Anarion woke up early in the morning with a nervous feeling in the pit of his stomach. The feeling was so strong he did not want to get out of bed. At the end of the day, Anarion would go on his first date. His eyes were blurry.

Anarion slowly sat up and pushed the pile of Ghee’s he was using as a blanket off him. He rubbed his eyes, the blurriness eventually went away. Anarion stretched his arms out and yawned. Hanging on the railing of his stairs were the clothes he picked up yesterday specifically for this date.

A black dress shirt and long black pants. He wondered if letting Lela pick out the fabric was a good idea. However, she said as a Swordsman he would look cool dressing up in black.

Anarion’s stomach growled. Not only was he extremely nervous but he was hungry. Having no furniture, nor a place to store food was quite a nuisance. Anarion put on his sandals and stepped out the door.

Opting for a full breakfast Anarion went to the only place he could without walking a distance, the tavern. To his surprise, Falcon had the same idea. He was sitting at the usual table at the back of the room.

Anarion sat down in front of him. He slammed his head on the table. “Good Morning”, said Falcon. “Ugh” he replied with a groan. “You must be nervous, today is the day." Anarion raised his head. “I’m not nervous, just hungry.” It was obvious that he was lying, he was trying to save face. A barmaid took his order, she brought out eggs and bacon.

Anarion devoured them like a man possessed. However, even after a nice breakfast, that nervous feeling would not go away. “You look like you are going to throw up,’’ said Falcon. Anarion glared at him “I had too much to drink last night.” Falcon pointed at him. “You filthy liar, I was here until midnight.”

Anarion’s forehead hit the table. Falcon laughed. “It’s okay to be nervous. Even if you are just confirming if you have any romantic feelings for her.” Anarion lifted his head slowly. “It’s pretty obvious you already do.” Anarion’s head hit the table again. “Feelings for whom?” asked a familiar voice.

Without raising his head Anarion said, “I didn’t think you would step away from your harem this early in the morning.” Bwoire laughed. He sat down next to Falcon. “Taking a break is good some times. Especially when the chafing gets really bad.” Bwoire laughed again. Falcon gave Bwoire an outward look of disgust, but inside he felt admiration.

“So what’s this about romantic feeling?” he asked. Anarion did not even bother to lift his head from the table. “None of your fucking business you pointy-eared bastard,” he said in a monotone voice. Falcon whispered the event from three days ago into Bwoire’s ear. “Anarion you dog.” Anarion lifted his head, he put his hand in his right pocket and slammed down the payment for the meal on the table.

He stood up and left. Bwoire and Falcon laughed out loud as he walked away. Anarion returned to his home, grabbed his Katarn, and started training. He passed time the only way he could. Morning turned to afternoon, time seemed to be passing by slowly. Eventually, when late afternoon came Anarion stopped training.

He took a shower, then put on the clothes he bought specifically for this date. They fit comfortably, though he felt like he was going to a funeral dressed in all black. For the first time in a long time, Anarion combed his hair. He had always been tremendously lazy about that, it was always quite messy.

Finally, it was time to depart. He slowly left his house and locked the door behind him. In his pocket was enough gold and silver to pay for the evening. In Holsten, he had no choice but to carry around his entire wealth with him, but now that he was a homeowner he stopped doing that.

The walk to the first ring of Terathil was slow. The nervous pit in his stomach grew with each step he took. He finally arrived at the gate of the Shadowsbane complex. The guards snickered. They knew the reason for his visit, they simply let him in.

The final steps to Amma’s house caused the nervous pit to grow tremendously. Before he reached the door, he took a few deep and calming breaths. He knocked on the door. It opened slowly, despite the fact that Anarion was fifteen minutes early she had been waiting. Amma was wearing a black dress with straps. The dress went down to her thighs.

Her normally long blonde hair was in a bun. She had red lipstick on, her makeup was tasteful. Both Amma and Anarion froze at that moment. Their faces turning completely red. They just stood, looking at each other for what felt like an eternity. Finally, Anarion spoke. “You look great.” Amma broke her silence as well. “You’re really handsome tonight.”

Amma stepped out the door and closed it behind her. Thankfully she was the only one home at the time. Anarion remembered one of the things Tycondris told him to do. He offered his arm, which she gratefully accepted. The closeness made Anarion’s heart pound out of his chest.

They slowly walked to the gate together. The two guards opened it for them, they both gave Anarion a cheesy smile which he did his best to ignore. They were both so nervous, they walked in silence. Both of their faces were completely red. However, Anarion got used to the closeness of having Amma’s arm wrapped around his, the nervousness slowly melted away.

It was replaced with soothing comfort. All his life he pushed people away, for the first time he experienced what closeness with a woman was like. He didn’t want it to end. A small but delicate smile appeared on his face while they walked towards the tenth ring. Finally, upon arrival, they made way to the eastern end of the ring.

Light red banners decorated the street. The festival changed this week. The theme was “Music of Autumn.” There were no games at this festival like in the one in Holsten. Inside of small buildings, different musicians played pieces they created. When leaving you are supposed to grab a piece of paper and check off what you enjoyed.

