The day arrives with the pace of a snail and she isn't allowed out of her room until the crowd dies down at front of the door. Once they're sure no one else is going to show up late, she follows her father out into the ballroom.
  They stop at the top of the stairs and she looks towards her father as he starts to make the announcement. She feels all of their eyes on her as he speaks, but she doesn't pay them any attention by the time her father finishes his speech.
  She's supposed to stand there for a few minutes before starting the first dance. She brushes a (h/c) strand away from her (e/c) orbs as they survey across the dance floor. Soon, all too soon, she'll have to choose a man to dance with, the man she's supposed to marry. She fixes the mask that she picked out yesterday, it matches her dress perfectly, before she starts her decent down the steps.
The crowd that got loud after her father finished speaking, now eerily quieting down as they notice the beauty; it's so silent that everyone can hear the heels hitting the tile as she touches the ground floor. She casts a glance to her father while she lets out a small sigh; it's such a small sigh that no one should've noticed.
But one man did, probably the only man who didn't want to be there as well. Yet his father commanded him to get on good terms with the king of the country, and it's not like he's going to pull a Sanji.
And so he's here, but he still sees no use in it. All the princess is, is a pawn in her father's plans and who's to say she's even beautiful? No one's seen her face, and he's not stupid, that's the big idea of the ball being a masquerade."
The red-haired man lets out a sigh as the women holds out her hand, waiting for a man to ask her to dance. Her eyes meet his and he catches his breath, they're the most beautiful shade of (e/c) that he's ever seen. He looks away as a man takes her hand and sweeps her off onto the floor.
She floats across the white tile effortlessly, all the while being forced to dance with different men. The next thing he knows, she's standing in front of him without a partner, so the red-haired male looks towards his father, getting a small nod in return.
He bows extending his hand with his palm facing the ceiling, "May I have this dance, princess?"
She gives him a curt nod before placing her hand over his as he starts to straighten out. His other hand moves to her waist as her's rests on his shoulder, he moves his left foot forward and they start their dance.
"I'm guessing you're not supposed to talk?" he leans closer and whispers in her ear as they make their way farther from the middle of the floor and towards the open-air balcony.
A smirk plays itself onto her lips before they part, "It's supposed to add to the mysterious charm, Sir...?"
  "My name's Ichiji," he mumbles to her as he stares into her eyes. Mysterious charm is right; everyone of the opposite sex is here for her hand in marriage, but not one of them even knows her name.
  "Well..." she keeps her voice hushed as she converses with him. "I'm happy to announce that you're the first person I've spoken to tonight, Ichiji."
Her voice made him weak, it's something he's heard that no one else in the room has. The way she whispered his name almost seemed seductive, it made something deep within him click; his whole body shivers.
  The couple comes to a stop as the music fades in the background. The smile on her face widens as she reaches up and pulls off the mask she was wearing; he didn't think it was possible, but she's even more beautiful than he ever imagined.
  Her fingers reach up to his face and grip onto the edges. He doesn't say anything as she slips it off his face, "You're more handsome than I thought you'd be."
  "I'll take that as a compliment," he lets her go and walks over to the ledge. "And as for you, you definitely deserve to be the princess. You're simply the most beautiful women I've ever seen before."
  "I don't believe you," she lets out a sigh as she wraps her arm around a pillar and lets the wind blow her (h/c) hair around. "What are you here for, Ichiji? Money? Fame? The kingdom?"
  "I don't lie about beauty," he turns around and walks towards her before he brushes her hair out of her face. "And I'm only here on my father's order. I don't want anything out of this, except you."
  "You don't even know my name," she casts her gaze to the land below them before she feels his thumb rub against her cheek. "You don't know anything about me."
  "Then tell me," he holds her hand before he leads her over to take a seat on the ledge. "I'll listen to whatever you want to say."
  "Well... my name is (Y/n), and you can call me that, without saying Princess in front of it," she lets out a deep breath before she tells him everything she can think of about herself; everything that isn't fabricated to make her into the perfect princess. "What about you, Ichiji? You said you're here on your father's wishes?"
  "Order, there's a slight difference, (Y/n)," he stares at her smile before it falls into a confused frown. He grabs her hand, and he tells her everything he knows about himself, he even tells her what his father wanted from this night.
"You want to know something? I've always wanted to go to the garden," her (e/c) orbs light up as she starts to think. "Would you like to escort me? I'm not allowed to go off on my own..."
He stands up and holds out a hand to help her up as he gives her a smile, "I'd love to."
  They continue to talk as they make their way to the garden. Strangely, they have many things in common, and he even gets her to crack up a few times at his jokes. Once they arrive, they take a seat on a bench and continue their conversation.
