Get out of the palace. Check. Get rid of little sister. Check. My day seemed to be coming to a stunning crescendo. I was alone on the streets of Trescone. As it should be.
As the crown prince of Karaphyllon, Father often had me stuffed into uncomfortable clothes and sitting in meetings with the lords most days. Boring.
Tonight was my chance to roam free. To forget about being the crown prince and just be me; Simone of the Tribless Elves. A young ellas in need of some fun. With no little sisters around to tattle on me later. I’d probably be recognized tonight, but where I was going no one would care if I acted the part of Crown Prince or not.
I walked into the nearest pub and ordered two pints of ale. The place was filled to the brim with other ellases enjoying the day. Laughter and occasional singing filled the room, ellases bent over their mugs, enjoying their drink with friends. A small band of minstrels played in the corner, singing songs of their wanderings in the far north. The bartender stood near my seat at the bar, cleaning glasses and chatting with some regulars.
I took another sip of my first ale, already halfway drained, and let out a contented sigh. Pub ale was some of the finest brewed. Forget all that expensive wine Father had imported into the palace. This was where it was at.
“Nice day for an ale,” a young ellassen said, plopping down into the chair beside me. I noticed her feet barely brushed the bottom rungs of the high chair. She wore her hair long and brown, as most ellassens did. A bright red dress adorned her petite features, a black corset peeping out at the top of her bosom. Did she do that to peak interest? “I see you have one for me as well. Thank you,” she said, swiping my second ale off the counter and taking a huge, unladylike gulp. “My, that’s got to be the finest ale in all of Trescone. Don’t you agree?” she said, wiping the foam that clung to her lips off with the back of her hand.
I stared at her, my jaw hanging wide open, shocked that she would, number one, be drinking. No ellassens did that! And number two, that she had stolen my drink. Who did she think she was?
I took another look at that black corset and decided to forgive her. If she was going to give me that sort of a view, well, what was an ale after all, but a drink to be shared with a friend? Even if that friend was a lady who wasn’t supposed to be drinking if she had any sense of propriety.
“You’re welcome,” I said, giving her a lop-sided grin. “And who might I have the pleasure of buying that drink for?” I hoped to the Mighty One that she would give me her name. With those rosy lips and that confident manner, I had to know her name. It was a necessity. One could not have a fling unless they knew the other Elf’s name, right? And she was definitely the kind of ellassen that I wouldn’t let go of easily, not after she’d chosen to sit with me and take my drink.
“I’m Karina.” She proffered her hand in a most ellas-like way and I found myself slowly shaking it, just as if I was greeting an ellas, not an ellassen. “And yours is?”
“Simone.”
She ended the handshake and I reluctantly turned back to my drink, sad to see the formal touch end. I knew touch was forbidden between the sexes in Karaphyllon. It was a traditional thing. Probably why she’d chosen to greet me in an ellas-like manner, so that she could touch me. I inwardly grinned. This was going better than expected.
“Well, Simone. Are you enjoying the pleasures of the day? Spring Equinox comes only once a year.” She took another sip of my drink. Her drink. Well, I’d given it to her by now, hadn’t I? And set it down on the counter with a resounding thump that made the bartender and the two regulars pause their conversation for a few seconds to stare at us. She smiled at them politely, then turned back to me.
“I am now,” I said, my grin widening. “And you?”
She sighed dramatically. “It’s been a day,” she said with bitterness in her voice. “But now that we’re talking, perhaps it will get better.” She blinked owlishly at me and smiled shyly.
We took another sip of our drinks. I must say, it was a lot nicer to drink with a friend than to drink alone.
She stared at me dreamily, a smile playing about her lips and a curious frown on her face. “You’re not Simone as in Prince Simone, are you?” she asked after a few moments of silence.
I sat up a little straighter. “And what would you say if I were?” I asked. I always hated this question. When Elves found out who I was it always made things…awkward. They stopped treating me like any other Elf. It wasn’t fair. Why did I always have to be treated like a prince?
Her smile broadened and I saw a mischievous glint in her eye. “I would say it’s my lucky day.” Her tone was so casual, not at all the way the other Elves got when they found out they were talking to their crown prince. She looked in her element. Perhaps she was different, in more ways than just looking beautiful.
I grinned back at her, feeling a weight fall off my shoulders. I scooted a little closer to her and put my arm around her. “Then it is your lucky day.” I said, raising my hand to the bartender to order her another drink.