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Once the official strolled by, Farrendel released a breath. His sigh must have been louder than he meant since, next to him, Essie giggled softly, pressing her free hand to her mouth.
He peeked out again, only to duck into hiding when he spotted Jalissa headed their way, on her way to the library.
Not good. While Jalissa had not been as hard on Essie as some of his other siblings, he did not want to run into her right now. He would see her at dinner that night with the rest of the family.
“Come on,” he whispered as he urged Essie deeper into the concealing foliage.
That just had her stifling even more giggles.
Through the leaves, he could just make out Jalissa as she glided by on the branch. She glanced in their direction, though Farrendel held still. She would not be able to see them through the leaves and the shadows.
After a moment, she continued on, disappearing inside the library.
Essie let out a breath, giggling louder.
He eyed her. “Giggling is not conducive to sneaking.”
Anyone else might have taken his baleful tone and blank expression for criticism or a demand to stop.
But Essie must have recognized the words for what they were—a joke—since she laughed and squeezed his fingers. “Yes, but it is rather funny. A prince of the elves sneaking around his own palace and hiding from his sister.”
A hint of a smile twitched onto his face, as much of an answering laugh as he could manage. Somehow, Essie instinctively understood his dry sense of humor.
And even more amazing, he apparently stillhada sense of humor.
It felt like a taste of being truly alive again.
He shook himself and forced himself to tiptoe forward. When he peeked through the leaves, the way to the library remained clear.
Tugging Essie with him, he hurried along the branch at something faster than a walk but not quite a run. They all but fell into the library, Essie laughing again, earning them a glare from the library attendant at the front desk.
But he did not care. How long had it been since he had smiled and simply had fun like he did with Essie?
He glanced around, but Jalissa had already disappeared deeper into the library. Good.
Farrendel pulled himself together and faced the attendant. “Do you have any elven primers or dictionaries that would aid in learning elvish?”
The attendant peered down his nose at Essie. “I suppose we still have the primers you used as a child.”
Essie straightened, her giggles transforming to her princess smile. She did not need to understand the words to hear the disdain in the elf’s voice.
The attendant motioned, and another elf—this one a female also dressed in the plain green of a servant in Ellonahshinel—appeared from around the shelves. The desk attendant explained what he wanted in a low tone, and she bustled off.
Farrendel waited, his fingers still clasping Essie’s. She stayed silent as well.
Finally, the female servant returned, and she held out a stack of books to Farrendel. “Here are the books you requested, amir.”
“Linshi.” Farrendel had to let go of Essie’s hand to take the stack of books with both hands. With a nod, he directed Essie back the way they had come.
As soon as they were on the porch surrounding the library, Essie released a breath and grinned. “Now we sneak back?”
“Yes.” Farrendel led the way, though this time their trip was uneventful and less giggle-filled than before.
When they returned to their main room, Farrendel set the books on the table and sorted through them. There was an elvish-Escarlish dictionary, along with several basic primers designed to teach elven children how to read.
He paused on one book, recognizing it all too well.
“What’s that?” Essie opened the book, her eyes widening as she caught sight of the scribbles and doodles defacing the page. “I didn’t realize elven children were just as naughty as human children when it came to scribbling in their school books.”
