Jolin straightened her riding hat for the fourth time in her ride as she looked over the farmlands of her people and sighed with a smile at the success of her peoples crops. Well, soon to be her people. The Winsol holidays would be over before she chose her males for her court, and only when she had a complete First Circle would she be able to truly call these people hers. The Matrons and Elders gave her a stipend from the sale of her ideas, stating she would still need to purchase new clothes for the Winsol season.
"While those dresses you have redone are quite lovely," Lady Georgiana trilled over the paperwork for the payment Jolin would receive, "we have all decided you should have some brand new gowns and trinkets for the season. Plus, how else are you going to buy Winsol gifts if you don't have the marks to do so?"
"But-"
"Respect your elders," Lady Phillipa interrupted with a smirk behind the teacup she brought to her lips.
"We have also discovered another rather productive vein of gold in the mines," Elder Dennis coughed while ruffling through his own set of papers. "We can afford to give someone who has been such a boon to our coffers a bit of "running around money" as my father would call it. Consider it a Winsol gift from us to a Queen we greatly admire and respect." Jolin's eyes teared up at the memory of Elder Dennis's words as she flicked the reins of the mare she had been regulated to ride this morning instead of Gathering Storm. The Warlord Prince said he thought the other horses in the barn needed some exercise since they didn't have Craft to pass through the stable walls like him to walk on his own, which Jolin gave him a severe tongue lashing over and made the stallion promise to let members of the household know where he was going when he decided to go for a walk about without her. Unther did keep a straight face when she informed him of the conversation over dinner, but she swore she could feel him laughing at her despite his stone face.
"That's a good girl," Jolin yelled as the mare sped into a gallop. A laugh escaped Jolin's lips as the mare jumped a fence, and pulled the reins to slow her just before the rise leading to the stables. The mare slowed to a canter, and kept the pace all the way back to the stables. Gathering Storm poked his head out of his stall and nodded to the mare when Jolin lead her into the stables.
"Have a good ride, Lady?" a stable hand asked, holding out his hand for the reins.
"I do my own rubs downs, you know this," Jolin sighed while using Craft to removed the saddle.
"You are over ruled on it today I am afraid," the stable hand chuckled as he pointed to the door of the stables. Jolin turned, and rolled her eyes at what she saw.
"Great," she muttered, handing over the reins with an apologetic pat on the side of the mare. She nodded to the stable hand and walked over to the entrance of the stable, where Unther and Stephen stood waiting.
"Did you enjoy your morning ride?" Unther asked with a tight smile.
"What's wrong?" Jolin sighed as she crossed her arms over her chest with a raised brow.
"How did you know?" Unther replied while cocking his head to the side.
"You never come out to meet me at the stables, and you always wait until I have bathed after my ride to come to me," Jolin sighed with a dismissive wave of her hand toward the stables. "And Gathering Storm wouldn't let me ride him today even though it was his turn in the rotation he and I both came to an agreement on when he stated I should take out other horses for rides. Something has been up all morning, and I remained blissfully, plausibly ignorant until you showed up here. Now, what is wrong?"
"Told you she would know," Stephen snorted.
"We have had some visitors while you were out for your morning ride," Unther stated, holding out his arm for Jolin to take. She stood firm and just looked at him. Unther sighed and ran his hands over his face. "All right, look. The representative from Lady Jordyn is here with the results of the investigation."
"Fantastic, I shall see them after I wash off," Jolin informed the two males as she walked between the two of them toward the house.
"They would rather speak to you now," Stephen replied while snaking an arm through hers and leading her toward the back garden. "I already had them set out a table and chairs in the brunch garden, along with a nice big breakfast from Mrs. Thorne so you could enjoy a nice hot meal without the worry of running the two of them off with your lovely smell of horse and sweat, though I dare say you don't smell at all really. There is a warming spell over the whole area and we are sure you will love the pastries Lady Kerissa whipped up this morning from the leftover pumpkins we had laying around."
