Chapter 3: Promises in the Night
The Lunebleau state was in a frenzy, eight young women were getting ready for THE ball of the year. The two young girls of house Lunebleau, Noelle and Frey, their cousins Danielle, Cecile, and Ide, as well as the daughters of knights Remy and Louis, Anne and Lea, and finally the wife of the heir of house Lunebleau, René.
There was also, lady Lunebleau, and her sister lady Liliane. The lady of the house had always been known for having a natural elegance, and so did her sister. Lady Lunebleau was calming down the eager Danielle, helping her sister with the last details of her make up and reassuring young Ide, who had just turned 15 and this would be her first ball, all in all, the lady was assuring everything was in order.
René was almost ready, she was helping Anne and Lea, who were pale from nervousness. Frey somehow had managed to be ready before anyone else, she had chosen a simple white dress with full open sleeves, she looked like marble with her fair skin. Her bosom was packed inside the dress, looking magnificent in Noelle's words. The dress had some ornaments, but the design was overall, simple. She was wearing a silver necklace, with a blue sapphire cut as a half moon. Her father had one made, for each of his daughters, the mark of their house Lunebleau.
Frey had left her silvery blue hair cascading on her shoulders. Their blue hair had always been a mark of house Lunebleau, her father and older brother had it, her sister Noelle on the other hand, had inherited their mothers silver tone, Frey's was a mix of the two.
Frey was watching her sister as she finished the last details of her make up, Noelle was taller than her, and 3 years older. She had fair skin and a lovely pink tone on her cheeks, an incredible silhouette, and she beamed with confidence.
Noelle was one of the most sought-after ladies in Loire. The only thing where Frey had and advantage over her older sister, was the chest area. Noelle insisted Frey never 'used' her asset properly, but for this ball, she had, Frey blushed as she glanced herself at the mirror, the cleavage was subtle, but the cut of the dress enhanced that area. Noelle was dressed in a blue dress combining beautifully with her necklace, she was painting her lips, and Frey was amazed by her sister's dexterity.
"You look astonishing Frey" René their sister-in-law had entered the room to check on them, she was wearing a silver laced dress, she was almost as tall as their brother, her long blonde hair flowing down gently. Frey remembered when their brother said he would start courting René, Noelle had laughed, and Frey could not offer support, René Delacroix was one of the most beautiful ladies in the Kingdom, and house Delacroix was old and influential, perhaps just a bit more than house Lunebleau. Their brother was tall, and handsome, but still both sisters and even their father had doubted he could.
Somehow Luka, their brother had managed to convince René to marry him over every other suitor, and there had been plenty of those. Frey and Noelle both liked René a lot, she was precious and not just in looks, they often said out loud that getting her, was probably the most impressive feat their brother would ever achieve.
"Thank you, René, you look wonderful, as always" Frey answered blushing a little. She liked René, everyone in the family did, Noelle said she preferred René over their brother. Frey remembered how, only her mother had not doubted Luka could get René when he had started courting her. Behind René, came Anne and Lea, one had a red dress matching her hair color, the other a dark green long dressed that accentuated her figures, they were 16 and 18, respectively.
"Lady Frey, you look amazing" the shy Anne said surprised as she entered the room and looked at Frey, making her blush.
"She has to be Anne, after all, she will be meeting Sir Nord at the ball" Frey rolled her eyes at Lea, they were the same age and close childhood friends.
"We promised we would not tease Frey anymore" René gave a grave look to the ladies, but then smiled "at least until we all have had a look at her Sir Smiles", everyone laughed, Frey sighed loudly, but she was indeed nervous.
'Damn Feydan, making me anxious' she thought, as she gave a look outside, it was late, her father and brother had yet to return from the conference with the Fey Danan delegation. René was troubled by the delay as well, but she smiled at Frey.
"Look, Uncle Damian and Luka have returned" outside the room in the hallway, the young Ide, dressed in pink was pointing at the garden.
"Ide, do not point at people like that, is rude" her older sister Cecile, dressed in yellow told her younger sister, making Ide lower her hands. After a moment she went to the room where all the other girls were. "It looks like they brought company, hurry come see" Cecile who was about to enter the room, went to look at the window next to her sister.
"Company?" it was Noelle who asked, as she finished her lower lip, "Who would they bring at this hour".
"Maybe, some lord approached lord Damian or Percy, for permission to begin a courtship" every one of the young girls tensed up and paled with René's words, only Frey had not changed, she was already nervous and anxious for the possibility meeting Sir Nord again.
