A/N: I don't own it, so don't sue:)
A Kingdom Shattered
Chapter Three
Heading toward the dinner hall with her parents, Lita had to face Nephlyte. Still upset with him, she ignored his offer of an escort into the dining room. Nephlyte seemed surprised, but continued on as if nothing had happened. He spent all of dinner trying to figure out what had changed her attitude. This morning she had seemed very friendly. After dinner Nephlyte managed to catch up with her on the way to her room. "Lita," he called out. She slowly turned his way. "I have something to ask you."
"What is it?" she asked.
"I wanted to know if you would honor me in letting me escort you to the Imperial Ball on Friday."
"I'm sorry, but no."
Clearly this answer surprised him. "May I ask why? Do you already have a date?"
"No, I don't have a date already. However, while it may be your duty to ask me, it is not my duty to say yes. Good night," she said as she fled to her room.
Nephlyte felt an overwhelming sense of guilt. She had obviously heard his discussion with the King. He didn't quite know what to do. He'd just have to find a chance to apologize to her.
But this proved to be easier said than done. Lita managed to avoid him completely for several days. The only times that he saw her were during meals and she always managed to show up late and find some reason to leave early. He could tell the King and Queen had noticed this too, but were too nice to say anything about it.
Finally, after several days he managed to find Lita at the practice field. She was in the middle of practicing when he approached her. "Lita," he called out. She turned and gave him an annoyed expression.
"What?" she said succinctly as she grabbed her towel and started getting ready to leave. She didn't want to be anywhere near him.
"I just wanted to apologize," he said.
"Why?" she asked, feeling both hurt and mad. "Because I found out the truth? Because you feel sorry for me? Because you feel like you aren't fulfilling you duty if I don't say yes? Well, let me ease your conscience. Apology accepted. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go pack. It's my duty to be at the Imperial Palace tonight." Lita stormed off.
Nephlyte realized that this wasn't going to be an easy fix. Especially since she was leaving for the Moon today. I guess I'll just have to wait until the ball, he thought. And pray that he could fix this. But how?
Nephlyte pondered this as he decided to do this workout. Because his mind was on something other than his task, he made a rookie mistake and cut himself. He was bleeding pretty badly and decided to discontinue training for the day and get the wound bandaged.
On the way to his room he encountered Lita, who was on her way out the door. However, any sense of apathy she had for him vanished once she noticed his injury. "You're hurt," she said as she rushed to his side.
"It's not that bad," he said to her.
"No, Nephlyte. You're really bleeding. Come with me." She took his hand and dragged him to her bathroom. She grabbed one of her washcloths and wetted it. "Here, wash the wound while I search for a bandage. It doesn't look like it's bad enough for stitches, but you're going to want the physician to look at it."
"I'm fine, Princess. Please don't trouble yourself."
"Humor me." Lita left him to clean his wound while she searched for a bandage. She searched everywhere, but could not find one. Well, I'll just have to be creative, she thought. She walked back to her bathroom and found Nephlyte stripped to the waist. He had cleaned what he could of the wound. Helplessly, her eyes drifted to his chest. Lita just stared for a minute. He was gorgeous.
"Princess?" Nephlyte asked. Lita blushed. She had been caught staring.
"Sorry. I was just checking how you were doing. Follow me. I'm going to bandage it now." Nephlyte followed her into her room. He'd never seen it before, but it fit her. She had a canopy bed, covered in white, green and gold. She had a set of mahogany bedroom pieces, all beautifully crafted but not too ornate. There were snapdragons in vases around the room, giving the room a sweet smell and a pretty decoration without being overpowering. Even the small trinkets she had in the room were feminine but not overly ornate. Yes, everything was perfect according to her personality.
While Nephlyte was looking around, Lita was standing self-consciously by her vanity. She never let many people see her room, and she was apprehensive of Nephlyte's opinion of it. She didn't see any disdain or mockery in his eyes… she was hoping that this was a good sign.
"Here," she said, getting a jar from her vanity. "This will help heal the wound." She walked toward him with the jar. Nephlyte looked at it questioningly. Then he smelled it. His face shriveled up in displeasure.
"What is that?" he asked, making a face.
"Herbs. They smell awful, I know. But they'll heal the wound."
