Well, I thought as I gazed at myself in the mirror, at least it isn't pink.
My Mother had been true to her word in making sure that the dress had no touch of pink or lace on it. It was a deep blue dress with silver embroidery in the shape of vines all over it. It was a little tight, showing off my curves and toned muscles from all those years of swordsplay. I hated to admit it, but I loved it! Auntie Sandra had plaited my hair in an elegant braid that reached the just passed my shoulders. It had taken every ounce of my being to talk Sandra out of weaving flowers through it and covering my face in make-up. Finally, she gave up, throwing her hands up in the air and sighing, before giving me a small smile and leaving to allow me some time to myself.
After she had left, I had slouched grumpily in my seat, thinking about how I was going to ogled and leered at the whole evening but a bunch of brown-nosing, simple noblemen who were only interested in me because I was the only heir to the throne. They bragged about how they could easily best anyone in a swordfight or how much they loved the book, "The Art of Passionate Love", to which I would point out that they would only ever be able to practice the things in that book on themselves, before spinning on my heel and stomping off away from the aghast "suitors".
"Hey." I turned around to find my Mother poking her head in the doorway, a sympathetic smile on her face. I stood up and bit my lip.
"Is it time to go yet?" She shook her head nodded towards my bed.
"No, we've still got a few more minutes before we have to meeting your Father, I just wanted to give something to you," she said, sitting down on the bed herself. Making my way to the bed, I tripped and stumbled in the shoes I was wearing and Mother chuckled.
"Oh, you truly are my daughter," she laughed, her green eyes twinkling. I rolled my eyes and sat down next to her, facing her expectantly. She sighed and cupped my face in one hand, stroking it gently.
"It seems like yesterday I was in your position, preparing for my coming out, though I was fifteen when I had mine," she sighed, smiling softly. I perked up a little bit. She had never told me this story.
"My Mother had me wearing all this ridiculous make-up and jewellery as I was squished into this tiny dress that showed way to much cleavage for my liking," she continued, "and she told me it wouldn't kill me to act like a lady for one night, though secretly I knew she thought that was a bit of a stretch." I thought for a second that I saw tears brimming in her eyes, but she kept a straight face.
"My Father took me into the hall where everyone was gathered and introduced me and soon I was handed off to the various Banns and noblemen in the room, expected to smile politely and dance with each of them, oh how I loathed every minute of it!" she sang dramatically. I giggled, but continued to listen attentively.
"One of them, Darrien Loren, I couldn't stand him! He was a sweet man looking back on it, but he flirted with me non-stop all the time! And then, there was Bann Vaughn," her eyes narrowed slightly, "he was disgustingly lewd man who was dangerous whenever he had too much to drink, as I made my way around the room, I saw him corner Oriana, Fergus's first wife, she was heavy with child and he was forcing himself on her, without thinking, I marched over to him and punched him right in the jaw," she laughed at my shocked expression.
"It broke my hand and his jaw, but he was livid, he shouted abuse at me and tried to push passed my brother, father, mother and King Maric, but I didn't get to see him being thrown out, because I was pulled away by Calian, Anora and Bann Tegan into a separate room, Anora tended to my hand and Calian roared with laughter, thanking me for making a boring night spectacular while Tegan merely chuckled, even Anora was smiling! After that, I discovered that only three people were still interested in marrying me; Darrien, one of the squires, Rory Gilmore, and surprisingly, Tegan," she giggled, blushing like a schoolgirl.
I gasped, "Tegan! But he's old Mother!" This sent her into waves of laughter and she patted my knee gently.
"He is much younger than you give him credit for young lady, he is only ten years my senior," she pointed. Best not point out that she's forty years old then. . . .
"Anyway, I just wanted to tell you that story because I wanted you to know that this may seem like torture, but it will be fun! I stayed very close friends with Calian and Anora and got to have many wonderful attempts at convincing my Father to allow me to marry Tegan," again, she blushed, "Maker knows that you are a wonderful person, and several of my old friends will be attending, so whether or not you click with any of the boys, you will be making new friends," she promised, squeezing me hand. Not missing a beat, she stood up and pulled me out the door, heading towards the banquet hall.
