It was after the sun had gone down entirely that Eden and Rosie slipped from their dwelling and into the lantern-lit streets. From just their entryway, Eden could hear the sheer noise of the palace radiating over the city. The gathering was in full swing, and no doubt the king would finally be among the many dancers.

“Are you ready to crash this party?” Eden asked, keeping her eyes forward as they made their way through the back streets. Unfortunately it was necessary to be cautious when escorting Roselle anywhere. She was a beacon for lecherous men, and though Thetan had trained her to hold her own against the toughest of them, her true strength still remained in the subtleties of seduction.

“I’m ready,” Roselle replied. “But clearly this dress isn’t.”

Eden glanced at the rich red fabric that wrapped up her partner’s tall, hourglass frame. The dress had a slit up the right side, revealing Rosie’s long, willowy leg. There were no straps to hold the garment up, but they had made sure that the material was light and airy so that she could move gracefully without tiring — and run if necessary. The train of the dress seemed to float and sway like an exotic bird’s tail as she walked, the brilliant red fabric sloping off into deep purple at the ends. It was beautiful and daring, and the Loon didn’t want anyone to see Rosie before she arrived at the palace for that very reason. They couldn’t afford to be stopped.

“What’s wrong with it?” Eden asked, though she didn’t really want to know. There wasn’t time to go back and change. It would mess with the plan. Eden hated messing with the plan. Plans were plotted for a reason.

“It keeps catching.”

“It will be fine once we get there. The stone is smoother at the palace.”

The Lotus lifted the dress higher and pressed on through the alleys determinedly. As the minutes passed by, however, and the palace towers rose up into the starry night sky overhead, Eden noticed something very peculiar about the silence around her despite the music rising in volume.

She pulled her brisk pace back into an unsure shuffle behind her partner and listened. The Lotus pressed on a few more feet before noticing and looking back. That was all the listening the Loon needed to do.

“What is it?” Roselle asked, glancing back and forth between the end of the street where the palace gates were, and Eden.

Eden lifted a baffled eyebrow. “Why aren’t you wearing shoes?”

As if on cue, Rosie smiled sheepishly and lifted a stunningly naked foot up from under the drape of her dress. She wiggled her toes. “I said I had an entrance strategy.”

“That’s your strategy?” Eden balked. “You’re going to seduce him with your squirming toes? Please tell me I’m not hearing this. Tell me now.”

“Relax, Loon.” Rosie waved her hand dismissively, her shiny nails glinting. “You might not understand it but this is a strategy, and besides I like to dance in bare feet.”

“You might have to do a bit of hand holding on this one,” Eden sighed, pressing her fingers to the bridge of her nose and closing her eyes. “I’m not following.”

“Men like a girl who is different, who isn’t afraid to be herself and is confident in what she wants. I want to dance without shoes. Trust me, it works like a charm.”

“It doesn’t matter what you want,” Eden retorted, a cold edge seeping into her voice that wasn’t at all intentional. Rosie must have caught it, because her cheerful mask melted into one of uncertainty. Eden inwardly cursed herself for letting her emotions escape.

“Eden, are you alright?” Roselle asked gently. “Was it what happened with Thetan?”

“No. I’m fine,” Eden said reflexively, suddenly penetratingly worried that Rosie would bring her brother up again. She wasn’t even entirely sure why Thetan had brought it up. He knew it was a trigger for her — that it had the power to freeze her in place. He couldn’t have picked a worse night to cripple her.

The Loon shook her head and stomped her feelings down as deep as they would go. It didn’t make any sense to lash out at Rosie for something so insignificant. So what if the Lotus got a bit of pleasure out of the mission while she was at it? Was that really a reason to feel so... bitter?

“I’m going to higher ground now,” Eden said, making sure her voice evened out to a near mono-tone. “You can get the rest of the way. I’ll meet you at the courtyard.” She turned, and started away into the darkness. Rosie didn’t press for more information on her previous tone, and this was why they worked so well together. They didn’t get in each other’s way.

The path to the courtyard was not exactly tricky during the day, but by night it was a whole other story. There were high walls to climb and people to avoid, though with her black cloak the latter was definitely less of an issue. Sometimes she could pass within feet of giggling girls or couples without them so much as pausing.

