(Thank you for your patience and thank you for reading! I hope you enjoy!)

Chapter 17

They talked through the rest of the night. The succession was near forgotten as he instead wanted to know more about her life back home. She didn't know what was so exciting about the mundane job of an office worker but entertained him none the less, answering question after question about what she did for work, what kind of house she lived in, what her neighborhood looked like, and even describing in great detail her commute to work on the morning train.

It was then that she understood that Chezem had never really left the palace before. Even when the royal family went on vacation and left one palace for the other, or took overseas trips to other countries, his routine stayed the same. He stayed squared away with his books and feigned disinterest. Unlike the other princes who had either asserted their right to freedom or forced their way, he did neither. As a result, he had never set foot on ground without the confinement of his royal title and all it meant. His only freedom was his nightly wanderings.

It was his own pessimism that had created his situation but she still felt sorry for him. He was treating her as an oddity, sure, but if he was so excited just to hear her answer a bunch of questions about life as a commoner, she imagined how happy he'd be to see and experience it.

"Chezem, when this is over, why don't you visit me at home? Instead of hearing me talk about stuff, I could actually show you around?"

She offered him an unsteady smile, readily apologetic in case she had accidentally offended him again. His eyes lit up for a moment and he stared in wonder. Then he tilted his head down, balled his hand into a fist and brought it to his lips as he thought it over. He weighed his desire against his responsibilities. There were more problems than just convincing his father to allow it; did they have a relationship with that country already? Would it cause problems with others if he visited? Would it be safe physically as well as politically? Could it be used against him or his family? Or Alex and hers? It was the last question that superseded all the rest. Of course it would be... If courtiers were after her now just for the bracelet, then every enemy of his would be after her for their relationship. After all, he thought to himself, a commoner couldn't afford the same security as a prince.

He spoke solemnly after the long silence. "I don't think it can happen... but thank you for the offer."

"Oh..." She knew that would be the logical answer but the sincerity in how disappointed he sounded made her feel bad for having even asked. "I'm sorry... Well if you change your mind, you're always welcome, you know?"

"Thank you..."

The next morning, she awoke from her trundle bed on the floor to find that Chezem had already left to attend to his duties. Thankfully, this meant there was no awkwardness when borrowing his bathroom to shower and change clothes. Afterwards, Medina led her to what would be her new quarters for the remainder of her stay at the palace. It had been decided that the guest wing was too dangerous and therefore she would be moving further inwards towards the heart of the palace. She innocently thought nothing of it until Medina's nervous composure tipped her off that there would probably be some unpleasantness to come.

Her first clue came when they passed through an ornately tiled archway that led into a rather plain room. Leaving through another pair of double doors on the opposite side, she was met by the rays of the morning sun beaming down into a small courtyard and the stares of women returning her gaze. Looking out from windows of the surrounding building, sitting on benches in the garden, resting in cushioned alcoves that lined the halls, peering out from open rooms, whether gathered in groups or alone, coming or going, joining or separating, every where she looked, this part of the palace was inhabited only by women.

There were the women of the royal family, including the king's daughters and sisters. There were teenagers and little girls; they were princesses who weren't old enough to get married or choose a profession. There were also older princesses who had instead chosen the luxury they were accustomed to by refusing jobs, marriages, or both.

The rest of the harem included the king's wives, women from all walks of life and of all appearances. There were older women who had lived their entire lives in the palace and had never met the king, let alone had ever been chosen to sleep with him. They had their own secret affairs with the princes, the guards, the servants, or other women.

There were also women who had slept with the king once and for whatever reason, had never been chosen again. Some had declined the dangers and unhappiness that bearing a royal heir would bring and instead chose their own safety and happiness. There were some who had chosen to give birth but weren't granted any reward of status or wealth and so they raised their children in the harem until they reached adulthood and could choose to leave and take their mother with them.

And there were young women who were still hoping to be chosen to be concubines and so kept their coquettish charm perfectly polished for a moment's notice.

This 'palace within a palace' where she would be staying was none other than the imperial harem. It was a world where men were forbidden. The guards that stood at every door post were women. The religious leaders that held services were women. If anything needed repair or construction was to be done, the only contractors and laborers accepted were women. Private tutors, merchants, cooks, artisans, doctors, no matter the job, their world of femininity was self-contained. If some business had to involve a man, a female servant would act as a mediator. The only exceptions were the princes who were too young to leave their mothers or those who were allowed to visit them. Even the king himself setting foot inside the harem was considered an irregularity and was cause for alarm.

