Nentarli [COMPLETE]

~ Thirty ~

It was a short walk to the Capital building, maybe two blocks or streets away, it was hard to tell with the different sizes and shapes of the houses. But they were nothing compared to the building we were being led to, it took up half of the street and at least three very high floors. It had towers dotted here and there, and white domed roofs on each of them.

It was made from sandy stone blocks and looked like a fort, each window had metal grids on the outside and the big front doors, which were open, had a portcullis hanging above them. I shuddered at the sight, pulling my cloak closer around me. They took security seriously here and I discreetly checked that my sword was still by my side.

I noticed some of the other guests walking in at the same time, they appeared to have Hosts leading them and all were wearing something similar to Pal's. I realised it must be some kind of uniform that Hosts wore to differentiate them from guests and people who live here. It only became more obvious how necessary they were when I saw how varied the other guests were; a young couple and two elderly men were beside us when we reached the door.

The young man had dark skin and stunning blue eyes, he smiled politely at our group. The woman had lighter skin but she didn't look too happy to be here. The elderly men exchanged pleasantries with the parents and I could tell that they knew each other. As we entered the house, my thoughts about the other guests differences were put on hold indefinitely. 

If our house in Dumair was fancy, this place was divine, I never thought I would use that word for a building but it was a perfect fit. The entrance hall was huge and every inch of it was fashioned in wood or bronze, and the crystal chandelier made the lights bounce in every direction. We were led in to join a crowd of waiting guests, maybe twenty or more people were already there and more were coming in behind us.

I stayed close to Emy and the guys, as we had been told to, although I kept admiring the view. Everywhere I looked there was something new to see. The portraits on the walls were of landscapes, I recognised a few from our lessons with Alacor but most were unfamiliar, albeit very beautiful. Pal stayed with our group, pointing out different parts of the Capital building like a tour guide in a museum.

According to him, the dining room was to the left and we would be led in there once it was prepared. I couldn't hear most of his speech, he kept being interrupted by other guests, most seemed to know him personally and struck up conversations with him. I got the general gist of it though, we were to stay in the entrance hall or dining room unless told otherwise, the other areas were for official business only. 

I turned on the spot to get a better look at the hallway, I couldn't see any stairs and wondered if that was for security purposes too. Maybe they didn't want just anyone walking in and wandering upstairs. I was thinking about whether our house should follow the same architecture when Emy leaned into me. 

"Do you think they would notice if we snuck away now? I need to pee and I don't want Pal escorting me." 

I giggled at her tone of voice and shrugged with a quick glance at the guys, they were on high alert but they looked uncomfortable too.

"They'd probably notice, how would you feel about our usual three escorts?" 

I nodded my head in their direction and she scrunched her face. "I suppose that wouldn't be too bad." 

I chuckled, but now that she mentioned it I could do with going as well. I reached up to pat Kaleb on the arm, he smiled and leaned down so I could whisper to him.

"Emy and I could do with going to the bathroom and we don't want Pal or some stranger taking us, can we sneak off?" 

Kaleb raised a brow and held up a finger, he leaned over to Kayle first and then Blaike, both took a second then nodded.