Chapter 7 Party Crasher

The crowd was still watching us and I just realized something very important. The speech. "U-uh I-I am Princess Rosalie. 19 years old and single. My dog just ran away upstairs." I gestured behind me. Silence.

"While I was...uh.....making my traditional Earthling greeting and such. He did not abandon me. You see I am a tamer." I laughed nervously. "I honestly know what I am doing with my spirit and he respects me for that. I purposely told him to go back to our room." Again I laughed nervously and saw the princes doing subtle face slaps and hiding their faces in embarrassment. "And uh....this here is my slav - I mean escort - PRINCE Ace. He is a nice dance partner and nice person in an alternate universe." I took a glance at Ace and saw him breathing deeply. 

Well it's not my fault that I delivered a speech unprepared. Serves him right. 

"And uh. Have a good evening and enjoy the ball?"

The crowd seemed to be satisfied with my speech as he started to applaud me. I let out a sigh of relief. Ace sighed beside me. "If you do that again I will make sure to push you to increase the impact of your fall."

"Aww what a gentleman." I faked a swoon.

We headed towards the others as the party officially started. Now I am supposed to go and 'mingle' with the guest, which is my least favorite part.

"Nice save, Rose." Ren leaned in and whispered beside me.

"Please keep your voice low. We wouldn't want anyone to hear that." Nate butted in as we headed for the group of girls gathered in one place - as per Nate's request.

As we were approaching the group I fixed my posture and dress to make me look presentable - and more princess-like. One of the girls saw us coming and alerted the others that we were approaching.

"Princess." A vampire lady curtsied as she greeted me. The other girls followed her gesture. As a princess I can only nod in acknowledgement.

"Good evening, Lady Jhosel." I greeted her first before the others. "And to you, Lady Rica, Lady Eileen, Lady Savi, Lady Maria, Lady Tasche, and Lady Stacey." I recalled their names from my lessons with Ace.

But just to make sure I took a glance at Ace. Sure enough he doesn't want to kill me, which means I got the names right. Finally!

The girls seemed dumbfounded as well and looked pleased afterwards. "Wow, your majesty. We did not expect that you would know our names. Not that it is meant to offend you or anything." Lady Savi says.

"We didn't expect her to know your names either." Ren says.

"I actually expected her to give you guys made up names." Dan joked and gasped when I stepped on his foot as I fanned myself. Lady-like.

For once I actually accomplished something and instead of praising me, they prefer to joke about it. Twins.

Seeing the others eat made my stomach grumble. I looked at PRINCE Ace. He glared back at me. "I want the meat rolls." I told him. I mean, he is my escort, right? And it is his job to make his partner as comfortable as possible.

"So? Go get it yourself." He said.

A sudden bell brought us all in attention. "Evening dance is about to begin." A butler announced.

Just as I was about to grab the meat roll, PRINCE Ace blocked me and placed the foods on a nearby table. "Sorry, PRINCESS, but the dance is about to start." He said, seemingly enjoying the look of horror on my face. Before I could protest he already dragged me to the dance floor.

I want to sit down and throw a tantrum...

I glanced back at the group only to see the others pairing up. Ren gave PRINCE Ace a seemingly annoyed look before pairing up with Lady Rica. Dan was also glaring at us as he took Lady Tasche to the dance. Nate went to the other group of girls and asked a witch named Lady Caroline, a witch, to be his partner.

Maybe I should ask Lady Caroline about Prince Fred? I haven't seen the guy at all!

My eyes were still wandering trying to search the familiar figure I was dying to meet all night. "Prince Fred is discussing some matter with the queen right now. He will appear sooner or later." PRINCE Ace said.

"How did you-"

"You're too obvious."

Before I could talk more it was already time to switch partners. Soon I was dancing with Dan. "Well hello there, princess. You are up for a dance with my brother next."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "Yeah. I kind of know that so it defeats the purpose of you telling me."

"I know!" He grinned. "I am just excited."

"Wow everyone is so live-"

"OKAY I DEMAND A SWITCH." Dan yelled and immediately threw me to the side as he ran over to Lady Faeya and carried her to the dance floor.

Yes. He carried a lady. To. The. Dance. Floor. Let the words sink in for a bit.

I bumped into Lady Amara when Dan pushed me. I was stunned at this Fairy lady. Her blue hair and blue eyes are electrifying. I wanna touch her hair. "I-I-I'm sorry." I stuttered and glared at Dan. He and Lady both gave me a glance and they chuckled together as if having a secret conversation.

Luckily Lady Amara was nice. "Oh, princess Rose!" She curtsied and looked back to prince Ren and smirked before looking back at me. "Please dance. My feet hurt and I can barely walk." She says. I looked at her. She's lying. She seems fine!

"Er....okay?" I said and watched her fake limp out of the dance floor. I could have imagined it but I saw her and Dan exchanging a thumbs up.

Ren sighed. "Is it me or are people in this party weird?"

"I agree."

"Would you like to dance?" Ren smiled and offered me his hand. As soon as our hands touched, I heard Dan and Lady Faeya, a unique albino witch, squealed. But as soon as I looked back at them they seemed busy dancing. Must be my imagination.

