When Eva stepped out into the hallway, she found a page standing there, waiting to escort her to the Queen's chambers.  As she silently followed him down the corridors, she tried desperately to get a grip on her ragged emotions.  Given the fact Gwendolyn had been born and raised on Transsexual, she surely wouldn't understand Eva's acute distress at what she had overheard.  Eva was petrified at the thought Frank's mother might not approve of her; the last thing she needed was for Gwendolyn to tell Frank his wife was incapable of handling life here…particularly since, at the moment, Eva was afraid she'd be absolutely correct were she to do so.

All too quickly, they arrived at Gwendolyn's door.  Before the page could raise his hand to knock, the door opened.  Gwendolyn stood before them, a welcoming smile on her face.  She reached out and embraced Eva warmly.

"Eva, my dear.  Please come in and make yourself comfortable.  I do hope I wasn't interrupting anything important."

Fighting her apprehension, Eva followed her mother-in-law into the sitting room.  Gwendolyn gestured to a plush velvet armchair.  "Please, sit down.  Would you care for something to eat?  Are you thirsty?"

Eva forced a smile.  "No, thank you, Gwendolyn.  I'm fine."

Looking at her slightly swollen, bloodshot eyes, her deathly pallor, the tension in her smile, it was obvious to Gwendolyn that Eva was far from "fine."  However, she decided against pressuring the young woman to confide in her; hopefully during the course of their conversation, Eva would eventually feel comfortable enough to talk about what was wrong.

Smiling gently, Gwendolyn said, "You know, we've been spending quite a bit of time together planning the wedding, but we haven't really discussed anything of a 'personal' nature.  Eva, how have you been managing since your return?  I know Frank has been unable to spend as much time helping you adjust to life here as he would have liked."

Eva saw a chance to – hopefully – put at least one of her fears to rest.  "I understand Frank has been meeting with members of the Court?"

Gwendolyn nodded.  "Yes.  I have sat in on some of their meetings, but by and large I have left Frank to manage on his own.  Of course he has known these people all his life, but he must now establish an entirely new relationship with them."  Gwendolyn smiled.  "It is not easy for him to establish himself as an authority figure with people who still tend to think of him as a surrogate son of sorts, but he seems to be rising to the challenge."

Eva asked, "There are no young people on the Court?

"No.  They are all of my generation, or older.  They were chosen by Frank's father when he ascended to the throne.  As a matter of fact, one of Frank's first, and most important, tasks upon taking the throne will be to choose his own Court – they will be the people who will assist and guide him throughout his reign.  The current Court members will, at that point, become a senior advisory council."

So those three people in the garden aren't members of the Court.  Thank God.

Before Eva could say anything else, Gwendolyn said, "I suppose you may be wondering why I asked to see you."

Eva nodded, a bit apprehensively.  "Well…yes, I am, just a bit."

Gwendolyn smiled.  "You need not worry, Eva.  There are no sinister motivations at work."  She reached out and touched the younger woman's arm.  "You know, for all the time we've spent discussing the wedding, I never have come right out and thanked you for agreeing to a marriage ceremony here on Transsexual.  It will mean the world to me to have the opportunity to watch my son pledge his eternal devotion to the woman who has so changed his life.  I am certain your father feels the same."

Eva might have had to fight tears at such a sweet sentiment in any event.  However, her newfound doubts about Frank's ability to pledge "eternal devotion" – or, perhaps more to the point, eternal fidelity - to her virtually insured that battle would be lost. 

Still, she couldn't bring herself to share her fears with Gwendolyn.  As the tears filled her eyes, she said only, "You're welcome.  It was the least we could do, since you couldn't be a part of our first one."

Gwendolyn, noticing Eva's tears, thought her inability to control her emotions might be attributable to stress.  "As I mentioned to Frank, I should add the ceremony will be a lovely way to introduce you to Transsexual's people.  I know you must be more than a bit nervous at the prospect of becoming Queen.  I still remember how terrified I was, and I was born and raised here.  I can only assume that terror must be even more acute for you, given your unfamiliarity with Transsexual, and with the workings of the Royal Family."

Eva smiled wryly.  "You could say that."

Gwendolyn moved her chair closer to Eva's, and looked at her intently.  "Eva, it is not my intention to frighten you, but I do want to attempt to prepare you for the challenges you will face as Queen.  I know this is a discussion Frank had intended to have with you, but I asked him to allow me to do it instead."

Eva cocked her head, a bit taken aback.  "Really?  Why?"

"I have a few reasons.  For one thing, Frank is currently rather consumed with evaluating the challenges he will soon be facing as King, and I want to assist him in any way possible.  In any event, given the fact I was once in your shoes – more or less – I thought myself the more appropriate person to conduct this discussion.  Besides…" she paused and smiled, "…I rather selfishly wanted the chance to have a nice 'heart to heart' talk with you.  In other circumstances, we would have many years to establish a relationship.  However, for obvious reasons, in this case the two of us do not have that luxury."

Eva didn't know what to say.  Finally, she managed to murmur, "I understand.  Thank you so much for caring enough to take this time to spend with me."

Gwendolyn leaned back in her chair and spoke briskly in an attempt to lighten the atmosphere.  "You may not thank me after hearing what I have to say."

Eva smiled faintly.  "I'll thank you for anything you can tell me that will help me live up to my responsibilities…whatever they are."

