You've Got Spirit, Kid

[Alexander]

"All rise." A wave of bodies stood up, men holding their daughters by the hands in the finest dresses they could wear. All of them of great poise and beauty. All of them hopeful that they would be princesses by the end of the day. Some giggled while they looked at the prince, who seemed entirely disinterested in the whole affair. Those that giggled either did so because they found his dismissive, aloof attitude either entirely charming or indicative of their chances with the young man.

Alexander himself knew which camp was more correct. Ever since the last tragically died of a bacon-induced heart-attack (and really, she was mean so tragedy was a bit of a stretch) this had been what his advisors had been putting him through.

Yes, advisors. There was a whole thing with an assassination attempt, political corruption and a puppet government conspiracy... yet the man drowned in a lake trying to escape justice when he, by some miraculously poor luck, got his foot entangled in some aquatic plantlife. It spoke little of him that nobody mourned his loss, but then again most of the people who didn't find him intolerable were months dead. Alexander was a little hurt by the betrayal, but elevated by the excitement of the whole affair he was more empowered by everything.

His experiences left him with wisdom, however precious little that may have been. He had become a better ruler as a result, doubly so now that he was surrounded by advisors that respected his visions of the Kingdom of Dreams. They weren't even traditionalists, despite such appearances to the contrary. The whole point of this endeavor was more to frustrate the young lord than it was to find him a mate. His advisors found it endlessly amusing to put him through the motions of watching the same group of young women, time after time, dance for his hand.

They found it amusing because it grated on Alexander's nerves. He wasn't a poor ruler, just bad at staying in one spot with no exploring. His new staff dote on him but at the same time, he had room to breath. This took some excitement out of his nightly excursions now that they were no longer exclusive to his knowledge and him alone, but the rush of discovery remained in the mind of the flighty prince each time he found somewhere new.

This was not that. More of the same, more of the boredom, and more people dancing. Bleh.

[Jasper Poe]

Not that a get together for crowning a new princess' was any of Jasper's business, or peaked his curiosity in any way--... But somehow the arrival on this foreign land. Led him too the castle that laid all by itself overlooking a small village. The smell of food and sketchy glances seemed to cause him to laugh every now and again. Like-- typically a look from snobby royalty as much this was salt for teenagers who resembled Jaspy's theme. But it didn't affect his mood much. The females were preoccupied with Alexander this world's ruler The dads' seemed to point the skeleton-in-disguise out in a much ruder fashion. Jasper found these ridiculous fathers much too uptight-- all he could do was laugh as he ate up all the guest food. Occasionally he'd flick a cracker at an unsuspecting older male.

"Mmm. These cheese and crackers though.... Ehh? Ya know, I half way expected a bouncer to throw me out but... Cool for me." The teen popped his shoulder and placed the snack tray back to the table. His expression then placed up. His eyes grew sack's under them. And yes, as fast as he'd arrived-- he was bored. What was there to do? All these crazy sorority-looking girls were fruits for the nobility. Wasn't like Jaspy was getting lucky or anything. So on that note. 'Bummer'.

"Huh! This place bites. Way worse than a werewolf.~ Where's the lights and props?! Where's the rock music? What's with all this slow Mozart shit?" The undead man said as his head darted from left or right. A loud sigh escaped him as he began walking around the room. He halfway hoped he might run into this 'Prince'. Maybe they could exchange stories or even... Ladies. Kekekekekekeke. If it weren't for discovering this magical tool known as a 'cock', Jasper would forever have lived a sad life.

If he ever met Darius Fetch again. He owed that kid a drink. Who knew being an organic lifeform entitled people to so much fun!? "He definitely gets a thanks from me. Heh heh! The skeleton hadn't really paid attention to whom he spoke too. In actuality he spoke to himself, but the people around him didn't know that. They all backed up and whispered to each other. Jasper grinned and patted his head. Which caused it to bounce. The few staring guests fell back on their hands feet. "Careful hitting the ground. Ya might lose your head!"

[Tsumiko]

Tsumiko had been on the world for the last couple days. The first few spent going back and forth between what she came to know as Synthesis and entertaining the people of the world. In one venture to the town, she was enlightened to an event that was soon to take place in the Castle of Dreams. The prince was hosting a ball, though the occasion and purpose was something that escaped her. All the songstress knew was that she wanted to partake in the festivities. It was open to the public, right? Any could go so long as they looked the part? Well hot dog!

Wasting no time, Tsumiko returned home and went about getting a dress and gathering other odds and ends so that she wouldn't have been too out of place. It was simple compared to some of the dresses the woman around her wore. White in color with turquoise accents, there were several ruffled layers that came to about her knees. Long black gloves came well past her elbows, black heels adorned her feet, and dark nylons on her legs. Her hair was tied up, courtesy of the Darkson women who styled it, and topped with a floral hair accessory. The pit stop was meant to be quick, popping in to say hi and letting Gwain know that she would be gone a while longer. In the end, it lead to the snowy-haired queen dressing her up and Tsumiko acquiring a partner to the ball. Not that she minded in the least. The king was always welcomed at her side.

With inside of the castle was breathtaking. Ornate and detailed, the architecture was beautiful. The hosts of the event seemed to spare no expense when it came to decoration, too. Gazing about, the songstress let out a breath of awe. So many people were adorned in gorgeous attire, elegant music was played by an orchestra, and the whole room glimmering in a healthy glow. If it wasn't obvious already, this was the woman's first ball. Or rather, first formal even in general. With the way she looked around, trying to contain her excitement, speechless and grinning, she looked like quite the child. Tsumiko turned that excitement to Gwain, who she had her arm linked with, and flashed him a bright smile.

[Gwain Darkson]

Gwain hadn't mind one-bit offering himself as a date for the songstress to attend a formal gathering. After all, they had been dating for a bit now and so it was rather heartwarming and welcoming, that Tsumiko didn't mind taking him along. Of course, when he had first found out about the outing, he wished her all the fun she could have. One would say he wasn't jealous per say, because he was, in a way. The man had shouldered the thought of some other suave man attempting to dance with her and didn't want that to happen, but figured that he wasn't going to be so overbearing with his jealousy and show that he trusted the silver-blue eyed beauty.