PRINCE Ace was now dancing with Lady Savi and from the looks of it, they were glaring at each other. Lady Savi must be trying to copy Ace's expression, which was hilarious to look at. Nate was dancing with Lady Angel, another fairy with a unique black hair and silver eyes, and the two seemed to be having fun as they both twirled one another.

Just as the switching of partners was about to commence I saw Dan, Lady Faeya and Lady Tasche pushing Lady Eileen towards Ace instead of Ren. Poor Lady Eileen had to endure Prince Ace's killer looks.

What the heck are they doing? I swear nothing ever goes right with these social gatherings.

"Is it me or are Dan and his new gang preventing other girls from dancing with you?" I whispered to Ren.

"Oh good you also noticed. I thought I was getting crazy."

"Excuse me. Mind if I cut in?" A girl suddenly asked. It was another Duchess from a well known family. Lady Maria.

Before Ren and I could say yes, Dan cut in and said. "Oh look. PRINCE Ace is available! Come right this way, pretty lady." Dan took her hand and literally pushed her to Ace. Ace, who was never a gentleman, surprisingly caught her. Lady Maria flushed a little before fixing herself. Without a word, Ace asked her for a dance.

"What is up with your brother?"

"Why are u asking me? I'm just as confused as you." Ren shrugged. Not a moment too soon two figures appeared beside us. Prince Darem's long golden brown hair was tied into a ponytail by a golden cuff. Beside him was his older brother Prince Eltur, who's silver hair flowed neatly at his back. The two are Elven royalty and also Ace's older siblings.

"Oh hello, Prince Renevier and Princess Rosalie." Darem greeted. Beside him Prince Eltur brought a petite lady. "Lady Amara here wants to have a dance with Prince Ren. Mind if she cuts in?" Prince Eltur said.

"But I-" Lady Amara, who looked troubled, started to protest before she was shoved into Ren's arms. Out of nowhere, Dan suddenly appeared looking displeased with the arrangement. Prince Darem saw him coming and grabbed his hands and plastered on a fake smile. "Ahhh Prince Daniel. MIND IF WE HAVE A DANCE?"

"F**** N-" Dan's cursing was cut off when Prince Darem led him away in a waltz. How he managed that throughout Dan's protest is beyond me. I also saw Lady Tasche trying to rescue poor prince Dan, but Prince Eltur took her by surprise and danced with her.

And I actually like to see the image of Prince Darem and Prince Dan dancing together.....Damn it....

Weird party. Weird people.

"My beautiful, Princess Rose." I jumped in surprise when Nate whispered in my ear. Nate chuckled at my reaction. "Easy there. I don't bite. I just want a dance." He said as he offered me his hand. I grinned seeing a familiar face after being left alone with no dance partner. "Well don't mind if I do."

Nate and I started to dance as the music changed to a more subtle tune. "It's nice for you to pick me up from that chaos over there." I started. Nate laughed and glanced at Prince Darem and Prince Dan still stuck in a waltz. "What can I say. When a lady is in distress, Nate is there to impress." He winked.

This time I laughed. "How times have you repeated those lines this evening?"

"Only once for my pretty price. And by price that means you. You're beautiful tonight, Princess." His stare suddenly softened and his goofy grin is now gone. His mouth started to move as if he wanted to say something. "If only the girl I kissed in the lake was really you it would have been worth a drown." He said dramatically.

"Are you uttering a curse or something?" I joked. Nate looked like he woke up from a trance. For a few seconds his eyes darted towards Prince Ace, who was now dancing with another lady.

"Of course not. I am serious when I say you are the most beautiful creature I ever laid my eyes upon." He said dramatically and smirked. I started to laugh after that. "Hey why is Prince Ren dancing with Prince Darem?" He suddenly asked.

"Oh that's not Ren. It's Dan. Ren is currently Dancing with Lady Rizzi now."

"The black haired werewolf girl?"

"Yeah. That's the one."

"Ace looks busy." Nate says, taking a glance at Ace, who is now partnered up with another poor lady. From the movement of Ace's lips I would read his words saying. 'Try to speak and I will trip you so hard you will put your shoes on your hands to walk.'

"I don't understand why many girls want to dance with him this evening." I said.

"Maybe they were curious and wanted to see why you chose PRINCE Ace to be your escort." Prince Fred suddenly said appearing at our side. As always, the warlock prince was dressed to impress in a nice suit. There were no beads but his suit seemed to glitter in just the right spots. His blonde hair was pulled back on one side and the other was left in a semi mess kind of style.

I couldn't contain my joy upon seeing him that I grinned from ear to ear. "Prince Fred!" I said in glee. Fred chuckled and gestured at Prince Ren and PRINCE Ace having new partners. "They already changed partners. Mind if I cut in?" He asked.

Nate let out a loud sigh. "Great timing, Fred. Really great timing." By his tone, Nate seemed annoyed. I don't know if he was faking it or not, but Fred simply laughed. "Sorry, my friend. I got really busy and only had a few minutes before the queen called me for her decision."

