fairy_true ~ Hey sweetie, I can't upload that fast! I put up the chapters as I write them, and unfortunately the story has to take a back seat to school. You should probably expect about a chapter per week, anywhere from Friday to Monday. As for romance, I said I wasn't going out of my way to include it, but that little scene between David and Vir found me… completely spur of the moment. You know Viv's going to give in? "The lady doth protest too much" eh?
bradleigh ~ I feel you underestimate Luke. He's just waiting for the perfect opportunity. ::laughs evilly:: Seriously though, don't worry about him going soft. There's still plenty of time for him to cause trouble.
hemlock ~ I thought I would have gotten to "the plan" by now, I really did. But it seems that my attempt to include everyone's point of view at the ball are drawing it out longer than I expected. You put me on your "favorite" list? ::wipes away a tear::
Hway-Ling ~ Oops, sorry darlin'! I completely overlooked the fact that some people have taken no French whatsoever... me and my Canadian ways plead ignorance. I've gone back and added translations in the footnotes (I think I caught most of them), and I'll make sure to do so from now on.
And thanks to everyone else who reviewed! If I don't mention you by name, it's only because you didn't bring up any specific questions/issues I felt the need to clarify. But I still appreciate the comments!
Chapter 14Intersections: "Speculations run rampant"
Luke watched with interest as Valor left the group with Vivienne by his side, both heading toward a terrace for privacy. As soon as the two were out of earshot, the conversation erupted around Luke.
"Who was that?" a glaring blond with cool blue eyes demanded. She was a princess; her haughty demeanor confirmed it, as did the obscenely expensive gown and jewelry she wore—the latter of which, by the way, was interesting Luke very much—though her name currently escaped him.
"Princess Vivienne," a bored looking young man with chestnut hair and half-hooded matching eyes supplied. "Eldest daughter of Queen Cinderella." He was the perfect image of princeliness… handsome in a careless, natural way, adorned in enough finery to show his position, but not so much as to seem to be overcompensating, and fashionably bored. Of course, it was all a carefully maintained façade, cleverly constructed for the very purpose it served, but around here, appearances were all that mattered.
The blond was not at all happy with the answer. Suddenly, the pretty, nameless redhead had been promoted from the position of pesky setback to serious competition. Being the daughter of the Cinderella gave her an edge that even wealth, power, and beauty combined would have difficulty competing with. In this world of theirs, such famous heritages were treasured and revered, exalting their bearers, making the children of such fairytale romances the most sought-after for marriages. A fairytale family was said to possess luck and good fortune unsurpassed, and whenever rough times fell on such individuals, they would always persevere. That was part of the reason that Valor was considered such a prize himself.
"She can't just show up like that and take him away!" whined a petite, vapid-eyed girl with a mass of brown ringlets on her head.
The high-pitched voice grated into Luke's nerves and he repressed a shudder. 'She just did, you little twit,' he thought, but had tact enough to keep it to himself.
The blond regarded the other girl with a look that said, 'Oh please, like you had a chance with him anyway.' Either the brunette wasn't quite as stupid as Luke had assumed, or she merely sensed the hostility pouring off the other princess, because she quickly snapped her mouth shut and took an almost imperceptible step back.
Somewhere to Luke's right, a laughing voice whispered, "Watch out, looks like Nora's got her claws out." Fortunate for him, Nora was too distracted to overhear the comment, as she would not have taken too kindly to the speaker.
A willowy girl with a soft, melodic voice broke in, speaking in a calm and soothing tone, "What I would like to know is what business she has with him. She seemed fairly angry, and did you see the way they were looking at each other?"
A sudden glint appearing in his eyes, Luke decided to speak up now. "From what I hear," he began slowly, making sure every eye was on him before he continued. "Their parents are negotiating a marriage. Of course," he added with a carefully nonchalant shrug, "Nothing's final yet."
"Engaged, is she?" the bored prince remarked. "What a shame."
"But it hasn't been finalized?" Nora demanded, locking her cold gaze on Luke's, fixing him on the spot with an expression that would have made a lesser person cower before her. But personally, Luke was enjoying the proceedings far too much to be frightened.
