The decorations for the ballroom were shocking. The enormous room had always stunned her even when she had been little. The sleek tile, the diamond chandeliers, and the ornate golden hand rails for the double staircase had always dazzled her. But today made her twirl around in awe at the cleanliness of it all. The entire room sparkled with the dying rays of the sun that entered the many huge windows on the far side of the room.

     A stage had been set up between the twin staircases, where a band played a lively tune. The dancing had already begun, the room not yet crowded but filling up steadily.

      Rowan found herself drawn to the food tables that lined the wall to her right, the smell of delicious food overpowering. She slipped past people wearing their best clothes, weaving between dancers to get to the table. But her foot hooked on someone's boot and she fell forward.

      She tumbled halfway under the table with a gasp of surprise, her head beneath the long tablecloth.

      She heard a sharp inhale, and turned her head to see a man crouched beneath the table, a plate of food beside him. He was staring at her with a guilty look, as if he wasn't supposed to be there.

       His hair was neatly slicked back into a formal look, but she could tell the coal-black strands didn't normally fall back so neatly. His hair was shorter at the sides, longer on the top of his head and at the base to fall down the back of his neck. His eyes were sharp and intelligent, light blue in color like a pale sky or a frosty ocean. But they were warm, not icy. His jaw was strong, which gave him almost an intimidating look with his broad shoulders, but his eyes seemed bright and his mouth like he smiled often.

     His clothing was very fine, but he didn't seem to care for it with his wrinkled sleeves and loose collar. He was hunched beneath the table in a position not comfortable for a man with long legs such as himself, and his gaze was locked on her.

     Rowan pulled the rest of herself quickly under the table before someone would notice, and ducked her head so she wouldn't bump her head, "What are you doing?" she asked with a raised eyebrow, frowning slightly.

     "To tell the truth, I'm hiding," the man replied, "I didn't really want to come, you see. I was obligated."

     "Same," Rowan nodded, "Why under here, though?"

     "Who would look for me under here?" he replied pointedly, "Plus, it smells really good. Almost like chocolate and chicken, which sounds gross, but actually smells pretty good."

      "That's what drew me here," Rowan smiled, "Smells amazing. I wish we cooked like this all the time here."

      The man chuckled, "I suppose you'll need to return to your dance?"

      "Don't have a partner," she shrugged, "I'm not supposed to be here, my sister helped sneak me in. So I decided to stick with the food."

     He offered her the plate of food beside him, "Stay as long as you want. I'd enjoy the company."

      Rowan smiled at him, "Thanks," she accepted a pear from the plate, biting into it, "Wow, this is really good! If I knew we'd had these, I would've busted into the kitchens a long time ago!"

     The man smiled slightly at her, "So, you're here for your sister?"

     "Yeah, she wants me here for 'moral support' and all that. But she's probably covered in guys, and to be totally honest, I hate dressing up like this. I'd rather be riding horses or hunting any day."

      "You hunt?" he sounded mildly surprised.

     "No," she sighed regretfully, "I can shoot a bow and arrow pretty well, though. I'm not bad at sword fighting either." At his confused look, she added, "A friend taught me. He used to be a knight, but now he works as a gardener."

     "What else did he teach you?"

     "Tracking skills, mostly. But I'm told I pick up things quickly, so he says there's not much point to continue teaching me." Rowan shrugged her shoulders carelessly, pausing to bite into the pear again. "I don't have much field experience, but I'm not bad with fighting."

      "I'm a bit of a hunter myself," he told her, "I used to hunt all of the time with my brother, until I— well, uh, other things came up," he finished lamely with a tight-lipped smile, "Ducks were always good sport for me. Killing deer came harder."

     "I've seen pictures in books," Rowan commented, "I doubt I'd be able to shoot something so beautiful and with such huge, innocent eyes... unless it was life-or-death for me." She brushed hair from her eyes with annoyance. The frizzy strands were starting to get into her eyes and annoy her.

     "You've never seen a real deer," he stared her disbelievingly.

      She rolled her eyes, "I wish I could. My stepmother is horribly painful about something like that. I'm never allowed to go anywhere. So I read books a lot, and I never forget what I read. Which sucks sometimes, since I have a hard time reading the same book twice."

      "Nice to know you're educated. Beautiful women always seem to be bit more dense in these parts," the man commented, his eyes meeting hers earnestly.

      Rowan smirked, "You think I'm beautiful?" she teased, and was surprised to see a hint of red climb into his cheeks.

      "W-well," he turned his head awkwardly, "Who can blame me? There aren't many girls from the place I come from, and the ones present are... they lack your exotic personality, shall we say."

     "Then you should really see my sister," Rowan told him, knowing he'd be blown away by Quinn if he thought her even remotely pretty, "She's stunning tonight. But... I do appreciate the compliment, I don't get much like it around here."

