** here you go!! another long chapter. but this one's kinda fun, hope you guys like it 😈 **

Chapter 36

It was completely besides the point; but the whole evening was like Aveline's guilty pleasure.

She wore a full-length dress, in a royal ballroom, and was about to topple the Hapsburgs' entire operation with her four unlikely friends.

While Aveline found she preferred the upbeat flutes and woodwinds of the village folk music in Mauviri, the orchestra was quite elegant, and she was almost tempted to slip off her shoes and dance barefoot and alone in front of all of the scandalized nobles.

At least, that's what Aveline would have done, had they not been accosted by some random courtier, and had Lyla not taken off.

"Lyla!" Aveline called after her, but Lyla's lavender skirts quickly disappeared in the swarm of ladies dresses.

"You know," Ari remarked, "somehow, I don't think that annoying Viscount is going to show up."

"He ran off rather quickly," Eli agreed. "But Lyla wanted us to wait here anyway."

Aveline twisted her hands in her skirts. "What are we supposed to do while we wait?"

Ari shrugged. "Blend in."

She wasn't sure she liked that idea. "I'd rather find the Queen."

Aveline wheeled around just as another attendant passed by with the drinks that Lyla had taken earlier. She snatched one, deciding she would look more dramatic storming across the ballroom with an expensive goblet in her hand.

"I'll go with her," she could hear Eli telling Ari and Jamie. He caught up with her only a few seconds later, straightening the hem of his jacket.

"I've met Queen Rowena," Aveline muttered, scanning each Apreunian in the room. "She's blonde. Regal looking, I suppose. She has to be around here somewhere."

"Slow down, sweetheart." Eli set his hand on her shoulder. "If Lyla couldn't find her, she's likely not anywhere obvious."

He was probably right, Aveline thought grudgingly. "There's something strange going on here," said she, narrowing her eyes at the corridor that the Viscount had disappeared into.

"Obviously." Eli took her elbow and plucked the wineglass from her hands. "Let me take this, before you spill."

"Eli, this is important."

He continued to steer her towards a set of chairs in the corner.

"Then perhaps we should do as Lyla suggested, and not draw attention to ourselves." There was a large flowerpot hiding two seats in a quiet alcove, and Eli pulled out one of them for her. "See? We can keep an eye out for the Queen, and watch for the Viscount at the same time."

Aveline's eyes lit up. "You're right! This spot is perfect. We can do reconnaissance." She arranged her skirts before sitting, determinedly focusing her gaze on the crowd though she was very much aware of Eli chuckling next to her.

She looked at him sideways. "Why are you always laughing at me?"

Eli laughed again.
"Like that."
"It's because you're funny."
"What's so funny?"
"Your enthusiasm, I suppose. It's infectious."
"You're infectious," Aveline shot back as if she was delivering a great insult.

Eli hummed, not averting his gaze from her as he curled his ankles around the bottom of her chair, and Aveline could see it in Eli's face; he was about to bring up something sensitive at the most inappropriate time. She exhaled and shifted in her seat, deciding to beat him to the punch.

"Eli..." she dropped her hands to her lap. "What are we doing?"

"What do you mean-"

"Here. Us. What are we doing? I mean, I know a little harmless flirting comes naturally to you, but for me..." she trailed off.

Eli looked offended; a reaction she hadn't been expecting. "Do you think I flirt with you for fun?"

"You don't?" She said before she could stop herself.

"Aveline." He said it hushed; like her name was some sort of ancient secret tumbling from his lips. "I am being perfectly serious with you."

She squirmed, ignoring the flutter in her stomach that came unbidden at his words.

"But it's illogical," Aveline persisted. "I mean, I'm not exactly a model citizen, and you're a palace guard, the discrepancy is a little-"

Eli scowled. "You're starting to sound like Ari."

"You don't think he had a point?"

"No." He didn't hesitate. "I think if you want something, you should go for it."

She stared at her lap. "That's not always wise."

"So what's the alternative? You just want to ignore what's happening between us?" His voice was accusatory and laced with hurt.

"I'm just trying to be smart-"
"Well, stop it." He stood up. "I'm not going to keep trying to convince you to pursue this."

Aveline couldn't find a way to respond. So she didn't.

When she looked up again, Eli was gone.

Caught off guard, Aveline blinked, returning her gaze to her lap as the orchestra swelled in the ballroom, and was suddenly grateful that she had the flower pot to shield her from the people around her.

Sometime later, Aveline wasn't sure how many minutes had passed, Ari found her sitting in the same spot, her slippers lying abandoned on the marble next to her.

"There you are," he exclaimed, stepping into the empty space that Eli had inhabited. "We're... Are you alright?"

