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“Oi, where’s my ale?”
“It’s here, and it’s your last! You’ve had too much tonight, Roland,” you set a flagon of ale in front of the roussainte man, gently scolding him. Another night at the Honeybee. It had been busy lately, and Fabienne had reluctantly asked for your help. It had been years since you had seen one another, given that you had moved to Montario as a child, but you were back in Grand Trad, living on Sunshade Row.
“Thank you, love, having you here has been such help,” Fabienne gave you her gentle smile. “I’m so glad we’ve gotten to see one another again.”
“I missed you too, Fabienne.” Your chestnut tail flicked as you grinned at her.
The door opened, and you turned to see a very handsome clemar man walk in. THE very handsome clemar man, if you were being honest. He came for dinner almost weekly, and of course you had noticed him. He carried himself like a man who had nothing to fear - confident without being conceited. He always had a smile for Maria, and was gracious to Fabienne as well. Occasionally he was accompanied by a red-haired roussainte woman, or a tall paripus man, but usually he was alone.
Maria had already gathered a glass of mead and a plate of roasted bidou, and carried it over to him. “Who is THAT?” you whispered to Fabienne, finally being curious enough to ask. She raised her eyebrows at you. “I mean…He’s just here a lot, I’ve noticed. That’s all.” You could feel the blush on your face.
“Of course that’s all,” she gave you a knowing smile. “That’s Leon Strohl. He works closely with the king.”
“What’s he doing HERE? He works with the king, shouldn’t he be…I don’t know, up at the palace or something? At least at the tavern on Sunlumeo, what’s he doing in Sunshade Row?”
“Oh, you would be surprised at how many people I know,” Fabienne laughed. “I’m quite well connected these days. Did you know the royal engineer made the sign outside? He and Maria get along quite well, he’s been teaching her the arts.”
“There is so much I don’t know about you, Fabienne.”
Maria practically bounced back to the counter. “Miss Fabienne, I’ve been invited to the palace tomorrow! Can I go?”
“Of course, darling. Will Strohl be escorting you?” Maria nodded in reply. “Well, I think you should bring her along as well, she hasn’t been introduced.”
“Fab! No, I am in no position to meet royalty!” you hissed at her. You could feel your ears flattening, and your tail twitching to your increasing heartbeat. “I am just some paripus girl!”
“I’m a paripus as well, if you haven’t noticed, and I have been to the castle many times. The king appreciates my redgrass roasted bidou, and has me teaching the palace chefs.” Fabienne shook her head. “Who would have thought my humble roasted bidou would end up on a palace menu?”
Maria tugged at your sleeve. “Don’t worry, miss! Everyone at the palace is really nice. I think everyone is going to be there! You haven’t met them all yet, have you?” Maria rambled on about the king and his friends. You knew they were all of different tribes, but had little idea of what they looked like, and had no idea what their names were.
“I suggest you get a good night’s rest, between Maria’s excitement and your nerves, I suspect tomorrow will be quite exhausting for you.” Fabienne rushed the two of you upstairs to your beds.
—--
“What do I wear to meet the king?” you asked Maria, who was already dressed and rocking back and forth on the balls of her feet. “I don’t really have anything fancy.”
“You don’t need anything fancy, miss! I’m just wearing what I always wear. You can, too! I’m sure the king won’t mind.” Maria said sagely.
Well, she knows best, I suppose. You pulled out a skirt, fitted like Fabienne’s, and a long sleeved blouse that you cinched with a belt. “Is this all right?” You twirled for Maria.
“Wowwww, you look so pretty! Maybe even prettier than Miss Fabienne!” Her eyes were wide.
“Please, Maria, no one is prettier than Miss Fabienne! She’s the most beautiful woman on Sunshade Row!” You laughed as the pair of you walked down the stairs, where you almost bumped directly into the handsome clemar man - Strohl, you remembered. “Oh! I’m so sorry, I wasn’t watching where I was going.”
“Quite all right, my lady,” His voice was smooth, and you felt your heart flutter. “Maria! Are you ready to go?” Maria nodded excitedly as Strohl turned to you. “I heard that you’ll be accompanying us? Pardon my rudeness, I didn’t introduce myself. I’m Leon Strohl, advisor to the king.”
