We arrived and all eyes turned to see the arrival of both princes. I was the receiver of many envious stares and I held my head high as I entered the ballroom on Christian's arm. It was the same room from the previous ball but also different than before. Some of the mirrors in the ballroom were covered making the ballroom less infinite than the first time. The single red carpet was gone leaving bare black and white tiles, but the most notable difference was all the colors people were wearing. Everyone was paired off and wore every color imaginable. The ball room was a rainbow in motion as people danced. Hector quickly led Victoria to the dance floor and joined the swirl of colors.

"This time my bothersome younger siblings are not here to ruin the night. Father has barred them from attending the rest of the balls as punishment for what they did at the first. I also suspect that he was forced to ban them by all the nobility that got splattered in their little prank." Christian said as we too entered the ballroom.

We did not go immediately to the dance floor. Christian paraded me around and introduced me to some advisors and other palace officials. He was having fun and so was I. I liked being shown off as if I were something of value. We continued on in this way until we came upon another couple. The moment Christian and Kol came face to face I could see the change in both of them. They were both standoffish as they stared each other down. Kol had a small red headed woman on his arm. She was exquisite and had a distinctive black freckle directly under her left eye. Her black and silver dress set off her fiery hair and matched Kol's tailored suit splendidly. It was the first time I had seen him in formal clothes and he was transformed. His hair was neatly combed back, leaving his sharp eyes clear and uncovered. It was he who spoke first, his mouth curling up into a grin.

"Good evening, Ebony, you are looking well. Allow me to introduce you to Roberta who has so graciously accepted to let me escort her this evening." Kol didn't even so much as glance at the prince.

"Friends call me Bert." The girl said with a wide smile that rivaled Kol's in mischief. She boldly offered her hand and I clasped it in a firm handshake.

"My name is Ebony," I introduced myself. I was fully aware of how they were leaving Christian out of the conversation.

Bert tilted her head knowingly. "Oh, I know who you are. Niko told me all about your adventures. You must be very brave to keep up with this one." She poked Kol in the ribs and he shifted in annoyance.

"If you start calling me Niko, I will start calling you Roberta." Kol griped, but he was smiling fondly. I wondered if this was the girl he was meant to marry. They seemed to get on very well.

Christian shifted beside me and possessively stepped closer to me. I was shocked and flattered at the gesture. "Nikolaus, I did not know if you were aware, but colors were allowed tonight. You needn't dress as if you are attending a funeral."

Kol turned his black-eyed gaze to the prince and smiled. "Thank you ever so much, your highness, I will do my best to remember it for the next ball."

Christian didn't return the smile. "Yes, well, Ebony and I are due for a dance so we must end this pleasant conversation we are having."

Kol winked roguishly at me and I could feel Christian's arm stiffen under my fingers. Kol was being too familiar with me and it was bothering Christian. "Maybe we will run in to each other later."

"Oh, yes please. I would so like to properly meet you after being told so much about you." Bert beamed at me.

I started to nod but was pulled onto the dance floor by Christian. He looked intensely annoyed and, dare I say it, jealous. "How do you know Nikolaus Rydell?" He asked almost as soon as we took our first steps in the dance.

"We met the night before the first ball. We had both gone out to see the fireworks and ran into each other." I explained.

"I don't like the way he treats you. I have known him for years and he is nothing but trouble."

"Don't I know it," I mumbled under my breath. Christian cocked his head in question but did not ask for me to repeat myself.

We continued in the dance and Christian did not ask me any further questions, but I could tell the topic was not far off in his mind. We moved along in an awkward silence until the dance was over. I wondered how much Christian knew about Nikolaus Rydell. Did he know about what Kol got up to in the lower town or what had happened to his sister?

As the music changed into a lively jig, I decided to break the silence. "Kol – Nikolaus – is only a friend and not a good one at that, an acquaintance more like."

