Hope Forever

A Clumsy Mistake

Cassius Heart stared down at her. She was very complimentary to him, he noted. Her hair was not the raven he typically preferred, lightened a bit in the recent sun, but he suspected it was darker in the depth of winter. Her skin was pale with an undertone of warmth. Her round face held youth and excitement. She was staring back up at him with beautiful, wide, doe shaped eyes. Eyes which were blue hinting to green and surrounded in thick dark lashes.

He decidedly appreciated her nose of all her features. It was of perfect proportion to her forehead and chin. Not overly large and shaped delicately above her pointed mouth. Her bottom lip had a gentle fullness to it that he wondered about.

She was not frail and he suspected he could handle her with less caution than other ladies. From her teasing letters, she seemed rambunctious and sly.

Intelligence always caught his eye first. Intelligence did not, however, over shadow her melodic voice. It was sweet, demur, and kind. Her soft tone floated to his ears. That was a voice he could listen to for some time.

As Cassius dragged his gaze across her form, he puzzled. Her dress was a beautiful mauve pink. A blush tone that was complementary to her natural coloring, but barricaded his view from seeing her full figure. The black shawl around her shoulders aided in this painful obstruction. His mind flew in schemes to appraise her form with out compromising his position as a gentleman. He partially wondered if she had done so on purpose.

He also wondered about a small golden ring that graced the finger of her left hand. This was a spot reserved for a marital ring. The ring was not in it's right an engagement ring, but could not pass as a marital band from a poor man as it twisted and curved delicately with small stones.

He followed her to the sitting room where there was a small table, lower than the standard fashion but sufficient to play the strategy game upon.

While he explained the rules, he set out the pieces in a strict pattern. She was quick to see the pattern and aided him with setting out the pieces, mirroring his set up on the board. It was a strategy game indeed. Once bestowed with magic. As pieces were over taken, the triumphant pieces gained their ability to move and changed their form. They all started out with the same movements and strengths, in various positions. Any piece could be over taken by the most basic of pieces. The trick was in placing them pieces where they could not be over taken, but could overtake others. The most powerful piece could move in any direction as long as there was a clear path.

He reached and took a piece from her hand for his side in the set up. She was very focused on the set up of her side and the touch startled her. In a spasm the piece was launched to the hard wood floor and cracked. His gaze on her increased her nerves and she dropped the piece again.

In annoyance, he collected the piece from her hand.

"I'm very sorry!" She rushed out.

"Tis fine, the game is not rendered unplayable." He neglected to mention the value of the game to him or his pocketbook. This actually eased his own nerves. She seemed to be distracted by him. He was empowered by his revelation and relaxed his long form in the seat on the couch beside her.

They played several rounds. Although Enmae played well for a novice, Cassius Heart could outmaneuver her ploys with ease. At one point, she had gained in power and had surprised him with an attack from an area of weakness on the edge of the playing field. Although he recovered, and in the end triumphed, he was pleased with this turn of events. He was dually enticed by her efforts to try again and again. Each time he faced her, she had a slight improvement.

He enjoyed watching her features twist animatedly with thought and elation. He observed, however, that she hid her expression if she found a real weakness in his defense and would tease him about a different piece. He was somewhat impressed by how she used her charm in real life to her advantage in the game. At times she seemed to be undecided and changed her course, leaving her open to attacks and scattered all while still unpredictable.