Joseph knocked on his father´s office door and was told to enter, he closed the door behind himself and walked over to where the Count was sitting on the sofa, drinking tea.

"Hello, my boy, we have something to discuss."

Joseph nodded, sitting down opposite his father and helping himself to some tea.

"I have just received an invitation from the Genovian Palace, the princess´s twenty first birthday ball will be taking place next week."

Joseph wasn´t sure why his father was telling him this, it wasn´t unusual that his parents received invitations to events like this one rather than Spain´s dictator no one was very comfortable dealing with.

"Well, they wouldn´t want Franco messing up the party, would they?"

He joked and his father smiled, then continued "I actually thought of sending you instead, as a representative of the family, at some point Spain will be declared a monarchy again and you will be king, it is time for you to acquaintance yourself with Europe´s Royal family without me being present."

Joseph tried not to roll his eyes, he could understand his father´s obsession with winning the throne back and moving back to Spain from their Exile in Italy but sometimes he wished there would be another topic he could speak about to his father.

He had no ambitions to visit Genovia on his own and listen to his parent´s sympathetic friends all day long and he didn´t even know Princess Clarisse, the last time he had seen her they both had been about ten years old, afterwards she had spend most of her time at an English boarding school and all Joseph remembered was that she was blonde with large blue eyes and that he had found her rather outspoken for a girl, his own sisters being brought up in the strict tradition of the Spanish court.

"And what, pray tell, am I going to do there all night long?"

"Dance, have some fun- I know you´re not fond of such events and it´s time for you to get over it and start enjoying people more than books."

"I can hardly see that happening but fine, if you really wish me to go, I will."