2 . 12 . 08

I'm updating in a rush today. I might correct some things later, and if I do, I'll be sure to let you know. I think it's right, however.


Faidn gritted his teeth and halted his steps half a pace from the door.

"Come on, Uncle Fai," Ceilear said impatiently, bouncing slightly on her heels.

I just have to get through the introduction and the royal dance, then I can go visit Rose and look for the book, and Lilliana. he told himself. He wished he'd had more time to look for the book before the ball. When he couldn't stand the sick room any longer, he'd started to look for the book, but he'd nearly been run over by a group of children who were all looking for someone. After a bit of fast talking – they'd apparently been instructed not to tell any of the guests what they were doing – he found out that they were looking for Lilliana.

He wondered briefly why Carvin hadn't sent someone to tell him himself, but when he realized what havoc a missing princess would cause on the tentative peace, he didn't let that thought bother him any more. Keep running your loops, Vin.

"Uncle Fai?"

"Yes, sweet," he said. "Wait a moment."

Faidn looked up and noticed that Abe was holding the door.

"Did you find anything this afternoon?"

"The princess is still missing," Abe said in a low voice, shaking his head. "I can't believe it."

"What about that book?" Faidn pressed.

"The book?" Abe said, face blank, then his eyes went wide. "Oh! A boy brought it to me an hour ago. I totally forgot; someone came up to me just after that thinking they might have found Lilliana."

"The book is very important," Faidn said insistently. "It's going to help Rose! Bring it to me as soon as you can get away."

"I will," Abe promised, then glanced inside. "Ah! Go on in before you're late."

Faidn walked into the ballroom hastily, mind spinning with the recent news. The book had been found! I should have had him give it to Gregory, he thought, too late to say anything. Oh well. If all goes well, Gregory and I will be leaving at the same time.

"General Faidn O'Neil escorting Princess Ceilear Tiroe," the announcer said. The room bowed as one.

Faidn led Ceilear to the dais where they joined the rest of the royal family. The orchestra picked up the tune they had been playing before the royals' entrance, and as it played, Faidn thought he heard a few people whispering Lilliana's name while looking around. Carvin and Nre were in for a long night.

They were both smiling, but Faidn could see that they were very worried. Carvin was probably worried about the Trule dignitaries, and Rose, and Faidn thought he looked somewhat mad as well, which was odd. Carvin hardly ever got mad. Faidn supposed the Lilliana might deserve it, though, for hiding at such a time as this.

Nre was probably worried about Rose, but more predominantly worried that her daughter had been consumed by a wild animal or something, which was hardly likely, as she'd only been missing for a few hours. Informing her of this would not allay her fears, however, so Faidn decided to stay out of her way instead.

No one was dancing yet – Alphonse and Marlita would start dancing first, followed by Carvin and Nre with Ceilear and Faidn, before the guests would join.

When the orchestra began a new song, a lively one, Alphonse and Marlita started to dance. Carvin nodded at Faidn, then he and Nre went onto the floor; Faidn took the hint and he led Ceilear out as well. They began to dance, Faidn guiding her subtly in case she got caught up in the excitement and twirled clean away, but she never did.

While they danced, Faidn looked around the room. He spotted the Trule dignitaries easily by their flashy uniforms of gold and royal blue. They were all looking at him. He stared right back at the most important looking one until the man looked away.

Vin wasn't kidding. These soldiers are paranoid.

The dance was over in a moment. Faidn bowed.

"Thank you for the honor, milady."

Ceilear smiled at him and curtsied majestically.

"It wath my pleathure, good General," she said seriously.

Faidn was opening his mouth to make some sort of excuse to the adorable blonde girl, but was saved the trouble when a young boy stepped up and asked her to dance. If his mind hadn't been otherwise engaged in finding the best door to leave by, he might have glared at the boy for a moment, to scare some sense into him.

As it was, he took advantage of that distraction by slipping back through the crowd and edging along the back wall.

"What a lovely eve—"

"—new dress?"

