Garden Party
I recognized the voice that called out to me, it was Aphrodite. I turned to look for her but I couldn’t see her, “Why can’t I see you?” She giggled, “Sorry child, I cannot manifest in front of you when you’re going through portals. This is merely a voice chat.” I nodded, “Okay I understand.” She spoke again, “I have to make this short but Dorothea has a plan to catch your assassin. I think you should agree and bring it up with Blake during your party today.” I was confused, “Wait, what is the plan?” There was silence and the light shifted to the sight of the people sitting in front of me in the carriage. I looked at Dorothea with a confused look. She stared back at me, “Something wrong pretty one?” I looked away, “I have something I want to talk to you about. I’m not sure it should be said in front of everyone.” She shook her head, “You can speak in front of your friends. I have nothing to hide.” I looked back at her, “Okay. I understand that you may have a way to capture my assassin. What is it?” She sat up straight, “I was hoping Blake would bring this up with you so he could tell you his objections and you could weigh your options carefully but I see that someone has snitched on me. First, tell me who it was.” I sighed, “I’m not sure if you will believe me.” She leaned forward, “Try me.” I looked her in the eye, “When I go through portals, sometimes Aphrodite will contact me. She did just now and told me you had a plan and to accept then convince Blake it is okay. Nothing more.”
She sat back, “I can believe that. Okay so, I want to set you up as bait and have The Order go after you.” Derek shot her a dirty look, “Oh hell no! You can’t just put her in danger like that.” Vanessa sighed at the side of him, “As crazy as that scenario is, I have to agree with Dorothea. It might be the best shot of catching him especially since Blake has not brought them down yet. He’s usually pretty efficient in his tasks.” Dorothea shook her head, “The Order is a tough nut to crack. Loads of secrecy, even I don’t know the true identities of those involved. Blake said that there are two noble families who are a part of the operation.” Vanessa looked over at Dorothea, “How did he even find that out? I mean if they are so secretive, he shouldn’t be able to know that much.” Dorothea shrugged, “Aphrodite.” I looked at her, “You mean she manifested to Prince Blake?” She nodded, “She said she was only allowed to tell him that much. She didn’t like this latest threat and neither did the big guy I guess.” I looked over at Jess, “I value your opinion, what do you think of Dorothea’s plan?” Jess stared at Derek for a few moments and then looked down, “I don’t like it one bit but I do see the value of capturing him. It really isn’t for me to decide though. Ultimately, this decision is for you and you alone. Once you have decided, stick to your convictions and push it through to those who oppose.” She looked back up at Derek who sighed and sat back in his seat, “I doubt the Prince would agree with anyone but me.” Dorothea chuckled, “Well hunky, he didn’t when I brought it up to him. He did say he would value Alexandra’s opinion though so you need to get on board.” I sat there looking at the hands folded in my lap, “I cannot say that I am not afraid for my life. That being said, if Aphrodite says it will be okay, I will choose to believe her. I am going through with Dorothea’s plan. I will tell Prince Blake this today.” Derek grunted then looked at Dorothea, “You better have a real good plan or I will tell the King who will side with me.” Dorothea chuckled, “Of course I do hunky. I wouldn’t have brought it up if I didn’t have one. We can discuss after the party in the brat’s office. Oh, speaking of, there’s Mesha castle.”
I looked out the window to see a slightly smaller castle than that of the one in Tarn. It’s grey stone exterior gave off a definite regal feel to it. It had a very green garden in the front and to the side was a drop off to what I had assumed was an ocean below and everything else was lush green wilderness around it. It was definitely a place that I could picture the Queen Mother growing up in. Blake was anxiously standing outside, pacing until he looked up and saw our carriage approaching. He smiled as we pulled up and he excitedly opened the door. Dorothea jumped out at him, “Hey brat, did ya miss me?” He rolled his eyes, “Never old hag.” I giggled at the exchange, I thought it was a really cute thing they did. Vanessa got out next to which Blake said, “Oh good, you got my invitation. Sorry it was last minute; I have some things we should discuss.” She nodded at him, “I imagined you would.” Next was Jess and Blake greeted her warmly, “I am glad you could make it Lady Kellen.” She blushed at him and meekly replied, “I am happy to have been invited and to attend of course.” Derek hopped out next, “I know I wasn’t really invited but as The Batiste’s bodyguard, I am to accompany her everywhere.” Blake shot him a glare and masked it with a smile, “Of course, I understand.” I made my way to get out of the carriage when two hands shot out at me. I chose to grab Blake’s hand since he was my host for the day, “Thank you Your Highness.” He shook his head, “You can call me Blake while we are in Mesha. It would make me feel better to hear my name from you.” I nodded at him, “Okay Blake. Thank you for throwing this party. Your home is beautiful. Is that an ocean on the side?” He smiled, “Yes, you can see a lovely view of it from that balcony up there. I’d invite you there but that wouldn’t be appropriate.” With that sentence, I understood that the balcony that he had pointed out attached to his room.
