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Post by Queen Coretta de la Courcel on Jun 25, 2010 0:07:55 GMT -5
Arrogant bastard.
It was a measure of how angry and upset I was that I let such language infiltrate my thoughts even when he wasn't talking. I'd not bothered looking back to see if he was following me the entire route out of the palace, and sure enough, he was there when my carriage rolled up, the door opening.
I gave the driver the name of a little odds and ends shoppe I knew was in the Nights Doorstep, and despite the surprise of his brows rising, he didn't comment, just turned the carriage. The entire time I didn't say anything to him, didn't look at him, just looked out the window, my cloak pulled tight around me. The ride was either too quick or too long; I wasn't sure which, and before long we rolled to a stop. The streets were slush, the people clothed in rough woolens, with only a bit of lace here and there.
I knew it'd make Fredric mad to be here, and it was part of why I'd chosen it. The Nights Doorstep wasn't the type of place the Dauphine was expected to go, rubbing shoulders with pickpockets and rough laborers. Pushing my hood back from my face as the door opened, I looked at Fredric finally, sure he'd want to jump out first to make sure no one was going to pull a rusty spoon on me.
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Fredric nó Benoit
Military
Cassiline to the Dauphine, Princess Coretta de la Courcel
Posts: 88
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Post by Fredric nó Benoit on Jun 25, 2010 0:19:00 GMT -5
I stepped into her carriage, passive. I let her look away from me and paid more attention to the surroundings, passive. All I did with practiced ease, only slighlty curious about where we were going. I needed to know after all so that I was informed and ready for anything. When we began to turn into a less attractive area and knew where she had taken us and thats when my eyes came to find hers. My smile bloomed again, I couldn't help it, she was trying just so hard to prove to me she wasn't the spoiled child I painted her as. When she looked back at me I only stared back unmoving, the pair of us sitting a stale mate for a moment.
"Well... after you your Highness." I said still smiling pleasantly as I pulled my perfectly fitting deerskin gloves onto my hands.
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Post by Queen Coretta de la Courcel on Jun 25, 2010 0:35:23 GMT -5
My brows raised, though I kept my tongue to myself as I exited the carriage, taking the hand of my driver. Talented enough at his job, he'd managed to park us between two massive puddles, but I stepped lightly out into the walkway, my hood dropped back over my shoulders, not trying to hide myself, as if it'd have been easy given the sigil on the carriage doors.
I took in a breath of fresh air - and immediately stopped. The smell of dung and something else was strong, and I let out what I'd drawn in, promising myself not to breathe in too deeply from now on. Fredric would follow; I wasn't worried about that, and despite the gaping stares that followed, I made my way down the walkway, glancing to and fro, smiling at those who smiled at me, greeting those who did the same.
I hadn't gone far when I saw a mother with a babe on her hip and smaller one at her side; I paused, murmuring something soft to her, and from the pocket of my cloak I pulled a couple coins to give to her, then bent, giving one specifically to the little boy at her side, my thoughts running fondly to Renee. His face lit up, and I felt my heart warm, though as I straightened, I was reminded almost immediately of Fredric; his presence was enough to make my blood run cold again, and I continued on, pressing coins into random hands. I wished had more; too soon they ran out, and mentally I scoured myself, thoughts running wildly.
A little girl squealed and ran up to me in that moment, tugging on my skirts, and I bent, forgetting even Fredric as I balanced on my toes in the grime underfoot, my attention riveted upon her. "Aren't you pretty," I said, and she grinned, bobbing an awkward curtsy that had me laughing genuinely. "Oh, very good!" I commended, clapping. I had nothing left on me for money, but... Reaching up into my hair, I pulled my haircomb down, a present Christien had given me for our birthday two years gone, There was a little clasp, silk flowers and delicate diamonds sparkling across it, small, enough to give it a beautiful shine.
"I think," I said, a smile growing on my mouth as I watched her gasp, her eyes rolling up as she tried to watch me pin it in her hair, "that this would look better on you."
Gasping and giggling by turns, she jumped up and down and ran to her mother, tugging on her skirts much as she had to mine. "She's going to be a heartbreaker," I commented with a grin to the mother, who laughed, but in her eyes shone thankfulness. It made me uncomfortable, and I almost turned to look at Fredric in that instant, but stubbornness and iron will kept me walking forward again, my cloak fluttering out behind me a little in the breeze.
