Onyx Ravenna — a frail little slip of a girl with eerily pallid skin and waist-length ebony hair, save for her silver bangs — sat in the plush window seat reading a book of fairy tales that once belonged to her mother. She was so immersed in her stories that she never heard her father come in; so he stood regarding the child in silence. Some days, he couldn't bear to cast his eyes upon her, sending servants to tend to her needs so he could keep his distance. Other days, he longed to be near the girl, forgetting how much it pained him just to look upon her. He had cleared his entire schedule for her today, but couldn't bring himself to break the stillness of the room, yet.
Past his mid-forties now, her father's hair was just beginning to lose its colour in the back, though his face — haggard as it often appeared from stress and insomnia — continued to repel most signs of ageing. He still stood tall and lean, and he had long ago stopped that dreadful habit of slouching, adopting a posture befitting a man of his station. His sorcerer's robes were hung — untouched for several years now — in the tower he could no longer bear to enter.
He sucked in a deep breath, preparing to shatter the nearly palpable silence. "'Nyx?"
She glanced up at the sound of her name, perhaps too stunned that he had actually come to give more of a reaction at first. As her lips ticked upwards into a familiar half-smile, he found himself wishing, not for the first or even the hundredth time, that the child resembled her mother more. Even the girl's blue eyes, the only trait he could think of that even compared to her maternal side, were icy steel, lacking the charm of those eyes that once reminded him of a warm cloudless sky.
"Daddy!" Onyx cried out, scrambling from her perch to hurry to the man's side; relishing in the rare opportunity to be near her distant father.
His eyes travelled to the book she still clutched, using her thumb to marking her page, while she wrapped the other arm around his torso for an unreturned embrace. "Aren't you supposed to be studying?" he enquired, wondering to himself how she had happened upon the volume.
She stepped backwards and frowned contritely. "I was studying, but Evie said–"
"Miss Evelyn", he corrected, then gestured for her to continue.
She inhaled sharply, then went on. "She said that I ought read more fiction, because it..." Onyx paused, trying to remember the succinct phrasing her tutor had used. "Encourages critical thinking, which applies to problem solving in the real world", she quoted, beaming proudly at having remembered all the fancy words.
"Utter nonsense. Those stories do nothing but reassure frightened children that the world is a good and kind place where everyone gets the happy ending they're owed", he chided, absently pushing his light bangs away from his eyes.
"I think they're pretty", Onyx squeaked out so quietly that her comment could scarcely be heard.
Her father softened as he took in her downtrodden expression. "It's not your fault if your tutor is remiss in her duties", he soothed, brushing his hand lightly over her straight, silky hair.
This perked her up slightly, and he decided it was time to change the topic. "Come, now, we'll have some tea, then you can show me how your violin playing is coming along."
He watched as she retrieved her tea set and quickly but delicately set out the porcelain pieces — hand painted so long ago by her mother — on the table he'd added so he would have somewhere to sit during his rare visits. He pulled the bell for her room, summoning a servant who arrived with astonishing speed.
"Yes, Princess Onyx?" the young woman asked as she peeked inside the room. She stopped short as she spotted him there, only to remember herself and curtsey deeply. "King Cedric, how may I be of service?" she blustered, frowning at herself for being caught off guard.
"Some tea, Kateryn", he demanded briskly.
Without another word she was off again.
Onyx had finished setting the table, so he pulled out her chair for her, then scooted it back in after she sat.
"Now then, what shall we do this afternoon?" Cedric asked, claiming the seat opposite his daughter.
She pondered the question thoughtfully. "After the violin, maybe we could go for a walk?" she ventured hesitantly.
Cedric scowled at the suggestion.
"Inside the palace, of course", she was quick to add, reading her father's distaste for the idea.
He leaned back thoughtfully, then slowly nodded as he warmed to the idea. "I suppose that would be suitable", he agreed.
Kateryn returned with their tea and attempted to pour it, but Cedric motioned her away, so she left the pot on the table and exited the room.
Onyx reached for the pot, but his hand stilled hers, and she blinked up at him in surprise.
"What are you doing?" he questioned, drawing back from the touch as quickly as he had initiated it.
"I thought I might pour your tea for you", she stated simply, retracting her hands to fold them neatly in her lap.
"Don't. You could burn yourself", Cedric warned, taking up the pot and pouring the tea into their cups.
As Onyx leaned forward to blow the steam off of the hot beverage, Cedric let his mind wander to where he would take her on their walk. Much of the palace had been shut up, and he had no intention of reopening those rooms, or the old wounds they represented. He supposed she might find the kitchens interesting, but then decided that there were far too many ways for an eight-year-old to incur injury there. Cedric mentally went room by room, narrowing down the options until he realised that there actually weren't any. He sighed, catching her attention.
