[IC] The Making of a New Queen

[pyroman]

Samsul nodded in agreement and looked over at the horse. It did seem a little younger than the other ones around it, but it didn't really seem to care. It was occupying it's time in the best way it knew how and that's all that really mattered. He walked over to the horse and grabbed the reins, leading it over to Anastasia and handing her the reins. He assumed that she already knew how to handle a horse by how she was looking at them, so he didn't feel the need to tell her what to do and the right way to do things and all of that.

"I assume you know the proper way to handle a horse?" He asked her, just making sure so that he wouldn't have to go through the basics with her. He let go of the reins that belonged to the black horse and left to go get his own, the tallest of the group and was well proportioned with his own size. He jumped up onto the horses saddle and grabbed the reins, looking at his horse briefly and turning back to look at Anastasia.

[tsubasa]

Anastasia took the reins from Samsul when he handed them to her. She nodded her head, "I used to help my dad with the stallions back home... I'll be fine."

She watched Samsul as he went to retrieve his own horse. She looked on as he climbed onto his horse, still amazed by its sheer size before she climbed onto her own. She moved her dress in such a way that it allowed her to not ride side saddled. She couldn't remember the last time she rode for pleasure. Normally, she rode while doing a chore or breaking the stallions with her father. The horse under her didn't seem to enjoy having someone on top of it as it bounced slightly on its hooves. Anastasia held tightly to her reins, preparing but took no action. A moment later, he rose onto his hide hooves, kicking the air. Prepared for this. Anastasia grabbed his mane and gave a quick jerk on the reins and he lowered. She pulled one half of the rein, turning him one way before turning him the other. After a moment, it seemed he had calmed down and was willing, for now, to work with her. She brushed some of her hair out of her face and grinned, "That was fun! Shall we head out?"

[pyroman]

Samsul had sat on his horse as he watched the whole thing unfold, seeing that she wasn't lying when she said that she knew how to handle horses. It was refreshing to see something different happen. Most of the horses were trained not to do that, but it seemed that the horse she was riding on wasn't trained just yet. As far as he could remember, he didn't have any problems like that with his own horse, and he was glad to see that she didn't simply fall off of it. When she asked if they were ready to leave and head out into the city, Samsul nodded and turned his horse around to the gates where the horses could be let out. He slowly rode his horse over there and glanced over at Anastasia after he arrived at the gate. "No one should give us any trouble in the city. They know well about who I am, and after the previous night when Queen Elana made the announcement about you being her daughter, the news spread quickly. They will know who you are as well."

[tsubasa]

Anastasia rode to the gates with him and big smile on her face. She looked at him as he explained that he was known in the city. She was slightly thankful for that. After all, she wasn't used to large cities and she had heard a few horror stories from friends back home. Her smile faltered slightly when he mentioned that they would know she was the Princess. That was all good and well in itself but she had never been in a city and she didn't want to have to act proper when she was being overwhelmed with new things. She nodded all the same, "Oh... wonderful."

The gates opened and she urged her horse forward. She looked ahead of them and smiled as the city opened in front of them. The day before they had ran through so fast she hardly had time to process what she was seeing. Now, she took everything in. She grinned, "Wow... It is really quite amazing."

She walked her horse forward, him only giving her grief every so often and quickly put back in line by Anastasia.

[pyroman]

As the gates opened, many of the people in the city were already beginning the day. It wasn't like a farm where they had to work continuously throughout the day, but they all had their fair share of work to do and it made the population more lively. He nodded at her remark and looked at the people as they greeted the two of them. "It truly is. There are many shops and stores around, Anastasia, where would you like to go first?" He thought about a few of them that were more unique than the others. Some of them had good specified for certain people, such as the wizards or knights, but many others were simple stores with usually the same types of items in stock. Some of them focused on solely food while others were all shoes, or shirts, or just about anything else. The market district was fairly large and people could always find something there, even if they knew that they wanted it or not.

