Chapter 26

"Madam, you look radiant," a maid gushed as her princess fixed a small flower in her hair to perfection. "You will once again be the most beautiful woman there."

"Of course, I don't spend all my time into becoming perfect to come in second place," the princess replied with a smirk. "Fetch the gold and sapphire tiara."

The maid bowed and scurried off to fetch the requested item. The princess traced her face with the tips of her fingers. She couldn't stop from admiring herself in the reflection of the mirror. Flawless ivory skin without a freckle or scar, eyes that were a rare shade and had, as many of her admirers purred, a deep mystery in them.

Smoothing her eyebrows, she drew a fingertip down the line of her nose, and then gently touched her lips. They could be soft and hard, kissable and cursable, pleasuring and painful and it was all her.

The maid returned and put the requested piece of jewelry in its proper place. The sapphire stones sparkled like stars at midnight set in a heavy weave of gold so elegantly crafted to hold and display the gems.

"Your highness, if I may be so bold as to ask…"

The princess flipped her hand back and forth as an answer, showing she couldn't care less about whatever a simple minded servant could think of to question.

"Why not wear the country's colors? Why this one?"

"Because, I'm not one who wishes to be forgotten so easily," she picked up one of the many perfume bottles and began to lightly spray its fragrance on her neck and chest. "I'm representing the past tonight. I do hope he won't think me presumptuous by wearing Fanelia's crest colors."

She laughed lightly at her private joke.

"Why?" the maid queried, then quickly stepped back when her mistress stiffened.

"Because he broke my heart," the princess pouted. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a ball at which to be radiant."

"Are you nervous?" Van's attendant asked, tying his cravat with trembling fingers. "I would be your majesty."

"This happens every year," Van replied dully.

"True, but it's the Queen's first time. She will be swamped with many people, don't you think?" The servant brushed Van's coat free of debris and stepped back to make sure there wasn't a thread or piece of dust on the King.

"I'll be by her side," Van replied quietly, looking at himself in the mirror. He was without gloves neither a formal pair nor his everyday leather pair, and on his left hand was his wedding ring. It was the strangest thing to see sitting on his person.

Dryden tipped his scruffy chin up in the air, "I don't understand why everyone seems to be throwing fits whether or not you are going to attend."

"News travels fast," Millerna explained, powdering her face. "Bad news travels even faster."

"I never understood the purpose of these things. Everybody gets dressed up, puts on smiles, and throws darts at everyone else once their backs are turned. The clothes are uncomfortable and pinch in places clothes shouldn't." Dryden had been on a pessimistic rant about balls in general since they had arrived in Fanelia two days prior. It wasn't his normal flare, but once he tried on his tightly tailored clothing, the words were spat out underneath his breath.

"Not everyone hates these gatherings. I think they can be so much fun."

He gave her a rather dry look that she saw in her mirror.

Yes, what fun to tear the weak apart limb from limb."

"You make us sound like vultures."

"Impossible. Vultures at least are comfortable in their feathers."

Millerna smiled at her husband's insaneness and traced her lips carefully. Being late, no matter what the reason, was just not done in her book of etiquette.

She fluffed her hair a bit more, and then combed it down. Armand had insisted she needed to make her hair 'big' in order for her not to look like a little girl playing dress up in mommy's clothes. The crown, too, was rather expensive and needed to basically be nailed to her head.

One hour, just one hour. Hitomi's mind was racing, she was subjected to tea parties, large and long dinners with people she didn't know and half of them she would never care to know. Already in the dress Armand had chosen for her, the same one that wouldn't allow for any extra snacks or allowed her to breathe comfortably. The knight insisted it would look fine as he shoved it into her hands and a quick retreat.

Rai laced up the blonde's bodice and sleeves. Hitomi fidgetted violently and causing her hands to be slapped several times for doing so.

"You'll mess up your lovely nails, milady," was all Rai said before attempting to make Hitomi look like a Queen.

"Where is Van?"

"In the dressing room across the hall, he'll be the one to escort you into the assembly tonight. Oh! What a lovely pair you two will make! His dark colors against your light ones, like night and day." The old maid had been a constant fountain of flattery all day, trying to calm Hitmoi's nerves.