"I suppose I could delay my wash for a little while," Jolin told Stephen, her mouth watering at the thought of what Kerissa did with the pastries. The mother of the two boys turned out to be an amazing pastry chef after spending a day in Mrs. Thorne's kitchen proving to the cook she could be of use and didn't need to sit around like a bump on a log. Mrs. Thorne allowed it when Lady Kalisa said it would do Kerissa good to keep her mind as well as her body working to build up strength. The poison someone had been feeding Kerissa would have killed the poor woman in a few weeks if Lady Kalisa and Lady Solye hadn't known the antidote. The two women were furious when they found out the herbal used to poison derived from a herb only found in Shalador Nehele, and sent their partners out to the Providence where it grew with missives to send the name of the person who purchased the herbs. The only reason the person who sold the herbs didn't get in trouble was they found out a Black Widow purchased the herbs, and the herb was usually used to make a tonic to help calm the mind of someone who needed just a little bit of help functioning day to day without jitters and paranoia. The amount given to help anxiety didn't have any negative side effects, but the dose they were giving Kerissa…
Jolin frowned as she took a seat at the table. She didn't wanted to think about the damage it could have done if she hadn't rescued the three people and took them back to Moonbright Manor. Unther didn't have very nice things to say about it, but she put her foot down and demanded they be taken into the household until the investigation completed. A female and four males came to the estate not even two days ago to talk with Kerissa and the two boys. Jolin insisted Prince Xavier stay with the older boy, Quentin, and Prince Krakel stay with the younger boy, Keith, when the representatives questioned the boys without her present. She didn't care they wouldn't allow her in the room during the questioning, but she would be damned if they went into it without any support from her Court.
"Have some coffee and I will find where Samuel told the new butler to stash our guests," Stephen stated with a nod to Unther. Unther gave a nod back while taking the seat next to Jolin and used Craft to pour from the pot on the table into two mugs.
"I did the right thing," Jolin pleaded for what had to be the millionth time in the last week.
"Jolin," Unther sighed as he slid a cup toward her with a pointed look. "We both know what you did broke all kinds of Protocol. While I applaud your actions from the "doing the right thing" perspective, consequences of your actions may not be something I can protect you from since you don't have an official Court. If you had an official Court, I could have gone to Lady Jordyn on your behalf. Instead, I have been the one under scrutiny for allowing a Queen visiting my District to do such a thing. Now, drink your coffee and think about what you are going to say to the representatives sent to let us know what you and I might have to do." Jolin grumbled, but did as Unther said and sipped her coffee. He brought up the point of her not having a formal court regularly after she and Lady Phillipa told him it would be better to wait until after Winsol to do the Court Forming. With so many Ladies having their own forming so close together, Lady Phillipa saw it as a more socially acceptable option to wait until after the Winsol season to form her Court. Unther grudgingly admitted it was the better option since most people would want to spend the holidays with their families and wouldn't have time to serve the first weeks properly. Jolin knew the first weeks in a Court were critical in how the Court would work around each other and what the males were good at doing.
The late forming would also give her time to find more males for her court, because she still didn't have the necessary twelve needed for a proper First Circle. Winsol parties and several plays would give her the chance to bee seen by other males outside of her Court and help her make a decision. Oh, there were several men who have expressed interest in serving in her First Circle, but something about them gave her pause. The men who seemed interested in being her Consort didn't impress her, nor did their references when they made it to that stage of the process. One of the men even had the gall to ask her how much his allowance would be as her Consort. Unther gladly kicked the man out of Moonbright when she screeched for him to leave, and the look on Prince Constantine's face caused her to suggest he would be the one to help her decide the wine for a party she would be throwing for The Matrons and Elders during the Winsol season. His reaction to her distress made her think extremely carefully from then on, because even though Constantine wore a Summer-Sky, an angry Prince did not need to be on the killing edge for something as simple as a man insulting her.
"This way gentlemen," Stephen said while stepping out into the back garden with a gesture to the table. Jolin stood with a sip of her coffee and set the cup down just at the two men came into view.
"Hell's Fire, Mother Night, and May the Darkness be Merciful," Jolin blurted, unable to contain her shock at the punch of connection she felt when she locked eyes with the pointed ear Warlord Prince. He rocked back on his heels with wide eyes as Unther stood and stepped back from the table.
"Lady Jolin," the other male croaked, drawing her attention away from the Warlord Prince with pointed ears. The punch of connection hit her when she laid eyes on the dark-haired Warlord with purple eyes. The Warlord licked his lips and stepped forward. "Lady Jolin, we are here-" A snarl emitted from the Warlord Prince, and Jolin stumbled back from a push of Craft. She blinked in shock as Unther stepped between her and the two males who squared off near the table of food.
