Miya pulled the hood of the cape over the top of her head, tugging it down so it cast a shadow over her well known features. Her curveless body was clad in boys clothing and with her hair pinned just do there was no clue that she might be anything other than a servant or a page or a squire going for an early evening walk.

She took a deep breath before breaking into a run and arriving in the stables. Miya swung into the saddle and the two bolted into the Royal Forest. It was dark, but Miya had been down this path many times before and knew the way well even in the dark of the night.

With a cry of pure joy, she pushed her hood away from her face and her cape and braid and cape streamed in her wake.

Horse and Lady galloped through the growing darkness for nearly an hour.

Miya slipped off Mystique’s back and led her to a stream to let her cool down and drink. She bent over to brush a long line of dirt from her boot. When suddenly the forest grew unnaturally silent. She froze and straightened up and her eyes began darting around.

So what lurked in the darkness?

Miya stood stalk still. Breath caught in her throat. A hand snuck around her mouth, just as her mouth stretched into a scream. Miya’s hand jerked the dagger from her belt and she plunged it up to the hilt into the man’s stomach. He fell back, looking at the knife in his stomach, surprised.

The man slumped against her, and his warm life’s blod began spilling down her side. Refelxively, she caught him and staggered under the weight, dead weight. She dropped and pushed it away.

“Gods,” she whispered staring down at her hands and the body before Mystique’s whiny brought her back to reality. She began running for her horse, but a figure dodged in front of the horse. Miya back pedaled immediately.

She had lost her only weapon and her horse was taken. It was now merely a race for survival.

Falik had been riding in the forest with some of the other pages. He had ridden on ahead of the rest of the group, wanting to give Sakina a good run. After an joyus ride through the forrest he slowed to a trot wating for the other to catch up as they made their way back to the palace.


He was enjoying the twilight and the glimpses of stars through the canopy of the forrest when he heard a horses whiny and the sounds of people running through the undergrowth.

He sense of concern that someone was in trouble overcame his fear that it might be a spidren or some other less pleasant denizen of the forrest. He rode quickly towards the source of the noise.

Miya glanced behind her. She couldn’t see her pursuers, but she could sense them behind her and hear the occasional snap of a twig, crunch of dry leaves beneath boots. However, one can’t hear tree roots. A half exposed oak root sent Miya sprawling. Unconsciously, she reached out with one hand to catch herself.

Pain immediately lanced through her hand and up through her wrist. She looked up at another horseman and let loose a string of very unprincess-like word.

A figure burst through the trees to his right and tumbled over, in what looked like a painful fall. He saw a pale face looking up at him from the tangle of tree roots.

He blinked, the face looked familiar.

Falike jumped down from his horse to help what he thought was a small boy up. As he bent down to help the injured person up he gasped. He was looking in to the face of Princess Miya. "You're highness...I..um...what are you doing?" He couldn't bow as tradition dictated as he was heaving the Princess up at that precise moment.

Now he heard sounds of persuit, people crashing through the underbrush. "Trouble?" He asked, raising his eyebrows and reaching down his bow and quiver from this saddle pack.

“Eating dirt, it’s a delicacy in some places, you know,” Miya spat angrily. “What does it look like I’m doing.” Her heart beat ferociously and she could barely get the words out being short enough of breath. She cradled her right wrist with her left hand. It would be her stronger hand that she had to go sprain. At least, she hoped it was sprained and not broken. She tried to move her fingers. They responded, but it sent sharp pain dancing through her hand. She was about to say something more when she heard voices.

“Let’s go.”

"Your Highness, I need you to take the reins." He said, helping the small princess up on to the horse. "If you guide her I can shoot." He climbed up on to the horse behind her. He kicked Sakina in to a gallop holding on tightly with his knees.

Miya sat herself on the horse and grabbed the reigns. Instead of turning the horse away from her attackers, she sent the horse charging straight at them. Insanity ran in the family. "Father will kill if these thugs don't!" She said.

"Your Highness....!" It was all Falik managed before he spoted the first of the men. Shutting one eye and adjusting the direction of his bow to allow for motion and distance he loosed, muttering "Mithros bless!" as he released the bow string.

The arrow hit the man squarely in the chest. Falik let out a woop of glee at the shot.

"Call them out to me if you spot them!" He told the Princess, forgetting formalities given their situation.

Miya grinned crazily and turned the horse away for a minute and called back to Falik. “There’s one on the left coming up a bi t. . . And I apologize if my braid hits you in the face. It probably will at some point." And then Miya shut up letting Falik do his little page-y thing.

"Not a problem!" replied Falik, swinging his bow round to the left and fixing an arrow to the string. He saw the man running down the trail towards them.

He shot again and missed the arrow thudding in to a tree above the man's head. Swiftly he drew another arrow out of the quiver on his back and shot again. This time it hit the man in the leg and brought him down.

"How many more?" He asked the Princess. Could they use this man for information, he wondered.

“You expect me to know? I was rather busy in the opposite direction.” Miya told him pointedly. “I’d say about five, possibly, maybe six or seven, seven sounds about right, but then again you shot two didn't you so that'd make it five. So let's say six just to be on the safe side.”

An arrow flew from a clump of bushes. Only pure luck and Sakina’s thoughtful burst of speed at that very instant saved them. Miya prodded the horse into faster flight.

