"Your Majesty."
Lieutenant Gao signaled for Bolin and Tingzhe to take a walk. The pair broke off to make a sweep of the courtyard. Qiyin hung back slightly as the emperor approached the engineer. The androgynous ensemble suited Margot Fontaine.
"Ms. Fontaine, how fortunate we should both be late to the party. I was just thinking about our promised chat. I hope the offer hasn't expired," His Lordship said.
Margot narrowed her eyes at the emperor. The redhead lit a fresh cigarette off the spent one. She took a drag, held the smoke in her lungs, and let it out slowly.
"You've got 'til I finish this," Margot flicked off the ash.
The emperor paused, folded his arms across his chest.
"Have I done something to offend you, Ms. Fontaine?"
Margot fixed his liege with a stare.
"I don't like you," she stated.
His Majesty looked at Qiyin then back at Ms. Fontaine.
"Pardon me?"
Margot exhaled smoke.
A smoldering dragon in the guise of a woman.
"You heard me."
"I can't see any reason why," Ling said.
"I'm not buying this prince charming routine," Margot replied.
"Ah. Actually, you mean "emperor" charming. A common mistake. It's my boyish good looks."
Ling Yao had to get cheeky.
Rookie mistake.
Lieutenant Gao held back a sigh.
He never learns.
"I don't like the effect you have on Lan Fan. You go looking for her and the next thing I know she's spends three days acting like a bird with a broken wing. It happens again you'll be dealing with me."
"I believe there's been a misunderstanding."
"I don't wanna hear it," Margot flicked the remains of her cigarette at the emperor's feet. His Lordship hopped clear of the cinders. Qiyin step forward to subdue the woman The emperor halted him with a sweep of his arm. The bodyguard crossed his arms in a show of disapproval. How Commander Liu put up with Ling Yao's stubbornness he didn't know.
Probably something to do with love.
"I implore you not to upset my guards. They're frighteningly well trained," Ling said.
His Majesty was correct on that count.
Lan Fan Liu commanded respect. From the very start she took more shifts than any of them. It took him several weeks to realize the commander had trouble sleeping. He recognized that haunted look of hers. Nightmares. She didn't speak of them. Instead she joined him on his watches. The nearness of His Highness eased the young woman's nerves. He noticed it in her breathing and the tension in her graceful form.
Sometimes Qiyin caught Lan Fan with a song in her step. Ms. Rosseau was right about Lady Liu. The commander was a dancer at heart. It wasn't any wonder why her father adored her.
She once asked if he'd disobey an order from His Imperial Majesty if it meant keeping him safe.
Qiyin knew what she was asking.
Feng had said it a thousand times if he said it once.
'The people are lost without their king,' he'd answered.
She appointed him her second-in-command that day.
As a novice guard Qiyin Gao idolized Feng Liu. The man was everything Qiyin wished to be. Feng seemed invincible until the day he died. When Qiyin heard Liu's daughter gave her arm for the prince he knew she was the same caliber as her father.
Serving alongside Feng's legacy was nothing short of a privilege.
"I can't argue with any of that," Ling concluded.
The emperor looked to him. "Can you?"
"No, Your Eminence."
"That's settled then."
Ms. Fontaine gawked at them.
"May I see you inside, Ms. Fontaine? You'll catch your death in this weather."
The dragon appraised the emperor like a gemstone.
His Lordship offered his arm and she took it.
At last the Emperor of Xing proceeded into the Hall of Serenity.
Lan Fan and Edward decided to be wallflowers together. The bodyguard and alchemist planted themselves behind a pillar in close proximity to the wall.
"So what is the deal with you showing up all dolled up?" Ed inquired.
Lan Fan spared Edward a glance.
"His Eminence is having a jest," Lan Fan replied.
She felt a bit tingly from the amaretto and champagne. Drinking on duty was an egregious offense. Someone should report her to the commander.
Lan Fan giggled because she was the Commander.
"What?" Ed asked.
A smile spread across his face. Edward Elric had a daring smile. She loved that sort of smile. Ling had one just like it. The world hummed at the edge of her senses. Lan Fan needed a glass of water.
"I'm parched," she said aloud.
"Wait here," Ed commanded. He walked away then turned on his heel to look at her. Walking backwards he asked, "Punch or water?"
"Water."
Edward mock saluted as he spun forward. His golden hair whipped around behind him the way a breeze flirted with a scarf. The emperor had such beautiful hair. The wind cajoled Ling's inky hair. Commander Lan Fan Liu took a measured breath. She shook her head to clear it.
Focus.
Lan Fan stepped into the shadow of the pillar to peer out at the crowd. She spotted Hawkeye at the bar. The captain looked sophisticated in a sapphire evening dress. Lan Fan didn't let her gaze linger. Her eyes swept over a group of guests engrossed in conversation then whipped back. The Ninth Prince Junjie Zhang and Commander Lan Fan Liu locked eyes.
