Amongst all the frazzled preparation for the upcoming event, nobody questioned Iris while she lurked about between the fifth floor and the second, where the Medic Room was situated. Iris would oftentimes meet Jade in there, who prepared what Iris needed, and either bring it up to Raena and Braedon's room, or have Iris take it up.

Jade gave away nothing of what she thought when Iris caught her up on the draugr issue. In fact, Iris was careful to keep Jade on as much of a need-to-know basis as possible. She only mentioned to Jade that Raena was having extremely terrifying nightmares that were preventing her from having a good night's rest. If Jade suspected anything beyond that, she certainly didn't show it. She merely set to work on creating a substance which would put Raena into a heavy sleep that didn't allow room for the mind to develop a dream. Jade had more experience in medicine than Iris had initially thought, and Jade had said it was a requirement for all maids to have some basic level of understanding for it – she just happened to know slightly more because her parents had been medics.

Iris noticed the use of past tense, and almost asked Jade what had happened to her parents but thought better of it. Jade wasn't asking more than she needed to know, and so neither would Iris.

Jade also didn't question Iris further than a raised eyebrow when she asked Jade for recommendations on what to do if someone supposedly had a twisted ankle. Jade had responded there was nothing anyone could really do, other than keep it resting for several days and propped up, preferably with an icepack pressed against it.

She told Iris it would take at least half a day to make the sleeping pills, but she gave Iris an icepack without requesting any further information. Her only warning words to her were, "Whatever's going on, be subtle".

Iris nodded her thanks and then made her way up to Raena's room, handing her the icepack. The three then took turns in sleeping until Jade knocked on their door late the next day, and Iris hurried to answer, thanking her and then shutting the door quietly before Raena gulped down the pill with some left-over water that one of the maids had left along with food earlier that same day.

The effects would kick in approximately fifteen minutes later, and Raena would then be knocked out cold, breathing deeply.

On the night before the ball was to occur, Iris visited Raena and Braedon, bringing with her a small packet containing another dozen pills – a new batch. Raena was already fast asleep in her pale green nightgown, lying on top of her bedsheets face-first, hair spanning out around her and arm hanging off the side of the bed. Braedon was sitting on his own bed in his matching grass-green PJs, looking a whole lot more rejuvenated now that he had had a chance to catch up on all his lost sleep.

"You don't know how much this has helped," Braedon said softly, glancing at Raena with a glimmer of relief.

Iris nodded, placing the glass jar of pills by Braedon's bedside.

"You may want to take some too," Braedon said, looking at the pills. "Just in case..."

Iris shook her head. "Jade already set some aside for me, and she'll be making a few more this evening, after she finishes her duties around the mansion. They take quite a while to make though." Not to mention that she hadn't had to use a single pill so far. The draugr seemed to only be connected to Iris through Raena, and now that that problem had been sorted...

"Oh," Braedon nodded. "Of course. Better she does her actual job first. We wouldn't want Jasper getting suspicious."

Iris grimaced. "No, we wouldn't. But everyone's been so caught up in this ball, they haven't really been paying attention. Plus, Jasper's even more absorbed in his own stuff than he normally is. Each time I pass by his office, his door's shut, but I can see that there are lights on through the cracks in the door. He even cancelled our dinner, again."

Iris went to sit on Braedon's bed, and he moved over for her, the two sitting in a comfortable silence, watching Raena. She wasn't sure when he'd started to lower those protective shields, but she was liking the guy behind those barriers. With Jade busily making those pills, she had been left to practice nurturing her element on her own these days, and Braedon and Raena were her only real sources of interaction and human connection.

"That's a fancy pyjama," Braedon mused, and Iris looked down at her own clothes, fingering the silky fabric.

She had picked out an emerald green nightgown that flowed below her knees, hanging loosely on her body, the neck a small V-shape, decorated with intricate frills that covered the entire dress.

"Yeah," she shrugged. "They seem to think that just because I'm a princess, I like all these fancy clothes and dinners and stuff."

