<span style="color: #00FF40">“You’re right.  She is far too beautiful for me to gaze upon.” </span>Motto bowed low to the maid.<span style="color: #00FF40"> “But I shall do so regardless.” </span>He straightened with a wide, mischievous grin and strode toward the noblewomen who seemed to be conversing.<br/><br/>“How dare you!  The King will hear of this!”  More terrified than offended, the servant went to block Motto’s path.  Surely the filthy imp would disgrace all of Gilthlore with that fiendish temperament!  Motto managed a feint and moved around the maid but she was nimble and took hold of his sleeve.  “Stop or I will ring your disgusting little neck--OH MY!”  She recognized him.  “King Motto!”  The poor maid went to her knees with her face in her hands and doubled over.  Genevieve and all of her attendants as well as several nearby guards, a dozen servants that happened to be within earshot of the castle’s windows, and Fang who had been nibbling at a patch of sweet herbs from his hiding place in the garden had all heard.<br/><br/>It was Elenore that reacted first.  “My Lord.”  She curtseyed very low along with all of the other servants.  Motto was on one knee comforting the distressed maid for a moment, his words only discernible to her before rising to stand tall before his future wife and her attendants.<br/><br/><a class="postlink" href="https://i.imgur.com/eYkFD1p.jpg">[ img ]</a><br/><br/><span style="color: #00FF40">“My Lady.  How do you find Gilthlore?”  </span>He lifted his chin a bit higher as if it might nullify his tarnished appearance.  The King’s mind was a cacophony of noise; he had decided it would be imprudent to skulk away from Her Ladyship simply because of his less than tidy state, and that it would look weak to apologize for it.  This was his castle, dammit.<br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic"><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 150%; line-height: 116%;">And she was breathtaking. </span></div></span><br/>Throughout his life Motto had seen a few rare beauties in the court as well as far away kingdoms, but none of them compared to Lady Genevieve.  Her features were exquisite enough to confound him, and if it was one thing Motto hated, it was being confounded.  He kept the chaos in check and stood waiting for Her Ladyship’s answer.   This wasn’t at all how he was supposed to meet her, and Motto privately wondered at himself for the unfavorable choice he’d made.<br/><br/>To hell with it, he was King and he could do as he liked.