"I'll go and tell Armand to fetch your crown." She gave a short curtsey and left the room.

Hitomi thought she appeared to be a blonde peacock with her hair here and there, but mostly straight up. She didn't look dignified; she looked like someone had just given her a heart stopping scare.

She had always been more of a tomboy, and now here she was dressed to the highest fashion Fanelia had to offer. To her, the dress was a rather daring change in fashion, not belling out like most dresses, but it kept rather well to her figure throughout the legs with a small flow to it in the back. It probably would have belled with the proper underskirts, but the dress maker nearly choked on his tongue when she suggested it.

"I look like a nightmare wrapped in an expensive cloth," she twisted her face and crossed her arms.

"You are radiant, your majesty," Armand's voice snapped her out of her self-analyzing to turned to see her faithful knight standing stock still in the doorway.

"A compliment? From you?" Hitomi noted he was dressed in formal military attire. His clothes were crisp and free from wrinkles and his hair was smooth and lay against his back in a chestnut waterfall. In his hands was a small pillow with a gorgeous, sparkling crown sitting on top.

"I was told, most emphatically, to be on my best behavior," he gave his cocky grin. "But as soon as the guests are gone, the kid gloves come off." Without another word, he walked behind her and told her to sit still. With skillful hands he tamed her hair while he placed the noble head wear.

A couple handfuls of pins to secure the pricey piece, and Armand declared her ready, or as ready as she could be on time. Offering his hand, the Queen stood up and lifted her chin; the weight of the crown wasn't as unbearable as she first thought.

Standing in front of the full length mirror, she turned this way and that, the gown shimmering like water.

"Are you sure this will be-," what was the word they kept drilling into her head, "dignified enough?"

"Only the dead are dignified," Armand rolled his eyes. He bowed low, "I'll tell the king you are ready."

Shutting the bedroom door behind him, he shook his head, closed his eyes and went to the door across the hall. Blindly groping for the handle, he found it and twisted the door open. Shucking off his thoughts, the knight straightened his shoulders, and marched into the room.

The king lounged in one of the chairs, his chin rested on one of his hands. There was a distant look in his eyes as he gazed at the fire.

"Your majesty," Armand began, "her highness is ready to decorate your arm and charm away your enemies." He was dying to add, 'as long as she doesn't talk.'

Van's shifted his gaze to the knight before back to the fire, but he nodded that he heard.

Armand clenched his fists tightly, trying to extract the will to say what he had wanted to say for a few days now.

"May I have a word with you, milord?"

That caught Van's attention enough to turn his face to the knight.

"I've been meaning to ask this for some time," Armand's eyebrows twitched. It took all the training to not wring his hands in nervous habit. "I would like to request to be reassigned."

"What?" Van was more and more intrigued. "Why?"

"Because I feel that I have taught her everything I am able to teach her," Armand reigned in his voice and his tenseness. "I believe, perhaps, she should be allowed to select ladies in waiting to attend to her, someone she would feel comfortable to confide in. Women have a silly need to talk to each other until one is either deaf or hoarse." He fought down a grin, "Or a man is driven insane with their clucking."

Van watched the knight intently and was silent for a few minutes; Armand seemed tense as he stood like a statue. The king gave a small smile.

"I won't reassign you, Sir DeCri," Van smoothly climbed to his feet, straitened his coat tails, and walked to the knight. "The Queen trusts you, relies on you, and I believe she views you as a friend if nothing else." Van put his hand on the knight's shoulder. "I can't take the security of your presence away from her."

"I don't think—" with a squeeze from Van's hand, the knight fell silent.

"Don't worry; you are doing a wonderful job."

The king walked toward the door, removing his hand from the knight's shoulder as he did so. Once the door snapped shut, Armand heaved a sigh of disappointment.

Van rearranged his neck bindings, not happy with being stuck in his formal attire for what felt like the millionth time in a week. The coat wasn't the problem, though he preferred sleeveless shirts, nor was it the pants, though he liked them to be loose fitting. It was always the neck! The very enclosed neck drove him mad.

When it was close enough to the time for them to make their entrance, Van knocked on the door, signaling Hitomi to come. When the door opened, she poked her head through the crack and gave an unsure smile. As she came through the door, it shut behind her, but Van's mouth hung open.