"I see." Nate grumbled. "Well I guess I leave her in your care for now." He says as he kisses my hand and winks. "Until the next ball, princess. I'll take a break from dancing for a while. I'm satisfied with my dance with Rose." He told us and went to get himself a drink.

There will be no next ball if I can help it.

"You really have a huge impact on people. Do you know that?" Fred suddenly said as he led us in a waltz. The feeling of being able to dance with him again felt so amazing. Our last dance in the maze was actually heartbreaking that I never thought I would be able to waltz with him again. But look at us now. Doing a waltz as if everything was fine. For a moment I don't even care about anything else. Even when I saw Lady Flower teaching Prince Ace a new waltz and PRINCE Ace looking like he is ready to kill the girl.

"What kind of impact?" I asked.

Fred laughed. "Nothing. Hey, you are getting good at dancing. Did you practice while I'm gone?"

I shrugged. "Nah. I just had this really amazing dance teacher." I said.

"Oh really?" Fred faked a shock. "Was he handsome?"

"No. He's ugly." I said bluntly. "Not only was he ugly but he left without saying a proper goodbye. I say good riddance."

"Ouch." Fred flinched. "You know I also have a dance student, who really sucks at dancing and calls me ugly when I am clearly not." After his comment I stepped on his foot - intentionally. It didn't seem to bother him and he only laughed it off.

"Careful, Fred. You are starting to sound like Nate." I warned.

"Well in the least. My student, who really sucks at dancing, is my little sunshine. So bright and full of joy. I miss her dearly when I am away." I smiled at his words. "I miss you too, Fred. We all do." Fred smiled and pulled me to a hug. He stood hugging each other for a few seconds before he pulled away.

"I think it is time for you to go back to your escort before he scares any more of our female visitors." He said looking at Ace glaring at every female who seemed interested in dancing with him. "You really did a big mess here. You made him popular with the ladies by making him your escort. Now every female wants to dance with him for good fortune."

"Is that how it works?" I asked.

"You didn't know?"

"I only made him my escort for slavery." I said bluntly. Fred threw his head back and laughed.

"You little sunshine. Go back to your escort and help him." He kissed my forehead before leading me to Ace. Meanwhile I was too dazed by the kiss to argue. Oh, I see the sparkles around Fred again!

Before I knew it I was already with Ace looking so enraged at me I am surprised he hasn't thrown me out of the window. Yet.

"Well nice to see you having a good time." He mocked.

"Well of course. I am a PRINCESS." I said smugly.

"Enjoy it while you think it's fun." He says. "You know, we should stop dancing and meet the leader from other kingdoms to formally introduce you."

"Is that your excuse of wanting to take a break from dancing?" I joked. PRINCE Ace gave me a silent look. One where I question my time of death. I swallowed. "U-um..yeah." I laughed nervously. "S-Sounds like a-a p-plan. It's not like I am agreeing with you because I am scared of you or anything. Don't get the wrong idea." Ace's only response was rolling his eyes. He offered me his arm and led me to where the Queen was - talking to the leaders of the other kingdom.

Just as we were approaching, Ace's head suddenly turned to my left. His eyes registered a look of horror as he pulled me close to him.

"Get down!" He yelled and moved me away to use his body as a shield as an ear piercing crash occurred.

One of the windows from the ballroom was shattered when a badly beaten tiger was thrown in. "Sives!" Dan yelled in horror as he approached the Tiger, who was now starting to morph back into human form. He was so badly hurt that he could make it full human form and retained his stripes and fangs when Dan got to him. "Sives, what happened to you?" By now almost all of the people in the ballroom were so quiet that we could hear Sives talking even from afar.

I haven't even realized it but the other princes now stood beside me except for Dan. Sives's eyes scanned the room until his eyes found mind. "It's you." He said and everyone started to look at me as well. "King Ferius wants you." He whispered. I felt chills running up and down my body at his words.

"Just they try." I heard Nate whisper with a hiss. By the sound of it his fangs were exposed.

Sives looked desperate and looked at Dan. "King Ferius wants h-her, my prince. Don't let the rogue king have her..-" Sives whispered as he lost consciousness.

"Guards! Secure perimeters. Make sure whoever did this will pay!" Dan ordered looking really enraged. "Go find the bastard who did this!" There was a roar in his voice. He was using his alpha blood to command.

"Get her out of here!" The queen ordered from the other side of the room. I did not realize the queen was referring to me until Ren nudged me.

"Come, Rose." He says. "Rose?" I couldn't move. I was frozen on the spot. I was being targeted by the rogue king for reasons I don't know. My eyes suddenly felt wet and I was so cold and I felt exposed. Unsafe. I don't want this. I don't want to be here. I want to go home to my own world. It's safer there.

I am not safe here. I will die.

"No one is going to hurt you as long as we are here. Come on." Ace promised as Nate covered me with his coat. Ren even took my hand to reassure me of their promise. They have fought and endured a lot with me. Seeing their faces gave me comfort and fear. Comfort that they will protect me and fear that they might end up getting hurt in the process.

Trust them. It's all I can do.

"Let's go."