Ch. 8: Lunch Break

Elissa opened the door once more and made her way down the winding staircase. It was much quicker going down than up, and before long they'd made it back to the bottom. From there, she walked into the great hall where her mother and father were already waiting for lunch.

"And there they are!" Her mother said with a smile. "Prince Hayward, did you enjoy your tour? Is she keeping you properly entertained?"

Elissa took the seat next to her mother with a sigh. I hate that I may give her what she wants. Then again, what she wants is for me to marry him. I still don't think I'm very interested in that. She'd probably be less happy if I just bedded him without that. I'll take that as my consolation prize for actually liking someone she chose.

Hayward did his best to settle his thoughts as they descended the stairs. She's a princess. Taking princesses to bed is a bad thing, way more complicated than it's usually worth. Stick with women of lower birth, not nearly as messy.

He tried to push it all out of his mind and focus on the moment at hand. He needed to eat, and then he was going to have to meet with the king and queen. Hopefully in that order, as he was hungry.Those hopes were dashed as soon as they entered the great hall where the king and queen already waited.

Well... shit. Ok. Game face. I can do this. Just have to lie through my teeth. Even when I'm telling the truth.

It was an odd way to think about it, but it worked for him whenever he had to deal with royalty. Even when being straightforward, honesty was dangerous.

"I did, thank you," he answered, matching the queen's smile. "It was merely too short. I feel like I could spend a week exploring this place, a few days in the throne room alone." It never hurt to compliment the things they were clearly most proud of. "And Elissiana has been a perfect hostess," he added with a warm smile. He was trying to walk a fine line, trying to minimize the trouble the queen would give them in her pursuit of a match. If he showed no interest, the princess might find herself squeezed into that dreadful dress again, or one like it, to draw his attention. Much as he might have enjoyed that, he expected to have more fun with Elissa if she was happy. On the other hand, if he took too obvious a liking to her, the queen might start trying to push them toward marriage more immediately. Hopefully, there was a middle ground where she would leave them alone to let things take their course.

"And I imagine I could spend weeks more seeing the rest of your kingdom. The mountains are like nothing I've ever seen before," he went on. Perhaps they'd send them out of the castle at some point, he hoped.

"Oh! I'm so glad!" She responded, clasping her hands together happily, looking from him to her daughter several times over before returning her hands to her lap.

"You'll get to see some on our hunt tomorrow..." Elissa reminded him, the attendant coming and pouring glasses of wine for everyone and glasses of water as well.

"Hunt? Oh Elissa...you're taking him hunting?" The queen sounded far less enthused about this. She wasn't as keen on her daughter's more masculine pursuits.

"Indeed!" Hayward interjected before the queen could say anymore. "I'm quite looking forward to it," he said, smiling earnestly. "A chance for a brief trip into the forest? I'm sure it will be a pleasure." He hoped the queen would be slower to object after seeing his interest.

She narrowed her eyes at her daughter, but didn't press it further. "Well, if the prince is looking forward to it, then I suppose it's not so bad..." she gave a false smile, still giving her a glare.

"No, it's not so bad, mother. I think it will be quite enjoyable..." Elissa grinned at her as she took a sip of her wine. The queen fell silent, and soon servants came in with trays of meats and cheeses for lunch. They offered each type to them, Elissa only taking one piece of meat and several pieces of cheese along with a large roll of bread. She cut it in half, stuffing the meat and cheese inside before taking a bite.

"Will your traveling mates not be joining us?" Her mother posed, daintily picking at a piece of meat on her plate. "I had thought we might discuss the meeting we've arranged for this afternoon..."

Hayward watched the interaction between mother and daughter and did his best not to laugh, instead flicking his eyes over to the king to see what he thought. He didn't quite appear bored, but such minor disagreements between mother and daughter were clearly common enough to be uninteresting.

The prince loaded his plate with food as they offered it to him and began making quick work of it. He frowned thoughtfully at the queen's question. "Do we need to discuss the meeting before the meeting?" he asked, almost rhetorically. He hastened on. "I don't know where they are, but I'm sure they'll come for lunch at some point. I will make sure that Dantares joins us this afternoon. The rest..." he shrugged, clearly unconcerned with the rest of his men.

He glanced up at the King. "I don't expect much trouble from them," he said, "but the younger one, Deker, is a friend of mine with a knack for creating mischief. The rest..." might turn out to be murderers. "Are more professional. Though, I'm not sure I need guards here. I wonder if I can get away with sending them home."

