"Hahahha," boisterous laughter erupted among a group of guests who looked to be socialising with each other.
"You seem to prefer whiskey to wine," Karrina commented after a short while of spending time in Jeremiah's company.
Jeremiah sipped more of the golden liquid in his crystal glass and looked sideways at the vampiress.
He smirked and replied, "And you prefer focusing on who is looking at you to actually focusing on you."
"I...
"Don't try to deny it, Karrina. You know what I am talking about, you knew a number of eyes would be looking at our odd pairing, and that's why you chose me." Jeremiah smilingly said.
Karrina averted her gaze to the floor, not knowing what to say for her selfish actions.
Truth be told, asking Jeremiah Dalton to be her plus one was not her plan to begin with but the words of her father kept ringing at the back of her head nomatter how much she tried to zone them out.
'We are going to yet another social event, and you still do not have someone to accompany you. I expect you to change that for the better. Or else I will.' And just like that, he dismissed her from his study.
Her eyes that were drinking in the view of the hem of her dress were obstructed by a maroon liquid that was offered to her in a tall clear glass
Grabbing the glass from Jeremiah, she murmured a 'thanks' and started sipping the drink in an attempt to drown her sorrows under the strong liquid.
In another room, a certain red head felt lightheaded just by hearing the soft melodious tune bouncing off the inner walls of the castle.
She kept squeezing her dress in anxiousness. She had taken a risk of peeping in the dining hall, and the view she saw scared her to her wits but also ignited a sense of hope in her heart.
'Jer is here' her heart sang in joy, but her brain kept on reminding her of her blunder she had committed.
He always warned her about leaving the village by herself and she listened until she didn't, now she was paying for it.
'She had to figure out a way for him to see her.'
'Oh wait, the play!!'
He would see her on stage, 'at least one good thing would come out of this nightmare,' she thought gratefully.
That gave her renewed confidence that at least some in the crowd knew her and wished her well.
Taking deep breaths, she tried to stabilise her glittery nerves because however much she hated being in the play, she didn't want to make a fool of herself.
"Aren't you going to greet your guests, cousin?" Caroline asked Gavriel
The two currently stood in the middle of a long dark hallway on the third floor.
"Aren't you supposed to be in the company of a possible suitor, cousin?" Gavriel returned the question
Caroline was bored talking with one person after another, who weren't even interested in her but mostly wanted to gain her favor because of her status. One of the few women working in the house, the Duke's daughter, and so on...
Those titles and the weight they carried, be it wealth, power, respect, and fear, are what they were interested in.
Since a young age, she got to know that one way or the other.
And frankly, she became uninterested and bored of it. Only a few people in her life didn't view as a tool, and the king, her cousin, was one of them.
Mostly because he had all that others desired and tried to attain.
She remembered since the first time she met him, she wanted to be his friend, not minding his ways that were unpredictable and poisonous at the same time.
They did have a relationship with one another but silently knew each other's boundaries most especially her, because Gavriel Thornhart was a king who knew no boundaries, he was the king and the King's word and ways was absolute.
She was wandering around the castle with a wine glass in hand, not knowing what her destination was, but at least she knew that she wanted to leave the ball even for just a minute.
"They are all boring and predictable," she commented after a while
"No one there, you fancy?" Gavriel probed
"Well, there is this one. But then he seems not interested." Caroline said while she reached where he was standing.
"Ohh, who is the lucky man?" He asked
"Is this the painting you were referring to, the other dinner?" Caroline asked instead, completely ignoring her cousin's question and diverting the conversation.
Gavriel side eyed his cousin, hummed in agreement, "Hmmm."
He decided not to probe further and went along with her line of conversation, "Cousin, do you see anything about this particular painting that catches your eye?" He asked
Caroline observed the painting of her great grandfather and said after a while of silence,
"Other than the fact that the painter used dragon ash, I don't see any other interesting thing about the painting."
"Though it is an odd one," she added after focusing on it and actually feeling some faint energy wafting off of it.
"Yes, it is," Gavriel agreed.
"Your Majesty," Caroline called playfully
Gavriel turned his neck to look at her in response.
"Shouldn't this particular painting, a piece of ancient history, be in possession of the 'house,'" Caroline said with a smile.