"Gentlemen," Jolin squeaked while peering around Unther. "This is not necessary."
"Prince Memphis," the dark-haired Warlord laughed shakily with his hands in the air as he backed away from the Warlord Prince advancing on him.
"Shield, now!" Unther hissed while pushing her back. Jolin grumbled but did as Unther said, but stepped to the side to get a clear view of the scene unfolding before her with curious fear. She heard of fights over Queens destroying whole villages, and while seeing two males squaring down to fight over a claim on her was a delightful thought in her head the thought of the two males hurting anyone in Moonbright wasn't so wonderful a thought. Her Jewel strength did not compare to some of the newer members of the household, but she threw a dome Opal Shield over the area just to be sure to keep some of the damage spreading to the household.
"We both don't have a prior claim," the Warlord informed Prince Memphis with open hands held up at chest level. "I am sure we can settle this in an orderly fashion." Jolin could feel the tension off all the men in the back garden as Memphis's Craft enhanced snarl rolled over all of them, only to have what sounded like a woman's scream in response.
"Down!" Unther shouted as he threw Jolin on the ground. Her screech in response was muffled by Unther's body covering her. She shoved him with a grunt, earning herself a snarl but she did manage to get a view of the two males who had squared off now standing back to back, looking around with wide eyes and under a Gray physical shield.
"Unther what-"
"Don't move," Unther yelled while the rest of the males poured out of the back garden door. Jolin heard Gathering Storm's hooves and Krakel's roar after another woman-like scream rang over the garden area. She somehow wrangled herself out from under Unther and rolled away from him as he shouted orders at the males.
"Protect Jolin at all costs!" Constantine roared as he rushed toward her, the other males fanning out. Jolin scrambled to her feet, watching as the men called in various weapons. Constantine grabbed Jolin and flung her into the middle of the garden without preamble. She shouted in pain as her hip collided into the table and sent the coffee cups sideways. Her snarl at Constantine caught in her throat when she saw him call in Eyrien warblades, whirling them around as he turn his back to her.
"I don't sense anyone in danger," Stephen growled, eyes darting side to side as he turned in a circle.
"Krakel said the females in the house are all accounted for," Warren shouted as he called in a broadsword. "Anyone check the village?"
"The Elders are checking, but they won't know-" A scream drowned out Unther's words, followed by a brush of Craft against the Opal Dome Shield. Jolin jumped at the brush of Craft, and screamed when a large black shape came right at her. Her hands flew to cover her face as she instinctively scrambled onto the table, soaking the coffee up with her riding pants and smashing her beloved pastries over her bottom. When she finally stopped screaming, the silence of her men surprised her. She lowered her hands and looked over in Unther's direction to see him smirking with wary amusement. The rest of the men in the garden just looked wary.
*No snarling over the Queen* a deep bass rumbled in Jolin's head on a common thread. Her eyes went to the space in front of her, and blinked at the animal in front of her with shock. The large, long, black furred cat crouched between her and the males with anger pulsing off the creature in waves. She inched toward the opposite side of the table, only to be rewarded by the cat sprinting to the other side. Jolin bit her lower lip and looked over at Unther, who held up his hands and shook his head.
"We weren't fighting over her Prince," Lord Stephen said, coming forward with both hands open and pointed downward. "You must know more than anyone when new males come into a Territory and want to be a part of a Queen's Court tempers will clash when they first meet the Queen around her males who have already established a claim on her time. I was just about to suggest we all sit and have a wonderful quiet and calm brunch with our Lady while we discuss our newfound Brothers for our Court."
"Would the Prince like some refreshment as well?" Ms. Thorne asked, standing in the doorway of the manor with what looked to be the entire kitchen staff peering around her.
"Refreshment would be a good idea," Jolin called weakly from the table while looking over the mashed pastries and turned over drinks. "For everyone."
"Your clothes my lady!" her personal maid for the week shouted while pushing past everyone and moving around the large black cat whose psychic scent changed to bafflement as the young woman helped her off the table. "We must get you changed before they stain!" The young woman whose name escaped her at the moment pulled Jolin off the table and hustled her through the crowd of kitchen staff. When they reached her rooms, passing several household staff on the way who didn't even bat an eyelash at the maid dragging a Queen through the halls, Jolin whirled on the young woman as soon as the latch clicked on the door.
