The General (GXG) (Lesbian Story) (Book Three)

Chapter Four

Laylah's POV

(The day of the annual ball)

I knew attending the annual ball was my idea, but I didn't realise how nerve-wracking it would actually be. Considering I had never ventured outside of the castle walls before today, it's safe to say, I was very nervous right now.

Don't get me wrong, I was also excited, but I wasn't very good around new people, which was ironic considering I'm a Princess and next in line to the throne, but if you're an introvert, it's very difficult to break that. I'm as introverted as they come, and it was definitely showing right now.

My mum placed her hand on my shoulder, a silent gesture to see if I was okay. I gave her a small smile before I turned my head to look around the room. I tried not to really make eye contact with anyone, but that was proving to be very difficult seeing as almost everyone's eyes were on us right now. That wasn't surprising though. Lattamers are rarely seen outside their own walls. It happens, but not very often. The royals had never been outside the walls, so this was a first for our species.

Despite how nervous I was though, I was fascinated by what was around me. Sure, I had read about wolves and vampires and whatnot, but to actually be in the same room as them was amazing.

I glanced over at the table that held the kingdom of Dranthoven to see their two Queens laughing at something that was said. I then diverted my eyes to look at the table that held Equanoras. Queen Calliria was talking to her royal guards, but Queen Corinne was staring right back at me. It wasn't a judging stare or anything, it was more a stare of curiosity, but it didn't make me any less nervous.

My hand subconsciously raised to my ears and I rubbed them gently before averting my gaze back in front of me.

An announcement rang out through the room regarding the final dance of the night. Apparently, it was customary for every royal couple to dance with other royals in the room. So I've read.

My parents stood up from their seats and went to find themselves a dancing partner. I leant back on my seat and ran my tail through my hands briefly before letting it go again.

As I was looking ahead, my right ear twitched slightly, a sign that someone was walking very close behind me. I abruptly turned my head just in time to see Queen Corinne stop in front of me, a small smile on her face,

"May I sit?" She asked gracefully. Seeing her up close was pretty surreal, but I managed to get out a nod, so she proceeded to take the empty seat to my right.

I looked over at our guards to see their ears twitch, they were on edge by Queen Corinne's presence, which was understandable, but I didn't want to have the tension of them being here, so I raised my hand and waved them off. They looked at each other wearily before bowing their heads and standing up from the table to walk away. I knew they'd stay where they could see me though, which was slightly annoying. I was twenty-four, I wasn't a child that needed babysitting,

"Enjoying the evening?"

I turned my attention back to Queen Corinne and nodded, "It's... different to what I'm used to."

She hummed in agreement, "I imagine so. You get used to it eventually. I remember the first annual ball I attended. I was nervous to say the least."

"You were a lot younger than me and you weren't born into royalty. I shouldn't be this nervous."

"For someone who's been behind their castle walls their whole life, you seem to know a lot about the outside world."

My gaze shifted downwards briefly before I brought them back up again, "I didn't mean to offend."