"Don't you?" Braedon asked, and she cast him a sideways look.

"Not really. I'm just a basic girl. Maybe it's because I grew up on the streets."

"Hmm," Braedon was quiet for a moment before continuing. "That would have been hard."

Iris stared at the wall opposite, her mind already wandering to her friends back on Earth, barely registering Braedon's shoulder brushing up against hers.

"I think," she said after a while, "When you grow up in a certain environment for a long period of time, you don't really notice." Braedon didn't say anything, and she continued. "I mean, not that I wasn't aware of my situation... it's just..." she shook her head. "I don't know. I wouldn't know how to explain it."

"You don't know any other way of living," Braedon said, and Iris looked at him, surprised.

"Yes," she nodded slowly. "That's it."

He inhaled slowly and his curiously dark hair fell over his eyes slightly. A glimmer of sadness washed over Iris – that hair was so similar to Mason's. The thought vanished as quickly as it came, replaced with burning shame. Mason who had left her. Mason who had fled like a coward when she needed him most. How could she miss such a bastard?

"I can understand that," Braedon continued, interrupting her train of thought. "Maybe not in the same context as your own, but growing up having a constant paranoia of people and their secret agendas, aware that we're in a stupid war that never looks like it may end... yeah, it sucks, but if that's all you've ever known, then you can't really compare it to anything else."

"You can only imagine a better life," Iris said quietly, and Braedon opened his eyes, looking at her for a brief moment before speaking.

"I'm sorry for shutting the door in your face that night."

Iris smirked. "And I'm sorry for walking in on you naked that other time."

Braedon laughed, though his ears went slightly red. Still, he added slyly, "Sorry you walked in, or sorry you got caught staring?"

It was Iris's turn to flush, and she scoffed, lifting a hand to hit him playfully, but he caught her wrist, and the two met in a brief staring contest before Raena stirred in her sleep, and Iris suddenly found herself pulling away and sliding off his bed.

She cleared her throat awkwardly before tucking her hair behind her ears, glancing between Raena and him, heart skipping a beat in her chest.

"Tomorrow's going to be a big day," Iris said quickly, and there was a slight hesitation in Braedon's nod. "I'm going to let you two rest. We're all going to need it."

"Iris," Braedon said, but then shook his head. "Never mind. Have a good night."

He clearly wanted to say something to her, and Iris was tempted to ask, but then decided against it. Instead, she gave him a small smile and said, "You too", and then left, closing the door noiselessly behind her.

***

When a maid had come into Iris's room early that afternoon rolling in an array of formal dresses on a moveable hanger just before the horn signalling sunset sounded, Raena was there beside her. The maid had furrowed her eyebrows in concern when Iris explained that Raena was to come to the ball as well.

She had no idea how much this maid knew about Raena and her identity. She assumed the staff talked amongst themselves, but perhaps Jasper had kept those specific details between himself and a tight-knit group of trusted border patrollers or soldiers. Either way, the maid clearly didn't like the mischievous glance shared between Iris and Raena, but after Iris placed a hand on Raena's shoulder and threatened she was either to go to the ball with Raena or not at all, the maid hurried to get personnel to help measure Raena up and have her fitted for a dress that was to be as elegant as the Terrra Princess's. Iris knew there would be no chance in hell that any of the maids would want to be the ones to explain to Jasper why they were the reason Iris refused to go to a ball hosted in her honour.

"It feels wrong to be this excited," Raena had grinned, while a maid wrapped a measuring tape around Raena's waist and noted the measurements.

Quite honestly, Iris had grown excited as well. Having Raena beside her that entire afternoon, all bubbly and cheerful and grinning from ear to ear tempted Iris to do the same. She knew the event was stupid but going with her sister would be fun. And Raena seemed to enjoy the fancy clothes a lot more than Iris did, so at least Iris's materialistic privilege here could be put to good use for someone. She also ensured to send some maids to Braedon's room to get his suit tailored. She didn't know if he would appreciate it very much, but Raena claimed that she was going to drag his ass to the dancefloor, suit or no suit, so he didn't have much of a say either way.