"That's what I hear," he answered, barely suppressing a satisfied grin.
Nora looked thoughtful. "And who is your source, that you know of all this before the rest of us?"
"Well, my family has been enjoying the hospitality of our hosts for the past week… as has Queen Ella's."
"You mean she's had him all to herself for the past week?" the brown-haired airhead squeaked, her surprise overtaking her fear and lending her the courage to speak.
"Ah well, then it's all but settled," the calm girl remarked with a resigned sigh. She didn't seem as determined as some of the others, namely Nora and brunette.
Oh no, they couldn't all back off now—what about Luke's fun? He decided to throw in a bone to the gathering, to renew their determination. "Actually, from what I hear, there's been some resistance… from Vivienne." The female portion of the gathering gaped at him in disbelief. "Val seems to have decided to comply, so the parents still have some hope for the arrangement. But if he were to change his mind…"
"Then they might give up on the marriage," Nora completed with a calculating smile. "So all I—we—have to do is supply Valor with a reason to not want to marry her."
Luke fought the urge to roll his eyes. Considering that he had practically spoon-fed her the idea, she certainly appeared proud of herself. The group fell silent as they spotted Valor returning from the terrace—more significantly, returning alone—a grim expression replacing his earlier easy-going demeanor. The dark cloud that hung over him was enough to scare away all but the most persistent pursuers, for at least until his anger had washed away.
The numbers of the group dwindled quickly, as people found convenient reasons to part before the prince rejoined them, until the only ones remaining were Luke, Nora, and the bored prince. For a moment, it appeared as if the vapid brunette planned to stay as well, but Nora shot her one decisive glare that sent the smaller girl scurrying away without a backward glance.
The brown-haired prince held up a goblet of wine in offering. Valor stared contemplatively at the drink for a moment, before shaking his head and retrieving a glass of punch from one of the servers instead. Luke raised an eyebrow in surprise, and he could sense the same feeling in the others, but no one commented.
"Valor," Nora said is a falsely sweet voice, coming up to the prince's side. "Whatever has happened to put you in such a dark mood?" The sudden sugary act made Luke want to gag, and he saw the third prince sputter slightly on his wine.
"It's nothing. Just a minor disagreement," Valor replied easily, giving her a reassuring smile. "One that's been resolved."
"That was Princess Vivienne, was it not?" she continued persistently, though it was obvious to the other princes there that Nora already knew the answer to that question.
Luke noted the instantaneous response that flashed in Valor's eyes, and the accompanying tightening in his jaw. "Yes."
"I haven't seen her since she was five," the bored-looking prince broke in, keeping Nora from continuing in her line of questioning. Valor appeared grateful, but the princess shot an annoyed look in his direction. "She certainly has… changed," he said with a half-grin.
"Oh, I wouldn't be so sure, Mal. She still acts like a five-year-old," Valor returned, answering his grin with a wry one of his one. Mal—Malyn, actually, Luke now remembered—gave a laugh.
Nora did not look at all pleased at being ignored by the three males in the group. Suddenly, she smiled and turned to Valor. "You know, this is supposed to be a ball, and I haven't had a single dance so far." She looked at the prince pointedly, her gaze as expectant as her pleasant demeanor was false.
"Then allow me the pleasure to grant you that first," Malyn offered gallantly, coming to other man's rescue.
Luke could have laughed at the expression with which Nora graced him, but he knew better than to raise Nora's ire. People like that tended to hold grudges.
"Of course, that would be a wonderful idea," Valor quickly jumped in before the princess could contrive an excuse. "After all, Mal here is a much better dancer than I."
Effectively trapped, Nora consented, practically dragging Malyn behind her as she stormed off to the dance floor, skirts flouncing with each step taken. The prince sent Valor a 'you-owe-me-for-this' expression over his shoulder.
"Well, she certainly seems to have taken a shine to you," Luke ventured after a moment's pause.
