Who's Blue?

Chapter 14 - A New Gathering

××Blue××

Isabel was delighted to see my hair up but I think both of us were much more excited to see Diesels reaction. It didn't take us long to find the two men in Chroms sitting room. Both were turned away when we entered, standing near a barely burning fire place.

Diesel was the first to turn, the warm light of the fire casting a soft glow against his tan skin. His deep blue eyes raked down my form, from my ponytail to the tips of my feet. I couldn't help but blush the longer he stared.

I hadn't even noticed Chrom had moved towards me until Isabel brushed by me to reach him. My eyes returned to Diesel to find him closer than before. Close enough to reach out and grab my hands in his. His thumbs brushed against the back of my hands softly as he took another glance at my attire.

"You look beautiful," Diesel rumbled, eyes meeting mine. I could feel my cheeks heat up even further.

"Are you ready to go?"

Isabel's words caught both Diesel and I's attention. Diesel dropped my hands a little too quickly but I tried to ignore it, turning towards the couple standing by the door. Chrom held the door open for all of us and somewhere along the way we picked up a nicely dressed Malachi. He too made note of my appearance which earned a glare from Diesel that I almost missed.

It wasn't hard to tell we were going in the correct direction as voices began picking up and growing louder as we made our way to the bottom floor of the castle and to the far wing. Two guards stood outside the entrance that connected the Testing Hall to the rest of the castle and our small group stopped their to get in place. Chrom and Isabel stepped in front, linking arms, and Diesel and I followed suit right behind them.

"You're on your own?" I questioned Malachi, who was standing right behind us on his own.

"Yeah but I don't mind," He shrugged, "Its better than walking next to Diesel. He makes me look so short."

The five of us laughed, knowing it was true, but we quickly quieted down as the doors were open.

All eyes were suddenly on us as we stepped into the spacious room. A group of around 20 nobles stood in various places around the room, all staring down at us. Or more specificlly me. There was no way they could get away with staring at their princes in such a manner. It was easy to spot the newcomers in the crowd. Their clothing was much less colorful and bold, more realistic and practical.

They looked nervous. I could see why.

King Arthur dressed darkly sat upon a throne in the front of the room. In the two weeks I'd been here, his condition had improved immensely. He was steadier, felt better, and had even gained some much needed weight. Next him stood Odius. He looked like the sick one to me but the expression on his face said otherwise. He looked down at everyone in the room, not just me.

As soon as the doors shut behind us, we parted ways. The three princes trailed to King Arthurs side while Isabel dragged me away towards a group of ladies.

"Why do so many people come to this?" I asked, glancing back towards Odius. His almost black eyes seemed to follow me across the room.

"Its a public event that anyone is allowed to attend for transparency purposes," She whispered, smiling as we got closer to the intended group of girls.

"What happens if someone fails the test?" I asked, watching as the newcomers shifted nervously in the middle of the room.

"It usually doesn't go well."

Our conversation was effectively ended as soon as we got close enough to the group to be able to hear their words. I caught the tail end of what I was sure a sentence about me but I tried to ignore it.