Destructive Enchantment

Chapter 5: Arrival

White specks began to fall from the sky.

"Woah!" My eyes gleam at the sight. Snow! "This is my first time seeing snow!"

Eliza laughs at my excitement. "A lot of firsts for you tonight, huh." She nudges me. "First snowfall, first ball, first time in the Empire, maybe even first romance," Eliza wiggles her eyebrow at me suggestively.

"Well that won't only be my first," I shot back. Eliza was just a few years younger than me at eighteen years old. She was of age, and King Therasis was now beckoning her to find potential suitors.

"Fiiine. Then both of our goals tonight is to have fun AND find a potential suitor," she drags her words out.

"I can only agree on the first one," I say pointedly. I've already been of age to find a potential candidate for a few years now, though, I never did. Was it because I was scared? Partially. I am also just inept at talking to men, as I've grown up with practically all female friends.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever you say," she waves me off.

———

Two hours of us bickering to each other comes to a halt when the carriage comes to a slow.

The coachman calls out to us. "We are here, your highnesses." We both step out as the castle maids begin to take our luggage into our allocated rooms.

I gape at the sight in front of me. Oh, my goodness. This place is HUGE. I thought Therasis was big but this...this is a whole other level.

There, in front of me, stood the most grand castle I've only ever read about in those fairytale books. A castle like this could house half of my home nation!

"Excuse me," I hear a lady behind me scoff. She looks me up and down, before sneering slightly. "You're in the way."

"Ah, my apologies." I fluster a little bit. I didn't realize my awe at the building caused me to look like a fish out of water right in front of the entry.

"Next time just walk around her," Eliza comes to my side and sneers back. "There's plenty of space, unless you require the entire entry way," Eliza retorts.

So much for not drawing attention to ourselves.

"Princess Eliza. What a...pleasure seeing you here. Last time I saw you, you were almost kicked out of etiquette school," the lady laughs haughtily before turning away and walking inside.

"lAsT tImE i SaW yOu YoU wErE aLmOsT kIcKeD oUt oF eTiQuEtTe ScHoOl," Eliza mocks in a tone under her breath.

"Eliza, it's okay. We're here to have fun, remember?" I chuckle nervously, attempting to soothe her. I can see what King Therasis meant by making sure she doesn't create trouble.

"I know, I know. I just can't help it. That is Lady Annabeth. She's the daughter of the Duke of Charters," she fake gags. Duke of Charters, the primary duke assigned to the region after the Emperor of Kruos invaded the former kingdom that it used to rule.

"Come on, let's go inside. It's cold out here," I urge Eliza, feeling my nose turn red as the brisk air nips at it.

I can't help but feel a small sense of dread bubble in me. Screw making friends, not happening. This night already started off horrendously.

———

This night is AMAZING!

I drool at the sight of the copious amounts of pastries, tarts, and fruit boards that line the long table in the back. What is even better is everyone is mingling and talking amongst themselves, too busy to indulge in the sin of gluttony.

Oh, well! More for me!

Eliza's eyes followed my line of sight, which wasn't hard considering the stars in my eyes seemed to beam spotlights at the table.

"C'mon, let's go get—" she begins as she grabs my arm.

The sound of a voice clearing interrupts her and I. We both snap our attention to the owner, a handsome man with ash blond hair and green eyes. He was adorned in a white suit with gold buttons and a brooch with what appeared to be a duchy on it.

"Princess Eliza. If you are free, would you care to join me for a dance?" He curtsies to her. Perfect!

"No—"

"Yes!" I cut her off. This was her chance to start looking for a suitor! A duke nonetheless!

"Wait, what—!?" I shove her lightly towards the man.

"What're you doing?!" Eliza whips around back at me and hisses in my ear.

I gave a tight-lipped, closed eye smile and hugged her, whispering in her ear. "I thought you said all night long you were going looking for a suitor. Now is your chance!"

"Yeah, but I didn't mean in a way where I leave you alone!" She whispers back aggressively.

"That doesn't even make sense!!" I whisper-retort. What does that even mean? Did she want to flirt with a man while we held hands or something?

"I will be fine on my own. You know where to find me," I whisper.

"Ahem." His voice snaps us out of it and I quickly hold her at arms-length.

"She is delighted you asked! Take good care of her!" I beam and turn on my heels, making a beeline for the table of pastries before she had the chance to rebuttal.

'You owe me for this one, King Therasis. That girl almost scared off the man!' I sigh.

Approaching the table, I couldn't be more excited as I scoped the feast before me, bouncing on my toes slightly.

Maybe tonight will go well.

———

Perched on the second floor hidden along a shadow, a figure lazily leaned against the railing, sighing at the sight beneath him.

'How tiresome.' This was such a hindrance in his busy schedule.

His eyebrows furrow at the sight of two individuals who enter the room.

'Ah. It's that crazy girl that almost got kicked out of etiquette school.' He recognized the red-haired individual.

Beside her stood a girl with (h/c) hair, adorned in a fluffy french braid with a couple flowers embedded into the sections and a simple, white gown.

It was ironic. He could instantly tell she wanted to minimize her appearance as much as possible, though it did nothing but make her stand out more, since every lady was adorned head-to-toe in the most colorful, lavish dresses and the most expensive, flashy jewelry their parents could afford. Sometimes, less is more.

It's odd though, he didn't recognize you. He was very adept at remembering the noble names and faces, though he couldn't quite pinpoint yours.

Did you sneak in? That would explain the lack of flashy jewelry and simple attire. But you stuck quite close to Princess Eliza, so you must be connected to her in some way.

'Interesting..."

His narrowed eyes follow the two figures, watching you hug the red-haired girl before swiftly making your way towards the back of the room to the table of desserts. Your naivety failed to notice the look that a few men gave you as you passed by them, a slight skip in your step as you tunneled in on your goal.

'How very interesting...' he couldn't help but let a wicked grin erupt on his face, slipping the rest of his body into the shadows.

———

A/N: IM SO EXCITEDDDDD!!! Also very unedited so don't mind the crappy writing. 😅