Thanks for the reviews. I have a feeling that this chapter is going to be a
long one, for all you people who asked me to make them longer.
The Ball
Alanna sighed as she looked at herself in the mirror. There was a mid- winter ball that night and she was dressed in a pale blue dress. It shimmered in tiny diamonds, which decorated the hem and the sleeves. Her shoulder length hair was a mass of slim braids that framed her face, which she insisted not to have to wear face-paints on. She also wore a silver necklace, which was visible under her low neckline.
She sighed once more. Now, like many times before, she wished she could have been born a boy. The idea that her and her brother could have swapped places had only occurred to her after she had walked through the gates to the convent and she had kicked herself many times for it not becoming apparent to her sooner.
She heard a light knock and turned to she Maude, pocking her head around the adjoining between their rooms.
"Come, Alanna. It is time you were properly introduced to the court. Sir Gareth is waiting for you outside."
Alanna nodded and walked into the hallway, putting on a fake smile as she faced her husband-to-be. Now, if it had been the Prince she was to be marrying she didn't think she would be quite so grumpy.
"Are you nervous?" asked Gary as the walked to the announcement room, where they would wait until the rest of the court had been seated.
"No. I'm just annoyed that such a fuss had to be made. I'm not one for social occasions.
"From what Thom has told us about you, I'm not surprised. I've been meaning to ask you, though. Where did you learn to fight? I'm sure it's not a lesson in the convent."
Alanna smiled. "You're sure right about that. Still, none of my teachers know I had lessons. They would probably faint. You know the guy who gave me Night. Well, I used to sneak out and practice with him. He also knows a few Shang warriors who taught me a few tricks. They certainly come in useful, especially when the world is full of over-confident boys." She snapped her mouth shut and they entered the announcement room, which was fill with other couples waiting to be announced, including the royals.
At the sound of the royal fanfare the King and Queen stood up and walked through the red velvet curtain, which hid the room from the people in the Great Hall.
The only thing that stopped Alanna biting her nails as the number of couples in the room decreased was the fact that they were clutching Gary's arm. She didn't notice the look of pain that had taken over him.
If she hadn't been taught otherwise she would have frozen when she heard the herald call,
"Introducing Sir Gareth of Naxen and Lady Alanna of Trebond."
Like the other couples before them they slowly stepped through the curtains and carefully descended the stairs. Once they reached the bottom they bowed to the royals and then walked to their seats.
"That wasn't that bad, now was it?" said Gary as the next couple were introduced. Alanna had let go of her grip on his arm and he was trying not to visibly massage it.
The look that Alanna gave him described her feelings clearly. They watched as the last couples were introduced and then listened as King Roald made a small speech. Once that was over the pages filled the room with the first course in their arms. Alanna used the time to inspect the people she was sharing the table with. Once Gary noticed what she was doing he decided to introduce her to them.
"Alanna, this is Duke Baird of Queenscove and his wife Lady Juliana. (Sorry, Magic Sword- Quest for Camelot kinda gave me the idea. I was stuck for an idea. Has T.P ever mentioned her name) and this is Raoul of Goldenlake and Lady Cynthera of Elden." He smiled warmly at Cynthera, who was sitting next to him. She smiled back.
"So, you're Thom's twin. Looks like he got the honor of serving us, too." Raoul grinned wickedly.
Alanna turned to see her brother walking towards them, his arms fully loaded.
This time it was her who was grinning wickedly, at Thom.
"Why brother. This is a pleasant treat. You look absolutely splendid. You uniform fit's you ……… well."
Thom frowned at his sister. He was fully aware that his clothing, even after all these years, did not fit him. He was still short and a bit stocky, not well built like most knights seven years into their training.
"Wow. I've never seen you two side by side. It's amazing how alike you two look. All Alanna need is your uniform and she could be you." Raoul smiled at the younger boy. He glared back before bending to serve Alanna.
"You know Raoul, it's the oddest thing since we are IDENTICAL twins," he replied sarcastically, glaring at his friend.
"Now, now Thom. You shouldn't speak like that to your elders," teased Duke Baird.
"I'm sorry Raoul," he smiled at him sweetly. "I don't know what came over me."
He finished serving the rest of the table and then left. Alanna was smiling. It looked like this meal was going to be fun.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Alanna sat back and sighed. Like she had thought. The meal had been fun and now came the annoying part. The dancing. She was not in the mood to smile at people and dance with men. Not even Gary. But unfortunately for her, duty had to take priority over her feelings.
"Well, Lady Alanna," asked Gary as the music started up. "Would you like to dance?"
"First things first. I'm Alanna, not Lady Alanna. Also, I would not like to dance but I have a feeling I have to."
She got up when he offered his arm and they walked towards the dance floor. Alanna decide to keep her eyes on her feet rather than talk to her partner. Gary didn't notice. He had his eyes on Cynthera, who was dancing with his cousin. One the dance was over they sauntered of the dance floor over to where the Prince and Cynthera were sitting, drinking some wine.
