Revenge of The Dragon Princess

It was a bright autumn day, the favorite time of the year of the favorite Princess of Eallesborough. The citizens of Eallesborough were far too excited as they busied themselves preparing something unique to gift her. It was some unofficial competition between the citizens of the capital. It was not an affair to impress the king, nor they did it out of force. There was no competition announced by the governor-general either. The citizens of Eallesborough did that on their own, out of love for their little princess. The people of Eallesborough knew there would be a grand celebration for an entire week. It was customary for the Dragon kingdom to celebrate the eighteenth birthday of the royals. Many guests from near and far kingdom would travel to show their support to the king. It was a personal affair of the king. An absence could get interpreted as a direct challenge to the throne of the mighty Dragon empire. No one wanted to be on the nasty side of Kind Damien unless they were mad. The citizens knew the capital would flood with guests and travelers. They also buried themselves, preparing handicraft items to trade. It was the time they could sell enough to support them well for an entire year. The more they have to trade, the more they can earn. On such a busy morning, a young girl stealthily made her way to the outskirt of the capital borders, where it was still greener with little birdies. “What are you doing here, my lady! Isn’t it too early for you to show up in this part of the capital! And that too without your bodyguards!” A man grumbled, ignoring her presence. The young girl seemed to have no care for his rants and returned a delightful giggle, the giggle that would melt anyone’s heart! She played with the straps of her tunic dress. “You are always so mean, Uncle Boromir.” The girl rolled her eyes. Boromir sighed. What could he possibly answer to her! Deep down, he knows even if he scolds the young girl, she would get upset and throw more tantrums. He knew she would do nothing that would put him in trouble. The girl was pure of heart. But it was not his place to scold her. She was the youngest princess of the kingdom, after all! “Princess, you should not be here! What if someone finds you here, again?” Boromir said helplessly. He knew if she wanted to be here, she would be here. “But I was curious, uncle Boromir. And don’t call me princess. I am not fond of that. Lorelei is the princess. Weren’t we clear all the last times? Call me by my name.” She felt annoyed, but her curiosity kept her calm. Otherwise, she would probably give him a solid lecture like all the times he addressed her as a princess. Boromir sighed, defeated. He felt frustrated, but he kept his knife down. He was sharping a white wood religiously before the princess interrupted him abruptly. He glanced at her. She was a pretty young royal lady, but she had no trouble finding her way to his farm in a not-so princess-like pale dress every other day despite repeated warnings. He wondered why she did not like to doll up like girls of her age or her sister. She had all the resources. “Are you finally making me a wand, uncle?” Her eyes were shining with hope, like a star. They both knew how much she wants a wand for herself. “Didn’t we discuss this several times that you can’t have a wand, Scar?” Boromir obliged and called her by her name. But Boromir was not very willful to do it. He preferred calling her Scarlett. But she would have created an uproar for not calling her by her nickname. She forced people to address her as Scar. It was something her mother used to call her. “But I will be eighteen after this week! I am old enough to have one for me! Mother would have given me one.” Scarlett fussed. Boromir exhaled a long breath, wondering how to handle her demands. Scarlett was difficult and stubborn. It annoyed him that she did not understand a simple thing. The king doesn’t want her to use magic. The palace has warned Boromir way too many times not to teach her anything that had magic involved. Boromir had never taught her. But who would believe her when she keeps showing up like that in his place. It baffled Boromir that even with no proper education, Scarlett was smart enough to pick magic spells on her own by simply observing her surrounding. She was a prodigal child. A few years back, one day in the market, Boromir was performing some magic tricks. He wanted to earn a few extra bucks. But it was a regrettable day as Scarlett was present among the crowd, disguised. She had mastered the art of deception from a very young age and would stroll across the city with her maids. But as she grew up, she learned the trick to mislead them and wander all by herself, discovering places and people. It was one such day. The princess got too involved. But she was quick to understand what was happening. When he was trying to take a rabbit out of his hat, she saw him performing some portal magic rather than a conventional trick. Everyone clapped their hands, paid him, and left. But Scarlett followed him. Ever since that day, she would follow him and try to find out more. Eventually, Boromir got caught by royal guards. The imperial