The palace hallways were practically glowing with candlelight as Neve walked alongside Cordelia to her father’s study. Gilded gold filigree covered nearly every inch of the walls, a design detail not so subtly borrowed from King Daurin’s palace in Auric.

Supposedly, King Cygrus had visited Cendril’s capital in his youth, and had been so taken in by the glittering halls of Glassen palace that when he ascended the throne the first thing he did was tear down the frescoes and tapestries of his ancestors and redecorate in Glassen’s image. Several of the older courtiers who breathed tradition as if it were their only life source were still put out by the new decor decades later.

Neve didn’t really care either way. At least her new home at Glassen would have some familiarity.

As they passed window by window, Neve observed that it was still snowing heavily with several inches now coating the ground and skeletal branches of the trees outside. She stared longingly out the window as they walked. Apparently it didn’t snow very much in Auric.

Behind her and Cordelia, Louisa and the others followed silently in rows of two, along with Cordelia's own ladies-in-waiting. It was a comfort to know Louisa was still close, but her friend could do nothing to prevent the inevitable.

Two guards dressed in Hercynian red stood outside her father’s study. Upon seeing their queen and princess, they saluted and informed the two women that the king was expecting them. Neve and Cordelia entered, their ladies waiting in the hall.

Dressed in a crimson doublet with gold leaves embroidered throughout, King Cygrus sat near a roaring fire, drinking an amber-colored liquid Neve suspected to be whisky and laughing with a few members of his council. Neve instantly recognized Lord Bowers, Louisa’s father.

Like the rest of the palace, King Cygrus’s study had been redone in gold, with touches of red. Neve had always hated the color red; it reminded her too much of blood. She glanced at herself in one of the many mirrors placed throughout the room and tried not to grimace. It didn’t help that red highlight how ghostly she looked. She had to admit that Louisa with her warmer coloring could pull the color off nicely.

Upon their entry, King Cygrus turned and exclaimed in delight when he spotted Neve in her finery.

“My darling girl, how fine you look,” he said, straightening in the high back chair in which he sat and gesturing her forward with the flick of his hand. “Come, let me get a better look at you in the light.”

Neve blushed and obeyed, giving a little spin at her father’s insistence.

“You have such an eye, Cordelia,” King Cygrus praised. It had been her step-mother who designed Neve’s engagement gown.

It was Cordelia’s turn to blush. “Thank you, my lord.”

The King set his glass down and clapped his hands twice. “Leave us,” he said to his men. “I’d like a moment alone with my daughter.”

Cordelia gave a tight lipped smile as she realized she was being dismissed as well. The men stood and bowed, first to the King, and then to the Queen and Princess.

Once they were alone, King Cygrus stood and clasped his daughter's hands, looking her over once again.

“You look as beautiful as your mother,” he said softly, and Neve beamed with pride. While alive, her mother had been thought of as the most beautiful woman in the Kingdom of Hercynia, possibly the world. Several nobles liked to reminisce about the late Queen Priscilla beauty while Cordelia was in earshot. The new queen took the jab with grace, though Neve had seen the poor woman’s lip tremble a few times. It was incredibly unfair, and made little sense to the young princess, especially since it was well known that her father married Cordelia for her beauty. Jealousy was an ugly thing indeed.

“It brings me such sorrow to lose you,” King Cygrus continued. Neve bit her tongue to stop the retort dancing on the tip of it. They had already had this argument before. Never was marrying Prince Asher whether she wanted to or not. It would not help her to anger her father tonight.

The chiming of an ornate clock in the room told them that it was time to head for the ballroom, where Neve and Prince Asher would meet for the first time.

Not for the first time today, Neve wanted to run away screaming at the thought.

King Cygrus dropped his daughter’s hands and walked past her to inspect himself in the mirror. He frowned slightly as he rubbed a hand along his graying beard and adjusted the collar of his shirt.

“You look quite handsome, Father,” Neve said, hoping the compliment would please him. The King met her eye in the mirror and flashed a toothy grin.

“Thank you my dear.” He turned towards the door and held out a hand. “Now come along. We mustn’t keep your fiancé waiting.”

The ballroom was already filled with guests when the fanfare sounded and the crier announced the arrival of Neve, her father and step-mother. Dignitaries and courtiers from all over were packed into the cavern of a room, so much so that Neve didn’t even notice the decorations at first. Upon reflection, she wasn’t sure how she missed them.

