“Positive. Frankly, it doesn’t seem to me she’s even making any effort to hide it. Her curves are evident, particularly in the chest region, and she’s taken no measures to conceal them.”
“Wait. You’re right.” Luciana re-examined her, this time with her eyes on the right places. She did have curves. Her masculine garments confused Luciana at first, but upon closer scrutiny, it was obvious they’d been tailored to fit a feminine figure. “Now I can’t remember why I thought she was a man.”
“Her mannerisms, if I were to wager a guess. She carries herself in a very…flirtatious way. It’s difficult to describe, but it’s artificial in a sense. It’s as if she’s emulating the ‘perfect man’ as perceived by women, directly appealing to their sensibilities.”
“I’m not sure what that means, but long story short, that’s Ciestine van Rordpier? The second imperial princess of the Rordpier Empire?”
“In all likelihood, yes.”
Ciestine van Rordpier was a very handsome woman, then. She fit naturally at Anna-Marie’s side.
“In any case, I believe it’s safe to assume this is what Lady Anna-Marie was summoned for,” Melody went on. “They must have been waffling over a partner for Her Highness until the last minute.”
“True. Obviously, Prince Christopher would be the first pick, but how do you reconcile a pair both wearing a prince’s regalia? It’s a confusing image.”
“I can imagine the debates they must have had, deciding if her partner ought to be male or female.”
“But ultimately they landed on Lady Anna-Marie at the last minute. That can’t have been easy for her,” Luciana said. “I wonder why she dresses like that.”
“Why indeed.”
“And another thing.”
“What’s that?”
“Something about Her Highness just…makes my blood boil. Why is that, do you think?”
“I could not begin to guess.”
Elsewhere, far to the north, in the County of Rudleberg, a young man’s ears burned. And no one would ever know.
“Terribly sorry to trouble you with my selfish requests, Lady Anna-Marie.”
“I-it’s no trouble, Your Highness. I’m honored you would have me.”
The princess and the marquess’s daughter continued their short walk to His Majesty’s stage, whispering to one another.
Anna-Marie flashed one of her practiced grins to her audience while stealing a glance to her side. The resemblance is strong. She might as well be a genderbent Schroden.
Ciestine was the spitting image of The Silver Saint and the Five Oaths’s fifth love interest. The only notable difference was her gender, and the princess’s frigid, ice-blue eyes.
I’m not sure what I was expecting, but definitely not this. Let me guess—more butterfly-effect crap that we caused! It was her go-to whenever things did not go to plan, but in truth, most of the blame belonged to an unrelated party by the name of Melody. Ignorant of this, Anna-Marie had only herself to chastise. Aside from the fact that she’s, well, a girl, which is admittedly hard to ignore, all of this is the same as what happened with Schroden.
In the game, he, too, had suffered the peerage’s scrutiny and suspicion, only for his charm to melt that wariness into fascination. Not even those who were beguiled changed their tune. Ciestine had a vise grip on the noblewomen of the ball.
Not that that’s too surprising. Even in Japan, there are plenty of actresses with their share of female admirers. The only question is what the heck that’s going to mean for the narrative!
A lot could change depending on that answer. Would Ciestine supplant Schroden entirely as the fifth love interest for the purposes of the plot? Or would the plot itself shift around his absence?
How am I supposed to know?! Yeah, let me just tell the future real quick! Even as she screamed internally, Anna-Marie presented the perfect lady.
When they at last stood before the king, Ciestine greeted him not with a curtsy, as expected of a lady, but with a princely bow. His Majesty, swallowing his opinions regarding the gesture, greeted the princess, and so the first dance began. Traditionally, at all royally hosted balls, this would belong to a single pair—the king and queen. The Spring Ball was the sole exception, functioning essentially as a debutante ball, but this year was particularly special. The palace was playing host to an imperial princess, and in light of that, His and Her Majesties ceded the floor to Ciestine and her partner, Anna-Marie.
Wish I could have known ahead of time! Anna-Marie grumbled beneath her flawless smile.
Ciestine offered her hand. “May I?”
Anna-Marie accepted with well-concealed hesitation. “Of course, Your Highness.”
The center of the ballroom parted, making way for them, and the Summer Ball commenced at last.
Huh? As the first song struck its first chords, before Anna-Marie could even think to take her first step, her feet were already moving. What?!
Ciestine swept her away. She led her partner as a conductor led an orchestra, with grace, with mastery, and above all, with a fluidity that told Anna-Marie’s body how to move faster than her own brain could. The audience was as awestruck as she.
“Lady Anna-Marie is more exquisite today than ever,” an onlooker sighed.
“They must have practiced together in secret. They’re in perfect sync.”
“I wouldn’t mind this being the night’s main event. Oh, I can’t look away.”
Anna-Marie was lauded as many things. A genius. A beauty. The perfect lady. In truth, that perfection resulted from a lifetime’s worth of blood, sweat, and tears. She was, after all, only a young Japanese girl in the body of a terribly ordinary aristocrat. Any indication to the contrary was a testament to her dedication. She took some pride in that, particularly when it came to dance. She thought she could handle a waltz or two quite well, if she said so herself.
And yet.
She’s in a league of her own!
Anna-Marie, for all her pride, felt like a hill in the shadow of a mountain. All her practice was meaningless in the face of such talent. She needn’t have bothered practicing because she was not dancing now. Ciestine was. Anna-Marie was merely along for the ride.
She was in Ciestine’s world now.
An alien feeling came over Anna-Marie. Her feet moved in ways she knew they could not—could never. Even as the illusion draped over her, she saw it for what it was. This was not the freedom it pretended to be.
This could be trouble.
Any other lady would have fallen prey to the subtle hypnotism. The allure of Ciestine’s eyes. The naive misconception that a woman would never lay a hand on another woman. The magic of the dance. All of it created a cunning camouflage to hide the truth; this was not a woman—this was a predator.
Anna-Marie’s guard went up. “You’re very talented, Your Highness.”
“Why, thank you, my lady.” Ciestine’s pale blue eyes narrowed into a pair of icicles, then softened with a smile. “I practice.”
Agh! I like them cute, personally, but maybe I’m starting to see the appeal of… No! Focus!
Anna-Marie’s proclivities were her own worst enemy. Despite the very real danger of the situation, her sincere love of women put her at a severe disadvantage. Ciestine was perhaps a more formidable opponent than Schroden ever could have been.
“I have to,” the princess rasped quietly. “If I want to be better than him.”
“Sorry?”
A shadow seemed to pass over that androgynous face, but Anna-Marie was too distracted to notice. By the time she looked, it had already passed, and the princess was smiling again.
The song slowed. The dance ended. Ciestine relinquished control, and Anna-Marie was free, back in the realm of tempered mediocrity.
They bowed to His Majesty as applause washed over them.
She thinks I’m wrapped around her finger now, I’m sure. Anna-Marie glanced at the princely princess as she waved to her adoring public. At least it was over, and the Summer Ball could begin in earnest.
As the next song started, she and the princess retired. Christopher joined them, and he asked their guest what she hoped to accomplish before the night was through.
“Seeing as I’m to attend the academy,” Ciestine said, with her low yet ambiguously feminine voice, “I’d like to get to know my schoolmates.”
A wave was coming, but was it a tsunami or merely a matter of perspective?