He had to give the tailor a raise.

The dress alone might be remarkable, but on her it looked absolutely stunning.

She fidgeted with her fingers, her ring, and bracelets, letting her uneasiness show. The wolves he called allies would pounce upon it in a heartbeat, but for once he didn't want to correct her. She was still human, something a lot of the royalty lost over their years.

Numbly he offered his arm to her, which she accepted gratefully. Two butlers waited for them at the top of the stairs, then followed the couple three steps in behind, ready to jog ahead to open any door, and finally to announce the royal couple when they made their entrance.

"Don't be nervous," Van reassured, "They're just people."

"Very influential people with egos that must be fed properly," Hitomi replied, wanting desperately to bite her fingernails. Her stomach, which was relocated in her feet, shrunk to the size of a child's tear. She didn't want to embarrass him or Fanelia. After spending so much time learning about the laws, customs, and past of the country; all the knowledge made her fall in love with it more.

They arrived in the hallway leading down to the stairs that went into the ballroom. The horns started to blare as Van gracefully walked her straight for the huge double doors.

"Why they have to play so loud, I'll never understand!" One lady crooned on. "It's just a waste of good air, that's all it was!" The lady happened to be a rather powerful duchess in some country to the south of Fanelia.

Hitomi nodded her head and gripped her wine glass tighter. She listened to this woman for about ten minutes so far and who knew how long this was going to go on. As much as she hated to be disrespectful, she kept eyeing Van who had his back to her as he chatted with other guests.

"AND! Can you imagine that dreadful girl coming back here! Oh! The humanity of it all!" The old woman snapped her fan open and began to fan herself "simply distasteful manners!"

"Who?" Hitomi asked, sad to say she was suddenly interested.

The woman leaned closer to the younger set of ears so eager to hear her. Holding up the fan to cover her mouth as she continued her rant in a lower voice, "I saw the impotent hussy. Dressed like she owned the place! I had the great unhappiness of making her acquaintance while in town. You know this kingdom has the most interesting jewelry."

"Does this lady have a name?"

"Why yes dear, she said her name was Leiko, the sister of the Queen."

Hitomi's blood fainted in her veins. Her older sister—wait—did she say she was here? How! The security had been tightened to the point of frisking the guests every time they went into another room. Well, fine, not quite that dramatic, but it was still very tight.

"I see. I'll do something about this," Hitomi started to leave and the woman tagged on another word of advice that Leiko was looking for her lover, the knight.

This was far from good. This was so far from good that good appeared to only be a mere star in the sky it was that far from it. There were throngs of people chattering, dancing, drinking every drop of liquor in the palace, and still others who were all too happily enjoying the buffet.

Leiko was prone to making an idiot out of herself by flirting or by simply not taking 'no' as an answer.

As Hitomi hurried past a small group of people, one of them turned to watch as she fled. Smiling, the woman excused herself from the group and eyed her target.

A smirk covered her painted lips as she made her way toward the man she kept a steady eye on the entire night. With no girl in her way, she was free to attack at her own leisure.

"Sir Armand," came a purr of a woman's voice, causing the knight to jump. Turning, he felt his stomach sicken, but he kept a rather happy smile on his face. "How long has it been?"

"Too long," he bowed low. "And yet it never seems long enough," he added bitingly.

"Your wit never ceases to raise the question of your breeding." The princess gave her winning smile. "And I never cease to remember how low it is." She circled him, raking her eyes thoroughly across his body from boots to brunette locks.

"Your words are like that of a toothless dog," Armand smirked. "Always trying to make its mark but coming up lacking. I suspect it must reflect in most areas of your life."

"You say mean things, but I know the truth." She reached up to touch him but he jerked away quickly. "And, if keep speaking of me with such sour words, you'll give me a bad name."

"I already have a bad name for you, princess," he paused, "I must say," Armand said stiffly. "You have chosen an interesting ensemble to wear here tonight— especially the jewels."

"It was a gift," she smiled sweetly, but it didn't work on him. He knew too well the rottenness that made her core. "An engagement gift from your king if memory serves me correctly."

"Why wear tainted goods?"

"Because some things are meant to be seen, no matter how tainted." She pulled away from him, eager to melt back into the crowd. "And I'm sure the Queen would be deathly interested in such a token of affection from her husband."