"I promise you will be kept safe so long as you are within our walls. As far as your return trip home, they might be useful, but it is entirely your decision whether or not to keep them here. We shall house them as long as they stay, and on my honor, we will protect you as long as you stay..." the king replied with a nod. "And no, I've heard no reports of anything mischievous or even out of the ordinary. You've all been model guests."

Model guests, Elissa thought with an inward chuckle. And yet they have a bet to see when he will get himself in trouble. I have a feeling model guests may not last...

But perhaps they would continue to be. She had no way of knowing. So she kept her mouth shut and gnawed on the sandwich she had made, taking occasional gulps of wine.

"And no, I don't suppose we need much speaking about our meeting beforehand. I only needed to know who would or would not be in attendance. It's about drawing up a potential treaty to send back with you for your father to pour over. Gods willing, if he were to consider accepting it, I would want it to be mutually beneficial to all parties. I would hope to get your input on how to include what might entice him to consider the offer..."

Hayward listened and nodded. "I am pleased to hear that." He was a little disappointed, too. If his own soldiers had been there, they'd have undoubtedly found a way to set a marble floor on fire. On the other hand, he would trust them not to do anything truly wrong. He took in the rest as well, turning it over in his mind as he ate. "I see. I will make sure I have some ideas for you by the time we meet, then." He took another bite, his eyes wandering back toward the princess before he reined them in and looked at the king again. "I am curious, if you'll indulge me... where do you find so many precious gems? I have seen jewels that would be a lord's pride in Aasleagh used to decorate doors here."

"There are endless mines in these mountains..." he told him, smiling. "Deposits of gold as well as jewels. If you were so interested perhaps my daughter could take you to the mines as well..." he looked over to Elissa, who was chewing on a bite of sandwich but nodded.

"The mines are interesting. I wouldn't take you too far down...you might get too cold..." she teased. The insides of the mountains were treacherously cold, wet, and dark. "But I'd be happy to let you see some of the work in action..." she flashed a smile at him. "I'll add it to the itinerary..."

Hayward playfully narrowed his eyes at the princess. "I can handle a little cold," he replied. "I think that would be very interesting, if there's time." The cold didn't appeal to him, but he would find a way to deal with it. He was here, at least ostensibly, to learn as much as he could. Seeing the mines qualified.

"And if you would like to take some stones home for your family as an offering, that can certainly be arranged..." the king added, trying to think of anything to sweeten the deal. There had been no war between them for several decades, but it was like a stalemate just lurking around the corner waiting for a rematch. All the other neighboring lands he had successfully drafted peace between, but the humans...were more particular to deal with.

He raised his eyebrows slightly at the king's offer. "I'm sure that would be appreciated," he replied. Buying peace seems like a risky plan, but it might be cheaper than war, he thought to himself. "I'm not sure that we have much to offer in return; Aasleagh isn't known for much more than sand." It wasn't quite true, but it was close enough. The only other thing his people were renowned for besides living in a desert... was war. They had spent generations at war with each other, and when finally united under one banner, they had turned that talent outward. Those who wished to profit from their talents made formidable mercenaries, and through their exploits, the reputation of their people had spread.

He cleaned his plate and offered the king and queen a respectful smile. "Well, I should find Dantares to discuss this with him. I trust you'll send for me when it is time to meet?" he said politely, not yet rising from his seat.

The king gave him a nod, and Elissa finished her food similarly. "Since I have successfully performed my entertain the guest duties for today...I will be in my room if anyone needs me." she said standing up and downing the rest of her glass of wine before trotting up the stairs. She could feel her mother's eyes boring holes in her when she downed the wine, but honestly, she cared so little about her mother's glances by now.

Upon reaching the top of the stairs she hesitated for a moment, seeing if he was coming up after her, and if he was indeed going to search for his older friend...or if he'd simply made that excuse. Either way was fine. She'd be more than happy for a nap and a cuddle with Sasha. But she couldn't help but be intrigued by the man. And after what happened upstairs, she had a feeling he couldn't help but be intrigued by her as well.

Hayward stood and bowed, then headed after the princess. He quickly climbed the stairs and came to a stop beside her. He flashed a playful smile. "Your mother is... entertaining. Though I suppose she might become tiresome if I had to live with her." He glanced back down the stairs and then at Elissa again. "Hopefully she can't hear me from here. Just how sharp is your hearing?" he asked softly.

"Big ears doesn't mean we have ultra hearing..." she rolled her eyes at him. "It's a cosmetic difference." She shook her head with a sigh. "And yes, she's entertaining in tiny doses. Very. But I can see how others could find her amusing. Especially if they're not the ones being looked at like they're scum..." she knew her mother's feelings on many of her life choices were...not in the affirmative category.

