AN: I know where I'm going with this! I swear, I really do! But it's getting there that's the problem.

Disclaimer: I own nothing but my OCs.

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Chapter Eight

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"No, girl! The orange one!" snapped Adelinde as she sat at the vanity, brushing her hair out. Aari, who was holding a blue dress with a full skirt, jumped and skittered back to the closet, where she hung up the blue dress and exchanged it for the one that Adelinde had requested.

"This one, Ma'am?" she said, holding up the dress.

"Yes, that one," said Adelinde shortly. She took the dress and stepped behind the partition to change. Once she had, she stepped out and looked at herself in the mirror. Her face looked a bit pale, and there were dark circles under her eyes, but otherwise, she looked just like she always did. Her hair was still the same, her eyes, her face, all of it. But she didn't feel the same. It was as if something within her had shifted last night – something that refused to shift back. It didn't feel right.

"Ma'am?" said Aari, approaching cautiously (for she had learned that, in the morning, Adelinde was something to behold), "King Edmund is at the door and he is asking to speak with you."

"Let him in, Aari. I'm as ready as I'll ever be," said Adelinde, and she turned to face the door, as the young nymph scurried back and opened it. Edmund stood there in the doorway, looking almost as if he'd just rolled out of bed. He had on a clean tunic, and he wore his crown, but other than that, it was obvious he hadn't made much effort to wake up.

"G'morning, Ada," he said dryly.

"Good morning, King Edmund," she replied, returning to the formality. He frowned slightly at that. Aari had, in the few seconds that they'd been speaking, managed to make herself disappear.

"Adeline," Edmund said, stepping into the room and shutting the door, "I-I just wanted to tell you that…I'm very sorry about how rude I was last night. I don't know why I did it, but I just…I'm sorry."

Adelinde smiled warmly at him. But not too warm… she reminded herself. "You needn't apologise, King Edmund. You did nothing wrong."

Edmund frowned at her evasion of the topic. "Please, Ada!" he said, taking a step toward her, "Even if you think I don't need to apologise, just…tell me if you forgive me or not. For my sake."

She smiled at him again. "If it is so important to you…I forgive you. Is there anything else you needed from me, King Edmund?"

He looked a little embarrassed. "W-well…" he started, but he looked down, his ears reddening, "But…it's nothing. Never mind, Ada."

"All right then," she said. He seemed surprised that she dropped the subject so easily. She moved toward him and said, sweetly as ever, "Now, Edmund, could you move? You're blocking the door, and I really would like to go down to breakfast."

Edmund grinned at her. "Gladly, my Lady. May I escort you down?"

"Aye, you may, Your Majesty," Adelinde said, accepting the arm that Edmund held out to her. They passed Aari their way down to the dining hall. Adelinde said to herself that she must remember to ask that girl where she'd gone.

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After breakfast, Adelinde hesitated in the dining hall. The party was over, all of the kings and queens were going to be very busy, and it was far too cold to go outside. She could go to the library, but Brae was very likely to be waiting there for her. She hadn't seen him after the confrontation the previous night, but he had very likely seen her, and would speak to her about what had transpired in the hall with the kings.

She left the dining hall through the western corridor, with no particular destination in mind. She saw many people she knew – Lady Marina, from the night before, looking absolutely terrified as she passed Adelinde; one of the band members – a faun around her own age who grinned kindly at her as she passed; as well as several others that she recognised by their faces, but whose names she couldn't recall.

"Lady Adelinde?" Asked a female voice.

Adelinde turned to see a small, slim girl a little younger than her with black hair and green eyes. She was very white, and it seemed as if she had never set foot outdoors in her life.

"Yes?" Adelinde asked mildly, "Do I know you?"

"I do not believe so," said the girl, "I am Lady Tiva, of Archenland. I am the daughter of one of the ambassadors."

"Well then, what can I assist you with, Lady Tiva?"

The girl looked shocked at the direct nature of Adelinde's sentence, but said, "I only wanted to know if you would like to sit with a few of the other ladies and I. We are having a small gathering in one of the sitting rooms."

Adelinde was going to refuse, but then saw the girl's hopeful look. They are interested in me! Realised Adeline, They're only interested in gossip about the kings!

She changed her mind only half a second before the words came out of her mouth. "Why, I would be honoured to join you, my Lady," said Adelinde, smiling kindly. Tiva grinned hesitantly back at her, before beckoning her to follow.

They continued down the passage, took a left at an intersection, and climbed a flight of stairs. At the top of the stairs, Tiva led her down a passageway and opened a wooden door on the left.

As soon as the door was opened, a rush of scents and sounds burst out, and it took all the control and training that Adelinde had to keep from stumbling back. In the room was a group of eleven ladies. Some had the relaxed clothing and light hair of Archenland, while others wore the flamboyant dresses and bore the dark skin and hair of Calormene, while others yet appeared as islanders, and Adelinde could swear she even saw a Telmarine in there. All were chatting quietly, and lightly fanning themselves.

There were no artificial lights in the room, for the curtains were drawn wide, and the window looked out Southeast.