Alex looked up and her eyes met with a woman standing on a high balcony who watched it all. King Tamir may not have chosen an official queen to rule the country by his but that was not the case in the harem. It had its own hierarchy and the queen ruled alone. With icy blue eyes, blonde hair pulled back into a neat crown braid interwoven with jewels, and standing with an oddly flippant serenity of absolute authority, she recognized this woman at once.

All she could do was smile defenselessly as she walked by. The looks she received were as varied as the women themselves. Some were welcoming of a new face, some stared back at her with the same uncertainty she had, and others glared with no effort to hide their disdain for whatever reason. The tense atmosphere made her wait until she and Medina were in the privacy of her new room with the doors firmly shut behind them before daring to speak.

"The woman on the balcony, that's Lambert's mother, isn't it?"

"Yes." She nodded along, also relieved to be out from under such pressure. She explained that in place of the king's own mother, then the mother of the heir apparent was put in charge of the harem.

"Although she's not the first of his majesty's royal wives, the position is rightly hers since Lambert- uhm..." she stopped when she remembered that Lambert's coronation was no longer a certainty. She tried to correct herself, "uh... Well, she runs everything smoothly so no one's complained."

She could only imagine how difficult the job was, being in charge of a bunch of women, most of whom were vying for one man's affection or the affection of his sons, while simultaneously being watched over by his wife and the mothers of those sons. On one hand, it would make great reality television. On the other, it sounded absolutely impossible to keep the peace. And yet this woman had done just that alongside of raising Prince Lambert to be the next king. Alex surrendered herself to feeling both respect and extreme apprehension. That ease with which she had stood looking down on everyone hadn't come without the power to back it up.

"I expect she'll want to speak to me at some point to convince me to give Lambert the bracelet, right?"

She dropped her shoulders as Chezem's mistrustful nature rubbed off on her. There were also the rumors of a romance between them and she wondered if she couldn't convince Lambert to deal with them in some way. She didn't know, or rather she did know that was the problem, what she would do if she had to deal with Falitna again.

Medina refused to answer and instead smiled nervously. Lambert's mother had been a politician before marrying King Tamir. While his majesty was the kind of person who endeared people to him through friendliness, she was the kind of person whose aura read as nothing but warnings. That wasn't to say that she wasn't a friendly person, just that her earlier guess that she should be both respected and feared was more spot on then she could've imagined.

Lambert's skills with a crowd, the uncompromising tone that permeated everything he did from public speaking to press pictures, made him undoubtedly his mother's child. He had inherited his mother's way with words but what he had missed was the order in which she used them. If her highness had any concerns about Lambert not inheriting his father's throne, Alex would have met her long before now.

She thought of telling her this but decided it would be best not to frighten her more than was necessary.

"Don't celebrate too soon..."

Before she could explain, a knock on the door and a letter delivered by another maid informed them that she was being summoned by the aforementioned prince.

It was already awkward when she came upon Lambert having tea in the rose garden with Falitna. Making it worse was that they were being attended to by none other than Ivan. She stared anywhere but at him, wanting to avoid meeting his eyes. But knowing he was watching made her tense all the same. She was already beginning to argue with herself on whether or not she should regret what she had done. A part of her wanted to be angry and blame him. Another part wanted to blame herself, saying that it was her own fault for becoming attached so quickly. And yet another part of her desperately wanted to throw both feelings away and forget everything entirely.

The couple were busy talking and hadn't noticed her as she walked over. They were making plans for what she guessed was a dinner date. Falitna may have been insufferable to her but Lambert wore a smile. Maybe they were one of those odd couples who were meant for each other, she thought. She cleared her throat as she approached their table.

The look in Falitna's eyes immediately turned venomous as she stared her down. "Oh... If it isn't... you."

"It's about time you arrived," Lambert said with a cold stare.

She didn't know why she was taken aback by his demeanor after he had been so friendly the other day. She shrugged it off thinking she would have been more worried if he had actually received her warmly.

"Hurry and have a seat before the tea gets cold."

"Yes," she answered.

She reached to pull out her own chair but stopped as Ivan beat her to it. She took a step back and waited, anxiously wringing her hands behind her back. How quickly she had forgotten simple etiquette. He'd lecture her later on how it was good manners to accept your host's hospitality or something. … Except, she realized, he wouldn't lecture her later. He wouldn't be lecturing her at all.

Her dainty mannerisms as she sat at the table, her legs crossed and her hands on her lap, weren't out of etiquette but a fight to maintain her calm composure. She kept a neutral expression as the last thing she wanted was to expose any weakness in front of Lambert, and even less so in front of Falitna. She'd choke on her tears before she'd let her see her cry.

"You summoned me, your highness?"

