Anniya: 2nd ball continued
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" It's not like Esperanza to be so late," Anniya exclaimed angrily, pacing around the foot of a centaur statue.
Despite her anger, Robert heard the touch of worry in her voice. He checked at the grand clock, which rang clearly through the night as it struck midnight. They were officially beginning the second half of the second ball.
Robert had to admit that he had an uneasy feeling. He hadn't really expected for the Count to do anything during the first ball, but more likely the second or the third. They had all agreed to meet at the foot of the centaur statue ten till midnight. Anniya was the first to arrive, early as always. She had paced nervously around the statue until Robert himself had arrived, on the dot. It had been drilled into his head all to many times about how it was just as impolite to arrive to early as it was to arrive to late. Five minutes after, West had lazily waltzed in. But it was nearly expected of West to be late; Robert would be more likely to believe something was wrong if West actually arrived on time. It was exactly five minutes after though, each time. In that respect, they were the same. Robert arrived exactly on time, while West arrived exactly five minutes late. But Esperanza usually arrived some place in between Anniya and Robert. Not five minutes after West.
" Perhaps she was just detained. Maybe she's found something that could help us out with the Count," Robert said thoughtfully.
Anniya considered it for a moment, then shook her head. " We all agreed that no matter what, we would be here ten minutes before twelve."
" She couldn't of forgotten. This is much too important to forget," Robert mused, scratching his chin. Anniya let out a worried sigh, and paced some more.
" Alright, well let's think worst scenario," Robert began. An answer came to mind, and he decided to scratch the idea for fear of upsetting Anniya more.
" She's lying dead in some gutter," Anniya said flatly, and abruptly sat down. Her eyes flickered, and Robert studied them carefully. Anniya's eyes could hide a world of secrets, and show them at the same time. And right now, he could tell that she wasn't telling him something.
" Anniya," he began before she cut him off. As usual, Anniya had sensed the question he was about to ask.
" The Count--he's here now, like you know. He had a stone, with some sort of calling properties. I knew that he wasn't up to any good, so I just--I don't know what I did! I just did that-magic thing, and I destroyed it somehow. But he knew it was me. Then he came over and asked me to dance, and I knew that he was going to do something. Esperanza came up with an excuse, and I waltzed off. That was the last time I saw her," Anniya said slowly, guilt racking her voice. Robert stared at her. And then, for the first time, West spoke up.
He hadn't said a word since he arrived at the meeting place. He had merely leaned against a pillar and smoked his pipe while Anniya and Robert had debated where Esperanza might be.
" This is Esperanza. The same one who was yelling at me for being a few minutes late last night. If I'm more then ten minutes late, it's because I'm dead. Esperanza, of the moment, is fifteen. And we are standing here arguing about it when there is a good chance that she might be dead."
Now and then, West showed the makings of a king. Robert nodded, relieved to let someone else take charge. This, however, didn't satisfy Anniya.
" Oh thank you for pointing out the bloody obvious, West. What does that tell us? It doesn't tell us where she is, where she last was seen, who she was with, does it," Anniya snapped. She kicked the statue with her foot. Robert had to hide a grin when her face gave a surprised grimace at the pain. The grin quickly faded though. Where in god's name was Esperanza?
" I'll find her," West said easily, setting the pipe down. Anniya arched an eyebrow at this comment.
" How in god's name will you find her? Every eligible lass is here, not to mention a dozen others! You won't be able to find her! We haven't even confirmed if she's missing yet," Anniya lashed out, her temper flaring. West shrugged his shoulders, but his eyes sharpened, focusing on Robert and Anniya.
" Esperanza wouldn't be late. And if she was, it couldn't be this late. The last person she was seen with was the Count, who we are very conveniently trying to stop from assassinating the royal family. It adds up. Don't expect me back tonight. Tomorrow, this time, this place, we'll meet again. If I'm not here, it's because I'm dead," West said simply. He pulled his mask back on, and gave a graceful bow before striding away.
Without saying anything, Robert took Anniya's hands and led her into the dance. The troubled expression on her face didn't escape Robert's gaze. He was sure that it must of mirrored his.
" Robert, I don't like this feeling. Something bad' s going to happen. And now, without Gleex and everything, I don't know how this will turn out. Char won't believe me, or anything. Now Esperanza's gone, and West too. It's just us left."
Robert smoothed her hair away from her face, and switched to Elfin. " We shouldn't speak in Kyrrian anymore," he told her. Someone could all too easily hear them, and mention it to the Count. It was far safer to speak in Anniya's tongue. Robert still didn't feel completely safe. It was just up to them, no soldiers or knights or anyone else. A second born foreign prince, a crown prince who was a thief and wanted to stay that way, a head strong half human girl, and a wild gypsy. They were all truly at opposite ends of society, but maybe that was why they all functioned so well together. Robert doubted that Anniya would of turned out as she was now if she had been raised as a noble.
Robert glanced at the painted ceiling, and out of the briefest corner of his ear, caught a snatch of a conversation.
" ..........dealt with her personally. You know how he is with gypsies...........," a low, masculine voice said.
Robert sharply looked up, and he felt Anniya stiffen. He wasn't crazy; she had heard it too.
" Who said that," she said in Elfin immediately. Robert scanned the dancing couples around him. It could be any of them. This was a fast paced dance; the speaker could be right next to him or twenty feet away.