"Why, yes—"

"Lady Geraldine looks—"

"—Lilliana, do you think?"

"Probably feeling ill—"

"I hope this peace—"

"—Trule soldiers handsome—"

"Champagne?"

Faidn lifted his eyes from knee level – a safe place to rest them, he had learned – and found a server between him and the door.

"Sure, thanks," he said, not wanting to appear rude.

He took a glass of champagne and took a sip while the server moved on to someone else. It was good champagne, he decided, as he set it down. It would taste better if it wasn't being served at a ball. Almost there... the door was getting closer and closer. He glanced around the room and located his three targets.

Dignitary one: talking with Carvin.

Dignitary two: talking with Alphonse.

Dignitary three might be making his way toward him... Ah, no. He was dancing.

Excellent.

He put his hand on the door handle and started to pull it open, thanking the lucky stars for his easy escape.

"General!"

Faidn looked over his shoulder, cursing his misfortune, and saw Abe running toward him. Before he'd made it to Faidn, he tripped over someone's foot and smashed into a server, knocking the tray of champagne glasses out of the server's hands. There was a second of silence, then a resounding crash as both men and all the glass hit the ground. Faidn winced. The music stopped with a squeak, and the room grew quiet as everyone peered around, trying to locate the source of the clamor.

"I'm so sorry," Abe said, standing up and flushing with embarrassment.

Glass crunched under his feet and a steadily spreading puddle of champagne started reaching toward the nearest bystanders. Ladies scrambled back with cries of alarm. The Trule that had been dancing was eying the proceedings warily; he'd somehow made it to the front of the crowd.

"As you should be," the server said in a low voice that Faidn only just heard.

Abe looked fit to die on the spot. Faidn felt sorry for him, until Abe spotted him and scurried over, splashing in the puddle of champagne.

"Here's your book," Abe said, handing the book to Faidn.

Faidn took the book and put it inside his coat, painfully aware of what this would look like to the Trules: a book of strategy, a book with messages hidden in it, a book that detailed Trule's gory and unfortunate demise. He wanted to shake Abe until his teeth rattled, but, fairly, Abe had done nothing wrong. He was only doing what Faidn had asked.

I just didn't realize what a problem that would be.

"Get out of here," Faidn said in a low, tight voice. "You need to get cleaned up. And, try not to look suspicious."

Abe ducked out of the ballroom as fast as he could. The Trule dignitary closest to Faidn stared at him levelly, a stare that Faidn returned without flinching. Servants had already mopped up the mess, and the music soon began again. He scanned the room after a safe interval had passed and found Duchess Livington slipping through the crowd with astounding alacrity – in his direction. Only then did he remember her order to dance with fifteen ladies "of lighter beauty" before the night was out.

Bother her, Faidn said, in no mood to play the Duchess' games when he had the book that could save Rose being of no use whatsoever in his coat. However, he had no desire to confront the Duchess while he was trying to unobtrusively leave the ball. So, he looked around quickly.

"Blonde, blonde, blonde..." he muttered, then zeroed in on a short blonde lady an arm's length away. He stepped in her direction lightly. "Excuse me, my lady. Would you care to dance?"

The woman, who was in the middle of saying something, looked like she might make a rude remark, but then her eyes traveled over him and her face broke into a smile.

"Why, General O'Neil. What a pleasure."

She took his arm, and he led her to the dance floor in time for a slow dance. He looked over her shoulder and saw an appeased Duchess. He sighed in relief.

"What brings you out this way for the biggest ball in the country?" the lady asked.

"A favor for an old friend," he said, smiling.

How do the nobles do it? They're always smiling when they feel like yelling. I've only been doing it for a half-hour, and I already hate it.

"The prince?" the lady guessed, smiling.

"An old friend," Faidn repeated. "I'm sorry, I didn't catch your name."

"Lady Sophia," the woman said. "And I know you, of course. Everyone knows you. You look very fetching in that uniform, General."

