Chapter 41: Chapter 41

Prince Chace studied Fred for a moment before turning his gaze at me and smirked. His eyes twinkling in amusement as he looked back at Fred who was waiting patiently and bowed. "Of course." He then gave my hand to Fred's outstretched hand. After excusing himself, he left.

I looked at Fred. He was also looking at me with a sly grin on his face. I was about to smile back when I remembered what he did to me earlier. I grinned. "You're not gonna ditch me again, are you?"

Instead of feeling guilty like I expected him to, he laughed. "Are you still mad about that?"

I gave him a plastic smile then. "Why no, Prince Fred. I'm not angry. What makes you say that?" I said sarcastically, making him laugh even more.

"I only wanted you to keep your promise. I wanted it to be special. Our first dance together at a ball as each other's last dance for the night." He winked. His words send warmth to my heart making my anger towards him slowly fade.

I looked up at him and gave him a small smile. "Alright. You're forgiven."

He beamed. "How's your night so far?"

I thought about it. "It's pretty good. I met a few royals and a few other Prince and Princesses." I said. "But I haven't met any of the Kings and Queens yet. I guess you could call me lucky."

Fred chuckled. "Of course. There are only a few Kings and Queens here at the moment. The only kings and queens here are from the Faes, Trylles, and King Luke and Queen Elizabeth."

"What about your parents? What of Nate, Ren, Dan, and Ace?"

"We're the candidates." He said and raised a hand and twirled me around before pulling me back to him. "We were sent here with the consent of our parents. Since the kingdom of Thalia is the most powerful and influential kingdom to all, Kings and Queens tend to pressure their chosen offspring to win. That is why Queen Elizabeth made sure that our contracts with our parents are limited and only we can contact them. If we wish for a visit it should be our choice. We can go and visit them back home but they can't visit us here."

"That's sad," I said and gave him a sympathetic look. "Aren't you guys lonely?"

"Sometimes," He shrugged. "But it doesn't get that lonely anymore. With the other princes and all." Then his eyes looked into mine and his expression became serious. "Especially now that you're here."

Fred and I danced for a few more minutes. And within that time, I got nothing but continued teasing from him and words that made my heart flutter in my chest. That was why when the music ended, I couldn't help but feel relieved and disappointed at the same time. Fred and I made a curtsy at each other as we finished. He smiled at me approvingly and complimented me on my dancing. At that moment, Ren appeared out of nowhere.

"Rose, there you are. I've been looking for you." He said.

"I was just dancing with Fred." Came my reply. Ren, shifted his gaze towards Fred as if noticing him for the first time. He nodded in acknowledgment to him before looking back at me.

"Both the King and Queen of the Trylle and the Fairies are looking for you."

My eyes widened at his news. "King and Queen?! Why?"

He shrugged. "They wanted to talk to you personally."

I hope this has nothing to do with Ace's rudeness earlier.

I was frozen on the spot. I couldn't move. I don't know what to do. I mean, what are you supposed to do when the king and queen of two kingdoms wish for your presence? In my training, I learned that you have to give them the utmost respect.

I'm not sure if I could handle that.

In my state, I looked at Fred for help without even thinking. His smile warmed me up a bit. "It's okay." He nodded. "You should go. They only wanted to talk." He then turned to face Ren. "And you, as her escort, should accompany her."

Ren looked away at Fred and mumbled. "I know that already."

Finally, Fred's gaze returned to me and patted me on the shoulder. "Go. Everything is going to be alright." He said before he left.

Turning my gaze back at Ren, I saw him looking at the spot where Fred had gone. His expression was unreadable and he suddenly frowned. I reached out and touched his arm to get his attention. Finally, he turned towards me and quickly shook his head as if he were in a trance. He smiled and offered me his arm. "Are you ready?"

"I think so," I said honestly as Ren started to take the lead in guiding us. Although I still don't know how to act and what to do while I'm in front of the Kings and Queens.

I felt Ren nudge me playfully. "Want me to go all wolf on them and scare them away?" He joked in an attempt to lighten the mood.

I smiled at him weakly. "If you could then I would be grateful and play fetch with you all day," I responded and saw him frown at me. I laughed.

