Jacob's POV

My heart was beating when I saw Renesmee dancing with someone not familiar to me. I looked over to see Alice stranded with several people that were besotted, fighting with swords, and shoving Alice between them.

Renesmee was talking to her dance partner after the dance as the guy gave her a kiss on her palm. She walked away from him with her expression in despair as she was walking somewhere away from where she was.

I followed her secretly as I was hiding behind dancers when she looked back so she wouldn't see me. She approached a corner, sitting down with a frown. It couldn't possibly have been the dance that made her so depressed. It must be that Prince Jasper isn't falling over heels for her.

I sighed, walking closer to the corner to communicate with her. She buried her face on her lap, sobbing silently with her body shaking. I kneel down hearing her sob louder as I placed my hand on her back. Her sobbing stopped as she looked up to see me with her eyes red and watery tears sliding down her cheeks.

"Why are you crying?" I whispered to her, feeling her side against my thigh. She felt stiff with her body completely tightened with stress.

"My father is ill. I'm worried that it might cause our kingdom to collapse," she whimpered. I knew her father was ill but I didn't know that it was possible for him to die from it.

"Our?"

"Alice and mine since we are the only ones that aren't married yet."

"Who gets the kingdom if your father dies?"

"Alice since she's older."

"So I'm going to be the king of France?"

"Yes, congratulations."

My eyes widened. I get to rule an entire kingdom on my own? What if I'm not ready? I'm the prince of a center region of England for lord's sake. I can't control the entire country. "Princess Renesmee, I can't rule France. Let Prince Jasper rule France and you get to live in the palace still but with him."

"Why?"

"I'm not responsible for actions I take. Yes, I've slept with other women but that's just to satisfy me but sometimes, some women are wives, which leads me to feeling ashamed. An infantile king can't rule country."

"You're not immature prince."

"Prince Jasper could do much better changes to the kingdom than I could ever do."

She sniffled, wiping the tears off of her face. She sighed, "I suppose you're right. Where is he?"

"Whom?"

"Prince Jasper."

I looked around the ballroom, searching my eyes but no trace of him. "I do not know, somewhere here."

"What if he's not here?" she started to sob, "What if he's...gone?"

"He couldn't have gone that far, the ball has just started."

"I suppose. Maybe Rosalie knows where he is," she stopped sobbing again.

"Possibly, you should ask her," I smiled, knowing that she wouldn't be upset anymore.

"I shall. I shall be back, I promise," she ran away to the stairs sobbing while I just stood there, watching her go upstairs.

I sighed deeply, looking at the appealing beauty that left me. I looked over to see King Edward making his way towards me with a goblet in his hand and thousands of people talking to him. The people turned away when he finally reached me, standing next to me like it was something urgent.

"Prince Jacob, have you been observing the stables lately?" he asked me with his eyes searching the room.

"No, why do you ask?"

"It's just so mysterious how Sir Findley died. You see, Sir Brown, my new ambassador, explored King Charles' kingdom and found a dead body in the stables with his rotten head on the hay, making a 'horrible stench' he recalled. That was where Sir Findley found a white blouse that belonged to one of the princesses. Do you know whom murdered him?"

"I do not. Why is this important though? He's dead so there's no need to continue your curiosity," I told him as I saw him taking a sip of his wine. I wondered if he had his wine tasted before sipping it but he hadn't collapsed unconsciously so I figured it had been. I blinked, getting my head out of the clouds.

"But if I find out whom did it, then I shall keep my men well aware of a murderer might make his next approach to my kingdom. I don't want to put my peasants in danger now do I? If only you knew the murderer than life would have seemed so simple."

"King Edward, focus on more on your kingdom than something that is easily forgotten. You know, your wife might be in danger if there isn't any guards there to protect her so maybe you should sent guards to protect her. The murderer might reach her and," I sliced my head with my hand to symbol the consequences. He gasped, widened his eyes in fear with his body still as a statue.

"You're right! I shall send the guards right away! Thank you, Prince Jacob," he ran away through the crowed people while I remain standing there watching the dancing and him running through the crowds.

I looked around the room for Emmett to see where he was but there was no sign of him anywhere. I walked away from where I was to find someone I knew. I found Alice with a goblet, talking to someone by a looks of royalty across from where I was. My eyes immediately went into a glare when I realized she was talking to Prince Seth. He was a bachelor but I didn't notice that he had fancied my fiancée. I quickly walked towards them without anyone in my way, hoping they would notice my approach but they didn't. I stood there beside them as they faced each other as I was being shunned from the conversation.

