When I finally made my way through the dense crowd, I found Amelia and Leon conversing with several other students. I gritted my teeth when I noticed that Leon was standing close to Amelia, occasionally brushing her arm as he spoke to her.

I masked my scowl after a second, remembering Julian's admonishment and approached the group. Amelia and Leon both turned to me as I came within earshot, Amelia raised her hand, placing it on my arm.

"There you are! I was worried you'd left me here without saying anything," she said, laughing softly.

I smiled and shook my head before replying, "I would never. But I did want to ask you something."

Amelia raised an eyebrow, the hint of a grin crossing her face, but she said nothing.

Taking a deep breath and wondering if I was making a mistake, I bowed my head and held out one hand, before saying, "Would you like to dance?"

Glancing up, I saw that both Amelia and Leon looked surprised, and she nodded after a second, her grin blossoming into a smile.

As we walked back onto the dance floor, Amelia leaned in and whispered, "Took you long enough."

I turned back to her and chuckled before replying, "Better late than never, I suppose."

We found an open spot near the center of the dance floor, where the slowest dancers gathered, and I placed my hand onto her back, ignoring the pounding of my heart in my chest. I had not noticed before, but now that we were just a few inches apart, I was hyper-aware of her body heat, and a flowery smell that I assumed was perfume.

I could not help but note the irony that I was more nervous about dancing with a beautiful girl than I was confronting thieves that had nearly killed me.

The music soon began to swell, and I took the first step, feeling a bit of relief when I realized this song was typically accompanied by a particularly simple dance. Still, I mentally reviewed the dance as we moved, struggling to make sure I performed every step as close to perfect.

"You can dance?" Amelia said, raising an eyebrow as we moved in time with the music.

"I had some training growing up, to make sure I did not embarrass the Esttons. Truthfully, I doubted it would ever prove useful, but it seems I was mistaken." I added grinning.

Amelia smiled back before wincing as my foot stepped on her toes.

"Not to sound rude, but you may need a little more practice. You aren't the most graceful dancer I've ever seen before."

"It has been a few years, so I may be rusty, and I was never a diligent student about dancing. I hope you can bear with me."

"If you'd like, we can break up the monotony of combat training with some dance practice. You can learn how to not destroy my feet, and I can show you some more advanced routines. A perfect win-win for the next time we attend a banquet."

I raised an eyebrow at her words.

"There will be a next time?"

Amelia smiled, pointedly ignoring my question, and we danced in comfortable silence, as I gradually became more used to the moves. While I was still clumsy and moved with halting indecision, Amelia moved with a skilled dancer's casual grace. Although I had surpassed her in terms of strength and stamina, this dance showed me how far ahead she remained in agility and balance.

After the dance ended, Amelia looked at me in silence for several seconds, and I remembered my manners.

"Thank you for the dance," I said, smiling and inclining my head before offering my arm to her. Amelia returned my grin before looping her arm through my own, and I led us back over the group. As we approached, I

saw that Leon was now speaking to a tall, beautiful blonde girl, likely another apprentice judging by her age.

"-of course, I wanted to dance with you, but you seemed to be busy with your friends. I did not want to interrupt your conversation." Leon said, looking to me with apparent desperation. Despite my annoyance at him, I had no choice but to help him.

"Will you excuse me for a minute?" I asked Amelia, and when she nodded, I walked up to Leon and said, "My lord, may I speak to you? In private, preferably."

"Ah, yes, of course, Vayne! Anything for my friend. Please, follow me." Leon answered, relief clear in his voice.

He led me up to the third floor and out onto one of the balconies overlooking the city. The only other people out there, apprentices who looked to be a bit too comfortable with one another, and likely deep into wine glasses, quickly returned to the main room.

"Thank you, Vayne. As you may have gathered, my date is not particularly thrilled with me tonight. When I asked Amelia for a dance, Cyllia took it as an insult and was more than happy to make her displeasure evident, conveniently ignoring that she was declined my offer for a dance." Leon said, sighing and shaking his head.

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"I gathered as much, my lord. If I may ask, why did you bring her if you disliked her so much?" I asked, curious about his intentions. Leon was attractive and charismatic enough that he could have his pick of dates.

"Cyllia's mother is Duchess Arand, one of the few people in Ferris of comparable might and influence to my father. Her mother and my father have been discussing an arrangement between us. Tonight was meant to see how compatible we are and if we could marry and not kill each other." Leon explained, chuckling and shaking his head before leaning against the balcony.

"I take it that she is not a good fit?" I asked, noting it was slightly improper to ask but also curious.

Snorting, Leon shook his head and said, "I have seen starving beasts that are more compassionate and understanding than her. She is smart, beautiful, and likely to become a powerful mage, but she is arrogant, rude, and condescending. Unfortunately, I suspect I will be seeing more of her if her mother has her way."

