Varon shook his head, "They've probably already started eating. Even if they haven't, what's done is done. Without causing a huge scene, there's nothing that can be done. It would have been an issue one of them would have had to solve if they hadn't accidentally left that spot next to Mokuba open. The king is worried about Master Mokuba eating."

"I can understand why. Poor kid is just beginning to be more open about asking for food. A party like this will only make him self-conscious, having only been allowed to serve and not eat at parties."

"You take the seat next to Master Mokuba and help get his meal. I'll take the table across from Miss Maura."

Ryo nodded, and Mokuba looked up and was surprised to see Ryo there. Ryo then ordered both of their meals. For appetizers, he got Mokuba Gooey Mac & Cheese Balls, and for entrée, he ordered Spaghetti Carbonara with meatballs and a soda. For himself, he got Endive Bites with Goat Cheese, Figs & Honey as his appetizer and his main course, he got Bourbon-Glazed Salmon. As much as he would have loved a glass of wine, he chose tea as he was in charge of Mokuba.

Maura chose to go with Brioche Crab Melts and for her drink, she chose a soda as well. Then for her entrée, she heard Ryo ordering spaghetti. She had never heard of it and was nervous about trying something new. But decided to take the chance and got it.

She saw that the boy next to her got the same thing. She couldn't help but blush. He was so cute. He had light brown hair and aqua colored eyes. It also sounded like he had a slight accent.

Varon chose Beer-Battered Cauliflower Bites with Jalapeño Cheddar-Style Dipping Sauce for himself with coffee and a glass of water. For entrée, he decided on Garlic Herb Garlic Roasted Chicken.

So many people and some staring made Mokuba nervous. After the appetizers arrived, it looked good. But as he reached for it, he saw a few of the older teens staring at him, so he backed off of eating it.

Mokuba had never been allowed to be near the table when his stepmother had parties unless it was to serve. He was punished severely if someone gave him food and he took it and ate it. He'd also never had people intensely staring at him.

Once, a new person came to the party. She was dating a friend of his stepmother's. Mokuba never liked the guy she was dating, as he seemed to get pleasure out of making him trip and fall.

The lady, much to the anger of his stepmother and her date, pulled him to her and made him sit and eat. She even berated Ivera for forcing him to serve. That he was just a child. Despite it not being his fault, he still got the beating of a lifetime when they left. Although, for some reason, the man she came with seemed to stick around to watch his beating. He never saw the lady after that. He saw the man she had been with several more times with other ladies, but none were nice to him. That was just another reason why he didn't want to come to this party. Sure, no one would punish him, but seeing people look at him and sit here gave him flashbacks.

Prince Darin from the kingdom of Alban was seated next to Maura. But having seen the way Mokuba had clung to Maura made him wonder what hell he had endured. Although he himself never suffered, his father wanted him to learn empathy for others. So they would take food and clothes to the less fortunate. He saw children some his own age and younger living in deplorable conditions. They were doing all they could to try to help them. He even witnessed guards stopping a man beating a child and stealing his food.

Not wanting to draw attention to himself or Mokuba, he gently nudged Maura's arm. She looked at him, and he gave a slight chin nod towards Mokuba. She looked and saw what he was hinting at. She realized that Mokuba wasn't eating. She figured it would draw too much attention if she asked him. So she gently kicked Ryo under the table. He rubbed his ankle and looked up. She gestured slightly towards Mokuba.

Ryo looked and sighed. In a low voice, he asked, "What's wrong? Don't you like it?"

Being that his voice was so low, Mokuba didn't hear him. Seto kept forgetting to see the doctor about the boy's hearing. He just shook his head. He could guess what was asked. So he glanced towards the guys that were eating but still staring at him. Ryo looked and refrained from snapping at them. He was irritable. These guys were staring, and even seeing that their staring was preventing the boy from eating, they didn't seem to care. He saw a vase of flowers and motioned over a maid. He whispered to her that the boy's staring was making Mokuba afraid to eat. He asked her to pull the vase over enough to block their line of sight. She nodded and walked over, excusing herself and pulling the vase towards her a little enough that it blocked their immediate line of sight. She moved the flowers around as if that had been her only goal. Ryo rubbed the boy back in reassurance. Others at the table thought it was weird that the maid moved the flowers but then shrugged it off. They went back to their meal and conversation. Seeing the flowers blocking the now annoyed princes' view.

Mokuba felt better now that no one was staring at him. With Ryo rubbing his back he felt more comfortable eating. He took one of the Gooey Mac & Cheese Balls and tried it. His eyes lit up. He's never tasted anything like it before. He'd have to ask later what it was. He'd just finished when his main meal came out. He was surprised that one of the napkins was wet. He used it to wipe his hands and start in on the spaghetti. He loved it. He'd tasted spaghetti before when his stepmother made it. They never let him have any. He only got what was left in the pan before washing. But this was better than what he'd tasted before. He found that the meatballs were also good even in the red sauce. Mokuba wasn't sure what that sauce was and noticed it had bits of meat in it.

Ryo was relieved when the boy started eating. He was thankful that it was a simple fix. He'd have only drawn more attention to Mokuba if he'd said anything. It might have also caused problems with their respective kingdoms. Him a guard vs their princes.