Interestingly enough, it was Marigold who urged the two to go together. Something told the king that it was probably his sister's womanly intuition that picked up on his feelings towards the whole thing, so while she styled and dressed Tsumiko for the part, she also slipped in the suggestion to take her younger brother. Luckily enough, it worked, so the crimson eyed man made a not to thank his older sister later. For as long as Gwain could remember, he hadn't necessarily been to a fancy party in quite a while. After everything that happened on his home planet, he sort of settled down and just lived a life of simple debauchery. Of course, everything changed and the change started with the woman whose arm was wrapped around his.

Her bright smile came up and met his eyes, which he returned with a wide smile of his own. He showed that he was already having a good time, just by being out with her. Normally, he'd have his hair everywhere, but Tsumiko would be able to see that he had it tied up into a neat ponytail. His suit fitted him perfectly and didn't show off anymore than it needed to. A simple black suit, with a vest underneath and a black tie, slipped beneath the vest. The back of his suit had the insignia of the Darkson family, a phoenix being torn away by demonic hands. That image would leave some uncomfortable, but with Gwain appearing as happy as he did, it allowed some to just see it as a symbol of power.

"Wow... Haven't been to one of these in a long, long time. I almost feel out of place." He stated with a small chuckle. Gwain took a look around the place, admiring what ornate decorations it had and had the notion to compare it to the Darkson Manor. The Castle of Dreams, was what this place was called and made the king wonder what about the place allotted its name. Maybe it was the apparent young prince who was able to design it to however he saw fit, or maybe it was a natural magic about the place that gave it such beautiful architecture. Regardless of what it was, the king wouldn't knock it and thoroughly enjoyed what he saw. "I wonder what the person who run's this place is like. A free, public party, in a very regal place like this? Guy must be a man of the people." He could only assume, of course, if until he managed to meet the man himself.

[Alexander]

Alexander himself, somewhat ironically, was absent from his own party. Not in the fashion that he was not there physically- anybody with eyes (no offense to any skeletons in the closet) could see him standing at the front of the room with posture and poise befitting a prince. He wore an outfit of many different shades of blue, trimmed with gold fringes and white seams. He was largely motionless, but his eyes turned upward towards the sky. In a few more days, it would be a new moon. He would, as he always did, slip into a day long slumber. The sleepless prince was ency due to this. It was never pleasant to be forced to sleep.

Aside from that, anxiety from the attendance of the event piled itself upon him as well. It seemed each time they hosted one of these balls the people who came only swelled in number. Despite appearances this actually was not a public event. Supposedly. But, his advisors had told the guards "anybody with a dress, and anyone in their company."

Assassination attempt? Hello? Did they all just forget about that or...?

Alexander sighed. It happened off-screen for them, so why would they pay it more than the most rudimentary of acknowledgements? He thought this just as one of his advisors- a handsome young man to be sure- leaned into his ear as though he were whispering a secret concerning national security. Alexander tensed. This was it. This was his excuse to cancel the whole event and go up stairs. He would get to play cards with Meowjesty and Eaglider. They kept beating him at Dream-Rummy, and he was determined to win the next round!

"Enjoying the event sir?" The advisor's snark dripped into Alexander's ear like a poison. How cruel- his hopes were dashed!

"No, not at all," Alexander replied in a mock-teary voice.

The advisor chuckled. "Good. I'm glad."

Alexander almost broke princely character but stifled a laugh just in time. "If I didn't like you so much I'd hate you, jerk." The young man walked away humming merrily to himself, leaving Alexander to look over the rest of the room. He started to pick out newcomers or unusually active people from the crowd. His eyes first fell upon a young man at the concession table. His back was to Alexander, so he couldn't quite see his face, but Alexander could tell by the motions of his body and the disappearing food that they young man was eating his fill.

Alexander fixated on this a moment longer before one of the contingent of Knights that formed a semicircle around him addressed the discomfort. "You want me to have him removed?"

Alexander shook his head as he resumed scanning the room. The high elevation from the second story banister allowed him to pick out the new faces in the group, as well as kept him above the idle chatter and out of the clutching hands of the many suitors below. "No, Gustov. I'm glad somebody here is having fun. Everybody else is just like... a hen, almost."

"A hen?"

"A hen. Like, a chicken. Competing over a scrap of cornmeal, but really its just a small rock. There is no cornmeal for them."

"I... what?"

Alexander waved a hand, laying his eyes upon another pair of newcomers. "Nothing. Poor metaphor for the situation," Alexander dismissed. He looked over the pair and noticed something different about how they carried themselves. They were newcomers, obviously, just like the one pigging out at the table. Maybe they didn't realize, but the nobility of the Castle of Dreams were quite adept at picking one another out of a crowd. That didn't matter seeing as Alexander was the only one left.

But they were even better at picking out those who were themselves out of place. Not to a degree that they'd be comfortable crying "alien" at a suspected off-worlder, but to the point that they could pick up on certain social cues that the uneducated weren't aware they were giving off. The ball was, in an entirely different sense, one big game for the previous set of nobles. It was a never ending game of chess, a power struggle. The fanciest, the most elegant, the most bold, the most calculated... they were rewarded by betrayal and punished with status. Maybe they thought it was the inverse? Hah.

"We've got newcomers tonight, Gustov," Alexander said blandly. "I wonder where they are from?"

"Probably the village, sir. You can't know every villager." Fair point. "Would you like me to have them thrown out?"

"I... is that your default? Like, is that just what you default to asking?"

"No. We could have them arrested and executed."

"How about none of the above?"

"As you wish, Prince Alexander."

[Jasper Poe]

After the fun of his wise crackings, the skeleton was back on his feet. Occasionally walking about and exploring all the foreign customs. He noticed that rich people had a habit at laughing at unfunny jokes. So Jasper decided to all up and laugh with them.

Whenever a group of men would begin to chat he placed himself in their circle. Quiet at first, and patient. However whenever they started their chuckles... "HAHAHAHAHA, funny." The boy was smiling now, but as to be guessed, he had to catch a few disgusted looks. Ehh, Jasper didn't care-- he just liked making them feel uncomfortable. To make his exit; Poe gave one of the older men a heavy slap on the back. "Sorry there old man, I love to laugh. Do forgive me, will you? Haha."  As the undead turned himself to go back to the food tale. He noticed a man with a devilishly nice suit. Walking a few inches lower at his side was Tsumiko. Jasper Poe had met her in Neverland... But it was a fuzzy memory. He decided to grab the food before making an introduction.

