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“Try putting your foot here when you move, Corrin. And make sure to follow through on the twirl or else you’ll trip. Remember, this will only be more difficult when you’re wearing high heels and a dress.”
“Y-yes, right.” Corrin inhaled deeply as she and Gunter returned to the starting position. “It’s sort of awkward dancing with no music, though…”
“I did suggest bringing in a band, but a certain someone was too embarrassed by the thought of other people watching her practice.” Gunter chuckled as Corrin’s face flushed and she pouted at him.
“It’s not my fault I never learned how to ballroom dance,” she muttered under her breath; Gunter wouldn’t have been able to hear her if he wasn’t standing so close. “Besides… is all of this really necessary? It’s not like I’m going to be in the spotlight like Xander.”
“It’s completely necessary,” he replied without missing a beat. “You are a princess, after all. It’s integral that you know all of the proper activities that come with courtly life. Though you are right that it’s not your fault… I should have taught you when you were much younger.”
“Why didn’t you? You taught me practically everything else I know.” She stumbled on the turn again and muttered a quiet curse under her breath.
“You know… I can’t quite remember. I do remember trying when you were small, but I can’t remember why we never continued—stop watching your feet, dear. I know it feels like it will help, but your movements will be stiff if you’re too focused on putting them in the right places.”
“S-sorry…” No matter how much they practiced, she didn’t feel like she was getting any better. If it weren’t for Gunter’s patience, she was sure he would have given up on her already. “You know, as much as I think this is pretty much a lost cause, it’s been nice spending time with you like we used to.”
“Hm? What do you mean? I know you and I haven’t had much time to spend together lately because of the rebuilding efforts, but…”
“No, no! It’s not like that. It’s just that… well, I guess ever since we got married, spending time with you feels… different.” It was difficult to put it into words, but when Gunter frowned she realized she hadn’t quite found the right ones.
“I should hope so. Being married does change quite a few things in a relationship… especially a relationship like ours,” he pointed out, frowning at her.
“I don’t mean it like that! I just mean… well, it feels like we’ve been avoiding doing the kinds of things we used to do together. I mean… you used to teach me just about everything. But it feels like this is the first time you’ve been my instructor in a long time,” she said, trying to think back on when exactly the last time had been. She couldn’t even remember…
“I know we’re married now, and that makes things different. And I know that it’s probably weird for you to think of me as the same Corrin, since you’ve known me for so long…” After all, she’d known Gunter as long as she could remember; she had been a pretty small child when she’d been handed over to him to take care of, after all. “It’s kind of weird for me too, thinking of you as the same man I’ve known my whole life. But I kind of miss the things we used to do together, the way we used to interact with each other. I kind of wish we could have more of a balance between the two, I guess.”
Gunter frowned even harder, looking away from Corrin. For a long moment she was worried that she had said something to upset him. Of course, it probably all sounded silly—she was hardly a little girl any more, and it was obvious that Gunter hadn’t seen her that way for a while, or else they never would have gotten where they were. But she honestly missed having Gunter as her tutor, her confidant—it seemed like he’d gone out of his way to make sure they didn’t do anything together that they used to do back in the Northern Fortress.
“I… hadn’t really given it much thought, but I suppose we have been walking on eggshells around each other since the war ended…” Gunter huffed in that oh-so-familiar way that meant he was annoyed with something, but not quite sure what to do about it. “Our relationship is… an unconventional one, to say the least. I don’t imagine there’s much precedent for it.”
Well, Corrin could think of a romance novel or two that said otherwise, but Gunter was right—their relationship wasn’t the kind that had any easy answers. Though saying ‘I do’ had been the easiest thing Corrin ever had to do, everything else that had come afterwards hadn’t exactly been a walk in the park. They hadn’t even formally announced their betrothal, though technically the deed had been done, in a rather impromptu ceremony in the Astral Realm; when you were in a war and the threat of death hung over your head on a daily basis, from both “friend” and foe alike, it was easy to make rash choices like that. Her siblings and her retainers knew, of course, and she wouldn’t doubt that her siblings’ retainers knew as well, but aside from them…
She wouldn’t even get to dance with Gunter at the stuffy noble’s ball that she was expected to attend. Yet another reason to find the dancing lessons pointless and boring…
“Exactly. Which means that we can chart our own course. There’s nothing about us that’s typical, so we can’t exactly take the typical path!” She smiled brightly, hoping that an optimistic outlook would brighten the conversation. “I mean, not only is there our age difference to consider, and the circumstances of how we came to care for each other… but then there’s also Kana to consider. We’ve barely been married a year, but all too soon our son won’t be a boy anymore… he’ll be a young man.”
