The Love That Bonds Us

Chapter 7 : Fit For A King

AGNARR

I threw open the doors to the large, elaborately decorated ballroom and marched over to where my sister stood in the middle of the room, calling out order's to the bustling servants surrounding her.

"What do you mean about inviting Princess Lena of the Southern Isles?" I demanded, frowning at her.

She turned to me, her green eyes wide in surprise. "I didn't." she answered simply, "Father wrote that list." she tapped the list clutched in my hand and gave her silky laugh, "I don't know why you always jump to conclusions and assume I've arranged everything for this, because I haven't, dear brother." she squinted her eyes teasingly, leant towards me and pinched my cheek.

"Very funny 'Anna." I waved her hand away in annoyance, "Do you think it's too late to tell them we called the ball off?"

She almost laughed, "Are you kidding? And miss the look on your face when she shows up? Not likely!" she continued to laugh as she walked away to help arrange a flower display that had just been brought in.

I grumbled to myself and threw my arms up in defeat.

Ever since Colden had dragged me away from Iduna a week prior, we had been thrown into a flurry of arrangements for the ball our father had apparently already planned for us so that we could meet potential partners.

I had wanted to call the whole thing off but had been told it was too late; everyone had already been invited and if we told them we'd cancelled now it would just make us look bad.

Arianna, on the other hand, was much more enthusiastic than I was. I was still having trouble finding the reins for this whole 'Being King Thing'! I didn't need the pressures of a ball on top of all that.

Arianna was just a natural born leader - the way she had taken charge was amazing and I knew she'd make a great Queen one day if she ever decided to get married to a King. She simply had a knack for this kind of thing, so I continued to stay out of her way most of the time.

But as I'd been cooped up in the castle recently, staying out of her way had proved somewhat tricky at times. Colden and many of my advisors liked keeping an annoyingly close eye on me, not allowing me to leave the Castle anymore. It was awfully strange, however I just got on with what needed to be done and put this curious behaviour down to them being pathetically reliant on their King.

Though, there was one problem with all this; only royalty and high class people were invited to the ball.

I had wanted an excuse to get to know Iduna a little better, as she hadn't left my mind at all since I'd met her, but that was going to be impossible now.

My hands slapped against my thighs as I brought them back down, and I strode over to my sister again. She was talking in her sweetest tones to the woman who had brought in the flowers.

"I think over there would be perfect." she was saying, and the woman nodded before walking away, acknowledging me as she went.

I gave a brief nod and lifted a hand before turning back to my sister and pinning her with my worst stare.

"If I have to dance with that -" I gestured for the word, "egotistical, self-centered halfwit, I'm blaming you."

She patted my shoulder with mock sympathy, "You do that."

Before she could walk away again I grabbed her arm and pulled her in front of me.

" 'Narr, while you're wasting your time trying to find ways around the rules, I actually have things I need to be doing, so if you don't mind I'll just ..."