      The man gave her a relieved smile, "I was afraid I'd insulted you," he said with a calming sigh. "Say... I know you're hiding out, but maybe you'd like... er... maybe once most of the people leave, would you like to dance a little with me?"

     "Well, I'm borrowing this dress and need to return it by midnight, so maybe we could just dance now?" Rowan didn't want to sound hopeful, but though her lessons had taught her how to dance, she had never danced with a man before. She had to admit, she was curious.

     "If I had a disguise, I'd say yes..." he looked truly disappointed.

      "Mess up your hair and lose your jacket," Rowan advised, "I can imagine you'd look a bit different then."

      "Excellent," he looked delighted by the idea, and shrugged off his jacket, "That thing was suffocating me anyway," he muttered as he raked his hands through his hair to mess it up. When he was done, his black hair stuck up in odd angles all around his head, "How's that?"

      She hid a giggle behind her hand, "Perfect," she told him honestly. He looked more rugged with his hair chaotically placed, and she smiled.

      "Now if we can just get out without anyone giving us odd looks, we'll be good," he gave a laughing grin as he crawled out from underneath the table, and she followed close behind. He offered her a hand to help he up, but she rolled her eyes, standing up on her own.

      "Mission accomplished," she picked up a cracker from the table, popping it into her mouth, "So... I've never actually danced with someone taller than me, so..."

      "I'll lead," he offered.

      "I was just warning you I might step on your feet," she grinned, "But I'd rather lead, if you don't mind."

      "Ah, of course," he took her hand hesitantly, and she paused a moment before allowing him to lead her to the dance floor, "Do you dance much?"

      She shrugged, "Not much. My sister and I practice together sometimes, but I've never had a real partner. What about you?"

       "About the same," he replied, his head nodding to the beat of the music, "I had a knack for stepping on people's feet when I was younger. In fact, I was notorious for it when I was fifteen."

      "Sounds like me," she said, letting him lead in the dance after all. His steps seemed better balanced anyway— he was less likely to pull them both down with a mistake, "My sister would chase me down when I'd step on her."

       "I guess different people are better at different things," he said, spinning her around once to the rhythm of the music, "Is your sister a fan of reading?"

       "She'll read fine poetry, but finds books boring," Rowan said, her tone indicating her disapproval of this fact, "She's not stupid, though," she added almost defensively.

      "Of course not," he said quickly, "I didn't mean to indicate that at all. I was just asking... I'm sorry."

      Rowan was surprised by his obvious sincerity, and wanted to laugh when she realized he was actually flustered, "Hey," she said, taking lead of the dance with a smile, "It's fine. I know you didn't mean it."

     "I'm not usually this awkward," the man said after a moment as he tripped slightly on her feet, "I don't know what's wrong with me..." He looked down at her with an almost pained smile, and she guessed he was embarrassed.

       "Hey, don't worry about it," she raised her shoulders in a shrug, "I'm surprised I haven't taken you down and half the crowd with me—" she broke off as she saw Elena dancing with a handsome brown-haired gentlemen and ducked behind her partner hurriedly, "Ah! Don't let her see me!"

      He hid a grin with a turn of his head, allowing her to hide behind him as the couple danced past, "Who's that?'

      "Stepsister," Rowan peered around him to watch Elena dance back into the crowd, "If she sees me, she'll tell her mother for sure. Which means grounding and a boat load of chores for me."

      "That sounds horrible," he made a face at that, and she laughed.

      Then she spotted Quinn dancing with a tall, thin man a few years older than her with sleek blond hair. The man was well-dressed, and Rowan decided it must be Kaizen, the Tiberian emperor. There were boys surrounding the couple, hoping for a turn to dance with the enchanting princess.

     "Quinn looks gorgeous as ever," Rowan sighed, and her partner followed her gaze to her sister.

     "She's beautiful," he agreed, and she expected a cheap excuse to leave her so he could go try to catch her attention. But not one attempt came. In fact, he didn't even look over at her again, his sky blue eyes fixed on Rowan.

       "Maybe one day we could meet up later," he said after a moment of silence in which Rowan had enjoyed the elegant piano music of the new, slower song, "You know, go hunting. Or at least, see if we can't get you a peek at a real deer."

      "I'd love that," she admitted, resting her hands on his shoulders as they danced to the slower song, "But they'd never let me out. And I don't want to sneak out anymore, I'm surprised I still haven't gotten busted yet."

      "Well, I'd like to see you again. Do you think that would be possible?"

        "Everything's possible," she returned, "But plenty of things aren't probable. I'd like to see you again too, but you'd have to get in to this place. You're Tiberian, right?"

      "Is that a problem?"

      "Not at all!" Rowan exclaimed quickly, "It's just... there's a war that might start soon, and... if there's a war and you'd come, you'd be treated like an enemy, and it would stink if you got killed trying to see me."

       "But what if there wasn't a war?" he pressed, leaning forward, "Would you let me come then?"