Aveline shook herself. "Fine." Behind Ari was Jamie, who gave her a small wave. "What have I missed?"

Ari narrowed his eyes, but let the subject drop. He and Jamie exchanged glances, and finally Ari drew himself up, sliding his hand down his jaw.

"Well, we can't find Lyla anywhere, for starters."

Aveline raised her eyebrows. "Oh?"

"The Viscount never returned, either. But! He did set his guards on us, so that's a new development."

She cursed. Was this what happened when she sat down for ten minutes?! "What?!"

"Yes." Ari dipped his chin. "Thankfully, there are a lot of guests here, so we managed to lose them, but we're thinking we should find Lyla and hide as soon as possible."

She jumped up from her chair. "Good thinking." She grabbed her slippers in one hand and followed Ari and Jamie out of the alcove, not wanting to waste any more time.

More people had filed into the cramped ballroom as the night had deepened, and Aveline could barely move without jostling another dancer. She linked hands with Jamie so she wouldn't lose her in the crowd, following Ari as he weaved his way out of the ballroom. More guests were in the courtyard, milling around among the lights and conversing among themselves.

They found Eli by the rose garden, perched on a chair surrounded by pink-faced women. He lifted his head when he saw them, grinning. Aveline raised her eyebrows.

"I don't know about you," remarked Ari, "but I think Eli's had one too many of those bubbly drinks."

"Eli!" Aveline hissed. "What are you doing?!"

He smirked at her, winding an arm around the waist of the brunette closest to him. "Blending in."

Suddenly the old, familiar Eli was back, and it bothered Aveline more than it should have. Annoyance ran through her, sharp and sudden, and she turned her face away.

"Let's just leave him here while we find Lyla. He's obviously not going anywhere."

Eli was too drunk to notice as they left, making their way around to the front of the lighthouse. Aveline realized her fists were clenched in her skirt and forced them to relax.

"The only reason the guards aren't after us now is because they're somewhere in the hall trying to find Lyla," Ari explained over his shoulder as they walked. "Apparently she's their first priority, so perhaps someone doesn't want her telling the Queen what she knows."

"The Viscount," Aveline mused. "I wonder why he would think Lyla had anything to do with this."

"I know. Have you seen her? She couldn't hurt anyone if she tried."

"I meant because the prince is her cousin."

"Oh."

"Well, Ben said they hired someone else to kidnap the royals," Jamie put in. "So perhaps there's a third party at work here."

"Who knows?" Ari pushed open a side door, music and voices spilling outside from the festivities. "There's a quieter hallway in here. I'm sure Lyla's hiding out somewhere. We just need to find her before the guards do."

The passageway was dark, bringing in muffled laughter from the other side of the wall.

"Lyla..." Aveline sang quietly. Her voice bounced off of the empty corridor. "Perhaps she's with the Queen."

"Perhaps." Ari sounded doubtful. Now they were back towards the entrance again, by the stairwell. The wind was louder than the ball, here, whistling through tiny cracks of the lighthouse stone.

"Wait." Jamie paused. "Do you hear that?"

Aveline stopped. She heard someone above her hiss her name.

"Lyla?" She glanced upwards, towards the stairwell; Lyla was peering over the edge of the banister, waving frantically at them. Her hair had come undone and she reminded Aveline of a princess in a fairytale, leaning down towards them from her tower.

"There you are!" Lyla whispered. "Get up here, hurry!"

Aveline, Ari, and Jamie climbed the stairs as quietly as they could. Lyla was sitting near the top of the shaft, by the open lighthouse window.

Aveline crouched down next to her.
"Lyla, where have you been?"

"Hiding," Lyla explained. "The guards-"

"We know," said Ari. "Did you find the Queen?"

"No. And I doubt anyone's going to let us see her now. But," she continued eagerly, "I managed to have a word with the crown prince."

Ari drew back, dismayed. "Isn't he, like, five?"

"Eleven." Lyla gave him a look. "So I'm a suspect now. Apparently, shortly after I left, the Viscount tried to convince the court that I had something to do with Tristran's kidnapping!"

Jamie's eyes widened. "He definitely has something against you."

"I know." Lyla curled her feet under herself. "I've been sitting here thinking about it: why doesn't he want me to talk to the Queen?"

Ari took his chin out of his hands. "I'm telling you; it was an inside job."

"We can figure it out later." Aveline glanced uneasily down the stairs. "It's not going to be long before the guards come searching up here. We need to get out, and fast."

Lyla looked around, frowning. "Where's Eli?"

Aveline involuntarily clenched her jaw.