As we reached the top of the stairs, I saw my Father standing at the bottom, leaning against the banister and looking positively ill. He looked up at the sound of us descending down the stairs and he visibly relaxed.
"Ah, Stasia, about time! I was beginning to wonder what else you could do to torture our daughter," he joked, earning himself a scowl from his wife.
"Right, I'm heading in right now, good luck," Mother said, kissing me on the check before planting one of Father gently. I screwed up nose and made a noise of disgust, but they ignored me. After Mother disappeared through the big oak doors, Father turned back to me, smiling cheekily.
"So, ready to meet your future husband?" he asked, brown eyes twinkling. I groaned and slumped back against the banister, crossing my arms stubbornly.
"I am not marrying any of those half-witted sodding nug-humpers in there Father! They are all unimaginably vile and disgusting, only wanting to marry me because I'm going to be Queen one day!" I raged, waving my arms about in the air. He continued smiling at me, making me even more infuriated.
"Why do I even have to do this? It's ridiculous! You're only making me do this because Isolde told Eamon to make you! I don't want to get married! If I do, my husband will want to take all the power for himself, making nothing less than a baby machine!" Almost immediately, his facial expression changed and he scowled.
"Eleanor Rose Therin, if you think even for a second that your Mother and I would allow such a man to marry you, you are very sadly mistaken," he said, a slight scowl on his face. I blushed and look down at my feet ashamedly. A gloved finger took my chin and lifted it up to make me face my Father again.
"I'm sorry, it's just. . . I don't want to be here!" I whispered, jumping at him and wrapping my arms tightly around him. He wrapped his own arms around me and held me protectively against him.
"I know, and I'm sorry love, but rest assure the proceedings tonight will be watched closely tonight," he promised, squeezing me gently. I didn't get to respond to him however, because Arl Eamon had opened the door wide enough to stick his head in.
"Alistair, get in here! They're getting restless!" he hissed, ushering my Father forward. Reluctantly letting go, I watched as my Father walked through the doors and left it slightly ajar so I would know my queue to walk in.
"My lords and ladies, it is with much pleasure that I welcome you this evening to the estate of my brother-in-law, Teryn Fergus Cousland, to introduce my little girl, Eleanor Rose Therin, for the first time as a woman, so without further ado, I call her in, Eleanor," he called. Heaving a great sigh, I grudgingly drug myself into the hall, where I was meet with possibly hundreds of staring faces. Narrowing my eyes slightly, I pulled my shoulders and stood tall and proud, just like Mother did. Father gave me a small smile and kissed me once on the forehead before I was ushered away by Arl Eamon to the start of the line of my potential suitors.
As I moved along the line of potential suitors, I smiled politely and shook each of their hands, forcing myself not to retch whenever they leant down and kissed my hand. Every so often, I looked up to my Mother, who was watching each transgression closely. She would give a reassuring smile and I returned a thankful, and continued down the line. Almost too soon, we were just about to meet Arlessa Islode's nephew, Phillpe. He was a disgusting and lewd young man who would often talk down to and physically assault his elven servants. He was Orlesian and so stuck up, he made me want to be physically ill.
"Your Highness, this is Phillpe Dubois, son of a wealthy Orelesian merchant," Eamon said, gesturing to the young man and stepping back to allow us some privacy. Phillipe smiled hungrily at me, taking my hand and planting a wet, sloppy kiss on it.
"Ah, your Highness, I see the stories of your beauty are not exaggerated," he purred, taking a rather dangerous step close. Narrowing my eyes slightly, I took a step back and shot him a warning look.
"Phillipe," I said, bowing my head graciously while ripping my hand from his. He pursed his lips, but otherwise didn't react.
"Some of the other men and I were looking for you earlier, we couldn't find you anywhere, though that snivelling elven wench that was in the study didn't help," he growled, smile growing more malicious. I froze and quickly masked my horror. Polly was reading some of the books in the study today, having declined my offer of archery practice. . .
"What did-"
"Ah, it seems our time is up, we must move along your Highness," Eamon said, popping up at the most inconvenient moment. Phillipe smiled and went to kiss my hand again but I ripped it away, moving on to the next suitor. Finally, after what seemed like hours of torture, I had met each of the individual suitors and I was allowed to go over to my parents. I saw several suitors and their parents watch me ascend the stairs to my parents table I could just imagine the horrid things they were talking about.
