On The Mountain - (On Hold)

Humbly Beautiful

The loud, hollow sound of the knocker on the door echoed through the still night air. Waiting patiently, Arthur fingered the light embroidering on the envelope seal, tracing the intricate designs. The ear-piercing creak of an old, worn-out, wooden drawbridge brought him out of his trance, and he straightened his posture.

He had expected to see a fleet of soldiers lined up on the other side of the drawbridge, waiting to escort the messenger to the king. Instead, a girl was on her tippy-toes, as if straining to see who had approached the kingdom gates.

She was beautiful, with long flowing black hair, and stunning amethyst colored eyes. She wore a simple pale yellow dress and black worn out flats. The outfit was shaggy, much like his own, but there was something about the simple, humble look that made her as gorgeous as the moon.

"Hello," she mumbled shyly. Her voice sounded like sweet honey.

"I have a message from the people of the valley," Arther said, still shocked at her quiet beauty. She curiously looked at the young messenger and nodded slowly. She felt her hand tingle as he handed her the letter, and though she tried to shake it off, she knew that she was already starting to like the boy, as he was her. Ignoring the feeling, she smiled gently, still shy around him.

"I'll be sure to deliver it to the king for you. He is very kind and reasonable and will take whatever you have to say into consideration, for he does like the valley folk very much."

It was awkward to talk with the young man. No one had ever visited the kingdom from the valley for a long time, even if it was just to deliver a message. She gestured to Arthur to follow her inside.

Arthur couldn't help but stare at her in awe. It was as if her voice was the wind itself, harmoniously mixing with the chirping of the birds.

Birds. It's been a while since Arthur heard them sing. Shaking off the thought he followed the girl into the kingdom. It was breathtaking, but in a different way than one would expect of a giant, magnificent kingdom. The little townhouses that dotted here and there were made with brown dirt bricks and the roads were just regular dirt roads. There were few parks, most of them not having much vegetation but fountains were everywhere, big and small, new and old, simple and intricate. They were stunning.

As they approached the castle, a guard, if that's even what you could define him as, stepped just behind Arthur, carefully following them inside.