King | j.b

XVI

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"How many people do you think are here?" Rachel asked Ariana as the two stared into the mass of people crowded in the grand hall. Ariana looked at all the guests; the women had on fancy, expensive dresses while the men wore elegant tuxedos. The king had not come out yet and Ariana was eager to see his face.

"I don't know," Ariana replied to Rachel. "A lot." The whole scene reminded Ariana of the night of the king's birthday. The grand hall was set up quite similarly.

As she continued to look around before getting back to work, she noticed Harry cleaning a table alone. He looked a little sad and Ariana almost felt bad for him. Then not a moment later, his face lifted to look at Ariana. But when he saw her looking, he quickly looked away. What was up with him lately?

She noticed the way his uniform wrapped tightly around his body. The male servants also wore tuxedos with a red tie. The girls on the other hand, wore simple green and red dresses. The king wanted everyone to look presentable for the guests.

Suddenly Rachel nudged Ariana. She looked at Rachel questioningly. Rachel pointed towards Harry.

"Looks like Curly Hair is into you," Rachel teased with a smirk. Ariana opened her mouth to speak but she knew she couldn't deny it.

"I know he does," she said instead. But before Rachel could respond, they heard the sound of a spoon clicking on a glass.

And slowly, the chatter in the room came to a quiet murmur. Every person in the room turned their attention to to throne where a stubby-looking guard stood. He waited for everyone's attention before he proceeded to speak. Once the room fell silent, he cleared his throat and adjusted his tie.

"Greetings everyone," his voice spoke as it echoed through the hallways of the castle. "We welcome you today to the king's Christmas Eve celebration!" There were a few claps and cheers from the crowd but all the servants stared blankly at the guard.

"Today we shall celebrate the holiday of giving. So without further ado, please welcome the mighty, the spectacular, King Justin Bieber!"

The sounds of hands hitting each other filled the air. And that's when he came out. From the corner of the hall came the form of the king in his beautiful, gem-spotted robe. Ariana stared at his face; his hazel eyes thoughtful (something Ariana hadn't seen much of). His hair was brushed upward which made him look even better, and pink lips curved into a bright smile. The boots he wore were jet-black and his long, silver sword dangled by his side. His crown rested steadily on his head and all the people admired his many luxuries.

Ariana tried not to smile as best she could. When she turned towards Rachel, she realized her lips were pressed into a line and she wore a blank face. Ariana nudged her and said, "C'mon, don't be grouchy. It's Christmas Eve!" Rachel looked at her for a moment and gave her a small smile.

Once the king stood in front of his throne, he motioned for the crowd to quiet down. Once everyone obeyed his commands, he took a deep breath and scanned the room.

"Thank you," his first words were. "Thank you to everyone for being here today. Let us celebrate! We have prepared a grand celebration for this wonderful night and hope you all enjoy this evening."

Claps immediately filled the air and the whole room was filled with the sounds of violins and cellos. 

Ariana watched as the king scanned the room once more. He looked around as if he was looking for someone. When his eyes landed on Ariana he didn't move them. He stared at her for a few full seconds without any facial expression. Ariana stared back not knowing how to react. But the king finally looked away and went to join the crowd of people.