"Aurora! Aurora! Come back here with my coat!"
Aurora stopped and turned around. "Oh Nickolas," she said. "You're such a baby."
"You stole my coat!"
"So?" she teased. He gave her a look as he took his blue coat back from her grasp.
"Lighten up, Nick," Alexander said to his brother, laughing along with Aurora.
"Oh sure!" Nickolas protested to Alexander. "It's okay for you to rant and rave when she takes off with something of yours, but it's uncalled for for me?"
"Yes," Alexander said.
"You got it!" Aurora finished.
"Very funny you two," Nickolas said.
"Honestly, father!" Erica said as her sister stood quietly by her side.
"Honestly, Erica!" her father retorted. "Brian is a good man."
"I do not love him!"
"That does not matter!"
"Why not?"
"Because it is your duty."
Erica was infuriated by those words. "My duty!" she yelled.
Erica searched the depths of her mind for a plan. "I am already engaged," she blurted out.
"Yes, to Lord Brian."
"No," Erica said shaking her head. "To Lord Nickolas."
Elizabella almost fell to the ground hearing that.
"He has more money than Brian," Erica continued.
"But...he does?" her father asked. Erica nodded her head. "Well, I must meet this Lord Nickolas that you speak of."
"Oh he's very rich, very powerful, very handsome-"
"Yes, yes. We'll talk about his looks later. I want to hear more about his fortune."
"Oh honestly, father! Now-"
"No. We shall host a ball tomorrow night and he shall be invited."
Erica panicked. "Oh no! He simply couldn't."
"I insist."
"But he-"
"No buts. Run along and give him the news and we'll deal with Brian, too." With that, her father walked out of the room.
Erica was scared, and her sister, just as nervous. Erica had denied to herself that something like this would happen. But it had. How was she going to find him? And by the looks of his clothes, he certainly wasn't as rich as she, and definately not as wealthy as Brian. But he was of some money, but of no manners. And secretly, to herself, she didn't want to admit that that was what she liked.
She took her sister's hand and headed out into town.
"I can't believe you said that to father!" Elizabella said.
"Do you have a better plan?" Erica said.
Elizabella didn't say anything.
"I thought so." They stopped for a second and didn't talk. "Wait!" Erica finally said. She saw Nickolas in the crowd with one other man and a woman. "I have a plan."
"What? What is it?"
"Her," Erica said to her sister pointing out into the crowd.
"Who?" Elizabella said.
"The one standing with the blonde and that other man-"
"Oh Erica! It's him!"
"Who?"
"The one standing with the blonde man and the girl," Elizabella said. "That's the man that I am in love with."
"That you think you're in love with," Erica finished. "See the blonde?"
Elizabella nodded. "What about him?"
"He's the one that I was telling you about earlier. Nickolas."
"Oh, the one that you like."
"Excuse me? I do not like him. He is not my type at all!"
"Anyway, so the girl standing with them? Her?"
"Yes. She is to be the one."
"But why? How do you know her?"
"I have seen her around," Erica said. "She is perfect. Humble, shy, the perfect one."
"What about money?"
"Who cares? We'll make up something. We'll fix her up, but we have to befriend her first." Erica grabbed her sister's hand. "Come on," she said.
"Wait, where are we going?"
"We're going to befriend her."
"Oh but I can't! That man is over there!"
"Oh get over it," Erica said and dragged her sister over to where Aurora, Alexander, and Nickolas were talking. Erica cleared her throat and the three of them turned around. Quickly, Nickolas partially bowed and Alexander followed his lead.
"Lady Erica," Nickolas said.
"Sir," she replied.
"So we meet again," Nickolas said. "And this time we haven't run into each other."
"Yes that is good."
"Let me introduce you to Alexander and Aurora."
"Good afternoon," Erica and Elizabella said. Elizabella could feel her face turn hot just standing next to Alexander, and now she knew his name.
"Good afternoon," Alexander said to the both of them, mainly directed to Elizabella. Aurora merely bowed her head.
"To what pleasure do I owe this visit, my Lady?" Nickolas said to Erica.
Erica blushed a little. "Well, my father is hosting a ball tomorrow evening, and I am here to request your presance there. And, I guess, Alexander and Aurora as well."
"I think we'll ponder the invitation," Nickolas said.
"Good. See you then." Her and her sister bowed their heads to the three of them, turned around slowly, and walked away towards their castle.
"Do you think it worked?" Elizabella whispered to Erica.
"How could it have not?"
"What was all of that big talk you were talking?" Alexander said to Nickolas.
"I have no idea what you're talking about," Nickolas replied.
"Oh don't play that game with me, brother! Ponder? Bowing? Good afternoon? Come on, you never talk like that!"
"Well," said Aurora, "I think that it's a nice change."
"Okay then," Nickolas said and offered Aurora his arm. "Shall we, my lady Aurora?" Aurora giggled and linked her arm with Nickolas' and the three of them headed off down the street.
When Erica and Elizabella walked into their castle, they were greeted by Brian.
"Lord Brian," Erica said. "What are you doing here?"
"I have come to see you, Erica," he replied. "Your father has told me that you are to be married to some other man."
