The ball began in an hour, and Jellal was just getting dressed. Tonight, he had decided to go in a suit, which was all black, a white shirt and a black tie. His pocket square was silver with the royal crest on it. Coco suggested pulling some of his hair back since it had gotten quite long, and he usually just let it do whatever it wanted. It had come to sit just past his shoulders, and thus it flicked out a little bit. Coco had helped him pull the top half of his hair back into a low ponytail, and she thought it looked more professional. He had always thought that people should find things better to do with their lives instead of criticising what someone was wearing, but this was slightly different as it was a formal occasion.
Since Coco was happy with his appearance, he headed to the kitchens and ballroom to check if everything was ready. The guests wouldn't be arriving for just under an hour, so he had some time for final preparations, and hopefully, that would make him feel less anxious. Aside from his coronation, which was relatively low-key since Edolas was a mess then, this was the first big event he had held as King. It had given him enough confidence to throw a festival once Veruze was opened after the repairs. He would be announcing this tonight, so he hoped everything would go well, and the festival would be a success too.
Briyana was flitting about, making sure all the decorations and table displays were in order, and Dreyer also shuffled out, his hands behind his back as usual. He was neatly dressed in formal robes, predominantly navy in colour, with some white sections that started from his waist and continued in an arc towards his back, connecting at the same height as the front. There was the Edolas crest on his back, and he had pulled his long hair back into a plait and seemed to have trimmed his long beard. Jellal was somewhat surprised to see how well he had cleaned up. The other staff were also arriving; Ollias and Trin walked in together, arm in arm, smiling happily and bowed to greet him. Erza and her guards were posted around, and Erza was waiting at the entrance, talking with the guards who would be outside.
Shelban arrived with his partner, both looking meticulously dressed, as always, and bowed to him before seeing Briyana since she was assisting him this evening. Draeme came in about 15 minutes later, with an immaculate appearance, with his wife, Korla, at his side. He had seen her frequently when he was young but only once since he'd returned, so it would be nice to talk to her again. Her outfit matched in colour with Draeme's, which was most likely her design. She smiled after her bow and approached him while Draeme checked in with the kitchen staff.
"Your Grace, you look so handsome. Especially now that you're all grown up." Korla beamed at him and placed a hand on his arm affectionately. She never used to have to look up at him when he was a child, so she seemed to be feeling a little nostalgic.
"You're too kind, Mrs Stragnar. You look stunning, and it's so nice to see you again." He replied and smiled back at her, trying to not feel too awkward about her comment on his appearance.
"I will have to make sure I visit the palace more often. It's been 8 years since I stopped working here with Draeme. Although I do miss it, the orphanage is very rewarding." She had retired from the palace while he was in Earthland, but partly because she wanted to work at the orphanage and became the manager.
"You are doing an incredible thing, and I'm happy to know that someone so methodical is in charge. Please let me know if there's anything you need." Jellal was grateful that she was working with orphaned children since he knew first-hand how kind and compassionate she was.
"Oh, I will. Don't you worry about that, Your Grace." Korla retorted with a smile and returned to her husband, linking her arm to his.
Jellal made a mental note to visit the orphanage soon to ensure that Korla had everything she needed to run it well. Erza gave him a quick nod to indicate that guests were beginning to arrive, and he made his way closer to the entrance. He planned to greet everyone who came to ensure that he had come face to face time with them. Since some very wealthy people were in attendance, and this was a fundraising event, he figured he should do his best to get as much financial support for the Veruze project as possible. As people arrived, he did his due diligence, shaking hands, bowing and thanking people for their support and attendance. Most of them, he recalled their names, but not their faces, and the others he didn't know at all. They had probably risen to prominence while he wasn't in Edolas, so he wouldn't have met them while he was younger.