"Ah, there you are sweetheart! How was it?" Father asked, his mouth full of cheese. I groaned and threw myself into the empty seat next to Bryce, allowing my head to hit the table with a thunk! My whole family laughed and Bryce patted me gently on the back.
"There there cousin, you'll be pleased to know that only ten of the twenty-five men you just met tried to sneak a peek down your dress, six of the succeeded," he muttered the last part, taking a sip of his Antivan brandy. I raised my head to snap something at him but stopped, staring transfixed at the doorway.
Next to the drinks table, a young man was leaning against the wall, watching the proceedings as he drank periodically from his glass. He had long blond hair that was left untouched and wild. He seemed to be a bit taller than me with bronze skin. If I looked closely, I could see the tone of his muscles underneath his tight tunic. As though he had sensed someone watching him, his eyes flashed to mine and I felt my breathing hitch in my throat. His eyes were the most gorgeous amber I had ever seen. . . .
"Ellie!" I jumped and looked over at Bryce, who was looking at me curiously.
"What are you staring at?" I blushed heavily and looked away, staring at my hands.
"N-Nothing," I stammered. I looked up shortly to find the bronze man smirking at me before taking a drink from his glass. Bryce followed my gaze and gave a hoot of laughter.
"Bryce, manners!" his Mother hissed, tapping him lightly on the arm. He ignored her, instead nudging his Father.
"Ellie sees something, or much rather someone she likes-Ow!" he hissed, rubbing his foot that I had just stomped on. However, now all the attention of the table was on me.
"Really, where is he?" Father asked, narrowing his eyes around the room.
"Over there, he's the tanned blonde guy near the drinks table."
"Where?"
"That one?"
"No! That one!"
"I just pointed to that one!"
"No, you pointed to that one, I'm pointing to that one!"
I groaned and shrank in my seat, hiding my burning face in my hands. Bryce chuckled and whispered so only I could hear.
"You're welcome." I curled my lip at him and punched him in the arm, causing him to spill his drink all over his lap.
"My my Anastasia, I would have thought that you would have taught your daughter better," came a heavy Antivan accent. We all looked around to find an older elven man smirking at us, a twinkle in his amber eyes. I gasped quietly. If he hadn't been so short, I could've sworn he was. . . .
"Zevran!" Mother exclaimed, jumping from her place at the table and rushing over to hug the man. He chuckled and returned the hug, only to quickly let go when he saw Father glowering at him.
"Calm yourself Alistair, you know that I no longer look to bed your wife," he said, a teasing tone to his voice. Father grumbled something about "assassin" and "whore" before turning back to his large platter of cheese. The giggle that escaped my lips caught the attention of Zevran, who smiled warmly at me.
"It is a pleasure to meet you Eleanor, your Mother has spoken very highly of you in her letters, it is good to see that your haven't inherited your Father's surly demeanour," he said, bowing and sending a second smirk Father's way.
I giggled again and bowed my head, "The pleasure is all mine Zevran." His smiled widened and he looked over his shoulder and beckoned someone over.
"I'm sorry, my daughter isn't to thrilled at being dressed up at the moment and would much rather be in a pair of breeches, Leliana, Celine, over here!" he yelled, making several of us jump. A red headed woman, not much older than Mother, appeared out of the crowd, pulling her look-a-like daughter with her. Almost immediately, the woman dropped the girl's arm and rushed forward to embrace Mother in a hug.
"Stasia, it has been to long!" The woman, who I assumed was Leliana, cried in a light Orelesian accent. The girl shuffled up behind her parents, gazing at me with a curious expression. After they pulled apart, Leliana turned to her daughter, who was now looking at Bryce.
"Celine, what was the rather long talk we had about manners on the way here about?" she hissed, arching an eyebrow at her daughter. Celine just rolled her eyes, but I could see the smirk on her lips.
"It is a pleasure to meet all of you, my name is Celine Ariani," she said, her voice in complete monotone. Bryce and I snorted at Celine's guts, exchanging impressed looks with each other. Her Mother however, scowled.