people threatened him to keep his distance from Scarlett, even though he tried to make them understand it was the other way round. Boromir pleaded with Scarlett to leave him alone. But that did not stop her from pursuing him. Her determination only increased with time. She would stealthily sneak upon him and learn a few tricks by just observing! Boromir always wondered how powerful she could be if she got proper guidance. But that was not his decision to make. “Uncle Bogomir, you are again daydreaming! I don’t have all day!”, She guffawed. That’s when they heard horse neighs. As the sounds got louder, they knew it was probably again the royal guards looking for Scarlett. This girl was going to be his doom one day. Soon, the tapping sound of boots and spears was clear. It was the soldiers again! “Hide. I don’t want to die yet!” Boromir snapped. Scarlett ran inside the trunk of the tree nearby, rolling her eyes. If they wanted to kill Boromir, they would have already done that in all those thousand opportunities they had before. She felt Boromir was too cowardly to understand this simple thing. But she still complied and ran towards her favorite hideout. She wondered if Boromir created that for her to hide every time they were about to get caught. “Boromir, have you seen the young princess?” Asked a young man in his early twenties. “No, your highness, Prince Arthur.” Boromir bowed while answering him. Scarlett felt the urge to laugh. Boromir would have back pain after the prince has left. He was relenting a little too much. Arthur clicked and sighed, gaining her attention. Scarlett cringed with worry seeing her elder brother. He never came there looking for her before! Why was he this time? Was she too late? What was the time even? She must hurry back to the castle. “But Boromir, few passersby said they saw her coming here!” Arthur insisted. “Your highness, but I have not seen her highness. She might have sneaked upon on me like always. If I see her, I will ask her to leave immediately.” Boromir retorted. He tried his best to keep a calm demeanor. But lying to a Dragon imperial was a risky affair. Arthur did not feel the need to reply to Boromir. He knew how his little sister could have threatened Boromir to lie. Arthur was sure Scarlett was here somewhere. He looked for something in his ornaments he was wearing in his hand. Arthur looked towards the trunk and announced loudly, “Fine. Aunt Camilla will reach the castle soon!”. With that, Arthur left. All he wanted to do was forewarn her about aunt Camilla's arrival. Boromir wondered if Arthur was aware of her presence here. But Arthur did not investigate it any further. It surprised Boromir to see that Arthur knew his sister more than he had imagined. Arthur was here to inform Scarlett about their aunt's arrival. Once the noise from the horses vanished, Scarlett came out from her meager hiding with a frown on her face. “Uncle Boromir, I have to reach castle soon. Brother knew I was here. He came to warn me to return castle soon.” Scarlett sighed. Boromir looked puzzled. Why was the eldest prince supportive of her little adventures? And how could he know she was here! He warned Scarlett about their aunt’s arrival. As if understanding Boromir’s dilemma, she raised her hand enough to attract Boromir’s attention. There was a silver bracelet with a small star-shaped amulet. It was nothing flashy for a princess. Too ordinary. But Boromir knew too well she was not the type to wear gaudy things. “Brother gave me an early present. He said this will always help him track me. It was for my safety because he has finally realized I have made a point that I am going to be the reckless imperial of this generation.” Scarlett said with a wide grin. Boromir could tell Scarlett was beaming with pride. Sometimes he wondered if she hit her head that fateful day and turned insane, eventually. It perplexed Boromir, as he could not fathom the real reason why Arthur gave her the magical charm. They are such rare things to possess. Boromir was more suspicious and curious. Why was Prince Arthur aiding her in her rendezvous? “He is supportive of my choices.” She declared, understanding his confusion. She wanted to end the topic. She needed to reach the castle before her aunt arrived there. “Then you must have left with your brother!” Boromir exasperated. “No. Other soldiers were there, and someone could have informed my father about my visit here. Brother was careful.” Scarlett explained in favor of her brother's decision. Boromir nodded his head in agreement. It was a good thing if the siblings were closer than what he had initially thought. Scarlett would need all the support she could have someday. When Scarlett grunted again, he sighed. Boromir knew what the Princess was expecting from him. He had to help her, yet again. “Do it fast, uncle!” Scarlett complained. Boromir took out his wand from his pocket and started chanting some strange language. Soon after, a golden portal appeared. Scarlett grinned at that. She loved portals. “Uncle, don’t forget about my gift!” That was the last thing she said, beaming hopefully before getting inside the portal. The other side of her life awaited her!