9 Chapter VIII, A Disastrous Start to a Formal Dinner

"Miss?" Dawn cautiously opened my door, carrying a platter of cookies and coffee.

"Hmm? Ah, thanks, Dawn." I took a cookie and offered her one, which she gladly accepted.

It was my fourth day in Thelnilin; The first day consisted of meeting, the second one consisted of reading, the third consisted of sleeping, and the fourth, well, I wasn't quite sure yet.

"Oh!" She exclaimed, "I have a message for you! I think it's from King Alberic!" She handed me a scroll tied with magenta and gold ribbon, my father's seal in purple wax.

Dearest Alexandra,

I hope you are well and enjoying Thelnilin. It is a great weight off my shoulders to see that you have returned home safely.

Nevertheless, it has come to my attention that you know next to nothing about the ways of the elves and that you lack the learning necessary if you were to take your mother's place as queen.

Please meet me in my office (located in the last chamber off of the throne room) at noon today, we have much to discuss.

Best regards,

Your father, King Alberic The Second

I sighed and sank back into the couch, not in the mood for formal luncheons and whatnot.

"Umm, Miss?" Dawn shuffled her feet nervously. "Shouldn't you be getting ready? It's a quarter 'til noon..."

"Crap. Yes, thank you, er…" I quickly got off the couch and ran to the closet, hoping to find something at least half-decent to wear.

"I set aside a dress for you that will work for the meeting, the shoes that match aren't terribly hard to walk in either-"

"Gods, you're a lifesaver, Dawn. I owe you one." I put on the dress, took a cookie to go, and sped out the door.

Racing towards the throne room, I decided to take the halls that led through the mountain instead of looping around the valleys, I ended up stumbling across Valora and Alphyn kissing in a secluded corner, much to my surprise and utter embarrassment. I also stumbled across the entrance to the library, which I had not yet seen. There will be time for books later, you need to hurry. I told myself, wishing I hadn't spent all of yesterday reading and all of last night talking.

"Sorry I'm la-" I barged into my father's office, panting and red in the face.

At a large council table, my father, Quinlin, and an old, but beardless, elf stared at me, perplexed at my very un-ladylike entrance.

"So this is our princess?" The old elf chuckled, the skin wrinkling up around his ageless, silver eyes.

Quinlin snorted, which got a disapproving look from my father. He cleared his throat and returned to his impassive self once again.

"Ah, Alexandra! Take a seat!" My father smiled, but it was more of an 'I'm being nice so you will do what I want' smile.

I sat down in the chair that was as far away from my father as possible, remembering what had happened in the throne room next door.

"Well, I'm very glad you could join us, daughter-" I stopped Alberic.

"Alexandra. My name is Alexandra."

He shifted uncomfortably, "Er…yes. Anyways, this is Quinlin, as you know, and this is Aenhrys, one of the Old Elves and a scholar of Thelnilin, head librarian."

The other elf, Aenhrys, furrowed his eyebrows. "Don't make me sound older than I am, Alberic. I may be the only original one who survived the ending of the first age, but that doesn't make me 'old.'" he turned to me and smiled an 'I'm sorry about that, but some people…' smile. "Alberic has chosen me to be your…teacher, professor, instructor, mentor, whatever you would prefer to call me."

"Great." I was quite excited actually, though my voice didn't quite show it. I have a slight thirst for knowledge after all. "So, what else am I being subjected to?"

Quinlin cleared his throat awkwardly, "Well, umm…" he turned desperately to Alberic, who didn't seem to notice. "His majesty also wants me to instruct you in the ways of the sword and bow, and of the topic of battle strategy."

I sighed "Okay, when does all this start?" I asked impatiently, yearning to be out of my father's presence as soon as possible.

"Tomorrow, seven in the morning, and every day after that." Quinlin responded milliseconds after the question left my mouth.

Aenhrys, however, took longer to answer, sitting in thought for a whole five minutes before he mused: "Whenever lord Quinlin finishes with you."

