[color=A0A0A0][h2]Fleuri Jodeau[/h2][/color]

It was during the conversation with Martiza that the hostess of the ball, Princess Eliabelle, made her appearance.  Maritza proceeded to slither off to retrieve Jarde, who seemed to have made an attempt to slip away, leaving Fleuri to turn his attention to the princess.  It was, to his knowledge, the first time he had seen her in person.  He was unsure if she had been present at any of the tournaments he had fought at, and he secretly hoped she wouldn't remember him from them, because he'd rather not be reminded of the chapter of his life where he was a materialistic glory hound.

From what Fleuri knew of the princess, she was approximately the same age as Fanilly, and had a reputation as an affable, well-liked figure.  She clearly had an interest in the Iron Roses, as evidenced by both her act of inviting them to her ball at the last minute, and by her present request for them to meet her.  Sir Rowan Balthier was the first Iron Rose to respond to Eliabelle, during which Fleuri samppled the food on his plate and silently contemplated whether he should approach in kind or stay put unless singled out.  He didn't want to cast the impression of refusing her, but to deal with royalty was to walk on eggshells, and he feared that any misstep on his part could bring shame to House Jodeau. 

Fleuri's silent deliberations were interrupted when he felt a tug on his sleeve.  Fleuri looked down to see a young girl, dressed quite oddly for the occasion.

"I can't find the sweets... there's so many people here, I keep getting turned around!  Can you help me?" she asked the knight.

"Certainly," Fleuri replied, somewhat relieved at the distraction.  He glanced at the nearby tables where Martiza had been filling her plate, looking over the contents of each table, until his gaze was upon the impressive cake at the table at the far end.  "Looks like the sweets are over there, at the far table.  Come on, I'll lead you to it," he said, as he begun to make his way to the sweets table, moving with utmost care as to not spill his plate or glass.

[i]Strange outfit she's wearing for a ball.  Probably some noble's child going through a dress-up phase.[/i]