The court of dreams

When yet another silence swept through the forest, he nudged his horse toward one of his cousins. He had not been to Ishgard for a couple of years, having been able to dodge these visits for quite some time, but he could still remember some landmarks signaling that they were close. ”What do you say, Yasmin, race you to the city gates?” He asked, clearly a bit bored, and she looked like she could use some warmth from the action, clutching to her coat as if he life depended on this. Ofcourse, she could just use her magic, but it seemed like she was saving energy for something. Her glance, however, showed she was not interested, mumbling something along the lines of not wanting to get lost in the city. ”Lost? Me? Have you forgotten that my navigational skills are exceptional?” He asked her, that smug smile tugging on the corners of his lips while his horse was already picking up on his energy, wanting to pick up the pace.

”You know, wandering aimlessly and calling it ‘exploration’ is not actually a skill.” The woman told him, pulling her coat tighter around her shoulders as her horse impatiently threw her head in the air. He chuckled, raising his hand to stop his black stallion from getting ahead. ”Well, your loss, I would have bought you a necklace of your choosing if you won.” The prince countered, increasing the pressure around the belly of his horse to spur him into a gallop, knowing she would probably follow not long after. And indeed, it did not take long before he heard a couple more hooves following him. Rashid began clicking with his teeth to increase speed, perfectly aware of the fact that Yasmin’s mare was quite fast as well, and able to beat his stallion.

With a lot of noise, the two horses galloped into the city, racing over the cobblestones toward the castle. Many people got startled and jumped aside the moment they heard them coming, but Yasmin could not get past him through the narrow streets he carefully picked for this very reason. That was until he noticed she was not behind him anymore and had chosen a different route, making him frown, kicking his stallion once more to urge him to go faster. His grin widened when he spotted the castle gates with no Yasmin in sight, noticing how the guards hesitated to stop him before they spotted the family crest on his chest. He nodded in response when they allowed him to enter but soon after looked behind to see if his cousin would arrive. However, he could not see anyone, which made him frown. Well, maybe, she had made the wrong turn and got held up by something.

Some stablehands took his horse from him when he neared the castle, allowing him to dismount. The guards seemed surprised, probably having expected a few more from the Xailan delegation, but nonetheless, they still walked him to the grand palace doors, opening them for him. He walked in with that some old sway in his walk, fixing his sleeves while at it and letting his eyes roam over what he supposed would be the crown princess, standing next to one of her brothers, no doubt. ”Good afternoon,” He spoke with a casual smile on his face, hiding the worry he felt about his cousin while he waited for his sisters to arrive, reaching out his hands for the princess to greet her with a kiss on the knuckles. Knowing they had expected to see more of them as well.

Rashid felt no difficulty hiding his worries from his facial expression, partially because the crown princess managed to distract him well enough with her sparkling dress. Now, he could always enjoy the vision of a beautiful woman, but she was truly exquisite. So much so that his gaze stayed on her for far longer than what was usually considered proper. When she placed her hand in his, his smirk grew before he softly bowed and placed his lips against the soft skin on her knuckled, tenderly. ”Your Highness,” He greeted her back after she said the same thing to him, raising back to his straight posture and catching her eyes again. That feline smile still tugging on his lips. She did not return the little bow to him, nor had he expected this from her, as she outranked him in status on many levels. His mother, the queen of Xaila, did not even like him, and most of the time, she struggled to even acknowledge him as her son, whereas this woman was the crown jewel of her kingdom.

For only a short moment, he now diverted his attention to the brother standing next to her, nodding at him, and stepped aside to formally greet him. However, when the Crown princess spoke again, his gaze slowly drifted back to her eyes with intrigue. Maybe now, he finally understood why his mother wanted him to go to Ravaryn with his sisters. This might have been her plan for him all along. ”They will arrive shortly.” He spoke, keeping his eyes fixed on her while he heard the palace doors open again. Then, he looked back behind him to see his two cousins. Ah, well, at least it seemed like Briseis had already found Yasmin. His grin widened when the younger one strode him with an annoyed glance, having missed the opportunity to get a free necklace from him. But he was glad that she was found, and when his eyes moved to look at Briseis, he showed her a bit of appreciation for the fact that she found her, as no doubt, she knew what had happened.

It became very much obvious, to probably everyone in the room, that he had difficulty letting his eyes stray from the woman, clearly intrigued by her physique and demeanor. Rashid did not care much for her brother standing next to her, partially because he had always been shameless with his flirtations. He did not hide them from anyone, purely because he did not care what they thought of him. In his own kingdom, he had already grown used to the fact that he was an outcast, where most people called him a whore behind his back for bedding a devious woman who controlled a lot of men, including himself. He was being shamed while he tried to save his family’s reputation, but more importantly, the reputation of one of his best friends.

And now he was worried that she might have gotten lost on her way to the castle, but luckily for him, that did not last very long, as the cousin who had helped him defend her against the woman who tried to take away her life from her, walked in with Yasmin as her side. As usual, he was very grateful for the fact that she kept an eye on everything and anyone. Undoubtedly, she knew that he had not been careful enough and that it was his fault that their other cousin got separated. If he had not tried to race her to the city, this would not have happened. They would have all arrived together.