"Hello, Lady Alanna, Gary. How did you like the meal?" Jon enquired.
While Alanna answered the question Jon was taking in the full beauty of her look while Gary did the same with Cynthera. Jon, who knew about his cousin's feelings to the girl sitting next to him, was wishing they could swap places. Alanna with him and Cynthera with her. Even though Cynthera was a beauty there was something about the way that Alanna looked that made him so attracted to her. He wished the funny feeling in his stomach whenever she was near would go away. What he didn't know, though, was Alanna was feeling the same thing.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Alanna watched Gary and Cynthera, who were dancing together. She was sitting with Jon, hoping other men would ignore the fact that she was not on the dance floor. By the look of the man who was making his way towards her, it wasn't working. She decided to strike up a conversation with Jon so it would look like she was occupied.
"So, Jon. Cynthera is really pretty. Don't you think her and Gary look cute together?"
Jon stared at her. "You two are betrothed. Why would you say something like that."
"I don't mind. Anyway, it wasn't my idea to be betrothed in the first place. I would rather stay single or marry a person for love. Not that that would ever happen." She smiled and Jon felt his heart melt inside him.
"I don't think that's impossible. The right man could be staring right at you but you just haven't noticed yet."
"I wish. Well, do you think they look cute together?"
"I guess they do." Jon said.
"Of course they do. He's in love with her. You should know, he's your cousin."
"How do you know Gary's in love with Cynthera?" asked Jon, aghast.
"Well, you just need to see the way he looks at her. Trust me, half of my friends have fallen in love. I should know what it looks like. I don't know why you guys tried to hide it from me. I'm not blind. You know, I think Cynthera feels the same way, though she might have been put of by the fact that we're betrothed. Too bad there is nothing we can do about it."
Jon's eye's lit up. "Who said there wasn't?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Well! What do you think? Was it long enough to please you. It better be. Please read and review my other stories or I might be mean and not add more to this one. I want at least 60 reviews on this one and ten more on each of the others to continue. I know it's blackmail but I want to know what people think. Also, I'm welcome to title suggestions to Queen Goddess. I don't think the one I've got now is catchy enough.
Thanks for reading and enjoy.
StarFire.
P.S- To all those people who are bored and looking for people's work to check out I recommend Bluebell of Mindelan (Who sometime write part of this story and is a very close school friend), Angel-Goddess, karlyanne_134 (I think that's her name) and Lady Nicolia. I also recommend anyone else I have read a story by and have liked. Sorry, I can't remember all your names.
The Ball
Alanna sighed as she looked at herself in the mirror. There was a mid- winter ball that night and she was dressed in a pale blue dress. It shimmered in tiny diamonds, which decorated the hem and the sleeves. Her shoulder length hair was a mass of slim braids that framed her face, which she insisted not to have to wear face-paints on. She also wore a silver necklace, which was visible under her low neckline.
She sighed once more. Now, like many times before, she wished she could have been born a boy. The idea that her and her brother could have swapped places had only occurred to her after she had walked through the gates to the convent and she had kicked herself many times for it not becoming apparent to her sooner.
She heard a light knock and turned to she Maude, pocking her head around the adjoining between their rooms.
"Come, Alanna. It is time you were properly introduced to the court. Sir Gareth is waiting for you outside."
Alanna nodded and walked into the hallway, putting on a fake smile as she faced her husband-to-be. Now, if it had been the Prince she was to be marrying she didn't think she would be quite so grumpy.
"Are you nervous?" asked Gary as the walked to the announcement room, where they would wait until the rest of the court had been seated.
"No. I'm just annoyed that such a fuss had to be made. I'm not one for social occasions.
"From what Thom has told us about you, I'm not surprised. I've been meaning to ask you, though. Where did you learn to fight? I'm sure it's not a lesson in the convent."
Alanna smiled. "You're sure right about that. Still, none of my teachers know I had lessons. They would probably faint. You know the guy who gave me Night. Well, I used to sneak out and practice with him. He also knows a few Shang warriors who taught me a few tricks. They certainly come in useful, especially when the world is full of over-confident boys." She snapped her mouth shut and they entered the announcement room, which was fill with other couples waiting to be announced, including the royals.
At the sound of the royal fanfare the King and Queen stood up and walked through the red velvet curtain, which hid the room from the people in the Great Hall.
The only thing that stopped Alanna biting her nails as the number of couples in the room decreased was the fact that they were clutching Gary's arm. She didn't notice the look of pain that had taken over him.
If she hadn't been taught otherwise she would have frozen when she heard the herald call,
"Introducing Sir Gareth of Naxen and Lady Alanna of Trebond."
Like the other couples before them they slowly stepped through the curtains and carefully descended the stairs. Once they reached the bottom they bowed to the royals and then walked to their seats.
"That wasn't that bad, now was it?" said Gary as the next couple were introduced. Alanna had let go of her grip on his arm and he was trying not to visibly massage it.
