Louis held a drink in his hand as a sigh left his lips. He could hear music playing as couples danced together, the ladies' dresses flowing around like a blooming flower. He grabbed a piece of cake from one of the trays, his belly rumbling. He remembered the event that occurred yesterday with a trembling stomach. The princess had denied having talked to the prince about Louis but he wasn't daft. He could tell when a person was lying just as she was an expert liar. It was all a part of their studies. He could tell by her fixed gaze that she was hiding something. It wasn't hard to tell for he knew what the prince thought of him. Maybe hate was too strong a word but there was definite dislike. He had to figure out what exactly made the prince think so, why he detested Louis so much.

A young man approached the tables, his long fingers grabbing a drink. Louis had seen the man talking to the prince when he was seated with the royal family but otherwise he knew little to nothing about the Marquess of Malone. The lord's eyes rested on him and he dipped his head. "Your highness,"

Louis nodded at him. "Lord Edwin. It is a pleasure to meet you."

"So is mine." The man returned, his stormy grey eyes resting on Louis with easy grace. "I've heard a lot about you, your highness. You seem to be quite the charmer, my resources say."

Louis arched an eyebrow. "Are your resources naive daughters of power-hungry mamas, by any chance?"

The lord gave a burst of laughter, his eyes crinkling with pleasure and Louis smiled. "So the new prince isn't daft after all."

Louis' eyes widened. "Bold of you to say that, Lord Edwin. Is that really what people are saying?" Was that what the people were thinking? Did he need to dance more and chat more? He couldn't possibly let this get out of hand for fear of it reaching the royal family and possible decreasing his chances with the princess.

"Not at all. It's just what I thought." The lord replied.

Louis' mouth parted slightly. When he got married to the princess, he was never coming back to this contemptible kingdom. The people here were outrageous and had no heed for court protocol. Truly, they didn't deserve to be royals if they were going to act like common peasants. Why, Louis thought, even the commoners from his kingdom had better manners. He wondered why the prince didn't strip the lord off his title. Clearly, if he was speaking to a foreign dignitary this way, what respect did he show to his own prince? No, this didn't do at all.

"Lord Edwin." A voice called from behind him and he turned to the see the devil himself join them. Louis resisted from giving out a sigh of displeasure. He hadn't forgotten the seed of doubt the prince had planted in Gemma's mind. He doubted he would ever forget. "I see you've met prince Louis of the kingdom Helianthus."

"Your highness" The lord acknowledged with a dip of his head. "Yes I have. He is quite humorous, I have to admit."

Louis' mouth parted further as the prince's gaze landed on him. He was fuming. How dare a mere lord address him in such a way? Especially in front of his own prince? Was this how this kingdom was? He was starting to think he would do the people a favor by merging the two kingdoms and residing over them himself. Clearly, the nobles here weren't even slightly capable of doing anything by themselves. "I apologize, I don't think I heard you correctly the first time. Will you kindly repeat yourself, Lord Edwin?" Louis said, his voice betraying just a hint of the resentment he felt.

The prince sighed beside him and Louis turned his head up to glance at Harry. The green eyes, however, weren't on him but the Marquess. "Please treat the prince with respect, Marquess. That is an order."

The lord's lips twitched. He brought his arms forward from behind his back and interlocked his fingers slowly together. His looked at the prince with his neck slightly bent. "Of course, your highness. I apologize."

Louis had to admit, if nothing else, the lord had grace. The way he looked at the prince suggested some depth to the words he had spoken, showing a certain meaning behind them. Louis appreciated that. The lord turned to him. "I apologize, I did not mean to offend you. I was merely complimenting you, your highness, nothing else."

Louis tried hard not to sneer. It wouldn't be polite in the company of nobles. "Your apology is accepted." He said. "If you would excuse me, I wouldn't like to keep the ladies waiting. It was a pleasure to meet you."

"And you" He returned, dipping his head. The prince didn't look at him.

As Louis walked to one of the ladies in a light green gown smiling at him, he heard the lord say, his voice imitating Louis' in the dullest way possible, "If you would excuse me, I wouldn't like to keep the ladies waiting."

"I warned you, Edwin." The prince replied with a chuckle.

Louis clenched his teeth.

...

He had just escaped from the dance floor, tired of the dancing and the primping ladies. He was about to go to the terrace doors but decided against it, noticing a few couples stargazing, their arms around each other. Instead, he headed towards the hallway, thinking of maybe retiring early. It had certainly been a tiring day what with all the preparation of the ball. Not that Louis had done anything, of course. Just watching the servants fashion the dance hall had tired him out. He couldn't recall when he had started to get a strong dislike for balls. It was one of the only means of entertainment that both he and his father enjoyed. Well, his father less enjoyed more approved.

He made his way to his chambers, trying to hold back a yawn. His hands felt limp by his sides as he trudged up the stairs. Voices echoed in the quiet corridor, making Louis blink in surprise. He headed to the source of the voice, his heart beating with anticipation. His ears could recognize the voice easily, having spent an unfortunately large amount of time with its owner. Standing behind the door, he jutted his ear forward, trying to listen through the slightly open crack. Light streamed outside, illuminating the front of Louis' face. He bent his head as the voices cleared.

" - nowhere! Not in the letters, royal documents, anywhere!"

"I'm sure there's a reason for it, your highness." An unfamiliar voice answered. "Nobody would dare to do what you are suggesting."

"I have a feeling he will." The prince retorted.

"If there's even a slight chance you are wrong and he finds out, it will ruin our foreign relations for years. I suggest you to be careful in your search."

Louis' heart was pounding. He swallowed through the clog in his throat, his lips twitching. He wanted to go back to his chambers and hide in a corner. No, cut that. He wanted to go back to his home. He wished he had never needed to do this. But he had to. It was all his fault. If he hadn't done what he did when he was sixteen, this would've never happened. His father would've never abandoned him. He would've never sent Louis on a mission in return for the throne. It was all his fault.

"I will be. I can promise you that." Harry said. "The prince will never find out."

"He better not." The voice said. "Accusing a royal of not being one is a high crime, your highness."

A/N: This is my favourite chapter!! I absolutely love it. There's so much happening and I also finally introduced Lord Edwin. I really really hope you liked this one.

What do you think our dear Prince Harry is thinking? What makes him think that maybe Louis isn't who he says he is? What is going to happen now that Louis hears this? I don't know, read the next chapter to find out ;)