Her eyes move over to the roses, the (e/c) orbs begin to shine with awe. She looks at Ichiji before she treads over to the flowers, her footsteps are light, as if she would scare them and they would close or wilt. He stands behind her as she bends down and brings a flower up to her nose.
"Ow," she drops the rose as she pricks her finger, some of the petals falling off of the flower as it hits the ground. "Oh no, I ruined it..."
"You know, there's an old saying that goes 'Do not watch the petals fall from the rose with sadness, know that, like life, things sometimes must fade, before they can bloom again'," his voice makes its way to her heart and as she turns around, he grabs her hand and places the bleeding finger in his mouth. She pulls it away before he speaks again, "You're almost like a rose, (Y/n). You're beautiful and captivating, but your beauty won't ever fade. You're always going to be gorgeous, even when you're old and grey."
Her face flushes as a guard appears telling the two of them that it's almost time for (Y/n) to make her second appearance and her first speech. She looks over at Ichiji and shrugs, but he holds out his hand to help her up.
She gladly take it and stands up, "I guess I have to act like I'm making an honest effort to find the best heir, goodbye Ichiji. I'll put in a good word for you and your project with my father."
  She kisses his cheek before she puts back on her mask and follows the guard into the ballroom. The red-haired male stands outside in the cold air for a short while, he feels sort of empty now that she's gone. Perhaps he's fallen in love with her, but he doesn't know. All he knows is that he wants to see more of her.
  He puts back on his mask before he goes back into the ballroom. He notices the (h/c)-haired woman talking with the king-her father. He seems to be smiling, something Ichiji's never actually seen his father do. She sees the red-haired man and gives him a smile, her father turning to see who she was smiling at.
  He motions for him to come over, but Ichiji doesn't notice, he's trying to find his own father. It isn't until he looks back over that he notices that they're staring at him, he smiles before he walks over to them.
"Sorry I was looking for someone," he bows as he speaks. "I'm afraid that was a bit inconsiderate to keep you waiting for so long."
"Don't be silly, young man," the king chuckles and places a hand on the back of Ichiji's suit. "And the person you're looking for... isn't your fiancé? Is it? Because it seem that my daughter has taken a particular liking to you, Ichiji."
"She has?" he look at the women who can't even look him in the eye before she smiles. "I mean, of course not. I'm not engaged to anyone, I was just looking for my father."
  "Well that's a big relief, son," the older man lets out a laugh that comes from deep in his stomach. "Now how would you like to have dinner with us tomorrow?"
"Father," her voice is once again hushed. "What are you trying to do?"
"Oh, would you prefer it, if he stayed the night?" his face gets wider as his smile grows. "Love at first sight, eh? Well, I'm not going to stop you two if you want to move that fast, shall I start planing the wedding for next month?"
"Father!" she scoffs and he's pretty sure that if the mask weren't hiding her face, she wouldn't need any artificial blush. "How can you sell your daughter short like that..."
  "Well, we're not getting any younger here," he lets out a sigh. "But I understand... I do have a question though... (Y/n) the ball is about to end, are you ready to say that you've chosen the man you're going to marry?"
She looks at Ichiji and he shrugs. He's not about to make a decision that big for her, she's going to vow to love the man until death do them part. Sure, he wants to be the one she chooses, but he doesn't know if she doesn't feel the same way. He could be friend zoned and he doesn't want to feel awkward about it.
"I don't know," she shakes her head and clutches her hand to her chest. "Can I get more time?"
"Of course. Take as long as you need," the king nods before turning to the red-haired male. "As for you, if you need anything, feel free to ask. Also, come back anytime, my daughter will probably be more than happy to see you again. If you'll excuse me, I have to go give the closing speech and get the rest of these people out of my house."
They both watch him leave before Ichiji looks at her and smiles, "Is your father always like that?"
  "I... don't actually know. He hasn't talked to me before tonight," she shrugs and sends him a smile. "So... are you going to come back?"
  "If you want me to," he grabs her hand and brings it up to his lips. "Because I do, but I won't invade your privacy."
  "Of course I want you to come back!" she looks away and clears her throat. "I mean... I would enjoy that..."
  He grabs her other hand and brings it up to his lips. He wants to see her again, it's his heart's one desire. One of the very first emotions that he's felt, "Then I shall be back, Princess (Y/n)."
  Her lips form into a smile as her father addresses the crowd and tells them that it's time to leave. He drops her hands as she places another kiss on his cheek.
"Please come back soon, Ichiji," her voice sends another set of shivers down his spine, "Ill be waiting."

~Orange roses symbolize enthusiasm and desire. They express admiration and attraction - with an underlying message of passion and excitement.~