Be My Princess

The symbiosis between both the sounds of the musical instruments and the musicians themselves was breath-taking.

Since the lights had been dimmed in the entire ballroom, leaving only two spotlights to halo over the performing couple on stage, no one could see the dark turn the expression on Francis' face had gradually taken. He who had originally hoped to make his cousin jealous by having the maiden play something special for him, was now the one balling his hands into tights fists while trying his best to erase the discontent on his face before the lights came back on.

Josephine as well could not understand how things had turned around in such a manner. Following her son's idea, it was with great satisfaction that she had noticed a twitch of irritation on Sophie's face when she had announced that Kat had a surprise for her son. She, who was at first ecstatic at the prospect of seeing the queen lose her composure as Kat played a special composition for her son, was now the one devising murderous intents in her mind while looking at Angel playing with the young woman in such perfect harmony.

Still, everyone else in the room was subjugated by their performance. And, by the time the melody had reached its peak, some women in the crowd were patting the corner of their eyes with handkerchiefs.

A strong ovation welcomed the end of their performance, and did not subside while Angel left the piano and took Kat to the centre of the stage in order to salute the audience. Kat then took the microphone and waited until the room had quieted down before saying: "Happy birthday, Prince Francis!"

Acclamation followed right after her wish and accompanied their descent from the stage while the orchestra started to play a waltz for the Princely Dance.

What was called the Princely Dance was actually a first dance performed by the all princely members of the royal family at all princely celebration balls. While the celebrated prince would dance with the maiden introduced as his bride to be, all other princes or princesses would choose a dancing companion among the guests.

With all that been revealed to the public, every guest present knew that Kat was Angel's companion for the night. Hence, Francis was the one expected to choose a young woman among the guests for the Princely Dance.

Due to that, everyone's attention was still focused on the princes; and all the young women in the room were eagerly hoping to be chosen by the birthday prince.

Isabella and her two daughters-in-law moved to the side after they had congratulated the performers; and the guests started to clear out the dance floor in order to make space for the two princes and their dancing partners. But while everyone was stepping back, no one seemed to notice that one person was boldly moving forwards…

Angel stretched his hand towards Kat in request for a dance; but before Kat could place her hand in his, another hand snatched the crown prince's away. Both taken aback, Kat and Angel looked in the direction of the meddler.

"It would be my greatest honour to have this dance with you, Crown Prince Angel."

Wearing a red strapless mermaid dress and light make-up, Natacha Irung looked stunning. She had arrived during Kat and Angel's performance and, hence, could not be announced.

Natacha stepped closer to Angel and smiled. Lady Josephine had explained to her that, by giving her an invitation to Prince Francis' birthday party, she was giving her a once-off opportunity to show all of Ruund to whom the heart of the crown prince was truly attached. She initially had no intention to create a clash; but seeing how connected Angel was with that maiden during their performance, made her feel a strong urge to mark her territory.

For a few seconds, time seemed to have frozen in the ballroom as the two women locked eyes; the entire audience braced themselves for a face-off; and, from where they were sitting, Isabella, Sophie and Josephine looked at each other in worry.

A few reporters from endorsed journals had been invited to cover the event; so the royal family needed to avoid any form of scandal.

Before Angel could react, Francis quickly stepped in and took Kat's hand that was still hanging in the air.

"Changadim Kat, would you do me the honour of having this first dance with me?" He requested.

"Yes, wajikitanyi." Kat quickly answered, truly grateful to have been given a way out of a very awkward situation.

Angel was fully aware that any protestation from his part would only tarnish the entire event and feed the reporters' hunger for a scandal. Even if they were all from endorsed journals, keeping them from reporting on a scandalous clash between the princes or the two young women would be a very difficult task to accomplish. Hence, he politely smiled at Natacha and led her to the centre of the dance floor.

"Wajikit." Kat said after a while, as Francis and she swayed to the rhythm of the music.

"For what?" Francis asked.

"For saving me earlier. The situation was rather awkward…"

"Well I figured, with all the reporters around, making a scene will definitely not work out well for the royal family's image. And with all that has happened recently, they must be sniffing around for the littlest scandal to feast upon."

Kat chuckled. "You make it sound as if they were hungry vultures looking for a carcass."

"It's exactly like that." Francis concurred with a light laugh.

Francis let go of her waist and lift his other arm to make her twirl, then placed his hand back on her waist.

"You dance very well." He remarked.

"I have a good teacher. " Kat replied, referring to the lessons she had had since her arrival to the palace.

