Act 7:
Fairytale Hustle
Inside the great Flowerbud Castle, the ball was already under way. Several maidens from all across the country had gathered here in their finest gowns, most likely for the purpose of winning the prince's heart and claiming their spot in the royal lineage. The abundant pretty faces, the many princess hopefuls; all have come to fulfill a fond romance, yet only one was to be chosen. Many dreams both selfish and pure have been put on the line for this one special night, yet the vast majority was destined to be crushed.
Indeed, concerning the future of the Prince and his future suitor, only one fairy tale can be fulfilled on this momentous occasion…
As the ball went on, noble Prince Alex found himself constantly switching dance partners on the fly, meeting various women who just never quite caught his romantic interest. Instead, his brief meetings consisted of pointless small talk to services of abridged counseling to the dance partner in question.
At the moment, the Prince was in a waltz with a young lady with fluffy pink hair and curious ruby eyes. Her fine figure was adorned in an elegant gown as white as snow. At, she was as bright and eager as the other maidens able to dance with the royal heir, but as time wore on, she became gradually distracted and somewhat detached.
"Lady Popuri, is something the matter?" Prince Alex inquired.
The ruby-eyed girl blinked twice before she was fully aware of her surrounding.
"Wh-what? Oh, n-no! Nothing! Nothing at all, Prince Alex" she replied in forced girlish cheer.
"Really? Because it seems something ails you. It's fatigue, by my diagnosis. It might be best if I have an escort take you to the resting quarters and---"
"I'm fine, Prince Alex. Honestly…" Popuri replied with wavering strength.
Their dance resumed unhindered, and for a while, the curious Prince pondered his partner's troubles.
"Well, for certain this young lady isn't suffering from any notable symptoms suggesting a fever or any other illness causing fatigue. She does seem quite moody and distracted despite the appearance she's tried to keep up. Perhaps this is an emotional issue…" Alex pondered.
A moment later, Popuri released an anxious breath.
"Ah… I'm sorry, Prnce Alex. I'm not being as excited as the rest of the girls here wanting to meet you, am I?" she apologized.
"It's no trouble. For whatever reason that may be, I won't consider it an insult, so it's alright." Prince Alex reassured her.
"Actually, I'm a bit relieved to find a break every now and then in this half-baked dating game Father proposed…" he thought to himself.
"I-it's not like I'm not interested in meeting you. I'm ecstatic to have this once-in-a-life-time chance to share a dance with a handsome prince such as yourself! It's just… oh, I'm sorry, I can't…" she sighed.
"If you have anything to get off your chest, anything at all; go ahead. I'll be more than welcome to help if I can."
For awhile, the pink-haired maiden looked off to the side anxiously, until something within her gave way.
"Fine!" she cried.
She then took a deep breath before she continued.
"As wonderful as it is meeting you and everything, I have another reason for being here!" she confessed. "My business with you is mostly my family's. My father has long since passed away, and with my mother dealing with illness, everyone else felt our lineage would be best preserved by joining with the royal line, but long before these arrangements were tried… I'm afraid someone else won me over first." she confessed.
Prince Alex raised an eyebrow.
"Really, that's interesting to hear. Still, how is your visit here connected to your ulterior motive?" he asked.
The pink-haired maiden slowly lowered her head as her cheeks flushed.
"Actually…"
Her eyes then shifted towards one of the men standing guard by the wall.
"He's one of your men, your majesty. I think his formal title is Gray the Dark Knight. I didn't think much of him at first with his cold attitude at first, but then he turned out to be so bold yet sweet…" She explained with a sigh.
"Ah, that man, eh? I've heard of his reputation… said to be among one of the most popular of the royal vanguard for some inexplicable reason, so he's garnered much attention of the women. This girl seems to have a personal encounter with him… perhaps she is…" Prince Alex noted.
"He helped us tend the gardens once after visiting the family flower shop. I know it's an odd occupation of the upper class, but with father's apothecary expertise gone along with him, it was the only source of income we could manage with our garden. Still, Sir Grey wasn't perturbed at all by our backwater ways. In fact, he told me it was rather quaint…" she continued.
"Ah, so you are the girl of which he spoke of sometime ago!" Alex finally said.
"Wait… what?"
