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Dance Around The Firelight |
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"Azu! Azu! Wake up!" A voice suddenly shook her from her nap. The young princess rubbed her eyes and she sat up, looking to her brother, Kira, bright-eyed and cheery in the face.
"What is it, Kira?" she yawned.
"The festival is getting ready to start!"
"Festival?" she asked. He nodded excitedly. She jumped to her feet.
"The festival!" they both shouted. Kira darted out the door and around the corner. "Come on, Azu!" he shouted from further down the hall. With a grin plastered on her face, she ran to every corner of her room, searching for a proper outfit for a princess that was... well.. fitting. Her heart was fluttering in her chest. This was a grand event that her entire kingdom looked forward to with each passing year. This was the time of year that the neighboring seven kingdoms would meet and great things would take place. There was dancing, food, stories around the fire, magic... all of it was almost too much to take in. It made her vision sway at the mere thought of the great wonders that awaited her as she sifted through the enormous mounds of commodities that were in her room.
Beginning to think that she was alone, believing that everyone had left her and gone onto the festival, she jumped when one of her maidservants, also one of her closest friends, Anna, came dashing into the room, out of breath.
"Azuhara! You are going to miss the festival!" she panted, leaning on the frame.
"I cannot find the right dress!" she protested, not even looking up to see her friend come into the room, as she continued digging through the piles of clothing. The amount of things she possessed was the one thing she disliked about being a princess; she had always been content to live a simple life. Anna leapt past her, paused, her eyes scanning the pile. She grinned, kneeling down and from the bottomless pit of clothing, pulled out a beautiful, silver gown that had a white overlay that glistened like crystal. She pranced over to a vanity, grabbing Azuhara by the wrist and had her sit down at a large, white mirror rimmed with gold and began to quickly brush through her long river of black hair. Azuhara cringed as she could hear the distant rhythm of the drums beginning and the sound of laughter slowly growing in the distance. She could also smell smoke and a hint of the foods she knew would have come from one of the other kingdoms. Her eyes remained glued to the window, dreaming of what it would taste like. She fidgeted in her seat as Anna slowly threaded her hair into a braid.
"Hold still, child!" she laughed as she could feel Azuhara wanting to simply jump out of the chair and run for the festival, despite her appearance, "the more you move, the longer it takes to get you ready!"
Azuhara continued to stare out the window, searching for signs of movement. She could see the ruby red glow of torches and the crisp smell of the autumn leaves. What a night for a festival! she thought to herself in excitement. She could see some people move beneath the eaves of the trees. She could see the bright colors of their clothing, forming a myriad of glorious hues. Cobalt blues, scarlet reds, emerald greens... It was a breath-taking sight.
"I wonder if he will be there..." she said quietly to herself as Anna finished weaving the last part of her braid and then slipped on a silver-leaf tiara on her head. She looked at herself in the mirror and touched it. The leaves glittered like dewdrops. She closed her eyes and let a wide grin resume on her face. The giddiness she felt welling up inside of her... she could barely contain it. She wanted to dance in circles, regardless of who was watching her.
"Who will be there, Azu?" asked Anna, laughing as she caught the falling child.
"The man from my dreams," she said with wonder, running to the window. "I know he lives in one of the neighboring lands, but I do not know who he is... He made a promise to me..."
"And what promise is that, princess?" asked Anna. For a while, Azuhara did not speak, for she was entranced by the sound of the music that arose beyond them. The ground beneath them gently rocked with the rhythm of the dancers and the musicians. Firecrackers shot up into the blue abyss, further revealing the stars that were flowering in the sky.
"That he would come for me..." she smiled peacefully. "that we would be together..."
 Tsuki Akemi · Fri Sep 25, 2009 @ 07:31pm · 0 Comments |
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