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Fredric nó Benoit
Military
Cassiline to the Dauphine, Princess Coretta de la Courcel
Posts: 88
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Post by Fredric nó Benoit on Jun 25, 2010 0:51:15 GMT -5
She exited stately like the Princess she was, you could see it engrained in every part of her, like a doll sculpted to perfection. She was careful and calm, forcing herself to be something other then the stories I had heard about her.
I watched, keeping my distance a few paces back, but kept an eye on both Coretta and those around us, those that may want to do her harm, or at least try to steal. I watched as she talked with those around her, giving them coin and smiling as she did. When a little girl came up to us I watched as she went down to the little girl's level and gave up the hair comb so expertly placed into her hair.
I had to conceed once more, it took guts to come here, to put herself out here like this. Again the thought that I may have underestimated her came to mind and as she began to walk forward I took up my stride fo follow her, but this time I came to walk at her side instead of behind her.
"That was quite magnanimous of you your Highness," I said softly though I didn't look at her. I may have been talking to her but I kept my eye out for suspcisious behaviour. "And you look comfortable doing it. You must come out here often." I glanced to her then, a quirked brow in her direction.
"How often do you do this?" I wasn't sure she had ever done it, she seemed like she could pull off a good act. As though her so called 'good' deeds were merely an elaborate act to fool those around her.
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Post by Queen Coretta de la Courcel on Jun 25, 2010 12:16:43 GMT -5
I didn't expect him to speak to me, and especially not in a voice that wasn't full of contempt and irritation. It took me by surprise, and I looked up at him as he drew alongside me before I could catch myself, taking in the side of his face as he looked outward, never deviating his own gaze to my own.
Gods, he was infuriating. I couldn't even tell if he was silently mocking me, so closed off was his face to emotion. I frowned softly at him, though turned my gaze back away, smoothing my features as I did so. Curtsies and bows dotted among those who we were walking past, but it didn't bother me that not everyone was doing it. You couldn't expect everyone to, and if they were, you wouldn't be able to tell the sincere ones to the insincere.
"She was darling," I said softly, smiling and nodding to someone while I answered him. "Mayhap that'll give her something to think fondly on, or if worst comes to worst, she can sell it." It pained me a little, parting with Christiens gift, but the look on her face was more than worth it.
When he asked me how often I did it, I kept my features smooth, careful, guarded. "I've never done it before today," I answered, my voice quiet. "But I figured it would irritate you to have to guard me in the South Borough. You're disappointing me in your reaction, Monsieur no Benoit."
I did glance at him then, giving him a dry look, and as I looked away, I saw an older man, his coat full of holes as much as it was patches, the knees of his pants threadbare and his boots past their prime. Gods, I felt badly for him. I angled towards him, and when he turned, seeing me draw to a stop before him, he froze, eyes widening behind a tuft of hair that looked as if it needed a good bath.
I didn't say anything, but with a twist of my wrist, I pulled my bracelet off and caught his hand, tucking it in and closing his fingers about it. He was grubby, dirty, and there was an odor that wafted from him that made my nose want to curl, but the fear and surprise that only grew in his eyes as he looked down at me, I decided it would be a good time to step away. He made me feel like a tigress and he a fawn, waiting to be pounced and smote where he stood. Drawing back to Fredrics side again, I glanced at the man before continuing to walk, the smile gone from my mouth. Not everything was flowers and beauty, and the bottom of my dress and cloak were beginning to stain from the puddles I attempted to avoid. Slush was soaking through the delicate soles of my slippers, just around the edges, but enough to bring a chill to me, one I refused to show.
"How often do you commit acts of charity, Monsieur no Benoit?" I asked, not looking at him as we continued to walk, my fingers picking up the hem of my skirts so I could step over a particularly disgusting piece of ground. A man caught my peripheral vision as I did it, though I saw only a flash of dark hair and haunted eyes before he disappeared again, ducking down behind a crowd near a market stand.
