Yours Truly | Tom Riddle x Fem-Reader

Chapter 10: Venison and Roasted Carrots

Recap:

"What business did you have with Viscount Lance?"

I looked up and saw Tom looking down at me.

New Characters In This Chapter:

Lucy Adams (Malfoy):
Age: 44 (Birthday: February 11th)
Social Status: Princess
Relationship Status: Taken; Prince Nathan

Nathan Adams:
Age: 48 (Birthday: December 28th)
Social Status: Prince (Was previously a Duke from Germany, but was appointed Prince when he got married)
Relationship Status: Taken; Lucy Adams (Malfoy)

Marie Malfoy:
Age: 21 (Birthday: November 10th)
Social Status: Princess
Relationship Status: Single

Evening, Thursday, May 22nd, 1800

Y/N's POV:
"I was simply talking to the Viscount about his mining business," I tell him

"And why would you be interested?" he asks and raises his eyebrow

"I'm trying to make connections in the future. I would rather make friends than create hostile enemies that can threaten both of us," I tell him

"I-"

He was then interrupted by the sudden ring of a bell. The butler was ringing the dinner bell, telling everyone to head into the dining hall. Everyone made their way out of the door, smiling and chuckling.

"Shall we?" I ask, and he then nods his head, and we link arms once again, exiting the throne room and into the dining hall. Everyone found their name cards against the plates and sat at their designated seats

"We're sitting over there with the Royal Family," he says indicating the large, long table at the very end of the room, where the King and Queen were already sitting along with Prince Abraxas and Molly

When we arrived at the table, he bowed, and I curtsied. King Nicholas then nodded at us, approving us to sit down. Tom and I sat down in our assigned seats. I was sitting at the end of the table. Our table was facing the whole dining hall, so we were sitting in a singular horizontal line. A man and a woman then approached the table, and I am to assume that it was Princess Lucy and Prince Nathan.

Princess Lucy had blue eyes and platinum blonde hair, which seemed to run in the Malfoy family. She was wearing a silver dress and a tiara, which is one of the Royal Family colors. Prince Nathan had brown eyes and black hair with multiple gray streaks. He had a thick beard along with a mustache.

They both sat down in their designated seats, which were on the other side of the table. Then I saw a woman walking towards the table, and I assumed that it was Princess Marie. She looked nothing like her father or brother; instead, she was the spitting image of her mother. She had long black hair and green eyes. She was wearing a dark blue dress, embellished with pearls and embroidered flowers. She sat down beside her mother; her eyes were focused on something, but I couldn't put my finger on what.

Everyone then settled down into their seats, and the butler came through the door, announcing that dinner was ready. Hundreds of butlers and maids burst through the door carrying cutlery and the dishes that were to be served. There were fresh loaves of bread. Meats with roasted vegetables. There are a variety of drinks sitting in jugs, like wine, water, and fresh pressed juice.

The butler came over to the Royal Family's table and settled everything up. The butler who was serving me placed a plate of venison and roasted carrots and poured me a glass of wine. The butlers and maids then scurried out of the dining hall after everything was perfectly set up. Nobody dared to move or touch their food until the King did, or else there would be major consequences.

Kind Nicholas picks up his fork and knife and proceeds to cut the meat into finer, bite-sized pieces. Once finished cutting his meat, he used the fork to pick it up, placed it in his mouth, chewed and chewed, and finally swallowed. They signaled everyone that it was okay to eat now. Everyone then proceeded to cut their venison and their roasted carrots.

I slowly cut my meat and placed it in my mouth; it was delicious. I smiled. The venison had a slight gamey and salty flavor that paired very nicely with the orange carrots.

"Are you enjoying the food, Lady Y/N?" I hear Kind Nicholas speak, but he doesn't make eye contact with me and focuses on cutting the carrots

"Yes, Your Majesty. It's truly delectable; thank you for asking," I said, looking towards him

"That's good," he says, nodding his head in approval. I then hear Queen Bethany clear her throat

"Lady Y/N. May I ask where you got that beautiful emerald necklace?" she asks politely

"Duke Tom gave it to me as a gift, Your Majesty," I tell her

"Really? How nice of him...Duke, where did you get that necklace crafted?" she asks

"I got it from the jewelry shop that recently opened, Your Majesty," I tell her

"Interesting...Lady Y/N, you're quite lucky that the Riddle family gemstone is emerald; it's truly one of a kind," she says with a smile, but it isn't a genuine one

"I am glad to know that, Your Majesty," I said with a smile

It was then quiet at the table for the rest of the night. Prince Abraxas and Molly would every once in a while chatter amongst themselves. They would smile and laugh. So that's how an engaged couple is supposed to look... I looked at Tom, who was staring into the crowd as if he were looking for someone. He was finished with his meal, while I still had a couple of carrots left.

"Everyone," Kind Nicholas stands up and raises his glass "Thank you all for coming tonight. To end tonight on a good note, let us all go to the ballroom and enjoy ourselves,"

Everyone nodded their heads in approval, and all got up to walk to the ballroom. Everyone at our table got up and headed out, and I got up too. I turned back, Tom was still staring into the crowd.

"Duke Tom," I say quietly "Duke Tom?"

"What?" he says snapping out of it

"We're all heading to the ballroom, Your Grace," I tell him, he then stares back at the disappearing crowd

"Yes, of course," he says, getting up "Shall we?"

"Of course," I said, plastering a smile on my face as we both walked out of the dining hall together

Who were you looking for?