Nixiesocean: Hello all! So, here's the deal: there will be no epilogue. There is one more chapter after this one, and that's the (final) end. I've edited the previous chapter so that this one is not an epilogue (as intended) but another chapter.
Responses:
Nyght Mustique: Hehe. Read the above notice. That's interesting… is she killed? There, you gave me an evil cliffhanger!
Bingo7: The whole story of the curse will be told next chapter (as someone hints to in this chapter). Really? You didn't expect which part? Mercy not ending up with Renold?
FaylinnNorse: Nah. I could never end a story like that. I'd need to post, if only to satisfy my own curiosity! Hehe. That's hilarious. Anyways… read.
KMD3271: I'm updating! Yay! Cookies and milk for me! (on the subject of continuing the story, read above notice).
Fantisylover: It's not a horrible ending, it's a typical, Brother's Grimm ending. The prince gets his girl, the princess doesn't. That's how the original fairy tale ended. Except the subject of the princess' love story is never included, that's an original Nixiesocean-added story.
Thai Libre: There are only two loose ends I notice: Marcus and Hannah's marriage (not much of a loose end, merely fluff) and Mercy's love (lots of frayed ends, lots of fluff).
Enjoy this extra chapter. Ironically, the last chapter will be 20 (totally not intended, but the way…)
Please review! I love hearing from you people! Even if it's you yelling at me for an evil cliffhanger.
Chapter 19: The Ball
The mysterious reassignment of Renold stung Mercy even now, two weeks later. If her family had noticed, they made no attempt to explain or rationalize it. Mercy sat at her drawing desk, sifting through all the drawings she made through the years. Her slim fingers pulled out one picture, one viewed recently.
A young Marcus and Hannah were both looking at her, with their respective personalities. Mercy understood the picture now, why she had thought Marcus had looked like a lion, and Hannah a frog.
She slipped the old drawing back into its place. Again, her fingers pulled out a drawing, one far more recent.
The person wasn't smiling, not in the physical way. His eyes held his special sparkle. His lips were set in their normal, semi-happy position. Mercy had seen Renold smile once, when she had tripped at sixteen on her gown. He had been holding back laughter, but met her eyes, and she had seen something beyond her comprehension at the time. Everything about the picture made her sadder, so she slipped it back into the stack.
But it persisted, haunting her mind. His typical inch-long hair, his blue eyes, everything about him that was so common to Hanor stuck to her like tree's sap. Her fingers itched to draw him again, to satisfy the ghost of him that still trailed her like he had only three weeks ago.
Her vision obscured; she reached up a finger and found her cheeks already wet with tears. A light knock on her parlor door brought her to her senses. She wiped her cheeks and blew her nose on a kerchief.
Her maid opened the door and her soon-to-be sister-in-law entered. When the maid had closed the door and left, Mercy threw herself into Hannah's arms.
"How did you know?" She whispered. "Do you know where he's gone?"
Hannah awkwardly patted her back. "There was air about you, and him for that matter, Mercy." She smiled. "I have no idea where Renold is."
Mercy pushed herself away, "If no one will tell me, then I'll go find him myself."
Hannah's eyes widened. "No, Mercy, you can't do that." Mercy was already pulling out her men's clothing. "Please, Mercy – just, just wait until after Marcus and I are wed. Then, you can run away to find your love."
Mercy's lip quivered. "Promise Marcus won't stop me?"
Hannah's lips broke into another smile. "I'll try to persuade him. Now, you and I are going to the seamstress and we are getting fitted for our ball gowns."
- - - - - - - - - - -
Mercy found herself being dressed by her lady-in-waiting almost three hours before the ball for the newly ranked noble. Her dress was the color of snow with little silver thread woven into the fabric to give the illusion of sparkles. It taped to a point to exaggerate her waistline. It flared back out, and a semi-transparent train was sewn onto it. She wore little jewelry – only a simple silver chain, nothing that would identify her as the princess of Hanor. Nobles from southern Hanor were attending, and would likely be of mixed blood, and therefore have the similar characteristics as her.
She hoped to not be noticed at all. Her hair was done in a simple bun with hair escaping; making it seem like a black waterfall was cascading down her back. She wore no lip paint, and her mask was white with silver flecks. It had two eye slits, outlined in white-tinted-blue paint. The maid tied the mark around back with black silk thread and Mercy barely recognized herself with it donned.
With no one around her quarters, she escaped into the halls, trying to look genuinely confused. Being the princess, and knowing some of the southern girls, she knew exactly which hallways was the most puzzling.
A voice behind her startled her. She let a light squeak. The gentleman chuckled.
"A lady should not be wandering the halls alone," He told her with a smile. He wore a nondescript blue mask. His blonde hair and blue-eye combination was common for Hanor. He smiled and her heart skipped a beat.
