MINERVA
Minerva's Room,
Vessiye's Palace,
Jeruvael,
Illearia.

    I sat in front of an ornate dresser, staring at myself in the vanity mirror. My dark, pink, baby soft hair had been arranged in fancy ringlets, half of which was pinned fashionably atop my head. My face was somewhat heavily made up. Beautiful diamond drop earrings adorned my ears and a heavy piece of diamond jewellery highlighted my slender neck.
I stood to better admire my sapphire coloured ball gown; it had a Bertha neckline trimmed over with a four inch deep lace flounce. It clung to the upper half of my body and cascaded into a full skirt. I reached for my mask which lay on the dresser; it was a butterfly shaped, diamond encrusted silver beauty which gave me an air of mystery when I put it on.

Ryna entered the room without knocking. She had on a red ball gown and a beautiful gold mask that complimented her blonde hair which hung loose down her back.

        "Aunt Ashyria outdid herself dressing you tonight." She said, meaning it as a compliment and then added.

        "She sent me to get you. She said the young lords would soon arrive."

                    ~
The ballroom was partially separated from the main house. It was a wide room with glass doors and marble floors. And unlike the main house, the chandeliers consisted of imported Chestland bulbs and not candles.

My father and mother were not yet in the room, neither were the Vessiye and his family. However, the room was packed full with guests; all Illearian royalty and high placed people in the society.

       "Ascar." Ryna suddenly gasped, looking behind me. I turned in the same direction to see the five lords enter the room along with some special guard escorts.

The people rushed forward to greet them excitedly. The three young lords recognising their family members soon mingled with the crowd. The very tall one Ryna believed to be Ascar remained standing and whispering to the slightly taller young man beside him.

        "Is that you Ascar?" Ryna asked loudly and without waiting for a reply, went to hook her arm through his.

I simply stood admiring my cousin's guts and wondering if the young man beside Ascar was Asaph. He looked handsome and majestic in his outfit and I tried to tell myself that despite my suddenly reddening cheeks, I wasn't blushing.

Ryna as was her style had engaged the two young men in conversation. Ascar finally noticed me and soon after, the three of them made their way towards me. Ascar took my hand in his and placed a kiss at the back of my palm. I smiled.
            "Ryna said this is how the lords greet ladies in Chestland." He explained smiling back.
I didn't tell him that Ryna had not exactly spoken the truth; in Chestland such gestures were usually part of a flirting ritual. What was Ryna playing at, was she falling in love with Ascar?
     
       "It's splendid to see you here Asaph. It's good to see you and Ascar being so friendly." I said.

        "How strange. Ascar doesn't seem like one to make friends so easily." Ryna replied.

        "I'm full of surprises." Ascar teased, making Ryna blush.

Soon the orchestra which was a band from Chestland started to play soft music. Couples took to the floor trying to imitate the Chestie way of dancing. Many people in this room must have visited Chestland at one point, because most of them were getting it right.
      
        "Dance with me my lord?" Ryna said half jokingly to Ascar, who took her hand, then the pair strode to the center of the room to join in the dancing.

Asaph and I moved to the side of the room to make room for the dancers.
        
          "Thank you."
He finally said to me. I turned to face him, although it was hard to see his face clearly as the mask hid the better part of his face.
     
        "For what?"

        "For choosing me. For refusing to back down despite my reluctance."

I felt a bit uneasy accepting his thanks. The truth was that I had ulterior motives for helping him, so I couldn't genuinely accept his thanks could I?

          "Your highness?"

          "Please, call me Princess Minerva. And I'm glad you're coming to Chestland. You'll love it there."

        "I'm looking forward to it. Everything there must be so modern. These clothes and these lights." He finished up, gesturing to the chandeliers. We both laughed, his face seemed to light up for the first time since we met, he looked boyish, happy.

Then the strangest thing happened; the ballroom music suddenly died down, the Illearian anthem began to play.

      "Announcing the presence of our Supreme leader, Lord of Illearia, our Vessiye." Someone called out and soon after, the Vessiye and his family entered the room followed by my parents.

I felt Asaph tense beside me and I wondered why; was this Supreme leader (this Vessiye) a dictator? Did he strike fear in the hearts of ordinary citizens?

The three young lords immediately came to kneel before him. Asaph and Ascar exchanged looks and the two left to join the other three lords kneeling before the Vessiye.

Was it just me or did Asaph seem suddenly standoffish?

                     ~
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