I could feel the blood draining from my face as he said finishes with you. It could be Roan's dark song that was influencing my ability to think straight, but it really sounded like the leader of the cadre was gonna beat me alive.

"Would you like to stay for a luncheon, Alexandra?" the king asked, studying my paled face

I shook my head, "I am grateful for your offer, your majesty, but I am afraid I must decline, I ate recently not receiving your summons until a quarter before noon." I lied, trying my best to be polite.

Alberic nodded. "In that case, I shall see you at dinner."

I stopped, confused. I had only eaten in my rooms or with the cadre, and I wasn't aware of any dinner tonight… "Dinner…?"

Quinlin raised his dark eyebrows, "The formal dinner in honor of your return…?"

I blushed, though inside I was furious that I was unaware of this. "Ah yes, silly of me to forget, I'll see you at dinner then, your majesty, Quinlin, Master Aenhrys,"

What have I gotten myself into?

"Dawn? Where are Arna's rooms?"

After a quick nap, I had rushed to the kitchens where Dawn usually spent her free time baking.

Dawn jumped, clearly startled, and spilled flour all over her apron. "Oh stars…not again…" She muttered before turning to me. "Lady Arna won't be in her rooms right now, Miss. She helps in the library most afternoons-"

She didn't get a chance to finish her sentence, however, as I was already speeding down the arched hallways of Thelnilin.

"Arna! I need your help!"

Arna looked up from her book, frowning over reading glasses.

"Wait! Before you decide whether or not to help me; why are you wearing glasses, can't you just shift to have better eyesight?"

Arna scowled and slammed the book shut. "What do you need help with?"

"There's a dinner tonight in my honour that I didn't know of until about three hours ago, and I don't have anything ready, and there's a ball afterward-"

Arna's scowling face grinned. "Well, do you have a dress picked out?"

"Umm…" my face turned red, "...no?

"Do you have a speech written out to give before dinner?"

"Er...no…?"

Arna sighed and face-planted onto the desk. "I'm assuming you don't have a date, either."

"No! Of course not! I didn't even know that was necessary, much less mandatory!"

"We have a lot of work to do…" she grumbled, getting out of her chair.

Arna sent for Leonora and Valora, explaining the situation as an 'embarrassing lack of preparation for one's own scheduled event.'

She had Leonora take some measurements for a dress, then shooed me from my own room, assigning me the task of finding a suitable date.

I probably stood outside my door thinking for around then minutes before Valora marched me to one of the large pavilions and returned to my room.

Well, what are my options? I thought to myself, watching the elves pass by getting ready for the dinner and ball. Ari obviously, despite the fact that we haven't spoken since we arrived. Quinlin? No, Arna's going with him. Alphyn? Hell no, Valora'd skin me alive…Roan? I pushed the thought from my head, I know I have feelings for Arius, Roan is too risky a card to play… I figured that if Arius was anywhere, he'd be in the library.

My second trip to the library wasn't as easy as the first. Finding a flame-red haired, purple-eyed elf turned out to be much easier than finding a shy mortal prince.

Eventually, I gave up on trying to navigate my way through the endless mazes of books, thinking that I may have to play Roan's card when-

"Ouch!" Thump, thump, thump.

Books clattered to the floor as I collided with someone while turning a corner. "Oh gods, sorry." I muttered, stacking the fallen books in a pile.

"It's quite alright."

I frowned, recognizing the voice. Looking up, I noticed that I hadn't bumped into an elf, as I had expected, he had rounded ears, dazzling blue eyes that complemented chestnut hair, a small nose with glasses on the bridge… "Arius?"

He frowned, "Do I know you?"

I sighed. "Look past the combed hair and dress - figuratively, not literally."

Arius studied me closely, "…Allie?"

I nodded smiling.

"I-I didn't recognize you with the dress, you look absolutely stunning." He stuttered, blushing.

I grinned, it was the second time I had been deemed 'stunning' since we arrived. "Why thank you," I said, twirling in the gown I was currently wearing. "Just wait till tonight, my friends are putting together my outfit as we speak."

