Why don't we just dance? [Lucian & Anemone]

[Lucian deGrey]

Lucian nodded in acknowledgment as she informed him of the type of spice she liked. He preferred those types of spices as well and had never really enjoyed the hot type of spicy foods. “Cinnamon is good,” he agreed, awkwardly, mostly because he didn’t know what else to say.

He noticed her face go blank at his horribly cheesy line. He had said it half-joking to try and get her to laugh or at least smile. Though he did think she was sweet. But she didn’t laugh or smile, so he laughed nervously at himself, “sorry- I know, that was a horrible line…. I say stupid or silly things when I’m nervous, I guess.”

Brown eyes remained on her face as she told him what she did… Or didn’t do. She didn’t spend a lot of time alone, and for a moment, he wondered if that meant she didn’t have any free time to spend with him. Though, did he really have much time either? Then Anemone was bringing up her past- hinting that it haunted her often and she needed to distract herself from it. He frowned only slightly- barely noticeable.

Part of him wanted to know, to ask, or to find out what troubled her, but he knew now wasn’t the time and that it may take more than a few interactions with one another before she would be able to trust him with her secrets. He was patient. Instead, he offered her a reassuring smile and nodded. “It’s important to focus on the moment rather than dwell on things from the past… Or the future, for that matter. Because we cannot change what has happened, and we cannot control what will happen.” He shrugged his shoulders. “We can only control what happens right now.”

His gaze moved down to the paper flower lapel she had made him when she motioned towards it. He smiled and listened, returning his eyes to her as she listed the other things she liked to make. Lucian was about to tell her that she should continue doing those things, but she was already talking about being outdoors, walking, and enjoying the sun because it made her feel alive. He smiled softly and let out a small chuckle when she apologized for being silly, causing him to just shake his head. He didn’t think she was being silly at all.

But before he could say anything, she was still speaking, and it only made him smile more. She wasn’t a flower, even though she was named for one. He tilted his head and grinned, giving her a look that basically said Oh really? I had no idea you weren’t a flower! And then she was asking him a question before he ever had a chance to respond to any of what she had just rambled on about. He laughed softly and nodded and thought of his answer. “I suppose I enjoy spending time with my brothers, my niece, or going out with my friends… I do like to go for walks as well.” He shrugged his shoulders and breathed a small laugh out his nose. “I’m not very interesting, I’m afraid.”

“And you should continue to do your art and making the things you enjoy…Especially if it makes you happy. I think you are rather good at it, too.” He gently complimented her.

He tried to think of another question to has her, and as he thought, he gently twirled her in their dance before returning her to face him. He smiled at her, watching the expression on her features before he finally asked her something. “Did you always wish to serve the Queen, or was there ever anything else you wished to do?”

[Anemone Sellar]

“sorry- I know, that was a horrible line…. I say stupid or silly things when I’m nervous, I guess.”

"N-no that's not it at all. I mean, it should have been bad? But instead, it was cute."

She giggled at his fake surprise about her not being a flower. She'd gotten a bit carried away, perhaps, but she still liked watching him make faces. She'd like to see him be more carefree more often. She liked seeing him teasing and playing with his brothers. Really, she just liked seeing him smile. Was that the first time she'd thought that tonight? Goodness, she was really smitten. This was probably a bad idea… but… He was just so sweet… How could she help wanting to be around him all the time when he seemed to help her out of her fears just as gallantly as he'd helped her out of the mud? She squelched what was probably her better judgment telling her she was digging a hole she wouldn't be able to get out of and smiled dreamily up at him instead.

“I’m not very interesting, I’m afraid.”
"I beg to differ. You're perfectly interesting."

She blushed at the compliment of her art and ducked her head. She was proud of what she'd made, but she wasn't the best at taking a compliment. At least...she wasn't the best at taking a compliment she believed.

“Did you always wish to serve the Queen, or was there ever anything else you wished to do?”

