This Roleplay is for Liquid_Diamond and Ellancher

It was cold, very cold in the woods. No matter how much cover the trees gave from the wind and the snow it was still dark and icy cold. Ireth’s breath came from his mouth in foggy plumes that were immediately whipped away by the wind. Looking over his shoulder, the elf grimaced; maybe he’d lost the soldiers. He couldn’t tell, for the snow didn’t let him see much farther past a few feet.

With a shiver he continued walking as he spotted the faint glow of torches behind him. They were on horseback and the only reason he wasn’t bound and their prisoner was a collection of thicket bushes that had stopped the horses and left his shirt and fur lined jacket in ribbons. Ireth stumbled on a tree root and landed face first in the snow, which plastered its self to his already numb skin and face. Struggling to sit up Ireth flinched at the sounds of shouting from the humans behind him. He was defiantly going to be caught.

The Princess of Atheron grew quiet. She watched from her window as dozens of elves were ruthlessly executed in a chaotic fashion. More prisoners, she thought. She closed her eyes gently and heaved a sigh. When was this going to end? Ever since her brother had taken the throne, the elven kingdom seems to want nothing more then have him dead. Most sane people would readily agree to fight them off, but Tathia knew better. She knew her brother's undermining ways and knew he had somehow wronged the elves, even if she didn't know what it was. On the outside, the elves look like the bad guys. But she knew this had been brewing for a long time.
It started with slaughtering messagers. Then soilders. Next, she though, it will be civilians.

Weary of her own thoughts, Tathia turned from her window to her vanity where she began to brush her platinum hair. It was flowing, reaching down to her mid back. Her eyes were a beautiful teal-- just like her mother. "If only she and father were here," she sighed. She began to undress and trade in her golden dress stitched with the finest of diamonds for a silky evening gown. Her mother's pendant dangled from her neck. A cool blue stone with flecks of marble said to hold healing powers. Tathia ran her fingers over it for comfort. "Mother," she started, "Please assure me there is a need for this war. Forgive me for doubting my brother. You were friends with the elves, a maiden amoung them. Something must have happened. I need to know what it is..."

Suddenly, she halted. She could hear talking amoungst the guards outside her bedchamber.

"...yea its a shame we couldn't get them all today..."

"...I hear they're in the dungeon. I doubt they'll be tortured... just killed tomorrow"

"...yea, did you also hear..."

Their voices faded. Elves! In the dungeon! It seems the executions have halted. They are now being kept beneath the castle. Tathia thought to herself. If she could make her way down there without being seen by the guards, surely she can converse with one or more of them. She wanted to hear their side of the story. After all, they had been at peace with the elves for centuries.

"Its my brother," she thought, "It doesn't make any sense otherwise. Something happened."

Ireth didn't recall much after he'd been caught other than the ropes being tied around his hands and feet and the fact he had been carried over a shoulder. Though his frozen senses slowly came back to him when he was brought inside. A royal chamber opened up where a young man sat on the throne with light blonde, almost white hair.

Pushed onto his knees by one of the guards, Ireth looked up at the man who he assumed was the human king, for the guilded crown he knew the human king wore sat on his head.
"What is this?" The man asked, knowing well that it was an elf and probably of some importance by the hair length. The longer an elf wore his hair, the high class in life he was, the new king knew that much.
"An elf, M'Lord." One of the guards said as he stepped foreward and bowed. "He escaped from the last group we found, he bears the insigni of the Reingel house." Tathia's brother raised an eyebrow.
"Is that true?" He asked, standing and walking over. The Guards took a few steps back and Ireth struggled to get to his feet. The king gripped the silver pendant that hung of the stiff silver chain that hung from Ireth's neck. A wicked grin spread across the man features as he dropped the pendant.
"Well, your right. He is. Now, go toss him in the dungeons. I want him as far from any other elf as possible, and he's to be blindfolded before he goes down. You'll leave him blindfolded and not speak a word in his presance." The guards nodded and the king dismissed them with a wave of his hand before reurning to his throne.

Tathia was use to being quick on her feet due to her constant escape of the castle with her brother Isolde as a child. Back then, he was a kind and gentle being who loved and was loved by the people of Asheron. She sighed at the memories... and frowned at how the crown has changed him. What has he done? Did he betray an Elven treaty? Did he send assassins to kill their king? Perhaps he just grew greedy and tried taking their land by force. If anyone were to know, it was the elves.
The night was cold, and she shivered in her light airy silken gown. Almost to the courtyard. Then to the dungeons. Once she made it past the first corridor, she would be safe.