"One of my mares gave birth to a foal last spring," he told her with her eyes glowed with fascination. He turned around to see that I was standing right beside them listening. "It's an adorable little thing. Oh, hello Prince Jacob," he continued as Alice curtsied her welcome.

"Greetings, Prince Seth. What brings you to this occasion?"

"I was invited so how could I refuse?" he chuckled while Alice just smiled.

"Oh of course, how foolish of me to forget? You must be enjoying the ball."

"Yes, I am. Princess Alice has been a great company," he complimented while her smile still remained on her face but I noticed her cheeks grew rosy.

"Is she now? Well I'm delighted to have a fiancée like she," I smiled towards her while she closed her eyes. Her cheeks were still rosy with her expression looking uncomfortable.

"Yes, you should be. You're a lucky man."

"I feel luckier everyday."

"Do you now? I thought you never believed in luck."

"You proved your point, but I decided that it's possible so now I think there's luck."

"I'm glad a man can change."

"You thought I would be that stubborn?"

"Well, you are a stubborn man or at least that's what I heard from Lady Emily."

"Who's Lady Emily?" Alice asked me with her thin line eyebrow raised.

"Lady Emily was Prince Jacob's longest mistress but he got tired of her since they would be together every minute of the hour. She's very beautiful, don't you agree, Prince Jacob?" Seth asked me, looking amused.

"She is," I admitted, "but not as beautiful as Prince Ren—I mean Princess Alice. I apologize, Princess Renesmee's depression is all in my head."

"No worries, Prince Jacob, it's not like you just shot someone," he smiled while I rolled my eyes. He always wanted to have my kingdom ever sine infancy so his way of attempting to take over was trying to drive me out with annoyance.

"That's true, but it might have felt that way to Princess Alice. Are you alright?" I looked at her, as her expression was just content. I wondered what she was thinking about right now about my awful mistake. I wouldn't entirely blame her for being frustrated.

"No blood, no foul," she shrugged, "it was mistake so there's no harm in that."

"Thank you, Princess Alice," I gave her a nod while she gave me a nod in return.

"You two would make a good King and Queen together," he complimented. It was astonishing to hear that he didn't try to irritate me.

"Thank you," Alice and I said at the same time. We both took a glance at each other with our eyes unable to leave each other's. Suddenly, the image of Renesmee went inside my mind. She was smiling at me with her adorable dimples and her mud color eyes. I closed my eyes tightly. I opened them, seeing her still in my imagination. Was it my imagination? Or was it actually reality? I was hoping it was reality.

"Prince Jacob, are you alright?" she spoke to me but it wasn't her voice. It was Alice's voice. I shook my head out of the mirage to concentrate on Alice again. She looked bewildered but I gave her a nod for my response.

"You know Princess Alice, there's a dance that's about to start. Would you do me the honor by dancing with me?" Prince Seth asked her with his smooth voice that probably made her shiver.

"I accept," she smiled as he wrapped her arm around his to get to the dancers. I watched them as they begun to dance swiftly with the other dancers beside them.

I looked around as I finally found Prince Emmett talking to what it looked to be King Edward's ambassador, Sir Brown. He was wearing a long black coat with black boots that made a sound every time he took a step. He had tiny whiskers under his nose with little whiskers on his lower edge of his face. He had brown shaggy hair with piercing green eyes that made out his character quickly. They were discussing something in a matter of urgency by the ways of their expression when they were communicating that made me anxious. Sir Brown bowed to him as if he were such a formal gentleman, walking towards where the ladies gossip. I decided to see what was so important, but what if they weren't talking about anything important? I felt weary with all the music and laughter from all the besotted royals that kept bumping into me when I started to walk towards Emmett. I didn't dare to take one drink of wine because it wasn't fully tested so it might contain some sort of poison or end up being insane.

I continued to walk, trying to get through a crowd of people that kept shoving me to another person. They didn't know who I was so they didn't even apologize for their actions. I finally pushed a man into another as they fought each other with wine bottles as the shattered glass flew silently to the ground.

I ran away from them as a fight had started with woman fighting on the ground and men fighting with win bottles and swords. The men couldn't balance properly so the fight didn't last very long but then some men weren't even besotted. I sighed in relief to be able to leave the crowd fast enough.

I turned around as I saw Emmett walking towards my direction with a concerned expression on his face. I stood there waiting for him to approach me as he walked closer and closer to me. When he finally approached me, he let out a sigh as he placed his goblet against a table that was next to us.

"Whom were you talking to just now?" I asked him.