Eden decided upon the garden route to her destination. She had scouted it out previously and found some overgrown vines clinging to the outside of the palace's public garden. Getting over would be a snap, but getting back...well...

From her squat in the flora, Eden eyed the tall metal gates that connected the innermost palace grounds to the gardens. These gates weren’t open for the celebration, so there was only one way into the courtyard tonight, and that was the main gate. There were no handy vines clinging on the other side, so if she decided to come back this way she would have to climb the iron gate and slip through the nasty looking spikes at the top. It wasn’t ideal, but then again, most details of her missions weren’t.

She took a running start and was up and over the wall within moments with the help of the vines. Ahead, circling the courtyard of the palace were many tall columns supporting a lovely aerial walking path. It was strung with tiny, yellow lights and Eden could clearly see the people lingering inside; talking, strolling, completely unaware of her presence below near the garden gate.

It wasn’t this strolling path that Eden was aiming for, however, it was the roof of this walkway that she needed to get to. From that height she would easily be able to observe what was happening below, and signal to Rosie if necessary. On top of that, it was dark enough to hide her fairly well. As long as she didn’t dance around up there and draw the eyes of the crowd, she would be safe.

Instead of climbing up and being seen by all, Eden risked a dash up the spiraling, stone staircase that lead to the walkway. She kept her hood up and her head down, thankfully only passing a man who was preoccupied with a book and glanced up just as she was practically swinging out of view.

Up on the glowing veranda, though, Eden was very exposed. Her long, dark cloak looked like ink against the lights and white picket fencing. She momentarily held her breath and pressed herself into the corner where the walkway connected to the stairwell. When nobody passed by and she heard no voices echoing up the stairs at her, she quickly swung her legs over the ledge, grabbed onto the outside of the pretty white fencing that enclosed the aerial walkway and scurried up to the roof.

Finally above everything, she could admit that the party was magnificent. The people looked like candies no more. Indeed, she was sure each of them looked exactly as intended – like beautiful birds or glimmering fish. Hardly anyone was dressed in anything mediocre or mundane. She was suddenly very aware that Roselle would fit right in – and that the Lotus was right to forget the shoes. In the sea of beauty below, there was nobody who especially caught her eye.

Sitting down finally, she let out a breath and continued to scan. It didn’t take long to find Rosie – she was already dancing with a man. Just as the Lotus had intended, she wore no footwear and looked absolutely carefree and happy that way. She was already getting an obscene amount of attention and although Eden knew her beauty was enough to attract people, what put them in their coffin was her personality. She was raw, untamed, untrained and wild. Unafraid to be seen. Unafraid to ask people to do things with her or for her. Absolutely irresistible.

The exact opposite of Eden.

It wasn’t long before – mid dance – Rosie was glancing around, aiming her gaze at the rooftops but never once ignoring her partner. Seeing this, Eden lifted the edge of her cloak and revealed the shiny white of the inside. Against the shadows of the roof, it caught her partner’s eye immediately.

The Lotus waved, but Eden wasn’t alarmed or concerned. The people below would have no idea who the spunky young blond was waving at in a crowd that huge.

The Loon looked around for the king, but whether there were just too many people or he just wasn’t there, she didn’t spot him. Getting up, she made sure Rosie’s attention was on her before she gestured.

“No king. I will look,” she signed briefly. The Lotus bobbed her head and continued her graceful dancing to the hyper music. Eden rose to her feet and pounded the rooftop of the walkway all the way around, siphoning through the chaotic colors and noises below as best she could. Was it possible that he just hadn’t made his appearance yet? Or had they completely missed him?

Eden looked up at the moon overhead. It was nearly midnight. Why hadn’t he shown himself? This was his gathering after all. Was his plan similar to their own? Was he trying to make an impression by purposely being late? Why would the king need to do that?

Swinging back around to her previous spot, she shook her head and then plopped back down and prepared to wait. He couldn’t hide forever, not that a person with that much power would really need to hide. What was he up to?

Roselle had found a bench and a couple of eager conversation partners. She swung her bare feet back and forth under her as she talked and laughed, looking at ease. She really was made to do this sort of thing.