Surprise and delight flickered across his features.
He looked like the cat who got the canary.
"If it isn't the watchdog herself," someone lilted behind her.
"How good of His Majesty to invite the help," echoed another.
Lan Fan tore her eyes away from Lord Zhang to cut a glance over her shoulder.
Bao and Bai Tien wore identical looks of mockery.
"For a moment I thought you were that parvenu mother of yours," one of the twins tittered.
Lan Fan couldn't tell them apart. The Tien twins were opalescent in pastel quju. A nightmare disguised as a daydream. Lan Fan's reaction to the insult splintered. Nevertheless, Lan Fan's protective nature outweighed her anger towards her mother. She opened her mouth to say something she was sure to regret.
"There you are, cousin."
Junjie Zhang linked their arms together. The Ninth Prince pulled her to his side and Lan Fan froze. Suddenly, she was surrounded by enemies with no means for escape. Adrenaline sobered her. Lan Fan looked up at Lord Zhang. He hardly ever attended court functions. Junjie and Ling were the same height but the Zhang prince was delicately crafted. The pale freckles dusting his nose and cheeks were barely visible against such a fair complexion. His eyes mirrored Ling's. Junjie gave her his fizzy pink drink and a smile as sly as a fox.
"Beware flowers with thorns, Lady Zhang. We wouldn't want you to prick your finger," he cautioned.
Good humor aside the prince had dark circles beneath his sunken eyes. He looked unwell. Lan Fan found herself more concerned than she might've imagined. Junjie leaned down to whisper playfully in her ear.
"Exit stage right?"
Lan Fan nodded numbly.
With that Junjie Zhang whisked her away into the revelry. Lan Fan started the day as a knight. Somewhere along the way she wound up a damsel in distress with Prince Junjie in the role of her rescuer. The two of them blended into a crowd huddled around an acrobat. Life never failed to remind Lan Fan of its surrealism at the most peculiar of times.
"Good evening, Lady Liu," Junjie chuckled.
"My Lord," she breathed.
Her heart pounded in her ears.
"A little bird tells me you're something of a dancer," he continued.
Lan Fan looked at him with wide eyes.
"Huh?"
"Little Xiang is quite the storyteller," Junjie said.
The commander of the guard felt lightheaded. Her knees threatened to give way and she clung to the prince's arm for balance.
"A dance is a fair reward for a rescue."
He glanced down at her with a hint of a smile. The prince looked tired but seemed light in spirit. Junjie looked as if he should sit down. Lan Fan focused on her hearing. The band played a slow tune. Lan Fan wondered at Junjie Zhang's sudden appearance. A dance would buy her a little time to puzzle out his intentions. The bodyguard handed off the drink to a server.
"One dance."
The prince's eyes twinkled in delight as he guided her onto the dance floor.
"You're looking thoroughly modern this evening."
"I could say the same for you, My Lord."
Prince Junjie wore white tie. Lan Fan adored western evening dress. Dancing gloves in particular. Lan Fan liked clothes more than she should. Grandfather wouldn't approve.
Grandfather is gone.
"I hope you didn't let them get to you."
"Pardon?" Lan Fan blinked at him.
"You look like you have something on your mind," he commented.
Lan Fan changed the subject.
"I'm surprised to see you here, My Lord," she said.
"Likewise. It's been a long time since Lady Lan Zhang attended a party. I was beginning to think we met in a dream."
The bodyguard didn't bite her tongue.
"Commander Liu," Lan Fan corrected.
"My mistake," the prince apologized.
Lan Fan's imagination ran wild with all the things Xiang might've divulged to his imperial cousin. Xiang's naivety would be the death of her.
"I wasn't aware my brother's told such entertaining stories."
Junjie had a playful gleam in his eye.
"Quite."
"There you are," Edward said. He stood behind Prince Junjie with two glasses of water in hand. "I told you to wait. What gives?" Ed moved closer and glanced at Junjie. "Hey Xiang." The theoretical alchemist glanced again. "Wait, you're not Xiang!"
"No," Junjie tilted his head curiously.
"Okay then piss off this is a closed club."
Edward elbowed his way in between them.
"Such a lively fellow," Junjie marveled.
Ed handed Lan Fan a drink and took her other hand.
"Come tell me what all the food is so I don't eat something gross," Edward demanded.
Lan Fan looked over her shoulder at Prince Junjie as Edward dragged her away. He waved his fingers at her. Lan Fan thought she saw the prince smirk before the crowd obscured him from sight.
"Who was that guy? I didn't offend someone important did I? Mustang will give me such shit if I piss off someone important. Old man acts like he's still my C.O. Like he can tell me what to do. Roy's not the boss of me!" Ed gestured.
"He's my cousin."
"Oh, well, that's a relief."