Curiosity seemed to bother him as he peered in their directions. Probably because of the obvious motor tensions, JAsper wasn't able to go long without speaking on the subject. "Huh, wonder what she's doing here? ... Then again, I could say the same for myself." Jasper walked around people until he was clearly a few feet away. In his hands was a metallic food tray. It seems he brought the snacks this time.

"Hello there."--an nod was directed too Gwain. The Halloween Towner then turned to the fellow's date. "Good to see you again Tsumi. Did you two just arrive? I'm sure I didn't see you earlier." Jasper picked up a snack from his tray-- and tossed it into his mouth. "Hungry? " both eyes looked between the couple in expectancy.

[Oriel]

Traveling seemed to be the only thing this nobody knew how to do - in hope that one day she'd regain her memories or understand more about this whole "nobody" business. Today she had found herself in a world that she had never seen or heard of from the few memories she had left and so, she found herself a bit lost. Wandering about the town on a fine afternoon the girl couldn't help but notice a sense of urgency and rush among the people (mostly female) of this world. They ran about pampering themselves while servants or their parents would carry magnificent gowns. Oriel most definitely didn't fit in here nor did she have a clue as to what was going on, but it wouldn't be long til she was dragged into it. A woman around the same age as the girl noticed her walking the streets - alone and unaware of what tonight's special event was. Carrying her own dress in one hand and the other with a bag of what looked to be cosmetics approached Oriel.

"Hey you! What are you wearing tonight dear?"

"What are you talking about?"

"The ball! At the castle! You have to be going! Come on, you can come with me I have a spare dress you can wear. Father said it wasn't flattering enough for me so I bought another."

And as so, Oriel didn't have much of a chance to say no and was rather dragged along by a hand gripping her white jumper which also held the bag of cosmetics. She didn't exactly protest either, she hadn't a clue what she had gotten herself into but where there was a castle, there were people of importance.. and perhaps they knew a thing or two about her existence. As it went, Oriel was put into a carriage with her new friend and off they went to the local's home to get ready, taking the time to get to know each other on the way. On arrival servants carried the woman's dress and bag and instantly started working on her make up while giving strange looks to the stranger which was Oriel.

"This is my new friend Oriel, she's new to town so I'm taking her with me tonight. She'll be wearing my old dress so get her looking nice!"

Were most people in this world this kind and welcoming? Or was Oriel just a lucky stranger who managed to stumble across an obviously rich - possibly lonely young girl. The way she spoke and presented herself was large and bold - not that she was this way physically, she was gorgeous in fact but perhaps she was just more outgoing than others. Within the space of a few hours, most of which wasn't spent on Oriel looking great the two were ready and so were this girl's parents. Oriel found herself a little under dressed compared to her friend as they each came out of their rooms, however none the less the four of them got into a carriage and were off to the ball. Oriel stared across the carriage to her friend, her dress was beautiful, fit for a princess. Light pink in colour, a corset pulled her waist tight and the skirt puffed out magnificently with ruffles and bows, her hair was done up with a few perfect curls dangling and her make up bright and pretty. The nobody was looking perhaps a bit under dressed with her dress being long, plain and crimson. It was elegant and beautiful of course but didn't show off wealth or royalty off like this girl before her did. Her fringe had been swept to the side and the rest of her strange teal hair put into a side bun, her makeup wasn't exactly bold either but her skin was flawless and her lips were painted a darker shade of crimson than her dress. None the less she still looked great and well, lost.

Finally they had arrived to the ball... a little late. The four were rushed from their carriage and into the ball room just before the doors would close. There in time to be standing at the same time as everyone else for the prince it wasn't -too- obvious they were late.. But it still kind of was. Without further ado the local girl's eyes lit up at the sight of the prince and evidently Oriel found herself looking at the same thing, though her expression plain and not overly impressed. She barely knew why she was here anyway? Scanning the area it wasn't long before Oriel was ditched by her friend - who ran up to a bunch of other girls who seemed to be conversing and squealing over the prince. That was far too much for the young nobody to even think of handling so she made her way around, her grip tight on a clutch that held her small stiletto knives in it.. they weren't exactly easy to hide at this point - not that she'd need them but these worlds had a tendency to attract trouble. As the nobody was now ditched, she decided to explore, moving across the room almost instinctively to the concession table, there she picked up a glass of red and a cracker to snack on before she'd move on. There was man at the food table too, but he seemed to be finished and had moved on. There went that start to a conversation.. Oriel looked up to the prince again, he looked bored and surrounded by guards... also looked important.. that would mean he knew stuff right? Maybe.

That was enough for the nobody to want to approach him. She wasn't exactly subtle, she picked up another empty glass, the bottle she had just poured wine from all in the same hand while smoothly sipping away on her own glass. The girl pushed through the crowd for a little while, incoherently getting frustrated at the fact it would take forever and.. she didn't know where the stairs were she'd take matters into her own hands. She bent her knees for a quick moment, a few people looking at her weirdly.. then flabbergasted as she took off into the air. The nobody flew up to the prince's balcony, landing on the ledge where she expected to be met by guards after spilling half her glass of wine on some of the guests. Oriel stood before the prince, flipping the empty glass upright as she put it in her other hand, pouring wine from the bottle that she kind of stole. "You like red?" She asked after pouring wine into the glass she'd offer him.. then more into her own. Hopefully this would be a good start to getting his attention.. and conversation going. The nobody didn't care too much for the fluffing about of formalities and general ball activities after all.. She hoped for one she wouldn't get her ass kicked for this either.

[Tsumiko]

Looking upon her king, Tsumiko made the mental note of how he really cleaned up nice. What she found most eye-catching was the short ponytail at the back of his head. Keeping those thoughts to herself, she beamed happily at him with a light blush she refused to acknowledge. It was true some people were off-put by the insignia he bore on the back of his suit, but it was otherwise ignored. Her eyes had scanned the ballroom in hopes of finding the host at Gwain's mentioning. Through all the well-dressed nobility that was dotted throughout the room, it was nigh impossible for the commoner songstress to find him, the Prince of Dreams. “I wonder, too...” she replied in a quiet, thoughtful tone, unaware of the fact the prince had already noticed them.

It was then that the orchestra playing the beautiful music was spotted. Pointing towards then, Tsumiko motioned to Gwain without words how she wanted to go nearer to listen. Perhaps she could even convince him to a dance. Or steal the show and sing for the people of the event a song befitting that of nobility. The woman wasn't necessarily a stage hog, but she did enjoy showing off her gift. Along the way, though, she was met with a familiar face.

