Kailor: So hungry…

Naruto: Shut up :P Ha!

Konoka was sitting on one of her divans when they entered. She was dressed in a beautiful gown of deep red that caressed every curve of her tiny body. Her brown hair was bound back in a long braid. The gold hanging around her neck and from her ears could have been traded for enough food to feed all of Setsuna's old village and the next town over. She turned as Kaede shut the door and waved her hand over it.

"Oooh, Setsuna! We match!" She grinned happily and bounced to her feet, spinning to show off her dress. Setsuna flushed and smiled back. They did indeed match. She had a feeling that wasn't quite a coincidence.

"You look great, M'lady." She said honestly. This time, Konoka flushed lightly.

"Thank you. So do you. Remember though, in private, call me Konoka." She reached out and brushed Setsuna's bangs away from her eyes.

Her attention quickly changed to Kaede and Setsuna let herself breathe.

"Where is Brace? And are you wearing that?" Kaede patted her ninja outfit fondly.

"Of course not. I'll change soon. And he's going to meet the two of you in the stairway to the third floor and escort you down. He and Asuna were arguing again." It sounded like this was a common occurrence. Kaede clapped a hand on Setsuna's back. "Sit. We have to go over court etiquette." Setsuna obeyed and perched lightly on the divan Konoka had evacuated.

The princess and ninja stood before her. Kaede grabbed a chair from a desk in the corner and placed it in front of herself.

"When Konoka sits anywhere she will sweep her hand towards whichever seat she chooses to take, like so." Konoka limply flicked her wrist at the chair, her mask of cool, indifference smoothly sliding on. "You will pull the chair out for her and push it in." Kaede pulled the chair away from an imaginary table and Konoka sat gracefully. Kaede pushed it back in. "When she decides to leave or switch chairs of anything else she deigns to do that requires leaving her chair, she will tap the table with her hand. You pull the chair out, and offer her a hand to stand. Then you push the chair back in and follow to wherever she's going." Kaede demonstrated. It all looked very smooth and formal. Kaede replaced the chair.

"You won't eat at the feast." Konoka continued the lesson. "You stand behind my chair, a few steps back. You'll be close enough to help, should I need it, but far enough back that the king won't take much notice of you." Her lip curled in distaste. "Believe me, you don't want him to notice you."

"No talking, unless the king or Konoka asks you to." Kaede picked up the lecture flawlessly. "Guards are to be seen but not heard, or whatever." Kaede grinned. "That's pretty much it. You stand with your hands behind your back and keep your eyes open for anything suspicious. Brace will be with you. It'll be over before you know it."

Somehow, Setsuna highly doubted that.

A few minutes later she was walking along briskly next to Konoka. Kaede bowed and disappeared into her room, which turned out to be just down the hall from Setsuna's. A little further on the stairs opened up to their right and they turned to descend them. Konoka halted Setsuna with a hand on her shoulder. She nodded to the door at the very end of the hall.

"The king's rooms," she whispered. Setsuna nodded. "When descending a staircase I will place one hand on your shoulder. This is for many reasons. First, it will be helpful should I lose my balance and fall. Two, should anyone decide to attack from the front you will be there and should they grab me from behind you will know, because I will let go of your shoulder. Also, it makes me feel very queenly." The princess playful jutted out her hip and posed. Setsuna smiled.

Immediately, Konoka's mask returned. She placed her hand a little higher on Setsuna's shoulder and together they started down the stairs. Brace waited halfway down. He wore black pants just like Setsuna's and a long sleeved white cotton shirt. His sword hung at his hip and his hair looked like it had been combed. Konoka caught sight of the sword and looked at Setsuna's hip. Setsuna wore the two daggers Kaede had given her but the loop where her sword sat lay empty.

"Why don't you have a sword?" she asked. Setsuna shot a look at Brace. Quickly, he cleared his throat.

"We have yet to fit her for one, M'lady. Her daggers will suffice for now." He bowed deeply. Konoka nodded, obviously not convinced, and they continued down the stairs, Brace taking the lead. Four flights down Konoka stepped in front of Setsuna and swept out of the stairwell and down the Great Hall towards the Ballroom. Setsuna and Brace fell into step just behind her.

They entered the Ballroom and three forty foot long tables lay before them, nearly sagging at the amount of food on them. Setsuna had a very hard time keeping her emotions under control. It was extravagant, amazing, beautiful, and luscious. It was disgusting.

People all over Mania were starving. The taxes had risen so high that a loaf of bread was now a stretch to buy. She remembered going shopping for Kiona and most of the time she returned with only half of the things her master had asked for because she could not afford more.

And here these people sat, with enough food to feed the whole country twice over. She wanted to puke.

The tables were crowded with nobles from all around the country. Lords, ladies, knights, and even a large handful of Puhvalian nobles. She did not see any nobles who looked of Kirahn birth or Ahrimani pedigree. She had heard that all Kirahns were very tanned and spoke with an odd accent and the people of Ahriman were born with blue tattoos around their wrists. All of the Puhvalians had the tell-tale pale skin and slightly pointed ears of their people.

That sparked a question in her mind. Asuna's ears hadn't been pointed. Mentally she tucked that question away for later.

Konoka glided to the head of the center table and flicked her wrist at the chair just to the right of the head seat. Setsuna quickly pulled it out and Konoka flopped into it, boredom all over her face. Setsuna pushed the chair in and she and Brace stepped behind the head seat and clasped their hands behind their backs. So far, the king's seat stood empty. Setsuna caught sight of Kaede entering, now dressed in a tight black dress, and seating herself near the center of the middle table, between two Puhvalian nobles. As Kaede sat, Setsuna looked over her head and saw Iron, or Reed as he should now be called even though his collar remained firmly locked. He was standing with a large beefy man in a green chef's tunic. He looked riled up, almost expectant. She could see his eyes darting around the room and then back to the doors that led back into the Great Hall.

Setsuna wondered when he would get his collar removed.

She wondered when SHE would get her collar removed.

The doors opened. The entire royal guard filed in, in two lines. They surrounded the perimeter of the room, stopping ten feet to either side of Setsuna and Brace. As they cleared the doorway the king swept in.

His black hair looked like he had just gotten off a horse, though his flowing royal robes were clean and the shiniest silver she had ever seen. Behind his glasses, his brown eyes were narrowed and his lips were fixed in a sneer. She supposed he was a handsome man, but something about the way he regarded the room and its occupants sent a chill through her blood. His eyes halted on Konoka. She waggled her fingers at him and yawned very obviously. He grinned cruelly.

"Daddy's home, dear."