Francis was very much enjoying the fact that Natacha's entrance had given him the opportunity to snatch Kat away from Angel; but when he noticed that his dance partner was repeatedly stealing glances at the other dancing couple, he was suddenly reminded of their earlier performance.

"The song you just played…" He started.

But he could not say more. The waltz had come to an end, and both couples had to stop and salute the applauding audience.

Even after the dance had ended, Natacha kept holding unto Angel's arm in a very possessive way; giving Francis another opportunity to take Kat along with him as he roamed from group to group around the room to interact with his guests.

More than Francis – the former heir to the throne who had finally come back after spending the major part of his life away from home, Kat was the main attraction of the soiree. Everyone was eager to find out more about her, her family background, her life in DRC, which of the princes did she prefer, and any other detail about her that they did not get through the news; and before long, Kat was starting to get exasperated to have to answer to the exact same questions group after group; but still, she kept a courteous smile plastered on her face and cordially answered to everyone without the slightest show of her irritation.

Once she was assured that the worst had been avoided, Isabella suggested to her daughters-in-law that they finally leave the youngsters to their festivities. Queen Sophie was reluctant to leave but she still complied, hoping that nothing grave would happen after their departure. They had to act naturally after all.

After the three royal elders left, the pace of the party picked up as the orchestra switched to a more energetic, but still classic, type of music. As man of the evening, Francis was compelled to dance with other female guests as well, so he had to leave Kat on her own for a while. But guests kept crowding around her and inundating her with questions; so she barely had a minute to herself. She had to use bathroom as an excuse in order to finally escape her inquisitive companions and take refuge into the inner courtyard.

There, Kat sat at the edge of the fountain and heaved a heavy sigh while distractedly passing her hand in the water. The air outside was refreshing but still unable to relieve her mind of the uneasiness created by Natacha's appearance at the ball. She was trying to convince herself that it was just because she was concerned about the trouble that might cause, but very deep down, she knew that there was a main reason she was deliberately disregarding.

How did Natacha even manage to attend the party?

It was rather unlikely that she had been officially invited like all the other guests. Angel himself seemed to have not been expecting her. Unless he was pretending…

From the moment she had been separated from Angel, she had managed to keep him in her line of sight at all time. And though seeing Natacha pompously strutting at his arm had made regret her action each time she saw them, she could not stop herself from looking again. She really wanted to confirm whether or not he was happy with his lover's impromptu appearance.

Kat moved from the fountain and sat on a bench not far from it. "Stubborn heart of mine! What did I tell you? I won't allow you to fall for a taken man…" she muttered to her heart.

"What are you doing here all alone?"

The voice startled her, and she quickly looked up. "Oh, it's you, Francis…" she let out in relief.

"Did I scared you? Sorry for that."

"It's okay."

Francis sat next to her. "What are you doing here all alone?" He reiterated.

"Oh, I just wanted to get some fresh air. It was starting to feel stuffy in there."

Francis looked at the ballroom from which was coming the mixed sounds of music and people's chatter. "Do you not enjoy the party?" He asked with concern.

"Oh no, it's not that. I was just starting to feel like the okapi among your guests." Kat explained.

"The okapi?"

"You know… the rare animal in the natural park that becomes the main attraction for all visitors."

Francis laughed. "That's an interesting analogy."

Kat joined in his laughter. "Anyway, I just needed a moment away from your inquisitive guests." She explained.

"I understand. But try to understand their situation. Suitors for the royal family have always been chosen among the peer or political sphere of the uRuund society. This is the first time in Ruund history that a commoner is chosen instead. No offense…"

"None taken."

"I think they are just trying to find out for what reason my grandfather grew so fond of yours that he went as far as making such an oath with him; as well as why the royal family is so very fond of you. Because it's becoming more and more obvious that duty fulfilment is no longer the only reason why the royal family wants your hand."

"So, basically, they want to know in what way I might be better than them."

"Exactly."

Kat chuckled and looked towards the ballroom. It was interesting to see how one person's decision had the ability to affect so many lives at the same time. Their grandfathers must have never imagined that a simple action aiming at the reinforcement of their friendship bond would have an emotional impact on so many people in the future.

Looking back at Francis, she realised that the prince was looking at her with interrogative eyes.

"What is it?" She asked.

"The song you played for me earlier; did you compose it with Angel's help?" Francis asked, finally able to let out the question that had been tapping on his mind since the performance.

"Actually, it's Crown Prince Angel's composition." Kat confessed.

"Really? I didn't hear this song in his repertoire the other day."

"Oh, he's just finished composing this one…"

Kat understood that her answer would rise even more questions in the mind of the prince, so she explained further.