"I can sum it up rather succinctly.  Your major responsibility is to be a true partner to Frank.  Not a decoration on his arm, not a mere consort, not just the mother of his children…but a partner."  She sat back and surveyed Eva's reaction, and saw an expression of faint confusion cross her face.  She smiled.  "Allow me to explain.  Unlike, for example, the Royal Family in England on your planet, here we possess genuine responsibility and power.  Actually, it is the ultimate responsibility and power.  The pressure on Frank will be enormous.  Naturally he will have advisors and courtiers to assist him, but his most important advisor and confidant will be you."

Eva was aghast.  "Me?  How could I possibly advise him?  I don't know anything about Transylvanian politics – or anything else that goes on here, for that matter."

Gwendolyn smiled reassuringly.  "You will be amazed at how quickly you'll learn.  However, when I say 'advisor', I do not mean you will tell him what to do…instead, you will help him evaluate his options in order to make it easier for him to decide what to do.  Eva, you have both intelligence and common sense.  I have every confidence you will quickly figure out the type of questions to ask to help him analyze a situation and come to a workable solution.  Remember, he will trust you above all others; your advice and support will be invaluable to him."

Eva looked down at her lap and slowly shook her head.  "I don't know if I can do that.  Right now I don't even know if I can be a proper Transylvanian wife to him, much less be his most important advisor."

Now the confusion was Gwendolyn's.  "Eva, what in Goddess's name are you talking about?  You and Frank have an incredibly successful marriage.  Why are you doubting it, and yourself, at this point?"

For a long moment, Eva sat in silence as she tried to figure out whether or not to confide in her mother-in-law.  Finally, she decided she needed to share her fears with the person who knew Frank better than anyone else.

"Gwendolyn, this will probably sound incredibly stupid to someone who has grown up here, but…I overheard some things that really, really upset me."

Gwendolyn's face was a mask of concern.  "Goodness, what did you hear?"

Eva felt tears spring to her eyes as she recalled the conversation.  "I was in the garden outside Frank's chambers earlier this afternoon.  While I was out there, I happened to overhear a conversation between two women and a man on the other side of the topiaries.  They were discussing…" Eva paused for a moment in an attempt to maintain her composure…"their previous 'encounters' with Frank.  They were wondering when he'd revert to his 'old self,' and claiming if they could just get to him, they'd be able to break through this 'perfect husband' façade of his.  They said he had too much 'talent' to waste it on one woman."  She looked over at Gwendolyn, and the tears began running down her face.  "It sounded like the three of them must have just been the tip of a very large iceberg.  If he needed so many lovers then, how can I possibly believe I'll be enough for him now?  And if he did start taking other lovers…Gwendolyn, I couldn't handle it.  I just couldn't.  I know it's perfectly normal here, but, well, I'm not from here.  I know that sort of thing happens on Earth, too, but there it's seen as a betrayal.  Here, it's just…business as usual."  Eva finally lost her battle against her tears, and she buried her face in her hands as she began to sob.

Gwendolyn let her cry for a couple of minutes, then rose from her chair and knelt beside the distraught young woman.  "Eva, look at me."

Reluctantly, Eva turned a tear-stained face toward Gwendolyn.  Gwendolyn took out a handkerchief and gently wiped away the tears.  "Eva, did you and Frank discuss this when you made the decision to stay here permanently?"

Eva nodded.  "Yes," she said softly.

"And what did Frank tell you?"

Eva took a deep breath.  "That he had no intention of taking on other lovers.  That nothing would change in the way we conduct our relationship."

Gwendolyn shook her head and smiled.  "And you're allowing the catty conversation of three long discarded sexual partners to upset you this way?  Eva, I won't deny Frank had many lovers before he met you…far too many for his own good, I might add.  However, none of them meant a thing to him.  Once he met someone who touched his heart and soul, along with his body, everything changed.  Did you ever have cause to believe he was unfaithful to you on Earth?"

Eva shook her head.  "No…but that was Earth.  This is Transsexual, and everything's different here."

Gwendolyn shook her head again, but elected not to comment on that last sentence.  Love was love, no matter where one lived.  She then asked, "Has his demeanor toward you changed since you arrived here?"

Again, Eva shook her head.  "No."

Gwendolyn returned to her chair.  Seating herself carefully, she said, "Eva, I honestly don't believe you have anything to worry about.  You aren't giving Frank enough credit.  He wouldn't have made those promises to you had he not wanted to live up to them…and when he wants to live up to a promise, you may be sure that promise will never be broken.  However, you don't need to get reassurance from me…you need to get it from him.  Eva, talk to him."

Eva closed her eyes.  "I just can't."

Gwendolyn was insistent.  "You must.  Part of being a wife…any wife…is being willing to let her husband know when she is in pain.  I assure you, he is already well aware something of significance is bothering you…certainly he sensed it when he told you I wanted to speak with you.  If you don't communicate with him about this, you will end up resenting him for sins he may never commit…and he will resent you for keeping him at a distance and not trusting him enough to allow him into your troubled psyche. Ironically, that distance you will have created may well drive him to the very behavior you most fear.  Eva, I repeat…you must discuss this with him."

For a moment, Eva sat quietly as she considered Gwendolyn's words.  "All right.  I promise I'll talk to him."

Gwendolyn nodded with satisfaction.  "Wonderful.  Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to rest up before dinner.  I hope I will see you and Frank there…and if I don't, I hope it will be for a very pleasurable reason."

Eva managed a smile.  "I hope so, too."

Gwendolyn got up and walked Eva to the door.  "Remember what I said.  Eva, Frank loves you dearly.  You have nothing to fear."

As Eva followed the page back to Frank's quarters…to their quarters…she concluded Gwendolyn's statement in her mind. 

I have nothing to fear…but either fear itself, or armies of gorgeous, sex-crazed Transylvanians eager for another fabulous roll in the hay with their King.  Which will it be?