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The Knights of Favonius had decided to host a banquet and accompanying ball to celebrate the arrival of a diplomatic delegation from Fontaine, and unsurprisingly, Eula was nowhere to be found.
“I have no time for such frivolous affairs,” was the Spindrift Knight’s sharp and honest reply to your question of whether or not she would be in attendance. “And besides, seeing as my reputation has a habit of preceding me, I’m quite sure the Acting Grand Master would be content to send me off elsewhere where I can’t sully the good name of the Knights by simply being there.”
Though you weren’t necessarily surprised at her response, it still didn’t make it any less disappointing to hear. What was even more disappointing was the fact she had stayed true to her word, as she was noticeably absent from the crowd of knights and diplomats you’ve been surrounded by all night. You tried your best not to let it get to you, but as the night progressed, your mind couldn’t help but linger on two things—Eula, and Eula not being with you.
Shaking your head, you try to distract yourself by surveying your surroundings. Glancing upwards, you’re met with the brilliant light of two golden chandeliers hanging from the ceiling, warmly radiating a bright yet soft glow that accentuates the elegant attire your fellow attendants are wearing. At the opposite end of the banquet hall is a string quartet seated atop a small stage, providing mellow background music to the abundance of enthusiastic chatter being exchanged by knights and diplomats alike. In the back of your mind, you’re reminded of all the fairytales you used to read as a child of grand balls filled with beautiful princes and princesses, but your thoughts are quickly interrupted the moment you feel your shoulder being tapped and a certain someone’s voice hum low in your ear.
“Good evening, Sir Kaeya,” You greet the cavalry captain with a smile and a raise of your goblet. “I trust you’ve been having a good time tonight?”
Kaeya playfully tsks at you.
“How many times must I tell you that we’re well past the need for formalities?” He grins, returning your gesture by raising his goblet of wine—which you note is practically filled to the brim—at you. “Though to answer your question, yes, I’ve been having a lovely time indeed.”
“That's good to hear.”
The two of you begin to chit-chat and continue to do so for quite some time. Kaeya’s halfway through telling you about his curious encounter with a drunk lieutenant earlier in the evening when he pauses at the sound of the string quartet transitioning into a waltz. It only takes one shared glance between the two of you before the captain graciously extends a hand to you with a smile on his face.
“Care to dance?”
You smile back at him and take his hand.
“I’d love to.”
You place your goblets elsewhere and proceed to the center of the banquet hall, taking each other’s hands and beginning to dance to the music. Everything should have been perfect—the atmosphere was merry, the crowd was lively, and you and Kaeya were dancing gracefully across the room like a pair of professionals. But even with all that was happening around you, something just...
“Is there something bothering you?”
You blink up at Kaeya and his star-shaped pupil looking at you with concern. “Pardon?”
“I apologize, since I know it’s rude to assume,” Kaeya begins, but the sudden shift to a shit-eating grin on his face tells you he isn’t one bit sorry for what he’s about to say next, “But you’ve seemed pretty preoccupied all night.”
“It's nothing, Kaeya. I just—”
“Miss the reconnaissance captain?”
Kaeya’s grin only grows wider at the sudden flush that overtakes your face.
“I knew it.”
He watches as you try and stammer up excuses, but after a minute of nothing but gibberish escaping your mouth, you decide it’s better to give up and tell the truth.
“I wasn’t surprised that she wouldn’t be attending tonight, but I... I wanted her to. Because I... I wanted…”
“You wanted her to dance with you?”
“As if she would ever dance with me,” You try and joke, but it falls flat with the weight of your somber tone.
“You’d be surprised to know how eager she is to do so, actually,” Kaeya chuckles at the sight of your eyes widening to the size of saucers at his remark. “Eager in her own vengeful little way, of course.”
“And how do you know that?”
“I just do.”
You’re just about to press him further on what he’s implying before the sound of the nearby cathedral bell rudely interrupts you. That, and the suspicious smile that lights Kaeya’s face hearing it.
“Ah, just in time,” He says, and you quirk a distrustful brow at him. “What? Don’t you know what time it is?”
“No?”
“Why, if I recall correctly, the reconnaissance captain and her scouts should be back from their mission around this time. I could be wrong, but seeing as I was in charge of having personally arranged the mission in question…”
“And what do you mean to accomplish by telling me this?”
“That’s up for you to decide.”
The music comes to a stop. He gently lifts your hand to kiss it goodbye.
“Farewell. I hope you have a pleasant rest of the evening.”
“Kaeya, what—”
With a playful smile and a wink, Kaeya walks away, leaving you and disappearing into the crowd.
