a/n: T___T I feel the zephyr of the semester finals drawing near...... *gulp**ahem*... please read & review ch22~! hope you'll enjoy! :)
Disclaimer: I'm rorudesu-chan.. not Tetsuya Nomura... so I don't own FFVXIII
"Oblivious Fate"
By: rorudesu-chan
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Chapter 22: International Kingdom Conference
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Stella forked in a piece of the grilled pink Salmon into her mouth. She chewed the fish slowly, savoring the tasty and smoky flavor of tonight's main course. After swallowing it, she grabbed the white table napkin which was laid above her lap. As Stella wiped her mouth of any oil residue, she felt a hand lightly touch her right shoulder. She glanced and smiled.
Somna happily complimented her fellow Tenebraean Ambassador who wore a stunning evening dress to the international kingdom conference. The older diplomat simply adored how the silky, shimmering gown had a strap around Stella's neck. The ripple design in the middle flowed gracefully and it complemented the blonde's two-inch silver colored heels.
"So is he here yet, Miss Fleuret?" Somna whispered, leaning towards her without taking a glimpse.
Stella had a puzzled look on. "He?"
"Your Prince Charming."
"Prince Charming?" Stella scoffed.
The brunette gave a roll from her mascara-lined eyes. "Your Noctis Lucius Caelum."
Stella was slicing herself another chunk of Salmon when she heard Somna mention his name. The knife's blade gave off a slight screech as it cut through the meat, reaching the surface of the porcelain plate.
"He's not mine." Stella said politely with a rather serious tone.
"Oh?" Somna replied. "Alright then. Do you know where he is?"
"I'm don't think he's coming."
"He isn't? How come?"
Her eyes gazed past the half-finished meal course before her. "I think he's…" she paused, thinking of the proper answer. "Afraid…"
"Afraid?! Of what? For goodness sake, he's a Prince! What is he supposed to be scared of, except his safety of course? But that wouldn't be a problem since…" The brunette slowed down on her words, her eyes trailed her fellow diplomat.
"Yeah, it wouldn't be a problem. So he shouldn't be afraid of anything." Stella feigned a smile as she stood up.
"Miss Fleuret? Are you finished with your dinner already?"
"I'll be back shortly." The blonde replied, not responding appropriately to Somna's inquiry.
Stella needed to get away for awhile. She had hoped that no one would even pop a topic regarding 'him'. But she knew things like those just couldn't be helped. And neither could it be changed.
Stella walked away from the table. She felt the brunette's stare trailing her but she didn't mind. After all, she must've given a clear signal that she didn't want to be followed. Stella needed some time alone. She had been perplexed by a lot of things recently, all leading up to her and Noctis' shallow bicker yesterday.
The blonde Ambassador walked past the sovereigns of the different kingdoms. She smiled candidly if one of them ever took a second to do the same thing to her. She met various faces: old, young, skinny, fat and such. But none of those faces could match up with his cool, serious and coy-infused features.
He definitely wasn't here, she thought.
After passing several monarchs, Stella could finally see a passage through the crowd of people who did their own activities before the conference 'officially' started. When she was about to walk herself out, Stella saw a girl that seemed no older than her. She looked as if she was waiting for the Ambassador.
Stella recognized the young lady who wore a skimpy, fitting black dress with a diamond-cut opening right upon where her chest was. To cover her womanly lumps, she wore a black strapless bra underneath it.
"It's been a long time hasn't it, Stella?" the girl said.
"It definitely has been, Natalia." The Tenebraean Ambassador replied, approaching her.
The two elegant-looking ladies gave each other a friendly embrace as a sign of their friendship.
"How is my mother?" the straight-haired maiden asked after releasing her hold from Stella.
"Queen Seraphine is doing fine. And she says that she would be running a tad bit late tonight." Stella replied. "When did you arrive?"
"Just a couple of days ago. I've been staying at this hotel."
"Hotel? Why? There's no law that states that the Queen's daughter cannot stay in her own mother's palace."
"No there isn't. You see, father really wanted me to visit mother's kingdom. But I chose not to."
The blonde frowned without saying a word. It was rather unfair that the Queen thought about her a lot yet her own daughter didn't. This was what the Ambassador thought since she and Seraphine talked about Natalia whenever they sat down for an afternoon tea and a little chat.
"Yes well, I wasn't that close to her when I was growing up. Father wanted her to move with us in Vahalis. It's her fault why she refused."
"She did?"
"Mother had many reasons which I didn't even bother to take another look into since most of them were all about her beloved Tenebrae." Natalia sneered but she immediately realized her mistake and apologized. "Oops, I didn't mean that as an offense."
"None taken,"
"It's just that, you know, I've only been to Tenebrae once or twice so I'm not so familiar with the place."
