“Perhaps. Maybe some other interesting characters are here too. ” Emilia said coyly.
It was funny how well the two of them fit together. They were the sun where Belle and Nikita were the moon— the younger two bright and shiny and giving off warmth and the older two mysterious and powerful. Emilia occasionally wondered what it would be like if she had not been the youngest child in the family, if she were in Belle’s position, but she chose not to dwell on that because frankly she liked her role in the family. The youngest, the least responsible. It may seem like a bad role for some people, but Emilia couldn’t imagine dealing with the stress of one day getting the crown. She smiled at Quinn’s words before responding, “I don’t think Belle would take offense to it. She doesn’t seem like she’s vying for miss congeniality.”
It made Emilia happy to be able to have someone like Quinn around at these events. Most of her family’s friends were much older than her so she always felt sort of left out, but with her friend by her side she felt right at home. It was nice to be able to gossip in a corner and sneak extra hors d'oeuvres with someone. She always tried to treat her staff as if they were friends rather than just workers, but with Quinn it came as easily as if she was literally her friend since birth.
She laughed a bit when Quinn spoke about Kellan. Emilia had a small crush on the boy when she was younger, but she was way over that and was happy to see her friend trying to pursue him. “It would be funny, that’s for sure. Plus it could be hot— seeing him get mad and stepping up to fight for your love.” She winked, knowing that probably wouldn’t happen. “Probably just the usual stuff. They usually use the good stuff when they want to really impress people.”
“This is so unfair, I need details, hermana.” More eyes seem to lay on them with every twist and turn of their frames. They stayed in sync, complimenting each other and filling the atmosphere with their shine. The natural curve of her lips shows a smile that only seems to deepen. Unrelenting and open. “Yeah she’s definitely more Queen B. Have you seen her and Nikita tonight ? Absolutely fabulous. We should get some lessons and learn how to stop eating all the palace snacks.” Quinn joked.
Emilia’s gorgeous. Heart-achingly beautiful but more importantly she was good. An angel. Show me your friends and I’ll tell you who you are. Well, Quinn would show them Emilia. The youngest princess was benevolent. The coziness of winter and the sweetness of spring. It was nice to have gravitated towards her the most of out everyone in Athos.
Eyes widen slightly at the fantasy. It’s an unbelievable thing to imagine but Quinn plays along. “That would be hot and weird to watch. I’d prefer if he just did some kind of suave swoop in. It’s more his style. Aw, sad that they wouldn’t want to use the good stuff to impress us saints.” Quinn said with a mock-pout.
“And Jeanne, have you seen Jeanne anywhere? I hate how she’s missing this.”
This. Was this the innocence that the queen alluded to after Quinn would perform for her ? Or was this the glamorous lifestyle that the magazines acclaimed for her ? Perhaps it was the fun that resonated a wistful look that the older ladies of court would give her ? They would tell her to hold on to it, savour every bite and every day. Quinn did. The ‘fake story’ was sad but the reality was even sadder. A girl who worked for every single meal, who broke her back to mend others. Lost in her thoughts, a leg missteps and she narrowly avoids falling. “Sorry Em and I’m supposed to be the performer here. What would the critics think?”