"I've been told on several occasions I should've been born with a penis. Because I act like I have one..." she sighed, then backtracked, looking at him. "I don't have one. I'm a girl. Fully and wholly girl. I'm just not girly enough for my mother's tastes. Her preference would be much more like my sisters. They play piano and sew and think alcohol tastes just awful, and they wouldn't dare kiss a boy who wasn't betrothed to them..." she gave him a sideways glance. "But they're still rather young. That might change." She laughed, thinking of one of the prim and proper sisters in the situation she was in earlier.

"They also would never be caught dead in pants. They only ride horses side saddle. Oh, and blood, they faint. Hunting is the furthest thing from their minds..." she realized she'd been going on for a while now and stopped. "Sorry. I don't really...talk...to people. So...I'm not particularly good at knowing when to stop and start..."

Hayward grinned. "Well, were I a more proper noble, I would say that you should have stopped before you started," he replied, chuckling. "But, I don't mind. Your sisters sound a little like mine, proper princesses, and dreadfully boring. I don't think I've had an interesting conversation with her in my life, it's as if she's trying to prove that she doesn't have a worthwhile thought in her head."

He licked his lips again. "I cannot imagine what would happen if your mother were trying to get me to marry one of them. I'd either be bored out of my mind... or I'd decide to have a little fun and cause another scandal." He shrugged. "They even manage to make dancing boring," he said. "Dancing can be fun, and it can be sexy, and... apparently, it can be really dull, too."

"She couldn't do it even if she wanted," she replied. "The rule is you have to go in order. So she has to marry off her troublesome child first..." she laughed a little. Part of her wanted to hold out forever just so her siblings couldn't marry, but she knew that was just too cruel. "And yes. You'd hate dancing here. It's boring. It's the very structured, super boring everyone stands in a line and walks around each other like show ponies kind of dancing. I've seen the dancing you'd like...that is strictly forbidden around here...but if it were a full moon...you'd see witches doing dances around a bonfire..." she smirked for a moment. "...generally nude."

Hayward's eyebrows went up for a moment. "Witches dancing naked under a full moon, eh?" He grinned. "Perhaps there's more truth to what I've heard about the elves than I thought." He didn't elaborate, instead simply wiggling his eyebrows. The full moon caused the prince... problems... so he wasn't likely to get to enjoy such a display soon. But it was a funny thought. He paused for a moment. "Anyway... I'm glad you're not dreadfully boring. I'm looking forward to hunting you—ahem, with you—tomorrow," he concluded, smiling playfully at her.

Her eyes narrowed at his 'slip.' "Now, now...is that tongue going to get you in trouble? I could think of better uses for it..."

Elissa, stop saying things like that. Stop. This is a bad idea. Don't flirt with him. Don't look at him with the sultry eyes... because you know you're doing that right now. Bad idea.

He laughed and shrugged helplessly, pretending for the moment to miss her less than subtle suggestion. "Hey, I've almost made it an entire day. As long as I can make it to dinner, Dantares loses his bet and I'm happy. And after that..." his smile went from playful to predatory in a blink. "Well. We'll just have to see, won't we?"

She noticed the shift in his face, but it didn't daunt her. She pretended not to notice. "So, should you go looking for your friend? Or did you want to come meet Sasha?" She asked, raising a brow. She knew that was the excuse he gave, and that at some point he would actually need to go looking for the man. Her father was going to call them for some sort of diplomatic strategy meeting. However, that didn't mean he actually was going to go seeking him right away.

"Or have you had enough of me for one day?" One side of her lips curled up, smirking at him. She doubted that to be true, but it was a possibility. She didn't think she'd spent this much time with anyone in the past few years that hadn't fully irked her by this point in spending a day together. Why was he different? She still couldn't say for sure. She wished she knew. Then she might get over it and return to her less than congenial self.

Go looking for my friend? Oh, Dantares, right.

He shrugged. "He'll track me down soon enough, I suspect. If not, he shouldn't be difficult to find when I need to," he replied.

This is irresponsible. I should find him, we should discuss the upcoming meeting... ah, screw it, it's not like it matters, anyway. My father doesn't want peace in the first place.

He answered her smirk with a thoughtful, pondering expression. "Well, now that you mention it..." he trailed off for a moment.

"Perhaps, but not so much so that I'll pass up the chance to meet this big cat I've heard about," he concluded, grinning playfully at her again.

As soon as we're behind a closed door again, I'm gonna... dammit, I probably shouldn't do anything. But that might not stop me. "So, lead on, your highness."