Divided (7 page)

The thought was an interesting one, but Calis had other
affairs to attend to for now.  Perhaps this Phantom Blade would be present at
the dance in Dark District, though Calis severely doubted it.  If he was
attending any such dance, then he would go as himself—whoever that was.  Calis
felt a greater desire to go to the other festival now.  “I should go present
myself to Father,” Calis commented.  “I’ll find you again later, my friend.”

With a swift nod, Lee was already looking for a place to
hide in plain sight.  He did a very good job of avoiding the glances of girls
who threw themselves at him, sometimes for the sole purpose of being near
Calis, but sometimes with the intention of being with Lee himself.  He was
handsome, Calis thought, though he spent none of the time with his appearance
that most did—and so he was not as noticeable as some others.  Much like
Calis.  The only reason Calis was noticed and called ‘dashing,’ ‘handsome,’ and
all other sorts of names was because he was the prince.  His pale skin probably
contributed to that as well—and his height.  Aside from that, his hair was
short, and his dress was ordinary.

While Lee headed off to some remote corner to hide until
Calis found him again, Calis made his way through the thick of the crowd
towards the stairs.  His first order of business would be to speak with his
parents, then to speak with a few of the women, and possibly Tareth.  Perhaps
he would use his old headache routine so that people would contribute his
premature absence immediately to that. 

He hadn’t decided when a woman’s voice stopped him in his
tracks.  “Prince Tsrali!” she said with the demanding nature that only a
noblewoman could possess.  The only voice that Calis deemed more annoying was
his own mother’s.  But this voice was not his mother’s, this was the voice he
had been avoiding for a sun—one could say that he agreed to go to Dokak to get
away from this woman.  He turned to see her, though, as there was no escape
this time that wouldn’t have earned him quite the reprimanding.

There she was.  Lady Avyon, dressed in a light pink dress
that frilled out more than most of the other’s women’s.  The top of the dress
was a deep pink, bringing attention to the swell of her breasts.  She wore soft,
white gloves that went to her elbows and lined them with lace.  Her hair was
nothing unordinary.  It was all drawn up on the top of her head, stretched out
to be as tall as it could, and interwoven with pearls.  Calis forced a smile. 
“Lady Avyon,” he said with as much cheer as he could find.

It wasn’t much.

The woman wasn’t unattractive.  In fact, she was probably
one of the most attractive women that Calis had been graced with the pleasure
of meeting.  Her skin was pale, and her hair was an ebony color that
highlighted the green of her eyes.  She was taller than most women, but still
short enough to complement Calis’s own height.  Then again, Calis wasn’t sure
there was a woman alive tall enough to match his height.  

Her eyes were excited, as if she was looking upon a new
toy—and she was a little girl again.  Calis supposed he should have been
flattered, but as it was, he was just rather uncomfortable.  He had no way of
addressing her, and if he did end up marrying her, he was sure that she would
end up unhappy with him. 

That bothered him. 

“I tried to get your attention earlier,” she said,
excitement buzzing in her voice, “but you were so wrapped up in the festivities
that I guess you didn’t hear me!”

Calis had heard her, and he had not been at all wrapped up
in the festivities—except figuring out a way to get away from them.  Still, he
wasn’t about to admit that to this perfectly nice, young lady.  Instead, he
smiled.  “My apologies, then, my lady,” he said soothingly.

Lady Avyon brightened almost instantly, as though she had
feared that he would be as rude as he’d thought about being.  “I’m sorry that
you did not find the fortune of a wife in Dokak, your highness.”  Her voice was
not very sorrowful.

Though, he didn’t blame her, and he didn’t find any fault
with her not being sorrowful—as he wasn’t either.  He just didn’t understand
why she had to
act
as though she were.  “I certainly don’t need your
apologies on that matter,” he answered swiftly.

Lady Avyon seemed to take this as an indication that he was
glad that he had not gotten married in Dokak, and she probably thought the
reason for that had something to do with her.  Calis didn’t bother assuaging
that.  “Well, as this ball is for you—I expect to share at least one dance with
you,” she said.  That was more direct than she was ordinarily, perhaps their
time apart had changed her—if only a little.