"THEY BROUGHT COMPANY!" they heard Danielle's scream coming from another room, ever since turning 17 she had been looking for every chance to come to the capital to be courted. A few seconds later Danielle had come to the bedroom door, she was dressed in dark purple, which complimented her figure and her long and curly silvery brown hair. "René, you are the only one with an excuse to go downstairs, would you go and find out whom, have they brought?" she said so with a gentle but pleading tone, not many could deny something from Danielle when she asked like that.
René eyed her for a moment and sighed. "Fine, I'll go and investigate for you" she adjusted her dress and left the room.
"Thank you, René you are the best," Danielle even gave René a small hug before she went, but as moment after she left the room, they heard her voice coming from the hallway. The ladies quickly took a glance outside, only to find René and Luka kissing as they greeted.
"How did the conference go?" René asked as they parted from the kiss.
"Better than we hoped truly, the conference was a tremendous success" Luka looked thrilled, he was just taller than René, and had the distinguished bright blue hair of house Lunebleau, like his father.
"Please cousin, we saw you came with other people, who are they? you can talk about the conference later" Danielle interrupted, and Luka's face changed.
"That is why I came here, Frey, you have to come downstairs with me" He turned to look at Frey and he seemed distressed, every girl stopped for a moment "René please tell mother she has to come down as well" his wife nodded "No one else is to go downstairs until we let you know" he had a severe tone. René looked at her husband for a second and left for the next room, where lady Lunebleau was.
"Me?" Frey was stunned, all the blood in her face had left her.
"Yes, sister, please come with me" Luka had come near her and offered his hand.
"Is it Sir Nord?" Noelle said to her brother.
"I am sorry, I cannot tell you anything, yet" Noelle said nothing else as she saw how Luka was serious "It is alright Frey, come with me please" Frey took her brother's hand, she looked towards him, and found those familiar hazel eyes, that calmed her down. She nodded, and they went downstairs.
Sir Remy and some of the men-at-arms of house Lunebleau were standing at the entrance of the residence with some other men Frey did not recognize. Luka was guiding Frey to the visitor's room which was next to the entrance of the residence Frey felt her heart beating faster and stronger as they approached. 'Had Sir Nord really asked permission for courting her' she wondered, 'Do I want him to court, me?' Well, the answer lay behind the closed door.
"Calm down Frey" Luka told her and gave her a gently hug. She looked into his eyes and nodded; as the entered the room, they noticed lord Damian Lunebleau standing in the middle of it, he had a very slender frame, misleading many to believe he was a not a good fighter. The lord was just a bit shorter than his son, Luka, he had his hair tucked in a tail.
Next to him was her cousin Percy Beaumont, Danielle's older brother. He was shorter than her father, but well-built, with long and silver hair. She noticed a concerned look on Percy's face and a complicated one on her father's. Frey's heart skipped a bit as she saw the last person in the room, Sir Nord Stern was standing just a few paces from them, he had the same simple styled clothing he had worn when they met each other on the library, but this one was made with a very expensive fabric and had complex patterns on it.
Everyone turned towards her as they entered the room, her father smiled fondly, her cousin was surprised, as she seldom adorned herself. like she had right now, Sir Nord however was mesmerized as he saw her, she could feel his eyes lost on her, and they gazes met for a moment, Frey could feel her face burning up.
Luka gave her a gentle squeeze on the hand, and they approached their father. Percy gave her a nod and Sir Nord, made once more his complicated bow, the one he had done when they parted at the library. A moment later, the door opened once more, lady Lunebleau entered the room with a casual expression on her face, she was wearing a chestnut dress adorned with laces, her silver hair fell on a braid, the lady of house Lunebleau looked dashing, she was accompanied by her sister lady Liliane, who had a similar arrangement as her sister, yet the dress she was wearing was a vivid red.
"Allow me to introduce to you my wife, lady Margaux, and her sister, lady Liliane" lord Damian spoke with his melodic voice, both ladies made a small bow, Sir Nord, responded with the knight bow he had first used when he met Frey, an old courtesy "I believe you have already met my youngest daughter, lady Frey".
"Please to make your acquaintance my ladies" he paused for a second and turned towards Frey, their eyes met again, and Frey saw them glowing somehow "Indeed my lord, I have already met your elder daughter lady Noelle, as well as lady Frey yesterday. Lady Frey is, as I told you, the reason why I came here tonight" the Feydan eyes were glued to Frey. Everyone in the room had gone silent, lady Lunebleau and her sister were measuring the man in front of them. Frey's heart kept jumping inside her chest, like a thunderstorm building up.
