Sovereignty and Servitude

7: Types of Persuasion

Genius.

"I'm still thinking about it," admitted Sophie, who was then interrupted by Rex, who exclaimed loudly,

"YOU'RE GOING TO THE BALL TOMORROW?!"

Bex gasped, "REALLY? CAN I COME TOO? I'D LOVE TO WEAR A FANCY DRESS AND DANCE ALL NIGHT AND MAYBE FALL IN LOVE WITH A HANDSOME PRINCE AND-"

Rex gagged, "EW! THAT'S GROSS! WHY WOULD YOU WANT TO DO THAT?"

Lex giggled, "DOES THAT MEAN YOU'RE GOING TO DANCE WITH FITZ ALL NIGHT?"

"SO ROMANTIC," Bex draped herself over her mattress dramatically, her hand on her forehead.

"Guys, guys, guys!" Sophie motioned for them to calm down, "I haven't decided yet! I still have you little monkeys to think about!"

"WE COULD COME WITH YOU!" Bex squealed happily.

"I'm afraid that you guys aren't old enough yet. It's a boring adult party," Fitz smiled apologetically.

"Then Keefe can watch us!" cheered Rex.

"I'm afraid not," Sophie shook her head, "he will be going to the ball."

Fitz slyly slipped in the fact, "The nursery will be open late tomorrow night since many of the servants will be working and their children will still need to be taken care of."

Sophie seemed to mull this over while Bex exclaimed, "THEN YOU AND FITZ CAN DANCE THE NIGHT AWAY!"

"Prince Fitz has other duties than dancing with me," Sophie reminded her.

"Yes, but I would get one dance, wouldn't I?" Fitz tried to charm her with his smile. It worked on most ladies, and he hoped that her heart wasn't as impenetrable as her mind.

"I don't even know if I'm going yet."

"Ah, but if you don't go, Keefe will be left out of the first dance."

Lex frowned in confusion, "Why's that?"

"We are of equal rank in the political and social ladder," explained Sophie, "just like King Alden will have the first dance with Queen Della and Princess Biana will have the first dance with Lord Tam."

"Who will you have the first dance with, Fitz?" asked Bex.

"Hmm... let's see," he thought about it for a moment, "I presume that I am to dance with Lady Linh at the ball, but that is only if a foreign princess doesn't attend."

"That's a shame, the first dance is always the most romantic," Bex sighed, disappointed.

"Actually, I believe it is the last dance - at least, that is what my mother always tells me."

"You should have Sophie's last dance, then," Bex smiled up at Fitz innocently.

Fitz glanced up at Sophie in time to see her face flush a deep red, "That's enough of that. I haven't decided if I'm going or not yet."

"But you have to dance with Fitz!" Bex whined.

Fitz rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. He wanted Sophie to attend the ball, but he didn't want to pressure her into it... though he still wanted to dance with her. He looked up at Sophie and noticed her struggling to figure out an answer, and he knew what he had to do.

He offered her his hand, "How about I dance with you now, and you think long and hard about attending the ball later on?"

She seemed surprised by his proposition, and two thirds of the triplets squealed excitedly in the background while the other gagged once more as Sophie nervously replied, "But there's no music."