I saw another balcony in front of the house and pointed, “Could I see it from there?” He looked up and smiled, “Yes, good eye Alexandra. That would be from my study. We can go up there later, just the two of us.” He shot a glare over at his shoulder at my companions. I looked back at them and said, “I think Blake will have me well protected up there plus I have Sebastian with me.” He had long disappeared into my shadow while we were waiting for Vanessa. Blake looked at me, “Who is Sebastian?” I explained to him about the gift that Aphrodite sent to me and how he could morph if anyone messed with me. He nodded, “I’m glad that she thought to send you such a companion. He will be loyal your whole life.” As if he knew that he was being spoken about, he jumped out of the shadow and looked up at Blake. He growled at him and I picked him up, “Sebastian, settle down. This is our friend and host for the day. Be gracious.” He disappeared into a wisp and circled Blake as he normally did when he met someone new. He manifested on his shoulder and sniffed him. He pawed at Blake’s cheek, not very hard but just enough to playfully mess with him. Blake laughed and reached up to his shoulder to grab Sebastian, “I like him, he has spirit.” I giggled, “I think he likes you too.” As I said that he fell asleep in Blake’s arms, an act that he never did with anyone but me. I gasped, “He normally doesn’t sleep on anyone but me. He must really feel comfortable with you.”
We proceeded to the tea party where I met many of the residents of Mesha and a few nobles that lived in surrounding areas. It was a lovely party that was set in the rose garden where he matching décor and tea set. He definitely made this event very detailed and it seemed that everyone but Derek enjoyed themselves. He was made to sit at the far corner of the garden since he wasn’t officially a guest. He got to talk to others since he was the heir of a Duke but he didn’t look like he had enjoyed himself. Blake had, at one point, broke away from me to speak with Vanessa alone. She listened to him intently and when he returned, he had a smile on his face. I looked at him, “Good news?” He nodded, “I wanted her to make a magical tool for me but I didn’t think she would. To my surprise, she agreed to make it for me.” I smiled, “She usually wouldn’t turn someone down especially if you offered to pay her nicely for it and explained why you needed it.” He nodded, “Yes, I know. I offered both and she accepted easily enough. I was expecting resistance.” We sat and chatted more when finally, the guests were beginning to leave and the party winded down.
I looked over at Blake as the last guest left, “I would like to discuss something with you.” He looked over at me, “Of course, I did promise you an ocean view from my study balcony. Shall we?” He offered me his arm and I placed my hand in the crook of his elbow and he beamed. I told the others to stay behind and discuss things amongst themselves and we made our way up the stairs and into his study. He let go of my hand and walked over to the French doors that led to the balcony and opened them. I walked out with him and looked over at the deep blue ocean that match the color of my mother’s eyes. I inhaled the breeze that hit my face and sighed, “It is a very beautiful view, Blake. I can see why you love it here.” He grabbed my hand and kissed my knuckles, “Your presence here makes it even more breathtaking.” I blushed at him and looked down, “Thank you.” He leaned on the stone railing and asked, “So what did you need to talk to me about?” I inhaled and sharply exhaled, “As I was going through the portal, Aphrodite contacted me about a plan that Dorothea had. She said she can guarantee that it will work. I would like to go through with it.” He balled up his hands on the railing and I walked behind him and placed my hand gently on his shoulder. I sighed, “I know what you are thinking but if I thought for a second Aphrodite wasn’t right about this, I wouldn’t ask that we do this.” The tension in his shoulder eased up and he dipped his head down, “I’m sorry Alexandra. I never want to put you in danger even if there is a guarantee that you wouldn’t get hurt. It is ultimately your decision and I promised Dorothea that I would take your feelings into consideration. Is there a detailed plan?” He turned to face me and I smiled at him, “She said we should all discuss it as a group.” He nodded and strode over to the French doors then spoke over his shoulder, “Then I guess we better get to it.”