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Fredric nó Benoit
Military
Cassiline to the Dauphine, Princess Coretta de la Courcel
Posts: 88
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Post by Fredric nó Benoit on Jun 25, 2010 16:08:30 GMT -5
I watched her as she continued to walk, handing a bracelet to a rather down looking man and his reaction wasn't as grateful as those before hand. Her comment made me laugh though, again, genuinely. I could tell that Coretta was a rather complicated young woman, unlike my previous ward who was simply shallow and pampered. Part of me wondered as to what Coretta's story was, why she felt she needed to act the way she did, as it was becoming clear that the spoiled pampered image was likely a facade. I glanced to her momentarily, watching her profile for a moment, her long neck, her angled jaw and the line of her brows. But it was little more then a moment before I looked foward again, my attention on the people around us, the looks on their faces and whether any of them seemed dangerous.
"You can't irritate me your Highness," I said softly as I adjusted my vambrances, keeping relaxed as we walked. "I may be disappointing you, but you're certainly not disapointing me." I glanced to her with a gentle smile once I felt my vambrances were secure. I looked about then and noticed a man that looked unsavory as well as suspicious by the market stands. I turned toward Coretta and placed my hand at the small of her back, guiding her off the side walk so that we were now crossing the street. The best way to avoid danger was simply by taking her ward in another direction. Those that choose to harm another usually have a plan, if you change some aspect of their plan, it usually stops the action they were about to partake in.
"You didn't have to come here, and you didn't have to give your things away. It took a lot of guts to do that and I know far more pampered spoiled little girls that would never have done that." I didn't look at my ward, not really, I was too focused on getting us across the street in one piece. Once on the other side though I pulled my hand back and clasped it and my other behind my back.
"And I try to do as much as I can to be honest," I added in regards to her question. "One third of my pay is always sent to this little Temple of Elua in Siovale that I grew up in." I glanced to Coretta for a moment and then forward again, looking for signs of danger.
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Post by Queen Coretta de la Courcel on Jun 25, 2010 16:30:32 GMT -5
I couldn't irritate or disappoint him? Oh, I very much doubted that - I found I had a habit for irritating and disappointing everyone around me at some point, saving Christien alone. He was the only person who liked me for who I was, without exception, even if he didn't understand me all the time. I counted myself lucky to have him, but Fredric shouldn't really claim I couldn't do either to him, because he'd learn the folly of that claim eventually.
Again, though, his words surprised me, only this time I didn't think he was mocking me. I followed him as he placed his hand upon my back and guided me 'cross the street, my skirts kept up out of the way. Slush poured over my slipper at one point despite my best efforts for it not to, and I grimaced, feeling cold seeping in, but I dropped my skirts and smoothed my face while he was still looking elsewhere, not letting on that my foot was wet. I wasn't ready to get back in the carriage yet. The man was already forgotten by me; I was looking ahead, not thinking of how he'd ducked away, not piecing together that that was why Fredric had angled us away.
"It's just baubles, right?" I asked, a touch of sarcasm in my voice, but it wasn't really heartfelt. "After all, I can always use the countries money to buy more, isn't that what you were saying?"
I made sure to say it when no one was around, more sensitive than that. I looked up at him as we moved, happening to catch his eyes as he looked down at me after speaking of donating to charities. My hands were getting cold, and I tucked them together under my cloak, my chin held high, though not as it might be if I was strolling the Palace corridors; this was hardly the Palace after all. My brows rose at his response; I was impressed, truly, though I reminded myself that it didn't make me like him any more. Hardly. Quite the opposite, in fact, I decided.
"That's very noble of you," I said, learning a little piece of him with that alone. He'd not grown up with family, then. A few more steps in silence, and I looked back up at him again. "Maybe I'm not as spoiled as you thought I am, and maybe you're not as irritating as I thought you were."
I smiled at him suddenly, a pretty smile that was too innocent, though even I wasn't sure if I was jesting or serious. But the smile stuck, and I looked away again, amusement flickering through me.
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Fredric nó Benoit
Military
Cassiline to the Dauphine, Princess Coretta de la Courcel
Posts: 88
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Post by Fredric nó Benoit on Jun 25, 2010 17:12:45 GMT -5
I couldn't help the ease smile that appeared on my face, already I was enjoying myself despite how annoying her Highness could be. Perhaps it was because she kept me on my toes and I liked that, my previous ward had been rather boring, we always went to the same places and did the same things. The only thing that ever seemed to amuse her was her attempt to seduce me which always failed. How could one be seduced by some one they found utterly disgusting inside and out. Not like Coretta.... Wait... what?