      "We're on the verge of war," she reminded him, "There's going to be one unless your leader decides to make a treaty. But he's made it clear he doesn't want to unless we give him the territory."

      "I'm talking about if the war all just went away," he muttered, avoiding her gaze.

      "Why do you want to see me again so badly?" Rowan asked as they paused in their dance beside the buffet table, "I just met you an hour ago."

      "I've never met a girl like you," he shrugged awkwardly, "I don't want to weird you out at all (which I feel like I'm doing), but you are... unique. And that makes you a treasure. And when I find a real treasure, I don't like it to slip through my fingers like sand."

      Rowan sighed, shaking her head, "I appreciate that you feel that way, but seriously dude. I just met you."

     "Sorry, sorry," he rubbed the back of his neck, "You have a point. I'm a bit of an idiot, right?" He took a sip from a cup beside him to hide his embarrassment, but choked and sprayed the contents onto the floor, "Th-that's really strong whiskey," he managed, wiping his mouth on the hem of his sleeve.

      Rowan laughed, handing him a napkin, "Yes, you might be just a little bit of an idiot."

      He gave her a small grin, wiping his face off, "So what books do you read?"

     "Changing the topic just like that, huh?" she smiled, but answered, "Fantasy books. I love old fables and fairy tales. They give me a bit of hope that maybe I'm not doomed to fall in a sleep forever."

      He blinked, opening his mouth to question, but broke off, "Oh, shoot, I gotta hide!"

       Rowan turned to see two men walking slowly towards them, their eyes scanning the crowd as if looking for someone. They hadn't noticed them standing in the corner yet. She grabbed his hand, pulling him towards the window where she pulled the curtain around them. The curtain was plenty big, and hid both of them perfectly.

       "So why are you hiding?" she asked in a whisper, looking up at him curiously.

      "Well, I wanted to enjoy myself before getting down to business," he lowered his voice so the passing men wouldn't hear, "But I'm having such a good time with all this mission impossible stuff that I'd hate to leave."

      Rowan peered around the edge of the golden curtain, watching the backs of the men vanish into the crowd, "Alright, you're good. They're gone."

       "Hey!" A voice called, and she turned to see Quinn waving at her as she walked over to join them, "There you are! I've been looking everywhere for you."

      "Me?" Rowan asked, startled, "Why?"

      "To ask you if you're having fun," Quinn poked her in the shoulder, "And to give you a heads up. It's almost eleven, and you need to leave by midnight, remember? Silvia will need the dress back."

      "How is it already eleven?!" Rowan gasped, looking up to the enormous clock at the far side of the room.

      "Well, nice to see you've found yourself a date," Quinn winked at her, "Now I have my own date to attend to. Farewell!"

      Rowan glanced back at the clock with a sigh, then took his hands in hers, "Come on, slowpoke, the music got fast again. Would you hate doing one more dance with me ?"

     "Not at all," but he'd barely taken her hand when she heard a shrill voice behind her, "Rowan!!"

      They both turned, and her heart sank to see Adeline storming towards her, her stepmother's face turning red with anger. She was busted.

       "What did I tell you?" Adeline growled into her face, pulling her away from the man with an adamant grip on her wrist, "I told you not to come! You have chores and homework, and plenty of other things you have to do!"

      "No, I don't," Rowan tried to keep her voice calm so she wouldn't make a scene in front of all these people, "I made sure I finished before I came. And I have both a dance partner and a dress, so you can't complain."

      This only made her stepmother angrier, "Go to your room. Now," she ordered, and Rowan doubted she'd heard Adeline sound so angry. Then again, she'd never gone behind her stepmother's back like this. So she bowed her head in submission, turning away.

       But the man grabbed Adeline's hand as the furious woman aimed an angry swat at the back of Rowan's head, "You have no right to hurt a woman whose back is turned," he said, his voice suddenly scarily cold.

      This only angered Adeline even more, and Rowan quickly gave him a shake of her head to signal him to back down. But he didn't listen.

       "Who are you to correct how I treat her?" Adeline sharply, whipping around to face him, her eyes blazing with anger, "A knight? A royal? A prince?"

      "A king, actually," he said coldly, and her eyes widened, "And as Kaizen, Lord of Tiberia, I implore you to release that woman." His gaze slid to the tight grip that Adeline now had on Rowan's wrist.

     "You cannot boss me about," Adeline told him sternly, "I am Queen, and you are in my country!"

      "You're Kaizen?" Rowan gawked at him, her mouth falling open in shock.

      "Go now, make yourself scarce," Adeline said coolly, glaring at Rowan with undisguised hatred. Rowan only nodded, mumbling to Kaizen as she passed, "Leave it. I'm not worth it."

      And without another word, she turned on her heels and ran as hard as she could towards the door that would lead her far away. She didn't even notice that she'd lost a shoe when she stumbled on the stone steps as she prayed to escape the wrath of her stepmother she knew was not close to fading.