Dangerous Dreams.

Vivienne heard a light double knock but did not say "Come in", as she immediately understood who was behind the massive oak door of her chambers. Precisely ten seconds later, the door swung open and a pretty girl with curly brown hair entered. No, rather ran into the room, like a whirlwind. To a casual witness, she would have seemed incredibly sweet, but not now.

Elea's eyes burned with a fire that could rival the brightness of Vivienne's red hair, the catchy color of which attracted attention to the girl even from a distance. "Are you not ready yet?! Did you even look at the clock? Or are you deliberately going to be late for the Empress's breakfast?"

"Saint Romal is my witness, there was no such thing even in my thoughts," Vivienne laughed out loud, but Elea did not share her joy. "What do you think, should I put my hair up or leave them as they are? The court oracle said today would be the hottest day of summer."

"Last year he already predicted something like that, as a result, it was raining all day along with a thunderstorm," Elea took a quick glance at her friend's dress, which was still lying on the bed, and which Vivienne was supposed to be wearing already.

She approached her friend's wardrobe, took out several hairpins from Vivienne's casket and handed them to the girl, "Here, you can fix the hair on your temples with these, but attach this one to the collar of your dress like a brooch. If it gets hot, use it to put your hair up."

Vivienne looked at the hairpins, then at her dress and raised her admiring eyes to Elea, "How do you do it? Are you sure that your magical gift is painting? I bet even our esteemed Empress's tailor does not have such an exquisite taste for detail as you!"

If Elea hadn't taken these hairpins, Vivienne would never have thought of combining them with her dress. She would simply put on the first jewelry that came to hand, as she was confident in her irresistibility even without additional accessories. And with this point of view, few would argue.

"What it is?" Elea turned a deaf ear to her friend's sweet adulation, her attention shifted to the porcelain vase in the center of the reading table.

Vivienne slyly squinted her eyes and murmured in a satisfied voice, "And I was thinking when you will notice it. This is rohan. It's beautiful, isn't it?"

The girl got up from the ottoman and walked lightly to the vase. Her silk shirt, hand-woven by a renowned master, matched the white petals of the flower but was behind them in its beauty.

"I'm not stupid, Vivienne. I can see that it is a rohan. I am asking, what is a flower that cannot be taken out of the imperial greenhouse without the personal order of the Empress doing in your bedroom?"

"Oh, it's all Frederick! He loves me so much that he brought this magic flower as a gift. You know that rohan reacts to magic and can show what a person's potential for talent is? I heard that the Empress gave permission to decorate the ballroom at Count Derwinder's. Praise to Romal, tonight promises to be a worthy celebration of the end of the war!"

Elea did not share her friend's enthusiastic feelings. She knew that Vivienne was always too open about her emotions. This trait had the same effect on others like a hot flame on moths. Everyone who fell into the field of her influence was fascinated by Lady Askold. But Elea was afraid that one day this flame would burn its mistress.

She helped the girl put on a dress and tie ribbons on her back so as not to waste extra time, which they were already very short of. Vivienne was like a doll who one would want to protect and cherish, and Elea, perhaps, was the only one among all the ladies-in-waiting who did not react to Lady Askold's charisma.

She did not curry favor with her, did not try to ingratiate herself. Elea Dalcrove has always been herself, considering this as one of her main principles in life. And for this, Vivienne loved the girl like her own sister.

"Elea, I'm so happy. Frederick may even abdicate the throne for my sake," Vivienne closed her eyes, a smile of deep love was reflected on her face, "We can leave for some country, or even go on a journey. No one will know our names, and no one will look down at me and gossip behind my back that apart from the prince's bed I have nothing else to count on."

"Did the prince tell you about this himself?"

Vivienne shrugged, "No. Not yet, but everything is possible." The girl was completely sure that between her and the crown, Frederick would prefer her.

"Who said he should become the Emperor? Philip Lockhart abdicated in favor of his younger brother, Augustin. If not for this decision, the crown prince would have been Adrian, not Frederick. And then nothing and no one would have prevented us from being together."

Elea put the hairpin, which she wanted to fix Vivienne's hair with, back on the table and rubbed her temples. Lady Askold's reasoning was not only absurd but also dangerous. Truly, a woman in love became blind and saw the world in pink colors.

"Vivienne, you are daydreaming. The heir to the throne cannot just go and leave. These are dangerous dreams."

"But I love him!"

"Love someone else!"

"No, he's the only one," Vivienne pinned the last hairpin and looked in the mirror, "For me, he is the only one. Just as I am for him."

Elea shook her head and sighed. Stubbornness, besides charisma, was one of her friend's most striking features. "Believe me, I understand your feelings. I really do... But if you keep following this path, you will experience great suffering," she paused for a second, but still added, "You and Frederick have no future."

Vivienne looked at the beautiful flower, the smell of which filled her chambers, but instead of joy, it only made her sad.

"Perhaps you are right. But I can't do that. I cannot be content with those rare moments that I manage to steal from fate. I can no longer be a shadow that is only noticed at night. I love him too much to wait for the other one to sit next to him in the Empress's chair."

Vivienne took a deep breath, straightened her shoulders and left her chambers with her head held high. She did not care about the sidelong glances of the maids and the whisperings of other ladies-in-waiting.

She knew what she wanted. And there has never been such a thing which she didn't get.

Elea silently followed her, anxiously examining the straight back of the girl, who did not show her weaknesses to anyone except her friend.

Vivienne and Prince Frederick were both confident in themselves and their innocence. But, unfortunately, besides the couple in love, no one shared such views in the palace.