"Perhaps not." I said smiling as I looked toward her, her smile sweet and kind, the way a woman should look. The way the Dauphine should look. I couldn't help but stare at her for the moment though, my eyes on hers as I continued to smile, gentle and genuinely. "You're not that bad, I'll give you that. You keep my on my toes." I looked forward then, once again looking for danger. As if the gods had heard me I caught sight of two men handling a heavy crate. My eyes went back and forth between the whinch they were using and the pair as they heaved. Something just felt uneasy and the hairs on the back of my neck stood up as my mind began to think. Sure enough, just as we neared, there was a cracking sound as the beam holding the whinch snapped in half and the crate came tumbling down.
"Look out!" I shouted as wood splinters few with such force that I could tell they would easily pierce the skin. Everyone began to scatter and I turned toward Coretta, pushing her back toward the wall of a building as I wrapped my arms around her. I felt the pieces of wood fly past us as I shielded her from the debris, one hand around her head and pulled it against my chest. But just as quickly as it happened, it was over and everyone began to mill about muttering about wood and ropes and heavy items, conversing as though it was a frequent occurence.
"Are you alright?" I asked softly as my hand around her head released her just enough to pull back from me, but I kept it there as my eyes began to scan for tears in the skin and blood. I was also accutely aware of the fact that I was pressed quite firmly to her, the wall trapping her against me.
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Post by Queen Coretta de la Courcel on Jun 25, 2010 18:09:18 GMT -5
He smiled, but this time there was no viciousness in it. Elua but he was confusing! One moment he was telling me what a horrible person I was, and the next he was conceding that I wasn't as bad as he thought, that I might be less irritating than originally assumed. I could only decide that he'd heard my reputation and decided himself what I was going to be like, and the very idea of it angered me to the point that I could have spat nails. That he would judge me without knowing, and it didn't make a bit of difference at all that he was deciding he was a fool to believe it. Right? Right. Of course.
Taking hold of myself, I glanced up at him, my mouth opening to say something in return, but he had a look of such concentration on his face that I stopped. Prickly Casselines, always seeing danger where there wa---
Look out!
One moment I was strolling next to him, the next he had his arms around me, thudding us both into a wall hard enough that it knocked the breath out of me. The only thing that stopped me from having a headache was his hand around my head, keeping it pressed against his chest, the quick thrum of his heart evidence to his surprise.
Wood rained down about us, splintes and tiny chunks, settling upon his shoulder, bouncing off his arm. I squeezed my eyes shut and stayed pressed against him til I was sure it was over, when he let go of my head long enough that I could look at him, my breath short and quick in my lungs.
"I'm alright," I gasped softly, though I shuddered against him, not quite sure what had happened. He was still pressed tight against me, and ironically enough I couldn't help but rethink what I'd said to him, about his genitalia being the last thing I ever wanted to see. I shuddered a second time, but for a wholly different reason than before. My fingers clung to his shirt where it hung over his ribs, my heart beating wildly, though beginning to calm already, especially with a distinct lack of action from anyone else around us. "Thank you," I added as soft as before, but my eyes, too wide, took in his face before I looked over to what had happened, but I could see little of anything other than the breadth of Fredrics broad shoulder.
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Fredric nó Benoit
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Cassiline to the Dauphine, Princess Coretta de la Courcel
Posts: 88
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Post by Fredric nó Benoit on Jun 25, 2010 20:27:55 GMT -5
I held onto her still, a rush of fear making me grip her and I glanced about to be sure that nothing else was happening before I looked down at her. "You're welcome Princess." I said softly, my hand coming up so that my fingers gripped her chin and shifted her face back and forth gently to be sure there was no damage. When I felt as though I had examined her enough my fingers left her chin and brushed a lock of hair from her cheek. Again I was aware of the fact that I was pressed to her, but this time the only thing I could notice was that she was freezing.
"Your freezing." I echoed my thoughts as my brows furrowed and looked at her, my hands going to hers and held each of her hands in each of me. My face took on a decidedly unimpressed demeanor as I looked at her and pursed my lips. "Come on, I'm taking you home right now." I shook my head a little and took her hand in mine, leading her away from the destruction that was behind us.