"I understand," Stella grinned. "Anyways, I'm glad to see you again Natalia. It's been two years, right?"
The Vahalis Princess laughed. "Yes, I think so. We really need to catch up, Stella!"
She shook her head. "There hasn't much change in my life. I'm just doing what I'm supposed to do for Tenebrae."
"Mhm… It's your duty as an Ambassador. But," Natalia contradicted. "You seriously need to have a life outside those political walls! They drain your social life, you know."
"There is such thing as time management, Natalia."
"Yeah there is. But can you believe it? Father thinks that I've been neglecting my duty as the crown princess to the throne of Vahalis!"
"Don't worry, you'll learn how to manage things soon."
"Ugh! You and your teachings again, Stella!" The Princess playfully said.
Stella chuckled in response.
"Anyhow," Natalia began. "I want you to meet somebody."
"Who is it?"
"My… fiancé." Natalia squealed, reluctant at first.
The Ambassador's face lit up. "Congratulations! When's the wedding day?"
"I still don't know. He hasn't discussed it with me or with my Father or with anybody yet."
"I see. Do you like him?"
"Yes."
"A lot?"
"More than you'll ever know."
Stella's cherry lips crafted a smile. "Then he's lucky he found you."
"Maybe," The Princess blushed. "I just really like how mysterious and honest he can get at times, you know. And when he speaks to me, it's as if I'm the only one he's talking to…"
"That's a very sweet thought. You should tell that to him."
"I guess I should but I'm still waiting for the right moment."
"Moment?"
Natalia frowned. "He hasn't confessed anything."
"Yet," Stella added.
"Yeah… yet," she agreed, bringing radiance back into her face.
"Natalia," The Ambassador said. "You still haven't told me who he is."
"Right, he's…"
The monarch with the black, silky tresses was about to respond. But something had caught the sight of her emerald irises as the soothing music of the live orchestra slowly died down. There was a resonation of a tweaking microphone on the stage. The attention of almost everyone darted to where the sound of the speakers came from. Stella felt a hand gripping her wrist. Instead of throwing a look towards the stage, the Ambassador glanced at Natalia who was now pulling her in one direction.
"Wait," the Princess said. "Let's listen to this first, okay?"
The white haired man who stood at the far right corner of the stage whispered to the tall, young noble before him.
"My dear Prince, are you ready for your speech?"
The dark spiked monarch looked over his left shoulder and smirked.
"Of course he's prepared, Thibault!" the military officer said as-a-matter-of-factly.
The old Duke boisterously laughed beneath his bushy beard which actually made a lot of sovereigns think of him as the 'Santa Claus of the royal bloods'—especially those young nobles-in training.
"Well then," Duke Thibault said, giving his walking crutch a tight squeeze. "After I introduce you to everyone, that'll be your cue to climb up the stage. Is that clear, Prince Noctis?"
The Caelum son politely nodded as he watched the eighty-year old venue host stagger his way towards the stairs of the four feet platform.
There were a number of things that Noctis wasn't sure of as of that very moment. In fact, he was mentally enumerating them in a list while waiting for the Duke to finish his introduction for tonight's conference discussion.
Will the statements he was about to say appeal mostly to, if not to the whole, population of the sovereigns present in the conference?
If yes, will they react positively or negatively?
If positive, will his proposals help bring peace and order to the kingdoms of all countries?
If negative, how would he cope with the constructive feedbacks of the elites?
If neither of the two possible outcomes, will the person primarily responsible for convincing him to attend tonight's highlighted conference of the year think of him as an heir even more unworthy of the Caelum throne?
Deep, cobalt eyes blinked. Thin-lined eyebrows slanted awkwardly. Noctis also wasn't quite sure of how to react to the last uncertainty that he listed in his thoughts. He tried to catch a glimpse of the faces of the people in the crowd from where he stood. But to his dismay, there was nobody who passed the descriptions of having the combination of layered blonde hair, ivory complexion, tall and well-proportioned figure and wonderfully-chiseled cheek bones that was complemented with a candid smile.
Noctis was quite certain of one thing though: Stella was at the conference.
She was an Ambassador of the Tenebrae Kingdom. But that wasn't the only reason of her attendance tonight. Stella held her responsibilities close to her heart, as if it was the lone thing she cared about next to eating, sleeping and breathing.
This idea annoyed the Prince at first. But when she stood before him yesterday at the cotillion practice, her azure pupils glowering at him, for the first time, someone had knocked Noctis out of his stubbornness. True, he had been convinced against what he wanted before. However those things were petty and unrelated to his duties as king-to-be. But when Stella took a hit against at what he had particularly chosen to defy, the Ambassador definitely strike the right spot.
So the once hesitant Prince overcame his fear. And now, he was walking towards the podium, papers of what he was supposed to say held in his hands.
