Once upon a deception

The first sin

"Your royal highness," Lady Mabel gasped, turning redder than she already was. Whatever grudge she had against Clarisse seemed to melt in the presence of the King's first son. That anger was replaced by hunger. "I apologize for causing a ruckus," She said with a bow that made her sophisticated hair which now looked more like a wet dane tilt to the side. "But this woman crossed the line."

"Yes," Prince Esteban agreed. "But she is a foreigner. You don't just expect her to immediately blend into society. I expected better from you Lady Mabel."

Lady Mabel's face turned blue and for a moment, Clarisse believed the high and mighty noblewoman was going to faint. Her grey eyes flicked in Clarisse's direction and an unsaid threat was said. The night had not even ended and Clarisse had already made an enemy even if it was the clueless daughter of the man Clarisse admired. Clarisse looked around for the Grand Duke. His lips were a firm straight line and his eyebrows were stiffer than Clarisse recalled. He was mad. Clarisse knew she had to make it right. She needed to apologize.

"Lady Mabel—" Clarisse tried to mutter but before she could even make a sentence let alone an apology, Lady Mabel stormed off.

This was going bad, Clarisse had to admit. She had been certain this night would be a breeze. She had not expected the wine to be so strong neither had she expected to ruin someone's night, have the entire world's attention on her and make a new enemy. The girl in question might have stormed off but the watching eyes had not dispersed. Clarisse shifted uncomfortably to face the first prince. He was the reason people were still watching. Unlike the King, he was a brunette. His most striking features were his eyes. They were a deep brown so thick, one could get lost in them. Knowing how his father was like, Clarisse was sure the Prince remained to take his praise.

"Thank you, Your Highness," Clarisse said, mustering another perfect curtsey.

Clarisse did not need to have a talent for mind-reading to know the look the Prince cast her was one of displeasure. Was he not satisfied with the bow and the bootlicking? That was it. Clarisse did not bother to wait for a sign of approval from him before she attempted to walk away from the drama. She would have gone far far away if the first prince did not reach out for her arm, stopping her right in her tracks.

If she was not under the King's mercy, Clarisse would have probably broken the bastard's hand but the warning look the Grand duke sent down her path and the thought of being put in the gallows for assaulting the heir apparent to the throne stopped her from taking such a drastic step. Instead, She chose to rely on her dovish construct.

"Your highness," She coughed out with a false smile. "Your hands..."

Prince Esteban pulled Clarisse close, his hands uncomfortably placed on her hips. He made her face the congregation she had been avoiding. Only then did Clarisse know why their faces lingered. The bow. Her talk. Her walk. She was the reason they all stared. A drunk refugee who needed rescue by Prince Charming.

"You are drunk M'lady," The Prince whispered the obvious. "I have to escort you to your quarters before you make a fool out of yourself."

A self-proclaimed gentleman he was. Clarisse wanted very much to punch him for his last statement. She would not be making a fool out of herself if she had her dagger. The room would have probably turned to chaos when she stabbed the King and the goody-two-shoes who was now escorting her pathetic ass would have probably fainted at the sight of blood and the damning thought of knowing he was next. It was probably stupid sounding but it was those stupid thoughts and vivid imagination that brought momentary peace to Clarisse.

Clarisse walked hand in hand with Prince Esteban as they swirled through the rattling mass before heading deeper into the palace. Strange as it was, Clarisse found her hand creeping into his as they walked, her delicate fingers interlacing with his much stronger ones. She had never thought that such a simple moment of human contact could feel so important. She wanted to take them back but each time she tried, her legs faltered.

"Why are you helping me?" Clarisse had to ask.

Sebastian looked at her as if he didn’t understand. "I clearly mentioned you were making a fool of yourself. For someone who escaped the war, you do not sound very smart."

He was a rude one. If Clarisse was not playing a part, those words could have truly hurt her. For a moment, she forgot the role she was playing and spoke from the truest of her heart. "I think it is wise to question any actions the royals take," she said with a tilt of her head. "I was told never to trust your kind. After all, you only help when you have something to gain."

Now Prince Esteban was the one to get offended. Clarisse was sure if she wasn't in the state she was, he might have probably shoved her to the ground for such a blast it worse, drag her by the ends of her hair to the ball floor and demand her execution. She was being an ungrateful addle pate.

"Those are pretty bold words coming from you, considering you literally begged the king to grant you sanctum." He mocked.

"Of course, there are times where you have to swallow your pride to survive and the King's could have rejected my pleas but he granted me sanctum to prove to the world that he had no hand in the war proving my point yet again that your kind only does favors when there is something in it for you."

Her outrageous ideology made Esteban laugh. Something about that strange cackle made Clarisse's cheeks burn. What was happening? That thought brought with it a sense of nervousness that Clarisse had not expected to feel. She continued to avoid looking at the first Prince as her cheeks continued to heat up while her biology betrayed her.

"He is a rude insensitive fool who ravishes putting people down." Clarisse thought to herself, trying to imagine Esteban with his throat slit open but only managing to conjure the play of the muscles under that heavy attire. All that from one dumb laugh. Clarisse had to concede, this man was dangerous.

"You are one strange creature." Prince Esteban said, wiping a tear caused by his loud laugh. He was smiling now and it made Clarisse feel even stranger. "But you are not wrong. I could not care less if you disgraced yourself on the dance floor. I could lie and say I did not want Lady Twittledore's news sheet to wreck the Dupre family name but honestly, I just wanted out of that ball."

No! Clarisse refused to accept this. He was breaking into the confines of that perfect violent art she had painted of the royal family and redefining himself and no matter how hard Clarisse tried to keep that artwork the same, she was failing miserably. The Prince was about to utter something else when someone screamed the Prince's title like a barbarian.

"Your highness, the queen seeks an audience with you." Grand Duke Malachi said half running.

"Good gracious. That woman cannot let me be for one night." Prince Esteban swore.

"Don't worry about the Lady, I will do the honors of escorting her to her quarters."

Clarisse was certain the Grand Duke being here was not from the kindness of his heart. He was worried about Clarisse blowing her cover. Clarisse did not blame him for fretting. She had disappointed him on the first night and she was dead drunk. It was a recipe for disaster. Clarisse watched the Prince unlatch from her and run to whence he came from.

"You know, I was coming to chastise you for your dastardly behavior but strange enough the first prince seems awfully kind to you and it is all thanks to your volatile actions."

“I am sorry," Clarisse said, missing what the Grand Duke said and dialing her predicament to the extremes. "Wait, what?" Clarisse was not entirely sure she was hearing right. Was he not mad?

Malachi let a subtle laugh. "I can't be angry. I originally intended to ensure you got close to one of the Princes to extract information but it seems like that is one item crossed off our bucket list." Malachi said.

Clarisse felt that sinking pit consume her once again. Luckily, it was not for the enemy this time. The scene was made perfect considering there was no one else around than the flickering lights of torches, so Clarisse let herself do what she had wanted to do since she set eyes in the Grand duke. She kissed him.