Le Ballet du Fleuve — Yulan

Time has flown by, and the day of the ball has come.

We spent a whole month doing curtseys and waltzing around the ballroom, preparing for the ball. Besides that, Jianyun, Meilin, and I spent time breaking up fights between citizens in hopes of reducing the number of casualties. Himari had spent time assisting Haruki in adjusting to his human form.

By now, we were used to the now-human cat and treated him like any other human being. Though he still stumbles and often blurts out meows and nyas, his behaviour was not half decent. If I hadn't known he was a cat before, I would’ve thought he was an actual human.

The capital city was much calmer, other than occasional fights and arguments. We were now handing out the lucky charms Meilin had spent all night forging.

“Princess Elizabeth,” I looked over at the Young Princess. Her voluminous curls bounced with each step. It’s hard to believe such a cheerful girl has lost her mother at only nine and her father at fourteen. She tragically resembles Himari. Both girls have lost their parents, and both conceal their distress with a smile.

“Yes, Miss Yulan?” The Princess was distributing the charms to a group of children. Typically, an errand like this is something a Princess won’t do, but she insisted she’d come.

“I was wondering if you know about a rumoured dance from Fleuve. It’s said the dancers danced on the surface of water.” It must’ve sounded outrageous. There was no way such a dance existed. And even if it did, I probably wouldn’t be able to witness it in this situation.

“Ah! Le ballet du fleuve.” The Princess beamed widely. “It’s a dance passed down by Sauveur Fleuve himself. As you know, the gods blessed Kingdom de Fleuve. What you might not know is that they even granted Sauveur Fleuve and his direct kin the power to tread on water! That was the root of the dance. Unfortunately, neither her majesty nor I possesses the ability. However, Prince Fleur is the direct kin of Sauveur Fleuve. I’m sure he can help answer more of your questions about that.”

“But it seems like the Young Prince hasn’t learned to speak.”

“Oh, he knows how to. He just doesn’t want to. Perhaps I can talk to him about this, maybe he’ll even agree to perform it for you! I must admit, the Young Prince is quite fond of you.”

The citizens were noticeably calmer after receiving the charms, and the grand ball was set.

A beautiful curtain of midnight hue was drawn over the evening sky. The moonlight greeted the castle warmly, kissing the ballroom gently, as guests poured in. It was as if the moon goddess granted tonight a blessing.

Linhua, you would’ve loved this sight.

I sighed as I helped Himari and Meilin change into their ballgowns. Today was my dear daughter’s birthday. Her 20th birthday. If she were here, I could imagine her swirling in that indigo blue dress, her arms waving around in such an elegant manner. If only…

“It’s too tight!” The teal gown squeezed Himari's ribs until she squealed. In contrast, Meilin was dressed in a dashing shade of violet.

“Let me help you.” Meilin carefully loosened Himari’s dress and readjusted it.

I was helping with the girls’ hair when a soft knock came from the door. It was the Prince. “Ah, I remembered. You wanted a gown, right?” I ushered the Prince into the room and rummaged through my belongings.

“A gown for the Prince?” Himari peeked in curiously. I held up a tiny outfit. It was a girl’s outfit and had lengthy, flowing sleeves. It once belonged to Linhua. Just an hour ago, Princess Elizabeth told me the Prince had agreed to dance; however, he requested a gown that could capture the movement of waves, and this was the only outfit that came to mind.

Soon, we went to the ballroom.

Many people were waltzing around, while others were enjoying light snacks.

“May I have this dance?” Jianyun extended his hand to Meilin, who had her eyes on the treats. After gazing at the food for a while, she took his hand.

Himari frowned at both of them as they danced. “Hey, Haruki, wanna dance?”

“But I’m eating.” Haruki was savoring every bite of his food. He was still every bit the messy eater after becoming a human.

I sighed. I was hoping Himari would’ve gotten over Meilin, but I guess not for now. Meilin clearly didn’t return Himari’s feelings. She wasn’t even a good friend to her, wanting to leave her behind during the chaos.

Someone tugged at my sleeve. It was the Prince. With the decorations on his hair and his long gown, he certainly looked like a Princess.

“Hey, I’d love to dance with you.” Jean grinned at the obviously annoyed Himari. Haruki gulped down his cake in one bite. “I’ll dance with her.” He blocked Himari from Mr Jean. And now it was Jean’s turn to be annoyed.

As they quarrelled about who to dance with Himari, Emile led me outside with the Prince, who was grasping my hand tightly. I can’t remember how long ago I held my child’s hand just like this.

“I must thank you for the care you’ve provided the Young Prince,” Emile stroked the Prince’s hair affectionately. “He rarely warms up to anyone, but it seems like Prince Fleur has taken quite a liking to you.”

“I’m quite fond of children myself.” I smiled as Prince Fleur handed his soft toy rabbit to me. We made our way to a pond. Water lilies rose to the surface, as if welcoming the Prince.

Emile offered me a chair and a glass of champagne. What a thoughtful man. And one who can take care of children, no less.

With Emile’s assistance, the Prince climbed up the edge of the pond. The water lilies opened up a path, and he took a tiny step.

Ah.

He’s standing on water.

His footsteps caused gentle ripples as he gracefully swept through the waters. The sleeves of my daughter’s gown twisted and twirled, like colourful waves. The Prince wore a smile, sweet like the moon goddess’s.

For a moment, I saw my Linhua on her tiptoes, spinning around with a great grin. The moon shone brighter than ever on my dear child, as if the moon goddess was witnessing the spectacle.

Before I knew it, the performance was over, and three bottles of champagne had been emptied.

“I’m sorry!” I went overboard while drinking…

“It’s quite all right, don’t mind it.” Emile smiled as he helped the Prince down. He seemed particularly happy, even after I drank his portion of the wine.

“You remind me of a moon goddess, Lin—sorry, Prince Fleur.” I booped the boy’s nose. He stared at me, perplexed. “There’s a myth of a moon goddess in the city where I’m from.”

It started with a young girl who had an arranged marriage with a cruel nobleman. On the eve of her wedding, she flees into the mountains with only her rabbit for company. The moon on that night was shining especially bright. So the young lady prayed to the deities and danced under the moon, hoping for a second chance. A deity was moved by the girl’s courage and carried her and her rabbit to the moon. There, she became the moon goddess, and the rabbit became the moon spirit. Each full moon, they dance together, blessing the people of Elysium.

“That’s a beautiful story indeed.” Emile’s gaze softened at the sight of the Prince’s big, sparkly eyes.

“M-moon…goddess…” The Prince whispered, clutching his plush close to his chest.

Emile and I gasped.

It was the first time he spoke to me.

And he sounds just like my Linhua.