The ballroom was decorated in a largely red theme, with chamomiles placed tastefully around the room. Arthur himself wore a suit a rich brown in color, though it had red accents. He knew a fair amount of Russian from Leka, though with all the last-minute studying he'd put in last night, he was confident he could speak fluently. Well, mostly confident.

The Selected were set to arrive just ten minutes before the Russian Federation, and from the way the camera crew had finished setting up, they would be entering any minute now.

Arthur turned to Aleksandr, who stood dutifully behind him as always. His father, in a rare case of a well-rested good mood, believed it would boost their image if Leka was around with good words. Of course, that was if they got him to talk.

"So, you're the expert here. What do you think?" He swept an arm out, gesturing to the entirety of the room.

Leka looked around, his even expression unchanging as always. "It will please them." Arthur nodded, straightening his posture (he'd always been told he had horrible posture) as the thirty-five girls came in.

They all looked stunning in their long dresses, many styled off of traditional Russian clothing. Everyone was dressed rather warmly for June, though that was more of a courtesy to the Russians than anything else. But it was seeing such a large group that Arthur realized he'd have to start eliminating them soon. He barely knew them well enough to make such a decision properly, and just the thought of it made him agitated. He wished he didn't have to deal with this.

Nonetheless, ten minutes passed quickly, and King Nicholas plastered on a smile, stepping forward as the door opened to greet the Russian Federation. Their president Braginski and his wife and two children were among those present, the President shaking the King's hand. Several cameras flashed, and everyone began moving into the room, intermingling with those already there.

Arthur smiled, speaking with several important officials, including Mrs. Braginski. Kira got along well with the elder child, a young man named Artur. He could spot Edmund hiding a book in a corner, Leka speaking with the King and the President, and Kyousuke standing guard by the door. Viktoriya Braginski was running about, dragging around a few of the Selected into her games.

Lady Sasha stood in one corner, quietly keeping her head down. Even Lady Elizabeth had found someone to speak to, Lady Astra and a few others hanging out in a comfortable silence by the buffet table. Noticing the blonde girl apart from the crowd, Arthur made his way over, greeting her politely.

"Lady Sasha, how do you like the evening so far?" She looked up at him, the heavy makeup from before gone, replaced now by a more natural look. Her hair fell loosely about her shoulders, a blue off-the-shoulder dress fitted at her waist. The floor-length skirt fell about her in a light, elegant way, accenting her model figure despite the somewhat heavy fabric that paid courtesy to the Russians.

She smiled politely at him, spoke quietly. "It's alright."

Arthur smiled, but he wanted to get more from her, open up her shell a little. "What do you like to do? You don't seem to be much of a party person."

She shrugged, but realizing she needed to speak, eventually answered. "I like being outdoors, and reading."

"Reading, huh? Then I'll have to show you the library sometime. I know Ed could show you where to find the books you want."

Lady Sasha brightened at his words, nodding more eagerly than she had before. "I would love that, Your Highness."

"No need to be so formal." He smiled, though upon hearing his name being called, bid Lady Sasha farewell and moved to answer it.

The one calling his name was Lady Darla, her thick lashes batting at him playfully. He smiled politely, making his way over to where the young woman was speaking with a tall Russian woman.

"Prince Arthur," she spoke in fluent Russian, surprising Arthur so much it took him a moment to mentally translate the words. "You have to meet Ms. Franzeska. She's a German ambassador that's living in Russia at the moment."

"Ah," he replied, smiling politely at the tall—and somewhat intimidating, if he was being honest—woman standing with perfect posture before him. "That's quite the accomplishment. Well, it's a pleasure to meet you ma'am. My name is Arthur Schreave, the eldest son."

The woman nodded, speaking in thickly accented English. "It is my pleasure, your Highness."

They spoke briefly, Darla perhaps getting a little more comfortable than he'd like, from the way she clutched at his arm. Disentangling himself from her grip, he bid farewell to Ms. Franzeska and Lady Darla, slipping back into the crowd.

He spotted Lady Lucila standing in one corner, eyebrows rising as she jumped when one of the President's bodyguards passed by. He was an unnaturally large guy, nearly seven feet, with a balding head and a stern glare, so Arthur couldn't blame the girl.

Her strawberry-blonde hair had been trimmed, and she didn't stoop as much, her feet clad in elegant silver heels. Her dress was floor-length, short-sleeved, though accompanied by a shimmery, see-through shawl that gave her a more elegant look.

"Lady Lucila, how are you?" She jumped again, turning to him before looking down just as quickly.

"I-I-I'm o-okay. Th-Thank you fo-for a-asking, Prince A-Ar-Arthur!" She replied, stuttering, her face a very noticeable red.

Arthur's expression softened. "There's no need to be so formal. And I'm glad you're doing alright. Tell me, are you enjoying the party so far?" She nodded quietly, and it took him a moment to think of something to get her to speak up more. "I've heard you're trying to be a writer, yes?" Another nod. "What kind of books do you like?"

She seemed to relax marginally, though she still trembled in her stance. "I-I l-like l-lo-love st-stories and m-mystery n-nov-vels." She replied, and Arthur's smile widened.

"Edmund's a closet mystery fan, and Kira rather likes romance herself, though it's usually comics rather than actual novels. But I'm sure you could get along quite well with the two of them." Lady Lucila relaxed just a bit more, and Arthur mentally applauded himself. He was getting better at this whole Selection thing.

"B-But wh-what a-ab-about y-you?" Her forward statement—at least, for her—startled him. "Wh-What d-do y-you like, P-Pri-Prince A-Arthur?" She ducked her head as soon as she said it, seeming embarrassed.

He gave her a reassuring smile. "I don't get to read much, but I rather like history books. Occasionally I'll read sci-fi as well."

They were interrupted by King Nicholas, who quieted the large hall down almost immediately. He raised a glass of vodka, looking more than a little bit drunk. An equally buzzed President Braginski stood next to him, swinging a half-filled (or half-empty, depending on how you looked at it) glass of alcohol side-to-side.

"I want to make a toast!" The King shouted, and Arthur gave a quiet farewell to Lady Lucila before weaving through the different groups of people, picking up a glass of champagne for himself. "To the Russian Federation, for joining us this night," he nodded, his glass raised in the president's direction, "And to my son's future wife!" Everyone cheered, though Arthur couldn't help but notice how his father purposely left out Terrence's participation.

He frowned at the man, but plastered on a smile, raising his own glass as everyone turned to him. That was fine. He could play along for now.

So, almost three hours waiting for my computer to restart. It likes to do this thing where it restarts to update stuff but then it "fails to configure windows" and it doesn't go back for hours unless I shut it down like three times. Also, another two hours freeing up space. On that note, my disk space is like completely full and I've deleted a lot of stuff, but that doesn't seem to have done much. Anyone have any suggestions?