"Sir Brown, King Edward's ambassador. He was asking me about this dead body in King Charles' stables that happened weeks ago. He also asked me if I did it or if I knew who did it. I can't identify who did it so he just bowed and resumed his investigation. I still don't comprehend why Sir what's his name was so important? He's not the king; just an ambassador."

"Sir Findley? Well, from King Edward's words, his death was "mysterious". He had his neck sliced so maybe King Edward is just afraid that the murderer might reach his palace," I explained to him while he shook his head, rolling his eyes.

"King Edward is just too cautious. Who really knows why he's so concerned."

"Well, when I mentioned his wife to him, he got all paranoid."

"Because his wife is his damn life."

"Would you die for Queen Bella?"

"Of course I would, but she just won't die for me."

"Why not?" He took a pause while I stared at him as his expression turned into depression.

"She never had a choice to marry me so that's why she hides in her chambers and rarely speaks to me. I feel awful for treating her this way. At first, I wanted to make her happy but then I talked to Princess Renesmee. She wanted to marry Prince Jasper and I wanted to marry Queen Bella so we basically helped each other on getting what we desired by marrying them as soon as possible. I didn't know there was anyone that wanted her until Prince Jasper challenged me to bargain her as his trophy. After I won the duel, I started to think that she might have wanted him as her husband so I had my guards guard her chambers. She was so isolated that it drove me insane to think that she's miserable and it's my fault. Now," he looked around the room, shaking his head in all directions, "I can't see her. Where is she?"

"Maybe she went with Queen Rosalie to see her nephew," I suggested while he shrugged. I remembered that Renesmee went up there so maybe I was telling the truth. I wondered what would happened if it wasn't true? Where would she be?

"As I was saying about the Sir Findley situation, do you have any ideas about who did it?" he asked me while I shook my head in response, "Maybe Prince Seth did it."

"King Emmett, I do believe you skipped one other prince that could have been a possibility," I chuckled. How could he have forgotten his own enemy?

"Prince Jasper? He can't even handle a sword so how could he have sliced Sir Findley's head out of his neck?" he rolled his eyes, chuckling to himself.

"I suppose you're right. Maybe it was the servants in the palace. You know, not all servants are innocent. They may be vulnerable and useful, but not innocent. Do you really think the wine has no poison in it or the food had really been tasted before it has been presented to the guest? They might be too eager to take over the kingdom one day, even if they have to kill thousands of men before they are put to the throne. All I'm saying is King Edward has every right to be cautious since people are not always trustworthy and when people aren't trustworthy, that's when they get beheaded."

He nodded as he poured his wine out of his goblet into the bushes next to us, "That was an excellent point. But I can't starve myself to death."

"You won't. You'll just have to be around when the food testers taste the food and wine. If they say it's alright and they haven't died, then you can trust them."

"So you really think servants could have done this?"

"It's possible. It's not a absurd suggestion."

"Well, I think we should wait until it happens again."

"The next murder might not be done by the same person."

"But if the body is headless, it's a possibility."

"I suppose so. Aren't you going to go find your wife?"

"I'm not worried about her. I'm going to go dance, do you want to come with me?"

"Not now, but I shall join you later."

"Very well then, farewell Prince Jacob," he walked away, heading towards the crowd where the dancing was held. I searched around the room for Renesmee to return but no sign of her. I sighed, as I walked around the crowd, watching the dancers dance and the royals drink. Alice was still dancing with Seth while Emmett was dancing with a girl I didn't know. She looked beautiful with her golden locks and fair skin. Her dress was dark blue with her hair straightened to her waist and dresses worn down to her toes. I squinted to see her smile and she was who I thought she was. Her name is Lady Emily, my longest mistress.

I thought about the conflicts that were happening: Sir Findley's death, Bella's possible affair, King Edward finding the murderer, Princess Renesmee desire to have Jasper, Princess Alice possibly falling for Prince Seth, I'm falling for two woman, and King Emmett dancing with Lady Emily. I blinked as I realized that this wasn't a fantasy that could easily be disappeared. This was something that could possibly hurt or comfort someone. The question is, what would happen next?

A/N: Wow that was a long chapter! I hope it didn't lack your interest :/ but it was fun to write. Sorry (and I know you hear this a lot but I mean it) that it took me so long. It was just that I couldn't think of anything to write for a while. Now I have ideas so I'll update faster, I promise :) I also really want to apologize for my hideous grammar mistakes in the past (my goodness they are ugly). If you're still a loyal reader, God bless you! Well that's all I wanted to say so please review (I know you can do it)

~Ivy~