"Oh yeah…" Arius rubbed the back of his neck, "I forgot about the dinner tonight, all of Thelnilin was invited!"

I refrained from snorting and saying 'Not me.'

"…there's supposed to be a ball afterward!" he continued excitedly.

"Do you have a date yet?" we said in synchronization. "No," we said together. "Do you want to go with me?"

Arius laughed as we uttered the same words three times in a row.

"Okay, you first." I said

He took a deep breath, "No, I don't have a date yet. And Allie? Would you like to go with me?"

I smiled. "No, I don't have a date yet. And Ari? I would absolutely love to go with you."

Arius blushed. "So…you, me, tonight?"

I nodded, "Yeah, entrance hall, eight'o'clock, don't be late.

"I wouldn't dream of it."

"Can I look now?" I asked, my hands over my eyes.

Valora growled, a sound that sounded uncanny to the growl of Alphyn in wolf form when he gets hungry.

"Ready?" Leonora asked, rocking on the balls of her feet. "Three, two, one-"

I opened my eyes.

In front of me, was the most beautiful dress I had ever seen. A sleeveless, midnight blue ball gown, embroidered with silver and gold vines and a relatively immodest neckline.

I covered my mouth in awe. "It's…absolutely beautiful!"

Arna came in from inside my closet carrying a velvet pillow topped with a silver circlet, silver earrings, and a silver necklace; all topped with sapphires.

I was speechless.

"You did all this…for me…?" I asked in wonder.

"Well, not necessarily." Valora explained. "You see, little Dawnelle told us that some of your mother's dresses and jewelry were found in storage a few weeks back-"

"So we asked Alberic if we could borrow it for you, seeing as you were drastically unprepared for the ball tonight." Leonora finished. "I tailored it so it would fit your form easier though. You really were gone a long time."

I blushed, "Give me a break, I just asked out the prince of Mythfall. That's no easy feat."

Arna rolled her eyes. "Yeah yeah." then, addressing the rest of us, "We have two hours left, let's get this show on the road."

With Leonora dressed in a golden gown adorned with topaz, Arna in a low-cut dress of purple silk with amethyst earrings, Valora dressed in a gown the color of spring leaves, embellished by a necklace of emeralds, and me, in my mother's midnight gown and sapphire jewelry, we all looked and felt like queens.

Frolicking off to the entrance hall, Arna, Valora, Leonora and I twirled about in our dresses, giggling and laughing at how absurdly beautiful we looked. Even the dark clouds that loomed overhead didn't dampen our spirits.

Valora and I said goodbye to the other two as we made our way to greet our dates.

Surprisingly, when we arrived, Alphyn and Arius were talking like brothers, if not old friends at the least.

"I still don't understand why Mythfall has the right to tax the surrounding cities and fiefdoms!" Alphyn exclaimed hotly.

"I know! Artair may rule them, but it's legally within their rights to abolish our suggestive tax amounts-" Arius stopped short at the sight of Alphyn's hand raised to shut him up.

The young prince frowned and looked to where Alphyn was staring, wide-eyed at Valora and me.

Arius' jaw dropped, mouth agape. I had forgotten how much he looked like a fish when he did that.

Valora slid gracefully to Alphyn's side, where they shared a loooong and passionate kiss.

Arius and I turned away, uncomfortable with the ongoings to my left. I shifted my feet uncomfortably, acutely aware of Arius' presence. "So…umm…should we…?

"Go?" Arius nodded, glancing at the couple beside us, who were making quite a scene. "Yeah, let's go, I'm starving."

I took Arius' offered arm as he led the way into the entrance hall, whose vaulted ceilings and arched windows were decorated in colors of magenta and gold - the colors of Thelnilin.

Alberic - along with Arna and Quinlin - greeted us at the doors to the dining hall and showed us to our seats; Arius and I to my father's right and Arna and Quinlin farther down the table.

Once all the guests were seated, though five chairs were still empty, Alberic stood up and gave a short but well-worded speech about how thankful he was that I had returned home safely, and the circumstances of my mother's death.