It took about 30 minutes for everyone to arrive, and Erza gave him another nod that all the nobility and wealthy people had come. He had gotten so caught up in being the perfect image of a good King that he had forgotten that there was someone else he had invited who hadn't arrived yet. Trin came over to let him know everything was in hand and that she had someone for him to speak to about their donation, so he followed her without thought. The person he talked to was a somewhat older nobleman whom he knew from his childhood named Bluss, and he made a substantial donation for which Jellal thanked him profusely. They spoke for a few more minutes about Edolas, and Bluss was impressed by his investment in both the future and history.
Dragged away by another nobleman, Jellal spent the next hour or so just talking to everyone who was donating, and Trin gave him a thumbs up every now and then to let him know things were going well. Her excitement became more and more visible each time since they had clearly hit their target quite early on in the night, so he knew that he could relax a little now. The sculptor, Lulfe, who had donated the model of what Veruze would look like after its restoration, was standing near his work. Jellal thanked him for his kindness in doing the work and offering it for display without payment. He would be paying him for it financially because he would likely receive many commissions and offers for work from those in attendance.
He turned towards the table where Dreyer and the Veruze curator, Robin Agnia, were seated. Unfortunately, he hadn't had time to meet Robin until tonight, but he also hoped to talk to him about Serana's role as his assistant. It wasn't that he was worried or anything, but he just wanted to make sure that she would be well looked after while she was there.
"Mr Agnia. It's a pleasure to finally meet you, and I'm sorry I didn't have time to greet you when you arrived today." Jellal shook his hand with a smile.
"No need to apologise, Your Grace. And call me Robin. It gave me a good chance to catch up with an old friend. I knew I would see you this evening and that I would be able to thank you for all the effort that you are going to make for the restoration. I couldn't be more grateful and appreciative." Robin bowed in thanks as he spoke.
"You are so welcome. Although the damage itself is a shame, I am somewhat pleased that we have thus been able to give it a silver lining. It should have been done long ago, and I'm sorry that it was neglected." His apology was long overdue, even though he had not neglected the site.
"I'm glad that you can see the silver lining! But again, you have nothing to apologise for, Your Grace. You cannot take responsibility for something that happened while you weren't here." Robin answered succinctly, and Jellal nodded acceptingly.
"I suppose you're right. I do, however, have to take on the tasks now, so I appreciate your assisting me in doing the job well. While you're here, I wanted to ask about the duties my friend Serana would take on if she accepted the assistant position. She will be here tonight, but as her friend, I just wanted to..." he trailed off, not knowing what else he should say, but Robin nodded understandingly.
"Of course! I was looking forward to meeting her and seeing if it was something she would like to do. Dreyer spoke highly of her, but there's no pressure on her to take the job. Since I will primarily be handling the repairs themselves, she will be able to fill in the gap by running the museum. She will give tours of the museum, organise the day-to-day itinerary, and schedule any appointments and meetings for the museum and the site itself. There won't be much weight on her shoulders, but the assistant's role is more important now that I must focus on the repairs." Robin explained as Jellal nodded understandingly.
"I see. I suppose I can only leave it up to Serana to decide. Thank you for explaining everything. I haven't seen Serana arrive, now that I think about it..." He looked around but wasn't sure what she was wearing, so he couldn't keep his eye out for her usual clothing style.
It took him a moment to realise that he had found her, but he felt his jaw drop as he looked her over. She wore a burgundy-coloured dress with a V-shaped neck, short sleeves and a split that revealed part of her right leg. He could see the toned muscle of her calf and the lower part of her thigh. Usually, she hid her figure under baggy clothes, but tonight was completely different. Her shapely figure was accentuated by the dress, and the red-violet colour of the dress suited her complexion. Her hair was softly curled and hung to the middle of her back. He watched her as she spoke with Lulfe about the sculpture and smiled with genuine amazement. Her smile was infectious, and he didn't realise he was smiling. He could feel his heart thumping in his chest as he continued to observe her.
If he could see himself at that moment, he would have quickly realised that he was in love with Serana. The affection in his eyes was bright, and yearning, and his smile was filled with adoration. He watched her with infatuation that was audibly silent but visibly loud.
