Una knew that whatever Gervais meant by that remark, it probably wasn’t entirely honest – her best dress added about thirty pounds to her frame in unflattering places – and she felt the onslaught of red blotches on her cheeks. Princess Una was a pretty girl, but few would have guessed it at that moment. Still, Prince Gervais’s face expressed pure dazzlement, and how could Una know better? Her heart thudded not unpleasantly in her breast.
“Crown Prince Felix and Prince Aethelbald,” the herald boomed across the hall.
Una felt the blotches multiplying. She turned and saw her first suitor crossing the room in company with her younger brother. Both looked flushed from exercise, though their clothing was fresh.
“Ah, there you are,” Fidel said, waving a hand in greeting. “Gervais, allow me to present my heir, Felix. And this is Prince Aethelbald of Farthestshore, newly arrived from afar.”
“Ah! Delighted.” Gervais flashed another brilliant smile and bowed.
“Good day, sir,” Aethelbald quietly replied.
It was just as Una had expected – standing beside the shining prince of Beauclair, Aethelbald disappeared into obscurity.
–––––––
King Fidel rarely hosted meals for his court. Once in a great while, for holiday feasts, tables would be set in the great dining hall, courtiers and dignitaries would be invited to join, and the royal family would display themselves in proper pomp. But these occasions were few and therefore much more impressive when held.
Magnificent banquets two nights in a row without a holiday in sight were enough to try the patience of all the cooks and servers in the king’s service. But in honor of Prince Gervais’s arrival, no extravagance could be spared. After all, as Fidel encouraged his staff, they would not wish the Crown Prince of Beauclair to compare the hospitality of Oriana Palace to that of Amaury and find it wanting, would they? No – no Parumvir cook would see those trifle-making dandies from Beauclair held up as his superiors. So the feast was one of special eminence, outdoing even the dinner served in Prince Aethelbald’s honor the evening before.
The great dining hall was opened up, and all those counted of any note in Parumvir sat at long tables with golden placeware before them and dined in the presence of the king. The men from Beauclair and Farthestshore mingled with the counts and barons of Parumvir, and at the king’s table in the center of the room sat Fidel, his two children, and Princess Una’s two suitors, along with a handful of dukes and noblemen.
Una found herself beside Gervais, which both delighted and distressed her. She found it difficult to eat with his gaze constantly sliding to rest upon her, and she desperately hoped the red blotches faded under candlelight. She spent most of the meal rearranging the food on her plate, unable to transport any of it to her mouth. A subtly scented Monster sat at her feet under the table, grooming himself and sometimes touching her leg with one paw to beg, but she resisted slipping him tidbits in the present company.
To make matters worse, Prince Aethelbald was seated on her other side. He did not speak to Una, nor did she bother looking his way. But consciousness of his every movement made it difficult at times to focus her attention on the Prince of Beauclair.
Gervais was infinitely charming. He spoke in a voice clear enough to carry across the room, and many of those who did not sit at the royal table turned to listen to whatever he might say. One could hear the singing voice behind his speaking voice, Una thought, and both must be equally pleasant to hear.
Felix, who sat beside Gervais and just to the right of his father, asked around a mouthful of bread, “What sport do you find in Beauclair, Prince Gervais?”
Sport! Una thought with disgust. Surely the musical, talented prince before her wouldn’t find time for such boyish games. She rolled her eyes at her brother, who covertly made a face back. But Gervais leaned back in his chair, raising his wine goblet, and declared, “Sport in Beauclair is as fine as any in all the world. In season I hunt deer, bear, even wild boar.”
“Boar?” Felix asked, impressed. Boar hunting had not been practiced in Parumvir for several generations now.
“Indeed,” Gervais said. “You’ll rarely find a beast fiercer or more satisfying to chase.” He tossed his head back in a short laugh, and Una found she agreed with Nurse; his laugh was musical. “But that is nothing,”
he said, “compared to the quarry I pursued just this last autumn.”
Felix leaned forward in his seat, eager as a puppy. “What is fiercer than a boar?”
“Dragon, young Felix,” Gervais said.
A hush settled around the hall at his words, and people from all the surrounding tables looked up.
“Dragon?” Felix breathed.