"How dare yo-"
"You can be angry at me or you can be thankful I got you away from the males so they can wave their dicks at each other without you around," the young woman stated matter-of-factly with a shooing motion of her hands, backing Jolin into her dressing area.
"I-I-what?" Jolin stammered as the maid started to undress her.
"Mum always told me men are like little boys when you get them together in the same room," the maid sniffed, shaking her head at the gown and twisting her mouth. The maid continued as she reached into the closet and brought out another dress. "They try to out do each other and show off in front of the girls to see who can get the most attention. Only gets worse as they get older. There are times when my mother sends her court out into the garden to weed it to have some peace and quiet when the entire court had to come together for special events or business. Darkness knows you are probably tired of having all the men under foot all the time."
"Your mother is a Queen?" Jolin sputtered while stepping into the dress the maid held up for her.
"A small district in Dena Nehele," the maid informed her with a tug of the stays on the dress.
"What in the Hell are you doing as a maid if your mother is a Queen?"
"My mother is only a Tigers-Eye Queen in a District so distant from everyone else she is mostly forgotten," the maid drawled as she came around the front, fluffing the skirt of the gown with a grin. "I rather be a servant anyway. I get to have more fun, and we are mostly overlooked. Anything I don't want Mum knowing about me doing never gets back to her because who is going to notice another servant in the tavern or ale house with the rest? If I want to go on an outing with a non-aristo or a male my mother would never approve of, well, who here is going to notice if I do? As long as Mrs. Thorne finds the young man agreeable, I go to a dance with whoever I please."
"As the Queen you are employed under-"
"You have no say in my romantic life or personal life unless it is harmful to you or to myself," the maid replied with sparkling eyes and a smirk. Jolin blinked at the maid while she adjusted the bust of the gown with professionalism. She was right, of course. If the young woman had been under her protection as a member of her court, Jolin would be required to report back to the young woman's mother her behavior in a report if the Queen requested it. However, since she was an employee and not a member of her court, Jolin could look the other way at the maid's behavior as long as Mrs. Thorne didn't find anything wrong with her behavior. At least, for now.
"What is your name again?" Jolin asked while the maid started leading her to the chair at the dressing table.
"You really need to get better at remembering names, Lady," the maid snorted, shoving Jolin into the seat as she slipped the tie holding what was left of Jolin's braid. "The household staff is one thing, and believe me we notice you can't keep us straight. However, there will be talk if you keep forgetting the names of Queens and Warlord Princes at dinner."
"Shit," Jolin muttered. She thought she did a good job of hiding how she stumbled over names, but there were so many new faces for her to learn and remember she always managed to mix them up.
"I am Cinda, my Lady," the maid said as she started to brush Jolin's blonde hair with her hands while using Craft to untangle the knots. "If I may make a suggestion…"
"You may."
"My mother had a similar problem when she acquired several new people when the district lines were redrawn to help distribute the people to rule more evenly," Cinda explained, flicking her fingers over Jolin's hair to place the strands in a simple half-up style, allowing most of her hair to fall loosely down her back while keeping it out of her face. "She solved the issue with assigned seats with place cards. With the name of the person printed on both sides, not only did it help her remember the names of the people but it also helped others know the names."
"Which made the dinners less awkward and saved face for the Queen," Jolin replied with a smile in the mirror to the maid. "Any other advice you can give me?"
"There are quite a few things I can tell you, but I like working in this house and would like to continue to do so," Cinda mused while waving her hand over the hair and using Craft to keep it in place.
"I am tired of my personal maids changing every week, so if you are honest with me and tell me things I really should hear I will not only insist you stay in my employ but also be my personal maid for the rest of your employment duration," Jolin assured the maid.
"All right," Cinda sniffed as a chair pulled up beside Jolin. Cinda sat down in it and Jolin turned to face the young woman who she now felt she had a bond with. "But remember, you asked my Lady."
