7

"Lord Edward Mcvourse," Lord Edward, Knight's brother introduced himself again, slightly bowing. It was exactly eight, morning!

"I apologize for my outburst yesterday. I hope you like these other flowers. Wildflowers, they are!" He acknowledged, as the larger bouquet of flowers was brought forward and placed next to Victoria's seat, right between her and her brother Andrew.

"I love them!" Victoria respectfully added –without much checking them out, as Andrew inspected each and every petal.

"Are they to be fresh?" Lord Andrew interceded, as Prince Edward sat.

"As fresh as they can, just got them this morning. You can surely smell them to your liking." Prince Edward added his eyes shining briefly as he talked about the flowers,

"What do you like?" he questioned, now diverting his attention to Lady Victoria. Victoria just a little shook her head, depicting confusion, her eyes looking everywhere, but not the prince. "I mean flowers. Do you like yesterday's rose better, or today's wild?" He questioned. "It was quite hard for me to fathom your liking!"

"I love them all," Lady Victoria stated as Prince William nodded to that.

However, known least was, Victoria did not know what to say when these conversations of herself were ingrained. Conversations of "what do you like?", "what kind of man do you like?", "what is your favorite color?" She indeed had no idea of what to say. Truth, she did, but she couldn't fathom the thought of an eligible bachelor stopping his chase because her likings did not align with his– she ought to stay silent on matters of personal desires. After all, a woman's silence was a man's love language.

After ten minutes, Prince Edward was done with his talks, and the countess came in excitingly, her eyes sparkling. She took Victoria's hands, made her rise from the parlor seat as Andrew stared in amazement and confusion.

"Do you like him?" She asked giggling, with a smile on her face.

"Mother, he just came yesterday. How is she to like him?" Andrew questioned, as her mother pulled Victoria left away from Andrew.

"Tell me dear, is there one who appeases you?" The countess whispered, her blue eyes looking immensely on her daughter's blue_

"Lord Beming!" Lord Andrew called out, making the Countess and Lady Victoria look at the aging man who was walking down the stair case of the parlour, towards them with his withered flowers on his left hand.

"Oh God!" the Countess whispered, as the Lord, Lord Beming, sat without even being quested to. He had been widowed for three and two years, and maybe this was the season he sought a wife. However, truth was, he was precisely waiting for Lady Victoria's large line of suitors to decrease, and he become the lone option –he knew Andrew's attitude would scare away all children in line with him.

The countess looked at Victoria, then Lord Beming and called out, as they walked back to the seat Victoria momentarily sat, "Lord Beming, a quite huge journey you've had right there?"

"Yes... The flowers have withered, but my stems and vines of youthfulness are still within me." Making a ridiculous laugh and then, "aah, dear Victoria," he added coughing noticing the Countess longing stare at the withered flowers. In respect, the Countess thus called out one of the maids to bring the Lord some hot water and_

"Probably an overly desperate bitch would marry this aging man," the countess whispered within her, as she left the parlor to view how many more admirers were in presence for Lady Victoria's acquaintance – reducing in size they were. She expected that of course.

"My wife wanted a second baby, I wanted a son! He killed the mother – haha!" Lord Beming started his old tales, making Andrew and Victoria look at each other in question.

"How would it feel to have a Beming surname – haha!" he added, "Have five sons – haha!", "Call them Edward, Harry, Vance, John, and Michael – haha!",

He after started counting the number of petals the withered flower he had were, and called them over and over by the name of the five sons he was talking about – Edward, Harry, Nick, John, and Michael.

Though, unknown to none, but to he lone, he was calling out Knight's family names. From his elder brother Edward, to his last brother John. And for Michael, that was Lord Beming's son who he claims killed his mother during birth.

Lord Beming's conversation and laugh were solely to be likened to his own monologue. He had overly spoken for about ten and one minute, leading to Andrew, who had already started biting on some biscuit in distress, just tell him,

"yeah, yeah... five sons, you shall have..., yea, yea, but I wish them not kill my sister!"

Those words greatly hurt Lord Beming, as he silently stood, his unscowled facial expression now scowled, and his former upright posture now bent. Lord Andrew had broken the old man, as Lady Victoria compassioned with Lord Beming for his brother's sharp words. But still, said not anything.