You gave him your name. “And yes, if that’s all right. I know the invitation was only for Maria, but Fabienne suggested I come along as well. She said something about it not being fair that she and Maria are the only ones working at the Honeybee with friends in high places.”
Strohl laughed, and you thought that all you wanted was to hear him laugh every day for the rest of your life. “Fabienne is the one in a high place. We would not be where we are without her assistance.”
There was so much Fabienne had not told you about her life in your years away. “I had no idea she was so important to the king,” you said as the three of you sauntered down the road. People outside either bowed or waved to Strohl as you passed, which he always graciously returned. “Come to think of it, I see you at the Honeybee quite often. I probably should have guessed.”
“You’ve noticed me?” Strohl’s voice wasn’t teasing, but seemed full of surprise. You blushed under his gaze.
“To be honest, it’s hard not to. A clemar, a noble one at that, in our hole in the wall?”
“I have spent plenty a night in that hole in the wall, I’ll have you know. The beds are quite comfortable, and the food is obviously outstanding.” His eyes sparkled, but there was a hint of sadness? Maybe anger? “There was a time when we were not as…Accepted as we are now.”
Of course you knew about the Tournament for the Throne. You knew all the basics of it, but being a paripus, your energy was spent more on trying to survive. It wasn’t until you returned to Grand Trad, well after the king’s coronation, that you could relax.
Maria had run ahead of the pair of you, and shouted at you to hurry. Your heels clacked on the pavement as you rushed to catch up to her. Strohl led the pair of you to the palace doors, where the guards immediately parted for you. Your tail was twitching, and Strohl noticed. “Hey. There’s nothing to be nervous about. We’re all just normal people.” he leaned in and whispered to you (which honestly only made your heart race more).
“I’m fine. It’s…It’s fine.” You felt like your knees were about to buckle beneath you. Strohl extended his arm to you, which you took nervously. “I’m sorry, I do feel quite weak in the knees. I’ve never met anyone of such importance…Besides, apparently, Fabienne. And now you.”
“I’m not really of any importance, my lady. Just fortunate enough to have fought for what’s right.”
You looked up at him, only to find him gazing down at you. The pair of you looked away as your eyes met. Awkward. I am so awkward. I have this beautiful man escorting me to meet the king and I can’t even hold it together.
“Will! Maria’s here!” Strohl called. The king came out of a side room and knelt to Maria’s level, hugging her. The red-haired roussainte woman followed, giving a smile to Maria, and turning to you. Her eyes went down to your arm entwined with Strohl’s, and she raised her eyebrows. You quickly pulled away, smoothing your skirt, and didn’t notice the teasing smile she gave him. He cleared his throat, and introduced you to the knight - Hulkenberg.
“Pleasure to finally make your acquaintance, my lady,” Hulkenberg bowed her head to you. “Strohl has mentioned-”
“AND this is Will, the king,” Strohl spoke over her, leading you to Will, practically tugging your arm off in the process.
“It’s lovely to meet you, Your Highness,” you gave a clumsy curtsey, and cringed as you stood. So very awkward.
“Just Will. I might be the king, but amongst friends I’m just Will. Any friend of Fabienne and Maria is a friend of mine.” He took your hand and shook it firmly.
“All right…Will.” You introduced yourself to Hulkenberg and Will. Hulkenberg was still looking at Strohl with amusement.
“Oi, I know her!” A black-haired paripus man came bounding down the stairs. “You’re the lass at the Honeybee!”
“Uh, yes! That’s me,” You were surprised at how casual this all seemed. Maria was dashing from person to person, giving hugs and asking about their adventures. It was like any gathering of friends that you had seen. You had expected more pomp and circumstance, fancy clothing, decorum, and all. Instead, you were met with this…Normality.
“Oh, THIS is her!” the paripus, who had introduced himself as Basilio, clapped Strohl on the back.
“Please!” Strohl hissed, his cheeks growing redder by the minute. Hulkenberg looked like she wanted to fall over laughing.
“Stop giving him such a hard time, Basilio! Not everyone knows how to speak to a pretty lady, after all!” You definitely recognized Lady Junah. “Hello there, love! We’ve heard of you, and your special Coney Stew! Strohl says it’s simply divine!”
