"Now tell me," the prince began after greeting his last guest and taking his seat at the head of the table, "How did the two of you meet?"
"In a brothel," Egon laughed, and there were a few chuckles from those closest who could hear the conversation.
"Am I entertaining a lady of the evening, then?" The prince asked, amused.
"No, she was a guest." Egon continued to be vague.
"I'm not nearly as exciting as he's trying to make me out to be. I was there looking for him." She smiled. The crowd continued to laugh.
"Yes, everyone does know that if you want to find Egon Schwert, your best bet is to find the finest brothel. Assuming they haven't kicked him out yet." There was more laughter at the prince's statement. "Now why, sweet angel of a woman, were you looking for a cad such as him?"
"I wanted him to train me," she lied. "I'd heard he was the best."
"Had you also heard that he doesn't train women? How in the world did you convince him to train you?"
"I didn't give him much of a choice." The prince cackled.
"I can see why he would give in to you. You're an absolute delight!" The crowd continued laughing with the prince as the food began to be served.
There were huge platters of roasted meat, rice, breads, and so much more. Mina didn't know where to start. She waited and watched the prince, who immediately took some flat bread and placed it on his plate while the servant carved the meat and gave him some. Then he picked up some rice with a piece of bread, then some of the very tender meat, and took the whole bit in his mouth. She watched as Egon followed suit and went in for herself, taking a bit of everything for her bite. It was delightful. She hadn't eaten with her hands since childhood, but something about it created a real connection to the food.
There was a lot of talking during the meal that she only participated in if she was addressed, which didn't happen often. She missed most of it while being completely enraptured by the meal. What she had gleaned was that the couple across from her and Egon were from another neighboring country, Ferron. They were in the business of Iron and traded with Chrysanthos and Sapphirus regularly.
"Here," Egon said, placing a glass of wine in her hand. Dinner had concluded, and they had all moved out into the cool courtyard where there was a band in place. There were easily 50 people in the courtyard and there was still plenty of space. Some couples took to dancing near the band, and others stood on the sidelines, socializing. She had chosen the latter, at least for the time being. A little wine and who knows where the night might take her.
"Egon," A male voice said. Egon turned his attention to the speaker.
"Ah! Barrett!" Egon exclaimed at the man and hugged him. "It's good to see you. I didn't know that you were in port. When did you get in?"
"Yesterday, with the ship from Ferron," he explained. Barrett was as tall as Egon with fiery red hair and friendly blue eyes. "Who is your companion?"
"This is my date, Violet," Egon answered proudly. She smiled up at him.
"Violet, huh?" He said, taking her hand to kiss it, much like the prince had, "Nice to meet you."
"Barrett and I grew up together, but he's a shit swordsman," Egon joked, only to get shoved by his friend.
"So you both grew up in Sapphirus?" She asked curiously.
"Yes, in Pontus together. Our dads were friends. His dad was a sword master, and mine was a blacksmith. I was the better student." Egon went on.
"He says that only because he's somehow conned the king into his cushy gig here. I gave him a run for his money."
"I'd hardly call 5 young boys a 'cushy gig.' I get paid what I deserve." Egon defended playfully. "Here, hold this." He took the wine out of her hands and passed it to his friend. "I'm going to take my date, which by the way I see you don't have, and we're going to dance."
"We are?" She asked. He took her hand, pulled her to the dance floor, and took her hands in his. A few of the guests cheered at his presence on the dance floor, and she was about to find out why.
"Follow me." He whispered in her ear. And she did. He began to step through one of the fancier footworks he'd been teaching them, adding the necessary flares to make it more of a dance, including spinning her and dipping her. He was a good lead, and her experience in dancing at court helped her follow him through. Her heart was racing, and she was laughing by the time the song came to an end. He pulled her in close and planted a small kiss on her forehead. "There, now that I'm done showing off, let's find you your wine."
"Impressive," Barrett said as they rejoined him and he gave her wine back to her. "I wonder, could you dance with anyone or just Egon?"
"Just Egon," She lied. She wasn't interested in the intimacy of a two-person dance with a complete stranger. Egon looked pleased with her answer.
"Unfortunate. Well, I guess if I'm not getting a dance, I'll have to get on with socializing. It was a pleasure to meet you."
"He stole my girlfriend once," Egon said under his breath.
"I can't imagine." She smiled at him.
"I'm going to go talk to the prince for a few minutes. Are you alright if I leave you alone?" He asked. "I could take you, it's just that I need him to speak freely, and he won't if you're there."
"Yes, I'll be fine. I can handle myself." Smiled over her wine glass as she took a sip.
She stood on the sidelines, enjoying the night air and the delightful music. As time went on, more people joined in dancing, and it became more chaotic. She was having fun watching, nursing her wine. Egon was engaged in some obviously entertaining conversation with the prince, which was also fun to watch. A few more sips in and she began to feel a little odd. She looked around, and it was almost like the world was lagging behind her. She went to take a step forward and was stopped by Barrett.
"Not looking very well, Violet." He emphasized her name weirdly, or was it just the wine?
"I'm feeling a little off," She said as he led her back into the house past a few stragglers who were in the house.
"That won't do, will it, princess. Let's get you somewhere to sit." He said, leading her into the foyer.
"Wait, princess?" She stopped and looked at him, and he sighed.
"I was really hoping I wouldn't have to do this," he said, looking around before drawing his sword. Before she could react, she was met with pain and blackness.