Preparing for the Masquerade Ball

The next day Madeline received a formal letter of apology from the head of the Order of the Rose along with her pin. The letter stated that a rogue member of the Order had chosen to take the pin without authorization and that she was still a member in good standing. The member who had come to take her pin had been removed and nothing like that would happen again. Shortly after she received her pin along with the letter the student council president came in person to apologize for the harassment she had been having and assured her that no student should have to suffer such treatment. He further stated that if anything like that should happen in the future, he would be available to personally take action against any student that tried. A short time after the student council president came to visit, the school's Chairman arrived and apologized for the harassment she had suffered, he too offered to personally take action against any student that dared to harass her on school grounds.

Madeline felt like a new person as if the weight of the world had been lifted off her shoulders. The servants had cleaned up her room and laundry. The situation with harassment had been cleared up and she was once again a member of the Order of the Rose. Madeline grabbed a pillow and clutched it to her chest, burying her face in it as she giggled. For some reason, she really looked forward to being able to eat lunch with Guy de Montfort today. Madeline thought to herself, 'my mother is incredible! In one day she solved all my problems. I hope that someday I could be like her!'

As Madeline finally made her way to her first class everyone that passed was respectful again as they passed by her and when she entered the class, her desk and materials were new and clean. At lunch when she entered the Order of the Rose dining room, Claude, Olivier, and Guy were all seated at her usual table waiting for her with smiles on their faces. Madeline felt her face turn red as she approached them, "Lord Rouvroy, Lord Girard, Lord Molester, I apologize for being absent for so long, it seems there was a mistake with my admission to the Order that needed some time to correct."

"It's Montfort." Guy replied dryly, he stood up and gave her a gentlemanly bow and said in a soft voice, "Your chair awaits you, m'lady." He pulled it out for her and waited for her to sit before helping her to scoot in. Olivier and Claude also stood up and waited for her to sit before sitting themselves.

As usual for one of their lunches, it was Olivier who started the mealtime conversation, "So, Lady d'Aumont since your mother arrived here at the school, you must be preparing a dress for the masquerade ball, have you decided on a color?"

Madeline nodded she said in her normal emotionless tone, "My dress is black."

Claude and Guy both seemed to nod at the same time. Claude was the first to speak, "Lady d'Aumont, if I may be so bold, would you permit me to accompany you to the ball as your escort?"

Guy furiously glared at Claude before Olivier spoke up, "Pfft, Lord Rouvroy, this is a masquerade ball, you don't come together, you are supposed to come in a mask and try to guess who is who. Half the fun is dancing with a partner you don't know in order to find someone interesting you normally might not have an interest in meeting due to class barriers or prejudgments."

Madeline blushed and looked down at her food and then only said, "I will come to the ball."

Guy turned and smiled at Madeline and then said, "I will also attend the ball."

"I will warn the other ladies, Lord Molester." Madeline immediately replied.

"It's Montfort." Guy dryly stated.

Olivier spoke up once again and asked, "Have you all tried Lord Montfort's bath yet?" He smiled and stirred a spoon in his coffee, "Lord Montfort is quite the inventor you know. Already this year he introduced a bathhouse, several new weapons of war and the cooks have been raving about his new food recipes."

Madeline looked surprised, "I have been using the bathhouse daily, in fact, most of the ladies in my dorm have been as well. The hot water feels so good and we all noticed that it is easy to tell who hasn't been using the bath enough because the smell is intolerable to the rest of us." She looked at Guy and said, "You really came up with the idea?"

Guy nodded and smiled as Claude glared at him. Claude spoke up and said, "Lord Molester, how many ladies was it exactly that you defiled in your rampage? Didn't the townsfolk tie you to the flag pole in front of the city hall with a sign detailing your crimes?"

Olivier tried not to laugh but didn't hide it well. Guy sighed and then looked at Madeline as he answered Claude, "In my youth, I was a spoiled wild brat. After I was shown how hurtful I had been, I tried my best to be the kind of Noble and the kind of man worthy of the position. I can not make excuses for my behavior at the time, it was abhorrent, I can only do my best to be someone of virtue going forward. I am not asking anyone to forget my crimes, nor do I ask to be forgiven. Instead, I simply wish to regain my honor through meritorious deeds."

Claude frowned and then quietly replied, "I can respect that, Lord Montfort."

Madeline giggled and then asked, "I am curious, Lord Rouvroy, you have never really spoken about your own family background before..."

Claude puffed up his chest, a broad smile played over his face as he answered, "Me? Honestly, there isn't much to say." He closed his eyes and thought for a moment, then he started to narrate a tale, "As a child, I was considered a prodigy with the sword, the spear, and archery. My father, Count Rouvroy, began to take me on hunts when I was a mere child of ten years old. I was already big for my size by then. I still remember the master of arms calling me a genius after I caught my first pheasant."

Claude smiled and then continued, "By age twelve I was already able to spar with my father's soldiers. They would clap and cheer for me as I knocked down one after another. They started to call me Lord Rouvroy the strong. Of course, I wouldn't let that get to my head and continued to study with the master of arms. Once I surpassed the master of arms, my father's knight retainer began to train me in the different styles of the various knight orders."

Claude almost giggled as he recalled another memory, "When I was thirteen, I first had to start to study with a tutor, but I hated it, so I would skip out on his lessons to practice the sword, which in hindsight I do regret, because now my academic grades here at the Academy are among the lowest. In fact, I often think I should find a tutor to help me study while I am here, but with the extra training I am being forced to do because of the incredible swordsmen at this very table, I haven't found the energy."

"Ah, but where was I, yes, when I turned fourteen, I had my first joust with a knight. I lost, but I didn't let it wreck my confidence, instead, I took it as a learning opportunity and trained even harder with the lance and horse. Speaking of a horse, Lady d'Aumont, do you ride?" Claude opened his eyes to look for her response only to find that she and Guy de Montfort were no longer seated at the table. Only Olivier was staring at him with his usual goofy smile. "What the hell? When did they leave?"

Olivier smiled and then answered, "When you said there wasn't much to tell. But please continue, I was fascinated with your story."

Claude frowned at him and said flatly, "I wasn't telling it for your ears."

Olivier pouted and then asked, "What if I was the crown prince?"

Claude laughed and said, "If you were the crown prince, I would act as your toady and kiss your royal ass!"

Olivier clapped his hands and said, "Oh, I look forward to it, Lord Rouvroy. Perhaps I should appear as a prince at the masquerade ball, to see if that is true?"

Claude laughed derisively and said, "Or you could come as a woman and dance with Lord Montfort to get one of his infamous gropings."

This caused Olivier to laugh uproariously, "Oh Lord Rouvroy, it seems you do have a personality and sense of humor after all. I was right to stay for the tale of your youth."