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"... How could I possibly?" Kel asked softly, unable to pull her eyes away from his.

The emperor continued to gaze silently for a few seconds before suddenly snapping back to focus.

"I want you to," he said simply as if that explained everything. His grip on Kel\'s chin softened as he spoke, and she quickly pulled her head away..

"Even if you say that..." she trailed off, dabbing her forehead against her arm. She was beginning to feel overheated.

"It will take place in three days," the emperor continued, offering a hand to help Kel to her feet. "There will be someone to escort you to the main palace."

"I don\'t understand," Kel grunted, reluctantly accepting the assistance. "First, you confine me to a tiny tent, threatening me with my comrade\'s life. Then I get here, and you give me a nice place to stay with maids and fancy clothes, only to lock me up again. And now… you\'ve decided to treat me like some kind of important guest?"

As she rose to her feet, he tightened his grip on her hand. "Yes."

"Ha," Kel snorted to the side in disbelief. "Well if possible, I would like to decli-"

"It\'s not possible," the emperor cut her off, slowly releasing her hand.

Kel stared dumbfoundedly in response, unsure what to say. The emperor also seemed to be lost for words but finally broke the silence between them.

"Your comrade will be attending as well," he remarked.

Barclay? The thought that the burly man would also be there made the idea much more palatable, but Kel was still uncertain about the whole thing.

"Then," the emperor continued, turning to leave, "I will see you in three days."

She gave the man a polite bow, and kept her eyes on the ground as the rustling of his footsteps faded away. What reason could this man possibly have for the sudden change in her treatment? Why had he even allowed her to go out with Lucy last night?

The only reason Kel could think of was that the emperor needed something from her, more specifically, from the Princess of Mevani. He must either be walking her into a trap or trying to distract her from something.

"Princess?" Roland\'s concerned voice interrupted her brooding.

"Roland," she replied, noticing the guard standing nearby, "I want to go back now."

The man nodded sympathetically as if he realized the unspoken meaning behind her words. "Understood."

***

The next day, Kel sat quietly drinking afternoon tea, half-heartedly listening to Lucy chatter about the upcoming ball. Apparently it was the \'biggest event of the year\', and \'everybody who\'s anybody\' would be in attendance.

As the two women rested peacefully, an urgent knock sounded at the door.

"Princess! Lucy! We must hurry!!" a young maid called, bursting through the door.

"What\'s going on?" Lucy jumped up.

"It\'s His Maj-"

AHEM!

All three women fell silent and spun around to see the head maid standing in the doorway.

"His Majesty is here to see the Princess," the older woman bowed, stepping to the side to allow the emperor a path through the doorway.

Unlike the modest clothes Kel usually saw him in, he was dressed in full royal attire, complete with several military medals and a red sash that swooped across his neatly buttoned black coat.

After entering the room, he nodded slightly toward the head maid, who, in turn, motioned for the other two maids to follow her out.

"Lucy!" Kel hissed, gripping the side of the maid\'s dress as she dutifully retreated.

"Sorry, Princess," Lucy replied, gently tugging her dress away. She scampered away, stopping to mouth \'good luck\', before closing the door behind her.

"Your Majesty," Kel curtseyed when the two were left alone. "What brings you here?"

"You need a new dress," the emperor replied.

Again?! Kel shuddered at the thought of having to be in the same room as Ira once more. Wouldn\'t it have been easier to skip the runaround and just let the head maid handle it while she was here?

"Let\'s go," the emperor urged, extending his elbow.

"Um, Sire," Kel interjected awkwardly, "might I suggest using a dress I already have?"

"The head maid insisted on something..." he paused, scanning Kel\'s current attire, "more traditional."

"I see." Kel slumped in defeat, gently resting her hand on the emperor\'s offered arm. She braced herself to face the definitely-not-a-secretary\'s capricious temper as the man escorted her out of the building.

To her surprise, an extravagant carriage was waiting out front. Even more surprisingly, the emperor led her to it and helped her inside. Would they be riding to the main palace this time?

"May I ask what the carriage is for?" Kel queried as the emperor seated himself across from her.

"We\'ll be going to the dress shop directly," he explained.

"Oh, I see," Kel replied. "But…" she trailed off.

The emperor looked over and raised his eyebrows. "What is it?"

"Are you personally taking me there, Your Highness?"

The emperor\'s face darkened at her question. "Ira threatened to quit if I ordered him to go with you."

It took every ounce of Kel\'s strength to hold back laughter. She could all too easily picture Ira bursting into a fit of anger before the emperor could even finish speaking.

When the urge to laugh died down, she looked over at the emperor again. For some reason, seeing the austere man interact with Ira and Thane made him seem less demon-like, almost human. She recalled Thane\'s words from earlier, that the three men had been childhood friends.

At first, the idea of the dragon emperor ever resembling anything close to a child was inconceivable, but over the last few days, it had become less difficult to imagine.

"Why are you smiling at me like that?"

Kel startled at the emperor\'s question and realized she had been staring too much.

"I beg your pardon," she ducked her head sheepishly.

The emperor chuckled at her reaction, and then the two rode in silence until the carriage came to a halt.

"It seems we have arrived," the emperor remarked.

Kel glanced up to see him watching her with an unreadable smirk.

When they made eye contact, his smile deepened, and he gestured toward the door. "Shall we?"