Poposi's Ascent (A Prince Series Fanfiction)

Chapter 1: Runaway

Branches rustled in the cold, sharp wind, making their leaves sway abruptly in what seemed to be a brewing gale down below the heights.
Iron street lamps lit the way of the rare few out under the sky and on the pavement, creating an atmosphere that seemed to belong in the beginning of a mystery novel. Those lucky enough to be dressed in warm jackets pulled their overcoats a little tighter as goosebumps pricked their skin, and couples took this excuse to walk a little closer, relishing in the heat from each other's warmth.
Nights like that would be the subject of nostalgia many decades later for most of them, even after the impression of first love for those couples passed away in harsh, arid light.
Poposi got really cold at night, and it wasn't uncommon for strong storms to stir up temperatures lower than 20 degrees Celsius, but they couldn't care less.

Inside Poposi's Girls Dorm A, a lean, muscled figure pressed her hand to the chilled window glass, watching condensation form with some interest. Tall, tan Jeanne's tangled black hair flowed over her shoulders like a furry war mantle, and her amber eyes, dusky and hazy at the ungodly hour of 11 o'clock, were focused intently upon the streets below, glowing and whirling with the midnight-dark figures walking along them.

An ugly equine trotted his way into the room, braying and shaking his shaggy blond mane with abandon and starting up Jeanne's brain, which until that moment had been completely inactive as usual.

"Antonio...did you run out of sugar cubes?" Jeanne enquired, turning around in a whipping motion which caused her scarlet caftan to drift regally around her legging-clad calfs.
The ugly white equine shook his head vehemently, then raised up his hoof indignantly at the door. No matter how advanced technology was, it seemed Jeanne would still have to open doors for him until they parted.

There were, after all, only so many things a horse could do without the invaluable weapons humans possess in the form of opposable thumbs.

Huffing slightly, Jeanne turned away from the captivating misty glass to tap in the password for the door and turn the metal handle, freezing to the touch as metal will always be when left in a air conditioned place for a few hours with nobody inside.
You certainly couldn't call Jeanne a environmentalist.
Every time she opened the door for Antonio, the same note ran through her head.
I really shouldn't switch on the air-conditioning when I'm away....
Then like always, the note got filed to the back of the brain where it'd lie unrecalled in the dusty, cluttered corners that she used to store good advice.

Typical her.

"Have a good time- bring me back some food." Jeanne didn't even bother wondering where Antonio was going at this time of the night.
The horse had more sense than her, so she reasoned she might as well ask him to grab supper.
If she wasn't mistaken, Antonio gave her an exasperated eyeroll in return to her wide grin.
Oh, that was right. Could horses even roll their eyes normally?
Another random thought wandered across her brain, and for a while Jeanne stood next to the window contemplating horses' eye muscles.
That is, until she heard faintly from within her daydream, a dampened sound (unmistakably that of a doorbell).

Without thinking, she hurtled across the room, flipping over the sofa that blocked the quickest route and smashing an antique vase as she landed on it. Gut feeling gave her a sort of anticipation which meant something game-changing for her. Definitely not dear old Antonio with the supper...
She did wonder what he'd decided to pick up for supper.
Going off on a tangent as always, Jeanne came to an stop as she remembered the bouncy pudding she'd had just the previous day.
Until the doorbell rang again and she realised that she was standing in a puddle of icy water and pussywillows with lovely yellow tulips scattered over the broken porcelain.
Miraculously, she was unhurt, but Jeanne paid that no heed.
Walking over with a bright smirk, she hid behind the door on impulse and opened it slowly so that the dorm would appear to be empty.