The night grew on, each gentle step she took sounded like the loudest of alarms. Her eyes were growing as heavy as a thousand stones, but she had to reach the chambers tonight. They could all be dead by morning.

Tathia reached the first door. Simple enough. She took out a sparkling pin that was holding her hair up in a bun and tampered with the locks. Her hair fell around her and into her face, but the distraction couldn't even break her concentration... just a little more...

Click. "Thank the moons," she said with relief. She was in. The dungeon was deathly silent. A strong pungent oder of mold and sweat filled her nostrils as she tried desperately to find a torch to guide her through the dim and murky cells. As soon as she had light, she tip toed through the labyrinth. There obviously weren't very many prisoners, so any she would find would be of grave importance.

Her delicate feet made small noises as she stepped into a few puddles that lay within the cracks of the stone floor.

"Wha--" She turned sharply. She thought she heard someone. It wasn't a guard... they were all on watch outside. "Is someone there? Please answer me. I mean no harm! I'm just looking for answers. Are you an elf?" She traveled in the direction of the noise, spotting a dingy unkempt cell that was vaguely lit by the moons outside. Inside, she could make out a figure that was bound and blindfolded.

It was almost impossible to get into a sitting position for Ireth. When he did he sighed and rubbed at his face in an attempt to remove the blindfold. Cursing the guard that had tied it so tight he gave up and listened to the breathing of other elves alseep down the hallways.

He flinched at the voice that rose up from nothing. It was to close, has it been a guard? No, it couldn't be, the voice was feminine in some ways, and sounded as if it was adressing him. That was definetly the case, he was the only one awake that he was aware of.
"Well, as far as I'm concerned, I'm an elf." He replied, his voice much softer than her's had been. He only dared speak when the voice had said it ment no harm to him, and, for sosme reason, he trusted the voice and the person behind it.

She approached the man with caution. His voice was warm with a velvet flare, and was so smooth it wrapped ribbons of bliss around her heartstrings. Never before has she heard anything so gentle yet so masculine-- especially from one who was in severe danger.

She walked over to the cell, picked the lock with her pin and set the torch on the wall inside. "Goodness!" She gasped. Up close, the elf was wounded beyond what she had previously thought, quite obviously from the rough handlement of the guards. "What have they done to you? You poor thing!" She lifted the young man up and gently removed the blindfold and binds with fragile and delicate hands."Please, you have to trust me. I won't hurt you."

She gazed into his eyes and shuddered for a moment. The green pools were as rich as the color of the forest, his hair as graceful as the aspins in his homeland. Even in the dim light, he almost seemed to glow and radiate through his soul. In all of her travels, her jewels, her knitted tapestries, and her royal lifestyle had she ever seen something so beautiful before her.

When the weight of the chains came off Ireth breathed a sigh of relief, the same for when he vision was returned to him by the delicate hands that undid his blindfold. He gave a small nod to her words but still took a step back in caution; she could still be a threat to him. A dampness at his wrists brought his mind away from her and to the raw, bleeding skin at his wrists, rubbing one slightly he flinch, he’d have to be careful with his hands until those healed up.

The entire time he was unaware of Tathia’s stare at his face since the glow from his eyes was something he was so used to. It was something he’d inherited from his father. When he noticed her looking at him he averted his eyes quickly, the stare making him feel uncomfortable suddenly.

"O-Oh... I'm s-sorry..." the princess stumbled, "Its just I've never seen an elf this close before."

She blushed and turned away, gathering her thoughts. Remembering the risky situation she was in, she composed herself and turned to him with a bit of urgency. "You're innocent..." Tathia started "I know you are. You don't deserve to die here. My brother Isolde-- the King..." His face made her realize perhaps she came out a bit to fast with that. She didn't want him to feel alarmed or hesitant, but it was too late. "No no.. I'm not on his side. I came to ask you a question. Why do you fight him? He says you started this war, but I do not believe it. I know it sounds silly to hang on every word you say rather than listen to my own blood, but I know him. I know his mind. Prove to me that you are innocent, so I can put my mind at rest. I beg this of you!"

She paused and looked at him intently. "What is your story?"