"Are you sure you're not trying to get even with me for the other night?" he asked warily.
"Trust me," she said. Nephlyte figured he didn't have much of a choice, so he walked back toward her. "Hold this for a minute," she said, handing him the jar. Automatically he took hold of it. He was wondering what she was going to do next. What she did surprised him. She took out a pair of scissors from a drawer and cut a piece out of her bed sheet.
"What are you doing!"
"You need a bandage and I couldn't find anything else," she shrugged. "If you're worried about germs, these sheets are clean. They're changed every day." He couldn't believe that she had just ruined her bed sheet. It must have been expensive, from the look of the fabric.
She walked toward him with the jar. "I'm sorry if this stings," she said. She carefully covered the entire wound, then gently wrapped it when the homemade bandage. She was trying to be as careful as possible to avoid hurting him anymore. She knew from the extent of the wound that he must be in great pain. She'd give him something for that next. First she had to take care of his arm.
She finished wrapping the bandage firmly around his arm, and then stepped back to survey her work. Satisfied, she looked up at him.
"Okay, and now just one more thing. Follow me." Nephlyte wondered what she was going to do now.
Lita led him to the kitchen. It was busy with activity, seeing as dinner was only a few hours away. Lita looked completely at home here. All of the workers called out friendly greetings to her and gave him curious looks.
"Right this way," Lita directed him as she pointed him toward a stool. Lita started mixing a concoction. He had a feeling he didn't want to know what was going into it, so he studied the kitchen staff instead. They were an efficient team, headed by a small, plump woman. She began to approach him, and then drew back with a start.
"Lordy, child. What did you do to him!" she exclaimed.
"He has a wound. What was I supposed to do, let him bleed to death?" she called out over her shoulder. She was busy mixing the medicine for him.
"You and your herbs," Mirta muttered to herself. Nephlyte watched the exchange curiously. The friendliness between the two was very apparent.
"Quit muttering about my herbs and get back to work!" Lita said with mock command.
"And who died and made you lord of land?" Mirta shot back at her. Lita stuck out her tongue.
Very interesting, Nephlyte thought. Before he knew it though, Lita had her concoction under his nose. "Drink this," she told him. Nephlyte just stared at it for a minute, and then took it from her hands. He said a silent prayer that he wasn't about to die, then took a sip. It was surprisingly sweet, with a hint of a mint taste. He finished the last of the drink while Lita watched expectantly.
"See, you're not dead," Lita said with a grin.
"Yet," Nephlyte returned with a smile.
Lita gave his an evil grin. "That's right, you still have to live through dinner."
"I thought you were leaving for the Moon this afternoon."
"I was, but my friend Gracie can't make it here 'til this evening. She's traveling by herself, so I'm going to keep her company."
"Gracie. That name sounds familiar."
"She's engaged to Stephen, the captain of our guard."
"Ah, yes."
"Have you met her before?"
"No, I haven't had the pleasure of meeting her yet."
Lita grinned. "You're in for a real treat then. Gracie is…different, for lack of a better word."
Mirta rolled her eyes at that. Lita gently gave Nephlyte a push. "Now, shoo. I've got work to do, and you need to rest."
"Yes, Princess." He went off to his room to lie down. Whatever Lita had given him made him a little drowsy. He played over the afternoon's events in his mind. She was very relaxed with everyone. He wondered how she acted among other royalty. Obviously she and Gracie were close. But was she prim and proper around royalty? He could tell she had the strength to be a ruler. But did she have the sophistication? These questions stayed with him as he drifted off to sleep.
To All: I didn't die! I will have this story up this week, because it's already done. Sorry I'm not being very consistent with it!
Athena Kyle - I never got your edited version, so I just winged it. Haven't heard from you in awhile so I hope that you're still alive!
Elara - Glad to see that you're still reading. This isn't the only confrontation that they'll have--hope that you continue to like my writing:)
Stargazer-102006 - Thank you for the high praise!
sailorjupiter316 - So glad that you like the story so far. I'll keep writing 'em if you keep reading 'em!
LishaVilla - I agree, there's not enough stories out there. Hope that you continue to read!
Youkiyra Solar - Thanks for the review! Hope that you continue to like the story!