Mirana set the last illusion web in the case with a smile and chest full of pride as Paulina walked out with Yarek at her side. Winsol approached with alarming speed, and everyone in the village of Eyota could barely keep their excitement contained. Rhina informed her over the healing table a week ago the Black Widows in town always put up the illusions for the village, and her son Yarek the most excited of all. Paulina only allowed him in the room to see the test illusions to appease his curious nature and to allow her some amount of sleep at night instead of having to field questions about how the two of them would decorate the town well into the night. Mirana had a good laugh when she found out Yarek had been planning how to decorate the Queen's Residence for the last month and he had somehow roped Prothvar into helping plan a greenery collecting event.
"We will see how Lady Carol fairs with that," Mirana sighed to herself as she set the case on top of the others she had completed over the past week. Hallidoria confessed the Winsol season riled her mother's paranoia up, being a Winsol party was how the man who broke her got to the woman. Prothvar insisted to only have the home Hallidoria and Carol resided decorated if Carol helped, and only if Carol helped. The care Prothvar took with the woman made Mirana's heart sing and ache at the same time. Luc had returned with trunks full of presents from Lady Janelle Satien, with Prince Sadiablo's compliments, for Mirana as well as the Healers and disappeared for the last few weeks. The rare occasions she saw him clenched her stomach into knots and made it almost impossible to build an webs, illusion or otherwise. She finally had a clear enough head to do what needed to be done when Luc left for the Rogue Camps in the mountains.
"There haven't been any rogues up there for years," Jared's mother assured Mirana over a weaving loom the afternoon Luc left. "However, The Rose Queen called them that as a term of honor. Those men who were considered "rogues" ended up being valued members of her guard and devoted men to her honor." Jared's mother went on to explain how in the more current environment, the camps served as a place of healing or refuge for men who had been hurt by Queens or other women. Mirana knew bad apples still ended up in a bunch despite the best gardening efforts, but she had no idea so many men were victims of such things when she requested the records of men living in the mountains. Lord Blade said it would take some time to give her the accusations and list of charges men brought against the women in question, but Mirana planned on investigating every single solitary scrap of paper to make sure the victims had justice for the actions brought against them.
Luc would be there until the day before Winsol, returning in time for the tree lighting and formal Court choosing at which time Mirana hoped the two of them could put this in the past. As Warlord Prince of Shalador Nehele, the two of them would work closely together to bring harmony in the Territory. Technically, once she signed the contracts and had a formal court there wouldn't be a need for a Warlord Prince of Shalador Nehele, but everyone agreed it would be a good idea for the Territory to have both, at least for the first five years.
"Five years," Mirana huffed while locking the door to the room designated for Black Widow Craft. She looked at the length of the contract offered as a compliment, but the choice to take it took more than a week for her to decide. Could she stand being so close to Luc when he obviously didn't want anything more than a professional relationship with her? Would he be offended if she took a lover without considering him first? Did she have to consider him? Her heart still ached from the betrayal of the Autumn dances. A Consort wasn't a necessary part of a Queen's court. Mirana could always go without one. Plenty of Queens went without Consorts for a few years, and sometimes their entire ruling career. While Mirana didn't think it would come to that, she was prepared to not have a Consort if it caused strife between the other members of her court and the others helping rule on her behalf.
"My Lady," Zachary said with a smile she had come to know as "trouble brewing" on his face as he approached her at the door to the parlor. "We are in need of your assistance out front."
"Of course," Mirana replied as she took his arm with a smile. He placed his hand over her while walking her over to the open door where Prothvar and Teral stood on the front stoop, blocking the way with their bodies as well as Craft. Mirana shielded herself and stepped between the two males when they parted, exposing a Coach sitting in front of The Queen Residence. As Mirana's feet hit the edge of the large covered porch, the Coach door popped open and an older gentleman stepped out. He waited with an outstretched hand, and a purple gloved one extended from the Coach to place it on top of his. Lady Germaine emerged from the Coach with an almost convincing smile to the man helping her down. She shook out her skirts while three other men stepped out of the Coach and Mirana stepped down one step, putting her closer but leaving her elevated above the other Queen.
"Lady Mirana," Lady Germaine greeted with her hands outstretched, palm up. Mirana placed hers over the other Queen's hands with a smile while watching the men unload luggage from the Coach.
