[Princess Calliope with Queen Prudence from the ballroom, to the hallway, to their rooms.]
Calliopie stood there for a moment in complete awe. All of a sudden the fun she was having was over and for some reason; she felt a strange pang in her chest. He had walked off like a crazy person and collecting herself quickly, she turned and stomped off. Her breath was short and it seemed to catch in her throat as she pushed through the crowd. Prudence quickly grabbed onto her daughter's arm as she passed by and she followed.
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"Dear, it is alright. He looked like a bum, anyway!" The Queen said softly, as <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" /><st1:State><st1:place>Cal</st1:place></st1:State> led her away from the people. She tried her hardest not to, but she could feel the hurt emanating from her little girl. Trying her hardest to think of something to cheer her up, Prudence followed the girl all the way out to the hallway, leading to their rooms. "Calliopie, please!" Away from all of the guests, she tugged at the young girl's arm so she could look her in the eye. "Young lady, if you don't get back out there right this min—"
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Calliopie's maroon eyes stopped Prudence in mid sentence. She was shocked at how her daughter had seemed so happy moments before; now her eyes went back to her dull and sad look from the carriage-ride before. Only the sadness seemed to seep through as the princess spoke.
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"I did what you told me." Calliopie said coldly, her hands shaking a bit. "I danced, mingled…" She looked down, ripped the mask from her face and pushed it into her mother's hands. "I came here for one reason and one only. As a Saint, one must protect the lives and well-being of others. At least at that, I can't fail. Now please, let me do my job!" She turned and walked off, her urge for the weight of her blade against her back. With her father's sword, nothing could hurt her feelings; she felt untouchable.
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Prudence followed her daughter back to her room, a few steps behind. She couldn't think of anything else to say. The man back there had obviously hurt Calliopie, but she didn't know what to do about it. Truthfully, she didn't know what the princess was going to do about it either. She worried in silence and bit her lip.
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Calliopie made it to her room, opened the door quickly and began to undress. The Queen followed closely and shut the door behind her. Suri knew by the look on Prudence's face, not to ask questions; she quickly fetched <st1:State><st1:place>Cal</st1:place></st1:State>'s Saint robes, her gear and tossed them to the bed. Dress dropped to the floor, she slipped her white leotard on, then the breastplate.
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"Shouldn't you be out there, mother?" <st1:State><st1:place>Cal</st1:place></st1:State> asked dryly, before adding the finishing touch of her robes. She moved over to the mirror to adjust her clothing and began yanking the little black decorative pearls from her hair. Carelessly, she dropped them to the floor. Grabbing her brush, she roughly went through her long curls and tied them back with a white bow. Then, she reached for her sword.
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"Calliopie! I know you are upset, but you know the rules. Women Saints are not supposed to carry around weapons." Prudence's worry actually came out in the tone of her voice. She winced once Calliopie strapped the sword to her back. "You could be challenged for your rank by anyone else in our army! What is the matter with you?!"
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Strangely, Calliopie sighed and faced her mother; a slight smile across her lips. She knew it would surprise both her mother and her handmaiden, and it worked. "It was going to have to happen anyway," She reassured her mother and gave Suri a pat on the back. "Besides, it's only Vincent here. He's too busy to try and challenge me." Before heading to the door, she went over to place a kiss on her mother's cheek. "I have some work to do, so please go out there. Don't worry, you'll see me." With that said, she left the room; the smile melted from her face. She shook the thoughts of Ferius from her mind, took a deep breath and went back into the ball, hugging the walls. After grabbing a couple of glasses of wine, the thoughts of him and the hurt was numbed, for now.