Upon hearing the name 'Edrea', I found warm tears welling up in my eyes. Ari must've noticed too because he threaded his fingers into mine and squeezed my hand reassuringly.

Taking a deep breath, I continued to sit through the king's speech, clapping politely at the end.

"And now, here is the princess herself!"

Startled, I cautiously rose to my feet, my hand slipping out of Arius' and hanging limply at my side.

The people - my people, I suppose - clapped politely like they did for Alberic; but their applause showed no enthusiasm, their faces didn't hold the same admiration and trust. No, they showed hatred, cold empty stares, and heartless clapping.

Roan's song came back to me then, Through your pleadings I am mindless/ Through your cries I am thoughtless/ Through your screams I am senseless/ You know how I am heartless.

I glanced at Arna, who was farther down the table. She smiled and nodded, urging me to start. "Thank you, your majesty," I said, nodding to Alberic. "And thank you all for being here tonight-"

The large oak front doors burst open as thunder boomed outside. A bright flash of lightning illuminated the space behind a dark figure in the doorway, singling out a cloaked silhouette. A good few of the nobles gasped - lords and ladies alike - as the cloaked figure moved into the light of the bronze braziers and crystal chandelier. The figure pulled off the hood of their cloak to reveal the dark hair and mischievous eyes of the king of ravens himself. Mister Roan Ravencall.

"Sorry I'm late, your majesty." He announced, shrugging off his dripping cloak.

I looked to Alberic to see his reaction, but then realized that Roan wasn't addressing the king, but me. Eyes darting around frantically, I nodded curtly, not knowing what to make of the situation.

Roan seemed not to have noticed, taking a seat in the middle of the five empty chairs that I now assumed were set aside for him. He avoided the uncertain gazes of the surrounding nobles with a practiced grace as they moved their chairs away from him.

He took out his raven handled knife and laid it on the table like it was on display, to which one of the ladies in the vicinity fainted, slumping into her chair.

Arius tugged me back to my seat, his firm hands resting snuggly on my hips. I didn't even realize I was still standing, my eyes still fixed on Roan.

The king cleared his throat awkwardly and hastily called for dinner to be served, clearly as disturbed as I was at Roan's sudden appearance.

The dinner was quiet at first, dirty glares being shot at Roan and me, but soon progressed into the joyous commotion that I had come to expect from dinners with the elves. Full of life and laughter, Valora and Alphyn cracking jokes, Leonora's childish giggle, Rhys' deep-throated laugh. It was truly a sight to behold.

Despite the commotion and cheerful talk, I mostly kept to myself and stayed quiet, save for the occasional polite exchanges between my father and some of his court.

Arius stayed quiet too, only because his mouth was too full to politely speak, much less speak at all.

I was grateful for the silence, for the chance to sit and think, letting my eyes and mind wander. Leonora was flirting with Rhys, and Arna was glaring at her while Quinlin tried fruitlessly to engage the shifter in conversation. I held suspicion that Arna wished that her position as the co-leader of the cadre didn't obligate her to go with Quinlin, as I assumed that her first choice would've been Rhys.

A soft breeze came from the other end to the table where a set of twins were dancing a gust of wind on their fingertips to entertain Dawn and a young boy who looked like her brother.

Alberic's secretary was in an argument with Dawn's parents - Lord and Lady Erill. He was very red in the face and practically blowing steam from his ears, his heavy brows forming a V-shape in the middle of his forehead.

At the end of the table, a tall high-backed chair stood opposite from the king's. I knew immediately who it was for, and my heart tightened when I came to the realization that the last person it was meant for would never sit in it again, would never walk these halls again, would never wake again. It would be a long time before that seat was filled again.

My thoughts were rudely interrupted by a black feather neatly landing in my potatoes. I scowled and glared at Roan, who caught my eye and grinned evilly, moving his fingers in a mock wave.

I pursed my lips and subtly stuck up a vulgar gesture that went unnoticed by the other nobles, but did not escape the hawk-like eyes of my father, who frowned disapprovingly.