"Ah," She replied, "But why should a gentleman be wandering the palace alone, while the party starts?"
He switched the weight from his left leg to his right. "I could ask the same of you, my lady."
She batted her eyelashes. "But, my lord, I was lost!"
He held out his arm. "Then allow me to escort you to the ball, where I might claim the first dance of you, lady."
Mercy placed her arm on his. "I accept."
They walked in silence for a bit, until her escort noted, "You have the appearance of a southerner, but you have the accent of the palace." Stupid! She told herself. I should've given myself an accent! "May I venture a guess?"
"You may, my lord," She whispered coyly, "But until midnight, you shall have no answer!"
"Alas," He sighed, "I shall not voice my guess."
She smiled. "And here we are, the ball."
- - - - - - - - - - -
A couple entered the party from a side entrance, Queen Anna noted without telling her husband. As tradition dictated, the king and queen of Hanor presided over the first dance, and then were allowed to begin mingling with the guests, and dance.
The couple began dancing, the female was in a sparkling white dress and her partner in a sky blue overcoat, and black pants. Even this early, the perceptive queen could identify something different about them.
She settled into her seat to watch the couple's memorizing dance as they spun about the room. She would skip this ball.
- - - - - - - - - - -
Mercy and the unnamed gentleman danced at least fifteen dances – she lost count at ten – before taking some wine and sitting down. More than once, Mercy's eyes shot over and saw her mother looking at them, and then her gaze would gently wander around the room. The king had long since abandoned his throne to talk with his courtiers. It made Mercy nervous that her mother had not joined in the festivities.
Her escort was talking. "– are very beautiful tonight."
Mercy smiled, attempting to make look like she was listening. "Of course." To her ears, it sounded false.
"You believe so? Would you like to join me in the gardens? This air is stifling."
She nodded and set her glass on a nearby table. "I would love to."
They linked arms and walked out the ground-level doors into the cool night air. They strolled in understanding silence until the pair reached a fountain, it was still sputtering water into the air, and it seemed to reflect the near-full moon's radiance.
Mercy settled onto a stone bench. Why does it seem like two people always seem to wander moonlit gardens and end up next to a fountain with a stone bench near it? Mercy wondered to herself.
She felt a warm body slide onto the bench next to her. Mercy almost felt the hole in her heart completely heal. Giddy with excitement she hadn't thought she'd find at the ball, she grinned at her masked escort.
The mask reminded her of midnight, two hours from now. She sighed and leaned into his chest. Slowly, as if he was uncomfortable, she felt a warm arm drop around her shoulders.
Everything felt perfect. She had made it so far without thinking of him.
She closed her eyes and tried to enjoy this ball, without thinking of the high possibility of an arranged marriage, trying not to think about her new guard who didn't understand anything about her, trying not to think of Marcus and Hannah… and the love they openly shared.
She inhaled the scent of the night, unintentionally catching her partner's cologne. The intimacy they were caught in would be a scandal and, without trying to alarm him, she straightened and cocked her head.
"I think we should go in." She stood and brushed off the back of her dress.
"As you wish, my lady," He said with a lopsided grin and a bow. "After all, ladies first."
Mercy smiled and walked in, followed by him. Immediately, a dance partner spun by and grabbed her hands. She followed the steps with second-nature, allowing her to get a look at her partner. Even with the mask, she recognized her brother.
"Now, my lord, you should let my partner dance with me first," She chided gently.
"Ah, my apologies, fair lady." He knew her too. "Have you found the name of your escort?"
Mercy rolled her eyes as she spun in a circle. "I have no need to know it."
"Do you plan to be around as he unmasks?" Her brother persisted.
"As he will be when I unmask."
He allowed his sister to be swept up by the throng of dancers as another lady entered his arms and he kept pace with the dance. Many dances – and even more partners – later, Mercy found herself with her self-proclaimed escort.
Marcus' words rung in her head, and she glanced up at the big clock, it was around eleven. She turned to her partner.
"Will you be here at midnight, for the unmasking?"
He nodded, "If you will be, lady."
She leaned into him, "Find me then," Mercy whispered. Their eyes met as another man stepped in and took over. He nodded.
"A fine young man," Her new partner said in his nasally voice. "However you might find me more attracting."
Mercy was offended, though she didn't let it show, "Would you care to explain? He's been nothing but a gentleman tonight." Even to the point of letting you dance with me.
The lower half of the man's mask betrayed his wicked smile, "I am an earl, not a second-son on the inner circle with the king."
"I am all astonishment, my lord!" Is he the one this ball was called to celebrate?
He leaned in, as she had done, "Truly as I am an earl, that man is no true noble."