Suddenly, the bashful maiden became really flustered.
"He… he remembered me?" she uttered.
Prince Alex nodded.
"Mind you, I couldn't make out his emotions with that rough face he carries, but he did once tell me of a pink-haired girl and a grand garden shop stranded in the middle of the country. Curiously, he requested that word of it to be spread across the kingdom in order to promote business." He shared.
Popuri gasped.
"S-so that's why we've had more customers coming in… it was him!" she exclaimed.
Again, the Prince nodded.
"Then perhaps, he may fancy you as well. Granted, I'm not the ultimate authority in judging one's feelings, but these generous gestures of his do say something. The only thing left now is to confirm it for yourself when you have the chance."
Popuri's body then trembled with anticipation as she was filled with a new sense of hope.
"Wow… this is also wonderful. Th-thank you, your highness!" she cried in delight. "I just hope I may have a dance with him tonight…"
"Maybe you will. The men are exchanging shifts between standing guard and joining in on the ball. His time may come around soon enough." Prince Alex offered.
Popuri's face lit up as she heard this possible opportunity.
"Then, I'll look forward to it!" she cheered.
Shortly after a few more twirls and steps, arms from opposite sides were finally outstretched towards the pair, signaling the exchange of partners. Each attendant accepted accordingly, and the dancing resumed.
"Thank you again, your highness!" Popuri cried softly before she got lost in the sea of gowns and coats.
"Good luck, milady." Prince Alex said back.
"My, that felt like an awfully long turn…" he thought to himself.
Meanwhile, by the thrones, none have yet to invite Princess Maria to a dance. The Royal messenger and Lady Lyla stood by her as her entourage to keep her company.
"Milady, I'm sorry for this rather small turnout, but I cannot say this was your fault. Most of the addresses given to me were of the bachelorettes in the kingdom, and I question our King's methods of trying to kill two birds with one stone this very night. I'm afraid this was rather ill-planned for your sake." The Royal messenger confessed.
Princess Maria shook her head.
"No, no. It's not your fault. This night was meant to be Brother Alex's. Besides, it's my fault for not being able to gather attention to myself..." She replied with a sigh.
"I must say that Dear Jack is right about the ill-preparations for you, Milady. The bachelors seem few and disinterested at best; however, I advise you put forth more effort! You mustn't sit here and wait around with the festivities taking place right in front of you! Get out there, mingle, and meet a few faces! Make this night your own as well!" Lyla encouraged.
Slowly, Princess Maria scooted her royal tush towards the edge of her throne.
"I see…" she uttered solemnly.
Gradually, she picked herself off of her seat, until she rose with regal confidence.
"Very well then! If there be a royal ball before me that insist my attendance, then attend it I shall!" she proclaimed in a commanding tone.
Both the Royal messenger and the trusty attendant applauded her for this sudden display.
"Good show, Princess! Give them your best shot!" The Royal messenger cheered.
"Now that's the royal blood I yearned to see! Go out there and make your kingdom proud!" Lyla added.
Princess Maria took a few steps forward, then turned and curtseyed towards her two friends.
"Thank you for the vote of confidence, Sir Jack, my dear friend Lyla. I'll not let your efforts be in vain." She expressed in deep gratitude.
And with that, she took off towards the ballroom, ready to make her stand.
"Well that was rather pleasant. Our Lady has finally threw off her hesitation head straight into the fray. Perhaps your influence has at last reached her." The Royal Messenger grinned.
"Then in that case, perhaps she'll finally have the slew of men waiting in line to be at her side." Lyla grinned, "But for now, how about I share a dance with the very man that won me over?"
The Royal messenger gave a nod and a wink.
"It'll be my pleasure, Milady." He grinned back.
"May I have this dance?" a voice behind the Princess suddenly called.
The blushing maiden turned to see a dashing young man with silver hair wearing a flowing violet coat offer his hand to her.
"…Y-yes… you may." Princess Maria answered meekly.
She then grasped the stranger's hand and joined him on the dance floor.
"This is a most splendid privilege." The stranger smirked with a glint in his eye.
Soon enough, the Prince found himself partnered up with a certain red-head in a frilly black ball gown.
"It's just such a pleasure finally getting to meet with you tonight, your highness!" Katie cried with a very wide grin.