“Well, we’re hardly the first couple to have a child older than our marriage,” he pointed out, with an amused chuckle. Corrin laughed along with him, glad that the heavy cloud that had been settling over them was starting to lift. “I can see your point, though. There’s not a damn thing about our family that’s usual…”
“And so why are we trying to act any differently? Obviously, the way we feel about each other is different than it used to be, but that doesn’t mean we can’t still enjoy the things we used to do together… maybe you and I can even teach Kana how to play catch the same way we used to! Oh, it would be so much fun…”
“Indeed. And guess what?” Gunter smiled at her, looking almost smug. “While you’ve been so preoccupied with our conversation, you’ve danced perfectly. Not a step out of place.”
Corrin’s shocked expression must have been hilarious, because Gunter laughed at her, twirling her around outside of the ordinary dance steps. She really hadn’t noticed, but the more she thought about it the more she realized she was moving through the dance steps as they’d been talking, and without being too busy staring at her feet she’d actually managed to do the dance without tripping over herself!
“Now all we need to do is hope that your dance partner is a good conversationalist and you should have no trouble at all,” he said, pulling her back in from the twirl. They were totally outside of the steps now, dancing freestyle, but she was still surprised by the sheer amount of coordination she was capable of when she wasn’t focused on where her feet were going.
“You know, you could be my dancing partner. That would solve the problem,” she replied, continuing before Gunter had a chance to voice his objection. “We wouldn’t have to dance as a couple or anything like that. We could just say that I’m too shy to dance with a noble I don’t know. I mean, I have been locked in a fortress for most of my life… who would know otherwise?”
“Your siblings, for one.” Well, she had been wanting things to be a little more like they used to be, and Gunter’s stern lecture voice was certainly familiar. “Not everyone is as pleased with the way the war turned out as those of us who chose to follow you, especially among the nobility. I believe they’re hoping your charming self will help bring them over to our side. And that includes doing such things as dancing with them.”
Corrin pouted, leaning against Gunter’s chest. “I know, I know. Leo’s already lectured me and Elise about being on our best behaviour, especially after Xander’s coronation…” Was it really so terrible of them to have gotten excited, seeing their older brother assuming the throne? Being royalty was so much stuffier than her books had always made it seem… “It doesn’t exactly help me with being less nervous, though. You will at least be there, right? In case I need moral support? Or maybe an impromptu reminder about how tempo works?”
“Of course, Corrin,” he said, gently patting the back of her head and stroking her hair. “Someone needs to keep an eye on Jakob and Felicia, after all. But you’ll be perfectly fine without my instruction—I’ve never doubted that for a moment, not in all these years.”
“If I had as much confidence in myself as you have in me, my life would be a lot easier,” she said with a sigh—a contented one, as she snuggled up against Gunter’s chest. “But if you’re going to be there, I’m sure I can get through it.”
“I’m certain of it, my love.”
With her face buried against his chest, she smirked. Oh, she was certain she would be able to get through it—but she had very different reasons for believing so than Gunter did.
“Now remember—though you outrank these people many times over, it’s still polite to address them by their full title out of respect. However little some of them might deserve it.”
Corrin snickered behind her hand, and though Leo tried hard to keep a serious face, the smallest hint of a smile tugged at the edge of his lips.
“Leo! We want Corrin to be on her best behaviour; she certainly doesn’t need your bad influence.” Camilla gently jostled Leo. “You’ll be fine, Corrin. Dance with a few nobles, smile a pleasant smile, and you’ll have them eating out of your hand before long. It’s really quite simple.”