Mercy's hands slipped. Not a 'true' noble? "My apologies, my lord!" His slick hands were quick to grasp hers again. "Could you explain?" Curiosity got the better of her; her partner was quick-witted.
"I shall divulge your escort's secret if you dance with me until midnight."
That would be another hour. Mercy smiled, all lady-like. "Alas, I am far too tired to dance until midnight." She intentionally allowed her feet to step on his, and her hands slipped out of his death grasp. She spun away and walked to a chair.
She watched her escort through the slits in her mask. He occasionally mixed up the steps, but so did some of the nobles she had danced with tonight. The clock tolled half-past eleven, and her partner found a seat across the hall. Her eyes found her mother, looking at her.
She blushed and looked away. When she looked back to where her escort had been, he was missing. The earl she had spoken with was dancing with a pretty lady who looked like she'd be doing anything but dancing with him. Mercy laughed. She trusted her escort to find her before the unmasking, every time they had been split by the dances, he'd always found her again.
Much like Renold, her unprovoked thoughts whispered.
Please, she begged, leave me alone. For just this once! The cackle she heard she hoped was just her imagination.
- - - - - - - - - - -
The girl in white noticed that Queen Anna had been watching. Her escort was missing – he had disappeared when the queen was looking at the girl – and it was almost midnight. The queen of Hanor desperately wanted to know who the pair was, because they were very much in love, from what she could tell.
One minute before the tolling – when all the dancing ceased – the pair Queen Anna had been watching rejoined and they watched the clocks, hands on the ties to the masks.
"3!"
Just before the unmasking, the queen saw the white-clad girl's escort lean over and kiss her tenderly on the lips.
"2!"
"1!"
The crowd cheered, "Unmask!" just as the midnight bell tolled.
- - - - - - - - - - -
At the kiss, Mercy's stomach dropped through the floor; her first ever kiss and it was from a total stranger. He held her around the waist with one arm and with the other prepared to take off the mask. She laughed and counted down with the other attendees.
"2!"
"1!"
"Unmask!"
She pulled off her white mask (trying not to damage her hair) and turned toward her partner. She wasn't prepared for what she saw. For a while, it seemed like no one else was in the hall.
It seemed odd to her that a half-mask would make so much of a difference, but nonetheless she stared.
"Renold?"
- - - - - - - - - - -
That one word shattered his almost-perfect calm. Renold took in every feature of Mercy's face, wanting desperately to only kiss her lips again and again. Apologize for letting her go this whole night not knowing it was him she was with.
From inside a pocket, while she gawked, he pulled out a thin golden band and slipped it onto her left ring finger. He gently lifted her hand to his lips and kissed it.
"Marry me," He whispered.
That broke her trance.
A million emotions erupted from her, ranging from happiness to anger. She threw her arms around his neck and pressed her lips to his, not caring about the horrible break in social norm. His arms slid around her waist.
Someone coughed. Mercy blushed slightly and moved away, but kept her hand entwined with his.
King Jonas' voice rang over the murmurs of the crowd. "The ball is over, we now welcome Lord Renold of Aevron's Pass to our company." Some clapped, but most stared. "I would also like to announce the engagement of Lord Renold to Princess Mercy." More clapped, but the majority of the women stared at Mercy. Mercy led him out into the garden once more after scooping up their fallen masks.
She spoke in a whisper, he guessed she was afraid of being overheard.
"You led me on, the whole night," She smiled in disbelief. "As much as I loved the mystery, you led me on!"
Renold smiled, her eyes softened slightly. "One cannot disobey royal orders."
"Royal?!" She turned and threw her arms up into the air. She turned back, "I'm going to kill him!" She kissed him gently on the cheek, "I was told you were reassigned."
"And so I was." He took her hand, "Reassigned to the post of nobility."
She sighed and hugged him around the waist; "I was so hurt when you weren't here to greet Marcus, Hannah and I."
He gently placed his arms around her. "You should remember the custom of Hanor. A newly titled noble is tied to his lands for one month, and then a ball is held at the end of the month, to celebrate his joining the titled nobility."
Renold felt her sigh against him. "I wish it weren't so. It would've saved me a lot of heartache."
He grinned as she mussed her hair. She would look even more beautiful. "You will have to tell me your tale, my lady."
"Marcus'. I entered into it a little late." She whispered.
He laughed. "As the villagers say, you entered it exactly when you were supposed to." She shivered slightly. "Although it is summer, the night can be cold. Come on, we need to get inside."
My Renold. She told herself as he led her back inside. My protective Renold.
"Wait," He stopped just short of the door. She kissed him lightly on the cheek. "I love you."
His face broke into a smile. "I love you too, Mercy."
It was the first time he had uttered her named unadorned with titles or other names.
- - - - - - - - - - -
Did you like? I edited the last chapter, so this isn't an epilogue, only another chapter.
Review, please!