"I'm glad you're enjoying yourself… Miss Katie." The Prince replied shakily.
The reluctant Prince appeared to have been forced into his movements and direction. Katie was clearly leading.
"I made extra special preparations for tonight's ball, you know! I mean, usually I pretty myself on a daily basis just to show off my beauty like a proper lady should, but because of how meaningful tonight is and all, I just knew I really had to sell it! You know?" she explained.
"Well, your efforts… haven't been in vain. You look… very nice." Prince Alex struggled to reply as he was being jerked left and right on the dance floor.
"Why thank you for noticing!" Katie squealed. "You know, I feel that one must not only look nice, but be true to themselves at the same time! And I believe black so perfectly fits me! And in all honestly, I am confident that black will catch on to the rest of the kingdom! No longer will it stand for "doom and gloom", nosiree! "Black" will be trendy, provocative, and inspiring! Now that sounds like a proper color for a lady, don't you think?"
"Um… sure. But, what exactly are we talking about?" Prince Alex asked.
"Oh, right! Well, I'm sure this kingdom, especially her king, would very much appreciate a queen with an ambition, right? Well, you got her right here! And mine is dresses! I hope one day to open up a big shop in the castle town and let the denizens in on my designs! They're bound to recognize a Royal among them with the skill and passion that matches the legendary elusive "Godmother" Martha! It'll do the peasants a lot of good as well, as with the rates I'm planning, even they no longer have to be left out of the fashion loop! The bards will sing praises of their country's new rulers, and EVERYONE will live happily-ever-after!" Katie revealed.
"I see… that's a nice dream, Miss Katie; however, have you given thought about the funding and the citizenry for this plan? The royal funds alone may not be sufficient enough to perpetuate this establishment should we wed, and we it may cost this country a lot when we need it most---"
"Well, no matter! You can just order your subjects to put up or shut up, right? I mean, you'll soon be the king of this whole nation! The big man of this joint, right? So you're pretty much in charge!" Katie suggested with full confidence.
"I-it's not that simple! A responsible leader can't just ignore the cries of his people--- aahhh! Uh, anyway, you have to regard their wants and needs as well! The nation is far more about its citizenry more than you realize—whoa! If you're too negligent, the people may rise up and cause a revolt! Many lives could be endangered!" Prince Alex warned as he was being tossed about at this point.
"What? Don't be silly! If you have a little rebellion, you just have to take care of it! They're just a bunch of selfish jerks who can't understand the importance and vision of their wise rulers if their motives are totally just, right?" Katie argued.
Prince Alex let out a long, deep groan as he was continually treated like a rag doll.
"Say, you mind if I cut in at this point?" a laid-back voice asked.
"Oh, Gwen! Go ahead!" Katie grinned as she switched off with her blonde companion's partner.
The red-head then turned towards the Prince one last time.
"Now remember what I said! Maybe once you realize the value of my wise counsel, you'll know how well a bride I'll be for you! I hope to see you again soon!" Katie said with a wink.
Prince Alex let loose a sigh before turning to face his new dance partner.
Gwen was wearing her usual ponytail, however it was fluffed up a bit to give it a more fanciful look. Her gown was deep blue and sleeveless, and had a ruby broach fitted by her chest.
"Yo, Prince! The name's Gwen! Nice to meet you!" she greeted.
"Nice to meet you too, Miss Gwen…" Prince Alex replied.
To his relief, Gwen wasn't quite as demanding as Katie; however, her steps were a little clumsy, and Alex had to maneuver himself somewhat carefully to avoid as much leg pain as possible.
"So, yeah, I'm really enjoying this privilege, and I guess I deserve it! All the folks back at hometown are always running about and telling me how beautiful I am, and being the country gal I am, I really do stand out among the crowd, don't I?" Gwen grinned.
"You're certainly unique…" Alex acknowledged.
"Good! I'm glad you noticed! And as Prince of this place, I'm sure you'd agree with me that things could be run a little differently to move along the times, right?"
"Um… why not?" Prince Alex replied with awkward curiosity.