"An acquaintance that you have gone on adventures with if that Bert is to be believed. What kind of adventures did he show you, hm? Probably something that was fraught with danger and turmoil. That is all the foolish boy knows."

I didn't answer. Christian apparently knew how dangerous being around Kol could be. When I thought back, none of the things that had happened had been Kol's fault. He had just happened to be there at the time. Granted, I would have never gotten chased through the streets or caught in a downpour if it hadn't been for him, but he had been there with me though it and we had survived.

The dance ended and Christian declared that he was going to go and get drinks for us both. I was instructed to wait on the balcony for him. He left me at the edge of the dance floor and strode away towards where I knew the refreshments to be. I took a small step back and stumbled a bit on a swath of fabric. I had accidentally stepped on a woman's dress. The woman turned sharply at the tug on her dress. She was taller than me with brown hair that had streaks of blonde artfully dyed in the dark tresses. When she turned her face was not kind.

"Watch where you are going, whelp." She snapped. "How dare you tread on my dress? Do you know how much this fabric costs and how difficult it is to sew? If you would have ripped it I would have ripped you."

I stared at her wide eyed. She was looming over me and her finger was shoved under my nose. "I-I'm sorry," I tried apologizing. This only seemed to make her angrier.

"Oh, you're sorry, are you? You impudent little wench," She growled. "You had better watch out when you disrespect me. Next time we cross paths you can make sure that I will not tolerate your disrespectful attitude. If I ever so much as see you again, you find yourself in a world of trouble." The woman turned sharply and stalked angrily away leaving me standing at the edge of the dance floor in shock. The dress did not rip or even get dirty when I had stepped on it, yet the woman still exploded in anger. As she walked away I heard her complaining heatedly to a woman who walked with her.

"It looked like you have met Ivy," I voice said to my right. I turned to see Bert standing there with a grin on her face. Her large green eyes sparkled in merriment. "She's a real gem."

I shook my head. It seemed that Ivy had some explosive anger issues. "She never wants to see me again."

Bert laughed. "She's a tough one to get along with, but I heard if you get to know her deep down she is still a horrible person. People also say that her grandmother is a witch who casts spells on people Ivy doesn't like."

"That must be a lot of spells." I scoffed. I was not intimidated by Ivy, but that did not mean I wanted to run into her again.

Bert offered me her arm which was mostly covered in a long black glove. "Come, let us get to know each other and see the rest of the ball."

I did not think it polite to refuse her offer so I took her arm and we started a turn around the room. Christian could forgive me if I was a delayed a few minutes. I did want to get to know Bert more and maybe she could shed some light on the enigma that was Kol.

"So I have to ask," Bert began. "Did you really get chased through the streets by twenty men and did Kol really fight them all off by himself? Because to me that seems like one of Kol's tall tales that he likes to spin. That man loves to paint himself as some sort of romantically heroic knight in shining armor who can take on anything."

I laughed. "That is an exaggeration of what actually happened. Actually, there were eight men and Kol only took on one of them."

"Then how did you escape?" Bert inquired innocently. She did not look at me when she asked which led me to believe she already knew the answer.

"I'm not sure, but Kol has a tattoo on his chest. When the men saw it they fled. I have never seen grown men look so scared."

Now she turned to look at me. "Did Kol tell you what the tattoo was?"

I shook my head. Kol's explanation was incredible and hard to believe especially now that I knew his rank in society. If he liked telling stories, maybe what he told me was just another one of those. "Do you know what it means?"

"Yes," Bert answered succinctly. We had stopped walking and she was facing me, waiting for what she already knew would be my next question.

Goodness, I have short chapters, but I guess it's a quick read if you're on the go. On the other hand, writer's block or not I am forcing myself to write more so I can post more and you lovely people can read more! Not to mention my life is positively dismal if I do not write at least once every two or so days. This story has become a necessary part of my life and I love it.

But anyway, two brand new characters! What do you guys think of them?