The Love That Bonds Us

Chapter 8 : The Good And The Bad

IDUNA

I stared about at the large ballroom, my feet twisting beneath me as I circled to see the splendour of it from all angles.

It was elegantly decorated with its high curtains made of heavy, earth green material; fine oak tables; large, crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling and the other added embellishments especially for this evening's ball.

I'd obviously never been in a ballroom before and when I'd been invited to the ball I'd been very excited. But now, standing here was daunting. It was just so big and beautiful and royal and I felt insignificant compared to it. I just knew that I didn't belong here and I didn't really know what to do with myself.

Princess Arianna had somehow managed to finish the decorations the day before the ball, so now it was the only room in the entire Castle that was miraculously quiet, with only a few of the servants carefully doing some last minute dusting.

Halima had disappeared a while ago and left me to roam around the Castle; however she had conveniently forgotten to give me warning that a lot of preparation was underway in the rest of this place, and therefore my exploring would prove difficult. Not that I minded; it was still a riveting tour.

The Castle may be a very big place in general, but the ballroom certainly seemed the most impressive. There was one corridor that was lined with suits of armour, which had rather scared me, while one room was filled with the most exquisite oil paintings, but nothing topped the room I found myself in now.

No one really payed me much attention, but I didn't mind. I would have been too distracted by my surroundings to answer if anyone had tried to talk to me, and I could be rather awkward around people I didn't know.

Except around the King. During our first encounter I had felt completely comfortable and at ease. Which was peculiar because I only felt like that around age-old friends and my close family, after I'd known them for years.

An abrupt smash and the unmistakable sound of China scattering over the floor suddenly startled me and yanked me out of my thoughts.

I spun around on my heels and saw that one of the extricantly painted vases now lay broken on the wooden tiles.

Quick footsteps came into the room and I looked up to see it was the Princess herself. Her frown altered to a gasp as she saw the mess and her hands flew up to cover her mouth.

She was rather beautiful it had to be said.

Ever since Halima had first heard of the ball, she and I had spent much of our free time making me a dress - unfortunately, Halima wouldn't need one as she had been required to work in the kitchens, but someone had requested I be invited - however it seemed plain and primitive in comparison to hers.

I loved mine and the simplistic style suited me very well, but I couldn't help but marvel at the royal purple fabric and intricate embroidered details in greens, yellows, oranges, blues and pinks covering the cuffs, hems and waistline. Her strawberry blonde hair blended very nicely with the earthy colours of her gown and was tied in a twisted bun similar to the one I often wore, only it was more delicately placed and had one streak plaited over the top of her head.

She seemed to come back to herself pretty quickly and before I could blink, the situation had been sorted with another ornament being brought in to replace the one which had broken.

Satisfied, the Princess looked out over the rest of the ballroom; and that's when she spotted me.

Her face broke into a grin and she waved me over.