The trio finally reached the meeting room, an almost grand room with fewer cracks and a look that made it one of the finer rooms.
There, Relious sat on the opposite side of the other two. Marco was standing behind Star's chair with an unnaturally stiff posture after what he had heard earlier.
Meanwhile, the princess herself undid the hair covering her face, to reveal a deep blush, and even a glow to the hearts on her cheeks.
Her head resting on get head as she looked to the side, still not looking at the young lord across from her.
This led to an awkward silence, one none of them quite knew how the break.
(I have to push the next step with her, but how? I was like 14 in my past life, and now I'm the same age again…. I don't really have experience dating, I kissed like one girl when I was younger... It was the childhood friend buff!) Relious blushed slightly thinking about his past, and the current situation.
Marco saw this and raised an eyebrow, his stiffness leaving him, as a small smile formed.
"Uh, where is the nearest bathroom? I really need to go, plus I didn't fully get rid of the chocolate or cupcake pieces." Marco pointed at the small chunks still glued to him.
"5 doors to the right, and turn left. At the right end of that second corridor, you'll find one." Relious pulled out of his mind, responded.
"Got it!" Marco was ready to go.
However his hoodie was gripped by Star, she didn't say anything, just gripping.
"Are you ok, Star?" Marco's smile died out instantly as he asked.
She looked at him for a few moments then let go with a sigh.
"No, I'm fine… Thanks, Marco. Just making sure, you have chunks to take off and aren't just bailing on me, now that he boring part will start." Star smiled lightly, her blush going down a bit.
With a firm nod, Marco left the room.
It was only the two of them now.
For the first time since that day 7 years ago.
"I don't hold it against you. It was a stupid moment, plus, your mom… Misunderstood… It was mostly my dad's fault." Relious was the first to break the silence.
"…. It's weird. I'm mad at you, I want to be mad at you, but instead, it's all… Messy. Why are you so hard to hate?" Star's blush deepened again as she spoke.
"Urgh… Well, I quite like you. You were fun, if a bit crazy back then. Plus, you stole my first kiss." Relious also blushed slightly thinking about it.
(In this life at least, she's my first kiss… I thought it would be easy, but I still feel, all like this… Is it my body, or is it just me? Will this happen again when I eventually reach the next world?) He wondered in his mind.
"Crazy?! I'm not crazy! I'm a warrior princess! For your information Mister! I uh… Wait, you like me?!" Star became tomato red once she processed the words.
"I do. It was hard to forget you since then." Relious sighed half cringing at himself, the mark of a young man learning his own game.
"Hehehe! I'm... I'm memorable! Of course!" Star covered her face with her hair again.
From there, another wave of silence hit them both, two people who didn't know how to move forward from here.
"… I apologize too… I shouldn't have tied you up, and tried to torture you… In my defense! I thought you were a thief, but even then… Sorry. Even the kiss… I didn't mean to." Star even between her hair cover forced herself to look at him as she said each word.
"This is awkward… Hahaha! I thought it would be easier. Yet, I'm happy we're talking about this, it feels a little, lighter." Relious nodded part of him wanting to smash his head on the table even as he forced a smile.
"Urgh! Don't say it! Makes it worse!… You were cooler before." She jabs at him.
"Tch! I'm trying! But a princess who won't even show her face makes it hard!" He responds.
"Well! At least I'm here! I could have left you to rot in here!" She stepped on the table pointing at him.
"Oh really?! Like I couldn't have said something when you accused me!" Relious followed getting on the table as well.
"So what?! Who would believe you instead of the princess?!" She got rid of her hair, and walked up to him, looking up at him with her arms crossed.
"Anyone with eyes! I looked too beat up!" Relious leaned in to retort.
"Hmph! I could just say it was the guards! Or something!" Star pressed her forehead on his.
They looked each other in the eyes, and he put his arms around her waist, pulling Star into a kiss.
Two worlds meshed as a battle of lips engaged with the minor movement and clumsy passion of inexperience, yet, somehow the moment was pure.
Hot, wet, and way more intense than they bargained for. Even so, his arms tightened around her, and her arms moved to his shoulders, they didn't know what they were doing, but they were very much doing it.
It lasted only some seconds but to them, it felt like the world stopped and let them have a show of their own.
The warmth of close bodies, the lips, the slight moistness of their mouths, and even the pressures building within, all of it crashed at once.
The separation was both too slow, and too fast, their brains were still processing yet their bodies were already moving away from each other.
There was a full blush from both of them, as their breathing grew heavy before the gap between their bodies.
(Why was it so intense?! It was just a kiss! It didn't feel like that last time... Was it my unique gifts' fault? It has to be!) Relious sighed as he smiled before he knew it.
Star looked at him and touched her own lips.
There was a pause, before she pulled him in for round two.
