Night Six

Edward's night started off with ten infuriating words:

"Excuse me, but I believe you are in my seat."

Edward turned from his survey of the crowd to be met with an obviously wealthy young woman standing across from him. Her chin was held in a haughty manner, her brown hair falling in ringlets around slender shoulders, the jewels dripping from her neck, ears, wrists, and fingers glittering in the chandelier light. Her mask was a light blue and etched in gold, accentuating the deep brown of her eyes and complementing the extravagance of her similar-colored gown. The attention-stealer, however, was the silver and gold coronet that rested atop her head, signifying her status as royal.

There was only one royal left that Edward had yet to meet, and she already seemed to be a handful.

"Princess Rachel, I presume?"

"You presume correctly," she said with a smirk, canting her head. "Now, my seat."

"You could have any seat at the table you desired, why mine?"

"Because I can."

A power play, plain and simple. From the corner of his eye, Edward could see Tanya fanning herself with her ostrich-feather fan, looking rather pleased, and he had no doubt that she was somehow involved with this display. Returning his focus to the princess, Edward really took her in, instantaneously hating everything she represented. She stood in stark contrast to everything Volterra was. While she was rolling in riches, shitting on those below her, his people squandered and suffered for their evening meals. If his people could only see her now...they would tear her limb from opulent limb.

Hatred would get him nowhere. Edward only smiled his false, calculating smile and bowed bowed his head. "What the lady wants, the lady gets."

The princess hummed appreciatively, stepping around so she could claim the spot as her own. Edward even went as far as to pull out the chair, putting on a show as the perfect gentleman. Her skirts billowed as she sat, the cerulean material engulfing her in a cloud of lace and silk. It was ridiculous, but the princess held her head high, as everything she did was purposeful and perfect.

Once their roles were reversed and he was the one standing on the other side of the table, the princess fixed him with her dark, curious eyes.

"The rumor around here is that you're quite the cad."

He quirked his lips, having no doubt where - or more accurately who - that rumor came from. "Is that so?"

"Indeed," she sighed dramatically. "Lady Clearwater and Lady Denali have made it their mission to smear your name as some kind of unscrupulous Casanova."

Edward fought the urge to laugh at the ridiculousness of it all. "And what do you think?"

"Truth be told, I am not sure. I love Tanya dearly, but she has always been overdramatic, and while there is certainly something in you to lust after, I do not see you as the frivolous type. There's something in your eyes, a drive that I doubt would be a hospitable environment to foster something as trivial as fleeting desire."

For a moment, Edward had to reassess his previous assumptions about Princess Rachel. She had not known him more than a few minutes, and yet was already delving too far into his person. Perhaps she was more perceptive than he gave her credit. She was certainly more shrewd than her entitled first impression, eyes scouring the dance floor for someone in particular.

"Your friend, however...he intrigues me."

"Jasper?" Edward asked, surprised. He was not a vain man, but someone finding Jasper more attractive than Edward hurt the latter man's pride more than a little bit.

"Yes..." she said, eyes tearing themselves from studying her nails to pin Edward where he stood. "What are his intentions with my dear brother's wife?"

"What do you think his intentions are?" Edward turned the conversation back to her, intrigued by the way the princess' eyes darkened and her lips pursed into a frown.

"It is no secret that I do not particularly care for Isabella," Princess Rachel said flippantly, smoothing down her skirts as she stirred in her seat. "I always thought she was too lowly, too impersonal, too dispassionate. My brother always deserved someone who would cherish and support him as any king entitled, and instead he spends his days pining after that stick in the mud, showering her with gifts and riches and titles. And this is how she repays his kindness? By violating her marriage vows and whoring around with the first man who shows her attention? It's disgusting, and if I can get my brother to see Isabella as the ungrateful hussy that she is, perhaps he can finally start to move on with his life."

This was...a lot to process. There was a whole arsenal of blackmail and information lurking under the seething exterior of the obnoxious princess. He had only just scratched this surface, and if he played his cards right, he could have Rachel opening up to him by the end of the night. However, her tirade had something nagging in the back of his head, drawing recognition on what was missing before his very eyes.

"Where even are the king and queen tonight?"

Edward was so accustomed to blocking out the king's abrasive, excessive jubilation that he hardly realized that it was missing entirely until Princess Rachel started ranting about the royals. Now, as he scanned the crowd, he noticed that their royal majesties were nowhere in sight. He scolded himself repeatedly for the oversight. When had he allowed himself to become so distracted?

More importantly, why had the royals yet to show their faces to their own ball?

"Rumor has it that they are in the process of making an heir."

It was Tanya Denali who delivered the news, swooping in with all the grace and elegance of a vulture. Edward fought the urge to roll his eyes, only the worry about what this meant for Jasper's seduction plan winning out as the dominant thought. Sure enough, he found the blond leaning up against a pillar on the mezzanine, scowling into his glass of something that Edward was certain was stronger than wine. This was not good, and Edward knew what his partner was thinking. Every night lost set them back exponentially, and the masquerade was nearly half was over.

"There's a lot of those going around tonight," Edward muttered darkly, trying not to sound too moody or disappointed. He couldn't help it. All he could focus on was the hell Jasper was going to give him once they made their way back to their apartment in the morning.

"Yes, but this one is true," Tanya Denali sighed, stirring her goblet of wine, watching the red slosh around as if it were the most interesting thing in the world. "Queen Isabella all but shouted her intentions at tea this afternoon."

"She announced it right before she ran from the table as if the hedges were on fire. Probably the first bouts of morning sickness, but when the king is your lover, best to keep trying just in case," Irina Denali barged in with Catherine on her heels, already tipsy and far too forward. Tanya giggled and shushed her sisters, the three of them erupting into their own circle of gossip few feet away.

"I suppose that puts a damper on your plans to rid her from your life, my lady," Edward said to Princess Rachel, noticing the scowl that warped her stupidly lovely face.

"Perhaps," Princess Rachel shrugged, drinking more from her goblet than considered proper. "But I shall not believe this heir business until I hold the babe in my own arms. It has taken Isabella nearly a decade to even grant my brother access to her bed; I hold little hope for a fruitful marriage, rumor or not."

"So cynical, my lady," Edward chided, shaking his head.

"Not cynical. Just protective of what is mine."

Edward could sympathize with that. In fact, he respected it. He decided, in that moment, that he was entirely wrong about Princess Rachel, and that they could be great allies. Well, allies in the sense that he used her as a means to an end, but she did not have to know that. Besides, she was far better company than Tanya, and an infinite spring of useful information.

"Princess, I would not worry," Edward assured her, reaching out to pat Rachel's hand to which she surprisingly did not pull away. "I have a feeling that this will all be over very soon."