For once, all was quiet. No maids or butlers knocking at her door, no suitors proclaiming their undying love, no Goddess trying to commune with her. Nothing to distract the girl from her quiet observation from her balcony, and nothing but the cool night air to keep her company as she did so. The silence was beyond refreshing, something she relished in and welcomed with open arms. Tonight was the exact opposite of the previous, and the break from the court intrigue was rare and welcome.

"You're more than just a princess Elisabeth. You are a symbol and a powerful one at that. Your ears, your tail, your eyes, your power... You being the child of the Goddess is something you didn't choose, but is something you must embrace. Why can't you understand that?"

A symbol. That's all she was to the world. She was just the symbol of a nameless Goddess, a fate she was assigned at birth. She was a power play for her country, a bargaining chip in negotiations, and a prize for foreign princes to swoon over. Even at the age of sixteen, which wasn't too uncommon, she was practically being sold off to the highest bidder for marriage. Many had applied, and all had been denied. Not by herself, but her "father." The king had been looking for something in return for her hand in marriage, and none of the candidates had anything he didn't already own.

With a defeated sigh, the girl walks back into her home, shutting the glass door of her balcony behind her. The large mirror of her vanity caught her attention, her ears twitching in annoyance at the sight of herself. She hated how she looked, and she hated what she was.

Nonetheless, she found herself approaching the mirror, running a hand through her silvery white hair with a sigh. Some nights she wished she could just remove the ears from the top of her head, wishing that she could somehow look more normal. Her eyes were an unnatural shade of cyan, not to mention slitted like a cat. Their over sensitivity had saved her life on more than one occasion, but while they were practical, they brought attention to her. Attention she never asked for, and attention she'd never wanted. Her tail, long and the same color as her hair, was another of these cat like features, though this was much easier to hide.

She spent many nights scrutinizing her appearance. Those that knew her well knew that this was one of her more common activities, though such individuals were incredibly rare. She was known for her loneliness, for her dismay at her status, and overall just... Unhappiness.

That same unhappiness was what caused her to knock on the wall next to the door of her room, walking away from her vanity with the natural feline grace she was also associated with. Usually there was someone outside her door standing guard, and while they usually spoke of how she should be more safe and avoid the balcony, she accepted any company she could. Quiet was good, but loneliness was even more overpowering.

Denarel was on guard at the Palace, stationed at the Princess' door. Not his usually post, but the main gate was highly fortified and his presence was not required at the gate. He was 6 foot of pure muscle and stuck out like a sore thumb. No elf was as tall or as strong as him, which was the main reason he was a guard at the Royal Palace of Ardem.

Den's elvish ears tingled as he heard a small knock on the wall. He turned around and gently knocked the door to the princess' room saying,

"Princess, I'm going to come in."

He slowly opened the small wooden door and entered the room, where he could see the small princess. She looked her sad usual self, rumours around the castle say she's not happy with the way she looks. Which Den couldn't really understand as he was a long way from home and was the only elf within at least a weeks ride by horse and he didn't have any moon god to talk to. Den was probably just as lonely.

"I heard a small knock on the wall is everything ok, Princess?" he asked.

Denarel was a sight for sore eyes, even if he was an intimidating figure. No less than half a foot taller than her, not to mention being built like someone who has never seen a day outside of battle. Maybe that was true, given that her father made sure to keep the guards that watched over her in their best shape. In his mind, she was worth more to defend than himself, an idea she sometimes liked to think was selflessness or caring for her. In reality, it was more likely that recognized that she was a more powerful political symbol than even himself, and so he wished to keep her under tabs. She couldn't run under constant watch, no matter how cat like and stealthy she was.

Elisabeth, or Elise as she made most call her, was one of a smaller type. Shorter and smaller framed, it certainly suited the vision of a cat she was meant to be. And while she was probably faster and more agile than the elven guard before her, he could no doubt overpower her in an instant. Not that she would have a need to escape, given that she enjoyed his company...

"Everything is fine. The Goddess has just been silent, and the silence has been driving me mad."

Den didn't like to refer to the princess by her name, he was just a guard after all. He also didn't know why she had been chosen or why she looked like a cat.

"Ok. Would you mind if I asked you some questions about you and the Goddess? Like is it normal for her to be silent and why do you look like a cat?" He had a feeling that he shouldn't have asked those questions straight away, but he figured Elise didn't really talk about it much and that was part of the reason she felt so lonely and didn't like her appearance.

"I don't mind the first question," she says with a shrug, seemingly nonchalant. To the trained eye, or at the very least a pet owner, the flicking of her tail behind her signified annoyance. Not with Denarel in particular, but more so at the thought of having to talk about her feline appearance. She was adamant on avoiding the conversation, and this moment wouldn't be any different.

"Ask away, though I may not have an answer." Even as the eyes, ears and voice of the Goddess, Elise knew very little more about the mysterious figure than most common folk did. Even when the Goddess spoke she was cryptic, forcing Elise to have to sit about and try to interpret it through the night.

Den needed to be careful of how he asked the young princess these questions that he'd always wondered. He gently moved a small wooden seat and sat down quietly on his, scratching his chin as he thought of the best way to ask the questions he had.
"Thank you Princess. So how long have you served the Goddess and does she have a name, or is it just the Goddess?" he asked quite sheepishly. His long elvish ears tingled as he heard a noise coming from the corridor, only to realise it was probably just the cleaner or one of the other guards.