Valor sighed. "Yeah, it's the whole fairytale heritage thing. It's more of a curse than a blessing." Then he glanced over at Luke and added, "You'll see for yourself, when you're a little older, old enough to marry."
Luke wasn't so sure about the curse part. If he had to be a prince, he might as well take the advantages of being the son of a fairytale couple. He told Valor as much and received a laugh from the other man. "Why, what would you be if you weren't a prince?"
Luke grinned, his face brightening at the question. "A thief. A master thief, of course," he replied, green eyes shining with genuine pleasure.
"Ah, of course," Valor said, nodding his head in agreement. "And what, exactly, would you steal?"
"Oh, this and that," he answered, shrugging. "Maybe work for hire… like retrieval and rescue operations."
"Retrieval and rescue? Isn't that usually reserved for knights and adventurers?"
Luke snorted. "Sure, but no one could do the job better than a thief. Just slip into the dragon's lair or the sorcerer's fortress, grab the princess, magical scrolls, whatever, and slip back out. Forget the whole big rescue with the mismatched band of rogue adventurers or the knight on his white steed." He had given great thought to this in the past, even if it was highly unlikely he would ever be able to put that knowledge to use. Hey, even he could have dreams.
"But what about the dragon or the sorcerer? You'd have to kill them, or what's to stop them from going out and doing the same thing all over again?"
"Exactly," Luke replied, giving him a sly grin. "Repeat business. You have to think like a businessman, Val. It's all about supply and demand."
Valor laughed, conceding to the younger prince's logic. "You're right, it does sound more interesting than being a prince."
"Well," Luke said, a mischievous twinkle in his eyes, "That can be good too, if you do it right."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Terrence was in the process of searching out his brother, David, when he ran into Lillith—literally. He heard light laughter and glanced up into the familiar face.
"Hi," Lillith said, sending him a smile. "Where are you heading?"
Terrence blinked, and cleared his throat before answering. "Um, I'm trying to find David."
"Oh." Lillith's gaze shifted for a second, her face thoughtful. "Well, I have a favor to ask of you before you do that."
"Yeah?" he asked, shifting on his feet. Terrence had found Lillith to be the nicest of all the princesses, and the most approachable. Her sister frankly frightened him, and although Virtue was nice enough in her own way, she appeared to be competition for David's attention, to which Terrence did not take kindly.
"Could you help me find Val?"
"Um, sure." It was out of his way, and his own search would have to wait, but he was eager to assist. It seemed like the type of thing that David would gladly do, and for that reason alone Terrence would have agreed. The fact that it was Lillith who asked him only tipped the scales even further.
As they weaved through the crowds—a little slower together than if Terrence had been doing it alone, given his small stature—he kept throwing sidelong glances in her direction. "Um, I like your dress. It's really… yellow."
Lillith gave him a confused smile and thanked him. "It is, isn't it?"
He could have kicked himself. 'It's really yellow.' What kind of comment was that? Now she probably thought he was an idiot, or worse, just some dumb kid. "I mean, it matches your hair."
The princess laughed and patted his head affectionately, a gesture that usually annoyed him when anyone other than David or his father did it, but for some reason it made him grin now. But the smile disappeared quickly, and annoyance flitted across his face as he spotted Valor. Who should happen to be with the prince, but his not-so-favorite brother.
Luke's back was to the approaching pair, but Terrence recognized the dark navy coat with the crimson trimming, and that incredibly pale blond hair, inherited from their father. Actually, he had inherited all his coloring from Charmant, but while the king's green eyes were warm and filled with humor, Luke's tended to be sly and calculating. Or at least, that was Terrence's opinion, though he thought it fairly accurate.
Terrence wasn't in the mood to trade insults with his brother, but he had agreed to take Lillith to Valor, and he wasn't about to abandon his job before it was finished. So he marched up to the pair, a determined set to his features, and the princess at his side.
The two princes turned to greet them, and Terrence saw a sneer pass over Luke's face. But before either brother could comment, Lillith turned to Valor and said, "I need to talk to you. In private."
Valor groaned and a pained expression passed over his face. "Great. Talk about deja-vu."
TBC