“If you say so, Camilla… I can’t help but be a little nervous, though.” She smoothed out the silk of her dress and shifted from foot to foot. She had never really dressed so fancy; she’d never had any reason to do so at the Northern Fortress, and other than that she’d only ever been at war. Even at her impromptu wedding she hadn’t dressed nearly as fancy; if it hadn’t been for Forrest’s quick sewing skills and timely intervention, she probably would have just worn whatever she had lying around. “It’s a shame that Siegbert and Forrest couldn’t be here. I’m sure they’d enjoy this.” A lot more than she would, certainly…
“Nothing would please me more than to have them join us, but we don’t have a way to explain their existences yet,” Xander replied with a sigh. “And explaining the existence of the Deep Realms would take too much attention away from the issues at hand. Though I’m sure in time they’ll get to experience all the same aspects of being royalty as the rest of us.”
“I’m sure my Soleil isn’t broken up about missing it. She’s not really the ‘pomp and circumstance’ type,” Camilla chuckled, looking perfectly comfortable and at home in her similarly fancy dress and similarly uncomfortable high heels.
(For someone used to not wearing any shoes at all, wearing high heels was something akin to foot murder. But she had enough to complain about without even getting started on that mess.)
“I wish she was here! She’d make this party at least a little interesting.” Of course, she wasn’t the only person who was pouting about the whole thing; Elise was more than a little grumpy about it. “It’s not going to be long, is it?”
“Certainly not as long as the victory feast was,” Xander assured her with a chuckle. “This is all more a formality than anything. The nobles come to the party to show that they’re in good standing with the crown, and we entertain them to ensure their continued support.”
“They’re hardly party animals,” Leo interjected. “All the same, don’t worry about it too much. We have ways of making sure these engagements don’t last too long.”
“Leo,” Xander said warningly. “Don’t encourage her. Though if at any point you feel uncomfortable, don’t be afraid to step out for a few moments. We would all understand.”
“Thank you, Xander.” Though she anticipated that wouldn’t be a problem, if the night went the way she planned. Besides, she didn’t want to be the one to ruin the engagement for her family, especially if it was really as important as people had been trying to impress on her from the start. “Before we go out there, is there anything else I should know? Anything else I shouldn’t do, or—”
She cut off abruptly as Camilla pulled her into a tight hug, stroking her hair. “Oh, darling. No need to be so nervous. Just be yourself and relax. You’ll do just fine.”
“O-okay, Camilla.” Corrin chuckled, not wanting to struggle—but at the same time, feeling more than a little smothered. (Hugging Camilla was often like that.) “None of the nobles are going to do anything… creepy, are they?”
“Not if they like their head being attached to their shoulders, sweetie,” she replied, gently rubbing her back. “Now let’s head out there and show you off. You look so pretty tonight!”
“Thanks, sis!” Corrin finally pulled out of the hug and smoothed down her dress, reaching down to adjust the straps on her high heeled shoes.
It was Peri and Laslow in their best formal garb standing at the doors, ready to open them as they approached. Laslow bowed his head to her, but he had eyes only for Camilla as the five of them lined up to be let inside the ballroom. He winked at her and blew her a kiss, suddenly straightening up when Xander cleared his throat. Peri giggled.
The two of them opened the massive doors leading from the antechamber to the ballroom, standing formally upright.
“Presenting His Royal Majesty, the King of Nohr, Xander the First.” It was Xander who entered first, of course, after Laslow so gracefully announced them. Camilla came next, and then it was her turn…
“Presenting Her Highness, the Second Princess of Nohr, Lady Corrin.”
She held her breath as much as she held her back as she stepped out into the ballroom. The crowd was of course respectfully watching the entrance of the royal family, and though she’d been expecting it, it still made her feel nervous. So many eyes on her, and many of their gazes were rather unfriendly… people hadn’t exactly been happy to hear that one of the three princesses of Nohr was the daughter of the late Queen of Hoshido, and there were always rumors flying about what had really happened to King Garon and his closest confidants during the invasion.
Corrin looked out over the crowd as she took her place next to Camilla, Laslow and Peri announcing Leo and Elise. She spotted the other retainers around the perimeter, hers included—Niles was whispering what was no doubt an unsavory joke to Odin, Beruka was keeping to the shadows provided by the ostentatious pillars while Selena huffed not far away, and Effie was helping herself to the refreshments table while Arthur leaned against the wall and tried hard not to touch anything. Silas in his formal best waved to her from the back of the room, and she nearly waved back before remembering herself.
