Underneath The Crown

CHAPTER FIVE: DRI

"Dri, please stop. You've been ranting about the Prince for about an hour now." Claudia sighs wearily, rubbing her temples as if trying to massage away her irritation.

I cross my arms defiantly. "No, I won't. You think he'd be more pragmatic being royalty but nooooo—"

"You've told me already. I get it: he acts like a whiny four-year-old."

"That's an insult to four-year-olds everywhere." I retort, my frustration bubbling up again.

Claudia facepalms. "Look. You just had to dance with him for a brief time—"

"—which felt like an eternity." I chime in.

"—Dri, for goodness' sake! You'll probably never see him again so calm down, will you?"

"He pisses me off. I hate him. He's so egotistical and obnoxious and—"

I pause as I sense someone's presence behind me. My hand immediately flies down to my dagger when I feel a hand on my shoulder.

"Your reaction time's getting slower." I hear Zephyr's familiar gruff voice and the tension in my body eases a little.

"How many times have I told you not to do that?" I turn around to face him, snapping at him a little harder than usual.

He stands in a ridiculously frilly navy blouse that noblemen favour at these balls, though it's now stained crimson and carries the unmistakable scent of pastries from his earlier escapade.

His dark eyes narrow as he stares down at me disapprovingly. "You should have seen that coming, Dri. I can't believe you're one of the Elite members of the Silent League."

"I much preferred you a drunken mess in front of those nobles, you know?" I mutter, loud enough for him to hear.

His frown deepens and he opens his mouth to retort with something clearly inappropriate when Claudia butts in with her annoyingly shrill voice.

"Guys, guys! Chill out! We're all friends here, yeah? How about..." She steps in, steering us away from each other with her hands. "How about we get some ice cream, hm?"

"Ice cream in this weather?" Zephyr scoffs, raising an eyebrow. "You must be out of your mind to even think of suggesting something as...as atrocious as that."

I roll my eyes, unable to resist the urge to poke at his pride. "Don't tell me you're too chicken to have ice cream. It's not like you'll freeze solid just from a scoop."

His expression shifts, annoyance flickering in his gaze. "I'm not chicken! I just have standards, unlike some people."

I scoff. "Standards. Sure, whatever you want to call not being able to man up and handle a bit of cold in cold weather."

A muscle in his jaw ticks and for a second, I think he's about to pull out his crossbow and shoot me straight in the head. "Fine. I'll show you."

Claudia looks exasperated and exhausted but nods. "Come on, guys. Think of it as a reward for another mission deemed successful."

¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨¨

"Mami, I'm back!" I shut the half-worn, splintered door behind me, the creaking echoing through the small house.

Sausage-like hands wrap around my waist, pulling me in a tight embrace. "Dri! Hi."

I sigh, trying to pry my little sister's hands off. "Let go of me, Vivienne."

She huffs, pulling me closer with all her might. "No. You never come home anymore."

"Where's Mami?" I ask her, trudging to the bedroom, the familiar scent of worn wood and old books enveloping me.