" Robert, she's in trouble. We can't sit around waiting for West to do something. Not that I don't trust West. I'd trust West with my life, with my soul, but we have to do something to!," Anniya exclaimed urgently.
A small pang in his heart appeared suddenly. Robert closed his eyes and brushed it off. Anniya would always be close to West; that was the way things were. But still, sometimes she would stare off into space, a dreamy look on her face. As if she were in the happiest place in the world, and Robert wasn't anywhere in her mind at the moment. It troubled Robert, because he knew that Anniya loved him. But at the same time, it seemed that the love wasn't equal to Robert's. Just looking at her now, in the light with her eyes sparkling, Robert knew that he would die for her, if asked. Just by looking at her, Robert knew that much.
Returning to reality, Robert thought how to answer her question. Not for long though. He knew what he had to do.
" I'll go speak with him, right after this dance," he replied.
Anniya didn't ask who ' him' was. She knew, and Robert knew. She simply nodded as the song ended, and kissed him lightly on the cheek. They turned their separate ways, and Robert braced himself as he headed over towards Count Di Fallon.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Esperanza blinked. She shifted, then immediately regretted it. Pain racked through her body, causing her to shudder violently. Her vision was blurry. Her last image of the Count's sword coming down on her head came to her. Where was she?
A wave of nausea rose up in her stomach, and Esperanza closed her eyes. After several moments, the feeling passed, and she blinked once more. This time, she saw where she was.
All that there was to see, anyway. It was an empty, circular, stone room.
Esperanza shivered, only partly from the cold. This room unnerved her more then a torture chamber would( but for all she knew, it could be one too). The sheer emptiness of it made her feel as if she was being watched.
She studied it carefully, still lying on the ground. There were a few things in it. A cracked mirror on the wall, a battered desk, a ragged pillow. It looked like a storage room with few things in it.
Suddenly, a sharp, freezing wind shot through the room. There was no window. Esperanza backed up slowly against a wall, looking for anything that could be a weapon. Her teeth would have to do.
" Esperanza! Esperanza! It's Robert," a deep voice called out. Esperanza's heart began to beat again, and she raced to the door. It opened a moment before she got there, and sure enough, it was Robert. She hugged him as hard as she could.
" Oh thank god! I don't know what happened, I shouldn't of gone off with the--," she began before Robert cut her off.
" I'll hear that later. Esperanza, I need you help. Anniya may be in trouble, because I don't think she's been following our plan. She said that you and her had an idea of your own."
Esperanza stared blankly at Robert. They didn't have any plan out of the ordinary. At least she hadn't, anyway.
" Repeat the original plan, step by step," Robert commanded her, looking worried. Esperanza looked at him uncertainly, but repeated it like he told her to.
When she was finished, Robert merely stared at her. It made her nervous, and Esperanza backed away a bit. Why was he acting so strange? He knew the plan, didn't he?
" But what about that magic she has? What can it do," Robert demanded, his black eyes flashing.
Esperanza opened her mouth to tell him, but the sentence died as she realized something. Robert's eyes were a blue grey, like the sea before a storm. Sometimes they appeared to be blue; other times green, but never, never black.
" Well? Her life is on the line, Esperanza! Tell me, damn it," he said sharply, showing a temper.
Esperanza glanced at him again, and the anger in his face was clear. Robert wouldn't loose his temper over something that he must of known. Anniya would have told him; she was in love with him. Esperanza bit her lip and looked around the room, trying to think of a way to answer without accusing him. Her eyes settled on the cracked mirror, which reflected her and Robert.
Only it wasn't Robert standing next to her.
TSSal of Mniqa realized his reflection a moment after Esperanza. Curses! A mirror, of all things, had given him away! While he could make the gypsy girl believe that he looked like Robert, the mirror would not, and it gave his true appearance.
" Get away from me! I'll never tell you anything," Esperanza screamed, backing into the wall. TSSal merely smirked, and glided out of the room, to the terrified girl's relief. He had all that he wanted to know.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
" Well, Well, Kellia. It's been a year since I last spoke to you," the Count told him easily as Robert greeted him. He forced a laugh.
" Ah yes, I'm afraid so. I ascend the throne within a year, so I must be well prepared for it."
The Count had a knowing look on his face, one that gave Robert an uneasy feeling. But he had a talent for hiding his true feelings.
"I'm surprised you're not married yet. Any lady you fancy in particular," Robert continued, trying to make his question sound merely curious. The Count laughed, and took another sip of his wine. Robert, however, immediately regretted his question. He should of worded it more carefully!
" Not since..........her. Several lovely ladies at this ball, so I shall consider taking on a wife eventually. I do, after all, need an heir."
Robert didn't have to ask who 'her' was. It was well known gossip about the Count's lady had died many year's ago. The Count hadn't been so bad back then, when she was still alive. It was her death that had released what he was talking to now.
" I should ask you the same question. An eligible bachelor like yourself must have some fine ladies coming after him, I presume."
Robert shrugged his shoulders. " Not as many as Char, though."
The Count laughed, and nodded in agreement.
They talked for the next half an hour, until the Count was needed by the king.
The third ball was on it's way.
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Author's note: ok, I know this was a lousy chapter. But I promise the next one will be better, especially because it'll be the third ball. And by process of elimination, wonder what will happen at that one.....hehe.... But I can promise this for the next one: Lots of action, lots of romance, and a mystery solved.......