Calis offered a smile and a nod of his head.  “And you shall
have it,” he said.  “But for now, I must go present myself to my parents so
they know that their guest of honor has not remained in his bed for this lovely
evening.”  But, oh, how he wanted to.

The woman seemed to accept this excuse, and he was able to
get up the stairs without another interruption.  He decided that it was alright
that he’d found Lady Avyon, or rather, that she had found him.  Now he wouldn’t
have to go to the trouble of locating her while he didn’t have the excuse of
finding his parents to rid himself of her.  He rounded the white marble
staircase up to the balcony where his parents still chatted with some of the
wealthier nobles.

As he approached, his mother was the first to notice him. 
Claudia was where Calis got most of his looks.  She had his pale skin and blue-green
eyes, as well as the soft blond hair.  Even the sharp features, though Calis’s
sharp jawline was from his father.  She grinned when she saw him.  “Ah, Calis! 
There you are!”

Everyone standing next to her looked to him with her words. 
Most of them smiled, some of them remained expressionless.  He bowed as
graciously as he could.  “Thank you, Mother, Father—this is wonderful.  I never
anticipated any such event would be held in my honor.”

“You’ve earned it, my son,” Lavus answered immediately.  In
fact, he cut off Claudia’s attempt at words.  She didn’t seem to notice—she
never did.  “That treaty with Dokak has everyone in high spirits.”

Some of the other nobles put in their agreement on the
issue, and a few of them actually sounded like they meant it.  Calis just
accepted the appreciation as graciously as he could.  He hadn’t done much in
Dokak—other than talking a few nobles out of the idea that his father was the
brute that everyone said he was.  In all reality, he felt a bit guilty about
it—since he didn’t know that his father wasn’t that brute.

Lavus had never done anything merciful, or shown any sort of
affection that would convince anyone otherwise.  Calis had even lied a few
times about his father to further his argument.  There really was no wonder
none of the other lands wanted to follow Telandus—what with the rumors travelers
to and from the place spread. 

The king of Telandus was an angry man, and he was without
mercy.  Lavus hanged peasants and nobles alike for crimes that no more harmed
him than a fly on the street.  The inhabitants of the few lands that he’d
conquered had been treated as slaves and prisoners, and most of them were still
servants—if they weren’t, then rest assured, they lived in Dark District. 
Lavus may pretend to be nice enough at events like these, but he was never
happy—never alright with another’s presence, not even Calis’s.

He had long since regarded Calis as a threat, and had only
been pacified when his son had taken so little interest in ruling early.  That
may have been part of the reason all of Calis’s shortcomings were oversights in
the king’s eyes.  Calis could do no wrong, because Calis would not have been
the threat that Tareth may have been.  Tareth had Lavus’s ambition—and he
wanted the throne.  But he was too frightened of their father to attempt
anything now. 

“You look so handsome.”  Claudia finally spoke after all the
men that wanted to congratulate Calis were finished and had gone about their
business.

Now the only two people standing with Calis were his
parents, and yet he felt just as uncomfortable.  “Thank you, Mother,” he
responded automatically.  Claudia was not the heartless, conniving creature that
Lavus was, but she certainly had her own agenda.  She loved her sons, though
she did not love Lavus—and Calis would not have been surprised if even she had
some plot to kill him. 

Lavus was dressed in his typical black suit, with his hair
combed back almost too perfectly.  His face was smoothed into an expressionless
stone as he observed the people who had just started to dance.  His vest was
different from the coats of the other men, and he stood out like a noble in Dark
District.

Claudia wore a soft, golden dress and seemed to fit the
environment much more than Lavus.  One would never have expected that the two
of them were a couple, if everyone hadn’t already known of their relationship. 
Claudia had been the wealthiest and most powerful woman available to Lavus, and
that was why he had married her.  “Have you seen Lady Avyon?” his mother asked
with a smile.  “She was searching for you.”

“I did,” Calis said immediately.  Better to look like he had
been here socializing, at least.  Now they might think he had actually arrived
early.  “I promised her a dance.”

“She was none too upset that you hadn’t found a betrothed in
Dokak, then again, I’m fairly certain none of the young ladies of Telandus were
disappointed in that.  I am surprised, though, surely you enjoyed the variety
of women over there.  You have grown up with these women—and I am a little
surprised.”