She must have felt the eyes on her and turned to look at him as she tried to find the source of the gaze. She tilted her head to one side when she made eye contact and smiled happily at him. Quickly, Serana turned back to Lulfe and shook his head before she walked over to him. He was stuck to the spot he stood on, waiting until she finally reached him before he could snap out of his trance, then bowed in obeisance.
"Your Grace. The evening seems to be going well." Serana's voice was elated, as he could see she was having a good time.
"Ah, this is the lady Serana, I take it?" Robin's voice sounded from his right, and he was somewhat grateful that Robin had spoken since he wasn't sure he could figure out what to say.
"Mr Agnia. I've been looking forward to seeing you. I must apologise for not coming over when I arrived, but I was too busy enjoying the displays. Especially the sculpture." Serana reached over the table to shake his hand and smiled as she greeted him.
"Don't ever apologise for being enamoured by the incredible history of Edolas! It must be why Dreyer spoke so highly of you." Robin was a cheery fellow and already seemed to be approving of Serana.
Jellal watched them interact, and although his heart was beating hard and fast in his chest, suddenly, there was a bit of pain underneath. He knew that if this meeting went well, it would mean that Serana would be away for at least 6 months, depending on how the assistant she was filling in for recovered from childbirth. This thought made him wistful since he was sure that Serana would enjoy the experience, but he would miss hanging out with her while she was gone. Finally returning to his senses properly, he smiled and stepped back to give Serana more room to stand in front of Robin and Dreyer. She moved closer and placed a hand on his arm as she spoke. Surprised, he returned her gentle touch with his own, placing a hand on the small of her back.
"I assume you were informed of my presence by our King."
"Yes, he had just come over to talk to us when he spotted you." Robin glanced at him briefly with a knowing look before turning his gaze back to Serana.
"Do you have time to meet tomorrow before you return to Veruze? I did see that you've been busy talking to the guests most of the night, which I don't want to take you away from." Serana commented with a smirk, and Robin nodded in reply.
"That would be fine. My transport was planned for the late afternoon, so I'll have time in the morning. We can have coffee and chat to see if you'd like to take the job until my assistant is ready to return to work." Robin answered as he reflexively checked his watch.
Startling him slightly, Coco tapped his right shoulder and gestured with a head tilt that he was needed. He nodded in reply, and the others smiled in understanding.
"Excuse me, duty calls." He directed this at Robin and Dreyer, even though the older man hadn't said a word. Leaning close to Serana, he whispered in her ear. "You look beautiful. Please stay for a while after the ball if you can."
The King gave them a nod after he straightened up and turned to be on his way, surely going to talk to some rich old person about donating. Serana was left with Robin and Dreyer, but Cana appeared on her left, returning from the ladies' room. They had been really enjoying the ball so far, and Serana was glad she had decided to come and go to the effort of buying a dress and doing her hair and makeup. Cana had helped her with her hair since she had never been good at it, usually just throwing it up in a ponytail or a bun, but Cana's hair was always perfect.
"I'll look forward to meeting with you tomorrow. For now, though, can I get you a drink? I'll bring one over for you both if you like." Serana offered politely, figuring she should make a good impression, especially on Robin, since he may become her new boss.
"We are being well looked after, Serana. Thank you, though." Dreyer piped up for the first time during the conversation and smiled briefly.
"Alright. Enjoy your night, gentleman." She gave them a quick nod and walked away with Cana.
They strolled to the table with the finger food and fussed over how incredible everything was. Serana had never been to something like this before, so she and Cana giggled and talked as they tried everything and enjoyed the champagne being brought around by the waiters. It had been a fantastic night with Cana, and they had gotten the chance to become better friends while preparing for the night out. If she took the job in Veruze, they wouldn't see each other for a long time, but they could write to one another and keep their close bond. She would definitely make sure she wrote to the guild frequently since she would miss them greatly. It would be a tough time dealing with her new family and settling into a new place. Robin seemed lovely, so she didn't feel so nervous about him anymore now that they'd met.
For now, though, she just wanted to enjoy the rest of the night…