PeaceMaker

Justin found it to be a very entertaining scene. The fact that he was the only one who noticed it was beyond entertaining. 

The awed faces of the audience in contrast with the grim expressions of the royal family were fun to look at. It seemed like all of them knew the performer. They had probably all had conversations with her, sat down for tea, and spent time in each other's presence. They also all seemed to hate her. 

Of course, this was different for the youngest son as he seemed to not care for one second as to whatever was going on in his family and stayed entertained at what he was watching. Not entertained... He stayed content. 

Of course, it was hard for him to tell from where he was seated. The Royals were seated far from him, ascended on thrones high above the other people in the room. There seemed to be an eerie shadow over their face, one that didn't dull their bright eyes as it shined through the shadows, peering down at the performers and glaring down at Lusinda. 

Justin was attracted to Lusinda. He wanted to sit with her, be in the same close space with her, and look at her in the eye.

He wanted to have a conversation with the one that upset the royals. He always liked a mystery. 

He looked beside him at Falls who was looking down at Lusinda. He too was intrigued with Lusinda. His stare was much more intense, his eyes transfixed on her long waves of hair, the reflection of her long red-brown hair could almost be seen in his eyes from how intensely he stared at her. 

Justin couldn't blame him. She was something that was worth looking at, to examine and embed in their mind. She was beautiful. 

He turned to Antonio and he scowled. He too was staring. He hated it. He hated the fascination in Antonio's eyes when he looked at her. He hated how intrigued he was by the performance. How dare he? 

'Pfft… no wonder he's a man like that. He just can't resist trying to-' Justin thought to himself, his words cutting off when Antonio's head turned and locked eyes with Justin. He trembled. The gaze he was giving Lusinda was not one of fascination or awe. It was one of amusement, just like the gaze he had had.

Antonio stared at Justin for a moment. His eyes didn't even seem to recognize who he was. They stared for a moment before Antonio flinched, a blush traveling onto his face. He immediately lowered his head in front of Justin. 

"S-sorry for staying," He apologized, his eyes lower from Justin's gaze. 

Justin stared at Antonio for a moment, completely confused at what he was seeing. 'What was that? I just saw something again…' he thought to himself. He was perplexed by the switch Antonio had in his eyes. For a moment, he looked confident, like his eyes read right through Lusinda and through Justin too as soon as he laid sight on him.

His gaze looked condescending, like he was finally looking at Justin from the perspective of where his power said he should look at Justin from. The difference in levels had never felt so real to him. Then there was the switch again. Where his eyes seemed to realize who he was looking at and correct themselves, reducing himself to the level Justin was at just to see him eye to eye. 

A cold shiver ran Justin's spine. It was the most chilling thing he had gotten to witness. It reminded him or her, Annabeth. Her eyes looked just like that. The way they could look down on someone and reduce them to half their size just from one stare and then reverse themselves in a split second like she was best friends with the person she had demeaned. 

Justin stared at Antonio for a moment before smiling. 'Ah…' he chuckled as he looked at Antonio. 'Birds of a feather flock together.'

"Hm?" Antonio tilted his head to the side. "I-is there something on my face?"

Justin looked at him blankly for a moment. "Yeah…" Justin replied. 'Deceit.' 

Antonio flinched, his hands rising to his face. "What? Really?! Where is it?"

Justin chuckled, his hand raising to Antonio's face and brushing curly strands of hair behind his ears. His ears felt hot and his cheeks were red. 

Justin chuckled. "Nothing. I was just joking with you." 

Antonio blushed, lightly rushing Justin's hand off. "O-ok then." 

"Hm," Justin murmured, his eyes locking with Antonio's. He grinned. He loved mysteries. 

Antonio turned to face Lusinda, watching her performance. She looked so elegant, so frail, so angelic. So devilish. 

"What do you think of her dance?" Justin asked. 

"It's beautiful," Antonio replied cheerfully. 'He's not mad anymore?' he thought to himself. A sigh of relief escaping his lips, 'that's good.'

"Hm?" Justin muttered, he was probing for more. 

Antonio took the bait. 

"It seems seductive though," Antonio continued. "Her steps… they look so peaceful but then they should not have this much control over the people in the room if they were just elegant. They are seductive. Pulling the people in."

"Really?" Justin muttered, a smirk on his face. He knew it, Antonio had made that kind of face. 

"Yup," Antonio nodded, his eyes following Lusinda as she moved. "Moreso… it's not like she's trying to seduce the audience, but rather the royals…" Anotonio cocked his head to the side. He turned to Justina and smiled, "Doesn't it seem like it too?"

Justin nodded, returning Antonio's smile. "Most definitely."

The more he talked, the more Justin was proved right. But… it only brought up the question. 'Why is he telling me all this?' Justin thought to himself. He knew very well that Antonio knew better than that, at least by the stare in his eyes. His eyes were not ones that were shallow, he had read through Justin, he knew just exactly why Justin was asking these questions. 

'If he knew exactly what my purpose is, then why is he allowing me to speak like this? Why is he even telling me all of this?' Justin thought to himself. 'Is he playing with me?'

Antonio chuckled, a bright smile appearing on his innocent face. "I like talking to you. It seems like we see things from the same POV," Antonio grinned, his eyes peeking through and looking into Justin's, "I hope we can do this a lot more often."

Justin froze for a moment, a grin spreading on his face. 'So that's the reason…' he thought to himself. A shiver ran down his spine. 'That was a threat wasn't it?'

"Of course," Justin nodded his head at Antonio's comment. 'He's telling me trusts me… enough to tell me all of this,' Justin thought to himself, 'telling me to never try to break that bond or else…"

A shiver ran down his spine. He was so entertained, he was glad he came to this celebration. It looked like it had more to it than just normal people with pockets heavier than a horse pulling a carriage. 

He turned back to Lusinda who twirled with the long ribbon turning around her so calmly, her presence as a godly white swan filling up the room. It was such a beautiful sign, how angered the royals looked at her, and how amazed the audience looked at her. 

The contrast was better than any jester he had seen. 

"Isn't it such a nice scene?" Justin asked as he peered at Lusinda's long locks and her winding body. 

"Yup," Antonio nodded, "how beautiful."

*

Annabeth was still waiting. She had never gotten to wait for this long in her life. 

It was boring as she stared at the mirror so she stayed and practiced her hand movement without touching her instrument. She looked at the pens and paper on the table and thought about all the pieces she could play.

It made her excited, especially when she knew she was next. It was a bit concerning though. 

She had heard one pair of footsteps enter the room and only one pair leave the room. She hadn't heard the performer at all. It was the silent steps of a master. It was threatening. 

She loved a challenge. 

She practiced harder, playing all the pieces that could come to her mind and grinning every time she would play all the lines exceptionally. Doe stared at her with expectant eyes. 

Even she didn't know how Annabeth sounded when she played. It had only been her and her mother at practice. Beady eyes staring at each other, shoving expectations down each other's throats. It had been tense in each other's presence, but tension is sometimes what someone needs to step up their game. 

It had been what she needed. 

Annabeth listened in to the silence in the room, she could hear the distant sounds of playing from the dance the performer was doing. There were no audible gasps, no clicks of bottles, and no chatter. Just silence while the music played. 

She was right about her inference. It was a talentful one. One with enough talent to grab everyone's attention and tie it all into a little string that she wrapped around her finger. 

Annabeth looked into the mirror, her red lips spreading into a smile.

She couldn't wait to do the same.