"Another one of your werewolf jokes? This is getting old." He complained about a shake of his head as we passed a few couples dancing. Ren suddenly looked in front of us and pulled us to a stop. Out of curiosity, I looked towards the direction that he was looking as saw Dan marching up to us. He stopped right in front of Ren and waved at me before facing Ren again.

"Hey, brother!" He beamed in between pants.

Ren gave him a curious look and raised an eyebrow at him. "What's wrong with you?"

"Rude much. I think the right question to ask is 'Is something wrong?' or 'Are you alright?', but did I get any of that? No!" Dan then turned towards me and pointed at Ren with his thumb. "Ditch this guy and come with me instead."

I raised both arms in surrender. "Hey, I'm just a girl playing a princess part here. Don't drag me into your sibling drama."

"Dan, we're busy." Said Ren. Catching Dan's attention.

"Oh right." Dan nodded. "I just needed something from you."

"What?"

"I'll just take this." Dan swiftly took Ren's cape off of his brother's shoulders and clasped them to his. He grinned at Ren.

"Thank you." He gave us a mock salute before he walk away. Ren and I looked at each other in confusion.

"What was that all about?" I asked as I watched Dan casually walking around.

"I don't know." Said Ren. A second later and we heard a bunch of footsteps headed in our direction. We followed the noise of the footsteps only to see a group of girls running at us. In a matter of seconds, Ren and I were surrounded by girls.

"What the-?" Ren reacted as one of the girls cling to him.

"Prince Daniel!"

"Can we dance next?"

"No me!"

"Me!!"

I was being pushed around as the group of girls tried to approach Ren thinking that he was Dan. Ren tightened his grip on me so we wouldn't be separated, but the crowd kept pushing so Ren pulled me towards him in a protective embrace. "L-ladies stop!" Ren ordered over the noise. When they still didn't comply, he frowned and tried again. This time his voice was firm and full of authority. "I said stop!"

Immediately the pushing stopped and one of the girls fell on the floor. Ren sighed when he noticed that all the girls around us were looking up at him expectantly. Not to mention some of them giving me a death glare seeing as Ren was still holding me.

"As much as I want to accompany you all to dance, I can't. I'm with princess Rosalie," he said calmly and tightened his grip on me. The girls then let out a disappointed sound before walking off, some gave me deadly looks before they left.

As soon as they left, Ren and I both sighed in relief. I felt Ren's hand loosening his hold on me and I moved back a little to give us some space.

"That nasty idiot," Ren grumbled. "That's why he took my cape so the girls would think that I'm him."

I nodded my head in agreement. "What a jerk."

Ren looked up ahead towards his brother before looking back at me with a smirk. "But he did a little miscalculation though."

I raised an eyebrow at him in confusion. "What?" I asked. Ren gestured his head towards Dan's direction so I looked over to his brother. Dan was still casually walking with his hands in his pocket as if he had no problem in the world. His back was facing us. I was about to ask why we were staring at his brother when suddenly, a new group of girls, this time twice the amount of the previous ones, ran after Dan and surrounded him. Dan let out a surprised yelp before he was quickly engulfed in the mob.

Ren roared in laughter beside me. "I have twice the amount of fans that Dan has." His laugh was so contagious that I found myself laughing along with him.

Serves him right!

***

Once Ren and I were able to compose ourselves, we proceeded to meet the leaders of two kingdoms. My hands were sweating and my knees were shaking as we approached. Ahead of us, I saw six figures. Two of them were Queen Elizabeth and King Luke. I'm guessing the remaining four are the ones I'm supposed to meet.

As he neared, I noticed another figure joining the group. It was Nate. I saw him bowing in respect at the two Kings and Queens. Ren brought us to a stop when Queen Elizabeth noticed us. Her face brightened at our sight. "There she is." She said. Her voice laced with pride as she ushered us to the group. She grabbed my hand and brought me in front of the strangers. Ren stood beside me as the Queen started the introduction. From the Kingdom of Fae is King Simon Cleveland. He's a middle-aged man with silver hair and green eyes. Although his eyes and face looked young, the slight wrinkles on his forehead don't lie. I was then introduced to his wife Queen Titania Cleveland. She was very beautiful with her long straight black hair and flowers decorating them. Her blue eyes looked so comforting. She smiled at me.