"Hm… I think I always wanted to… that is, I wanted to do this as long as I can remember. As a girl, my mother wanted me to focus more on marriage to make connections and such, but I always thought that court, and all the balls and political intrigue, the beautiful people and clothes… It always seemed so romantic. I wanted to be part of the ballet, so to speak." Her tone was almost wistful as she remembered how glittering and untouchable it had all seemed. "It was like a fairytale, to me."

"Being here, I must admit it's not all fun and games, and the political intrigue and romance are much messier than I thought...but I do love the work. Or rather, I love the Queen, and that makes it feel like nothing at all to do whatever I can for her." She smiled, and her heart was in her eyes as she did. She was passionate about this, perhaps more than anything else. Eleesa was her hero, in more ways than one. She truly loved the woman, and if pressed, if the moment came, she would die for her. Eleesa was as much a part of her family as anyone related by blood, but it was hard to quantify that to someone who wasn't a part of it. She would wager the other ladies felt the same, though.

She glanced down, a little embarrassed by how familiar she was about to sound, but… Lucian would understand, wouldn't he? "Queen Eleesa, she's like another sister to me, in some ways. She cares for her ladies as if they were her family, and we'd do anything for her. So I wouldn't change a thing. I'm happy here, really. And if anything...I've got a chance at being happier, now." She laughed softly. "Actually, maybe more than one."

[Lucian deGrey]

If they kept this up, Lucian’s cheeks would begin to hurt from smiling so much this evening. It was somewhat rare for the more serious soldier to smile this much. That’s not to say he never did- but the smile had barely left his face as he and Anemone had been together this evening. He just… wasn’t used to this sort of thing, and was feeling horribly awkward and nervous, though he hoped that didn’t show and make it obvious that he was.

He was nearly cursing himself out for making such a stupid remark, but Anemone was insisting that she thought it was cute. Did he want to appear or seem cute, though? Children were cute- did that make him seem childish? Lucian tried to push the insecure thought out of his mind just before Anemone was complimenting him again. She thought he was perfectly interesting. It made him smile again and he laughed softly, dipping his head in a slight nod of appreciation. "I am glad you think so.”

Lucian quietly listened to her as she answered his question, his smile remaining on his face as he did. He liked how passionate she seemed about a lot of things, and how she got so excited when she explained those things. It showed how much she cared and appreciated all the small things of life. Anemone was different than most of the other ladies he had ever met, and it was refreshing, to say the least.

His lips parted as he were about to ask her if it had ended up being like a fairytale and what she had hoped for and wanted, but when Anemone continued on, admitting that it wasn’t so much what she had hoped for, he frowned only slightly, nodding his head in understanding. Strangely, he found himself wanting to give her that life she had hoped for, was that bad or too forward of him to think such a thing? Had he already started to care and have feelings for her? Most likely, yes. They had shared several kisses, she made him smile, and he enjoyed her company.

He honestly had no doubt that Eleesa was kind and caring towards her ladies. He too loved and admired the queen and for her ability to withstand his cousin and the not-so-pleasantness of him- especially towards the end. He knew she had been unhappy, yet somehow, she seemed to keep her head up and remain strong. He knew Triston had also cared for her for some time, and though he never admitted it, he wondered if her marriage to Edward, had been what caused him to leave home for those several years back then. Lucian smiled softly and nodded. “She is a good woman.”

And if anything...I've got a chance at being happier, now. Actually, maybe more than one."

He looked at her curiously and smiled. Was she hinting to him that he was one of the chances she had to make her happy? Though he wasn’t certain he wanted to assume, he had a feeling that might be the case. “Oh?” he quietly questioned her, wondering if she would explain to him what she was thinking and the meaning behind her words. “What chances have you been given that will make you happier now?” There was a slight insinuation in the tone of his voice as if he knew she was hinting towards him.

[Anemone Sellar]

Maybe cute was the wrong word, but it was the one that came to mind. Sweet, perhaps? No, cute was closer. Not childish, but just… it was a little silly and clumsy, but it was endearing. She liked that about him. He wanted to make her smile, the same way she wanted to do with him. It made her feel safer that he wasn't just perfect, and that he cared about her feelings.