The red head of Jasper, the man she met in the rain of Neverland, approached her and Gwain with a silver platter of snacks. It came as quite the surprise to see him at such an event, but a pleasant one nonetheless. Smiling at the man, she gave him a small curtsy, a gesture she found fitting for such an event. “Hello, Jasper,” she said to him with a happy giggle. “It's good to see you well. We did just arrive, yes, so it wouldn't be too much of a surprise if you didn't see us,” she said, playfully bumping into the man who she had her arm linked with. Hey eyes blinked at the tray he held out to her, an amused smile appearing on her face. “Don't mind if I do.” She reached for what would have been a cracker of sorts, nibbling on half of it. Even the food tasted high-class...!

Holding in her delighted squee, the songstress placed a gloved hand over her lips. Shortly after, she ate the rest of the cracker, only for her attention to be torn away by a commotion off to the side. Tsumiko's eyes widened when she seen someone jump up and glide over to the overlooking balcony. There, she greeted a man with what vaguely looked like a wine glass. He was surrounded by guards. So was that the prince up there, then? What was he doing so far away from the people? The songstress supposed he had his reasons, but was still somewhat disappointed. Maybe she could draw him down with a little bit of melodic fun... Or maybe that's what that woman was up to, herself, calling him down to the people. Regardless, the songstress still wanted to leave a mark.

A devious grin flashed onto the lips she still had hidden behind a hand. Even classy balls needed a pinch of excitement, right? Snagging a few more crackers for the journey, Tsumiko flashed both men an innocent, guiltless smile as she stepped away. “I'm going to excuse myself to the powder room. You two play nice, now!~ I'll be back in a jiffy!” she chimed as she waved at them, disappearing into the throng of people. So much for just enjoying a simple night of elegance...

[Gwain Darkson]

Gwain was eventually pulled a bit by Tsumiko, out of his thought process and was pointed in the direction of the band of musicians. The man smiled and nodded towards the songstress, letting her know that he was perfectly fine with doing so. However, along their way to the musical group, they were stopped by an acquaintance of Tsu's. From the banter, the king found out that his name was, Jasper. His crimson-eyes brightened and he offered the red head a genuine smile and a small bow of his head, in response the other's nod.

"Nice to meet you, Jasper. The name's Gwain." He spoke colloquially, as opposed to the proper and eloquent nature that the rest of the nobles showed. Then again, that's how the king always was in these type of gatherings. Gwain as able to dress the part and give off the stature of a kingly sort, but he was a typically casual person. All of the uptight social etiquette and elegance was in his older sister, Marigold, who in his mind, would have been a far more fitting date for Tsumiko. Then again, that was just his own self-consciousness that bullied him and to beat it back, he took a handful of crackers. Using magnetism, he screwed around with their ions and had them all stacked perfectly in the palm of his hands. He ate them quite easily and smiled. "Thanks." Gwain said as a kind gesture to the man who offered the snacks.

Eventually, Tsumiko had to go off and use the rest room and that was something he was fine with. He nodded to her and watched as she went off. He turned his attention back to Jasper and was about to speak, when suddenly, an attendant of the party and suddenly flew up and over the balcony. When he focused his attention higher, he noticed that was probably the prince who had been the host of the entire thing. A rather curious raise of the man's eyebrow showed that he wondered what the host was doing all the way up there. What was the point? Nonetheless, the mystery girl who flew up to the prince unprovoked, was more than likely going to cause a scene and one that he'd relish in, because he rather enjoyed seeing uptight people work that stick around in their asses.

"Well she certainly knows how to make an entrance, eh?" Gwain asked, turning his attention back over to Jasper. Tsumiko did tell him to play nice, so he figured casual banter would be the appropriate thing to do. After all, he was there to please her, not necessarily the party goers themselves. However, if there were more obscure and out of the ordinary like the flying girl and the red head (who he could feel was abnormal), then this would truly be a party. "Much like you. You're not a manservant or anything like that, so what brings you here?" The king asked with a rather astute observation. Not like the outburst of laughter from Jasper earlier hadn't garnered attention from the man who always had his head down to the earth and aware.

[Alexander]

Aside these initially interesting new faces in the crowd, there was one other that Alexander had missed in his initial scan. She too wore and elegant dress, and after a brief mental note of four newcomers in one night, Alexander briefly considered what this meant for the worlds.

Now, it was entirely possible that these four came from the village, and he had simply never seen them before. Alexander's town visits were rare and strictly laid out, so unless he snuck out at night to see the people his interactions with them were limited. But, setting that aside, most everybody else in this castle was of the Kingdom of Dreams. The nobles from before all lie dead. That meant only villagers yet remained.

Despite poverty or wealth, the denizens of the kingdom simply had a refined air about them. It was something like dignity that very few lacked- even the more rude and undesirable members of the nobility had the ability to put on aires, and the peasantry was no different. It was a socially ingrained poker face. In social settings, one must never reveal a weakness. Regardless of how awkward, unpersonable, dislikable you really were? At events like these, everybody wore a mask where their face should be.

It was so deceitful as to be brutally honest in a roundabout way. It was a true measure of social character. Many would disregard custom and call it independence as though it were a strength- and certainly it was at times. But, most people were very social creatures, and social structures established hierarchy, in established order. This only became a negative for a Kingdom such as his own if Alexander restricted who could partake in this everchanging establishment of a pecking order.

Yet, these newcomers told stories from their actions. They revealed relationships or lack thereof with the other citizens. Three of them demonstrated knowledge of one another while none here yet seemed to recognize them. The fourth made her way through the crowd beneath Alexander's notice for just a moment as the prince wondered. If these people could travel, what did that mean? Were the worlds becoming more connected? He shivered, remembering a warning his mother once passed onto him.

A Keyblade. A silly concept, but one he adored nonetheless. World-travelling warriors who would bring ruin to a kingdom, or save it. Were these those warriors? Maybe not. As naive as he was, Alexander knew better than to put stock in legends about magical key-shaped weapons wielded by ultra-powerful soldiers bearing either salvation or armageddon. So then, who were they? Was it as he feared? Questions to resolve later, but yet they nagged at his mind. They can't really have been from the village, right? If the pathways were opening, were his people in danger?