At the end of the festival, the musician with the most check marks is given a prize of one thousand gold. Neither Amma nor Anarion knew much about music. While approaching the festival, a large gate blocked the way. Inside a booth at the gate, a middle-aged woman was collecting a fee for admission.

It was ten silver for adults, five silver for children. Anarion handed her twenty silver. They stepped through the gate. The street was adorned with lanterns and lights as decoration. There were small buildings as far as the eye could see.

In the middle of the street. Food and drink vendors gave out beverages. Amma noticed a sign for hot wine. Typically, hot wine was only served during the winter festivals, her mother told her to buy some if it was available. “Let’s get some hot wine,” said Amma.

Anarion replied. “Sure.” His initial plan was to get a drink to calm his nerves. He no longer needed to follow that plan. They approached the stand selling the hot wine. It was five copper for a cup. Anarion bought two, the wine was so hot they had to hold it with both hands. “I’m not really well versed with music, what building do you want to enter?” asked Anarion.

Amma pointed her body towards the closest building. “I’m not either. Let’s go inside this one.” They started walking side by side. They entered the building, it was dark. They walked down a hallway into a dimly lit room with five rows of seats. The seats had nearly filled up, they managed to get two at the back row.

A single piano sat center on the stage. No pianist was present. Anarion noticed a small bin attached to the seat in front of him, it was for garbage. He finished his hot wine and deposited the cup inside. Moments later a light appeared center stage. A small but well-dressed man in his thirties walked out. He bowed to the crowd and sat down on his seat.

He started playing a beautiful rendition. Though Anarion being somewhat ignorant when it came to music, did not think it reminded him of Autumn. The pianist played multiple pieces that sounded quite nice, some had a romantic tone. Time seemed to pass by quickly, by the time the pianist was finished two hours had passed. Little did they realize that each building housed a complete performance.

They stepped outside. Everyone was slowly making their way to one of two exits. “It’s only ten. I didn’t think this festival would end so early in the evening,” said Anarion. Amma laughed “Neither did I.” Anarion offered his arm again, he was slightly disappointed that the date was going to end early because of the festival’s end time

Anarion looked at Amma. “Where do you want to go?” he asked. She replied, “We can just walk around for a while.” Amma took his arm. They walked away from the festival. They walked slowly with no real aim. Anarion remembered one of the things Tycondris told him to do. The nervousness Anarion felt earlier returned.

This was his first time for a lot of things tonight. First date, the first time he had been so close to a woman. If he could fall through with what Tycondris said he should do, this would be his first kiss. Anarion did everything he could not to vomit while they walked together.

Somehow, someway they found themselves in the first ring in front of the royal palace after an hour of walking and casually chatting. “I had fun tonight,” said Anarion. Amma smiled at him “I had fun too.” They were both looking in each other's eyes. This would likely be the only chance he would get.

He leaned in closer. Amma’s face turned a deep shade of red. He gently kissed her on the lips. Time seemed to stand still, though, in reality, only a few seconds passed. Anarion’s heart was racing. He slowly pulled away. However, suddenly from the direction of the palace, a woman’s voice cried out “Help!” A woman in her late teens or early twenties was running down the stairs barefoot in a white nightgown. She had long Auburn hair, she had a slim figure.

Behind her, a man garbed in black was chasing her. The face of the assailant was covered in a black mask. Both Amma and Anarion ran towards the scene as fast as they could. The man in black had a rather big dagger in his hand. He tackled her, they both collectively tumbled down the stairs. The man in black climbed on top of her and raised his dagger.

A spike of ice pierced through the assailant's head. Blood spattered all over the victim's white dress, Anarion kicked the corpse off her. The blood-soaked woman hugged Amma. She was hysterical, tears flowed from her eyes as she cried out loud. Anarion pulled the ice spike out of the assailant's head and removed the mask he was wearing.

“Do you recognize this man?” he asked. She looked quickly. There was a gaping hole in the man’s head. She screamed in horror and shook her head indicating she did not recognize the man. “My father, they killed him.” she cried. Amma asked, “Who’s your father.” She sobbed for a moment, then replied “King Aeros.” Amma and Anarion’s eyes opened wide. “We can’t stay here. Let’s bring her to Bwoires,” he said.

Amma nodded in agreement. “He’ll know what to do.” Anarion carried who he assumed was Princess Leanne in his arms, as she was not equipped for travel, nor was she emotionally capable. Thankfully Bwoire wasn’t far away. They ran to his mansion, arriving in a short five minutes.

Anarion put the princess down and handed her off to Amma. Anarion pounded on the door and yelled “Bwoire!” Seconds later the door opened, thankfully Bwoire had pants on. He looked at Amma, then Anarion. “Why do you have the princess with you?” he asked. “The King has been assassinated. We needed a safe place to bring her, we also don’t have a clue what to do in this situation.”

Bwoire invited them in. “Lock the door. I’ll go wake the council up.” Bwoire ran upstairs quickly to put a shirt on, then ran out the door. Amma consoled the princess, while Anarion stood guard. What a terrible end to his first date.