As the soft murmurs of the crowd calmed down, silence filled the air in Duke Thibault's grand hall. All eyes darted to the direction of the stage. The podium was now occupied by a male noble who possessed a striking face and a calm disposition. He wore a simple black suit with a black necktie and a white long-sleeved blouse underneath.
Somewhere in the middle of the crowd, a Princess was delighted at the sight of 'her' Prince on stage. Her companion couldn't help but notice her friend's giddiness.
"You seem happy all of a sudden." The blonde lady said.
"Who wouldn't be?" replied the black haired monarch, her emerald irises locked only at the scene before her.
He opened his mouth slightly, adjusting the microphone with his right hand.
"He's right there, doing what he's good at." The Princess added.
"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen." His dark, enthralling voice said.
"He?" Stella asked.
Natalia gave off a smile full of certainty. "My fiancé…"
"First of all," Noctis began. "I would like to thank everyone for their attendance tonight."
Stella half-heartedly smiled. Her blue eyes traced where the young Vahalis sovereign was lovingly gazing at. Finally, she saw him—Natalia's betrothed. She felt a light twinge in her chest. But she denied feeling it.
"So he did come," The Ambassador whispered to herself. She honestly wanted to be happy for him because he finally found the inner strength to overcome whatever hindered him from his attendance at the conference.
But it would be strange if she became happy for his fulfillment. After all, she couldn't possibly be the reason why he was here in the first place, right? He had Natalia. And the beautiful Vahalis Princess had him as her Prince.
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a/n: hey guys~! did you like this chapter? please Review/Comment/Criticize! THANK YOU~! ooh~! wait~! by the way... If you'd like to have a 'better' image of how Noctis, Stella & Natalia looked like in the conference, just check my profile and I've added something new in it. It's called, The Wardrobe~!... Literally taken, its where I've decided to put up the links of the clothing I've chosen for OF's characters to wear in a particular scene. Why I did something like this? Just read it in the explanation I've got along with it... If you've got comments/suggestions, feel free to drop me a PM... thanks~!
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*~REVIEW REPLIES~*
(21. Push of Curiosity)
Stella Caelum: I'm glad you found the spoilers for the next chapter intriguing! I like how that sounds.... hehe!
Rosa: Ooh! I love the Noctis/Stella scene in that chapter too. haha. Glad you loved the Salsus thing!
Selena: Like what I said to Rosa, I repeat the same thing to you... thanks for admiring the two scenes!
Iris: I'm happy you're looking forward to the spoilers. About the jealous spoiler thing, *cough* did this chapter provide you a little something about it? hehe!
Stella & Noctis fan.: I'm glad you saw how Salsus was just doing what he feels like... hehe.. thanks!
Warangel88: I'm happy you liked the chapter, war! :)
Drifter17: Hey Drift~! Hmm.. regarding your rather curios question, well, here's my answer: I personally believe that when an author creates a story, he should have the very basic foundation where the plot would start. Without it, there would be no twists and turns that a reader anticipates for the story to have. In other words, the basic guidelines is something that an author would use so that there will be a story to start off. It's very helpful in the plot's transitions. However, this does not necessarily mean sticking to it all way until the ending of the story. There must be some open-mindedness as the story progresses. The sky is the limit for an author's imaginations. But then again, he should be careful about straying away from the plot, otherwise the reader will lose his interest in the story since confusion has come along to ruin the appetite for reading. Hope this answers your question. thanks for asking! (sorry it was kinda long... I just like expressing what I think.. hehe)
Cesia: ooh~! hehe! bloodthirsty, huh? well, I hope I'll be able to feed you with more N/S hints in the future chapters to come!
Nightsky88: were you waiting for the story behind the letter? hehe! I hope I provided you well with the info..
ken08002: hey~! thanks for the constructive review! :D I'm really happy that someone was able to point out a part in the story which needed a bit more attention. Actually, something about Noctis' character (here in OF) has bugged me before. I was kind of caught up with constructing the plot orderly, that I wasn't able to organize Noctis' character well when it came to his skills. But now that I've been reminded about what I should do as the author of this fic, I'll gladly do some more development with our beloved Prince's fanfic persona. Although, it would take quite awhile before I stress what Noctis' skills will be present in this story, rest assured that there will be a chapter wherein he wouldn't be described by his bashful nature alone. However, Noctis isn't going to have god-like abilities that were shown in the trailers. But he will be quite merciless when he deals with the enemies of his kingdom. Whatever contents that the orig plot of VersusXIII have won't necessarily be followed since I've stated before that OF has an AU theme. I'm glad you liked this fanfic, ken. There will be more updates to come and I hope to hear from you through your reviews soon. Thanks again for the helpful feedback! :D