And then, commotion. Alexander's ears snapped him back to attention as he heard a crowd of people gasp, as well as the knights around him move their armored forms into a defensive stance each. Before him a girl was flying. She was flying. She was flying. Alexander had to restrain himself from squealing very briefly in utmost delight. Finally, somebody who broke the mold- and it was one of the strangers, no less. This was the young woman he had pegged that didn't seem to be with the others.

Spears and swords were up as the young woman poured two glasses of wine. Alexander used to fingers and, concealing his glee with cool composure he smirked and took two fingers, and pressed gently on the spear of Gustov the guard, prompting him to lower it. The other guards followed his lead, and with the same hand Alexander accepted the glass she offered him. "I do like red," Alexander replied as nonchalantly as possible. Practice made perfect, and Alexander was pretty sure he was nailing it.

Also, he wasn't supposed to drink ever since the "incident", but the guards didn't know that... also, this was red wine. It wasn't butterscotch schnapps. Alexander took a ginger sip of the wine, admiring the fact that something so vile tasting could actually be so very beloved among adults. What was wrong with them? Did they like drinking fermented butt? It must have been another social custom. This one, Alexander didn't yet have the insight to justify. But he did have the experience to pretend.

"So," Alexander began speaking frankly, with confidence in his voice. "You can fly." He paused as he gently swished the glass in his hand, and smelled the wine. "Is that as thrilling as I imagine, and does it eventually get old? I feel as though it could after a while. How do you do it without wings?"

[Oriel]

As the prince's guards lowered their weapons Oriel stepped off the ledge, with a light touch that demonstrated weightless effort - she was still flying, only in a less obvious matter. The girl took another sip, listening to the young prince talk. It seemed his main interest was her flying, she couldn't blame him for it either as this ball wasn't exactly exciting and fun in itself. Removing her glass from her lips the nobody gulped down the thick red that she had swirled in her mouth, indulging in the full taste of it. She gave him a smile before speaking. "Yes, I can and it is the best feeling I can think of, I've never really grown tired or bored of it either. Whenever I fly it feels like nothing can pull me down.." Oriel paused, thinking back on her words before snapping back to his last question. "Magic, of course." She responded with a bit of cheek in her tone. She sort of expected him to know that at least, considering this world was named Castle of Dreams, it was sure to be mystical.

Oriel took another sip of her wine, standing there silently with her weight mostly on her left leg as her hand rested on the same side of her hip. She took another look at the prince, examining him and his calm, collected and cool demeanor. He had taken the flight thing pretty well so he had to know about the practices of magic and other worlds, she wasn't too sure though and conversation of that sort of thing wouldn't be the best just now. "So why are you all the way up here? Out of reach for people to approach you that is.. unless they can fly." Oriel chuckled. It did seem strange that he had held a ball but was almost completely out of sight and reach from his guests. Perhaps the whole royalty thing wasn't as great as it was perked up to be.

[Tsumiko]

When both Gwain and Jasper were out of sight, the songstress skirted around the outside wall of the room. Several of the natives from the world gave her skeptical stares as she passed by, the woman peeking up to see if either of the men were in sight. To the people, she may have looked a little suspicious, and justifiably so. She was just trying to surprise them. Not only them, however, but the other attendees and the Prince of Dreams himself. If the woman with the wine could single him out and draw his attention away from the ball, then it was Tsumiko's personal mission to draw it back.

Passing by the concession table, she nabbed a shiny red apple that sat in a mostly untouched fruit bowl, twirling around one of the more... rounder gentlemen of the ball with a lady-like smile and nod. Seemed like a nice fellow, he did. Buffing the fruit against the fabric of her dress, Tsumiko eagle-eyed a single man in particular and approached him at a quick pace.

Tapping the maestro on the shoulder, he had to do a double take at the woman standing behind him, teetering innocently in her heels. The songstress held out the apple to the man and he looked at her with questioning eyes. His response was a fluttering of the lashes. With a dismissive “Hmph,” the man turned back to his orchestrating and shrugged off the woman. This did not fly well in the slightest.

Sporting a deep frown, Tsumiko took his hand and forcefully set the apple in it, swiping the baton that the maestro had in the other. He was obviously in protest to this, and was about to give the songstress a piece of his mind. He was stopped by the gloved finger pressed against his lips, and was then spun around and shooed away from the platform in which he stood with apple in hand. The orchestra that was playing came to a sudden halt, and with it, any people that were dancing and many of the close listeners stopped their chattering to look at what was going.

“Ever hear of an impromptu performance?” she asked the musicians in a hushed tone, leaning forward with an excited, cute grin. It was evident that they were confused and conflicted on what it was they should be doing. “No? Well you're about to!~ Just play however you thing you should! It'll be fun, I promise!” With a light giggle, she hopped around to face the people starting at her with doubt. She merely smiled at them warmly.

“Yo listen up! Here's a story
About a little guy that lives in a blue world.
And all day and all night and everything he sees Is just blue,
Like him, inside and outside.
Blue his house with a blue little window
And a blue [carriage]
And everything is blue for him
And himself and everybody around
'Cause he ain't got nobody to listen”

She sang the lyrics to the song with a firm gusto and energy to spare, going into the chorus with little hesitation. It was for sure a genre unheard of to the people of the world, and wasn't being received all that well. It mattered little to her, so long as someone, anyone, enjoyed it. So long was there was that one person, she'd endure the demoralizing stares. It made her even happier when a brave soul from the orchestra had began playing for her, the pianist playing a simple string of chords. When she reached the chorus, several others joined in, letting their best judgment carry them. It carried well with a rather melodic beat.

[Alexander]

One of the more curious aspects of Alexander's social training and his application of it was his almost selective ability to come across as knowledgeable and naive interchangeably. In these settings he most usually reserved his opinions until he felt confident enough to offer them, and did his best to ask only the most basic of questions. He detected the sass levels rising past a nominal level at her initial response, but bit his tongue in addressing it. Just asking... he lingered on this sentiment for a moment internally, concluding with I don't know her life.

"I see," he replied coyly. The wine mostly adorned his hand as an accessory, and while he would take a sip of it infrequently as the flavor was something he was loathe to taste he marched through it with befitting composure. When she shifted the conversation to a question as to why he was out of reach of the general population, he moved beside her closer to the railing, and overlooked the group.

Immediately and visibly dozens of pairs of lustful eyes locked onto his form. "That would be why," he remarked on the phenomenon. "Not only is their staring really uncomfortable, but truthfully this party wasn't my idea. I'd rather spend time reading or exploring, or else doing more fulfilling than making various hopeful women dance for my favor and love." He sighed. "Frankly, I'm not down there because I don't like parties, but my advisers arrange them anyway to ruffle my nerves."