"Perfect! I'm glad to be out here to have the chance to fulfill the ideal fairytale romance, but anything typical beyond that I will not stand! I think a real queen deserves her own chance at picking up the slacking for her country, too! Wavin' around with a pretty face and sitting about the castle A real queen should have more power… and privilege! We shouldn't have all these protocols to keep a royal in her place! They deserve a chance to REALLY live the good life! To go about as she pleases!" Gwen argued.
"But then…. Maybe you'd be better off staying as a commoner if you desire that sort of life if you detest royal protocol?" Alex suggested.
Immediately, Gwen grabbed Alex by the collar with a fierce grip and fiery eyes.
"WHAT?! Are rejecting me this soon?! Is that it?!" Gwen growled.
"No! No!" Prince Alex cried as he quickly backed away. "Your resolve and compassion for queen hood is admirable, but the wish you've shared suggests to me that you'd prefer a life of freedom and perks! You may not got those things so easily here!"
"And that's exactly why I want to enter the royal bloodline and change all of that!" Gwen insisted. "Your people need to be convinced that their Queen really is living up the good life! We can't keep up this picture of glamour forever if you leave it as a delusion!"
"But then they might think their Royalty is spoiled and view it as an outrage…" Prince Alex warned.
"Nah! With me by your side as Queen, I can show those naysayers that I can really kick butt out there! But hey, don't worry too much! I got enough of a feminine side to show off to the public! I can cook!" Gwen cried.
"I don't think the people are quite ready for a Queen that can "kick butt"…" Prince Alex muttered undered his breath.
"Come on, now! You have a pretty clear picture of the future by now, right?"
Prince Alex twitched upon the mere thought of the future the rough-and-ready blonde could bring to him.
"It doesn't look all that pleasant, unforutnatley…"
"Hey! What's the matter now? Are you tired or something?" Gwen asked
"N-no… my apologizes." Prince Alex replied solemnly.
Suddenly, the orchestra music was drowned out by loud, regal trumpets announcing the arrival of a new attendant.
"Oh, another new guest arrived for the party? Huh, you know those trumpeters were blasting the music every few minutes an hour ago and made it hard to dance, so I had assumed everyone already got here. Guess we have a few stranglers tailing behind. Kinda rude, don't you think?" Gwen voiced aloud.
"I suppose I should greet the new arrival then." said Prince Alex.
"Really? Why is that?" Gwen asked would a puzzled face.
Prince Alex sighed.
"Father has this odd policy about latecomers. He seems to have high hopes for the "fashionably late". Maybe to him that one will blow the water out of the competition; it's how he met Mother, as a matter of fact." Prince Alex explained.
"R-really? Funny that you mention it, then…" Gwen said in a shaky voice as she stared down the entryway nervously.
Prince Alex shrugged.
"It's not like it's a sure-fire guarantee in my case, you know. I don't have much in common with Father, anyway, so it could be different in my case as well."
"Right…" Gwen nodded anxiously.
"Now that I think of it… no, it can't be! We locked that wench up good in the closet! And her step-sister was nowhere to be seen! And even if she did escape, what sort of gown could she pick up at short notice? What would fix up that homeliness of hers? No, just relax! I'm probably getting myself worked up over nothing…" she thought to herself.
"If you excuse me
, then." Prince Alex said as he left to meet with the incoming attendant.
"Right. Thanks. It was fun." Gwen simply replied as she let him go.
Just as Prince Alex reached the bottom of the stairway, a figure emerged from the doors, radiating a pearly brilliance. As she stepped down, it was as though an angel had made her descent unto the ball. Those witnessing her arrival were in awe as soon as they could get a clear look, but Prince Alex remained patient until he could meet her face to face.
Eventually, the new guest had finished her descent, and Prince Alex gave a proper bow in greeting before getting a good look.
"Welcome on this most special night milady." Prince Alex greeted. "May I ask what your name---"
As soon as he saw her face, the woman's identity became nearly apparent to him. Although her light blue hair was fixed differently from its usual form, and she was most splendidly adorned in pearl, her anxious hazelnut eyes were strikingly familiar.
"…is it… you?" he uttered in sheer disbelief.
A very anxious Gina was shaking like a leaf when she realized she recognized the Prince's face as well.
"…Alex?"
Author's Notes: Writing this, I'm beginning to think Gwen actually might be a good queen. But she should do the smart thing and establish her own country with her own rules. Yeah, that's rather odd to note, I know.