"Celine-"she was cut off.
"Leave her be mio cara, Celine, would you be a good girl and go and get your Father a glass of that fantastic Antivan brandy your Brother seems to have made off with," Zevran interrupted, quickly stopping any future argument. Just before Celine could turn, I stood up and made my way over to her.
"I'm rather thirsty myself, mind if I come with you?" Celine's bright green eyes widened in surprise.
"Of course, come," she said, linking arms with me and beginning to walk over to the drinks table. When we reached it, I began to pour myself a glass of wine while she looked for the bottle of Antivan brandy.
"I apologize for my rudeness your Highness, I just hate getting dressed all prim and proper for these sorts of things," she admitted, finally finding a bottle and uncorking the bottle. I waved off her apology while taking a sip of my drink.
"Please, call me Ellie and don't worry, I hate getting dressed all "prim and proper" for these sorts of things too," I said, shrugging my shoulders. She giggled and looked around in disgust at the people around her.
"They all just seem so. . . up themselves, they look down on me because my Father is an elf and not human and it makes me so furious! No matter how different we all are, we are all the same!" she exclaimed, slamming a glass on the table with a little bit more power than necessary, nearly shattering it.
I nodded as she talked, "I agree! People didn't even realise how much elves contributed towards the ending of the last Blight, just hurling insults at them and treating them like second class citizens! If I had my way, each of those nobles would be turned into a toad!" A noblewoman who was trying to listen in on our conversation gasped and trotted away to tell her "friends" no doubt. Not that I really cared. Celine giggled before sneaking a quick drink of her Father's brandy.
"You're just like my Brother in that sense, you should see the anger he flies into every time some human makes a snide remark to our Mother about being a "knife ears whore"," she said, green eyes growing darker. I gaped at her and was about to question her further when the orchestra in the corner began playing and I noticed every noblemen in the room look over at me.
"Oh Maker, no!" I groaned, grimacing over-dramatically. Celine looked around and screwed up her nose at all the bachelors.
"Ugh, they are disgusting! You have my upmost condolences," she said, giving me an apologetic look. I gave her a tight lipped smile as one of the young men came up to me.
"May I have this dance your Highness?" he purred seductively. Resisting the urge to throw up, I gently took his extended hand and he led me out to the dance floor. And so began the very long hour of being passed from suitor to suitor, having my feet repeatedly stepped on and my dress constantly leered down.
As I began to regretfully make my way around the dancefloor for the second time with Phillipe, a bronze hand tapped him on the shoulder.
"I'm sorry to intrude, but I was wondering if your Highness would like this dance?" It was him! Oh my!
"Of course," I blurted out, immediately letting go of Phillipe like a hot coal. He sniffed and marched off, his nose firmly in the air. The man chuckled and looked at me, amber eyes twinkling.
"Your Highness," he said, extending his hand. Blushing like mad, I took it and allowed him to pull me closer to him and wrap his hand around my waist.
"So, Eleanor," he said, an Antivan accent lacing his words.
I shook my head vehemently, "No, just Ellie, I only get Eleanor when I'm in trouble, my full name when I'm really in trouble." Oh gosh, I was babbling! He chuckled huskily, very nearly making me swoon.
"Fernando Ariani, I think I saw you meeting my parents and sister earlier, yes?" he asked, looking at me intensely. I nodded dumbly.
"Yes, and I must say that your parents seem to be complete opposites! I mean, your Father is so carefree and out there, and your Mother seems to have these rules that you must follow and she seemingly loves to dress up your sister- oh god, I babble when I'm nervous, I'm sorry," I said, babbling again. Fernando smirked, but didn't remark on my idiocy.
"Well, Father says that Mother wanted a little girl to dress up and shop with, she got the daughter, but she got the daughter who wields knives and poison, she does look like she's having fun though," he admitted, looking over my shoulder. I looked around to see a laughing Celine being swept around the floor by Bryce, who was surprisingly sober. I smiled softly and looked back to Fernando, who was watching me intensely.
"What?" I asked, suddenly self-conscious. He smiled crookedly and shook his head.