Many of them men and woman that they passed bowed in respect to their princess, and had calm smiles on their faces. She looked like her mother in so many ways it was almost shocking. It was like they were looking at a younger version of Elana, and she even had a personality to match.

[tsubasa]

Anastasia continued to walk down the street with her horse, when Samsul spoke. She glanced at him as he asked her where it was that she wished to go first. Looking around for some place that might peek her interest, she noticed the people bowing to her. She blushed slightly and gave them a polite smile, bowing her head in return. When there were less people around, she looked at Samusul again. She shrugged, "I haven't a clue really..." She looked ahead of her, smiling. She wasn't hungry, they had just ate and she couldn't think of a place or really fathom one that would be in the city. Back home, you would go to the local seamstress for clothes and they farmed their own food. She wasn't really used to shops.

She spotted children running and chasing each other down the street and she laughed a little. She was gla that she had gotten that kind of childhood. If people treated her then as they were now, she may have never gotten that. She looked at Samsul, "Where do you like to go?"

[pyroman]

He paused as he thought about the question. His horse carried him slowly as he sat there and wondered if there was anywhere that he needed to go. His family forged their own armor in the Capital and he had already eaten, so he wasn't sure. "I have nowhere to go, so perhaps we can simply wander idly until your teachers call you back." He wasn't really sure about what to do, and he was only suggested it so that she could do something out of the castle and not sit there all day. He didn't have any real need to go and was simply there for her sake.

"If you like, we can go to the seamstress to get you custom dresses, so that you wouldn't have to wear the ones from the capital if you do not like or care for them." He still wasn't really sure but he was trying to help in any way possible.

[tsubasa]

Anastasia pursed her lips at the suggestion. The dresses at the palace were beautiful but they were also very uncomfortable... Had she been feeling as she had a night before, she might not have even been able to get into the dress without being sick. It pushed everything in and she was a relatively small and slim person. She could imagine what a lady would ate large meals and did little in the way of work looked without her corset. She giggled a little at the thought before quickly covering her mouth, "Maybe something less... binding... I can hardly breath in the dresses at the palace.... At least the ones I've worn," she smiled, "It's a good thing there isn't much to do that will exert myself or else you might have to get quite good at catching the fainting... princess."

She did her best to take a deep breath in the dress and nodded, "A simpler dress for days I'm allowed to be just around the palace would be quite nice..."

[pyroman]

He nodded at the request and began to lead his horse down a different road than the one it was on currently. He knew of the seamstress that the Queen had all of her dresses made by, and surely she would be one of the first to know about Anastasia. "Follow me, Anastasia. We will be going to the seamstress who makes the best quality suits and dresses in the Capital. He knew the streets of the city well enough since he had taken a few days to wander the area and make a mental map of it all. The seamstress made dresses and suits of all kinds to appeal to everyone, and although she could be a bit expensive at times, her dresses and suits are the best around.

"There are a few dresses that the queens owns that do not have the corset build into them. She may not be able to simple lounge around the castle like you can, but it almost the same purpose. She does like how the constrict movement and breathing." He spoke as he continued along the stone road that lead to the seamstress. His horse took large and long steps, proportionate to it's size, but still seemed like the horse wasn't just walking.

[tsubasa]

Anastasia nodded when he spoke of his mother and her own lounging. Surely she wouldn't be lounging, she had already met one of her teachers and he seemed content with keeping her busy. Which was good because she didn't feel like she could be lounging around all day. But she felt almost as if that was all Samsul expected her to do. Sure, she hadn't done any work today but she had been sick last night and this morning, not to mention she had been dragged away from her home to a place she had never even been before. What was he really expecting? Soon, she'd show him that she had no intention of just lounging about.

