"What's that?" Chandler called out. The noise of dozens of people talking at once made it hard for the king to hear what Bretton was saying. The young servant-boy repeated his request.

"Absolutely not!" Chandler said. "This is a PUBLIC event! The prince WILL dine with everyone else!"

"But the prince..." Bretton began.

"No!"

"Yes your Majesty".

Bretton bowed and relayed the king's refusal to his master. Darius groaned.

"I'll handle this..." he said decisively. He waddled up to his father and bobbed his head in respect.

"Nooo, Darius..." Chandler said firmly.

"Please papa? I so rarely get to see Lady Elizabeth. And she's a very nice girl...We're friends!"

"No! You are a prominent member of the royal family, Darius. As such it is important that you are SEEN! And especially at important public feasts! I will not have you and the good Lady Elizabeth, as excellent as her many qualities are, hiding away in some private dining-chamber when you should be out here!"

"Awww...but we wanna talk..."

Chandler sighed.

"Alright. You can sit with her at the lower table during the feast. But that is all!"

"Yes father!"

Bugles trumpeted! Xavier, the palace chef, waddled into the room, his belly bouncing and heaving under his crisp, white tunic.

He bowed.

"Your Majesties", he said. "Dinner is served".

He clapped his hands and dozens of smartly-uniformed servant-boys approached from the servants' quarters, wheeling trolleys loaded with food! Everyone parted and soon, a procession of food was snaking across the foyer and down the corridor, past the throne-room to the North Dining Room. As each dish was wheeled past, the chef proudly read out the extensive menu for the evening. When the last boys passed, pushing several trolleys full of desserts, the king and queen followed, together with lesser royals and then the aristocracy, the nobility, the gentry and the merchants. As everyone took their seats, the servant-boys loaded their dishes onto the buffet-tables that lined the walls, punctuated every few feet by large chaise-longe chairs, where overfed diners could lie down and rest while their servants massaged their aching stomachs.

Darius sat down at the head of the Lower Table. This was the table immediately in front of the royal dais. The dais table was for all the adults. The lower table was for all the children. The princes and the sons and daughters of the assembled adult guests, who all had their own tables. Darius's brother Richard sat at the far end and everyone else sat down along the two sides. Darius pushed a chair out with his walking-stick.

"Sit, my lady Elizabeth", he ordered. Elizabeth smiled at Darius. She sat down. Bretton pushed the chair up against the table and stepped back. While Bretton and Xavian went to fill Darius and Elizabeth's platters with food from the buffet-tables, the two wealthy young teenagers chatted.

"His Royal Highness is so much larger than last I saw him..." Elizabeth ventured. She reached out under the table and rested a hand on Darius's enormous left thigh. Darius let out a weak smile.

Elizabeth grinned. Her curly golden hair bobbed up and down.

"Uh...your um...face is so smooth and full..." Darius said. He loved the way her cheeks dimpled when she grinned and her eyes vanished, to be replaced by sparkling slits. She blushed. Darius couldn't help staring at her deliciously full, round, wonderfully plump...

"Heeeey there..."

Prince Javelin leaned over. "Hi. I'm Javelin".

"Elizabeth!" Elizabeth said.

"Gee you're cute. I like your hair..."

"uh, t-thank you, J-Javelin..."

"Actually, that's PRINCE Javelin...but you can just call me 'Sir'. Ever tried climbing a mountain? Not too late to start..."

*Wink*

"Javelin, you are a revolting, self-centered pervert! Can't you see that Elizabeth and I are trying to talk?" Darius asked.

"Yeah. I'm just sexin' it up..."

"Oh piss off and go play jousting or something!" Darius said.

"I would, but Hercules's lance doesn't present much of a challenge! OOOoooh!!"

"PISS OFF!"

Elizabeth shrieked with laughter as Javelin got up and went to chat up another rich, cute-looking nobleman's daughter. Darius just sighed.

"Sorry about that", he said. "He can be a bit of a handful".