Shooting Alberic an apologetic glance, I returned to glaring at Roan, who was throwing his raven knife in the air and catching it with a certain mix of elegance and boredom. He winked and gave a sly grin, accidentally making a clumsy catch and cutting open his palm.

To my absolute horror and grudging wonder, the long cut that should've been gushing ruby blood remained a smooth crevasse that slowly closed up, leaving nothing but a pale, jagged scar.

I caught Roan's eyes, my mouth still agape in horror. Showing off his cut hand - the scar already fading - he flashed another sly grin. Embellishing the fact that I am still quite ignorant of anything concerning him.

Roan broke the eye contact and continued tossing the knife. Much to the other noble's discomfort and my pleasure.

I watched intently, mesmerized by the twirling movements of the knife; how the raven engraved in the handle seemed to take flight in the light of the braziers.

"He hem" Arius cleared his throat uncomfortably.

I turned to him, startled by the intrusion on my thoughts. Arius jerked his head behind us, where a pair of the king's guards were opening the doors into a grand ballroom.

At Alberic and Arius' silent urging, I led the way into the ballroom, arm in arm with Arius.

The first time I walked into that room, I didn't notice the tapestries of fallen heroes, the paintings of previous rulers, the ornate marble floor. I didn't pay attention to the gilded thrones of gold, their shining radiance normally impossible to miss. I walked into that room unseeing…

I was still in the ballroom, but it was different.

The chairs, tables, and thrones were covered by white sheets. The floors were dusty and unswept, fog obscured my vision like it did at the tower. This was real, but not real.

In the center of the grand room, there stood a circle of seven people, four elves, two dwarves, and one human.

The human had stormy blue eyes like a thrashing ocean, which frightened me to a slight extent, for I had strange experiences with the ocean here. The taller of the dwarves had his arm around the shorter one, who was undoubtedly a year or so younger than me and looked like the taller dwarf's daughter. One of the elves I knew on sight, my father. The other three were females, two of which I suspected ruled the other two elven cities; the last, however, wore a long silvery cloak that obscured her face. (not that I could see it anyway, she was slightly turned away from me at an angle, facing my father.

As I got closer, I realized that Alberic was having a heated discussion with the human opposite him. "…if Ciaran is about to invade my borders, then I will take drastic measures to ensure my people's safety!"

The hooded woman rested her hand on his arm, murmuring something I couldn't hear.

The taller dwarf grumbled irritably. "It's a' no use arguing about it, Artair, Alberic."

I had a flashback to when I was staying in Thaelin. I had overheard a conversation between Kirsa and Farvald concerning the king of Mythfall taxing the other kingdoms ruthlessly. I remembered what Kirsa had said: Hopefully things will be better once the prince takes his place, I feel so sorry for him…some of Mythfall's court says that Artair beats the boy. So it was true, all true. Artair, the king in front of me, is the one who gave horrid scars to the prince whose arm I was holding onto a minute before. My dinner churned in my stomach, I wanted to hurl at the realization I had just made, I wanted to kill this man I had never met for the wrong he had done in this world. "Nonsense, no man in their right mind would beat their child, it's just not right." "Even so, is the king really in his right mind?"

The taller dwarf then turned to the light-haired elf on his right. "Now, ya say this'll work?"

The elf nodded carefully, her pale face showing no expression. Turning to my father and the redheaded elf woman beside her, she asked "Ready?"

The other two wordlessly nodded and raised their hands, swirling them in a complex, vaguely figure-eight motion, summoning a glowing ring of light that looked all too familiar.

Before the ring was fully formed, the hooded woman rushed between the other elves, her slight hand brushing lightly against my father's.

Her cloak slipped and I caught a glimpse of auburn hair and an extremely pregnant belly. Her breath caught as she looked in my direction. My heart skipped a beat, I turned around, there was nothing there. She couldn't see me, could she?"

"Edrea, NO!!!" My father tried to pull her from the ring of light, but it was too late.

He collapsed to the ground, knees weak, his eyes miniature waterfalls, his hands covering his face, howling in mental agony as my mother disappeared through the portal.