Battlefields to Ball-gowns (A Bridgerton Fanfiction)

Chapter 4

Violet though maintaining a kind facade, was extremely annoyed. 

Anthony was running late to dinner, though the princess didn't seem to mind as she was enjoying talking with the Bridgertons that were present. 

Colin asked an endless stream of questions about the heroic stories of the Illyrian Wars. Benedict had studied Illyrian for fun after hearing stories of the war and fell in love with the language. Throughout the conversation, he would test out his Illyrian being gently corrected by Artemis in the pronunciation of certain words.

Eloise, hearing that there were legions of female soldiers, was thrilled to hear facts about the Valkeries. 

Daphne joined in with the questioning, fascinated by the princess's adventurous life. 

Artemis tried her best to keep the gore details to herself, knowing that the English did not take well to violence in conversation especially since there were children present. 

She had to continually stop herself from using any foul language as she spoke, answering all of their questions to the best of her ability. 

"Do you live in a castle?" Gregory asked eyes bright with curiosity.

"We have a castle, the home of the previous king, but we prefer to live in the townhouses closer to our people. The castle is usually just used for special occasions or holidays." 

"Are the Illyrian social seasons like in England?" Eloise asked.

"HAHA... N-no... Not at all. We do not have social seasons. If people do get married it is for alliance or for love. Love is the most common though. Many choose not to marry at all. Or if they are divorced." 

"Even the women? But how do they survive as spinsters." Eloise asked, more curious about how she could accomplish the same feat.

Artemis raised a sculpted brow in confusion, "I'm afraid I do not understand your question."

"How do the women support themselves without a husband?" Colin asked.

"What do you mean? They go to school and work, the same as the men. Or they join the army. I do not understand why one gender equates to their survival." Artemis was genuinely confused.

"WOMEN CAN GO TO UNIVERSITY IN ILLYRIA?!?"

Artemis looked around the table in confusion. Why wouldn't they be able to?

"I do not understand."

"In England, women are not allowed to attend university, or read, or work, or do anything really without a man," Eloise answered with disdain. 

"What? Why would gender matter for such things? I thought the disparity of your clothes was strange but you wish to own your women as well?" Artemis would never fully understand English customs, most specifically how the English hate their women. 

"What do you mean clothes? What do you wear in Illyria?" Benedict asked, his curiosity drawn in.

"Fighting leathers mostly. Pants. My mother and sisters sometimes wear dresses to formal events but I usually dress in my armor for such things." 

They gawked at the information that Illyrian women walked around in trousers, something that would cause an utter scandal in England. 

Before the conversation could continue the dining room doors were flung open and in strutted Anthony. 

"Terribly sorry I'm late, I was held up," Anthony announced as he took his seat at the head of the table, failing to notice the highly amused princess sitting directly to his right. 

Violet cleared her throat, gaining Anthony's attention, "Princess Artemis, I believe you have been acquainted with my eldest son Anthony." 

"Yes, we were introduced at Lady Danbury's ball." 

The man's head snapped to the woman seated beside him, having only just realized there was a guest present. 

"F-forgive your majesty, I was unaware we were expecting visitors this evening. If I had known I would have doubled my efforts to be on time." Anthony said, slightly flustered. 

"I do not think that is true. It is hard for a man to think mid-penetration." Artemis said in Illyrian knowing that only Benedict would be able to understand. 

Benedict choked harshly on his drink, coughing it onto poor colin. His eyes widened in shock, horror, and utter unrestrained amusement as he burst into cough-induced laughter. 

"I'm afraid I do not understand Illyrian, my lady. What did you say?" 

"I said there was no need to rush on my account, it must take hours to ready yourself to look so charmingly attractive," Artemis answered without hesitation. 

Looks of amusement at Anthony's flustered reaction and the princess's blatant flirting. Though Benedict only laughed harder knowing that was most certainly not what she said.

"Regardless you are here now. My visit was completely spontaneous and your beautiful mother was gracious enough to allow me to stay for dinner, so there was no way for you to know of my visitation. Back to our previous conversation, I was simply talking with your lovely family about Illyria-"

The conversation continued as before, but Anthony was barely listening. He couldn't help himself but be in awe of the foreign beauty. 

Her golden eyes shined like whiskey in the sunlight, her skin was flawless and tanned from hours spent outside, and her hair was a dark brown that dropped in waves like silk on her head. 

She was undeniably attractive, one of the most beautiful women Anthony had ever seen. But she had an intimidating edge hidden beneath her at ease facade. 

Like a cobra readying to strike. 

There was a coldness to her, though no clear evidence was presented, it was simply an air of unintentional dominance that surrounded her. 

She was blunt and brutal in her answers, though he could tell she tried her best to hold back many details in her stories. 

Her accent flowed, there was a melodiousness in the way she wove together her words like notes of music. Each word that fell from her lips was carefully picked and thoughtful. Her sentences dripped like honey from her pouty pink lips as she enthralled the attention of every member of the Bridgerton household. 

She had a talent for surprising Anthony, he had realized. He had remembered being in awe the first time he saw her, her beauty leagues beyond the other women in the room. Then she surprised him when she first spoke, her words playful and full of mischief with that wonderfully exotic accent that so enamored him. 

Then not a few minutes later she surprised him again by being announced not a Lady at all, but a princess of Illyria. Then she shocked him be being sat with his family enjoying dinner and once again by blatantly flirting with him and calling him charmingly attractive.

The words echoed through his head.

charmingly attractive

charmingly attractive

charmingly attractive

charmingly attractive

charmingly attractive

charmingly attractive

Her voice was like a slow playing flute through his mind, rolling letters and beautifully reshaping familiar words into something new. 

She was an enigma, a new variable that Anthony had never accounted for.

Artemis Black had caught Anthony Bridgerton's attention. 

A fact only noticed by a certain mother hiding her light smirk behind her delicately held cup of wine.