Brinn stood and the guards instantly came to her side. She groaned inwardly. Losing the goons would be no small task.

Xander was still engrossed with the heiress. The girl laughed musically at something the pirate said. Her lovely strawberry-blonde hair danced around her shoulders as they shook up and down in delight. The girl was half the man's age, yet Xander was still handsome enough—or perhaps powerful enough—that the girl did not care. His advances were clearly welcome.

'Disgusting,' Brinn scoffed. 'She looks like she would throw herself at him at a moment's notice, and I am sure he would tell her any little secret to get her to that point.' An idea began to form in the elf's head. She walked over and stood near a group of commoners and then waited until a couple of them left. The elf stifled a laugh.

"What is it?" one of the guards asked, noticing that she had not spoken to anyone before laughing.

Brinn quickly straightened her face as she folded her hands gently against her gown. "Oh nothing. If you did not hear them, then by all means I think they should get away with it."

"We heard it," the other guard was quick to defend himself.

"Then you must not like the pirate captain very much. Anyone else would have told him that his room is about to be robbed. I mean those gentlemen had a reasonable score to settle after Xander burned their farms. I applaud your sense of justice." The elf watched out of the corner of her eye as the two gnome soldiers exchanged a worried glance.

"I will be right back." The first gnome excused himself and made a beeline for the pirate. The soldier hurriedly whispered something into Xander's ear.

The captain turned slightly red with anger. "Excuse me, Lady Loane. I must leave for just a moment, but I will be back."

"It is just Miss Loane. I have no title, Captain," the beauty batted her hazel eyes. "And I look forward to your return."

His face softening slightly, Xander kissed the young woman's knuckles. "I will not be long." The pirate motioned to two of the other pirates nearby and all three marched from the room.

Brinn seized her chance. While Miss Loane was still watching the pirate captain leave, the elf bumped into the young lady. "I am so sorry! That was completely my fault."

"Your Highness!" Loane curtsied. Her voice was sweet and melodic as she dipped herself all the way to the floor. "I did not see you. Please forgive me."

With two fingers, Brinn encouraged Loane to rise. "What a lovely dress! I must know the name of your tailor."

"Thank you, Your Highness! My father had it made especially for the coronation." Loane twirled from side to side and the folds of the gown accentuated the young woman's small waist. It was indeed a fine dress.

"Oh," the elf gasped quietly. "What happened back here?" Brinn leaned and stared at the back of the dress. "You seem to have a small stain, my dear."

Loane pulled at the dress to examine it. "Oh no! My father will be very displeased."

"At least it is on the back. It will likely come out with a little water. You could use the ladies room down the hall. Among other things, there are basins of water to use for refreshing oneself. You might be able to dab it out before it sets." Brinn furrowed her brow in concern.

"I cannot go there, Your Highness. Only the nobility is allowed to use the palace facilities." Loane lowered her eyes and feigned embarrassment, but it was clear she was fishing for an invitation. She thought about how jealous all her friends would be when they heard about her conversation with the princess.

"Please go and tell them that I sent you. They will not deny you entrance," Brinn promised.

Loane touched her warm cheeks and curtsied. "Thank you, Your Highness. You are too kind." The lady moved gracefully toward the exit, catching the eye of more than a few men she passed. One of them looked positively green with envy.

Brinn waited a few moments, giving her regards to those around and taking mental notes of all the nobles that chose the wrong side, before heading for the ladies' refreshing room as well. The two guards followed her up to the door.

"You cannot seriously think to follow me in there," she scolded them. "There is nowhere for me to go, and people will talk. Wait here, and I will be back eventually."

One guard pushed his way into the room in front of her and checked suite of rooms where ladies were resting, relieving, and refreshing themselves. There was more than one angry scream. He came back out. "She is right; there is nowhere for her to go."

The other guard nodded. "We will wait here. Do not take too long."

"I will take as long as I like," Brinn answered. "You cannot rush females in such matters." She gave them a knowing look hoping that they would be embarrassed. But the stared at her blankly. "Nevermind..." 'I forget gnomes do not have a clue.' Brinn rolled her eyes as she entered the room.

Taking care to find a secluded spot, Brinn shifted into a lowly servant with a light blue uniform. She moved through the fainting couches toward the water basins and spotted Loane. The woman was scrubbing feverishly at the spot Brinn had caused to make her story believable. The elf felt a tinge of guilt but it did not last long.

"Excuse me," Brinn said humbly with a submissive dip of her head.

"Princess Mairwen said I could be here!" Loane snapped. Her gentle demeanor was gone.