As soon as Tiva opened the door, every lady looked toward the door, and stopped what they were doing when they saw Adelinde. There was a murmur as all the ladies cooed their respective 'hello's and 'good day's. Adelinde gave a small smile, and nodded. Tiva ushered her in and pulled up an armchair for her. She offered tea, which Adelinde politely refused, and then took her own seat next to a woman in her late twenties that appeared to be from one of the islands.

Everything was quiet for a moment more. One could have said it was silent, except that there were still noises – the rustle of a skirt as its owner shifted in her seat; the clink of a teacup as it was set in its saucer; the slow deep sigh of a lady feeling especially awkward.

Then – thank the Lion! - Tiva spoke to the woman next to Adelinde, and asked her, "So, Meya, how is your husband fairing?"

"Oh, no better, no worse. The illness has not yet taken him, but we all know it soon will – he is getting on in his years," replied the girl, who was very blatantly Calormene. What shocked Adelinde slightly was that she could not have been more than 16 or 17. This girl who looked younger than her was already married, and, if she knew anything about Calormene, probably had been since he was 14, was talking about how her old husband was dying. It was more than a little frightening.

But Tiva's question broke the tension in the room. The rest of the ladies soon started chatting as Meya and Tiva continued their conversation. Adelinde found herself conversing with a young woman named Lei. She was from the island Galma, which lay almost directly east of Cair Paravel. She looked vaguely Calormene, as most islanders did. She had dark brown hair, pulled up into a knot at the back of her head and skin that was dark enough to be Calormene, but still light enough to look like a tan. What gave her away as an islander and not a Tarkeena was her green eyes.

They talked for at least thirty minutes about absolutely nothing important. The women spoke of the weather, and the ball the previous night, and linens and patterns. It wasn't until nearly an hour after Adelinde's arrival that one of the Tarkeenas – Adelinde briefly recalled her name as beginning with a 'C', but couldn't remember what it was – asked, "So, love, how did it feel to be fawned over by both the kings?"

Adelinde blushed with embarrassment and more than a little bit of fury.

"That depends what you mean by 'fawned over', my Lady," she said, coldly, "If you mean fought over, then it feels horrid. If you mean ignored by my escort, it feels dreadful. If you mean comforted by the High King, however..." she trailed off with a dreamy look on her face.

There was an outburst of giggling, and the speed of the fanning increased.

"And why do you mean by 'comforted', dearie?" Asked another lady, who Adelinde could not see.

She smiled a little at the question. "I see all of your heads go to the worst places at my words. But no matter, because I mean nothing more than a comforting touch, and a kind word."

"And a not-so-innocent kiss in a corridor?" asked Meya. As the giggling renewed, Adelinde flushed an even darker shade of red.

She attempted to hide her blushing cheeks as she said, "That was nothing! By the Lion, how does word travel so fast in this castle? The only people who saw that were Edmund" she ignored the ladies gasping at her use of the first name of the King "and...." Then it hit her.

"Marina!" she hissed. The lady had it in for her – she was convinced.

"Was it good?" asked a still giggling girl about her own age.

"It probably would have been better if he wasn't drunk," said Adelinde without thinking. The giggling started again.

"And you say His Majesty King Edmund walked in on you?" asked a woman in her mid-twenties in-between her own quiet giggles.

Adelinde sighed. She was hoping to avoid this. "Yes, he did..."

"But wasn't he upset? I mean, he was your escort, after all!" asked the same woman.

"I don't know, and, quite frankly, I don't care," said Adelinde truthfully. Several women looked shocked, and even appalled.

"B-but, Lady Adelinde!" cried Lady Tiva, shocked beyond belief. "How can you say that? Can you not see how His Majesty cares for you?"

Adelinde threw her a sharp look. "And am I to understand that you do?" she said shortly.

Tiva looked at her hands. "I know that I do not know you nor His Majesty very well, but I am not blind. I can see how he cares for you. I danced with him last night, and he never spoke of anything but you." She spoke quietly, but with conviction.

Adelinde was internally delighted, but she showed no external sign of it. She was about to reply, but a castle maid opened the door quietly and poked her head in.

"I apologise for the interruption, Good Ladies," she said, "But it's time for lunch."

Adelinde rose to her feet, delighted for the interruption. "Ladies," she said, heading for the door, "I am sorry to leave you, but I do not wish to miss the noontime meal. I shall take my leave now."

As she passed Meya on her way to the door, the Lady whispered in her ear, "You aren't out of the woods yet, love. In fact, it's only just beginning."

Adelinde swallowed hard when she got out the door. Things were going both more smoothly and quicker than anyone had planned for. She had to wonder if they would be ready in time, if she managed to complete her mission. But as she walked to the dining hall, the thought was driven from her mind as she reintegrated into the flow of the castle life. It seemed the world of proper ladies, despite all her training, was an entirely different world than the one with which she was accustomed.

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All right, now that I'm moving again, the chapters shouldn't take me this long anymore. Review, please!

~Xandra J.