"What a surprise," Lady Mirana said, taking her hands back and threading them through Zachary's arm once again. "I heard no reply from you about coming to town for the forming of my Court. Your missive must have gotten lost in the shuffle. I have received so many invitations and well wishes it is bound to happen I miss one or two things."
"I am afraid I didn't send you a missive," Lady Germaine apologized, cheeks growing red as she wrapped an arm around her escort's arm. "I have come in hopes of…I need…well the thing is-"
"We paid passage, now give us the rest of the damn luggage!" one of the men who exited the Coach roared, drawing Mirana's attention to a smug looking man in driver's compartment of the Coach.
"I was told a different price than you then," the driver sniffed. "Because I was told I was getting half up front and the other half when I got there. It's why I took the pieces I did. Insurance. So, give me what is owed and I will give you back the luggage."
"Now see here!" the man blustered.
"It's all right Phineas," Lady Germaine blurted as she rushed over and put herself between the man and the driver. The Queen called in a wallet and rifled through the meager contents, from what Mirana could see, and handed over most of what she had to the sullen looking driver. "Now, my luggage if you please."
"You are still short a few marks," the driver sneered with shake of the marks.
"I should say not!" Lady Germaine blustered while vanishing her wallet and crossing her arms over her chest. "I gave you the passage fee when we left Nightwood and now again since you demanded it. You will give me my luggage, or I will make sure you lose your position."
"Go ahead and report me to my Queen, since she is the one who told me the fees to charge," the driver laughed.
"I would be more than happy to cover whatever is left of her debt to you." Mirana stepped down from the porch and stood beside Lady Germaine with a placating smile on her lips, sending out a slight pulse of Ebon-Gray power and sensing the Opal power shielding the driver crack slightly. The driver's smile faltered, and Mirana could sense his anger when two trunks appeared in front of her and Lady Germaine.
"Don't forget the other one," Phineas pipped in from behind Mirana.
"What other-" the driver stopped mid sentence when Mirana stepped forward, flowing her power around the man and squeezing him. A small purple dome-topped drunk appeared on top of one of the previous trunks, and the driver closed the window without another word. The Coach lifted and went off at a speed Mirana would be sure to report in her missive to the owner of the Coach service about the man's behavior.
"Thank you Lady," Phineas sighed as the luggage vanished once more.
"Yes, than..than…thank yoooouuuuu." Lady Germaine collapsed, sobs wracking her as she rocked back and forth with her hands over her face. The men who came with her converged around the woman, and Mirana looked over to the porch to see her own men stepping down and making their way toward her. Mirana held up a hand and stepped to the group around the sobbing woman.
"Let's get her settled inside, shall we?" Mirana told the men while calling to Paulina on a distaff thread to come to the Queen's Residence with a calming draught.
"Thank you," Phineas said as the man who helped Lady Germaine out of the carriage scooped up the Queen and started toward the home. It didn't take long to get Lady Germaine settled in a room, and everyone who witness the event and Lady Germaine's escorts settled in the formal parlor with tea shortly after.
"This is Prince Nicholas," Phineas explained with a gesture to the man who carried Lady Germaine upstairs. "These other two are Lord Vincent and Prince Michael. We are part of what used to be Lady Germaine's First Circle."
"Why are you here?" Zachary asked as Burle came into the room with a refreshment tray. Mirana planned on getting around to that particular talking point with more pleasant conversation, but she gathered the men in what would soon hopefully be her First Circle wanted to get right down to the point.
"Lady Flora requested Lady Germaine removed herself from the Providence to give her a better chance at solidifying her rule," Nicholas growled, getting up from his seat and moving to the side of the room. He grabbed the decanter of whiskey she filled just that morning with her uncle's favorite brand and poured himself a large glass. Her eyebrows raised as she watched him drank the glass in two gulps without pause and pour himself another glass.
"With how long Lady Germaine ruled Nightwood, I would see that as a reasonable request, though doing it right as Winsol was about to begin may not be the best time to ask," Teral replied while standing and taking the pot of coffee in his hands.
"Yes, and it is also bad timing when a perfectly healthy man from our Lady's former First Circle falls down dead in the street from a failed heart just one month after refusing to take the Consort ring for Lady Flora," Lord Vincent informed them as Teral started to pour the coffee.