Before he could reach out, grab her, or call to her, the dancers nearby dispersed and she sunk back into the crowd.

"Damn." He thought just once she would allow him to enjoy the ball, but no. The harpy had to get in the way and swoop down upon the innocent couple. There was something in the back of his mind that told him he should sit this one out and allow whatever to happen, happen.

However, the larger, nobler side of him yanked on his chivalry cord and sent him into action. She was headed for the Queen, that little strumpet couldn't be too hidden with all the puffy dresses.

"…it must be very refreshing to escape war by chance." The King of Aiame, Grue, was direct with his compliments and thoughts. Van was too used to the brutal honesty and didn't flinch at the barb.

"We did not escape war, sir," Van made sure he kept steady eye contact with his rival. To avoid eye contact would imply there was some guilt in his words, but Van knew he had done nothing so he could look the man in the eye. "Asutria or Freid never declared any such intensions and Fanelia did nothing to warrant war nor do we wish it."

The old man let out a rather loud 'humph' and excused himself.

The prince of Aiame witnessed, rather nervously, the tit for tat, and turned to Van at his father's departure.

"I-I pray y-y-you forgive my father's s-sour words," the stuttering teenager willed out. "B-but if you had he-heard what the am-m-mbassadors said, you would understand w-why Asturia was al-almost convinced."

"Ambassadors?" Van inquired, though the answer might take a while, it was still one he was desperate to hear. "From which country? What did they say?"

"I-I w-wasn't told where they were f-from," The prince admitted, shamefully. "I h-had arrived l-late a-at the great hall, b-but I did hear them sp-speak most ill of y-y-your fair country, King Va-Van."

This was not good.

"Why are you staying around me?" Hitomi asked for the tenth time as Armand bumped into her from behind again, after she made a sudden stop. "Don't you have a woman to seduce?"

"The last time I fixed your bodice, my button caught so try to act natural," Armand replied dryly.

She rolled her eyes at his blatant lie, though he couldn't see it. She spent the last hour trying to hunt down her ever elusive sister. Sometimes she heard a laugh and went running in one direction then she heard it again in a completely different area. It was driving her mad.

After that, Armand popped out from behind a pillar and never left her side since. He wouldn't tell her why and she didn't feel the need to inform him her sister was lurking about.

Armand's eyes shifted from one side of the room to the other with a predator's gaze. She was somewhere, wanting Hitomi to be left alone for some reason. If she was the one who whispered that poison into the Queen's ear about the King being a dishonorable man, he had yet another solid reason to daydream of her being clawed to disfigurement by ravens. Honestly, the thought of King Van being a womanizer, it was positively side-splitting.

The unwanted princess gave herself away by mentioning her objective, a voice stated darkly in his mind. Then it hit him.

"Damn it!" Armand cursed out loud. It caught more than just Hitomi's attention. Grabbing her arm roughly, he dragged them toward where Van had been occupied most of the night. She was too clever for that! That creature was always manipulating things with her actions and words. She wasn't after Hitomi at all!

She wanted him to believe so Armand would stay away from her true objective, Van.

"What is wrong with you?" Hitomi hissed, trying to tug her wrist from under Armand's grip. "You're making us look ridiculous!" she seethed and just as she was about to pull his hair to get his attention, he stopped dead in his tracks.

"It's her," Armand breathed out, feeling the prickles of his hair standing on end.

"Her?" Hitomi asked and peeked around the knight. Her eyes locked on the blonde woman who was shamelessly draping herself across Van's arm. He gave no inclination of interest as his stiffness increased. A surge of jealousy excited her.

"Who is she?" The Queen inquired, stepping forward to stand side by side to the knight.

"His lordship's ex-fiancée, I'm afraid."

The air caught in Hitomi's throat as she watched the pair. Van looked more solid than a statue as the girl seemed to be everywhere, like wind. That was her? That was the woman responsible for so much unhappiness? The jealousy was spiced up with contempt and side dished with a serious dislike of the woman.

"She's a princess, right?"

"Yes."

"What's her name?" Hitomi's eyes twitched as the girl leaned dangerously close to Van's ear. "What country?"

"Princess Serena of Zaibach."