Ruarc gazed at the crowd of nobles and aristocrats gathered on the dance floor before him. He leaned against one of the stone pillars that surrounded the room, his presence at the Masquerade Ball mandatory due to his position as the Head of the King‘s Guard. The men under his command lined the wall, stone-faced observers to the night’s revelry. Queen Reyna and King Liandan were on the dance floor, outshining all other couples with their grace of movement. Reyna was dressed in a flowing gown in the royal blue and black with Liandan matching in a similarly colored suit. Blue fabric masks covered the tops of their faces, though it was unmistakable who they were. The King and Queen were perfect for each other, Ruarc had known that from the day he’d introduced Liandan to his cousin. Tonight’s ball was the yearly celebration of their wedding anniversary. It was also a chance for his partner Caelan to unfold some masterful plan on how he could sneak into Gildor when Ruarc accompanied the King there next month.
There had been some strange movements of Gildor troops along the Eveny borders in recent months, strange enough for Liandan to send Ruarc to investigate. Ruarc’s position in the Guard was merely a cover for his real job as the King’s Spymaster. That investigation had lead to him running from Gildor assassins straight into the care of an outrageously extravagant bard named Caelan Aryan. In the few weeks since they’d met, Caelan had somehow managed to worm his way into both Ruarc’s heart and profession. He’d become nearly indispensable to Ruarc, both for his skills at handling people and for Ruarc’s complete infatuation with the elegant bard. Ruarc’s investigation had turned up some useful information, mainly that the ruling family of Gildor was planning to assassinate King Liandan and invade in the ensuing chaos. He had not been able to discover when or how the plot would be carried out, leaving them with only slightly more information than they‘d had prior to his investigation. The King was long overdue for his yearly visit to renegotiate the terms of the treaty between Eveny and Gildor, and Ruarc suspected that the royals of Gildor were waiting for Liandan’s arrival to carry out their plan. Liandan wanted both Ruarc and Caelan there to help uncover the plot, but they had run into a slight snag in their plan. Caelan apparently had a price on his head in Gildor due to his composition of a highly unflattering song about the Head Mage of Gildor, who just happened to be the King’s brother.
Caelan had devised some clever plan to get himself into Gildor, and had dragged Queen Reyna into the plot to help him. The two had been close-lipped about what they were planning, leaving Liandan and Ruarc to wonder what disaster Caelan was going to inflict on the ball. Ruarc had several doubts about Caelan’s ability to mask his personality. The bard had a certain flair of the dramatic that was unmistakable, and the musical tone in his voice was impossible to mask. Ruarc was confident that no matter who Caelan tried to pass himself off as, Ruarc would spot him. He already had two suspects he had spotted in the crowd. Caelan had even made his plan into a bet between the two of them, promising some unspecified reward if Ruarc managed to spot Caelan before the night was over.
The current song ended and the royal couple left the dance floor to join Ruarc. He waited until the two were standing next to him before addressing the Queen. "Your Majesty, are you certain Caelan will be able to pull this off?"
Reyna smiled widely in response. "Even I had a hard time recognizing Caelan, and I helped to make his disguise. This will work, trust me."
Liandan’s smile was as easy as his wife’s. He knew of the bet between Ruarc and Caelan. The two men had long been good friends, they’d known each other for years before Liandan became King and Ruarc his guardian. "Care to give us a hint to help Ruarc win the bet?"
"I’m sorry, Liandan, I can’t do that. Besides, I want to see both your faces when you realize who Caelan’s dressed as."
"Not even a hint?" Ruarc mock-pouted slightly in hopes of winning a tidbit of information from the Queen, earning him a laugh from both the regal pair.
"He didn’t change his hair color and he’s not wearing a wig." Ruarc smiled and thanked the queen. That narrowed the possibilities down to every black haired male. It was a help, limiting the choices from three hundred to only about fifty.
Reyna waved suddenly, gesturing for the Lord of Romney to join their conversation. Lord Alden was an old friend of hers. The town of Romney was only a short distance from her home in Cathen, thus the two noble families had often dined together. Reyna viewed Alden as an uncle and treated him as such. Not that Alden minded. He had spoiled Reyna and her siblings rotten as children, since he had none of his own. With him was another girl that Ruarc didn’t recognize. He was struck by her beauty, for she easily eclipsed the majority of women at the Masquerade. If he were even remotely interested in women, Ruarc knew he would be attracted. Thankfully his interests lied elsewhere, or he would fear Caelan’s jealous wrath.