Internally, I felt a hint of amusement at the notion that Leon, charismatic and popular with women, had a problem such as this. Still, I felt some sense of responsibility to advise him. Although I did not want to become his counselor anymore, years of training, and ingrained loyalty still left a mark.

"Can you not just turn her down? Or find a more suitable partner?"

Sighing, Leon did not answer for several minutes, staring out onto the cityscape before turning towards me.

"Maybe, but life does not always give you a choice. I can turn down this one, but what about the next one? If the Estton family is to continue, I need to eventually find a wife of high standing, and in all likelihood, I will not be thrilled about it. My father was lucky and loved my mother, but that sort of fortune is rare." he finally said, his eyes unfocused and his tone quiet.

I had nothing to say to that, and nodded several times, shifting my feet in place as the silence continued to stretch out. After several minutes, Leon blinked hard, and a smile came to his face.

"Enough of that, though! I owe you an apology, Vayne. My night has been unpleasant, and well, my common sense failed me in my frustration. It was improper and rude to take away your date for a dance so abruptly. Please, forgive me." Leon said, bowing his head.

Although I still felt a bit of annoyance at how casually he had flirted with Amelia, in truth, it was not particularly unusual. At banquets such as these, it was not uncommon to dance with many people, and it was often seen as just a social interaction. And beyond that, I preferred not to hold a grudge, particularly against someone who was an ally and possibly even a friend.

"All is forgiven, sir. Your family has done more for me than I can ever repay, and I could never imagine holding a grudge against you," I answered, forcing a mostly genuine smiling to my face.

Leon nodded, and we walked back into the main room, returning to the rest of the group. As soon as we arrived, Leon led Cyllia out onto the dance floor, a barely concealed scowl still on her face.

"She looks thrilled," Amelia muttered, tilting her head minutely to Cyllia.

I hid my smile, shrugging and replying, "I prefer not to get involved. Would you like to take a walk and maybe get a drink or something to eat?"

She nodded, saying, "Gladly. Lead the way."

The next few hours passed in a blur, as Amelia and I made our way around the room. We talked with dozens of people, many of them evidently friendly with Amelia, eaten what felt like our weight in food and, against my better judgment, had several glasses of wine.

By the end of the party, I slowly led the two of us back towards Amelia's room, exhaustion having crept into my body. Frequent exercise and training aside, hours of socializing with rich, powerful nobles left me tired and ready for some quiet solitude.

"I like it when you actually relax and have fun for a change. Usually, you are all serious and focused, but you can actually let loose once in a while." Amelia said as we climbed the stairs, turning to smile at me.

I raised an eyebrow at her words before shaking my head with a chuckle.

"I will try and take that as complimentary. Unfortunately, I doubt I will have much of a chance for the rest of the semester. I need to be as prepared as possible for my expedition out east with the Esttons."

"It's too bad that I'll be too busy to come along, or I could make sure you don't get eaten. I've seen how you swing a sword, and if that's all that stands between you and a magic beast, you should probably pour salt on yourself and save the creatures the trouble."

I smiled and said, "I will be sure to keep that in mind. I would prefer to not end up as dinner for some creature. I have many things I want to accomplish in life, and dying before sixteen is not one of them."

We came to a stop in front of her door, and Amelia turned to me, pushing a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

"Thank you for tonight, Vayne," she said, stepping in close and wrapping her arms around me in a hug.

I froze, not expecting the gesture, but after a second, put my arms around her. We stood in silence for several seconds, until she pulled back and looked up at me, my arms still encircling her. I realized with some surprise that she was actually shorter than me, remembering that when I first met Amelia, she had been the taller one.

Seconds passed, my heartbeat loud in my ears, and I saw Amelia's lips part slightly. My instincts screamed at me to close the distance between us, but after a moment of indecision, I released my arms and pulled back hesitantly.

"What's wrong?" Amelia asked, a hurt look coming to her eyes.

I sighed, turning my eyes down before looking back up and replying, "I am sorry, but this is a bit...new to me. I have never gone to anything like this, and certainly not with a friend. And it is leaving me a bit...unsure how to proceed."

There was more to it, and I knew that I needed to approach any romantic interests with caution. If it ended poorly, I would lose a friend and potential ally, and I did not want that. And I was still aware that any relationships I started would be likely doomed to failure, if only because I remained a commoner and eventually would have to leave Ferris in search of Cortos' remaining sanctums.

Amelia considered my words for several seconds before nodding and a step back.

"I see. Well, I suppose we can work on it the next time we attend a banquet together. Like I have said, you could stand to relax and loosen up a bit more, but baby steps." Amelia said, turning and opening her door before glancing back to me.

"For future reference, that was when you are supposed to kiss the girl. Good night, Vayne." Amelia said with a grin, before closing the door and leaving me alone in the hallway.

I blinked hard several times, a mixture of emotions flooding into my brain before I rubbed my eyes and turned, walking away and back towards my room. Logically, I knew that I could not do afford to progress beyond friendship, but that did not make it any easier to accept.