Amira felt the ghost of his hand barely in hers, it was even fainter along her waist where her skin was showing through the torn, worn material of her dress. It was almost as if he were a ghost, just shadowing her body as they danced. It was easy to tell he wasn’t enjoying their slow-paced dance. He was merely trying to polite to her because she had asked for a single dance with him. As she stared at all the onlookers, Amira knew she would be embarrassed if she told him to leave her alone on the dance floor if he did not enjoy it. Nay! A princess shall never quit a dance.
Her eyes drifted across most of the people, but always strayed back to Taverak. A fact that he seemed quite oblivious to, or she was doing a remarkable job of making it seem like a fleeting gaze. Either way, she refused to give him the satisfaction of knowing how intrigued she was by him.
Amira couldn't help but let her mood drop every time a girl came to ask Taverak for a dance, each one prettier than the last. She couldn't fathom any reason why she should feel thusly, but she did. Every lingering second made her heart drop farther into her stomach, until he shook them off without another word, spinning her away from those countesses.
Well, milord, look who is upset about having to dance with the simpleton... She thought to herself, watching his head barely move in a nod when she tried to speak. He continued to twirl her, not looking at her – that she caught, anyway.
She gave up hope, not even trying to be sweet and comforting to him anymore. When she turned away from him again, trying to avoid his line of sight, she spied some of the boys through the market. She locked eyes with one boy in particular. He looked just a few years younger than herself. He had big bright gray eyes and mousy brown hair. His clothes ragged and his face covered in dirt. His appearance didn't stop the happy smile that seemed to stay on his face through the whole song. No, he seemed determined to see the good in the world.
When she turned back to look at Taverak, he had let go of her waist and backed away. His hand rubbing the back of his neck as if in anticipation to get away from her. The song had just ended as he began to speak. Amira couldn't help but feel saddened the song was so short in comparison to her kingdom's songs. Then, she finally noticed a slight tint to his cheeks – though she passed it off from the lights – as she listened to him.
“Go get something to eat. Tell them to put it under my name, milady,” He seemed to mutter when the music faded into silence and the beats of an echoing drum pounded into her ears. With that having been said, he frowned slightly like his words hurt him to send her away, but it disappeared as soon as it had appeared on his sharp-edged face, and he turned to walk away.
Go eat? You expect me to eat? She thought to herself but she nodded with a barely-there smile even though he had already turned away from her. Her eyes lingered too long on him - the way he moved so gracefully through the crowd, his messy black hair seemed to be highlighted with blues in the lights that lit up the entire village. His eyes were the thing that struck her so differently. They were that deep, soulful, jade color that made her pause and want to just forget everything she was about to say just to look at them - but she didn't give in, that would have been unheard of for a princess to do. Especially with a commoner.
Instead she turned on her heel and walked over to the little boy she spied earlier. She noticed he was younger than she had first thought. Maybe a half a score old. His shadowed gray eyes stared up at her as they widened to the size of saucers.
"May I have this dance?” She asked the boy, bending down to his level as she offered to dance with him to the fast beat song. The beat seemed innocent enough, but very unnatural for the princess.
The little boy grinned, it lit up his whole face. He nodded took her hand in his and ran out to the dance floor. He began dancing to the beat in the native dance of his small town. Amira had to watch him for a few seconds before she mimicked him, giggling and laughing at how silly she probably looked to most of the people around her. At the moment all she cared about was dancing her heart out to the beat of the drums, and the sounds of the echoing song that seemed to be cheerful and haunting at the same time.
"What is your name?" The little boy asked, sweetly smiling at her with his missing front tooth, continuing to dance as he spoke. His little feet stomped to the beat in a way that seemed so natural it was hard to believe he wasn’t a professional dancer, despite his age.
"My name is Am- My name is Amelia." She said, smiling down softly at the little boy as she moved down to his level before asking in a sweet and motherly voice. "And what is your name, little cutie?"
The little boy looked instantly when he heard her voice, almost as though he had heard it before, but he perked up as he spoke his name, "Kajue, milady," he whispered, looking at her with his big, gray eyes. He seemed so innocent in ways that Amira had never been as a child at Kajue age.
"Well, Kajue, where do you stay?" She asked softly. The boy pointed to a corner. Dragging her off the dance floor and to a place where a little wood box sat. It was half rotted and horrid smelling, Amira instinctively scrunched her nose. "Kajue, would you like to stay with me tonight?" She asked, not even bothering to ask Taverak for permission. She scooped the little boy up into her arms and was frightened by his weight, too light to be healthy.
Kajue just curled up into her small form and murmured a word that suspiciously sounded like "Mommy," before Amira walked around. Her eyes scanned the crowd for her kidnapper, her protector, and her old best friend. The people of the town jostled against her and pushed her in all directions when she seemed so small against the many drunken and wide-bodied people in the crowds.
When Amira finally found Taverak, she tapped him on the shoulder firmly and readjusted Kajue. Her own face tired but somewhat happier in a way that seemed to glow brighter than half the lights in the whole city.
When he turned, her mouth opened but it fell quiet in words as soon as she saw how he looked at her, his eyes were not guarded for once. His stubble was outlined in a dark, shadowed light that made his skin seemed darker than it usually is. In all the years she had been without seeing him she noticed now how much he had changed. Shaking her head, she cleared her throat before speaking, staring at his shoulders as if that would help her traitorous thoughts about Taverak, best thief and kidnapper of the current times – and he happened to be recruited by King Leck, the Fallen King.
"Tav, this is Kajue. He knows me as Amelia," she began by putting emphasis on the single word before she continued. "I want him to stay with us tonight." She then lowered her voice for the next part, just loud enough for Taverak to hear as she leaned closer to his ear, her lips barely brushing his skin. "He lost his mother, Taverak. I can't leave him in that box he calls a home." She said, pleading with him with just her eyes as Kajue slept soundly in her arms for the moment. "Please, Tavi."
It is a princess's duty to keep everyone in her kingdom happy, and I will do my job every time I had the chance. She thought, her face in a mask of determination and something else that seemed too distant to place.
Taverak rubbed the side of his jaw with a callused hand as he closed his eyes before speaking, keeping them shut as he responded. “Amelia, I am not having my merch—“ He paused before he called her his merchandise, something inside of him stopping him. “You have no time to have a child to take care of. You will be off with warlords, milady. You have more to worry about than some peasant child,” he reasoned. His eyes finally opening even though they now were guarded and hesitant as he said the next part before Amira could speak. He couldn’t stand to see her eyes so sad and alone.
“I will let you keep the boy; if you play along with Ba Bilan’s story that we are together. And that includes obeying my words, no matter how foolish you think they could be.” He added with a glint of something that made his eyes even glow brighter in the town’s colored flames.
Mischief perhaps, a traitorous thought told Amira as she nodded mutely with a small smile dancing across her full, light pink lips.