Lady Nimiar did not walk alone. She entered the ball with three friends, each splendidly gowned. Nee's dress was the least flouncy but she looked beautiful nonetheless. Her fingers idly twirled her fan as she smiled in response to a greeting from another friend. The people milled around her all smiling and acting sociable but they all were preoccupied. Were the rumors true? Was King Galdran truly dead?

"Nee, what's toward?" asked Darian, a perceptive woman with luminous brown eyes and curling brown hair.

"Just thinking," Nee responded.

"Come now," said a new, deep voice. All the women turned as the Duke of Savone, outfitted splendidly in black velvet, approached them. "Why are we not dancing?"

The girls were whisked away, toe stepping and twirling.

Nee thanked her partner and stepped away as the dance ended. She walked quickly from the floor, and reached for a glass of punch. She obtained her cup and sipped thoughtfully. One eyebrow raised slightly as she glimpsed Shevraeth, along with a man she hadn't seen before, walking across the floor. If Shevraeth was back, and in public, the rumors must be true. They'd all suspected they were. It was just hard to believe. Nee smiled. Free from Galdran's grasp at last!

Maybe the country can back on its feet now. Nimiar thought.

She stayed to the perimeter of the room watching as others danced and talked. Truth be told, she preferred to watch. It wasn't that she was antisocial, she just wanted to take the time to think, to observe. Dancing and talking could come later.

Shevraeth walked towards her and saluted her. "Lady Nimiar," he said with a smile.

"Vidanric," Nee said. "A surprise to see you here,"

"Count Branaric insisted I not desert him," the tall man responded with a wry grin.

"Count Branaric? Of Tlanth?" Nee asked. "Where?"

The Marquis of Shevraeth laughed. "How can you miss him?" he asked, indicating the dance floor with a vague hand motion.

There on the floor was a tall, thin man with auburn hair. He had just tripped and was sitting on the floor, laughing. The courtiers around him laughed too and Nee felt herself smile. They weren't mocking him, they were laughing with him.

Why, he's adorable. She thought.

"Come Vidanric," she said. "You must introduce me."