As Raena and Iris were almost identical in both height and figure – Iris being just slightly taller, and Raena having just a few more curves – it didn't take long for the maids to adjust and trim some of Iris's dresses, and within a few hours, the dresses were finished and slipped onto them, their make-up flawless, their hair glamorous, and shoes sparkling. Raena then knocked on Braedon's door, telling him to hurry the hell up, and Braedon had grumbled something obscene in return before stepping out to join them.

The three had then been escorted via the same secret passageway Iris had previously used on the day of her speech, which she found also continued on to the ballroom situated in the town hall. Iris's two guards – older, quiet men – helped the two girls climb up the short ladder to where the back entrance to the town hall stood. Braedon climbed up soon after, dusting off some flecks of dirt on his dark suit.

Iris didn't admit it out loud, but Braedon looked like a whole different person in a suit. He looked leaner, stronger, his face more angular, eyes shaper and figure apparently taller. His dark hair had been combed neatly to one side and gelled back, and he wore matching black shoes and a tie, all of which complimented his olive skin. Plus, he had put on some kind of fresh scented cologne – an aroma that somewhat reminded Iris of lemons or freshly-cut grass – and she found herself tearing her gaze away from him when he glanced at her. She smiled at Raena instead, who was smoothing out imaginary crinkles in her dress.

She looked absolutely stunning. Raena had chosen a long, silver dress with a high neck that was decorated with silky, silver flowers. The dress curved in at her waist before flowing outwards in a fan, in two different layers – the bottom made of the same silver material as the upper-half, while the top layer being see-through and glittery-white. She had gorgeous, two-and-a-half-inch platform heels which she wore with more confidence than Iris could ever imagine having herself, and her long hair was braided back into a fish-tail and then piled on top of her hair in a bun with a silver flower pin. She had silver, glittery highlights around her eyes and upper cheekbones, and shimmery, metallic silver lipstick. She had personally requested for smoky eyes when one of the maids had taken out an eye pencil, and a faint, rosy blush brightened her facial features.

Iris, on the other hand, was her opposite, having chosen another golden dress of very similar style to the previous one, only that this dress had a single strap, and she wore a shimmering, golden shawl across her shoulders. Her hair bounced in ironed curls on her shoulders, framing her heart-shaped face, and sequins decorated her black flats, hidden under her long dress. She had asked for less make-up on her face this time, and she felt a lot lighter – having just some lip-gloss, blush and a thin layer of mascara.

Now, the security guards were opening the back doors, where the faint sound of music blared out from within, and Iris and Raena exchanged an apprehensive glance. Then the two girls automatically linked arms, and Iris wasn't sure if it was their bond, or the thrill of the night ahead, or both, but she felt a warm and secure sensation next to her sister. Two sisters, arm-in-arm, about to walk into the ball like two princesses from a fairy-tale. This was the dream Iris had never dared to consciously wish for, but somehow, it had become her reality. Having Raena, her flesh and blood, her sister, by her side, laughing arm-in-arm with... it was all she needed. All she ever wanted. All she ever hoped. United with her sibling.

With heads held high, the two strode through the door, Braedon in tow.

***

Cakes, sweets, fancy little pastries, savoury dishes fit to feed an entire nation, and beverages galore were all elegantly set up on various long tables along the sides of the gigantic ballroom. At least, it was certainly gigantic in Iris's eyes. She'd never before had the privilege to attend a ball, but she assumed this was no minute event for the citizens of Terra.

Gold and green banners were strung up from the high ceiling, and streamers and confetti had been thrown into the air, covering the wooden floor in shimmering whites, golds, silvers and greens of all variety. An orchestra was on the stage, playing a quick, euphoric melody, and the lights from the massive chandelier in the centre of the room were golden but dimmed, giving the room an almost romantic, mystical feel.