Anemone smiled and looked from side to side dramatically, acting out like it was a secret before she leaned a little closer to him to tell.

"Promise not to tell?" She asked, batting her lashes up at him. Once he agreed, she bit her lip for a moment, suddenly hesitating. This might be a very bad idea indeed. But she was too close to pull back now, and it wasn't as if she hadn't already hinted at it.

"Well, the source of my terrors is gone, so both my waking and my sleeping will be quite a bit more peaceful now. I know I shouldn't be grateful for the horrible thing that happened, but...well, I'm not sure anyone can really fault me." She smiled ruefully for a moment.

"As for the other….Well, there seems to be a certain handsome nobleman who doesn't mind my company; and it's given me this silly little inkling that he might want to see more of me. But only time will tell, I suppose." She tried to contain her grin, but she did a poor job of it, and finally gave up and grinned so hard her nose crinkled and her eyes almost vanished behind her full cheeks. "He's kind and generous, and he makes silly jokes to make me smile… I think I could like him a great deal. What do you think, should I keep encouraging him?"

[Lucian deGrey]

Dark brown eyes watched Anemone as she leaned closer to him and asked him to promise not to tell. He grinned at her display as she batted her lashes at him and he nodded in response. “Cross my heart.” He moved his hand from her hip briefly to use a finger to cross over his chest before he returned it. His smile slowly faded and was replaced with a concerned look.

Lucian listened to her as she explained the first terror that had plagued her. He still didn’t seem to comprehend or put the two and two together and felt Anemone was still being rather vague. She would need to spell it out for him, seemingly, but he didn’t want to push her into telling him something she did not wish to. So he nodded and gave her a tight-lipped smile. “I’m glad to hear the source of your terrors is gone...And I am sorry you had to go through something horrible.”

Little did he know, the horrible thing she spoke of was his cousin’s death. He knew that the king had spiraled out of control, but he never imagined he would harm others. Least of all, Anemone, who was so kind and gentle and seemed so innocent.

His smile returned as Anemone spoke about him being the other reason or chance she had to be happy. Then his smile slowly turned into a grin when she admitted that she could like him a great deal. He chuckled softly at her question and pretended to think. “Hmm…” He averted his gaze from hers and pretended to look around the room for a moment. “That’s quite a shame…” He returned his gaze to hers, his expression soft. “I was hoping…” He smirked and breathed a quick laugh out his nose, his voice filled with slight nervousness. “...That maybe I would have had a chance with you… But it seems that you’ve got your eye on another nobleman.” He pretended to frown. “I suppose you should keep encouraging him, though… If you really do like him...And I shall have to accept that I was too late.”

[Anemone Sellar]

A shame?

Anemone's brow furrowed for a moment until she realized he was playing along. He was pretending, wasn't he? She hoped so! She didn't mean to be too secretive, not really. She just had a hard time saying the unhappy things outright, which had held back the truth of the first. And she liked games, which hid the second.

She'd keep it up too if he was going to play along.

"Well, I don't know about that… It could be nice to have two of you competing for my affections. I'm sure all the other ladies at court would be positively green with envy." She laughed, proud of her double meaning with 'two of you.' "Don't give up on your chance so easily, your grace."

Even as she was responding wittily, though, which came on instinct, she considered what he'd just said. He was hoping he had a chance with her? Really? Frankly, she didn't see any way he could not have a chance.

He may be the youngest of the Dukes deGrey, but that didn't make him any less an extremely good catch. She was honestly surprised that he wasn't already married, or at least betrothed...or being chased by half a dozen pretty girls. There had to be families interested in connecting themselves with the deGreys, even if they themselves were less than interested in pursuing marriage.

Actually, come to think of it, mother would be positively thrilled if she really managed to snag a deGrey. And hadn't Grandma Hettie said something about needing one of them to marry a duke?