She walked her horse along with him. When they reached the seamstress's, she climbed off and noticed a little boy topple over his feet and fall to the ground. He started to cry to the other children's enjoyment, who started to laugh at him. Walking over to him, she crouched down, not worrying about the new dirt on her dress. She held out her free hand and smiled at him, "You know... I don't see any blood," the boy looked up at her, a bit in shock. She helped him to his feet before she looked over his knees and elbows, before she fixed his hair a little, "A bit of dirt but if you can't get dirty, it isn't really fun now is it," she laughed a little as the boy hugged her. She was surprised but it was nice to know that people were this accepting of a princess who came out of no where. She wrapped her free arm around him, holding close. When he pulled away, she grinned, "I say you are good to get back to playing if you want..."

[pyroman]

As they reached the seamstress's, Samsul dismounted from his horse and walked to the door, waiting for Anastasia to do the same. His eyes moved to the boy who had fallen over and was truly surprised to see that the princess was helping the boy and even revieced a hug from him. A small smile was brought to his face as she let to and the boy left to go and play with the others. "You will be a good and well known Queen.." He talked to himself quietly as he led the door open, motioning for her to step inside. He looked around the see that the seamstress was at work in her large desk, but had noticed that Samsul was there, holding the door open. "Hello Samsul, it's nice to see you again. Has the Queen requested a new dress?" She asked curiously, not knowing that the Queen's daughter was there instead of the queen herself. Samsul shook his head and looked at the aged woman. "No, I am here with her daughter, Princess Anastasia. She would like a dress that isn't as... binding..."

[tsubasa]

Anastasia looked at Samsul as he held the door open for her. She glanced at the horse she still held and quickly tied it to a post, knowing that being less trained it may very well run off on them. She nodded her head in thanks to Samsul before she made her way into the store. She held her hands in front of her as she looked at the seamstress. She greeted Samsul, seeing him at the door and spoke of the queen. She wasn't quite sure if the woman had just mistaken her for her mother or if she thought she was a servant, joining Samsul in the retrieval of the dress. She didn't mind, after all just yesterday she had been lower in class than a servant in the royal palace. She curtsied when Samsul mentioned her to the woman and nodded when he spoke of a dress she was looking to have. She held her hands as she tentatively added, "Something similar to what a commoner would wear... Durable... workable... but maybe a nice colour... to make it look fancier... I think my teachers would appreciate it..."

[pyroman]

She paused in her workings and took a moment to think. She had a few ideas already about a nice dress, and she could change some of the features to it to match what the princess had told her. As she got lost in thought, Samsul closed the door and stood by it, waiting for further orders. After a few minutes of thoughtful silence, the old woman smiled and spoke up. "I will make you a dress that has a more durable material, but still somewhat light and elegant to please the royals. It's design will compliment your figure instead of using a corset that will change your figure. I'll work on it soon and it should be done in no time!" She answered happily as she left her dest to find some paper to wrtie ideas in to.

[tsubasa]

Anastasia nodded along with the woman, despite having little idea of what kind of dress she had in mind. Although, it did seem like she had something in mind that would fall into the lines of what she was asking for. The mention of no corset made her smile. She looked at Samsul and leaned toward him, "Should we head back to the palace when she has everything? I know Gerald was very interested in starting lessons yesterday and I suppose the sooner I learn to be a princess the better."

She leaned back onto her heels, shifting her weight back and forth, "Do you have a favourite spot in the city?"

[pyroman]

He nodded to the young princess and took a step back, opening the door in the process to motion her outside. "She will be like this for some time, so we will come back later in the day." He gave a slight bow to the working old woman and smiled just slightly. "We will be back, Seamstress." He excused himself and the princess and walked out of the store. He knew the old woman well enough to know that she would spend a lot more time on the drawing board than on the actual dress. With all the years of experience, she had little to no trouble with making a dress, and removing the corset only helped in her in the working so that she didn't have to find a string that worked well with the color pallet and so much more and she didn't want to work with all of that.