I took a few quick steps and then pressed my fingers to my lips and whistled; we hadn't gone far from the carriage so when I whistled the driver saw me and I waved. He jumped into action and began to bring the carriage around so I stopped us on the edge of the sidewalk. "I can't decide if your stubborn or stupid." I muttered shaking my head again, watching the carriage pull around and not bothering to look at my ward.
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Post by Queen Coretta de la Courcel on Jun 26, 2010 22:38:31 GMT -5
His fingers lifted, coming from protecting me to examining me, tilting my face to and fro, eyes critical. I bore it as best as I could, keeping myself from taking my chin from his hand and assuring him I was in fact alright when I said I was alright. But too, it gave me the opportunity to examine him as he stood so closely to me, looking at me without contempt or irritation, but concern for his ward. Not even for the Dauphine, I didn't think, but just his ward, so serious did he seem to take his job.
His warmth flooded into me, but I only started to realize it when he suddenly muttered that I was freezing, and the worry vanished from his face to be replaced with irritation. For some reason, that irritated me, and I frowned softly at him, my hands trapped inside of both of his. I was cold, but that was hardly the point. "It is winter, or have you not noticed?"
I frowned softly at him, the moment of quit, where there was no anger or irritation between us gone completely, left behind with the wall as he took my hand and whistled, bringing the carriage around without even consulting me. I was not a child, no matter how many years he had on me, and I snatched my hand from his grip, my arms crossing my chest just under my breasts as I faced him, not caring if he wasn't looking at me.
"I do apologize, but I fail to remember when a Casseline orders his Dauphine about as if he had any right to." I frowned at him and turned, stubbornness and irritation both swirling so thickly through me that I reached up, unclasping the gold pin that held my cloak together, letting the thick fabric swirl off my shoulders before I closed the pin up again. If I was going to be accused of possibly being stupid, well then I would be stupid.
I shivered as the icy wind blew through the thin silk of my dress, but deliberately I walked from Fredric, knowing he'd follow me irregardless. Too feminine to give to a man, I chose a woman out at random, her skin too dark for her to be fully d'Angeline, if she was at all. She looked chilled though, in clothes that spoke of a distinct lack of money, and I felt for her. "Mademoiselle," I greeted, giving her a warm smile as I offered her my cloak, letting her take it from me before I tipped my head in courteousness to her. Not waiting for an answer, I turned back to the carriage again as if it were my own idea, knowing Fredric well enough already that he was stubborn enough to force me in. Besides, I conceded, I didn't really want to get sick, and I was feeling utterly frozen by now. Ignoring Fredric, I opened the door to the carriage myself and climbed inside, picking the wet bottoms of my skirts up as I moved.
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Fredric nó Benoit
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Cassiline to the Dauphine, Princess Coretta de la Courcel
Posts: 88
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Post by Fredric nó Benoit on Jun 27, 2010 13:00:28 GMT -5
I grit my teeth at her words and watched her as she walked over to a woman, pulling her cloak from her only to hand it over to the woman before turning to look at me. She was so damned stubborn, yes that was it, stubborn, had to do things the way she wanted or else she wouldn't be happy. Ah well I would have to bare it, not matter how frustrating it was and no matter how much I wanted to shake her and tell her to grow up.
Bitting my inner cheeks as I watched her, my arms crossed against my torso, I let her have her way and then watched her enter into the carriage. I had much to say but I would respect her enough to not open my mouth while we stood on the street. I stood behind her, letting her enter first before I followed, calling for the driver to return to the palace before closing the door behind me and sitting across from her.
"You are not just the Dauphine Highness," I said through grit teeth, my arms crossed over my chest once more as I looked between her and the window. "In fact you are my ward first and Dauphine second. My job is to protect you, and that will often mean protecting you from yourself." I huffed and sat back in my seat, my arms so tight around me that it was uncomfortable so I released them and placed my palms down on the seat next to my thighs.
"No offense Highness, but you're little more then a girl, and the fact that you're royalty means you're used to being taken care of. It means you have no idea how to take care of yourself, and it will come to me to do things for you that you won't be able to." I was slighlty incensed, though I'm not sure why. Possible because I was trying to do exactly that, to protect her and she was acting as though I had taken a favourite toy away.