In order to distract herself from the way everyone was staring at her while they stood on a raised platform for them to gawk at, she looked even more closely at the edges of the room. While the retainers were there to be seen—even Beruka wasn’t that well hidden—the servants were as unobtrusive as possible. Their training made sure the people who relied on them every day never even noticed the work they did. Flora and Jakob were refilling the snack trays as fast as Effie could eat at them, Felicia was chilling the champagne (presumably because Jakob wouldn’t let her do anything else), and even Kaze had put on a servant’s uniform and was handing out hor d’oeuvres and drinks. And supervising them all—there was Gunter.
She watched him through the whole formal speech that Xander was giving. Watching Gunter as he quietly but sternly barked orders meant she didn’t have to see the icy or disapproving stares of the crowd, and she felt a sense of peace wash over her; she almost didn’t notice when Xander’s speech had finished, and started clapping a moment later than everyone else.
With the formalities out of the way, there was no reason for them to stand around on the platform any longer; the music started up again, and the murmur of conversation in the crowd rose up to mingle with it. A few of the bolder nobles came up to greet Xander and congratulate him on his speech as he descended the stairs, and he met them with firm handshakes and formal posture. She prayed for even an ounce of his composure…
Delicately picking up the edge of her dress like Camilla had shown her, Corrin took her first few tentative steps down towards the crowd. She’d practiced walking in high heels for weeks, but just like when she’d been practicing her dancing, she was drawn to stare at her feet to make sure she knew where they were going; now that she had to keep her head up, she felt like she was going to go falling down the stairs at any moment.
Thankfully she made it to the bottom without stumbling, but that was where her good luck seemed to end. She’d been expecting to be met with indifference—Leo had told her that the Nohrian nobility weren’t exactly an inviting bunch, and she knew she wasn’t nearly as impressive or interesting as her other siblings. But although she knew that there were a lot of people, especially rich and powerful ones, who were unhappy that the war with Hoshido had turned out the way it had… well, she hadn’t been expecting to be either completely glossed over or stared at with barely-concealed hatred.
Without drawing too much attention to herself, Corrin tried to sneak her way to the edge of the room. Thankfully no one seemed to mind; everyone was more or less content to leave her be, which was exactly how she liked it.
When she finally reached the edge of the room, she breathed a sigh of relief. Everyone wanted to be seen mingling, and so only the servants who needed to move around without being bothered were hiding at the edges, which was exactly where she knew she would find Gunter. It didn’t take her long—she only had to follow the familiar sound of his and Jakob’s bickering, this time over the arrangement of the appetizer platters.
“Listen, old man—o-oh! Lady Corrin! Are you well? Do you need a drink, perhaps? Just tell me what you need and I would be more than happy to get it for you.” He smiled his usual bright smile when he saw her, the frustration immediately melting off his face.
“Maybe later, Jakob. Thank you. For now, I just need to speak with Gunter,” she replied, ignoring the way the frustration returned to his face just momentarily before his smile returned.
“Of course, milady,” he said, stepping aside.
“Gunter?” She stepped forward, hoping to pull his attention away from instructing one of the serving staff on the proper way to serve champagne. On hearing his name he turned, and she was more than pleased by his expression when he saw her.
“Corrin—you look… beautiful.” The whole evening was almost worth it just to see that propriety slip away from him in public—she longed for the day when he would be able to compliment her without it being ‘improper’. They were married, after all… even if only a handful of people knew it.
Clearly, though, he wasn’t quite as eager to let go of his propriety, because he returned his expression to a careful neutral only a moment later. “Was there something you needed, milady? Is there something not being done to your satisfaction?”
“Of course not. As expected from you, Jakob, and Flora, everything is perfect. And Felicia hasn’t broken a single glass or dumped food on anyone!” Which was an accomplishment even more worthy of praise than the actual set-up of the party. “Actually, I was hoping you would… well…”
“What is it, milady?”
“I was hoping you would do me the honor of dancing with me, Sir Gunter.” She curtsied to him just as he’d taught her, though she felt a bit silly doing it. Gunter frowned deeply at her.
“Lady Corrin… we’ve already discussed this. I’m afraid it just wouldn’t be proper.”
“I know, I know! But… honestly, I don’t think anyone else is going to,” she admitted. “The looks I’ve been getting out there… they haven’t been the friendliest. Please, Gunter? Just one dance?”