[tsubasa]

Anastasia nodded and walked out of the shop. She looked at Samsul as he explained that they wouldn't be needed until later. She walked over to her horse and untied him, glad to see that he hadn't been taking or managed to run off. She gave him a good scratch on the neck, praising him for being calm while tied outside the shop. She glanced back at Samsul, "You know... I've asked you were you like to go in the city twice and you have avoided the question or managed to answer a different one.... I'm starting to think that you only come down here for crown related business," After a moment, she realized that was quite possibly true, "No... I get that because you are some special race that you are like a tier lower than royalty on the social ladder... but seriously. Not once?" She shook her head, "Well... I intend on coming down here often and meeting the people I'm expected to take care of one day... And so long as you follow my every step... I suppose you'll be joining me.... Then again.... I guess that would still just be for crown related reasons," she sighed and pet her horse again, "So... Where to now? Are we going to head back to the palace for Gerald to mold me into a prissy princess?"

[pyroman]

After leaving the shop, Samsul jumped onto his horse and waited for Anastasia. He knew that his horse wouldn't run away or do anything, and if someone were to try and take the horse, it would react and and alert Samsul of what was happening. He saw her praising the horse for being calm and patient and looked at her directly as she spoke to him. What she had said was true. He never really left the castle walls unless it was crown related, meaning that he'd go to fetch things like ingredients or dresses, or even sometimes escort the queen when she wanted to walk around. He was a little embarrassed at the fact, but he couldn't really do anything about it, and now that there was a possibility of him becoming the head of the guards, and in turn his family, he had even less time to tend to himself. If she would be going into the city more often,then he'd get out just as much and become a little more normal.

He had thought about bringing her back to the castle to receive teachings from Gerald, and had honestly wondered if the Queen was willing to allow her daughter to be 'properly trained' and possibly become the thing that she despises. Thinking back, he never heard her say that it was a requirement for her to receive the training, and it could have been possible that Elana had intended for Anastasia or himself to pick up on that fact and use it to her advantage. He sat there on his horse and looked at her. "Maybe. If you wish to roam around the city some more, we can do that. I'm sure that Gerald wouldn't mind if we were outside of the castle for a little longer."

[tsubasa]

Anastasia looked up at Samsul and grinned, she didn't really want to do any training. The few times she had been with the man, he had corrected her fidgeting hands and posture. She couldn't imagine what all imperfections he find if she was in a room with him for more than a few moments. She'd learn some things at some point, him watching her the previous night at the feast, giving her tips made her feel more comfortable standing in front of all those Lords and Ladies, who she knew were judging her. She grabbed her reins and threw over her horses head before she climbed on. She looked around a bit before smiling, "Well then, let's just roam."

She urged her horse forwarded and headed down the street. They roamed with Anastasia changing the direction they were headed from time to time. She looked around at the people who bustled about, all of them taking time to stop and notice her, amazed to see a royal out and about. She looked at Samsul and smiled, "I hope they won't always be so surprised to see me..."

[pyroman]

He shook his head at the comment as the continued to the street, occasionally turning and joining another street. Many of them were surprised to now only see a royal about in the city, but also the new princess whom many of them hadn't seen before until just now. As it would happen more frequently, the look of amazement would die down to just a bright smile as she would pass them by. "They will get used to it eventually if you plan on being in the city more often." He said calmly as he looked at some of them, who had looked back at him as the rode slowly through the streets. "Also, Anastasia, to answer your question. I hardy ever leave the castle when not on crown business, and those times it's usually to fetch something that can't regularly be obtained in the castle." He answered honestly as they continued.

[tsubasa]

Anastasia smiled, "Good. I would like for them not to always be staring at me wide eyed. It feels weird..." she looked at him when he answered her question about never leaving the castle for his own personal reasons. She sighed, "You should. It is bad for you to always work with no play. It is good to take a break, not just for sleep, it let's you come back with fresh eyes."

She shrugged and looked ahead of herself, "Fresh eyes is always good for a guard, I'm sure."