Sparing no expense for his daughter’s engagement ball, King Cygnus had the normally golden ballroom covered up in silver, stark white and diamonds, giving the room the impression of an ice cave. The wide, glass doors that led out onto the terrace showed the palace gardens encased in a thick layer of snow, adding to the ambience. Silver taper candles were lit with blue flames all around the room, including the giant crystal chandelier that hung from the center of the ceiling.

The walls had been draped with yards and yards of silver damask silk to hide the golden filigree underneath. Neve had no idea where her father had even found that much silk.

At the far end of the ballroom, a dais had been set up with three thrones and hanging above them were two banners. One was crimson red, the same color as Neve’s dress, and showed a golden serpent twisting around an apple blossom branch. The other was periwinkle blue and showed a golden eagle with an iris clutched in its talons. The banners of Hercynia and Cendril.

The crowd split into two, leaving a narrow walkway towards the dais. King Cygrus walked in front towards the thrones, the same two guards from outside his study flanking two steps behind him. Behind the guards Neve walked beside Cordelia, their ladies-in-waiting following again in their rows of two.

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Neve stared straight ahead, her stomach twisting painfully. She was sure she’d vomit up the wine she had drunk not an hour before if she made eye contact with anyone, save perhaps Louisa.

When King Cygrus reached the dais, he stepped onto it and sank down into the middle throne, which was notably larger and more ornate than the other two with apple blossoms carved at the top and set with rubies, though they were all upholstered in red velvet. The two guards split at the base of the dais to stand at opposite ends of it. Neve went and sat on the throne to her father’s left and Cordelia his right.

Once the queen and princess had stepped onto the dais, the ladies-in-waiting dispersed into the waiting party-goers. Neve watched the back of Louisa’s head as she made her way towards where her own parents were waiting.

All was silent for what felt to Neve like a hundred years, though she supposed it had only been mere seconds. Then, King Cygrus addressed the room.

“Friends and honored guests, my wife and I thank you for joining us today for this most joyous occasion.”

The was so silent that Neve feared everyone could hear how rapidly her heart was beating. She gripped the sides of her throne and stared straight ahead, looking at no one and nothing in particular as she tried to force herself to calm down.

Her father continued, “As you know, my beautiful daughter, Princess Neve, has finally come of age. With much consideration, I have chosen for her a husband worthy of the Hercynian kingdom. Let me do the honor of introducing you to His Royal Highness, Prince Asher of Cendril.”

King Cygrus raised a hand in gesture, and the fanfare trumpeted once again. Through the same doors Neve had just come through, a procession emerged into the ballroom and headed towards the dais. The crowd turned from the king and watched as the group passed. Neve’s gaze finally settled on the striking figure leading the way.

Prince Asher stopped just before dais and bowed to King Cygrus. Dressed in periwinkle blue, the color of his kingdom, he was a handsome man eight years Neve’s senior. He was fair with a healthy glow, dark brown hair that appeared almost black in low lighting.

King Cygrus rose from his throne and held out a hand to Prince Asher, who stepped onto the dais and met the king’s hand in a firm shake.

“Rise, Neve,” King Cygrus said, turning slightly toward his daughter. On trembling legs, Neve stood and made her way to her father and the man who would officially be her fiance in mere moments.

As she stood before him, Neve had never felt so small in her life. She barely came up to his chest, and she had to crane her neck to look at him. Dropping into a curtsey, she felt her stomach begin to roll painfully and she began to breathe as deeply as she could without making noise.

Prince Asher bowed to her as well. When he straightened she got a good look at his incredibly handsome face, she found that his eyes were a bright blue. She tried not to shrink back as those eyes looked her up and down, assessing her. A portrait of her had been sent to him of course, and Cendril had sent one of him as well, so they knew what each other looked like, but artists were known to emphasize a subject's most desirable features while omitting the less desirable ones.

In Prince Asher’s case, the portrait had been accurate. Neve couldn’t help but wonder if he thought the same of hers. His features were smoothed into a neutral expression, not cruel but not kind either, and it was impossible for her to get a read on him.

“Princess,” Prince Asher said in greeting, his voice as smooth as butter sliding over hot toast.

“Your Highness,” Neve responded, wincing as her voice cracked. The prince’s lip twitched slightly as he fought back a smirk, clearly noticing.