The lady was dressed in a sparkling white gown, fabric glowing as if it were made of moon dust. The bodice was tightly fitted to show off her slender figure and moderately endowed chest, with a conservative cut that hugged her neck. Her skirts flared below her hips, and Ruarc could make out the tips of a pair of dainty white slippers beneath the many layers of fabric. Black hair brimming with curls fell past her shoulders, its darkness a striking contrast against the paleness of the dress and the lady’s skin. Delicate hands were clasped before her as she gracefully approached, blue eyes staring straight forward with purpose through the white feathered mask she wore. She wore no jewelry beyond a simple silver hair clasp, but even with the absence of it she appeared as regal as any of the ladies dripping with jewels.
The gaze she directed on them slightly unsettled Ruarc. He would have sworn she was staring straight at him, but he knew her gaze would be on the King. Why would the lady have any need to pay attention to him? Alden and the lady had approached before he had time to ponder. Alden bowed to the regal pair, the girl beside him bobbing in a curtsy at the same time. "My Lords and Lady, may I present to you my niece, the Lady Aerin of Romney?"
They murmured polite greetings to the young lady. Now that she was next to him Ruarc could tell for certain that her focus was on him and not the King. Her look was making him nervous, he was all too familiar with its like. Ruarc knew he had never met the lady before. She was probably just another of the noble ladies who saw him as an unmarried male and didn’t think to look any further than that. He knew a lot of those, which was why he normally avoided most court functions if Caelan was not at his side. The only person allowed to stare at him that way was his love. Ruarc wouldn’t accept anyone else.
"Excuse me, but I believe I should find Caelan before the night gets too late."
The lady blinked at him in confusion, more than likely disappointed that he would be leaving. Reyna apparently took pity on the girl, he could hear her explain that Caelan was his partner as he blended into the crowd. He wanted to find Caelan as quickly as possible, he could already feel the other husbandless ladies preparing to zoom in on him. Through the crowd he could see his first suspect a little further down the wall Ruarc had been standing near earlier. The man was well-dressed in a black suit that matched Ruarc’s own, something Caelan had picked out for him and insisted he wear. The man’s black hair was equal in length to Caelan’s own, though he did appear slightly larger and more conservatively dressed than what Caelan normally looked like. With the mask covering his face, Ruarc couldn’t be certain.
He approached the man quietly, noticed by the other lord well before he came within touching distance. "Excuse me, you wouldn’t happen to be Caelan Aryan, are you?"
The man shook his head, lifting his mask for a moment to reveal his face. Too round for Caelan’s, with a jagged scar on his brow that looked real. Ruarc crossed the man off his mental list and turned to try another one. As he blended into the crowd, his eyes met the blue gaze of the Lady Aerin of Romney through a gap in the guests. Her eyes were locked on him intently, following his every movement. He turned sharply, thus missing the triumphant smile that crossed the lady’s lips.
Ruarc let the cool wind calm him as he stared over the small garden laid out below him. The balcony was a quiet haven he often used to escape the noise of Palace parties, and it served him well at the moment. It seemed like he’d approached every black haired male in the Masquerade, but none of them were Caelan. He was convinced the younger man was hiding from him, just so that he could win the bet. Caelan would do something like that, though he’d promised to play fair tonight. He kept thinking he saw the younger man on the edge of his vision, but whenever he turned around Caelan was gone. Ruarc was seriously considering going back to their suite to wait for Caelan. He didn’t know if he could stand being at the party for the remaining two hours until the guests unmasked at midnight. Lady Aerin’s attentions did not help, he hadn’t felt this hunted since he was being chased by Gildor assassins.
A light cough behind him distracted him from his brooding and he turned to face the intruder. Lady Aerin of Romney stood a small distance behind him, smiling widely. "I’m sorry if I’m disturbing you, but you looked like you could use some company."
Ruarc returned her smile, though it was not echoed in his eyes. "Actually, I was just about to leave. I’m afraid the crowd has given me a headache."
The pout the lady turned on him was something he was familiar with. All Caelan had to do to get Ruarc to comply with anything he wanted was to turn on him with pouting lips and wavering blue eyes. "That’s too bad." She sidled over to him, pressing herself against his side and running the fingers of her right hand up his clothed chest as she gave him a coy look. "I was hoping I could convince you to dance with me."
Ruarc stepped back abruptly with a glare. "I apologize my Lady, but my dance card is filled by another man. If you’ll excuse me..." He bowed politely before turning away quickly, disappearing back into the crowd before the lady could reply. He moved smoothly through the press of guests. What he’d told Lady Aerin was the truth, the noise of the party and the crowded room was giving him a headache. He made his apologies to Reyna and Liandan before slipping into the cool peace of the palace hallways. The stone corridors were mostly vacant as he made his way to his suite, the majority of the servants working to support the Masquerade. He took the long way back to his suite, enjoying the calm of the empty passageway. He turned the last corner before his suite and stopped in front of the oaken door that separated him from the rooms he shared with Caelan.