Raena exhaled in awe, and, realising she had been holding her breath as well, Iris loosed a sigh.

"It's..." Raena breathed.

"Incredible," Iris finished, before realising that they had absent-mindedly walked to the middle of the floor, where the massive crowd that had previously been dancing expanded into the outer corners of the room, whispering and gawking at the two girls and their mystery man. Or at least, certainly gawking at Iris, the Terran Princess. Raena had ensured her own inked neck had been covered with a choker, meanwhile. Everyone was dressed up in greens, whites, blacks, silvers, and golds, and although Iris thought they all looked primed to perfection, a few girls had already started self-consciously fixing their hair-dos after eyeing Iris and Raena, a few men also nervously fixing their ties.

Raena stiffened next to her, and it didn't take long for Iris to realise why. Standing by his lonesome, the only person daring enough to remain in the middle of the dancefloor, was Jasper, in a green suit so dark, it was almost black, his black, polished shoes shining in the dim light. His fair skin was flawless, like always, his cropped hair shining in the dim light. His eyes met Iris's in a stare she couldn't quite place, and before she could think of a way to escape, he was already heading towards them.

Braedon hastily placed a hand on Raena's shoulder and said quietly into her ear. "Come on, let's go dance."

Raena instantly understood the reason behind Braedon's demand, and nodded, pulling away from Iris with a sympathetic nod before Braedon twirled her away from the approaching Commanding Officer. But the C.O seemed to have no interest in the other two. He merely walked up to Iris, giving her a bow and holding out his hand in a gentlemanly manner, eyes roaming pleasantly up and down the length of her dress.

"May I have the honour of this dance, your highness?" he said, loudly enough to make a show. The crowd was in a hushed silence, all eyes boring into her, and Iris barely heard the orchestra playing in the background as she considered Jasper bowing before her, asking for her permission to dance.

Gosh, how tempted she was to say no. To humiliate him in front of all his people. But now was not the time or place. Not if she wanted him on her side. Not if she was to keep her promise to Raena and Braedon. Her priority was first getting their grandpa back to them, safe and sound. Personal spite had to be momentarily put aside. At least for now.

She gave him a pleasant smile, taking his hand. "The honour is all mine, Commanding Officer."

He straightened, and Iris had her breath taken away as he instantly took charge, one hand on her hip, the other clasping her hand. She didn't know where to place her other hand until he glimpsed at his own shoulder, and she understood, placing her hand there gently and a little uncertainly.

She was glad she hadn't worn heels, or she was certain she would have fallen. Still, if she had worn them, perhaps she could have not-so-accidentally trodden on him a few times...

"What were you thinking?" he said quietly, leaning in towards her ear as the music continued to hum to a moderate tango-like rhythm. Iris didn't have to do much other than let Jasper lead, though it took all her concentration to keep her feet from stumbling. The faint smell of a citrus-scented cologne lingered on him, faint, and then strong as she found herself spinning out and then back into his arms.

"You're not the first to ask me that," she said, tight-lipped, her lips wandering to the bundle of feet before her, trying to distinguish the pattern Jasper was moving to. "And I'll answer the same way I did others. Clearly, I wasn't thinking."

"No," he murmured. "Clearly, you weren't. Bringing those two here? You didn't think people would wonder why they've never seen those two strangers around? And above all, they have privilege to stand next to you? Raena is not all that different in appearance to you, my dear." He spun her. "Now I'll get all sorts of nosy people sniffing in the wrong places, trying to dig up dirt on them. Is that what you wanted?"

"If it gets you riled up, then yes," she said bashfully, a sweet smile still plastered on her face.

"Don't push it, Iris," he growled, pulling her closer towards him, his body pressed against her. It was the first time he had called her by her first name. No 'princess' or 'your highness'. All formalities forgotten. "You don't know what or whom you're up against."

She lifted her eyebrows innocently. "I thought we were on the same side, you said." There was a lilt in the music, and the two danced around each other, a few brave dancers now stepping up to the dancefloor with their partners, joining the princess and the Commanding Officer in their fast waltz.