Unsure of what else to say, Neve was saved the trouble as Prince Asher dropped down on one knee, and produced a small box of royal blue velvet from inside his jacket pocket.

“Your Highness, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife and future queen?” With that he opened the box, revealing a gold ring with the largest sapphire she had ever seen. The sapphire was encircled with alternating opals and white pearls.

Neve gave the prince a weak smile. “Yes.”

She didn’t trust herself to say anything more than that. Apparently, both her father and Prince Asher thought that was good enough, and seconds later the ring was being slipped onto the appropriate finger. Neve stared at it, flexing her fingers. It was heavy and looked garishly large on her small hand.

King Cygrus stepped forward, raising a silver goblet that he somehow procured. “To the unification of Hercynia and Cendril.”

“To Hercynia and Cendril,” the crowd echoed, also raising glasses that had seemingly appeared out of nowhere.

Prince Asher took her hand and bent forward to kiss it. Still feeling dazed, Neve vaguely heard him say something to her.

“Sorry?”

Prince Asher’s lip twitched again in amusement. “I asked you if I may have this dance?”

Music had started up, filling the ballroom with a soft, romantic melody.

“Oh, yes. Of course.” Neve felt her face heat and feared her complexion was turning the same shade as her gown. She allowed him to escort her onto the dancefloor, the crowd stepping back to give them space. Desperately, she tried to look for Louisa in the crowd, but only found a sea of faces she didn’t know.

Prince Asher took her by the waist and Neve automatically rested her hand on his shoulder, her years of dance lessons kicking in. They began to move to the music, back and forth and turning. Slowly other couples joined them. Feeling incredibly awkward, Neve looked up at her husband-to-be.

“I trust your trip to Essen was pleasant?” she asked, unsure of what else to say. The prince snorted in response.

“As pleasant as spending several days on choppy waters and then a week-long carriage ride through a blizzard can be.”

Neve blinked in surprise at the rudeness of his tone.

“I’m sorry,” she said wearily. “I had heard it had already started snowing at the coast, but I didn’t realize how much. It only started snowing here today.”

Prince Asher gave her a bewildered look. “It only started snowing today?”

Outside, it was still snowing heavily, adding another foot of snow since the last time Neve looked.

“Yes. I suppose you don’t get much snow in the south.”

“Most definitely not,” he scoffed. He looked around the ballroom, thinly disguised distaste tracing his features. “Do you think your father decorated enough?”

The sarcasm was evident and Neve tried her best to keep her expression neutral, despite the fact that she very much wanted to smack him.

“My father prides himself on having the best,” she said tightly, heat scorching her cheeks, though this time not from embarrassment.

“If you say so.”

Neve decided it was time to change the subject. “I’ve heard there was a break-in at Glassen. Perhaps you should speak with my father’s Captain of the Guard on updating your security. Captain Kentworth has implemented wonderful preventative measures. No one has dared to even try in years.”

It was Prince Asher’s turn to flush.

“Don’t worry yourself, Your Highness. My own Captain caught the assailant in record time,” he said, flashing her a smile that didn’t meet his eyes.

“He still managed to break in though, didn’t he?” Neve asked.

“She.”

“I’m sorry?”

“The assailant was a she,” Prince Asher said.

Neve let out a very unladylike snort, earning her an odd look from her fiancé. “A woman broke into your palace? You really should talk to Captain Kentworth.”

A second later Prince Asher stepped on her foot, causing her to yelp. Several couples dancing nearby gave them odd looks and Neve couldn’t help glare up at him.

“Sorry, Princess,” he said in a falsely apologetic tone. “I’ve got two left feet it seems. And just so you know, this woman is thought to be a highly skilled thief that we caught on her first attempt breaking into the palace. Though I suppose if you’ve spent your entire life sitting around drinking tea and looking pretty, the thought of another woman being daring would be a shocking concept.”

The urge to slap him took hold of Neve again in full force, her entire body shaking in anger. Luckily, the song ended and the couples all broke away clapping. Neve and Prince Asher practically jumped apart.

“If you’ll excuse me, Your Highness,” Neve said, her voice vibrating with the fury raging in her chest. “It’s rather hot in here. I think I need some air.”

Without waiting for him to respond, Neve spun on her heel and stormed through the crowd towards the snow-covered gardens.