At the same time, in Lancaster mansion, Knight was thoroughly wincing with him Lord Hordy, as they applied some traditional concoction onto the blisters.

"I indicated not to touch the fire," Lord Hordy warned for the fourth time, and Knight just shrugged his statement, focusing his eyes on his hands.

"You know you would win Lady Victoria's hand if you do not stay here locking yourself." Lord Hordy changed the topic, making Knight stare at him without answering.

"Your brother is determined. She deserves her not. She is sixteen, your brother is twenty-eight, he shall see her as a child," he added, as Knight just shook his head.

"Doesn't work that way for ladies," he replied, wincing from the climax bandaging of his hand by Lord Hordy, as he sat down on the same chair as the previous day.

"What really happened?" Lord Hordy questioned curiously as he poured some wines to the two cups.

"Just some burns from my obtuse and low mind," Knight added as he took the cup of wine Lord Hordy had handed him.

"What do you think of Lady Victoria?" he again topic changed. "Edward thinks she's charming but her brother is quite a hard nut."

"You spoke with Edward?" Knight questioned, his eyes widening in surprise.

"We stay at Lady Evelyn's, of course we speak," Lord Hordy detailed, and raised his index finger, remembering something, "Lady Evelyn was asking for you. She needs to introduce you formally, as she did to us." This made Knight laugh as the thoughts of he being introduced wandered in his brain, in addition to her mother seeking Lady Evelyn to introduce them to eligible spinsters.

"I wonder what friendship Mother has with that woman. I barely enjoy her gossips!"

"Especially those of Lady Hardington!" Lord Hordy added, laughing hard.

"Corny jokes those! I detest, but they light her room despicably. You can't dim that light for sure," Knight detailed, and they both were silent for a while, both looking through Knight's window as they saw the lads walking away from the front door.

"What happened!" Lord Hordy questioned.

"Lady Victoria seems quite displeased with all this."

"She seems classy and choosy," Lord Hordy specified randomly, as Knight's stare turned cold and warning.

"You speak no such about her. She is far less to choosy. She just barely knows of her wants. Like a turtle forced to hide inside its shell," Knight added, his thoughts remembering Lord Andrew's command that made him burn his palm, in addition to Lady Victoria's soft eyes on his, as she left with her brother, the previous night.

"You know her not much too," Lord Hordy added, for him being a random gossip and statement. But for Knight feeling like another burn on his palm.

"I know her much from observation," Knight added, his voice deepening, as it always did when growing anger was lingering inside.

"You sure anger for such a small matter. You like her not, first. You acquaint yourself not to her, second. How would you say you know her?" Lord Hordy questioned, his eyes face to face with Knight, who just looked back at him with searching eyes.

"Beneath those blue eyes, you see not beyond society?" Knight questioned, chuckling as he drank the full cup of wine. He still knew his dear friend, Lord Hordy, who was the Wales marchioness' son, however raised in Knight's palace would still not understand whatever he was saying.

"So now what? Are you searching for a wife or not? Mother sure shall be mad."

"Am planning on it," Knight added, his voice rising after Lord Hordy called out his mother, the only woman he feared.

"You sit here, Lady Evelyn seeks your presence, you reach out to the ball, and on less than five" paused, "you leave. You ought to seek what kind of wife if you stand behind a Lancaster door. The rest of Lancaster girls are barely of age. I probably gave you the interest of Lady Hardington's daughter. I hear the last one, the one you liked quite, with the purple dress, likes adventure as you. You can marry her, and form a lover's bond with her on adventure-based romance." Lord Hordy insisted, shaking the gourd that had wine as if he had said nothing, "finishing almost is this?" he questioned, as he poured himself another full cup.

"I just complimented her looks, and her standing posture—"

"—seemed forced! I remember, brother." Lord Hordy interrupted as he raised his cup to Knight who cheered too, "to looking for wives." They both laughed, as Knight lay on his bed, his thoughts wearing away to Lady Victoria. If he probably were a bird, he would fly onto her window every evening before she entered bed. But he is, not a bird, and neither has wings. A lone guard in the Lancaster door, "what a blood-sucking idea that was—being a guard!" he thought to himself.