He continued to peer over the crowd as one of the newcomers from before took to the stage, much to the chagrin of the main maestro for the evening. She asked something out of them, but was too far out of earshot for Alexander to make out her words. "Well I normally don't like parties," Alexander continued. "This one is just full of various surprises. You're flying, and that one seems to be-"

Alexander was practically cut off by the sheer volume of the noise- the quite music from before was replaced by a great and loud ruckus that became a rather strange song the likes of which he had never heard. Yet, he was not able to find reason to dislike the new sound other than how loud it was. Alexander looked to the girl to side. "Is she with you? And pardon my rudeness, I never introduced myself. My name is Alexander. May I have your name?" His attention was half-on Oriel, and half on Tsumiko. One flew, and one sang silly songs.

[Oriel]

As the prince made his way closer towards her she followed in overlooking the crowd, women and men alike stared at him with lustful eyes as he explained how uncomfortable it made him. Only a moment went by and a few death stares were shot at Oriel, especially from the girl she had met earlier on. It was easy to tell, each and everyone of them expected for themselves to be up there but instead it was this clueless nobody who barely had any interest in love.

"I can understand that, it must be strange having people falling for you despite not knowing a single thing about you." Oriel paused turning her head away from all the death stares and back to the prince. "Couldn't you just cancel the event? You're the Prince after all, shouldn't you at least have a say in these parties?" It was perhaps there was something a bit more complicated about this whole ordeal that Oriel didn't know about but she wasn't going to be any less blunt about her thoughts on this.

As the prince continued on about how this party was a bit different, the two would observe as the maestro had his place taken by a woman, similar coloured hair to Oriel which she found a bit strange but what came next was a lot stranger than that. The song she sung was familiar but quite distant in the nobody's mind after losing all her memories, none the less it was the genre of pop music she was accustomed to and this particular song - it was strange but somehow reminded her of what it felt like to be a child. "No, she's not. Seems pretty neat though." Oriel chuckled loudly over the sound of music, "Oh yeah, I'm Oriel. It's nice to meet you Alex-" She paused, it felt natural to call him that but she carried on. "-ander."

[Gwain Darkson]

Gwain had expected to speak more with Jasper and awaited a response from him. However, there was a sudden turn of events in the party, rather the entire mood itself had shifted uncomfortably. The king saw the way how the people all shot demoralizing glares towards the orchestral area and more than likely the maestro. Though, that wasn't the case. Instead, the crimson-eyed man was introduced to the sight of his date, firm and dedicated, she sung with determination despite all of the disapproval. A lot of people would have felt embarrassed in this situation, but not Gwain, definitely not Gwain. His figure was wide and tall enough for him to get easy pardons without much trouble, as he made his way through the discomforted crowd. Eventually, when he was within several meters of the orchestra, he fixed up his tie, beat on his chest a bit, cleared his throat and with a simple intake of air, he spoke...

"COME ON NOW! DON'T JUST LET THE SILVER-BLUE CUTIE DO ALL THE WORK! EVERYONE, PUT YOUR SOUL INTO IT AND FEEL THE MUSIC!" Just like that, simple as breathing, Gwain shouted. No doubt this would serve as a rather bigger disruption than what it first started out to be, but he didn't care one bit. A casual smirk came to his lips, as he directed it towards Tsumiko, with a wink and thumbs up, the man slowly blended back into the crowd (he seriously couldn't, no matter how hard he tried. Just look at him, he's tall and has red eyes, he's a sore thumb) and continued to get into the groove of the music the songstress had started.

[Tsumiko]

“I have a blue house with a blue window.
Blue is the colour of all that I wear.
Blue are the streets and all the trees are too.
I have a [boyfriend] and [he] is so blue.
Blue are the people here that walk around,
Blue like my [carriage], it's in and outside.
Blue are the words I say and what I think.
Blue are the feelings that live inside me.”

Tsumiko continued to sing, adding an energetic flair to her song with simple dance moves. She was being a little party crasher, she knew that. But at the same time, she was having a lot of fun, even if she were performing for people who didn't really understand her choice in song. Though if they really wanted her gone, she was sure that the prince would have her removed. So until then, she'd sing to her heart's content. It was too bad she didn't have her microphone...

As the songstress sang the second chorus, a familiar face popped out form the crowd. She smiled at Gwain, thinking that he'd come to just enjoy her song. She was mistaken in the best way possible. The king roared out to the people, encouraging them to lighten up and feel the music. Tsumiko could feel a heat in her cheeks, and smiled as she continued singing.

“I have a blue house with a blue window.
Blue is the colour of all that I wear.
Blue are the streets and all the trees are too.
I have a [boyfriend] and [he] is so blue.
Blue are the people here that walk around,
Blue like my [carriage], it's in and outside.
Blue are the words I say and what I think.
Blue are the feelings that live inside me.”

Gwain weaved his way back into the crowd in an attempt to blend in. Didn't go so well for him, but it provided a focus point for which the songstress could stare at. Behind her, it sounded like the orchestra had really gotten into it, an up-beat melody, though not perfect, played well. It was a sign to Tsumiko that the members knew each other well enough to take certain cues and know what their fellow instrumentalists were going to do next. It was rather inspiring.

“Inside and outside blue his house
With the blue little window
And a blue [carriage]
And everything is blue for him and himself
And everybody around
'Cause he ain't got nobody to listen to.”

With one final run through the chorus, Tsumiko finally ended her impromptu performance. Striking a pose on her makeshift stage, she beamed at the people listening, a little short of breath.

[Alexander]

Alexander smiled earnestly at the young woman, bowing slightly as he addressed her. It was a half-serious bow, a prod at how the situation should have been more informal. Yet, Alexander found himself not minding it at all. "It is nice to meet you, Lady Oriel." He returned to a standing position, hand on the rail, wineglass in his hand as he took another sip of the bitter liquid. "You can call me Alex if you'd like. I'd not mind it."

He returned his attention partially to the commotion below them. It seems that another person in the crowd- the young man that had accompanied the blue-haired diva- had begun trying to incite the crowd to sing and dance along. It was a refreshing change of pace that served as an excellent backdrop for Alexander to contemplate the question she had asked. "It's a simple matter to cancel it," Alexander said bluntly. "All I'd need to do is raise a hand and say, 'Go home folks. Party's over'." He lingered on the crowd for a moment more, enjoying the high-energy of the situation.