"Nothing, it's just. . . how does a royal act like you? I mean," he began, seeing my raised eyebrow, "I've watched you and noticed how different you are from other noblewomen; you conversed openly with my sister who isn't noble, drank some of the stronger Orelesian wine, stomped on your cousin's foot when he said something to you at the table, and stuck up for elves, you are indeed a different kind of woman all together, Ellie," he finished. I blinked, in a daze. He's being watching me! Andraste's flaming knickers, he's been watching me! Why though? I'm not that pretty am I? Is he looking at me now? Yes! Holy crap, what do I say, what do I- My thoughts were interrupted by Arl Eamon silencing the band.
"My apologizes, but the King has just informed me that it is time to wrap up this gathering for it appears the Queen has taken ill," he said, voice booming across the hall. My eyes widened and looked over to the head table, where I saw my very pale Mother sitting in a chair and leaning heavily on Uncle Fergus. Forgetting all about Fernando, I rushed over to her, my heart caught in my throat.
"Mother, what is it?" I whispered, not wanting in eavesdroppers to hear our conversation. She opened her eyes and gave me a reassuring smile.
"I'm fine, I've been feeling off the past couple of nights, it'll pass," she said. I wasn't convinced, but let it slide, letting her have her rest for now.
"Ah, so like you my Gray Warden, never telling anyone when you're sick or injured, come on children, I'll tell you a story about the Queen as I walk you back to your rooms," Zevran said, looking at me, my cousins, and his own children. I frowned and was about to object when Mother hushed me.
"I'm fine Eleanor, go to bed and get some sleep," she ordered. Knowing better than to argue with her, I kissed her on the cheek.
"Night Mother, Night Father, Night Uncle Fergus, Aunt Sandra and Leliana," I said, rounding off the names as I turned to walk after Zevran. As we began to make our way to our rooms, I took hold of Bryce's arm.
"What happened?" I whispered, very much so worried. Casting a wary look at Zevran's back, Bryce answered me.
"I'm not sure, Celine and I were still dancing but from what I saw, she became rather dizzy while dancing with your Father, when I went over, she muttering something about "no sleep" and "nightmares"." I frowned again, leaving him to ponder in my thoughts. We reached the bedrooms and Zevran turned to us.
"Celine, you and Eleanor will be sharing a room, Nando, you'll be sharing with Roland and Bryce," Zevran said, standing like an army General, but I could see the distinct twinkle in his eyes. Bryce gave me an amused look and gave me a wink, following Rory to their bedroom. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Celine cock her head slightly as she watched him walk away. Eeeewwww. . . . . .
"Goodnight Brother, Father," she said, biting her bottom lip. I watched her flounce into the room I had been sleeping in and screwed up my nose in disgust.
"Oh, that is wrong on so many levels," I muttered darkly. A deep chuckle resounded from Fernando.
"So, it was a lovely party," he said casually. I looked around for Zevran, not finding him anywhere.
I looked and Fernando curiously, "Where did your Father go?" He waved my question off, instead giving me a lustful look.
"So, I noticed that there is a charming little study when I was wondering around, perhaps you show me around it more, intimately," he purred. My jaw dropped and I gasped.
"Are you serious?" I raged, ripping the hand that he had taken from his grasp. Surprise flashed in his eyes before being replaced by complete and utter calm.
"Deadly," he said, taking a small step towards me. I stepped away, and glared up at him.
"I cannot believe you! I actually thought that you were a decent guy and now you just. . . just. . . Argh, forget it!" I snapped, spinning to stalk into my room. Suddenly, he grabbed my arm and pulled me towards him, pulling me into a kiss.
What the he- Oh. His lips had just the right amount of moisture to them as he worked his mouth against mine, tongue begging for entrance. I felt myself relaxing in his arms until I felt his hand working its way to the V-neck of my dress. Angrily, I shoved him off of me and drew my hand back, slapping him hard across the face. His cheek stung an angry red, but he still smirked, giving me a teasing look. Now beyond mad, I stomped into my room, slamming the door behind me and locking it.
As I locked the door, I began to realise to my complete and utter horror that I had enjoyed every second of the passion filled kiss. I leant back against the door and bit my lip, touching them tentatively.
Oh Maker, help me. . . . .