Erica nodded her head. "Yes. What of it?"
"I will not hear of it. You are to be married to me."
"You do not determine that."
"Yes I do."
"No you don't."
Brian grabbed her arm. "You will honor me."
All eyes were on Erica. She knew that in this kind of position, society told her that she should obey the man and submit to the man. It was not proper for a lady, especially of her status, to disobey a man who was a figure of authority. But she had made up her mind.
"I will honor no one but myself."
There were gasps around the room.
"You will change your ways," Brian stated, still holding onto her arm.
"I will not. I change nothing about myself for anyone except myself. You can not tell me what to do. You do not own me."
"Yes, but I do," Erica's father said. "And until we have approved of Lord Nickolas, which is highly unlikely, you will honor Brian."
Erica was stuck. She did not want to honor anyone. It wasn't fair. The only reason that she was in this position was because she was a woman. She knew that she had no say in this matter. Atleast not now. She knew that she needed to sneak out and find Nickolas, tonight. She had to fool them all atleast until tomorrow night.
She dropped her eyes and bowed low. "I am sorry, my Lord. I shall go upstairs now."
"Go and change for dinner, Erica," her father said. "You, too, Elizabella."
"Yes, Sir," Elizabella said.
Brian let go of Erica's hand and glared after her as she and her sister walked upstairs to their room, with perfect posture.
Erica quickly changed into a dress that was a little more simple and a little easier to move in. She was halfway out her window and hoping that nobody would see her, but she heard her sister gasp.
"Great," Erica thought to herself.
"Erica!" Elizabella shrieked. "What are you doing?"
"Shush!" Erica scolded. "What does it look like I'm doing?"
"Y-you're sneaking out!"
"Very good!"
"B-but what if you get caught?"
"Who cares? My life doesn't have much cause now anyway. Besides I need to talk to Nickolas."
"So now you're sneaking out to see your lover? That's dangerous!"
"He is not my lover! And I need to make sure that everything goes smoothly tomorrow. Now quiet! I shall be back soon!"
Elizabella sank back on their bed and watched as her sister climbed out of their window and disappeared into the dark night.
Once Erica hit the ground, she had to adjust her eyes to the darkness. She quickly headed out into town and followed the glow of the lanterns. She searched for Nickolas but she didn't see him. She paced around for half and hour and still didn't see him.
"Now what am I to do?" she said to herself. She turned and began to head back home when she saw a blonde head in a crowd of brown. Even though their wasn't much light in the town, his blonde hair was very distinct. "Sir Nickolas!" she called out but then stopped herself when she realized that it wasn't proper for a lady to do that, and she didn't want to call attention to herself just incase she should be recognized. She walked up behind him and tapped him.
He quickly turned around and bowed. "Oh Lady Erica. How may I help you?" he said.
"Can we talk in private?" she asked.
"Um, yeah." He excused himself from his group and they walked over to a secluded ally.
"I need to ask a rather large favor of you," Erica stated plainly. "And stand up straight in my presence."
"What is it?"
"I need you to pretend to be my fiancé at my father's ball tomorrow, that I assume you're going to. And we'll need to teach you manners. You don't act very properly. Now, I need you to arrive at-"
"No," he interrupted. "I won't do it."
"What do you mean that you won't do it?" Erica asked.
"I mean that I will not conform to the way that you want me to act. I will act as your finacé, but I act as myself."
"You mean, then, that you will make a fool of me."
Nick eyed her. "Well now, I don't think that I want to go at all."
"Oh but you must!"
Nick stared at her for a minute. "Listen, Erica," he said. "I know you, I know women like you. You've always gotten what you've wanted your entire life, and more. I respect the fact that you can stand up to a man like me, or any man. But I don't respect the fact that you are standing up to a man like me."
"I don't understand," Erica said, calmly.
"Of course you don't. You can stand up to a man that's lower than you but when it comes to standing up to a man of your own status, you are as feeble as every other woman in this screwed up world."
Erica was stunned. He was correct. He was very correct.
"Your words, my Lord, are so true," Erica said.
"You need not call me, 'my Lord.' For now my name is Nickolas. And maybe later you may call me Nick."
"Very well my-I mean, Nickolas."
They just stood there for a minute with no conversation, just thoughts. Erica had a newfound respect for this man that stood before her. He was much different than Brian, but she didn't quite know why.
Nickolas knew that this woman that was trying to talk him into pretending to be her finaceé was trouble. She was just a little rich girl, but the more he talked to her, the more that she humbled, and he didn't like that. He didn't like to see women so weak that they couldn't even talk with their eyes up.
"Then I guess that I shall see you some other time," Erica said. She turned and started walking away. Nickolas knew that he was getting himself in something deep but there was something about her that made every shread of fear and doubt escape him. He leaped forward and gently caught her arm. She turned around and looked at him confused as they were now standing in the middle of the community.
"You are such a tease, my love," Nickolas said in a normally toned voice. Some poepl turned around when they heard this, expecting to see Lord Brian with Lady Erica, but they were confused as to who this new man was.
Nickolas took her hand and gently kissed it. "I shall see you at the ball tonight, my beautiful finaceé." With a smile, he turned and walked away.