"Making an absolute fool of himself in the courtyard," Ari declared in a dulled tone, not bothering to hide his disdain. "I suppose we should fetch him before he gets into trouble."

They crept back downstairs the way they had come, and somewhere in the back of her mind Aveline was mourning the fact that she hadn't even gotten to dance at her first royal ball. Which, again, wasn't the point right now, but she felt it was an important side note.

Almost as soon as they appeared in the doorway to the ballroom, they were spotted by a group of guards.
"There!" One of them shouted, and then they were charging across the marble floors in their shiny uniforms.

Ari swore. "Turn around."

Aveline ran back the opposite way they'd came and out the door to the courtyard, praying that Eli was still in the same spot they'd left him.

He was. There was some unknown woman on his lap; a different one than before. He seemed dizzy. And was that... lipstick on his cheek?

"You're an idiot," Aveline snapped, seizing his arm. The poor girl let out a yelp as he stood up suddenly, dumping her onto the ground. For a moment he just stared at Aveline with an indistinct expression.

"You're back."

"Let's go," Ari urged.

Aveline dragged Eli behind her as they dashed back into the lighthouse. Almost immediately the guards were upon them, shouting angrily. Aveline went straight down the ballroom, followed by her companions.

Ari pulled out a familiar black radio from underneath his jacket, pressing the red button on the side.

"Um, what is that?!" Lyla interjected.

Ari ignored her. "Inez, get the ship ready now!" He hissed into the speaker.

There were too many confused people running around. Aveline shoved past a slow gentleman and veered into the hallway on her right, taking Eli with her. Lyla, Jamie, and Ari kept running straight, and Aveline lost them in the sea of guests.

"Where'd they go?"

Eli, beside her, began to panic as he finally realized what was going on.

"Why are we being chased by-"

"Shut up!" There was an old door on the side of the wall, and Aveline yanked on the doorknob, shoving Eli into what looked like a broom closet. She ran in behind him and pulled the door closed just as a few guards burst into the hallway behind them.

Inside, it was dark and cramped. Aveline waited for her breathing to slow and pressed her ear to the wall, waiting for the loud footsteps to subside.

Finally, it was quiet.

"Aveline?" Eli said loudly behind her. His breath brushed her neck, making goosebumps rise along her arms. "What's happening-"

It was easier to speak to Eli now when she didn't have to look at him. "The Viscount sent the guards after us."

"Did Lyla find the Queen?"

"No."

"And why are we alone in the closet?"

Aveline's cheeks heated and she was grateful he couldn't see it. "We're hiding, obviously."

"And what about-"
Aveline hushed him sharply; she heard noise outside the door. Drunken laughter seeped into the corridor.

"Aveline?"

She whirled on him. "I said shut up!" She put as much venom as she could into the statement; hot fury flashing down her spine. At him. Not just for right now, but for everything else he'd done that evening. He had no right to distract her; to make her feel unsure of herself. He was just a palace guard. How dare he?!

For a quick, flashing second, Aveline wanted to make Eli feel something too.
"But-"

Aveline reached up and snatched Eli's collar before he could say anything else, impulsively bringing their heads together.

He abruptly fell silent, and for a moment Aveline could only hear their own mingled breathing- what was she doing?!- before she stretched up on her toes and angrily pressed her mouth to his.

For a moment, Eli was frozen. Then, finally, as his lips began to move under hers, Aveline smiled- finally, she'd surprised him.

Good.

He sighed into her mouth and rocked forward into her space, like he'd been waiting all night for her to do just this. Maybe he had been. Feeling lightheaded, Aveline plunged her hands into his hair. He tasted like wine and felt softer than she expected, insistent and searching as he leaned into her to deepen the kiss.

What she was doing now was the product of her own anger and horrible decision making. It was her own cacophony of emotions, rolled into one.

It was something.

Her nails raked softly against his scalp, and Eli pressed closer to her, his hands curling firmly around her wrists.
Aveline's pulse quickened. She was playing with fire, and she knew it.

The thought jarred her, and Aveline broke apart from him with a gasp. Her mouth ghosted past his jaw as she reluctantly pulled away- she could feel the heat on the masculine roughness of his cheeks. Eli exhaled shortly, his eyes flying open.

"We have to go," Aveline murmured, her voice embarrassingly hoarse. She hoped he couldn't hear her heartbeat; it seemed loud to her, rapidly beating as if she'd been running. With great effort, she turned away from him to the door, and mercifully Eli said nothing as she led them into the now-empty corridor.

The fresh air promptly blew into her face, cooling her warm cheeks, and Aveline took a ragged breath.

Shit.

**LOLOL OOPS SO Avie has zero impulse control ;) See you on Tuesday!!**