"Your dress is... wonderful," he said after a brief pause, momentarily distracted by the fact that the three Trules were talking with each other.

He wasn't sure that was a good thing. How long do these dances last? It felt like the book was burning a hole in his coat. He could feel it bump his side with every turn.

"Thank you," she said with a wide smile.

The song ended soon after that, and when Faidn was sure no one was looking at him, he tried moving toward the door again. A Trule met him at the door as he started to open it.

"Going off to war council, General?" the man said under his breath.

The book weighed a thousand pounds in his coat. These Trules were very irritating.

"I just need a breath of air," Faidn said with a polite smile, pulling the door open.

"The room is stuffy," the man said, and stepped out with him.

After a minute of taut silence, they both returned to the room.

Plan one, failed. Plan two: give the book to Gregory. It looks like he'll be able to get out before I will. The dignitary lingered by his side for the length of another song before a Mollnian Prince saved Faidn by engaging the Trule in conversation. Faidn could have sworn the man tipped him a wink over the Trule's shoulder, and Faidn grinned.

He spotted Gregory not too far away and dove into the crowd once more. It's a battlefield, Fai. You're under cover, and you've got to get this message to the captain without being intercepted by the enemy generals.

He moved stealthily, sliding around groups of people and behind others, always careful to keep the Trules in his sights. None of them had spotted him yet. He reached the spot where Gregory had been a moment before, but the man was gone.

Where did he go?

He peered around the room, trying not to look too suspicious, and located Gregory slipping out the door. The man gave an apologetic wave and indicated that he should get out as soon as possible.

That's all well and good, Faidn thought with mounting frustration. I'll just skip out, and wave at the Trules as I go. Fantastic.

He saw Duchess Livington glaring at him again and expelled a sharp breath. As if the foreigners weren't enough, I've got people from Berensia moving against me. He started to search for a blonde, but blinked when he realized one had appeared right in front of him.

"Good evening, General."

"Ah, er, good evening," he said, more than a little caught-off-guard. Where did she come from? "Would you care to dance, milady...?"

"Lady Barbara. It would be an honor," the woman said, winding her arm around his.

They eased into the dance with minimal difficulty, Faidn looking around for an escape route. Whenever he began dancing toward a door, one of the dignitaries would move casually toward it as well, and nonchalantly push back his waistcoat to show the jeweled hilt of an ornamental knife. Faidn was having trouble keeping enough of his mind on the dance to avoid stepping on Barbara's feet.

"Are you alright, General? You look preoccupied," Barbara said. "Perhaps you'd like to take a breath of air on the terrace?"

"No, I'm alright. My mind is elsewhere tonight. I'm sorry," Faidn said, smiling at her as best he could.

She looked disappointed, though Faidn wasn't exactly sure why. When the dance was over, he returned to his surveying point at the back of the room. Plan two, failed. Plan three: ask a server to take the book to Gregory. He was starting to run out of ideas, but he wouldn't let himself think of that. There had to be a way to get the book to Gregory and help Rose, even if he had to draw his own ornamental sword and fight someone!

No, don't do that, he chastised himself. You've got to remember Carvin in this. He looked over at his friend who was dancing with Nre. They were both still smiling, but Carvin caught his eye and gave him an intense look. He was worried that Faidn was going to mess something up. Not an altogether invalid worry, Faidn had to allow.

He tapped a server on the shoulder, reaching into his pocket to give him the book, but a voice behind him made him pause.

"Are the servers messengers, too?"

The Trule that spoke walked up to his side and looked down on Faidn dangerously. It was the same one from earlier, taller than Faidn with a head of thick brown hair.

"I just wanted an appetizer," Faidn said, though they both knew it to be a lie.

He took an appetizer and chewed it without tasting it.

"Of course, General O'Neil," the man said, taking one as well.

Faidn took one more before the server walked away and took out all the fury he was feeling by chewing the devilled egg to a pulp. The Trule stuck close beside him as he wandered the ball floor, deferring any requests to talk with smooth excuses. Having the Trule so close grated on Faidn's fraying nerves. He couldn't so much as touch his coat without the Trule putting a hand on his knife.

