Breakfast was made a private affair by the rajkumari sending words that she had a headache.

It was not all a lie. The long journey and the events after her arrival had left her head indeed troubled, and though she could've managed to share sweet bread with nobles in morning, she did not want to come to face with Louis Blois.

"Aren't you being a little hasty? I mean, other than not being a virgin he could be great." Lubna said, as they walked the corridors.

"His lack of virtue shows that he will not be a faithful husband." Afsana said, quietening her voice as they passed some servants.

They probably understood nothing of what the woman they bowed to said in her own language, but Afsana could not afford to take chances. She'd heard that the Queen of France was a rather scheeming woman with many talented spies.

The women turned a corner, only to be surprised with what they found.

An entourage of men in armour were hanging by the pillars of the hall, laughing away and talking in obnoxious voices. In the centre of them, stood a man with red fur coat, and a crown on his temple.

The rajkumari had never met the man and she was not made aware of the arrival of any royal.

The chatter quitened when one of the soldiers spotted the women, and pointed them out to the man in the crown.

"Ah! Princess Afsana, it's a pleasure to meet you!" The man said, a grin swallowing his face.

As he walked forward, she expected him to bow but instead he dropped a kiss on her cheek, and stepped back as her jaw fell slack.

"I am Antoine Blois, King of Navarre."

Clearing her throat at his forwardness, she bowed and so did Lubna.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, your grace. Though forgive my unpreparedness, I was not made aware of your arrival."

"Oh, is that so?" Antoine seemed surprised. "Did Louis not tell you?"

The King of Navarre clearly was not aware of how his younger cousin had been failing to do his duty to the nation by following through this courtship. And the fact, gave the rajkumari an opportunity for payback.

"I'm afraid the Count of Champagne hasn't been spending much time with me." Afsana said. "It seems Navarre is not so interested in an alliance."

The King's smile faltered, but he recovered quickly.

"I assure you, Navarre has every interest, princess. I shall sort this out immediatly." Antoine said. "I hope you can join us for a game of tennis later on?"

He then looked at Lubna for the first time, and a smirk overcame him, making him look a lot more like his cousin last night.
The lady-in-waiting basked in the attention, and smiled widely back.

"You and your lady, of course." He said. "In the courtyard."

She had no interest in games, but it'd be rude to refuse a king so she accepted the offer.

Once the King was more than earshot away, Lubna turned to her.

"What on earth is tennis?"

By custom, the Louvre has its very own tennis court, which was already filled with the rich laughter of the nobles. Servants were stealthily filling their cups with the finest wines and picking up the stray balls before falling back into the shadows.

King Antoine was ridiculing his adversary that he'd just won against, when the rajkumari arrived, followed by her lady-in-waiting.

"Ah, Princess Afsana, I was afraid you would not come." Antoine said, walking towards her. 

"How could I refuse such kind offer, your grace?" Afsana smiled.

"Please, call me by name. I would like us to be friends, just how our nations are." He said, picking up a cup of wine and offering it towards her.

Though it seemed like a merely polite gesture, this was diplomatic move. Antoine's eyes held mirth in them, as he watched Afsana gaze at all the nobles watching their interaction, waiting to see whether the foreigner was truly ready to fall into steps with their culture. Taking the wine meant facing defying her faith, but refusing it meant being further alienated by the French and Navarrian.

The burn of their stares drove her hands to move towards the  cup, but her consciousness cause it to hang halfway in the air.

As she rackled her mind for an excuse, another masculine and fair hand grabed the cup of wine from Antoine's hands and took it to his lips, gulping her wine down in one go.

"I was in need of refreshment, hope you don't mind cousin?" Louis said.

Antoine pursues his lips in a thin smile. "Not at all, little cousin. But you should apologise to Afsana, it was her drink you took afterall."

Louis turned towards her. 

The sun was beating hard behind him, shadowing his smooth jaw and cheeks and making his unapologetic green eyes darker than the previous night.

"I apologise, princess. Though as far as I knew, drinking wine is not permitted in your religion." There was a jab towards his cousin and those present hidden in his words, making their faces darken.

Despite the oddness of the situation, Afsana was grateful. "It is, though I do not blame King Antoine for his lack awareness on the matter."

Louis sensed the light insult hidden in the comment, and grinned widely as his cousin, now cornered into apologising hastily. 

Unsuccessful into intimidating the foreign princess, the nobles turned back to the entertainment and food around them, the buzz of conversation soon filling the tennis court once again. 

As a game was already in procession, the King suggested they tour the garden on the east side until the court is free again for a match. Glad to have some time at hand before she embarrassed herself playing a game she only read about hours earlier, she accepted the offer.

Antoine led the way, offering his arm to Lubna.

The girl glanced at the rajkumari briefly for permission, who hesitantly gave it, hoping that Lubna was smart enough to not be lured by the player King.

Louis then stuck out his arm for Afsana, who found herself surprised. Nonetheless, her slipped her hand through the hook and folded her arm around his elbow, and the four began their walk.

Trying to ignore the warmth of his that seeped into her through their clothing, Afsana contemplated whether his change of attitude was to with her talk to Antoine earlier. However, it seemed unlikely that a man who publicly jabs at his cousin would also be one to follow his orders.

"So, what do you think of France so far?" Louis broke the prolonged silence.

"The nobles lead...interesting lives, and wherever they go, it seems a lover of sorts follows." Afsana said.

Louis lips curl into a grin as he glanced down at her. "Are you hinting at something, princess?"

"No, just merely offering my observation on the lack of virtue in the French court. Especially amongst the men." This time, the insult was clear and yet the Count was still amused.

With a glint in his pupils, he posed the next question. "Isn't your father, the Emperor married to three women?"

The comment immediately infuriated her, her neck heating. 

Like many in these lands, the Count was insinuating that her father was dishonorable for partaking in polygamy and ignoring that the strings of affairs that they took part in were far from holy. Her palm burned with the desire to slam against the man's cheek, but with the King just metres away, she could not take the risk.

Instead, she pressed her arm in hope causing him pain in the elbow and controlled her tone as she answered.

"My father did something honorable. Instead of luring my step mothers with lust and false promises , he married them with my mother's permission." Afsana spat. "And to me, that makes him a man far better than any on these lands."

Not waiting for his response, she called for the King and Lubna who remained completely ignorant to the conversation behind them, and expressed her wish to return to towards the tennis courts.

"I'd like to play a match against the Count, so he may be shamed in defeat."

• • •

Polygamy is not something everyone agrees/disagrees with, but please be respectful with your opinions.