The look that Alanna gave him described her feelings clearly. They watched as the last couples were introduced and then listened as King Roald made a small speech. Once that was over the pages filled the room with the first course in their arms. Alanna used the time to inspect the people she was sharing the table with. Once Gary noticed what she was doing he decided to introduce her to them.
"Alanna, this is Duke Baird of Queenscove and his wife Lady Juliana. (Sorry, Magic Sword- Quest for Camelot kinda gave me the idea. I was stuck for an idea. Has T.P ever mentioned her name) and this is Raoul of Goldenlake and Lady Cynthera of Elden." He smiled warmly at Cynthera, who was sitting next to him. She smiled back.
"So, you're Thom's twin. Looks like he got the honor of serving us, too." Raoul grinned wickedly.
Alanna turned to see her brother walking towards them, his arms fully loaded.
This time it was her who was grinning wickedly, at Thom.
"Why brother. This is a pleasant treat. You look absolutely splendid. You uniform fit's you ……… well."
Thom frowned at his sister. He was fully aware that his clothing, even after all these years, did not fit him. He was still short and a bit stocky, not well built like most knights seven years into their training.
"Wow. I've never seen you two side by side. It's amazing how alike you two look. All Alanna need is your uniform and she could be you." Raoul smiled at the younger boy. He glared back before bending to serve Alanna.
"You know Raoul, it's the oddest thing since we are IDENTICAL twins," he replied sarcastically, glaring at his friend.
"Now, now Thom. You shouldn't speak like that to your elders," teased Duke Baird.
"I'm sorry Raoul," he smiled at him sweetly. "I don't know what came over me."
He finished serving the rest of the table and then left. Alanna was smiling. It looked like this meal was going to be fun.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Alanna sat back and sighed. Like she had thought. The meal had been fun and now came the annoying part. The dancing. She was not in the mood to smile at people and dance with men. Not even Gary. But unfortunately for her, duty had to take priority over her feelings.
"Well, Lady Alanna," asked Gary as the music started up. "Would you like to dance?"
"First things first. I'm Alanna, not Lady Alanna. Also, I would not like to dance but I have a feeling I have to."
She got up when he offered his arm and they walked towards the dance floor. Alanna decide to keep her eyes on her feet rather than talk to her partner. Gary didn't notice. He had his eyes on Cynthera, who was dancing with his cousin. One the dance was over they sauntered of the dance floor over to where the Prince and Cynthera were sitting, drinking some wine.
"Hello, Lady Alanna, Gary. How did you like the meal?" Jon enquired.
While Alanna answered the question Jon was taking in the full beauty of her look while Gary did the same with Cynthera. Jon, who knew about his cousin's feelings to the girl sitting next to him, was wishing they could swap places. Alanna with him and Cynthera with her. Even though Cynthera was a beauty there was something about the way that Alanna looked that made him so attracted to her. He wished the funny feeling in his stomach whenever she was near would go away. What he didn't know, though, was Alanna was feeling the same thing.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Alanna watched Gary and Cynthera, who were dancing together. She was sitting with Jon, hoping other men would ignore the fact that she was not on the dance floor. By the look of the man who was making his way towards her, it wasn't working. She decided to strike up a conversation with Jon so it would look like she was occupied.
"So, Jon. Cynthera is really pretty. Don't you think her and Gary look cute together?"
Jon stared at her. "You two are betrothed. Why would you say something like that."
"I don't mind. Anyway, it wasn't my idea to be betrothed in the first place. I would rather stay single or marry a person for love. Not that that would ever happen." She smiled and Jon felt his heart melt inside him.
"I don't think that's impossible. The right man could be staring right at you but you just haven't noticed yet."
"I wish. Well, do you think they look cute together?"
"I guess they do." Jon said.
"Of course they do. He's in love with her. You should know, he's your cousin."
"How do you know Gary's in love with Cynthera?" asked Jon, aghast.
"Well, you just need to see the way he looks at her. Trust me, half of my friends have fallen in love. I should know what it looks like. I don't know why you guys tried to hide it from me. I'm not blind. You know, I think Cynthera feels the same way, though she might have been put of by the fact that we're betrothed. Too bad there is nothing we can do about it."
Jon's eye's lit up. "Who said there wasn't?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Well! What do you think? Was it long enough to please you. It better be. Please read and review my other stories or I might be mean and not add more to this one. I want at least 60 reviews on this one and ten more on each of the others to continue. I know it's blackmail but I want to know what people think. Also, I'm welcome to title suggestions to Queen Goddess. I don't think the one I've got now is catchy enough.
Thanks for reading and enjoy.
StarFire.
P.S- To all those people who are bored and looking for people's work to check out I recommend Bluebell of Mindelan (Who sometime write part of this story and is a very close school friend), Angel-Goddess, karlyanne_134 (I think that's her name) and Lady Nicolia. I also recommend anyone else I have read a story by and have liked. Sorry, I can't remember all your names.