"At the same time, look at them," Alexander gestured vaguely to the people below. "I've already surmised that you few probably aren't from this world," Alexander revealed. "We don't have much here. No electricity, or advanced technology. Our entertainment is much more mundane than what other worlds might have. Maybe not as primitive as some, but very narrow. They enjoy theater, and live music, and parties like this one..." His voice trailed reflectively, and for a moment Alexander's eyes shone as clear water as he turned them back to Oriel.

"It used to be a rarity for them to get invited to a party in the Castle. When all the other nobles died, though, we needed to find new blood. Thus we hosted the first-ever party in the Castle of Dreams where everyone was invited. Those people down there? Every single time they come here, they are caught up in a world of smiles. Maybe their intentions are not so innocent and maybe their true motives hidden, but this Castle has a certain magic to it that I can not deny has an effect on people, near or far. That's why it's called the Castle of Dreams."

He chuckled."Well, that, and Neuschwanstien is really frustrating for the foreign emissaries to pronounce."

[Oriel]

Oriel raised an eyebrow as Alex made a small bow to her, it wasn't something she was use to, nor was being called 'Lady Oriel' but it must have just been something about this world. The girl simply returned a smile from her painted crimson lips before taking another sip of her wine. As he returned his attention down to the commotion below so did she, listening intently for his answer to her question.

He explained his reasoning for not just ending the party, his people didn't have much entertainment in this world that outsiders like Oriel and the others had. The nobody could notice this in the chaos and excitement the township was going through when she first arrived. Typically the thought brought another smile to her face as Alex turned to her once again to explain the situation further. There had been a change in ruling it seemed, after he spoke of the death of older nobles to which Oriel wasn't worried about. The way Alex presented himself and lead his people seemed right to her - though he didn't enjoy the parties he held them for his people, a sacrifice that seemed ever so small for such a great out come.

"I suppose that makes you a good ruler then." She paused taking another sip of wine. "It's been a lot more entertaining here than other worlds I have been to in all honesty, I haven't been to many other places but this sure has been interesting." Her last sip of wine was a bit larger than the rest as she finished the glass to place the empty on the rail.

She peered down at the commotion below as it was coming to an end, the singer glorious despite her obvious out of place genre and style as the orchestra and a few other guests were joining in. The woman finished with a striking pose and silence followed for only a moment before Oriel started clapping loudly and yelling out "wooo!" with a large grin on her face.

[Gwain Darkson]

Gwain had enjoyed each and every lyric, down to the very last stanza. When the young woman had finished her small performance, his cheer rang out from the crowed. Despite how goofy he looked, the king's hands and arms had flown up from the crowd to make themselves prominent, as he started to clap loudly and excitedly. His cheers soon rang through the large group of people. A lot of jeers met his antics, but all he could do was smile at the uptight regal snobs who thought themselves better. Of course, should any of them have any talents, he would have implored them to grow a pair and be as brave as his date. However, he stopped himself and his impulses, for that part of him was far behind him (to a degree). He wouldn't dare make a commotion in a castle where he knew not even the name of the host. Rather, he would just stick to the small uproar he caused in honor of the songstress.

"WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOooooooooooooooooooo! Now that's what I call a performance!" He announced out loud and made sure to be just a bit more obnoxious than usual. Once more, he had received looks of all types. Some laughed, others spoke ill beneath their breaths, while others seemed to actually enjoy his energy that was directed to his love. No doubt his actions caught the eyes of several, who looked beyond what he had done and focused more on his looks.

Speaking of her, Gwain had started to signal the obviously ecstatic, yet tuckered out woman. He wanted to part through the crowd, to go through them and show that they were the odd ones out, but enjoyed so thoroughly. Not only that, but the king felt it appropriate, that he congratulate his date on her bravery and how willing she was to sing an upbeat song for the rest of the stiffs. There was something about the way she just handled herself and threw herself to the group, that the young man admired very much. A smirk came to his lips, as he waited for Tsumiko to come on over to him.

[Tsumiko]

Through all the awkward silence, there was once voice that rang out above the rest with cheers and applause. Tsumiko looked at Gwain with a flushed face and a bashful grin. Though because of him, others joined in and clapped for her performance. Bowing to one end of the crowd, and then the other, Tsumiko stepped off the small platform and walked over to the maestro. Handing him the baton with a small curtsy and a short, nervous chuckle, she turned to step into the crowd and push her way through the people. Her heart was still pounding in her chest, a mixture of her nerves and adrenaline colliding violently.

Earlier, as she departed from her stage, she had seen Gwain waving to her to come closer. As she weaved through the people, nodding in polite greeting and begging pardon as she pushed pardon. Soon enough, she was standing before the red-eyed man with a wide smile. His enthusiasm and encouragement was a wonderful support that the songstress was very grateful to have. Though rather than using her words, she bounced a few times on the balls of her feet and hugged the king tight around the midsection, nuzzling the side of her face into his chest. Actions speak louder than words, so they say.

From the corner of her eye, she was able to see the faces of those around them. It was quite the array of expressions, from scorns, to looks of a mild approval, and some of what Tsumiko took as envy.

Leaning back, Tsumiko looked up at him with a brilliant smile, her nerves calmed enough to where it wasn't so apparent on her face. “How'd I do?” she asked, tipping her head to the side. She was already sure of the answer, but to hear him said it to her would have made her ecstatic.

[Alexander]

While Oriel cheered at the girl who sang, Alexander walked to the edge of the balcony and began to clap. He had a legitimate smile on his face for the first time that night, the humdrum pattern of people dressing their daughters up to be chosen for marriage broken by a girl who was seemingly already in a relationship, the young man who cheered for her that she had come with, and the girl beside him that apparently could fly and liked to drink red wine. Alexander sat his glass on the banister railing as he motioned at Oriel. "Come on," he motioned at her excitedly. "I want to meet them! This could be fun."

The Guards didn't offer protest, and instead remained stoic as Alexander ran towards the stairs that descended down to the floor. It was quite interesting to note that the ballroom was also the foyer. It was quite a large room, but when the Prince finally descended there was a very odd hush that fell over the people within, and like a wave it traveled towards the back of the space. Alexander wasn't oblivious to this, and became immediately aware of an uncountable pair of eyes falling upon his person. As the silence fell like a wave, so to did predatory stares.