He watched the Crown Princess as she greeted his cousins, wishing them welcome into her home. Rash merely smiled, looking at Briseis before letting his eyes go to Yasmin, who tried her best to hide any annoyance on her face. But he had no doubts that she would be able to get along rather easily with the princess, knowing how kind and accepting she was. They both were, she and Briseis, which was why he enjoyed their company so much, as they were one of the few who were actually able to lift his mood. Even now, they had that effect on him, as he was smiling more dearly now that they were in his presence. ”Rather well I suppose. A bit cold, but nothing we could not handle.” He told her when nobody else responded quickly enough, directing a smirk at Yasmin who had been complaining the entire time. Luckily though, they all had their deity, protecting them and keeping them warm, to some degree. ”Though I am famished. What is keeping my sisters so long?” He asked, looking back at the door.

Rashid had only briefly glanced over the other Ylindar family members, combined with the members of their court. But his eyes remained focused on the Crown Princess, suddenly feeling like she was the main reason for his visit here. So, his mother finally found some kind of use for him. She had never forced him to go anywhere until now, which meant she might have had something planned. Had he expected something like this? Oh, absolutely. Did he mind this? Well, now that he saw her, maybe not so much anymore. Though, he still wanted to know how she felt about all of this, about him. Because he was not your regular cup of tea, and he was well aware of this. Yet, who knew, maybe she would be pleasantly surprised once she got to see what was underneath. Either way, he was at least willing to leave an impression, as always.

The attempt at some small talk she threw back at them made him grin, shortly glancing at Yasmin to see if she had caught the meaning, knowing she had been the one complaining about the cold while he had been perfectly unbothered. But, ofcourse, she often found a way to complain about everything. The angry glare she threw back at him had been enough to make him chuckle before landing his eyes back on the dark-haired beauty that was the crown jewel of her kingdom. ”Indeed. We should have nothing to complain about.” He shamelessly aimed back at his cousin while continuing his small talk with the princess. However, his words were laced with a double meaning as he looked into her dark brown eyes, not having anything to complain about while he kept staring into their depths. Not at all hiding these silent attempts at flirting with her.

His attention only got diverted when his sisters arrived, taking a step sideways as he smoothly positioned himself beside the Crown Princess, a place his mother probably intended him to take after this visit. And, as expected, the woman curtsied for his oldest sister. Then, she formally welcomed all of them, his entire family, before allowing them to be shown to their chambers to rest after a long journey. He watched as most of them followed her brothers and the servants to their rooms, but he remained standing where he was. ”There is.” He said, showing her one of his feline grins, balancing on playfulness as he moved himself to stand in front of her again. ”It has been a very long time since I last set foot in this place, and I might need someone to show me around once more.” His eyes showed her he was not tired, so he had no need for rest. Gracefully, he moved up his arm in a silent invitation to hook herself in so she could show him around. ”I figured you might know all the best places.” He added, his eyes showing that hint of slyness in his nature.

In truth, his extremely well-organized display of lethal mannerisms was merely an act he showed to everyone he barely knew, as the man tried very hard to hide every part of him that felt utterly useless. It outed itself in showing arrogance, which was simply a way of trying to protect whatever was lurking underneath. Only the people within his inner circle could see him for what he really was since they were the only ones he actually trusted. But, while he certainly felt some distaste for the fact that his mother had not told him anything, he realized that he could most definitely benefit from this arrangement. This woman could very well be his ticket out of a bad situation.

Her response to his attempt at flirting with her was met with a crooked smile as only one of the corners of his mouth was lifted. ”Oh, I have no doubt about that.” He told her, continuing this display of manners with a gaze that possibly did the opposite, as his dark brown eyes stared deeply into hers. Once again, his words were laced with a double meaning, but she would surely catch onto that. And she would not be the only one, as he could feel Yasmin’s warning glare. ”Oh, please, if my cousin annoys you, you should come and find me. I will try to speak some sense into him.” The woman said, her voice sounding as sweet as ever, giving the Crown princess a casual wink to let her know she was on her side. ”Oh, you wound me, dear cousin.” He responded while he placed his hand over his heart as he pretended to feel hurt by her comment. But, in a way, this showed how deep his bond with his cousin ran, meaning that if she wanted to find out anything about him, she would be her person, along with Briseis.

When the rest of his family arrived, his attention got more divided until they all began following the servants to their rooms. Then his eyes moved back to the Crown princess. He could tell from the look on her face that she was not happy about him staying, but she kept herself composed, as would be expected of her. And he had no trouble making use of those expectations. His smile widened once again as she spoke. ”Oh, I do love history.” He told her - sarcastically - after she asked him what he wanted to see. While Rashid knew his own fair share of history about his kingdom, only because he was, in fact, well-read, it was not his favorite subject. Either way, after he said that, he repositioned himself again, looking back into her eyes with that charming smile. ”But, while I would love to see those art galleries, as well as the garden, I am actually more interested in getting to know your favorite places.” He admitted, for a moment, allowing his smile to show more genuine curiosity. After all, one's favorite places could tell a lot about a person.