"For almost every nights these past three weeks, I've been listening to him working on this song from my balcony; so it ended up registering in my mind. After that, I started to think of a way to do a violin accompaniment for his song, and made used of my violin lessons to work on that."

Francis' heart jumped in his chest. "Why?"

"I don't really know how to explain it… As a music lover, whenever I hear a song, I instinctively think of how I can play or create an accompaniment for it on the violin." Kat explained. "And when you got your mother to call me on stage, my mind immediately went blank…" She added in a jokingly scolding tone. "And this song was the only one that was able to pierce through that wall of fright."

Francis nodded then chuckled. "I think I should apologise for tricking you like that."

"You sure should!" Kat exclaimed with a smile. "And I think I too should apologise to Crown Prince Angel for using his song without his permission."

"Well, as long as you know…" A deep voice resounded not far from them.

Francis and Kat looked up. Angel and Natacha were standing a few steps away from them. The bench they were sitting on was under a sunshade covered with bougainvillea; so when a person was sitting back, it was impossible for them to see the ballroom door. Moreover, the music coming from inside was loud enough to cover the sound of footsteps; hence, Kat and Francis had not been able to either see or hear the couple approach.

The encounter was rather unpleasant, but Angel did not have much choice. With reporters present at the ball, he knew that he needed to find a way to keep Natacha as much away from them as possible; so he had seized the first opening that had presented to him to escape from the ballroom. Though the reporters were not allowed to venture beyond the limits of the ballroom, Angel still felt that the garden was risky, and had opted for the inner courtyard instead. And since it was rather common at such events that couples – officially recognised ones at least – or groups of friends would choose to take a stroll outside in search of privacy or quiet, Angel knew that it would not sit weird with the guests to see them exit the ballroom.

Kat quickly stood up. "Crown Prince Angel!"

Francis stood up as well and stretched his hand towards Natacha. "Miss Irung, it is a pleasure to meet you."

Natacha curtseyed and placed her hand in Francis'. "It is an honour for me to be able to meet you, Prince Francis." She replied as he kissed her hand.

She then looked at Kat. "And this must be the famous Changadim Kat, right?"

One of Kat's eyebrows twitched. There was clearly a hint of condescension in her tone. It was their first time meeting, and yet the woman was treating her with badly concealed hostility.

"I don't really like that nickname." Natacha said with fake modesty. "I am really happy to meet you, Changadim Kat. And I need to apologise for my earlier behaviour; back on the dance floor…" She looked up at Angel, "I'm just very possessive when it comes to my Angel."

The fact that Natacha had emphasised on the possessive pronoun had not escaped Kat. And, though she was feeling a little bit of irritation at the young woman's act, she still felt like bursting into laughter. Was that woman actually treating her like a love rival? And if so, was she using condescension as a way of putting Kat down? Or as a way of convincing herself that Kat was beneath her?

Kat did not have time to indulge in such silly mind game while she did not even intend on choosing Angel. In fact, even if she wanted to be with Angel, she still would not waste her time fighting another woman over him. To her, it was a clear show of lack of confidence. Nevertheless, she still felt that she needed to strike a little blow at the young woman's ego.

"Oh, I really don't mind it. I just feel flattered that you think that I might steal Crown Prince Angel away from you."

Natacha frowned instantly. "Who says I think that? Aren't you thinking a little too high of yourself?"

Kat's lips curled up. "Doesn't possessiveness always rise when one feel like they are about to lose what they possess?" Kat replied. "But don't worry about me; you two are definitely meant for each other."

Natacha was taken aback. How did it seemed as if the woman in front of her was defying her and not defying her at the same time? Somehow, she was losing a battle against a person who didn't even seem to be fighting.

But she still wanted to gain the upper hand. "Is that so?" She asked haughtily. "What makes you say that?"

"Just something about the way you speak…" Kat replied enigmatically.

Francis and Natacha could not understand the meaning of Kat's words; but Angel surely did. He knew well that it was in reference to the night he had barged into her bedroom upon her arrival to the palace. Back then, he too had asked her: ~ Aren't you thinking too highly of yourself? ~

Kat grabbed Francis' arm. "Maybe we should give them some privacy."

"You're right." Francis concurred with a bright smile. "We'll leave you guys to your alone-time and head back inside. Cake cutting time is in half an hour I think; I hope you will join us for it."

Francis slightly bowed before Angel then took Natacha's hand to kiss it on more time.

"Once again, it's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Irung."

"Your Highness." Natacha curtseyed.