Were this a different situation in an informal setting, Alexander's anxiety might have had him in a complete deadlock, and he would have frozen like a deer when exposed to very bright light crossing a path. As a matter of fact, the very compulsion to do so gripped him briefly, but aside from only a moment of hesitation he was able to descend into the crowd. They parted as he approached, moving through them at a brisk pace with a serious-if-neutral expression on his face. This was one of his defense mechanisms- don't show any emotion when you get nervous. Giving yourself away in these situations is a huge sign of weakness.

He had wanted to start working on that bit of social training and now he had a chance. A smile now and again couldn't kill him, could it? Still, he was a fair ways off from the duo within the crowd, and though they'd probably be able to see his approach he wouldn't be able to reach them immediately.

[Gwain Darkson]

Gwain awaited patiently for his date to arrive and when she finally did so, he beamed down at her with happiness, while she bounced on her heels. Tsumiko were being extra adorable and so, the king couldn't help but hug her tightly, when the young woman had embraced him. He nuzzled the top of her head back in response to the cuddling of his chest. Both of their eyes met in the moment when the songstress looked up and asked for a review of her performance. Gwain's lips widened into an even bigger smile and he leaned over to rub noses with her a couple of times.

"Your performance was kick-ass, my love. I haven't seen anyone stir up such a formal gathering like this since well... Me." He laughed and pecked Tsumi's lips then after. The king had a little bit of a something planned for them. He honestly wanted to get out of the crowd and go out towards the balcony or something. First, however, they needed a beverage to set the appropriate mood. Gwain figured that wine would serve nicely and as such, he ended the embrace with a confident smile that he shot at his date, before he looked around for a servant of some sort. Either that or a table that would have the bottle and glasses for them to simply partake in. "Now if I were a wine bottle, where would I be...?"

The man mused aloud and a placed a hand upon his chin in thought. One thought that came across was to ask if Tsumiko drank at all. For all intents and purposes, she wasn't old enough in a technical sense to be drinking, but the man figured if she was brave enough to interrupt the mood of a formal setting, then she was clearly brave enough to have her first sip of wine.

[Tsumiko]

Receiving a tight hug, Tsumiko could say that she was honestly happy. When she looked up, she seen the wide smile Gwain was wearing, and it reflected back on her lips. He rubbed his nose against hers, giving her gentle eskimo kisses, and the songstress returned the favor before hearing his review. Though she was still grinning, she blinked in surprise to hear that he was capable of quite a commotion. Actually, a second thought had her thinking it quite possible. But with the guise that the well-mannered king had, it left her imagining all the mischievous things he could get himself into. Now that she thought about it, it wasn’t all that hard to imagine.


With a peck on the lips, the songstress giggled. Soon after, their embrace ended and with a smile, she started looking around the large room. With a curious tilt of her head, Tsumiko blinked up at him. That is, until she heard his musings. Apparently he had a hankering for wine. It was safe to say that the songstress had yet to try any forms of alcohol, with her munny sources always strung tight and never having an actual interest. Didn’t mean she wouldn’t give it at least a try… If Gwain wasn’t against her being underage, at any rate.

Scanning the room, there were several empty wine glasses and bottles of red and even whites on ice over at the concession table. “I think there’s some over there,” Tsumiko said, pointing a finger towards the table. There were even a few servers carrying around platters of the drink, spread out throughout the room. As she looked around, there was an odd quiet that fell over the ballroom. For as many people as there was in that big room, it was far too silent all of a sudden for something to not be going on.


Looking around, from off to the side, Tsumiko seen people parting and creating a path as someone moved through the crowd. With a curious blink of her eyes, the silver-blue haired woman wondered if the person approaching them was the elusive prince who had been hiding away all evening. Not quite able to see his face from the distance, Tsumiko kept to herself and would follow Gwain should he decide to made headway to a different destination.

[Gwain Darkson]

"Let's get away from all these stiffs then, love. Follow me!" Gwain said in an excited, yet hushed whisper. The man was still a Darkson after all and needed to make sure everyone assumed he respected forms of nobility, despite him being the date to a rather troublesome young woman. The king loved that though, loved the fact she was so very daring and outgoing. Such an attractive young woman. Or so the thought went. Without much further dallying, he took Tsumiko's hand into his and with a brisk pace, made off to the table where the bottles of wine were. His thoughts were far too focused on the silver-blue haired woman at his side, so he didn't notice the fact the crowd had began to part for anyone.

"Ever drink before?" He asked with a wide grin, plus a side glance. The man wanted to know how she held herself when it came to any form of alcohol. Gwain personally, was and still is, able to handle nearly all forms of alcoholic beverage without succumbing to the debilitating effects of the depressant. While he waited for an answer, he took to taking a chilled bottle from out of the small bucket of ice. The king took a look at what sort of wine they'd be partaking in for the evening; red wine would be that drink of choice. He poured them both a glass and filled them up to about more than a third of the glass. After which, the young man handed his date the glass and smiled. While waiting, the man thought of a myriad of things to toast to.

[Tsumiko]

When Gwain spoke to her, the songstress turned her blinking eyes to him. Tipping her head to the side for a short moment, she wondered what it was that he was up to. He seemed rather excited about something or another, but she could agree with wanting to step away from the ‘stiffs’, as the king called them. The young man was of a high place in the social ladder, that Tsumiko was sure of. Where exactly, however, was unknown to her. Not that it mattered too much to her. No matter who or what Gwain was, the songstress loved him for him. With a nod of her head, she followed him over to the table with her hand in his. She wasn’t sure if he was oblivious to the fact that the crowd was parting for some individual, or if he was ignoring it.

Soon enough, they appeared before the concessions table where the bottles of wine sat. Tsumiko looked up at him with wide eyes when he asked her his question. Blinking a few times, she then shook her head. “Never a drop in my life. Why do you ask?” She answered honestly, though she had a feeling she knew where this was going as he reached for the bottle. Though she never drank herself, for a couple of different reasons, the woman knew a few things from helping out at the inn she stayed at. She was asking herself why a red wine was being chilled, but dismissed the question as perhaps a cultural difference.

Regardless, she took the glass that was offered to her by Gwain with a gracious smile. She swirled the liquid in her glass as she’d seen done many times before and sniffed it. Her nose almost scrunched at the smell, but Tsumiko managed to maintain a pleasant expression, and turned her attention back to the man who stood before her.

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