"Either or, I know who I'm up against, actually. Some guy not much older than me who's used to running the district his own way," Iris said quietly, just loud enough to be heard over the crescendo of the ensemble. "Who's used to getting what he wants, when he wants it, at the click of his finger, literally." He dipped her quickly, and she clasped his arm tightly, almost falling flat on her back. His back muscles tensed, pausing for a moment before bringing her back up.

She recomposed herself, feigning indifference at her awkward dancing. "And now that I'm here, you're not used to sharing all that, are you?" she said into his ear. She had to play this carefully. Jasper wasn't an idiot. Too willing, too nice to him, and he would suspect. But too rebellious, and he would find a way to get rid of her, despite her entitlement. She had to dance that fine, dangerous tango between bitter and sweet.

Jasper stiffened, his face stern and serious. Still, she knew he had hit the nail on the head. He looked neither offended, nor overly pleased, and she watched him scrutinising her, silently puzzling over how to compartmentalise Iris.

Out of the corner of her eyes, Iris noticed the people on the dance floor – including herself and Jasper – had formed some kind of circle, as if in anticipation for the next dance. Indeed, in a few short seconds, the orchestra moved into a slow waltz, and Iris noticed all the females on the outer circle moving to their right, spinning off from their partner. Before she was quite aware of it herself, Jasper had pushed her into a twirl, away from him and to her next partner – right into Braedon's shoulder.

She winced, and he placed a firm hand on her hip to steady her, using his other hand to clasp her own. She placed her spare hand on his shoulder, and she counted the steps their feet moved to. One two three, one two three.

She looked up at Braedon unconvincingly, only to find he too, was staring at their feet.

"I'm not much better off than you, trust me," he muttered, almost stumbling as he spoke.

She smiled, instantly relaxing, not realising how tense she had been with Jasper. The feline show she had had to put on to intrigue and confuse him at the same time.

Braedon didn't say much as the song continued on, and Iris preferred it that way. She'd much rather the comfortable silence, than that awkward, tense talk with Jasper. The only thing that bothered her, as they slowly understood the rhythm of the dance together, their feet moving in slow synchronicity, was that damned, strong aura of his – that same mixture of freshly-cut grass and lemons. Just like she had smelt on him last night, but stronger this time, a little more overwhelming. Or perhaps the room was just getting hot and stuffy, and her head was getting light and dizzy.

He didn't try dipping her as the rest of the dancers around them did in that instant, and Iris didn't mind. She probably would have fallen and never gotten up again, from the humiliation alone. Braedon only briefly glanced at the people around them, the women in mid-dip, before crinkling his nose and giving Iris an apologetic look.

"I think, for the safety of everyone here," he muttered, "it's better I don't dip you. Unless you fancy becoming very close friends with the floor."

Iris chuckled as the female dancers around them straightened, and the waltz continued. Iris glanced to her right, where Raena was grinning widely at the tall and dark male suitor she danced before. Her little sister moved with such elegant grace that had Iris staring at her for a good half a minute.

"That girl thrives on almost everything she learns," Braedon grumbled, though there was no mistaking that hidden pride in his voice. "Trust her to pick up dancing as well."

Iris smiled. "You two are really close, huh?"

Braedon stiffened only for a moment. "She's like a sister to me. And she's all I have."

Iris bit her lip, swallowing. "I'm going to get your grandpa back, Braedon, I promise."

He returned her smile, though she could see the doubt clouding his eyes, could see the foreboding raincloud that seemed to hover over his head each time his grandpa was mentioned in a conversation. Iris wanted to reassure him further, to console him, promise him his family would be reunited, just like family was too, slowly. Though the words simply would not leave her lips, uncertainty and fear at the tip of her tongue. For the briefest instant, their eyes met, and he seemed to understand what she so desperately wanted to convey in words. Then, before she knew it, the waltz had ended, and Braedon spun her to her next partner, her unfulfilled promise still lingering in the air.