When the prince of the Istalian Empire came up to him and kissed his hand, Vale had to still his heart for a moment, the other prince’s features taking him off guard a bit even though he was able to keep his neutral and closed off mask up. He held back a huff when the other prince called him ‘My Princess’, by all standards it was a perfectly acceptable greeting, though it rubbed Vale the wrong way to be referred to like a possession.
The women of Storkall were not treated like objects, they owned land in the kingdom and the head blacksmith at the castle at the moment was a hardened older women, heck even knights could be women in Storkall, and the royal line ran mostly threw his mother as she had been the princess of Storkall till she had married her husband, the second son of a merchant lord from across the sea where the merchants were the rulers, so he was technically a second prince in his birth land.
Vale mentally shook himself to bring himself back to the present.
‘Princess Vella’ looked up at the taller prince with her one green eyes shining brightly against ‘her’ flame colored hair and pale freckled skin, ‘she’ could still feel her heart hammering against her corseted chest. On the hand that the prince had kissed rested gloveless fingers, slender and looking like they were built to play music, rested a pale blue sapphire ring with the symbol of Storkall’s royal house. It was a treasure, one that ‘Princess Vella’ had gotten on her fourteenth birthday. The almost clear stone reminded ‘her’ of the sunny and cloudless days where ‘she’ would go to a field close to the castle with ‘her’ brother.
The design of the ring wasn't very feminine, it looked liked it had been intended for a prince, one could just assume that it was a parting gift from her brother. ‘Vella’ felt a little lost for words, that much was clear even with ‘her’ closed off look.
Vale well trained ears caught some hushed whispers when a few of the court finally noticed the eyepatch. He was able to roll those hushed comments off his shoulders as he had long since stopped feeling felt conscious about the wound, he’d gotten it defending his younger brother, so he was proud of it. He heard the armour of his body guard clinking, he knew that the man would have heard these whispers aswell, yet was too well trained to just go and abscond the offender with violence.
In Storkall, a scar was a badge of honor, more so if it was earned in a battle of the defence of someone. They told a tale, every one of them a page of an adventure if a person's life. Though with this fancy and decorated eyepatch you couldn’t even see any scarred skin around the eye, let alone the hollow and gnarly knotted socked.
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The introductions had taken longer than Vale would have liked, though he was happy to be out of that room now, he was currently pacing the temporary room given to ‘Princess Vella’. The princess had been lead to the room shortly after the introductions to be giving some times to recuperate from the journey and all that mellocky. “You’ll wear a rut in the rug, Highness.” His bodyguard said only slightly amused to finally see some of the boy the princess used to be. Vale stopped to give the male a small glare that had little fire in it.
“It helps me think Garrett, you know that better than anyone. I’m also trying to get the feeling back into my feet while I can.” Vale said, he’s taken those pinchy shoes off soon after being left with his attendees in the room. The ladies maids were getting another outfit ready for the dinner later that evening. For now ‘Vella’ had changed into a loose A line gown colored a light spring green with pink and bird egg blue highlights and accents. ‘Her’ long flame colored curls were hanging loose around ‘her’ shoulders and mid back. Pale toes wiggled against the soft carpet briefly before reluctantly slipping into a pair of soft slippers that one of the maids handed ‘her’ after a few more goes at the pacing.
Not that Vale was thinking much other than the round about thoughts and bound to fail plans of how to get out of this without starting another war. He rubbed his scarred eye that was now covered by a more simple eyepatch. Even in the body of a female, Vale felt and looked more my himself like this, not all draped in finery and the like, plus he was very happy to be free of the corset, it had left a imprint on his ribs, proving that the corset had been laced to tightly on his now even more slender frame.
The prince turned princess was not looking forward to this dinner, the dress was once again one with a corset, as it was the favored style at the moment, he hoped that this time the maids would remember to not completely bind him in, he liked breathing a lot thank you.