"Why is that Sir Nord?" Lord Damian asked with a worried face, he was never good at hiding his emotions.
"I am afraid my Lord, I will have to ask for lady Liliane, lord Percy and lord Luka to leave" Frey was startled by the Feydan request, the man had an apologetic look as he spoke "I am very sorry, but to explain myself properly, I need to reveal information that is of importance to the relationship of the Fey Danan Empire and the Kingdom of Loire, as you have been told, your King is aware of this" Sir Nord had a gentle and courteous tone, he looked at Frey with a strange expression, and Frey's heart kept pouncing inside her chest. 'How important was Nord for the Empire, if he had talked with the King before coming here, what did he want?'
Both Percy, and Luka had a sour face towards the Feydan, lady Liliane, looked worried at her sister, but lord Damian nodded at Sir Nord. "Please, leave the room" Percy gave a murderous look at the Feydan, and offered his arm to his Aunt Liliane, and left the room. Luka gave his father a meaningful look, and returned a gentle look to Frey, before leaving.
"Thank you, I am very sorry for asking so much lord Damian" the Feydan man apologize "I have wanted to be honest with you, my Lord, since I approached you during the conference, but I could not be at that time, now, I can " he paused, he was nervous, Frey noticed, his face was stoic, but he was not as calm as he was yesterday.
"First I would like to apologize wholeheartedly to you, lady Frey, I told you yesterday, I would be honest about any question you had, yet even though you had not asked, we started our meeting with a lie" The young man eyes, were focused on her, they were dulled, worried "I am indeed called Nord Stern, but that is not my Name"
"Nord Stern, means North Star, in the Northern variant of common" Frey wanted to laugh as she recalled her sister's words, the Feydan man smiled at her.
"You are right lady Frey, my name is Aedrik Lachdanan le Fay" Frey heart stopped for a second "I am the 4th prince of the Fey Danan Empire, it is my people who call me Nord Stern, though it is known as North Star for most of the Empire" he once more made the complex bow "I am sorry, for lying to you, my lady. I hope you understand why I did not present myself to you with my real name, I wanted to visit the Ciel Rouge library, and just like you, I had gone there to hide, chance smiled at me that day " he smiled at her, with the apology his eyes had returned to how they were in the library, perhaps a little brighter, she like them better that way.
Lord Damian and his wife were next to each other. Lady Lunebleau was looking gently at her younger daughter as the prince explained himself, the lord however was frowning at the prince in front of him.
"I hope you would forgive me as well, my lord, the man who presented himself in the conference as me was..."
"A decoy" the lord interrupted him "I understand, prince" the lord of house Lunebleau was still frowning, he was not good at keeping his face a mask.
"The king had been informed about it, it was a precaution, but nonetheless I have wanted to come and to apologize to lady Frey, for my identity will be made public at tonight's ball" Frey looked at the young man, a foreign prince. There was much animosity within the Kingdom because of the delegation, a decoy was a safety measure and yet he looked really concerned about not being able to be honest. "I had originally planned to come and apologize, and reassure you, lady Frey, I did not intend to mock you, or your sister for that matter, in any way regarding my identity " he was solemn, and his eyes were once more focused on Frey.
"I thank you for amending your identity, prince. Both my daughter and husband will take no insult in it, it is completely understandable given the position you are, and you came to apologize" Lady Lunebleau was looking attentively at the foreign prince as she spoke "You are welcome in house Lunebleau, prince Aedrik" She saluted the prince with a bow, Frey and her father followed suit.
"Thank you, my lord and lady Lunebleau" the young man, Aedrik replied with his curious bow "And again, I am sorry, lady Frey" his eyes were wanted to say more, or so Frey felt. For a moment they all stood there, as Aedrik, the prince, look intensively at Frey, her heart racing.
"You said, the apology was the first reason you had come here, with that settled, is there anything else, Prince?" lady Lunebleau was looking intrigued at the young man who seemed lost for a moment as he looked at Frey. Both Frey and her father were surprised at the bluntness towards the foreign prince. Lord Damian looked with pride at his wife before turning towards the prince. Frey knew her mother had always been direct and decisive, but she could not help but feel awe at her mother. The prince smiled at lady Lunebleau as she called on him.
"I see where your daughter's determination comes from, my lady" the prince enchanting smile appeared once more "You are right, my lady. I had planned to apologize to those who I had gotten to known as Nord Stern before the ball, but after meeting Lady Frey, apologizing, is not my sole intention for coming here tonight" he turned and looked straight into Frey's eyes, she could feel her heartbeat accelerating.
