"I don't see why we had to leave," Sister grumbled after Father lead them out of the mayor's office, all the way outside. He left them to mingle among the crowd gathered around the good side of the docks.

Great Uncle had passed away on their first night in the town, leaving Mother to deal first with the initial shock and then the drama in the aftermath. Uncle, Great Uncle's son, refused to leave the capital for anything to do his father. Must have been some drama when they were growing up. Based on what Father has said about Great Uncle both in front of and behind Mother's back, Izo could not blame him. Two days after the funeral and there unexpected drama.

Father left them and went back to Mother with the warning, "don't separate and wait here."

Sister watched Father walk away, and then looked around the crowd. "What's the problem?" she asked.

Izo looked down at her, keeping his face blank. Sister was not listening at breakfast this morning. Great Uncle had left everything he owned, including the 'fake' museum, as Father called it, to the mayor's office. Nothing to Uncle. Nothing to Mother. No way for Mother to close down the museum, as well as take down the statue, that she wanted to. They went together as a group of four to the mayor's office to see if Mother could figure out a way to get them closed and removed anyway. Once Mother got frustrated though, Father shooed Izo and Sister away.

"Mother wants the museum closed down and the statue brought down," Izo answered. "And the mayor won't do it."

"That again?" Sister said, clicking her tongue against her teeth. "Wasn't it done in her honor?"

Izo kept himself calm as he answered, "not with her permission."

"The mayor's not going to let her," Sister said determinedly. "She did say she hated the mayor growing up him. He and Mother once got in a brawl when they were kids. Maybe being the mayor of this town shouldn't be a hereditary leadership."

"Says the baby who inherited one of the largest territories in the country," Izo teased.

She clicked her teeth at him, but said nothing. She studied the crowd around them. She jumped up, trying to see over the heads of the biggest crowd forming in front of them. Izo felt luckier. He only had to stand on his tip toes to see above the heads of the crowd. He spotted a massive ship coming in the distance down where the river met the sea. One that made the ship they sailed on look like a bath toy. As the ship got closer and closer, he say the flag whipping around at the top of the main mast: a fierce hawk rampant. It made his stomach drop.

To Sister, he asked, "Father told Mother about that letter the king sent, right?"

"Hm," she hummed, turning back to face him. "Yeah. After you told Mother about it when we were traveling overland. Remember that bit of an argument it caused?"

Izo recalled it. He had asked Mother about the letter, wondering what it was about. Mother was surprised about its existence. It was only after she confronted Father that he revealed it was a letter from the king saying they were coming to Alaric on a royal visit. Father claimed he took the letter to no give Mother a reason not to go to Uncle, but Izo was suspicious about that. It did not sound right to him. Mother was hardly a fan of the king, but she still spoke highly of him. He was overly ambitious, but he had been kind and caring to her when they first met. He valued her person-hood before knowing who she was.

Yet seeing the royal ship sailing into port right now made Izo's stomach flip. Father wanted to avoid the king. Had wanted to be like that his and Sister's whole lives. The few times Izo had seen the king, queen, or prince, Mother entertained them and Father avoided them. His parents needed a warning about this.

"Stay here," he pressed Sister, firm hand on her shoulder to show that he meant it. She had spoken about wanting to go to Mother's fake museum, but he had deterred her from it.

He moved back towards the mayor's office, pushing through the crowd that had formed up behind them. He made it passed the secretary's desk by walking passed her with confidence. She watched him, but did not call after him. He made it in front of the door of the mayor's office. He nearly knocked on the door, but he heard Mother's raised voice. That stilled him.

Mother's voice suddenly ceased. She came out of the room, opening the door in a huff. She looked fierce, but pulled it back into a surprised face when she saw him.

"Izo, what is it?" she asked him. Father was behind her, looking just as curious.

"The royal family is here," he answered.

Father looked furious. Mother looked exasperated.