Eden gestured, hoping she would catch it. “No sign of him. Brace yourself. It’s going to be a long night.”

Roselle shrugged as she talked, and Eden knew that the motion was meant for her.

The Loon wasn’t sure how long she sat there thinking, watching, waiting. It felt like hours, and maybe it truly was. She could tell the people below were getting restless and a few drunken fights broke out and then broke up. Nothing serious, but enough to seriously puzzle her in regards to their target.

‘Where the hell is he?’ Eden wondered, arching her back and stretching. He was ruining everything by hiding himself away like this. All their planning, all her climbing, the dress, the bare feet, showing up late. It all suddenly was amounting to very little.

Below, Rosie was starting to look bored. That was bad. Above many things, Rosie hated to be bored. She didn’t have the patience for it, and her attention often strayed to things that were extremely off-target. Sometimes Eden could keep her focused for a little while longer with questions and the like, but it wasn’t usually too long after that that Rosie realized what she was doing and wanted to bail.

Eden was never pleased when this happened, but in truth, Eden didn’t know when enough was enough. Eden didn’t know when to call it quits. If that was a flaw or a strength, she wasn’t sure. How did someone know exactly when to walk away, or try harder?

Catching Rosie subtly drifting over to the buffet of food, Eden became acutely aware of her own hunger. Her partner would probably grab her a bread roll or a piece of fruit later... but how long was later exactly? To Eden, later was when they had arrived.

The Lotus eyed the food on the table, but when she stopped in front of the punch bowl, Eden groaned out loud. “Oh, come on...” she whispered to herself. “You know that’s spiked Ro—”

Something zinged up Eden’s back in that very moment, like a finger up her spine. Without hesitation she twisted onto her hands, then knees, then feet. Her hand flew to one of the hidden knives that weighed down her cloak. She took a breath in – and the shock to her system made her hold it.

The king stood there, with his powerful presence and deep, red hair. She knew it to be him. His green-grey eyes were startling in their brightness despite the darkness of the night. She had never seen him this close up, and she was suddenly very aware as to why. Her mind was screaming danger, danger. He was way too close – mere feet away. Thank goodness for the cover of her hood, but did it matter with eyes like that? How had he snuck up on her?

His noble gaze dipped to assess the rest of her. Quiet. Contemplative.

Unlocking her muscles and forcing the alarm ringing in her blood down to panic about later, she shifted to the left. This was quite literally the only thing she had never planned for. She had never planned to be seen – especially by their target. She had to escape. Escape now before their mission went up in smoke.

The king moved to block her, his footing on the rooftop as sure as her own. She shuffled the other way, and he responded just as fluidly to keep her cornered on the edge of the roof, saying nothing. This was bad. This was worse than bad. This was the sort of failure that Thetan would beat her within an inch of her life for.

His hand moved casually to the intricate pommel of the sword that was strapped to his waist. Eden took it as a fair warning to stop moving, but in truth, she thought warnings to be way too merciful. She clutched the handle of one of her hidden knives and unsheathed it, bringing the small blade protectively up to her chest in response.

He continued to stare with gently narrowed eyes. Eden felt her nerves flare under his scrutiny. How much was he seeing? How much information could he glean just by looking at the darkness of her face, the grip of her knife? Too much apparently, because he lifted his foot to step closer.

“Don’t,” Eden warned, pressing any flux in her tone into complete flatness. Speaking was a danger, it gave far too much information away – emotions, state of mind, uncertainty, weaknesses, gender.

His voice was soft, and yet firm. “Who are you?”

“Move.”

“No,” he replied. “This is new to me.”

“Dying?” Eden replied, confounded by his nerve. “Yes, it probably is.”

“No,” the king repeated, his eyes locked onto hers whether he knew it or not. “This... stone cold seduction.”

Eden nearly reared back in disbelief. She was holding a knife out in clear warning and he thought that she was trying to seduce him? Was he thinking straight? Was he thinking at all?

Her knife lowered, pushed down by a combination of curiosity and incredulity. A word slipped out without her permission, a traitorous word, a word of weakness.

“...What?”

That unlocked something in his green-grey eyes, and Eden recognized the release. It was realization. She was not there to seduce him and suddenly he knew it.