After downing a few more goblets of wine to quell the growing unease in your chest, you decide to call it quits for the night.
Outside, the streets are quiet, almost eerily so, with not a single sound to be heard except for the evening breeze whistling a bitingly cold tone. You express your gratitude to the few passersby you encounter by waving politely at them—at least, to the best of your ability considering your tipsy state.
You continue onwards with your walk to nowhere until you find yourself at the plaza. Wandering over to one of the many stone benches in the area, you take a seat, sighing in relief as your legs finally catch a break from all the stairs you had just climbed. The warm glow of the street lights surrounding you, lovely as they are, is dim. They’re so dim, in fact, that you fail to notice a shadow approaching you from the corner of your eye.
“And here I thought you were above some dimwitted drunkard too inebriated to care about their safety being exposed out in the open. Hmph. To think I taught you to be better than this.”
You nearly fall over in shock at the familiar voice.
“Eula?”
“Who else would it be?” The Spindrift Knight huffs, crossing her arms over her chest as she draws nearer to you. You pray to Barbatos nearby that the crickets chirping in the trees are loud enough to mask the sound of your heart threatening to beat out of your chest at the sight of her.
“But really, just what are you doing out here by yourself so late at night? Aren’t you supposed to be attending that banquet over at the Goth Grand Hotel? Archons, I practically made a fool out of myself barging in there unannounced just to look for you! And the fact you had the audacity to worry me when I couldn’t find you... Mark my words, I'll make sure to get my—”
“You... you looked for me?”
“What? Just what kind of question is that? Did you think that I wouldn’t look for you?”
“...No?”
“Hmph! Preposterous! Positively outrageous! The fact you dared to not only wander off elsewhere without me to protect you, and for you to assume my actions and feelings unprompted... you’ll pay for this!”
You chalk it up to the wine meddling with your brain, but at that moment, a wide, dopey grin etches itself onto your face at a thought that came to you. You lift a hand out to the reconnaissance captain standing before you.
“Could I… pay with a dance?”
The look on Eula’s face instantly makes you regret your words. Your face burns hot and the blood in your veins runs ice cold with dread and embarrassment. You quickly withdraw your hand from her reach, using it to sheepishly rub the back of your neck with it.
“Or maybe we could just... settle the score with some good old sparring. I’m sorry that I asked you that so boldly, I... I know you don’t take kindly to—”
“I'll take it. Let’s dance.”
You blink.
“What?”
“You wanted to pay for your transgressions, yes? I accept your means of payment. Now get up.”
“But I don’t—”
“Know how to dance? Then I’ll teach you.”
You chalk it up to the wine once again, because you refuse to accept any other reason as to why Eula’s tone has suddenly grown softer. Hesitantly, you get up from the bench to approach her, gingerly holding her gloved hand and trying not to let your breath audibly hitch at the feeling of her hand on your waist.
“Grip my shoulder a little tighter,” Eula instructs you, repositioning your hand. “I won’t break. Now follow my lead. One, two, three, one, two, three…”
The first few minutes the two of you dance are painfully awkward. All of your previous grace and elegance from that earlier dance with Kaeya have all but disappeared, your dancing skills reduced to nothing, and your movements limited to stiff shuffling and careless swaying. Eula seems to catch on to this, judging by the way her grip on your waist tightens ever so slightly. It isn’t enough to cause significant pain or discomfort, but it’s enough to steady you as you waltz across the plaza together. Eventually, the two of you manage to fall into a slow rhythm, dancing along to the sound of your shoes clacking against the cobbled floor. Impulsively—you make a mental note to apologize to her for it tomorrow when you’ve sobered up—you lean in and bury your face into the crook of her neck, pressing your bodies together closer than you’ve ever been.
“You know,” You murmur. “I... I wanted to do this.”
“Do what?” Eula asks.
“Dance with you. Whenever... Amber and I would come to see you, and you would be dancing by Cider Lake, you... you always looked so beautiful. I never had it in me to ask if I could dance with you, but…”
Eula’s hand lets go of your shoulder, and her arms slowly begin to wrap around you in an uncharacteristically warm embrace.
“You dolt,” She murmurs into your ear. “I do too.”
Your breath hitches, but it quickly melts away as you smile into her shoulder. For a moment, you’re tempted to say it, the three words you’ve longed to tell the beautiful Spindrift Knight you’ve loved since the moment you laid eyes on her—but in the end, you choose to fall deeper into her arms.
“Thank you, Eula.”
You can’t see it, but even if the huff Eula lets out is disgruntled, the look of love she gives you says otherwise.