"Yes, Lambert what on Earth did you call... her, hear for?"

She smiled but not at all in a friendly manner at Falitna. The way she had paused said that she was clearly thinking of saying something other.

"The more the merrier. Ivan, bring another cup."

"Yes, your highness. I'll return shortly."

She breathed a bit easier once Ivan left. Or at least Falitna's glaring was easier to put up with. Lambert sat perfectly contented, completely unaware of the disaster he had created.

Without wasting any precious time, Falitna put her hand on top of Lambert's and stared at him sweetly.

"Lord Lambert, thank you so much for the gift you sent me the other day."

"Of course," he answered, taking her hand in his. "Did you enjoy... it?"

There was a small moment of hesitance in his response as if he had forgotten what he sent her or just plain didn't know.

"The flowers were lovely, your highness. A basket of beautiful red roses hand-picked from your own garden! It was so romantic, they made me feel just how cherished I am."

Falitna cozied closer to Lambert but stared her down.

Alex sat quietly, torn between laughing and crying. If Falitna was that giddy over a basket, she wondered how she'd react to finding out that he had annoyingly filled her room with roses. It had reached the point to where she had never wanted to see the damn flower again. Hearing that he had also gifted Falitna with flowers, she wondered if it was his 'go-to gift'. Hopefully someone would introduce him to something else and soon.

"Yes, the flowers," he nodded. "I'm glad you enjoyed them."

It was just a moment but his smile strained.

Falitna wasn't content to just rub their relationship in her face, however. She had to top it off by taking a jab at her, reminding her of her place whether she needed it or not.

"I must say, this is the first time I've taken tea with a commoner," she put her hand over her mouth and gave her a look of mock pity. "In my family's long and illustrious history, I must be the only one. It's been very entertaining and I thank you for this precious experience but I don't think I'll do it again."

Alex drummed her fingers on her lap. She decided she was going to bring up the room full of flowers and she was going to milk it for all it was worth.

Lambert cleared his throat and turned to Falitna, grabbing her hand and holding it in both of his. There was a shadow of a look of reprimand on his face. His tone of voice was no longer as soft as it was when she had first overheard them talking.

"Falitna, have you forgotten?"

"Your highness..?" She tilted her head and kept smiling despite her uncertainty as to what he was talking bout or what he was about to say.

"I'm the one who invited her to take tea with us. She may not be royalty or aristocracy but Miss Alexandra is my guest. Please don't insult me by being rude to her."

He dropped her hands on her lap and resumed drinking his tea.

Alex sat stock still, afraid that moving her face would give away how she was feeling, and how she was feeling was not at all lady-like. She was surprised that he would defend her, especially over being called a commoner, a word he himself used so often. But then she supposed he was only taking his father since hadn't King Tamir said something similar to them at dinner? No matter the reason, she felt a bit of admiration for him none the less.

Falitna went from shocked to absolutely livid. As Ivan returned with another cup and a new pot of tea, she decided she had had all the indignation she could take.

"Would you like a new cup as well, Lady Falitna?"

"No," she answered in a shrill voice. "I'll be going home now."

"How unfortunate," said Lambert. He motioned for Ivan to pull out her seat. "Ivan, ready a car for her."

"At once, Sir."

"Don't bother! Excuse me!"

Before Ivan could reach her, she forcefully pushed herself back from the table, knocking over the tea set as she did so. Both Alex and Lambert reflexively jumped out of their own seats to avoid getting either stained or burned. Without a last look at either of them, she stormed off.

"Perhaps I said the wrong thing," suggested Ivan in a dry voice. He hadn't witnessed what led to her outburst and his aloof manner said he didn't care to find out.

"Not at all," Lambert answered. "You said just the right thing."

"Excuse me?"

Alex felt oddly meek after having just watched the events unfold. It was the discomfort of being the third wheel watching two lover's fight. She expected him to be upset or at least annoyed but Lambert was not only smiling but chuckling to himself. Did he hate his own fiancee?

"Did I do something wrong," she asked. "My presence did make her uncomfortable..."

"Why should it," he responded. "You've done nothing so her discomfort is her own problem."

She wasn't surprised at his rudeness but how out of character he appeared to be acting made her take a sidelong glance at Ivan. He ignored them as he cleaned up the mess that had been made. Just when she wanted to meet his eyes, she couldn't.

"I need to speak you alone in any case. Come with me and keep up."

Returning to his usual self, Lambert hurried off to the gardens. She was forced to walk in quick strides just to stay by his side.

"What did you need to speak to me about?"

"Not now," he snapped. "Just wait."