"Is something the matter, Daddy?" Onyx asked, her tone heavy with concern.
Her father was the only one who ever acted anything less than thrilled to be in her presence, and though she was somewhat accustomed to his moods, she was still unsure about how to respond to them. A servant once told her that her mother was the only person who had ever made him happy, but she abruptly stopped working at the palace before Onyx could press her for details on how the Queen had managed to do so. None of the current servants had ever met her mother, and they barely knew the king they served.
"I think we'll go to the solarium", Cedric finally stated, breaking the long quiet of their morning tea.
Onyx's curiosity was peaked. "What's a Sol... Sola...?" she fumbled over the new word, delighting in the unexpected indulgent smile from her father, no matter how briefly it was visible.
"Solarium. It's a special room that's almost entirely glass, so you feel like you're outside", he explained, glad he had thought of it.
After listening to her violin and noting her progress with the instrument, Cedric rummaged through Onyx's closet for a pair of black kid gloves long enough to meet with the sleeves of her silk under-dress. On his way back into the bedroom, he lifted a bedecked ribbon bonnet from a peg on the wall. Satisfied, he returned to her side with the collected items.
Onyx frowned slightly at the precautions, but knew they were a necessary evil, so she slid the gloves on while he fastened the bonnet under her chin.
Cedric looked her over to make sure he wasn't forgetting anything, then nodded his hesitant approval.
Onyx followed her father out of the bedroom and through the unfamiliar passageways of her home, enjoying the rare treat immensely. She shadowed her father closely as they travelled, growing increasingly aware of how easily she could get lost in the enormous palace. She'd once overheard a servant claim that they were 'understaffed', and now she wondered how long it would take for one of the handful of people her father employed to find her should she lose her way in the seemingly endless maze of corridors. She didn't have long to worry about it, though, because soon her father stopped before a large door and undid several locks.
"Why is it secured like that?" Onyx enquired, watching him work the key.
He shot her a glance that made her feel silly for the question. "For your safety, of course", he muttered as he undid the final barrier and swung the large door open.
He frowned at the overgrown room, making a mental note to assign a servant the task of sprucing the place up, but Onyx was enchanted by the sight. She stepped into the middle of the room and twirled around, though she only made a half-circle before her father's surprisingly strong arms stopped her.
"Be still. Don't make me regret bringing you here", he commanded, earning a firm nod from the scolded child.
Content with her response, he began to show her around the indoor garden, though he warned her away from touching anything. Instead, she stayed on the path, delighting in the vivid colours and wonderful fragrances of the lush, aromatic plants. He introduced her to a few of them, rattling off the medicinal uses the plants possessed, and she listened eagerly, loving the ease with which Cedric discussed the topic.
Every so often, she would stop and close her eyes, basking in the warmth of the overhead sun. Cedric watched his daughter enjoy the room, appreciating the bittersweet nature of the visit. Her mother had always preferred the outside gardens over the confines of the solarium, the only reason he could tolerate being here at all, but they did spend some time collecting magical ingredients here during the colder months, and it took a decent amount of restraint not to think on those past visits.
He was careful to make sure the bonnet fully shielded the little girl's face as they walked, but soon he caught her holding her stomach and decided to check on her.
"Are you feeling alright?" he questioned, coming closer to place a protective hand on her shoulder.
She hesitated, but finally answered him. "I'm a little queasy", she admitted, though she was loath to tell him because she sensed it would cut her trip short.
"Back to your chambers, then", he insisted, already passing her to head back towards the entrance.
"Must we? I'm sure if I just sit down–"
He cut her off with a reproachful glare before she had time to finish the thought. "It's all this blasted sunlight. You'll be safe in your room", he pressed, waiting impatiently for the child to follow him.
She suppressed a sigh and left the solarium, standing in the hall as he locked the beautiful indoor garden up once more, then led her back to her room.
Once inside, Cedric made his way to the window and drew the heavy black drapery, ensconcing the room's occupants in near darkness. "Come on, into bed with you", he demanded, walking to the large four-poster bed and lifting the blanket for her to crawl under.
"Yes, Daddy", Onyx answered sadly as she complied.
Cedric rang the bell again and planned to inform Kateryn that it was time for the princess's medicine, but she appeared at the door mere minutes later with it already prepared. He eyed his daughter carefully as she took the capsule and chased it with some water.
"Would you sing to me?" she pestered him, already looking like she might drift off soon.
Cedric nodded and began the only song that came to mind.
"Cold blows the wind to my true love,
And gently drops the rain.
I've never had but one true love,
And in green-wood she lies slain.
I'll do as much for my true love,
As any poor man may,
I'll sit and mourn all on her grave,
For twelve months and a day."
When her eyes slipped closed and her breathing evened, Cedric confiscated the book of fairy tales and quietly exited the bedroom, taking care to lock the door behind him.