Her eyes widened as she backed away from the balcony, towards the wall. "Asiraidian soldiers..." She whispered to herself. A stern and loud voice from below caught her attention.

"I have come in search of the missing princess" A soldier spoke, "Princess Adeline of Asiraid." As she slowly peered over the balcony, careful not to be seen, she could see everyone more clearly. The regular customers' smiling faces were now confused and worried.

Marie, who had come out of the kitchen upon hearing the noise, held a concerned expression. "Who do you speak of?" She asked. The soldiers looked at each other in slight confusion. The tallest one, who had just spoke, was handed a small scroll, unrolled it, and showed her face to everyone.

Everyone gathered closely, wanting to see the so-called missing princess. After a moment, their confused expressions turned into expressions of astonishment. Marie's eyes furrowed as she looked towards the balcony. Adeline quickly backed away, almost tripping.

With the sound of footsteps getting louder, her panic rose. She ran towards her room, not caring about the noise she had made with every step she took. The sounds of footsteps didn't help the nerves she felt. She closed her eyes, her breathing spiraling.

Suddenly, she felt as if she had fallen, or maybe she tripped. But, why wasn't she on the ground? And why had she felt something firm on her wrist? Opening her eyes, she was met with someone in front of her. Izora. She couldn't see her expression, but felt a slight surge of relief.

"This way!" She motioned towards a dead end. A dead end?! As the two girls stopped towards the wooden wall, the steps behind them grew louder. Adeline, who by now, was hyperventilating, looked back and forth from Izora and the soldiers.

When she looked at Izora, she had found that her friend had been able to pry a seemingly pre-cut hole out of the wood. Then, grabbing her hand, she turned towards Adeline.

"Do you trust me?" She asked, glaring at the girl in anticipation. Adeline hesitated. "Delia. Do.you.trust.me." her question now sounding more like a statement. Her widened eyes were now glaring back at her friend as she grabbed her hand, squeezing it tightly.

"Good, now, when I count to three, jump. " The princess looked down, they were about 3-4 stories from the ground. The building may have only two floors, but it was unusually tall.

"1"

Adeline could now hear the soldiers shouts.

"2"

She squeezed Izora's hand, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath.

"3!"

Her feet were in the air. This was the second time she had jumped, and yet, she still felt the same feeling, freedom. As she looked towards the ground, the adrenaline kicked in. Her eyes widened as she closed them shit, preparing for the worst.

Her legs hit the ground, with a sharp pain, but they hit the ground. Before she could regain herself, Izora took off, Adeline on her tail. Finally being able to keep with her, she could see her friend's face, a face of determination, sweat rolling down her face.

Adeline stared at her, 'she seems so focused, as if she was prepared for this, as if she knew this would happen.' Adeline shook the thought away. 'No one even knew who I was, how could she?' Once she realized that her fellow brunette had come to a stop, she let go of her hand and lifted her head up, catching her breath.

Looking back down towards Izora, she noticed where they currently were, a forest, like the forest that Adeline had gone through, only, this one felt..different. The atmosphere had a strange, dark feeling.

The trees still had their now orange and red color, but she couldn't help but feel something off. Izora's voice brought her out of her thoughts. "Are you okay, are you hurt, Delia?" She asked, her face full of concern. Adeline stared at her, her eyebrows furrowed. 'Delia? Didn't she see my missing poster?'

Then, a thought came back to her. She hadn't seen Izora when she was looking over the balcony. 'If she didn't see my poster, why did she save me?' "I'm fine, what about you?" Adeline questioned, her mind still elsewhere. Izora smiled, "No injuries, yet at least." She giggled. Adeline smiled softly, giggling back.

•

•

•

The two friends were now sitting under and oak tree, Izora's head on Adeline's shoulder. "So, what's our plan now?" Adeline blurted out. Izora lifted her head just enough to look at her friend. "What do you mean?" She asked. Adeline turned towards her, raising her eyebrows.

"We just ran from your Inn, with no food, water, or shelter, and we don't even know where to go." Izora merely smirked. "Well, if you must know, I brought enough food and water to last for the next few days, and shelter, we don't have to worry about that." She replied.

Adeline blinked. "What do you mean, 'we don't have to worry about that', and what about directions, specifically a map?" Adeline questioned. Her friend turned her body just a bit to show a large leather backpack from her shoulders. How did Adeline not notice that, she did not know.

"All in here." Izora simply said. "Okk, well, what about shelter?" Izora's smile widened. "I know just the place." She spoke. Standing up , she held out her hand to Adeline. The princess stared at her in wonder. Grabbing her hands, she allowed her friend to take her to the so-called 'shelter'.