"There are abnormalities that cause a young person's heart to fail," Paulina explained, taking an offered cup of coffee with a smile of thanks to Teral.
"But he had just left from a meeting with a young woman he had been carefully courting, and was close to handfasting," Prince Michael told the group while taking a nutcake off the tray.
"His mother insisted the family didn't have any sort of heart conditions in their history," Lord Vincent said.
"He didn't have a whisper left when his body made it to his mother's," Phineas grunted, blinking rapidly and taking a drink of his coffee to hide what Mirana strongly suspected were tears.
"Lady Flora refused to investigate his death, since the Court Healer ruled it a natural death," Prince Nicholas drawled as he poured another glass of whiskey. "The cremation took place without anyone's knowledge, including his mother, and ended any discussion of trying to get a second opinion."
"Why come here?" Prothvar asked, passing a coffee cup to Mirana. "Surely there are other places you could have gone. Places closer to Nightwood."
"The house we were renting revoked our lease," Prince Michael snarled.
"We four are the only unattached members of her First Circle," Lord Vincent explained. "It made perfect sense for us to take up in a house to rent with our Queen, saving her and us money in the process while she transitioned to where she wished to reside in her retirement."
"From what I understand, Nightwood is a prosperous Providence," Teral said while taking a seat with a cup of coffee in hand. "Lady Germaine seems like a very sensible woman. Surely she didn't spend her money frivolously and has plenty of income for her to afford a home by herself."
"She hasn't revealed any financial information to us, but her former Steward is now serving under Lady Flora," Phineas admitted with a shake of his head. "I don't want to think about how she got him to serve her, but when Germaine suggested we share a house it made me wonder how much the man funneled away from her personal account into the village treasury without her knowledge."
"It saved her the embarrassment of having to ask her granddaughter for a place to live, and it gave us a chance to be closer to the Queen we served for years for a few more precious moments," Prince Michael stated softly, happiness glittering in his eyes. A stab of jealously hit Mirana as she saw the same look in the other mens' eyes, though Nicolas's held more than admiration if Mirana was truthful. "So we took the chance and rented the home with her. Poor Phillip lived with his mother instead of with us, stating his pay still hadn't come through for the last quarter from the accounts. We just collected ours yesterday, and we had to fight to get it because Justin insisted we had already been paid by his records."
"Germaine demanded to see the records herself, all the records for everything, and miraculously our pay suddenly showed unpaid," Lord Vincent explained, setting down his cup and picking up a muffin. "This morning our landlord came with the city guards and a notice to vacant the premises within the hour."
"Germaine barely had all her things packed when the guards escorted her to the Coach waiting for us to take us where we needed to go," Prince Nicolas slurred while setting the glass down and removing the stopper from the decanter. Zachary got up and took the decanter from the man while Phineas guided the man to the door of the parlor.
"Why don't you go lay down with Germaine Nick?" Phineas told the man, who snarled and swung at the other male. The comical spin Prince Nicolas made before stumbling into the wall caused a giggle to escape from Mirana before she could catch herself.
"I am her Consort," Prince Nicolas roared as he slid down the wall. He quietly sobbed with his arms draped over his knees. "I am suppose to be the best defense against her enemies. I am suppose to protect her heart. She is hurt because I didn't see this. I don't deserve her."
"We all don't deserve a Queen like her boyo, which is why we have to strive to live up to the line," Phineas sighed with a nod to Zachary. The two men wrestled the crying man to his feet and hauled him out of the room, the entire time Prince Nicolas protesting the whole way how he shouldn't even be in the same house as his Queen.
"This has obviously been a trying time for all of-"
"We need to stay here," Lord Vincent interrupted Mirana, leaning forward with is arms on his knees and hands palm up. "I know you have no reason to trust us, and with Prince Grayhaven gone we don't have his okay, but we need to stay here. You saw what happened with the driver today. More like that will happen if Lady Flora has anything to do with it. I just know it."
"The First Circle, sans the Steward, voiced their concerns about her," Prince Michael implored while standing. He began to pace in front of the fire with a worried expression. "She is a solid Queen, but a spoiled child. She has come from a long line of ruling Queens, and never had to work for anything in her life. Lady Germaine the Queen taught her how to manage a Court, and how to budget, but the girl always overspent her income and came begging every time to Germaine the Grandmother to bail her out. Being a good grandmother, Germaine would do it. The Queen would then sit over the receipts and break down what she could have went without to have her income hold her out. We don't think she will bankrupt the Court or put the people of Nightwood in danger, but I wouldn't put it past her to trick and lie her way into getting things she didn't deserve because things have been handed out her entire life to her."