"After the conference, your King and I had a talk. An alliance is in the best interest of both our countries, we are ready to sign a treaty, the Alliance will be announced during tonight's ball, the conference will extend for a few days as we secure promises and agreements regarding this alliance and treaty" the prince was explaining, but even though he addressed everyone in the room, his eyes had never leaved Frey "The king however, had reservations still, and perhaps he has a right to them" Aedrik gave Frey a meaningful look, and she remembered how she had asked about the fate of Faerun.
"He wants a guarantee of friendship from the Empire to solidify our alliance. The Empire was founded with an alliance and a marriage, and so, the King asked for an union between our nations" Frey's heart was now racing on her chest 'What if during tonight's ball, and announcement is made, that the Feydan prince will marry princess, Loirain' Frey remembered Danielle's words as they were changing a few minutes before. Frey felt her heart ache, even though she had just met this man, she looked down; she could not meet his gaze anymore.
"Lord and lady Lunebleau, my lady Frey" the young man's voice was gentle as he spoke, Frey turned to look at him "I would have liked for things to be different, to have more time, so that I could come and ask for permission to talk with you, my lady, so that we could get to know each other" at those words Frey felt a rush inside her "As a prince of the Fey Danan Empire, it is my duty to serve the interest of my people, a duty I will fulfill. I knew it was a possibility ever since I was sent with our delegation" Frey's breath stopped there, both lord and lady Lunebleau were mute as well.
"I do not believe we are bound by fate, but rather, I think anyone can forge a way with will and determination, but chance is also present. I knew a marriage could be needed for to make this alliance possible, and I had come here certain of my duty" Frey wanted to look away, but she could feel his eyes on her "Yet by chance, I met you yesterday my lady, and everything changed. The King conditioned the alliance with a marriage, and engagement between the imperial house of Fey Danan and Loire high nobility, only that could be considerate a real guarantee for the alliance to work in his words. Since the King knew I would take the responsibility regarding the Empire, he proposed his daughter as a suitable candidate" Frey ached, she did not know what kind of expression was on her face, and she dare not turn to face her parents, but she knew they were looking at her.
"I refused the King's offer" Frey noticed the young man was not blinking as he saw her, and her heart was pounding inside her chest "It was by chance, that we met my lady, more so, that you were born in noble house Lunebleau. Our meeting changed everything, I knew my duty and I was certain of it; however, I was not prepared to meet you, lady Frey" his eyes remained on her, trying to convey so much more "After we parted at the library, I felt something I had never felt before, something I could not understand, until the King asked for a marriage, at that moment, all I could think about were your words and smile, my lady" Frey felt out of breath but she could not turn from his gaze
"The whole day I could not keep you out of my mind, our conversation short as it was, a simple chance. It is not chance, but our decisions and actions, which forge our paths, and so, I told the King, I had to turn down his offer, it would not be fair for the princess, for I was already interested in another lady, one, whose status could fulfill what he asked. I dared not presumed how the lady felt about me, but I would ask her, should the lady refuse my proposition, I would accept any candidate the King so decided, for I had refused his amicable offer" the prince turned from Frey for the first time, to look at Lord and Lady Lunebleau "Hence the second reason I had come here, my lord and lady" Frey felt a knot on her throat, she turned and saw that for once lady Margaux Lunebleau was at a loss for words, lord Damian returned a preoccupied look to his daughter.
"I apologize again, lady Frey, for not being able to present myself to you truthfully from the beginning. I would have loved nothing more, than have more time, my lady. I feel disheartened you may think I came here on a whim, to deceive myself, as if coming here was a way to avoid my duty, if only I could convey what I feel, perhaps… if only we had time my lady, for us to talk and share. I would have loved to earn your smile and laughter my lady, alas, chance provided and opportunity, one I am grateful for, that I could met you before I had fulfilled my duty, I may be the luckiest man in the world" his smile went wide, it made Frey smile as well.
"I know you understand the responsibilities of nobility my lady, what I am about to ask you, carries the certainty of sharing every one of my duties, but also the entirety of what I am, my lady Frey" the Feydan prince turned to look at lord and lady Lunebleau.
"I ask of you to understand and to forgive me, my lord and lady, for what I am about to ask of your daughter, may have begun with a serendipitous meeting, but I assure you, what brought me here, is her, and her alone" Frey went still as he knelt in front of her, and looked straight into her eyes, and she felt his eyes could see her completely "Will you marry me, Lady Frey Lunebleau Beaumont?"
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