I looked across the way at her and shook my head as she sat there in a gown that was far to thin for the out doors and no cloak. My hands scrambled quickly and pulled off my own cloak, though not as thick as hers had been, it was warmer then nothing. I moved across to where she was and wrapped it over her shoulders before she could protest. For some reason I just sat next to her too, I could have moved back but I felt as if I should be here incase she did something else stupid like throw the cloak out the door of the moving carriage. That and I was actually upset, so I crossed my arms over my chest once more and shook my head, muttering to myself about woman and looked forward as to not meet her eye.
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Post by Queen Coretta de la Courcel on Jun 27, 2010 13:21:35 GMT -5
I'd irritated him.
In some small part of me, I was .. Well, no, it was more than a small part of me. I was glad, happy that I'd managed to make him suffer just a little, if even just robbing him of a good mood for a few moments. I refused to show it though, to give in and let a smile slip onto my mouth and give myself away as he began berating me. I'd known it was coming; with Fredric, it seemed inevitable.
I sighed.
"If I did not think I could handle it, I would not have done it. I was cold, but were you not? It's winter." My arguments sounded feeble even to myself, and I switched tactics suddenly, not giving him a chance to answer. "I wouldn't have come to the Doorstep had you not been with me... I'm not wholly without a brain, as you must assume, but a little cold wasn't going to bother me, not for as long as I was going to be out in it."
My body betrayed me, shivering involuntarily even as I said it, making my last words come out through a chatter in my teeth. I glared at him as if it were his fault, but he ignored me in favor of taking his cloak off. Quick as that, he'd sat next to me, wrapping it around me without giving me a chance to refuse, then continued to sit next to me. Silently I debated stripping it off and tossing it out the window, but he was too now, stopping me before I could even start.
"Are you always so angry?"
It came out before I'd completely had the thought through my head, and I looked up at him, frowning softly. His cloak did help, and I shivered again as heat slowly began to seep into me, and his scent wafted from it as much as him sitting next to me, filling me with much irritation, and something else that I refused to acknowledge.
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Fredric nó Benoit
Military
Cassiline to the Dauphine, Princess Coretta de la Courcel
Posts: 88
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Post by Fredric nó Benoit on Jun 27, 2010 13:46:32 GMT -5
I sighed deeply and ran my hand over my face, my hands coming to rest on each of my knees as I reminded myself that getting upset wasn't going to do anything. Besides, I had just finished telling her that she couldn't upset me and here I was doing the opposite.
"No, I am not always so angry. Apparently it is a skill that only you posess." My words were close to mumbling but I made sure to say them loud enough as my gaze moved around the carriage. I didn't want to look at her, though I wasn't exactly sure why.
"Fine, I will conceed that I shouldn't have pushed you. I honestly didn't think you would so it my fault we're here in the first place." I turned to her then and looked at her, pointing my finger at her once again. "But you could have told me you were freezing, don't be proud your Highness. I respect the fact that you wanted to show me my wrong doings in what I said. But let me return the favour, you need to take care of your health." I sighed and looked away, turning away a little as I resumed my posture of arms cross against my torso. Perhaps a bit less aggrivated but still worked up. Elua! This girl had me worked up! And why?!
For a few moments we sat in silence before I turned to look at her. "Are you always so stubborn?" I asked, turning the questioning around onto her.
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Post by Queen Coretta de la Courcel on Jun 27, 2010 16:27:27 GMT -5
Looking at him as I was, I watched as he ran his hand through his hair, how it tousled and fell back in near the same place it'd been before. He seemed as if he had to work to be calm again, and I felt a little stab of satisfaction given everything he'd said to me before we even left.
"A rare skill indeed, then," I said, and to my lips rose a smile, unbidden and unwanted, but for the life of me I couldn't bury it away. "If that's the case, it would be a shame not to continue practicing it, don't you think?"
He conceded to my surprise, and I wasn't sure if he completely understood what I'd meant; I would never have come without him, meaning I wouldn't have stepped foot there without his presence next to me. I didn't feel like arguing it though, especially when he was begrudgingly giving way to something that was the closest thing to an apology.
That he cared for my health was only because he was assigned to, something I knew well, and I wasn't about to fool myself into the notion that it was me that he was concerned with. Oh, no. He was just doing his duty. Granted, I could have told him I was cold, but what was the point? Uncomfortably I moved my toes inside my slippers, sodden as they were, icy waters between my toes. If Fredric was Christien, I'd have slid my feet out of them and curled them up under my skirts, curling into his side. But.. if Fredric was Christien, I wouldn't be glaring, and I wouldn't be reminding myself not to lift his cloak to my face to smell it better.
