Word Count: 1073

“I pledge my life and loyalty to Venus, and to Palatine. I humbly request your aid, so that in return I may give you mine.”

She was surprised she ended up anywhere, not only because of the shred of disbelief she still carried around for the war and the many alien things involved in it, but because she wasn't even sure she meant the words. She must have, though, for it to have worked, and that was another surprising thought to file away with all the rest.

This was beginning to mean something to her.

Though, what that something was, she wasn't quite sure yet.

Palatine opened her eyes to a darkened, dust-ridden room. Furniture was strewn about, couches and chairs and tables arranged in groupings that seemed to her as if they would promote intimate conversation. Some sort of a sitting-room, perhaps? Where? This couldn't be all there was. Destiny City was at war, she'd magically turned into a magical knight that didn't yet have the ability to use magic, and her namesake turned out to be a dark, dust covered room cluttered with fancy old furniture?

Bull and s**t.

Another quick look around yielded a series of tall windows and two doors set in opposite walls.

Alright, that was better. That at least implied an outside world (Venus, apparently; and wasn't that some crazy s**t?) and more to this building than one disused sitting-room.

Baroque, she decided as she stared around her, not yet moving from the spot in which she'd appeared. That was the style of the art on the walls, the style of the decorations and the furnishings, or at least that was the closest approximation she could make with only Earthen knowledge at her disposal. It seemed suitable considering her outfit; Palatine had always thought there was something vaguely between Elizabethan and Georgian about her attire.

She snorted quietly in continued disbelief and finally began to inch her way around he room, examining things with a detached sense of curiosity. There was nothing particularly intriguing about the place, no further clues as to its importance or what this specific room might have been used for, and she didn't hear anything that might alert her to another presence. In fact, she was fairly certain she was here alone.

“So much for getting some answers,” she mumbled.

She picked up a few sheaves of paper and a couple of books that had been left lying about, but put them back as soon as she realized she couldn't read any of the words. Useless, then. Was there anything here that might be even remotely helpful?

Her attention turned to a small desk near one of the walls, littered with more papers and another stack of books, an ink well, too, though no writing utensil presented itself to her. Palatine approached regardless, her eyes suddenly landing upon a small trinket that glittered in the dim light filtering in through the windows—a golden ring that stood out in the gloom.

“Now there's something...”

Palatine grabbed it and held it close to make out the details—a flat, oval face engraved with a small symbol that could be mistaken for a hand-mirror, which she knew to be the marking of Venus. There were other miniscule decorations which Palatine deemed pretty unremarkable, and engraved upon the inside of the band were words she was surprised she could actually read.

Amor vincit omnia.

Amor. That was “love,” wasn't it? Fitting for Venus, she supposed. But what did the rest of it mean?

There was one thing she knew, at least—she was fairly sure it was Latin.

“So you've come at last.”

Palatine whipped around at the sound of a voice that was not her own. Standing about two yards behind her—in front of her now—by one of the couches where before there had been no one, was another woman. Ghostly, she seemed not to belong to this time, and yet she gave off the impression that she was familiar with their surroundings. Her hair was dark—that was the most Palatine could make out as to its color—and curled beneath a ruffled hat that looked very similar to Palatine's own. She was not over tall, but there was something about her stature that seemed impressive regardless; she stood straight and proper, rigid, and her expression was rather austere.

Her eyes were light colored (blue, perhaps?) and stern.

“You're quite a bit older than I'd expected,” the woman said.

The irony of that comment was not lost on Palatine, given that the woman had to have been older than she was.

“Who are you?” Palatine asked.

“Palatine,” the woman said.

Palatine snorted. “The Ghost of Christmas Past, are you?”

“Pardon?”

“Never mind.”

“There's something... rather unseemly about you,” the woman said as she let her gaze drift slowly over Palatine's frame, scrutinizing her.

“Excuse me?” Palatine said.

“You are weak willed.”

“Who the hell are you to—”

“Tell me, Page,” the woman said derisively, “what do you know of love?”

Palatine's frown turned defiant. “I don't think that's any of your business.”

The woman's stern expression melted into a mild sneer. The corners of her mouth lowered, deepening the lines on her face to show her age. She looked sour, almost angry, ill-suited to the cheerful pink that comprised both of their outfits.

“You may take your ring,” the woman said with a brief jerk of her chin. “Return here when you decide to be more cooperative.”

“Look, lady, I don't know who you think you are, but—”

“Leave,” the woman said, quite firmly. “Now, and do not return until you are prepared to answer for your behavior.”

Something about her voice seemed to refer to more than Palatine's apparent unseemliness and weak will, but under the circumstances Palatine didn't care to find out what it was. She met the woman's severe expression with another defiant one of her own, and tried not to let this ghostly figure make her feel like little more than a child.

She was thirty-eight years old. Hardly a child.

Whatever. She'd found what she'd come for.

Gripping the ring tight in her hand, Palatine straightened and gave a sarcastic farewell, “Nice to meet you.”

The woman did not respond, but continued to stare her displeasure as Palatine closed her eyes and returned her focus to Earth.