As they had been told, the next evening, the captain paid a formal call, and asked for Fernanda's hand, and gave her the engagement ring.
"Well, at least you know my Tia Fernanda has always been fond of diamonds."Javier said when he saw it.
"No less than a daughter de la casa de los Condes de Aragon deserves."Fernando confirmed.
"Exactly."said Tia Petra.
Fernanda and Javier rolled their eyes.
"Well, at least look on the bright side. Take the ring with you, and...you can sell it for a lot of money when you need it."he said, during dinner, pretending to admire it.
"I'm not fond of wearing rings."
"Well, this one you'll have to. Otherwise, I'm sure they'll kill you."
Fernanda did nothing to draw attention to herself during the next week.
"And my lady said to have everything ready tomorrow night."Roque told Lance.
He nodded.
"So, they want me to help those stuck up snobs out of their carriages, and escort them to the entrance for the party!"exclaimed Pietro.
"Look on the bright side, yo, at least you won't fall asleep on the job."
Pietro punched him in the arm.
"At least when this is over, I won't have to be going back and forth so much. I slipped this morning on an errand while they were polishing the floors."said Blob.
"And you got in trouble?"asked Pietro, eager not to be the one who was always in trouble.
"No. I got up, and went on my way. The girls were pretty mad, cause the floor got dirty, and they had to start again. There was no one else."
Pietro looked furious.
"Even with all this going on, that idiot still keeps a close eye on me. You would think he would be occupied with other things, wouldn't you? That they would keep him occupied?"
"Maybe he thinks you're just plain lazy, yo."
"At least I don't take extra meals on duty. Eating flies."
"Well, they keep me awake, at least. How many nights has it been since you've been caught?"
"I think he got caught last night."said Blob, frowning in an effort to remember.
"I gotta go and do a couple of things."said Lance.
"And here, this might be of some use. I had that guy in charge of my bodyguards to get a hold of these for me, see. They might be helpful. No one will ever think they're yours."Javier said, as he gave his cousin some jewels. "With that dress, you will be even more noticeable! Will you take Roque with you?"
"Of course, he's mine, isn't he? Besides, just what would I do without him? And I'm not so heartless as to just leave him here, where they will certainly do just about anything to get the truth out of him."
"Oh, don't doubt that. Well, I guess it's just about time."
There was a knock on the door, and her aunt walked in.
"Hurry, Fernanda. What are you doing here? We don't have all night, and this party must be a complete success."she said.
"I'm almost ready, Tia."
"Thank goodness you're here, I really can't stand another second of her jabbering about how great it is that she's getting married. I mean, I know Fernando's great, but to such a degree?"Javier said as he walked out.
As soon as they left, Fernanda dismissed the maid, and climbed out the window. Using her powers, she able to reach the ground without an injury despite the fact that she slept on the top floor.
"Every second makes me more nervous. The sooner we're out of here, the better."she said.
"He's coming, too?"asked Lance, looking at Roque.
"Of course. We can't leave him. He is my responsibility, after all, he's my own, and it would be worse for him if we left him. And he has been pretty useful, and might still be of help."
"If you say so."said Lance, mounting his own horse. "And so, where to?"