I colored slightly at that, turning my face away from his, just barely seeing him turn to look at me. His question quirked a smile back onto my mouth again, and I lifted my chin, trying to keep my smile from touching my eyes. "Usually," I admitted before turning my face just a little to steal a glance at him. "I've a feeling you've heard all about me already though." My tone was dry and my smile slid away again, buried under resignation as I looked away again, towards the opposite seat, the one he'd sat on previously. "Or am I wrong?"
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Fredric nó Benoit
Military
Cassiline to the Dauphine, Princess Coretta de la Courcel
Posts: 88
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Post by Fredric nó Benoit on Jun 27, 2010 22:40:48 GMT -5
I looked forward, into the carriage, as she spoke her last lines, my teeth beginning to naw at the inside of my cheeks. "I've heard things." I said finally, trying to sound less tense then I was. When I felt I was composed I turned to look at her and quirked a brow. "About your attitude, your escapade at the Midwinter Masque... that fact you're known for being a bit of a trouble maker." I tightened my jaw and turned my head, looking out of the window. "Not like it matters, all woman are the same." I mumbled under my breath as I looked outside, trying to shake the feeling that Coretta was staring a hole right through my ear and into my skull.
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Post by Queen Coretta de la Courcel on Jun 27, 2010 22:52:34 GMT -5
I cringed, not just mentally, but physically as he mentioned the Midwinter Masque. Sabrina! White hot anger flared through me at it, at how unfair it was, her and Mat both. Grimacing, I glanced away from him and out the window to collect myself, my chin lowered from the perch it'd been on a few minutes ago. I'd never live that one down it seemed, doomed to haunt me to the end of my days, forever more.
But, the rest of what he said caught my attention, though I barely heard it over the buzzing of my own thoughts. All women are the same? My frown came back, and my eyes narrowed as I looked at him, not yet angry, but dangerously close. "If that is what you think Monsieur no Benoit, then I pity you, for you're seriously disillusioned." My chin lifted again as we swung into the Palace gates, our carriage swinging up and around, though I was still tempted to tell him to sit across from me now, not next to. "As a matter of fact, I can think of a few different women that I am nothing like."
Was he bitter? Angry? No, of course not, not from a Casseline, pure as could be. I felt my eyes glance down to his chest before I caught myself, jerking my gaze away, trying too to ignore the distracting scent wafting up from his cloak.
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Fredric nó Benoit
Military
Cassiline to the Dauphine, Princess Coretta de la Courcel
Posts: 88
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Post by Fredric nó Benoit on Jun 27, 2010 23:31:32 GMT -5
I turned to look at her then, my body turned inward toward her as my eyes stared her down. Not irritated, not anger, I wasn't even sure if it had a name, or perhaps it was just a smoldering rage waiting to ignite. "Not in my experience." I replied, my voice low and distateful as if the words themselves were dirty. "What you fail to realize Highness," I added as the carriage pulled to a stop at the steps leading up to the west wing.
"Is that most woman only have one goal in life, and beside that they're usually bored or boring." I felt the carriage driver jump from his chair so I exited first, pulling my eyes from my wards and turned the handle to the door and jumped out myself. I didn't bother offering Coretta my hand just waited impatienly till she got out.
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Post by Queen Coretta de la Courcel on Jun 27, 2010 23:48:32 GMT -5
He was.. Elua! Elua! He was infuriating! Just when I think he's beginning to thaw, that glacial wall goes up again twice as thick as it was before. Women had but one goal in life? What was that I wondered, what twisted thing did he think we aimed for? Babes, money, husbands to support us? I watched as he hopped out of the carriage ahead of me, and after a moment of waiting I saw no hand waiting to help me down. Scowling to myself, I stripped his cloak off and left it in a heap upon the floor, making sure I stepped on it with my wet slippers on my way out.
Absolutely, utterly infuriating. I stalked off without him, entering the palace much in the same manner as he'd left. I should tell them I was robbed, I decided. Robbed, and my Casseline here was too buy staring at a half naked woman to realize what was going on til the thieves made off with everything I had. He'd be stripped, caned, whipped, jailed, put in the stocks...
The fantasies rolled through my head as I swept through the Palace, my chin up, eyes glittering.
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