You were just looking around with wide eyes. Your tail was still twitching madly, and Basilio smirked. As he was also a paripus, he knew exactly what that meant, and he seemed amused by your nerves. You could even feel your ears twitch, and wished you could just grab your tail to make it stop.
“Can we please stop?” Strohl gave a pitiful sort of moan. “You’re all so embarrassing.”
“I can hear you from across the palace, what kind of ruckus is happening here?” A deep voiced eugief sauntered in. “All this because of the paripus girl at the Honeybee?”
“Oh, gods above!” Strohl exclaimed. “Can we please talk about something else?”
Maria, who had been looking around confused, seemed to realize something. “Ohh! I get it now!” She looked at Strohl. “Why don’t you just tell her you think she’s pretty?”
Hulkenberg finally let out the laugh she had obviously been holding in. The eugief was grinning from ear to ear, and Lady Junah hopped from one foot to the other in amusement. Even Will couldn’t help but chuckle at his friend. Basilio clapped Strohl on the back, and he winced, his cheeks redder than they had ever been.
“I feel like we’re intruding. Let’s give them a minute,” Will ushered his friends out of the room, all of them giggling and laughing. Even Maria looked amused.
“That was…Odd,” You looked over to Strohl, who had his back to you. “Are you all right?” You touched his shoulder, and he gave a jolt. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you-”
“No, the fault is mine…For saying anything to those…Those absolutely boorish jokers,” The last part was probably meant to be said under his breath, but you still heard.
“I don’t even fully understand what they were talking about!” You laughed. “How do they even know who I am? Fabienne must have-”
“No, it was me,” Strohl closed his eyes tightly. “I…May have mentioned once or twice that there was a new girl at the Honeybee, a beautiful girl whose laugh sounds like sunshine and whose eyes sparkle, and they do love to tease me for it.”
“...Wait. Me?” You blushed. “I suppose this would be the time to confess that I have also noticed you, and memorized your order, although Maria always beats me to it. I wanted an excuse to speak with you, but I couldn’t bring myself to. I knew you were at least nobility, and I’m just a paripus girl from Montario, I don’t know how to carry myself-”
“Don’t say that you’re “just” a paripus girl,” Strohl took your hands in his. “That’s what we fought so hard for, so that no one would have to say they’re “just” anything. Everyone matters in our world. Everyone stands on equal footing.”
You looked down at your hands. His were so much bigger than yours, and calloused from years of fighting with a sword. You felt almost dainty in comparison. “I…I suppose you’re right. We’re supposed to be equal now. So…Does that mean that it would be all right for me to be so forward as to ask you if you would like to spend some time with me?”
“Well, I did not expect you to be the one to ask me. I was prepared to ask you, until my so-called friends decided to tease me until I was too flustered.” Strohl chuckled in a low voice. “I would be happy to spend some time with you. Perhaps an evening spent in Brilehaven? I do have access to a gauntlet runner that can teleport just about anywhere you’d like to go, and Brilehaven’s waterways are stunning at night. Or perhaps the village of Komero? Or Eht Ria, even, the beaches are beautiful-”
“Slow down, slow down,” you laughed. “Some of us are not quite as well-traveled as you, Lord Strohl.” His blush seemed to deepen, if that were even possible, and you were certain your face was flushing as well. “We can go to all of those places, assuming I don’t frighten you away.”
“Impossible, my lady,” He smiled, and you thought you would melt into the ground. “I have faced much worse than a beautiful woman in my life.”
“I ought to take a page from his book,” Basilio’s voice came from behind a cracked door.
“Shh! They’ll hear you, and then we won’t hear them!” Junah whispered loudly.
Strohl rolled his eyes. “Shall we go for a walk around the palace grounds? There’s quite a lot to see, after all.”
He offered his arm again, and this time you wrapped your arm around his without hesitation. His other hand went to cover yours. “Don’t follow us,” he warned his friends over his shoulder.
“I’ll be able to hear whatever they are discussing,” the eugief’s deep voice chuckled.
“They’ll HEAR you, Heismay!”