The double door to the room then opened.
"Hey guys! The bathroom had a massive-" Marco who was just returning stopped as he saw this taking place.
Right behind him, the members of the Noctis family followed up.
"Really? This… I thought he… Urgh!" Kuvia's eyes widened as she looked at this unfold.
"Well, well, well, that's definitely dad's genes kicking in," Elesia commented.
"I'm happy they resolved their differences, so cute! They have no idea what they're doing." Marline smiled at this.
"Ahem! Now is not the time for this! You are truly your father's son… Let's home you don't go after every woman you fancy… It could be worse, like his grandfather, every female with sentience." Angeline clapped her hands with a smile on her face, despite her words, she seemed completely unfazed by this.
This caused the kiss to break abruptly.
"Ahhh! It was all him! I didn't do it!" Star hid behind Relious, her hair covering her face again.
Meanwhile, Relious had an almost silly smile on his face, like no tragedy could destroy his mood right now.
"Ahem! The meeting is in session!" Contrary to his serious and almost blank tone, he could not lose the smile.
"Bet you 20, she'll wear the pants," Kuvia says to her sister.
"Make it 50. Even if he's Relious, our dad is still Aberron." Elesia responded.
"Hey, you two! Not the time to be doing that!" Marline pulled both by the back of their collar.
While that was on, Angeline turned to the boy next to her.
"I assume, you're Star's friend? Don't worry, and stay at ease, being so tense only attracts more attention to you." She pats his shoulder, then walks inside.
Stars appear in Marco's eyes as he looks at his shoulder in reverence. "Your older sister is pretty nice, he comments."
"That's our mother, turd." Kuvia looks at him like he has something wrong with his head.
"Mother?! That young?" Marco looks between the mother and the daughters.
"Hehehe! She gets that a lot, but you're a little young, and honestly small to enter the race, try in a few years, I'm sure you can do it." Marline smiled at him and walked in as well.
"I can… Do it? I mean! Do what?! I'm not trying anything." Marco shook his head though a blush showed up.
"He's more of a loser than Relious, maybe all guys except Dad are weak losers." Elesia commented as she looked him up and down before going in.
"Hey! I'm not weak!… Or a loser…" Marco crossed his arms.
"Whatever you say, Turd, just try not to die." Kuvia said and followed going in.
"I'm not a turd either!… Is this what Relious grew up with? No wonder he's a quiet guy… I would be too…" Marco shook his head and walked to stand behind Star's chair.
At this point, both Star and Relious got off the table and back on their seats.
On the same side as Relious sat his sisters, while their mother sat at one end of the table between both sides.
"Today, Star Butterfly, Princess of the Butterfly Kingdom, came to visit the Nightmare Pit Dukedom for two main reasons, to decide on whether to lift the ban on Relious, and to discuss the exile of the Noctis family as well as our Dukedom." Angeline clapped her hands.
Following this action, guards came to the door and servants walked inside to put down papers, water, and snacks on the table, then bowed before leaving.
The door closed, so outside only the guards stood.
"Star! Even though I think you have bad taste in guys! How are you, girl?" Kuvia sent a kiss to her.
"Oh! I'm… Uh… I'm good! Doing the magic, and fighting monsters! You know! It's getting pretty serious, Glossaryck said some things." Star forced a smile.
"Don't listen to her, I'm happy for you, Star. You need someone who can at least keep up." Marline winks at her.
"I mean... It's not like that, we didn't, I didn't… Thanks." Star's cheek hearts began glowing again.
"It's no fun if you're already like that. At this point, just have fun and do whatever feels right." Elesia pouted with something resembling disappointment before smiling lightly.
"Humm, yeah... I will." Star took a deep breath with slight surprise in her expression her words not what she expected as she let out the breath before smiling for real, albeit still blushing.
There was a pause as the people in the room drank water, and read the papers handed to them.
It was the basics of the meeting as set.
"It has been centuries of relationship between both sides as a foundation, now in our time, the first meeting to reconcile may begin. As the representative of the butterfly and the initiating side of this meeting, I pass word to Princess Butterfly." Angeline announced as soon as it was all set.
"Thank you, Duchess Noctis. I Star Butterfly, Princess of the Butterfly Kingdom, come to you today to ask that we work together instead of as parallel forces at ends meet. In my magic training and on Earth, I have learned a lot, and I see now that we don't have to be this way, we can be better together.
"So, I came to lift the ban on Relious, and your territory as a whole from its Exile. I know it is a lot to ask that you trust me at all, after all that happened, even in our time, but we have nothing else, and the world of magic might be at risk soon." Star got up and bowed properly, her hands holding the hem of her dress before she began speaking, her demeanor displaying control far beyond her usual.
This declaration caught the attention of everyone in the room.
The world of magic at risk?
What could it possibly be?