Calis didn’t know if he believed that.  This conversation
was probably just another way of his mother’s probing about why he didn’t seem
interested in obtaining a wife.  Why should he be?  What would he gain from
being tied to a woman?  Nothing.  “Yes, well, perhaps I enjoy familiarity more
than you thought, Mother.”

Lavus deemed the conversation worth entering again, and he
regarded his wife and son with a cool complacency before he ventured forward
with a smile.  “That’s my son,” he said, almost sounding proud.  “Dokak is a
lesser nation, so any woman from there is worth could be doubled by many in
Telandus.” 

Sure,
Calis thought bitterly,
that was why I
wasn’t interested in any of them.  It had nothing to do with the fact that each
and every one of them was precisely the same as the air-headed women that I’m
forced to correspond with here every sun.  But yes, Father, live in your dark
and desolate world where everything and anything can be solved by wealth and
position.

Somehow, through all his irate thoughts, he managed a quick
smile at his father.  There was no sense in disagreeing with Lavus.  Calis and
Tareth had both discovered at early ages that any arguing with Lavus led to
nothing but public humiliation.  “Indeed,” was all he said.  He glanced out at
the dance floor.  “I don’t suppose you two will be joining in the dances?” he
asked.

For some reason, he always felt like he should be able to
converse with his parents easily.  Yet, he constantly felt strained and unable
to make conversation.  Though, the only person he was able to talk to without
having to comb through his words was Lee.  That was it, and that was sad.  Even
some of his other noble friends required the same amount of consideration. 
Funny—as none of them were very hard to figure out, so they weren’t any sort of
puzzle.  He just had to watch his words around them.

Lavus looked at his son for a moment as though he were
daft.  This was the very reason that Calis couldn’t talk to his father, or even
his mother.  “Of course not.  I am above such silliness, son.  I cannot say the
same for you, though.  You need to find a betrothed.”  The words were curt—as
though Lavus had spent all of his niceness, and he felt no need to bother with
it further.

Calis just shrugged his shoulders.  He’d prefer to be
dancing than talking with his father—and that was quite the statement
considering how much he loathed the meticulous steps of the noble dances.  He
watched them now.  The pairs all danced with precision, each part of the pair
carefully contemplating every step—even though the male was always the leader.

The whole ordeal was tiresome, in Calis’s opinion.  This
wasn’t a festivity—it was just another time for everyone to watch their every
move and make sure that they didn’t offend anyone else.  He sighed.  When he
realized he’d done it outwardly, he flushed.  “Oh!” Claudia exclaimed, hearing
him.  “Don’t feel as though you have to keep your parents’ company, darling. 
Feel free to go dance.”  She smiled.

Well, at least she hadn’t known why he had actually sighed. 
Just as he was about to head back down to the floor, his brother approached and
offered him a light bow.  When their father looked, though, Tareth’s bow was
much more dramatic.  Lavus said nothing.  Claudia smiled, though.  “Tareth,”
she said gently, “I noticed you have already been flirting the moon away.  You
think you might actually choose one of these women one sun?”

Tareth smiled at his mother.  The two of them, if nothing
else, seemed to have a good rapport.  Sometimes, Calis enjoyed watching the two
of them.  He couldn’t be jealous, solely because he enjoyed knowing two people
in the house could genuinely get along.  “I’ll consider it,” Tareth answered
playfully.

He wouldn’t, though, and Calis knew that as well as Cladia
and Tareth did.  Calis didn’t bother speaking with his brother, as Tareth would
surely take it as Calis trying to interfere in the one relationship Tareth had
that was better than Calis’s.  “Lady Avyon was looking for you, brother,”
Tareth surprised Calis by speaking to him, though.

Calis blinked and then nodded his head.  “Yes, I saw her. 
I’m supposed to dance with her.”

“Gossip says that she believes you intend to choose her as
your wife.  Any truth to that rumor, brother?” Tareth asked.  Sometimes, he was
the worst gossip of all.  Calis wasn’t surprised that his picking up that
vigilante’s name was part of the reason the Phantom Blade was known so widely
as such.