If Falik had time to take in the Princesses comments, he would have had chance to take her rather haughty attitude to heart but right now his thoughts were with getting the Princess to safety as fast as possible.

A somewhat traitorous part of his brain questioned his sanity for investigating the noises in the forrest in the first place. There were plenty of his ancestors who would have left the Princess to her fate without a second thought. Lucky for her he wasn't of that ilk.

"With all due respect then your Highness we need to get out of here, and now." Come on Sakina, he thought, run like the wind. Show this Princess what you're made of. He called out a command to the horse in the old Bazhir language she had been trained with.

Miya snatched onto the saddle horn as Sakina suddenly jolted into a harder gallop. “Remind me to thank you if we get out of this alive!” Miya called out turning around a little to look at Falik.


Even Miya could sense the large dose of irony that came with this little venture. For years, the Bahzir had fought Conté rule of their territory, and the two warring factions had caused their fair share of death and destruction. He could have easily left her. A fact that she’d rather not contemplate

"At your service." He replied. He cast a glance over his shoulder. They were putting some distance between themselves and their persuers. Soon they would be out of the forrest and in to the eyeline of the Palace Guard on the walls. He was gambling that these men wouldn't be drawn out in to the open. They burst out of the forrest coverage and in the inky black night the burning torches and the outline of the palace walls could be seen on the horizon.

They galloped into sight and a line of guards suddenly appeared before them. Miya reigned up sharply.

“Your highness,” the Captain began.

Miya scowled. They’d probably been sent out to look for her, when someone noticed she’s been missing from her room.

“Several men made an attempt on my life while I was riding in the forest, sir.” She said, throwing her head back and looking down her nose at him imperiously.

“Send some of your men into the woods directly to see if they can capture them and I want a full investigation as to how they knew I was there. There’s someone in the palace who is selling information, for I merely mentioned to one groom to leave Mystique’s saddle and tack out. And see if you can rescue my horse, please.”

Miya didn’t have a personal relationship with her horse as some knights did, but she was fond of Mystique and it would be her fault the horse was dead.

Before the guard could order someone to take her back to her room, she shook her head. “I’m sure the page can manage, he after all saved my life. And this is to be kept as quiet as possible, do you understand Captain?”

Miys while severly shaken was not going to let anyone else know that. She slid off the horse and landed lightly on the ground. "Thank you . . ." she paused realizing that she didn't know her rescuers name. She raised an eyebrow in question.

Falik jumped down after the Princess had dismounted. "Page Al Basiri your Highness." He replied, bowing to the girl. "It was nothing really. Just lucky I was passing." Thinking he quickly added "Not that I meant it was nothing that you were in danger your Highness."

Miya curtseyed lower than would be warranted under most circumstances, but he’d saved her life so some appreciation was in order. “Would you mind escorting me to my room, Page Al Basiri?” She asked.

"It would be my pleasure your highness." He replied graciously. He took Sakina's reins in one hand and offered his arm to the Princess.

He chanced a slightly informal question. The rush of what had just happend made him a little bolder than usual

"Your highness, why do you think those men were after you? Do you think they meant to carry you off?"

“I’m a princess; we’re usually very valuable bargaining tools,” she shrugged. “Other than that I don’t know. Offing me does little good, so they probably were going to try and carry me off.” She rubbed at her throat where one had grabbed her.

((Whoops spending the night at Kit's totally forgot to sign out!))

"Princess Miya..." Kataru said as she walked out of her room, which was connected to Miya's. "I wish you wouldn't take strolls in the middle of the night like this."

She looked at the page next to her. "I'm guessing this is your rescuer?" she said eyeing the page.

Miya smiled ruefully. “You may get your wish. I am quite sure Father will agree with you and forbid me leaving palace walls.” Not that has ever stopped me before, she thought.

“This is Page Al Basiri, he was fortunately enough riding nearby. Page Al Basiri, this is my bodyguard, Kataru Minamoto.”

"I know your father is going to agree with me, Miya, but are going to this time." Everytime I have to go to something for the King you disappear and the next thing I know the guards are looking for me all paniced."

She bowed to the Page. "My pleasure, Page Al Basiri. And thank-you for helping the Princess.

Falik returned the bow.

"Your Highness, if there's nothing further...?"

He was aware that this was edging in to a private conversation between the girl and her bodyguard. He thought it best to get away now.

Miya turned to Falik and shook her head. “No,” she shook her head. “I’m sure the palace guard and Kataru will take care of everything,” there was a certain weariness edging into her voice. She nodded and took her arm off of Falik’s arm.

“I think . . .” she sighed, “I’ll go to bed now. Could you please call a healer? I hurt my wrist.” Her wrist was swollen and a deep purplish bruise where she had hit the ground the hardest.

Kataru looked at the page. "Once again I thank you for bringing back the princess safe." she bowed to him once more.

She looked at Miya. She opened the door to allow the princess to enter. "As you say milady. I shall go find you a healer at..."

She was cut off when a the captain came up to her. "Commander, the King wishes to have a word with you."

"I told you Captain I'm not a commander here." She shook her head. "I shall go find the King as soon as I finish with the Princess."

"Yes, Commander." he walked back down the hallway.

Kataru looked at Miya. "I shall go find a healer for you. Please get some rest Miya." She bowed to the Princess and walked off.