And while I'm playing mind games with nobility, Rose could be dying, he thought angrily. While I have the thing that could help her!

In desperation, he turned to the Trule.

"If you'll excuse me, I must dance. My feet are itching for another turn about the floor," he said, smiling and using his most polite tone.

He bowed and turned away as the Trule began to speak, and found himself face to face with another blonde.

"Would you care to dance?" he said quickly.

"It would be an unparalleled pleasure," she said, beaming, and took his hand.

Faidn began to wonder if it was only coincidence that the Duchess' prescribed beauties were there whenever he needed them. As they danced, he located the Duchess. She looked smug as she smiled at him.

"What is your name, milady?" he asked the woman.

"Lady Virginia," she replied.

"Lady Virginia, tell me honestly; did Duchess Livington ask you to dance with me?"

"Duchess Livington?" she said, laughing. "That old bat? No, I don't talk to her if I don't have to. She's a bothersome old hen. Why would I take orders from her?"

"I don't know," he mused, but this situation was not nearly as urgent as the other, so he let it drop for the meantime.

Another idea occurred to him. The servant's entrance! Now, where is it... He looked over her shoulder while they circled slowly, watching for a server to seemingly disappear through a wall. Near the end of the dance, he finally found it. He was sure to exit the dance floor in the direction of the servant's door, trying not to attract any undue attention. The Trules were standing nearer the other two main doors, leaving that section of the wall unguarded.

Slowly, he backed toward it, nodding and smiling at any comments directed toward him.

"Hello, General!"

"It's wonderful to see you here, General."

"General! What a lovely surprise!"

"You should come to the balls more often, General."

"Won't you dance with my niece, General?"

He was about to politely decline, but he recognized the voice. He'd lifted his eyes without realizing it, and Duchess Livington took that as an affirmation.

"Splendid! Agathea, come here at once!"

"Duchess, I'd rather not dance at the moment," he said quickly, hoping to circumvent her proposal. "My feet are a bit tired. If it's all the same to you, I'd like to stand here a bit."

"It's not the same to me," the Duchess said. "You're a young thing. You can dance more than one dance in a row. I've been watching you, General. You've hardly danced all evening. Now, Agathea is a wonderful girl and a superb dancer."

A girl with strawberry blonde hair joined the Duchess, smiling nervously at Faidn's shoes.

"Duchess—"

"I'll not take no for an answer," the Duchess interrupted, putting Agathea's hand on Faidn's arm.

Faidn led the girl onto the floor, fuming at his close call. Agathea didn't say anything, which suited Faidn just fine. I hope the Trules didn't notice me over there. The Duchess has a voice that carries like a trumpet. He located the Trules one at a time while they danced, and was seething when he saw that one had gone to stand by the servant's entrance.

When the song was over, he gave Agathea back to the Duchess, and she immediately handed him another blonde. The book, completely useless, stayed in his coat pocket. He hardly looked at the woman he was dancing with. When that dance was over, he noticed the decorations: roses. There were roses everywhere.

He could have screamed.


Mazkeraide: Clearly. --stifled grin-- Read herself out of the book? Like Inkheart? Interesting.

Warriorette: I suppose you shall see, won't you? --grin--

Bingo7: YAY! You reviewed! Ah, yes, missing pages... those wouldn't be good, would they?

Forever Dreaming: Good job; you caught that. --smile-- Oh, sorry. I didn't mean to keep you up at night...

EVA: Huzzah! I love your wise insights! Oh, very good thoughts about the timing of the Aside. I'd have to personally support your latter guess. As for Faidn... I shall have to let your own observation be your answer. Enigma and lone ranger are both wonderful terms to describe him. I might have to use those. Oh, good catch on Derwin's words. Excellent. Hide and seek is fantastic. What a lovely game.

Reviewers get a roll of Lifesavers. Speculators, the gummy variety. Mmm.