"And Germaine refused to give her the family jewelry or give her any money for a Queen's Gift as a present for taking over the Court," Lord Vincent told the group with a smirk. "The purple trunk contained all the jewels Germaine has collected over the years as well as the family jewels. Ten to one the driver works for Lady Flora and was told to take those three trunks. He didn't plan on Germaine paying or having such strong back up. If we continue to stay here, it will deter anymore actions Lady Flora will want to take against her grandmother as well as us."
"Why would she want to take actions against you lot?" Prothvar asked with disbelief on his face, but Mirana knew why. Even though the men were older, they were handsome. Lady Flora stealing away her grandmother's most loyal men would be a coup, and if she couldn't the suspicious death of the one member who people knew refused her gave Mirana enough evidence personally to make a decision Luc may not be comfortable with.
"We shall make accommodations for you and yours for the time being, but Prince Grayhaven will have the final say so over things once he gets back." And hopefully he won't be upset I allowed people into his home village without checking with him first, Mirana thought to herself as Burle came in and gestured for the men to follow him upstairs to room the staff had prepared.
"Apparently, the choice was never ours to make if they were gonna stay," Teral snorted when Burle and the now guests were out of earshot. "Do you think Luc will go up against the Burles when he gets home?"
"Just make sure we aren't in the way when he decides to do that," Mirana snorted, taking a large iced cookie off the tray with a shake of her head. Everyone else in the room laughed with her, because they all knew with all the strength Prince Grayhaven held he would still yield to the very intimidating pair of servants who held the key to the best baked goods in the entire village.
"BITCH!" Lady Flora of Nightwood tossed the glass of wine into the fire and screamed, loud enough it made the point she wanted to make but not loud enough to appease her anger. Her grandmother had managed to get away with the jewels she wanted, along with the two trunks of priceless books and artifacts from the family collection she wanted to sell to fund her ambitious campaign to become the Territory Queen of Dena Nehele. She had hoped to have Shalador Nehele, the more prosperous and prestigious of the two, but the Ebon-Gray bitch came along and eclipsed her Green Jewel. As the only dark Jeweled Queen in the area free to take a contract anytime soon, she had been carefully courting Prince Grayhaven since the retirement of Vanya.
"We still have plenty of money in the treasury for you to have several new gowns and refurnish the apartments to your taste," Lord Craig assured her.
"I suppose that will have to do," Lady Flora growled, cursing herself for allowing the man to bed her in exchange for him doing her the favor of skimming from his grandmother's accounts. He refused the men who didn't have families their wages, and she intended to seduce them away from her grandmother much like Lord Craig, especially that little morsel Prince Phillip. She had hoped they would bring their complaints to her, giving her the chance to convince them to serve in her Second Circle for the wages they were promised and a far less stipend for the pleasure of a contract with her. And it would be a pleasure for them. She would have been sure of it. "Anything else needing my attention?"
"There is nothing else, my Lady," Lord Craig replied as he shut his account book with a smile.
"Then leave me," Lady Flora told him, waving her hand at him and walking toward her terrace. She could feel his disappointment as he walked away, which only drove her anger to new heights. The cool night air on the terrace did nothing to tamper her anger, and only when she used Craft to turn one of the lawn chairs into ash did she feel calm enough to look upon the village of Ebon-Glen. The twinkling lights of the seat of the Providence Queen gave her comfort in knowing the people there would now be able to look at her without seeing her grandmother in the background and being overshadowed by The Great Lady Germaine. Soon, I will rule more than this pittance of a village, Lady Flora thought to herself as she sent a thought to one of her First Circle to come to her private quarters. For now, I shall show the people here how well I rule them and what a great Queen I will be. She went back inside and prepared herself for the man who would be warming her bed this evening, taking great care as practice for the day Prince Grayhaven would be in her bed instead of the man who would be occupying it tonight.
Author's Note: Hope you guys enjoy! Let me know what you think please!