Fareeha continued to dance. Mai watched her, making no comment.

Then, Fareeha looked up, a sly expression on her face. Her wild, untamed eyes met Mai's guardedly polite ones. "The Princess of Serpents bid you and Princess Liviana a greeting, and a good morning." A pause. "And remember, Mai Mei, I always know a snake when I see one-and how to handle them."

Mai resisted the urge to roll her eyes, though the expression on her face didn't change. [i]It's this kind of unnecessary talk that gets people killed,[/i] she thought. [i]If I had been Casimir or Zhou, it would've been war, right here and right now. Thank goodness I'm not, though. Courtesy is a lady's armor-and her weapon, if need be.[/i]

"Oh, I'm sure you do, Princess Fareeha," replied Mai in an amused voice. "[i]Especially[/i] the type with fangs." She laughed lightly, shifting her weight on her spiky high heels. "But I'm afraid you are mistaken, my friend. I am a rat, according to my country's zodiac-I was born in 1996. I am not sure how familiar you are with zodiac signs, nor am I very sure how interested you are in them, so I shall refrain from boring you with a retelling of how the zodiac signs got their placement."

Princess Fareeha danced away and then back again, reaching a hand out to Mai. "Come on, missy. Surely you know how to dance," she said.

Mai grinned despite herself. "Princess Liviana here is playing a waltz, if my knowledge of Western music is up-to-date. Perhaps you should ask Elizaveta Romonova to dance with you. I hear that she is quite the accomplished ballroom dancer," answered Mai in a lightly teasing voice.