An Assassin's Demise

Chapter One

 The sunlight streaming through my curtains roused me from my fitful sleep. After last night's meeting I had returned to my room and attempted to go back to sleep. It wasn't until the early hours of the morning that my mind finally surrendered and allowed me to rest. However, my sleep was plagued with nightmares and was the opposite of refreshing.

I unfurled myself from the sheets that I had wrapped tightly around me during the course of the night, and stood. I worked my way into the bathroom, my limbs still heavy from sleep, and walked up to the sink and faced myself in the mirror, it's not a pretty sight. My hair is a mess, my face is blotchy and swollen, and there are dark bags under my eyes as evidence of my failed attempts at sleep. Sighing, I grab my hairbrush and start yanking it through my hair, attempting to get it unknotted enough to braid. When that fails I settle on just taking a shower, one of the perks of being royalty is a functioning shower. Thankfully the running water of the shower helps to loosen the knots in my hair, by the time the water turned to ice on my skin I had gotten my brush completely through my hair.

I threw on a robe and finished getting ready, then I headed to my closet to grab an outfit. My mother and sisters have maids at their call, to help them get ready for the day, usually that means helping with dresses. I've always preferred pants. I grab a pair of dark leather pants, underwear, and a loose, pale yellow shirt. After getting dressed I braid my hair and grab a pair of boots. Then comes my favorite part, weapons. I walk to the back of my closet and open the top drawer of a built in wardrobe. I pull out twin 4 inch knives and stuff them into my boots before grabbing a dagger to strap across my thigh. None of the servants in the palace ever say anything about the princess in pants with daggers, I'm not stupid enough to think they don't notice though. I head out of my closet and go sit down at my couch. The dagger that I had grabbed last night was still laying on the couch, I picked it up and returned it to it's home behind my bed. Once that's done I return to the couch and pick up the book that I had been reading yesterday.

A half hour passes in peace, then there's a knock at my door, pulling me from the peaceful world I had entered while reading. I put the book on the coffee table and open the door expecting the servant who usually comes to notify that breakfast is yread, I think her name is Diane. Instead I am greeted by Taven, who's grinning at me and holding a picnic basket and bow, there's a quiver of arrows strapped across his back. I glare at my brother, silently cursing him for interrupting my reading, true to form Taven ignores the look and keeps grinning.

" I've decided that we're going to skip breakfast with our dear family and go hunting instead." He says. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't intrigued by the offer, not that I would ever tell him that. His ego's already big enough, it's still smaller than my own, but still.

" What makes you think I would rather spend time with you then with food?" I counter. I'd already figured out what was in the basket, but it's fun to mess with him. Taven rolls his eyes and shoves the picnic basket into my arms.

" I know you well enough to know that you wouldn't go anywhere without the promise of food."

I open the picnic basket and examine the contents, there's bread, cheese, a meat of some kind, apples, and a half a dozen muffins. Not a half bad spread, I would prefer a hot meal, but I would also prefer not having to go to the dining room.

" I suppose I could do with not having to endure Idris's lectures on how I've misbehaved this week." I say and we begin walking down the hall. In truth, I'm avoiding further discussion over my new mission.

We leave the castle and I immediately feel much more free, the tile and stone of the castle is suffocating to me. We head over to the stables and once we arrive Taven abandons me to go saddle his horse, while I head over to mine. I enter the stall and greet my horse, Shadow. The horse looks up from his food, rolls his eyes at me, and goes back to eating. The reason Shadow and I get along so well is that he's the horse version of me. I sigh and lean up against the wall of his stall, waiting on him to finish his food. After he finally lets me lead him out of his stall, I quickly brushed out his pitch black hair and put the saddle on his back. I finish getting him ready before going to retrieve my bow and a quiver of arrows, from the equipment room of the stables. When I get back to my horse, I see Taven already mounted on his horse, a chestnut mare named Duchess. I pet the mare, besides me, Shadow starts to look impatient. I swear he has more of an attitude than Elaine.