"But Ma'am. I have a message from Captain Xander. He sent me to seek you out and ask that you meet him in the sitting room two doors down. The Captain is quite taken with you. I believe he has a proposal already." Brinn's eyes glittered with excitement as she played the doting fool.

"Nevermind about Xander, tell me about Lord Ulrich." Loane looked up with a mischievous smile.

"Lord Ulrich, Miss?" Brinn was confused.

"Yes, has he come looking for me? Did you overhear him say anything?" Loane stopped scrubbing her gown and reached out for the servant's hands. "Surely you saw something."

So that was her game! Brinn thought for a moment and remembered the jealous lord watching Loane leave. He was not at all pleased. "Lord Ulrich seemed quite upset by your exit," she answered honestly.

"Good. I shall let him worry a little longer. Then maybe he will finally make me an offer of marriage." Loane tucked her hair back and smiled in a nearby looking-glass. She spoke as if the servant were not really there. The other ladies were not close enough to hear her words.

"Miss, I must warn you that there are two guards outside waiting to escort you to Captain Xander. If you do not wish to go, I recommend you stay here as long as possible." Brinn said in a hushed tone.

Loane was suddenly concerned. She could not let all her hard work go to waste. "I appreciate your warning. I will not leave until I know the coast is clear." The beautiful lady found a free seat on a couch. "Will you let me know when they have gone?"

"Absolutely," Brinn assured her. The elf dipped her head and left the room. She passed behind a small privacy screen, shifting to look like Loane when no one was looking. Strolling elegantly by the two guards at the exit, Brinn winked at them and gave one of Loane's musical giggles. She headed back to the throne room without being stopped.

Xander was waiting for her. "There you are," he said with a brilliant smile as he reached out and kissed her hand.

"I needed a moment to refresh," Brinn mimicked Loane's airy voice. "But now I am all yours. I hope everything is alright."

Xander brushed away her concern. "It was nothing I cannot handle. Now back to what we were saying..."

Brinn brushed up against the pirate, pretending to be bumped by the man behind her. The pirate lost his train of thought as he took her arm to steady her. "Oh," Brinn acted embarrassed. "You are so strong! Forgive me. The room is so very crowded. I had no one to protect me from that vicious shove." She looked around and sighed.

"What is it?" Xander asked, finally releasing her arm.

"It is nothing," Brinn sighed a second time.

The pirate raised his eyebrows. "You can tell me anything," he assured her.

"All these noble ladies have someone by their side to protect them. I am slightly jealous, Captain. I wish I had a personal guard to protect me, but father will only hire a eunuch. I am left without anyone to guard me."

"I have a remedy for that," Xander got a lustful gleam in his eye. "I have a eunuch that you can have as a guard, and I am sure I can come to an arrangement on price."

"I would love to examine him after after all the festivities. Maybe tomorrow? Or is he nearby?" Brinn watched as the man's gaze wandered along the lines of her dress. She fought the urge to punch him.

"He is currently right next to my quarters. You could meet him now and we could discuss payment in a more private setting." Xander tried to coax her. He began to lead her from the room with his hand pressed too firmly and too low against her back. "We will not do anything that makes you uncomfortable," the pirate lied seductively in her ear.

Brinn noticed his other hand was flexing toward his tall boot. She guessed that he had the Merpearl stashed there. Once they were out of the crowd, he could use it if she resisted. The elf needed to break free now.

"Let me inform my father of my absence, so he does not worry," Brinn said with a giggle.

Xander relaxed slightly. "That's what fathers are supposed to do, my dear. Now let us hurry. I must be back in time for the feast." His other hand moved away from his side and took her arm. He was strong, but Brinn was stronger. She just needed to make whatever happened look like an accident.

Just then, Lord Ulrich burst through the crowd of people. "Unhand her!" He demanded. Brinn was suddenly glad that Loane had pitted the two men against each other as the lord hit the pirate squarely across the jaw.

A satisfying crack rang through the hall that even brought Alaron for his daze for a moment. 'Glad he has less self-control than me,' Brinn thought about the lord. She leaned over and whispered in Ulrich's ear. "Thank you. I will marry you tomorrow if you will have me."

Before he could respond, Brinn ran off to the ladies room pretending that she would cry. She could hear the two men continue to argue behind her. 'You're welcome, Loane," Brinn laughed inwardly.

Slipping back into the ladies' chambers, Brinn, disguised as the same lowly servant, told Loane of the fight and possible marriage proposal. She left the young woman in ecstasy.

Donning Mairwen's visage, the elf exited. The guards were immediately at her side. Brinn smirked. "Come on, boys. I heard there is an interesting show going on in the throne room…"