From the Kingdom of Hale is King Marcus Jayden. He looked a little older than King Michael but his posture was well preserved. He radiated power and arrogance. His silver eyes regarded me curiously as if wondering what a creature like me was doing here. Then came his wife Silvia Jayden. Unlike the King, the queen looked a bit calm. Her golden eyes twinkled in delight as we were introduced. Her red hair tied at the back of her head showing off her sharp features.

After the introduction, I bowed my head. "It's nice to meet you all," I said politely. Both sides nodded at me in acknowledgment.

I looked to my right when I felt Nate coming to my side at the introduction. He grinned down at me and winked. I smiled. Happy that he has come. I was thankful at that moment for the two princes who stood by my side. Knowing that they were by my side gave me strength.

"Princess Rosalie, huh?" King Marcus raised a scrutinizing eye at me. "Tell me. Are you really from a foreign land?"

I nodded. "Yes, your highness."

He frowned. At that moment, his wife came to his side and touched his arm. "Now dear, don't be rude." She chastised him before looking at me. Her expression was apologetic. "I'm so sorry about that." I didn't speak.

"It's nice meeting you, Princess Rosalie." I snapped my head and saw Queen Titania smiling at me. "And, I know it's late, but welcome to Thalia." Looking at Queen Titania, I felt my nervousness slowly fading. She's kind.

"Many people will criticize you, my dear." Said, King Simon. His gaze shifted to King Marcus before coming back at me. "But always remember that people like them aren't worth your time. Instead, give them to the people who you deem worthy." He nodded at King Luke and Queen Elizabeth before his eyes looked at Nate and Ren.

With his kind words, I felt a smile forming on my lips. All the worries are fading from my heart. It was like a weight was lifted off my shoulder. "Thank you," I said. My voice is full of sincerity and gratitude. The King and Queen from the Kingdom of Fae smiled warmly at me.

I felt Nate tensing up beside me. Suddenly, he grabbed ahold of my hand and was breathing heavily. "Oh my. I think I'm getting a little bit out of breath. I think I should go outside." Nate quickly looked at me. "Princess Rosalie, can you accompany me? Really? Thank you." Then he looked back at the Kings and queens in front of us. "Please excuse us." He said and dragged me away quickly. Leaving the kings, queens, and Ren behind us.

"Um.., Nate? Care to explain why we're running?"

"Shhh!! I saw Princess Camille." He said and glanced over his shoulder to look at me.

"So?"

"Princess, you might be forgetting that Camille doesn't like you. And the fact that we were together with her parents, she could make up some stories and ruin your reputation."

My mouth formed an 'o' in understatement. "So we keep running?"

"As far away from her as possible." Nate nodded. "Right now, my top priority is to keep you away from her."

Just then a voice suddenly called out. "Prince Nathaniel! Can we have a dance?" A girl called out when we passed by her. Suddenly, Nate jerked to a stop and quickly ran towards the direction of the girl with me behind him. He quickly fished a rose from his coat and gracefully handed it to the girl. "My lady, your beauty is so pure and divine that I just have to present you this rose." At his words, the girl blushed and took the rose from Nate.

I rolled my eyes and blew off a few stray hairs that came to my face. What a playboy. And didn't he just say that his top priority was me?

"Ehem!" I cleared my throat and finally caught Nate's attention. Nate gave me a sheepish smile before turning back to the girl and smiling apologetically.

"My lady, I would love to dance with you, but for now I must take care of my Princess." He said and bid her farewell before pulling me away.

***Meanwhile***

Amidst all the party and noises from the castle, the little brown wolf was still eyeing his master with admiration. His master is beautiful. Probably the most beautiful princess in the room.

And if he were by her side, then probably the most powerful.

The little wolf suddenly stopped to look at his master when a shadowed figure emerged from the party. By his scent, he recognized him as of the princes that were accompanying his master. But why was he outside? The wolf crouched down to not get spotted.

He saw that man looking at the moon with sad eyes. "I guess this is it. My last day in the palace." He whispered in the night. He put an arm over his eyes. The wolf smelled his tears and suddenly felt sorry for the prince.

A few moments later the prince composed himself and went back into the party. The wolf could only watch his retreating back and wondered what was going to happen next.