The Princess's Rebellion

Chapter 3: Escape Plan

Rebecca looked through her oversized closet and hide her day dress there. Next, she shifted a few dresses away that revealed a mini dresser. Reaching in the drawers, she picked out a brown tunic and trousers, a black cloak, and a pair of boots.

A voice came out from behind the closet door, "Are you finished yet? The guests will be be here soon."

"One minute!" Rebecca called out. She quickly got changed and grabbed her dagger and  satchel. She appeared out of the closet in front of Eloise, who was seated in a wooden chair by the window. She stood up when Rebecca came out, and looked over her once with a conscientious eye. She groaned softly.

"Do you have to wear that tonight?" she complained, "Not that it doesn't look good on you, or the fact that royals don't wear that, because I don't even care about that; but won't it look suspicious?"

"That's exactly why I'm leaving now," Rebecca explained, "Of course the guards will notice me if I'm walking in the halls with no one around, but they won't care about me when we are in the presence of the guests; they will be too caught up with them. Besides, the patrons won't recognize me, so it won't matter if they see me with my head down. Everyone will look at me as though I am below their class, and they won't pay attention to me." Saying that made Rebecca's nose wrinkle is disgust, knowing how true it was.

Eloise nodded slowly, "You'll be disguised as a messenger; they won't bother you. They'll be more concerned about the guests"

"Precisely my intent. As long as I keep my head down, avoid people and walk in a hurry, they won't even notice me."

But Eloise was not satisfied, "What hall will you walk through?"

"The ones the guests will use. That will be my escape route."

"What if someone stops you? Or recognize you?"

"I will stop if they do, speak when I'm spoken to, but I will make sure to appear hurried and timid. I won't have any makeup on so my face won't be recognized."

"You didn't exactly answer my second question."

"Relax, Elle," Rebecca reassured her, "They won't. I'll be careful to get out as fast as I can, without drawing any attention. It will be smooth. No one will even remember that I was there."

"I believe that," Elle murmured, "I'm just worried about you, Becca."

"I know, and I'm grateful for it. Really. But you needn't be worried; It's an in and out plan. No mistakes," Rebecca rolled her eyes as she added, "I've done this several times, Elle. I'm prepared for the worst. And this is what you get for convincing me to go to that useless dinner last week"

"I know," she mumbled dolefully," I know you can do this. Just...be careful."

"As always. I won't be out too long, I promise. Just as the guests leave I'll make my way back to my room."

Eloise smiled, "Don't have too much fun out there without me. But I'll cover for you as much as I can."

"Thanks Elle. I don't deserve a friend like you."

"And I don't deserve to waste your time. Come on! People should be here by now!"

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Rebecca made her way down the long corridors, with her head down and her pace brisk. She hid her dagger under some papers in her satchel. It wasn't that she felt the need to use it in the castle, it was outside the castle that sometimes posed a threat.

The passageways were so familiar to her that Rebecca barely had to look up from the stone floors. She had practically memorized every part of the castle. She knew that the hallways of this part had tall ceiling, with neatly cut stone arches that hung over her head every few steps. At some points on the left or right were small statues, tables, paintings, tapestries, or antiques, revealing the riches of the kingdom of Telkmania. But Rebecca knew that she couldn't linger to look at them for too long, or the guards might get suspicious.

Soon she began to hear the echoes of the guests arriving, their voices shrill with delight and laughter as they entered through the Great Hall. Rebecca took a deep breath and tried to adopt a daunted but hasty look, which she had practiced with Eloise in her bed chambers. She corrected her posture to looked rushed and walk on one side of the halls. This is it.

She strided down another corridor to the one that she needed; the one with a view of the garden. These corridors bordered the greenery, one on each side of the garden. It had large windows on one side of the wall so that you could see the outside, and there was a stone walkway outside with a roof over it that the guests would usually use.

Rebecca chose to walk on the inside because it was faster, she wouldn't meet too many nobles, and she had seen messengers take this way more than once.

She passed women looking their best in their spectacularly expensive dresses, with men escorting them in their dashing surcots and layered suits, most of them walking on the outside pathway. Every so often a guard walked past in the opposite direction, usually taking only half a moment to glance her way but then continued on. She kept her eyes down but high enough to just see where she was going, tripping purposely ever so often on the grand red carpets. At some points she'd pass a maid or slave; but she walked right by them, not bothering to smile at them for fear of being exposed.

As she neared the Great Hall, more and more people seem to flood into the corridors . Rebecca tried her best not to run into anyone. None of them even glanced her way. Rude or not, it was just what she wanted.

At the end of the hallway, Rebecca could see her destination. The Great Hall was the tallest building in the castle, the whole room going from the floor to the very top of the building. There were four small towers on each side of the Great Hall that complemented the castle on the outside. The roof was pointed, and giant chandeliers hung down to bring light and magnificence into the room. It was believed that the very architecture and elegance of this room could not be rivaled by any neighboring castles. Even the color scheme matched perfectly.

Rebecca maneuvered around the guests as they made their way through the Hall, sometimes pretending to marvel at its beauty while being oblivious to the people trying to shove their way through. Rebecca was pushed and thrusted into the mob, but she murmured 'sorries' and 'pardon mes' even when they were the ones hitting her.

She finally got to the entrance and was overcome by the pettiness and juvenile demeanor she could see in every person's personality. Tons of people were now bustling around the castle grounds. The scent of expensive perfumes made her gag. Rebecca could barely see the road that came through the gatehouse at the end of the courtyard. It looped around a stone fountain and came up to the stairs that lead to the Great Hall. Carriages lined the road that went below the gatehouse and down the road. The sound of a hundred people speaking at once filled her ears, making her wince. She hurried down the red carpeted stairs, sliding smoothly past the men and women and eventually made her way to the road. Soon she was overwhelmed by nobles and women of all kinds of beauty. Swiftly but unnoticeably, she broke free of the crowd and skidded to the carts to hide behind them. Rebecca sat in a crouch, observing the transportations. After several moments of waiting she found a cart that looked like it was about to leave. The driver was guiding his passenger to the steps. Perfect. I'll hide in there.

Before heading over, she checked her surroundings to see if anyone was looking. When she was confident, she leaned over and rushed to the carriage she had spied. Her heart in her stomach and sweat beginning to stream down her face, she pulled back the pink curtains to peek inside. Suddenly, a firm hand came down on her shoulder, making her jump with every nerve in her body. She froze, and slowly glanced back over her shoulder.

A rough voice sounded from the tall figure behind her, "What do you think your doing?"