Ruarc wasn’t prepared for the sight that greeted him after he turned the metal knob. He was tempted to slam the door in anger and walk away, but chose not to. The Lady Aerin of Romney sat calmly on the edge of his bed, either unaware or uncaring of the sharp glare he directed towards her. Ruarc closed the door behind him, it wouldn’t do for the servants to spread rumors about the lady’s appearance in his rooms. Caelan would kill him if he found out about her attention. Tossing his mask a little more forcibly than he intended into a chair, he turned to face the lady.
"Get out." Politeness was dropped in the hopes that she would finally leave him alone.
The lady ignored him, smiling sadly from her perch. "Is the man you’re waiting for so much more beautiful than me? Am I so unlikable that you’d turn me out for his company?"
Ruarc couldn’t help but smile as he replied, words escaping from his lips that he would never have the courage to say to Caelan’s face. He was a warrior, not a poet. He had never been good at expressing his emotions. But he felt he owed the lady an explanation. "The man I’m waiting for outshines even the most stunning court beauty in my eyes. His smile is the sun that brightens my day. His mere presence lightens my mood. Roses fade in jealousy when he’s near and the stars bow to him in worship. He’s captured my heart to the point where no other will do, for both men and women pale when compared against him."
Tears glistened in the Lady Aerin’s eyes as she stood slowly. Carefully she removed the mask, letting the cloth fall to the floor as tears streaked down her face. Ruarc gasped in recognition; he knew those features intimately. “You really mean that?" 'Her' voice had dropped to Caelan’s familiar tenor.
Ruarc could only stare mutely at the contradiction standing before him. He nodded in response, a move that produced a happy giggle from Caelan and caused his arms to suddenly become filled with a giddy bard. Feminine attributes that Ruarc knew Caelan had not previously possessed were pressed against his chest, feeling as real as if they were natural. Somehow his mind and mouth connected to produce a muted "..How?"
Caelan smiled at him, reading the gaze Ruarc fixed on his chest. "They’re fake. It’s a bodice I got off of a theater troop I worked with a couple years ago. There are pouches in the front filled with some type of grain or sand." He stepped back suddenly and twirled around. "Think it’ll work?"
Ruarc reappraised Caelan’s figure. He had to admit, it was impressive. He’d been completely fooled until Caelan had took off the mask. Of course, he had been looking for a male, but he doubted he would have been able to pick Caelan out if he was looking for a woman. "Will you be okay dressing as a woman for the entire trip to Gildor?"
Caelan nodded. "I did that a lot when I was younger. It made my sisters jealous when I looked better in a dress than they did. Besides, this will help keep all those unmarried vultures away from you, particularly after we’re married."
"Married!?" Ruarc choked on dry air as he stared at Caelan in shock.
Wavering blue eyes and full lips were turned upon him. "You don’t want to?" Ruarc knew any objection he raised would be swallowed by Caelan’s pouting face. He had never been able to deny Caelan what he wanted.
He sighed. "I never said that."
"Then you will? It‘ll make my presence more believable on the trip." The hopeful look shining from Caelan’s eyes went straight to his heart. It made sense for them to be married, or at least to say they were. An unmarried noblewoman staying in the room of a nobleman would create a scandal. They could just tell people in Gildor they were married, but a ceremony would make it more believable.
If they were going to do this, he might as well put some effort into it. He turned to the dresser on the wall behind him, opening a small wooden box and rooting around in its contents. The box was his mother’s, a few keepsakes she’d wanted him to have. Pulling out a simple golden band, he hid it in his palm. He’d never thought he’d get a chance to use it until now. Caelan was staring at him in curiosity as he turned around to kneel before the young bard.
Ruarc smiled as he gazed up at Caelan’s shocked face. For once the bard was speechless, mouth working soundlessly as Ruarc took his pale hand into his own. "Caelan Aryan, will you marry me?"
Tears spilled from Caelan’s eyes as he nodded and Ruarc slipped the ring onto his left hand. Standing, Ruarc tilted Caelan’s head up slightly to place a gentle kiss on his closed lips. The smile that slowly spread across Caelan’s face after they broke apart was blinding, his arms wrapping around Ruarc’s neck as he met Ruarc’s lips in a deeper kiss. Ruarc’s hands had just started to slip below Caelan’s waist when the bard stepped away with a mischievous smile. Turning around, he held his hair up as he tilted his head back to give Ruarc a coy look. "Care to help me out of this dress?"
Ruarc happily stepped forward to comply.
Written 8/19/02