Heart Over Sword - Chapter 115

The prince was gone for quite some time, leaving Evanna to roam the library. She could have taken this opportunity to suss out any more exit strategies, but with this new gift, or gifts awakening in her body, she decided to stay put for now. The princess was still eager to get home and to see the miracle of the gems healing powers.

But for now, Evanna needed to gain as much knowledge as possible about wielding these gifts. If she was to return to her kingdom, she needed to know how to not accidentally do something, like tripping people up with roots!

“Hmm,” Evanna hummed as her fingers trailed across some books on the opposite side of the library. Unlike where the little lounge area with desks was placed, this side only held enough space to look through the books protected by lavish golden leaf bars for a balcony. She stopped in front of a section that she presumed was based on understanding elven politics, the royal families and nobility.

This spiked her interest a lot. Her mother withheld such ‘useless’ information at the time as Evanna would never need to know such things. Which she found odd, it was not a huge secret, and her father learned of the basic royal houses of the elven kingdoms. However, he needed to know when they conducted business together.

But in all the time she had been alive, the Flori and Lyvarians visited once and left quickly. She was unable to even get a glimpse at them for fear they might snatch her away. Her mother found it ridiculous; of course, Loraven would; she was also an elf. But she, too, did not wish for Evanna to sneak around and see them; Loraven was stricter than usual that day, making sure Evanna and Ger stayed out of trouble.

Now, while she was alone, she would take advantage of the books in the library. With a small smile, she reached out, taking a few books and returning to the desk she and Arawn used previously. The princess did not know how long she was absorbed in the scripts, but she wiped at her tired eyes and looked around bleary-eyed. It was overly quiet for a library.

Evanna knew now the elves appeared to be a lot smarter than the humans, their technologies outranking theirs by far along with these gifts and crafts, so she found it rather strange that the library was not being used. She leaned over the balcony and looked around, not bothering to look at the trees before her where that elderly elf seemed to reside. There was absolutely nobody there.

Did the prince make sure nobody else was allowed in there while she was there? Either way, Evanna knew after spending a few hours reading in the library, she should take a stroll. With this in mind, she headed towards the stairs and towards the double doors. For some reason, she felt a little freer. She was there by herself without any restrictions.

Had the prince made a mistake? She shook her head. No, Prince Arawn never makes mistakes; if she was left on her own, that meant he could be testing her. She stopped herself from leaving with a sigh and instead roamed the library some more without looking at the books. It was a grand chamber, after all, one where it would take a while to walk everywhere.

“I see his highness has left you by yourself.”

Evanna looked to the side to see the elf who she had seen from a distance. His long beard once again made her wonder how old he really was. She smiled, pushing away her rude thoughts. “Duties of a royal keeps one busy,” Evanna replied politely with a curtsy. “I am, lady Evanna. How do you do.”

The elf smiled back, the lines by his eyes crinkled, showing off the many years of wisdom behind his deep, ocean blue orbs. He bowed his head, “It is a pleasure to meet you, lady Evanna. I am Darcassan, the librarian and scholar. Please, do not stand on ceremony, my lady.”

Evanna returned a warm smile. For some reason, Darcassan made her feel very welcome. His aura shone with intelligence and warmth with no ill intent. “If that is what you wish, Darcassan, but if so, then please do call me Evanna?” Evanna replied, clasping her hands together in front of her.

“Ah, you know I cannot do that, my lady. But if you would like, I can assist you in here,” He gestured his hands out. “I can see from how much you have studied so far that you are diligent. Maybe I can question you on what you have learnt thus far?”

Evanna forced her smile to stay on her face. A quiz was not really something she was expecting, and it was on something as dull as knowing the nobility and royals. “Of course, I do hope that what I have read has stayed in this dim-witted mind of mine!” She joked as they began to walk around the room.

Darcassan chuckled lightly. “I can see that you are far from dense, my lady. If you were, then you would not still be alive right now,” He replied softly. Evanna looked at him, the shock apparent on her face. His tone was neither threatening nor full of malice; he stated the obvious but delivered it in a gentle manner.

“I was not aware that my situation was public knowledge. I am sure his highness will not be pleased with such circumstances,” said Evanna as she stopped with Darcassan and gazed at the size of such wonderous trees in a library.

Darcassan chuckled once more; his voice was still gentle. He rubbed his chin with his hand as he responded, “There is nothing that I do not know, your highness.”

Evanna’s smile dropped, and her body tensed. He could not possibly know.. How.. Her gaze was still on the leaves of the trees for which she was thankful. She composed her features again and lowered her chin to look at the elder elf. “I beg your pardon? I believe you may have your sources-”

“I apologise for interrupting, princess. But I never forget a face, and yours is somewhat similar to a dear friend of mine. Although we have not spoken in many moons, she would be most interested to see you,” He tilted his head to the side and clasped his hands behind his back. Evanna stared back at him, aghast at what he said. She also could not understand how he knew who she was.

Evanna shook her head subtly. No, he was reaching for information. She could see the curiosity behind his eyes; she was someone new to figure out. “Darcassan, your words do flatter me. To think that you believe I am a princess,” She giggled, covering her mouth with her hand and looking away.

“Do you go by Princess Evanna Elwen or princess Evanna Goodrich?” Darcassan replied quietly.

Evanna’s head whipped back to him, her eyes widened at her names. “I do suppose it would be the latter.. You are from the kingdom of Dunhurst, after all.” He smiled gently at her and reached out to grab her hand in both of his. His large, aged hands enclosed hers with warmth. “Do not fear, my child. Your secret is safe with me. There is no need to trade such information with the crown. I understand why you have done what you did. I do hope Loraven recovers soon. If the gem is in her possession, then it will likely be true.”

Loraven.. He speaks so casually of her name as though they have met before. Would her mother ever come to Flori’s palace in the past?

“Lady Evanna.”

Evanna slowly averted her gaze from the scholars and found Cedric and Anwel glancing between her and Darcassan. She gulped lightly. Did they hear their conversation? “The prince has requested you,” Cedric continued after bowing his head to her.

Evanna nodded her head. Words could not leave her mouth, and if they did, she knew none of it would make sense. Darcassan released her hands, and she bowed her head to him before following behind the guards.

“Lady Evanna…”

She turned her head and looked back at the librarian. His finger was to his lips before he dropped it. “I do hope you will return soon. We never did go through what you learnt.”