Wherever he was leading her, he was in a hurry to get there and didn't want to to waste time by talking. He stopped when they reached a field of roses. She stared at it in genuine awe. There were so many different colors other than red and so many different sizes. Some grew like trees or bushes while others crept along a lattice. It was much smaller then the flower garden he had taken her to before but it was charming.

He walked around it in one direction and then the other, concentrating hard on every bud, leaf, and bloom. When he was finally satisfied at what he did or didn't see, he let out a sigh of relief.

"Are these the flowers you sent Falitna?"

"Absolutely not," he answered impulsively. "What I mean to say is, while I did tell the servants to send her a gift, I didn't know they chose flowers. Even so, absolutely no one is allowed to pick these. Do you know how ridiculously hard it is to breed flowers? I bred these myself and the last thing I'd do is have them picked to make a bouquet."

Finding out he had such a unexpected hobby and that he was so passionate about it made her laugh.

"Is there something funny about that?"

"No, no," she waved. "It's just cute. In fact, it even suits you."

"You're mocking me!" He marched over to her with a smirk on his face despite his words. "You are always so rude. Honestly, even for a commoner, your manners are horrible."

She gasped and pointed at him, "Excuse you, your highness but I'm afraid that I must point out that that word you just used is rude. Very rude! In fact, I even heard one of the princes scolded his own fiancee for it. You should watch yourself."

"Yes, well..." He smile faded and he put his head down at he pondered seriously over her words. "I can't explain why but for some reason, it annoyed me to hear her speak to you that way."

"You used to speak to me that way all the time. I thought you two would bond over it," she joked.

When he didn't answer her, she wondered if she had taken the joke too far. She didn't think she'd have to explain sarcasm to him... She was about to call his attention when he spoke first.

"I'm sorry," he said in a low voice.

He cleared his throat and turned to her, speaking loudly and clearly the second time. "I'm sorry. I apologize for how I treated you before."

"Oh... Thank you." She answered with a raised brow. Of all things that could happen, never would she thought she'd get an apology from him.

"I'm sorry too," she said back. "I didn't act my best either. Truce?"

He stared at her curiously as she held out her hand to shake. He wasn't used to whatever foreign protocol she was using.

"Agreed," he answered and took her hand. "Truce."

After a handshake and a few more minutes of awkward silence as they walked back to the palace, she worked up the courage to ask what had been on her mind.

"You and Falitna are going to get married, right?"

"It's supposed to be a secret but I'm not surprised you know. Yes, our marriage was arranged by our parents."

"Do you... even like her? I mean, I'm really not trying to be rude but you didn't even stop her from leaving..."

"It's amazing how you can even be rude without trying." He scoffed at her a bit before giving his answer. "She's a minister's daughter. Nothing more and nothing less. Marriage is just another obligation as royalty. Her parent's power is appealing, that's all."

"That's... That's terrible of you."

She stopped in her tracks as she thought about what she was about to say and whether or not she would be made to regret it. Maybe she was irrational from heartbreak. Maybe she was projecting it onto him. It was certainly none of her business but she couldn't shake the thought.

"You're not marrying her parent's power, you're marrying her! Whether you like her or not, you should still acknowledge her as a person! But not having an opinion on her one way or the other, isn't that too dismissive?"

He was affronted by her words and it shown on his face. Thinking that she had started another needless rift between them, and it just had to be in Falitna's defense, she figured she was going to be yelled at. Before he could, she quickly turned on her heel, grabbed the hem of her dress, and moved as fast as she could without breaking into an outright run.

She had put good distance between them as she zigzagged through the halls. Thankfully she didn't have to worry about getting lost this time. As it was still day, the palace was busy with all sorts of people going from place to place. All she needed to do was find a place out of the way where she could ask a servant to find Medina for her and wait for her to pick her up.

While she was waiting, she spotted Prince Jun once again walking with Minister Balam. Unfortunately, they had also spotted her too before she could make up her mind whether or not to move out of sight. Jun dismissed the minister and walked over to her.

"Isn't it unusual for you to be alone," he asked, condescending as he always was. "Did something happen?"

"No...," she answered although she was unsure as to which 'something' he could be talking about. A great many of things had happened and she didn't feel like retelling any of them. "I'm just resting here. I can rest where I want."

"Good. Than you since you have the time, come with me."

Without waiting for an answer, he grabbed her hand and once again pulled her along.

"Wait, Prince Jun!" She tried to discreetly pull her hand free but his grip was like a vice and he wasn't above inflicting a bit of pain if she struggled too much.

"Where are you taking me?"

"Where would I obviously be taking you? Somewhere to rest."