She gave him her best pout, the same look she’d always given him when she was young and she really wanted to get away with something. She’d always reserved it for the most serious of occasions, to avoid wearing out its effect—and judging by the way Gunter’s expression shifted into something softer, it still worked exactly as intended.
“…alright, Lady Corrin. One dance, exactly as we practiced, and nothing more. Then I really must get back to work, and you must get back to mingling.” He held his hand out to her, palm up, and she placed hers against it. Like a proper gentleman, he leaned down and kissed the back of her hand.
He led her out to the dance floor. At first the nobles didn’t take much notice of them, but after the first murmurs began, they multiplied almost out of control. Corrin ignored them completely, and Gunter followed suit.
Gunter led her in the steps that the two of them had practiced so much in the weeks leading up to that day. He’d been right when he’d told her that it would be harder in a dress and heels, but with Gunter’s hand in hers and his other hand on her shoulder blade, it didn’t seem to matter. She felt perfectly at ease with him as her partner, and not just because he was the one who had taught her how to dance—more because he was the one who had taught her almost everything she knew, and had always been with her.
(How it had taken her so long to realise she was in love with him, she had no idea.)
“You know what a terrible idea this is, right?” he asked with a sigh, though it was more fond than exasperated.
“Well, everyone will just have to get used to it sooner or later,” she reminded him. After all, it wasn’t like they were going to keep their relationship a secret forever—she and her siblings just had to come up with a way to explain their mid-war marriages and their already aged children without incriminating themselves before they made the formal announcements. “Besides, they already don’t think of me as real Nohrian royalty… I can see it in their eyes. How much can this really hurt when they already think of me like that?”
“Corrin… whether they really think that or not, you know how preposterous it is, right?” he asked just as he twirled her.
“Of course I do. But that won’t change how they think. And I don’t really care. Not that I’m going to go out of my way to lower their opinion of me or anything… but no matter how ‘charming’ I am, I don’t think being the daughter of a Hoshidan queen is going to be washed over.”
Gunter looked around them as they danced, as if surveying the crowd just as she had earlier in the night. As he took in the looks on the faces of the people around him, his expression darkened dangerously. Only when she tightly squeezed his hand did his eyes return to her.
“I’ve suddenly remembered why I always hated being at Court,” he muttered somewhat bitterly, and she couldn’t help but laugh.
“So much for me being the one to charm everyone here, hm?” She laughed some more; she’d never really been convinced by that argument, but it seemed even more ridiculous now. “I’m having a good time, though. I’m glad I talked you into this.”
“There wasn’t much talking involved…” Gunter twirled her once more as the song ended, to be met with mild unenthusiastic clapping. They parted rather easily when Xander came through the crowd and stepped up at them. For a moment Corrin thought she was going to get yelled at, but the expression on Xander’s face was one of careful neutrality, not stern frustration.
“Pardon me, Sir Gunter. Would you mind if I cut in? I’d like to have a dance with my sister.”
“Of course, Lord Xander.” Gunter stepped away from Corrin, bowing deeply at the waist to Xander. He paused only briefly to lock eyes with Corrin, passing on his support without further words, before striding off back to keeping things in line with the servants.
Corrin curtsied to Xander like she was supposed to at the start of a dance, and soon he was leading her into the same dance she’d just finished with Gunter; she was glad Xander wasn’t feeling up to challenging her coordination at the moment.
“Are you mad at me?” she asked carefully. “I didn’t mean to cause any trouble.”
“You always mean to cause trouble,” Xander replied, though his tone was amused and fond rather than annoyed, which she was glad for. “But no, I’m not. Frankly, I wasn’t expecting the crowd to be so hostile… if I had known, I wouldn’t have made you attend. Clearly my information isn’t as complete as I originally thought it was.”
“It’s alright,” Corrin assured him. “It’s really not a big deal. Though if there’s a chance for me to slip out later on…”
“I’ll be sure to keep an eye out,” he agreed with a smile. “Thankfully, Leo did come up with an idea for pulling the attention away from you. And I think a good distraction is just what we need here and now.”
“Oh? What kind of distraction?”
“You’ll see in a moment…” Xander twirled her so she was facing the staircase.
“Presenting the Soon-To-Be Queen of Nohr, Her Royal Highness, Lady Charlotte.”
…Well. That would certainly do it.