask questions. Shyc sort of liked it that way. Except for times when his insatiable curiosity would take over. Even so, she probably wouldn't have answered him anyway. The Queen was just that kind of woman, cold and secretive. Sometimes it left him with a sour taste in his mouth.
At least we're on her good side, though... I'd hate to be her enemy, Shyc thought to himself as he approached the lone cart that belonged to him and his company of mercenaries.
Shyc reached up and ran his hand through his brown hair, pulling it away from his eyes as he strode towards the carriage. The guards next to him halted a few feet away from it, having done their duty. Their hands were constantly on their weapons, a kind of nervous air about them as they watched Shyc carefully. He was used to it. After all, he wasn't the most trustworthy individual on the planet. At least when it came to shiny objects...
"Thanks!" he called back to them, waving his hand a bit. His grin was a bit wild and mischievous as he climbed up onto the seat of the carriage and flicked the reigns to get the horses going. Once he was freed from the scrutinizing gaze of the castle guard and others, he laughed out loud. Putting the reigns in one hand, he dug into his pocket with his free hand, going around the small bag of golden coins awarded to him for the mercenaries hard work. It was a smaller pay than normal, but the job hadn't been all that hard in the first place. His grin was wide as he let the horses pull the cart down the cobble stoned street of the city. In his hand were several small jewels that he'd 'acquired' from the palace. They were beautiful and he couldn't help but have them conveniently fall into his pocket.
"Way too easy. Sometimes it's no fun being able to just grab what you want and not get caught at all," he said to himself. Re-pocketing the jewels he pulled the reigns to the left and the horses turned at an intersection in the street. The carriage clattered down the street that came to a small gate leading out of the city and into the forested area just beyond. Shyc hummed to himself while he directed the horses into the woods. I wonder if they would like them... he thought to himself. He enjoyed showing off what he'd gathered to the others. Though his smile faltered a bit... Raze would surely be very angry with him, and he wasn't too sure Dinan would be approving either. He sighed a bit.
The carriage pulled into the area where they'd camped out for the night only because they had to do that delivery. Shyc stood up and stretched. With having to report back to the castle, getting new supplies was also in order since they were going to be away for a while. As he jumped off the cart, he pulled from his pouch a letter from the Queen, "Hey Raze, this is from her Majesty," he called out and handed the letter to the elf. It was probably new orders for them. He hoped it was something easy again, he was tired from fighting and hoped that they could all have at least another day of rest before heading out again.
He went back to the cart and lifted himself up onto the back of it and grabbed the crate that he'd filled with the supplies from the city. As he lifted it, he caught sight of black hair and a body shifting around frantically. Startled as he looked at bright purple eyes gazing up at him in shock, he gave a sharp shout and stumbled backwards. The back of his boot caught the edge of the carriage and he cried out again as he fell from the cart. Landing hard on his back with the heavy crate atop his chest, he groaned as he lay there. Lifting a hand he pointed at the cart.
"Girl.... girl in cart...."