So Far Untitled

Some random writing I have been doing. I dont know where I am going with it yet but I appreciate any and all feedback.

Prolouge

     Holding her hair back with one hand, the women kneels and leans forward to drink from the clear pool of water. As she cupped her hand to reach for the liquid, she draws back, startled. Who is the long-haired stranger staring back at her? Of course she had a name. She had a title. She had been made into a fine lady. She was known among societies ton as the rising star of the season. Yet as she kneeled beside the water she did not recognize her own reflection.

     She rose abrubtly and pulled the pins from her hair, allowing the perfectly arranged curls to tumble around her shoulders and down her back. The breeze made her undone hair dance upon the wind as she splashed the cool water on her face to reveal the natural color of her skin where the mask made of makeup had recently been. Tears stung in her eyes, and for the first time since she had returned home she allowed the moisture clinging to her eyelashes to fall down her cheek. She could taste the salty sweetness of her tears as they were realeased from her pooling eyes. All the same she refused to wipe them away.

     Slipping off her shoes and gently rising her skirts, she stepped into the clear, cool water. The back of her mind reminded her she was getting her stockings wet but she paid no heed to it. For months she had lived the charade, forced away from her family. Ripped from her childhood home. No matter how hard the world had tried to conform her, at heart this was where she belonged. Never understanding why it had been so diffucult to breathe in the stuffy ballrooms, and wondering why she had never fit in. Now she knew.

     The land she stood on was a part of her. The water she waded in was a part of her. Her soul was fre on this land she had always called home. To feel so disconnected had been the cause of all her sorrow. To feel so confined by the rules society dictated was the bases of her turmoil. There was no way to change that feeling.

     Originally she had been sent away to "grow up," to become "refined." According to her Aunt, and sponser, the country was an inappropriate place for a young women to be raised. So to rectify the situation she had been sent to learn from her Aunt, against her wishes. It made no difference. To be diffucult was to be punished and to be happy was to lie. It was a game. If she ever wanted to go home it was a game she would have to play. And she did. She learned and she played, and she suffered the concequences.

     As the season went along she lost her heart to foolish love. Of course by being shaken of that notion she lost her heart to true love. Dangerous love. There was no way to stop it, it just happened. One day she had her heart and the next it was lost to the man society said was corrupt and evil. Tears of new came forth, in light of the realization that her heart was now forever lost because she had to follow the code she did not agree with. Turning her head so the breeze would push the fallen blonde curls from her face, she let out a sigh of sadness and regret. Of lost love and turmoil. And also a sigh of relief.

     Walking out of the water and grabbing her abandoned shoes she walked into the clearing next to the water. She wiped the tears from her cheek and sat in the grassy shade, allowing her stockings some time to dry. Her cheeks slowly paled back to there normal color as she laid back in the shade of a tree. No doubt someone would find her soon and disturb her thoughts. She took advantage of it as she could, not wanting to rush the prospect of being home once more. She recalled her home coming and her families happiness. Yet she found her mind wandering back to him again. She leaned back into the tree, resting her spine against the trunk as she closed her eyes. She allowed every happy moment to play out, every moment she had been with him. As she recalled the feel of his lips on hers, she opened her eyes. They got large with surprise as she saw the one she had been thinking about kneeling there in front of her, his hand resting on her cheek. His face so close she could feel his warm breath on her skin. The feel of his lips still impressed upon hers from the kiss they had just shared. Her love was there in front of her as clear as day. And yet it had to be a dream. She had to have dozed off because it was just not possible he was here with her.

     Yet she knew it was no dream. She could smell his cologne and feel the warmth of his hand as he caressed her cheek. She could see the thin line his mouth was set in. Everyone of her senses tingled as they had always done when he was near. Her breathing became short and her heart pounded in her chest a million miles a minute. Her mind was clouded making speech impossible and movement unthinkable. So she sat there, staring at him as he stared at her. Barely breathing until he spoke. It was barely a whisper but it was enough.

     "Hello Ashely, my love."