Sophie Aldridge is a good daughter.
At least, that's what her mother thinks.
Vanessa has become even more fawning recently, probably because Agatha has started to shake her off. She's presented Sophie to nobles at dinners, bought her new gowns, included her in gossip and hasn't mentioned their disagreement at the wedding once. Not that it had been much worth arguing about- Sophie merely agreeing that she thought Tedros disliked Vanessa, slightly too loudly, was not worth carrying on about, since it has done no real damage to her reputation. Yes, Vanessa displays all the hallmarks of a doting mother, even if her status as Sophie's mother is meant to be a secret.
But Vanessa is not a good mother to Agatha. It's ironic, really. She spoils her illegitimate daughter and spurns the legitimate heir even though, practically, spoiling Agatha would be a million times more beneficial. But, therefore, Sophie is more than a good daughter; she's the good daughter. She's pretty and sweet and smiles at Vanessa and agrees with her, and she doesn't have any meddlesome magic to ruin anything.
And her face isn't a permanent reminder of Vanessa's callousness.
If this was six months ago, at home, Sophie probably would have been happy with the current situation. But it isn't six months ago, at home. It's today, in Camelot, and she isn't happy in the slightest.
Therefore, Sophie has no interest in continuing the charade.
Good daughters don't spy on their mothers, but that's exactly what Sophie is doing.
She crouches behind a weeping willow, lamenting how her skirts trail in the mud, but hoping the drooping branches will provide enough cover for her not to be noticed.
If confronted, she will have no way to justify why she's here, watching her mother talk to Tedros. She doesn't have any kind of concrete proof that it's anything beyond a simple discussion. She can't even hear what they're saying.
She just has a terrible, terrible feeling.
Vanessa has brought two guards, and they're not standing with their King- they're standing with her. Tedros looks tense. Whatever Vanessa is saying, he doesn't like it.
She says something else, and Tedros's face drops completely. For a second, he just stares, face blank. He says something back. Vanessa nods, probably smiles from the stretch of her cheek. Sophie tenses. Whatever pleases her mother, and displeases Tedros, can't be good.
There's a rustling noise behind her, and she whirls, but there's no one there she can see. She stares for a minute, wondering if someone's noticed her-
The sound of swords being drawn behind her snatches her attention back to the lakeside. The two guards have their weapons out, and have started to advance on Tedros.
On Tedros. Their King.
Yes, she was right to worry.
Sophie leaps to her feet and creeps closer, slipping past the trees, straining to hear what they're saying. No one is moving, and Tedros has raised his hands, but Sophie doesn't think it's a surrender.
More like a threat.
She exhales slowly, stopping behind a closer tree. His magic, of course. The worst-kept secret in the court. Even if she hadn't had Agatha to tell her everything- ivy, gloves, cancelling out- she'd have probably figured it out herself.
But why isn't he using it?
Confused, she strains to hear the conversation.
"She'll kill you," Tedros is saying. "See if she doesn't."
She? Agatha?
"She'll have a hard time," replies Vanessa. "Given I'm going to start spiking her drinks from today. And I think you might find it difficult, too."
Sophie takes a second to understand her meaning, and so does Tedros-
They realise at the same time.
Tedros's hands dip down as he realises.
"I stopped taking the…" his eyes widen. "Weatherford's in on this. He's been spiking my drinks."
"Joseph." snorts Vanessa. Sophie is frozen behind her tree, unable to fathom what she's hearing. A conspiracy, by the sounds of it. "No, he's not, the stupid boy. He genuinely cares, bless him. I merely told him to make sure you kept taking the ivy, and I would convince you it was a bad idea, and show you how you were a threat to the country, to the people, and…"
The guards advance closer. Tedros is shaking his hands, clearly trying to get his magic to work-
"To yourself." says Vanessa.
It happens too fast for Sophie to react.
Vanessa lunges and shoves Tedros into the lake, and then rears back as icicles erupt from the surface. The guards fling themselves onto the bank and stab their hands into the water, holding him down. Sophie starts forward, shocked, wondering how they intend to -
A reverberation stops her in her tracks, and she watches in horror as the edges of the lake start to freeze over, impossibly fast. Creaking, the ice skirts the perimeter of the lake, and then starts to sweep inwards, crawling across the water's surface.
Sophie stands, stupefied, as the entire lake starts to freeze. What can she do? This is nothing natural, nothing she can control. It's all Tedros. But-
Cursing, Vanessa staggers back to her feet and marches over to stand with the guards. Sophie ducks back into the cover of the trees.
"He's fainted." informs one of the guards, wrenching his hands out of the rapidly freezing water.
"We're done, here." says Vanessa, gathering her skirts to leave. Already, there's a barely ten foot circle of actual water left on the lake, and even that is ringed with paper-thin tendrils of ice, growing quickly.
Vanessa turns dismissively away and starts briskly back up the path to the castle. The guards follow.
Shaking with the effort of staying still, Sophie counts to thirty, watching them disappear into the east wing...
Then she lunges from behind the tree and starts to run towards the lake. It's too far to get help, but if she can get to him before everything freezes, he might still have a chance.
But before she can reach the bank, the sound of someone else running rushes up behind her, and Sophie's grabbed from behind and flung aside, sprawling into the grass and jarring her ankle.
"Move, I'll get him!" barks an unfamiliar voice, and Sophie bolts up, indignant, to find a stranger rushing onto the bank, swinging a spear from his back.
"Who are-"
"Sophie, it's alright! I know him, he can get him out-"
"Hort?" Sophie looks up, bewildered. "What-"
"We followed Vanessa. Same as you, by the looks of it." says Hort, helping her to her feet. "Ravan said he knew something was wrong, was furious Tedros would be so stupid as to go off with her alone…" he looks at the lake, forehead crumpled with worry. "Perhaps we should have been faster."
And then there's a sharp, reverberating crack, like a gunshot, and the rest of the lake freezes over.
For a second, they all stand, stunned. Then the stranger- Ravan- snarls in irritation, takes the pike, and rams it into the ice. Once, twice-
The whole section shatters. Immediately, he's on his knees, stripping off his jacket and snatching great chunks of ice out of the water, flinging them across the rest of the lake. He smashes a few more portions of the ice and repeats the process. Then, once he's made a big enough opening, he jumps in.
"Will he get him?" demands Sophie.
"He'll get him." says Hort. "But whether he'll get him in time…"
The statement hangs.
Sophie finds herself starting to shiver. For a minute, she thinks it's shock, but then she notices how dark the sky has become, and the white flecks starting to land on her arms.
"Hort." she says. "It's snowing."
A biting wind slashes through the trees. Hort and Sophie look at each other.
Unseasonal weather for spring.
But before she can say anything else, Ravan surfaces, dragging Tedros with him.
He all but throws him onto the bank, and Sophie and Hort sprint over. Together, they strip off his sodden cloak, boots and cloak- it's not as if the cold will affect him, but they can see the frost already sticking to his back and it would be better if he wasn't frozen into his clothes-
"What's wrong with him?" demands Sophie, stopping short at the appearance of his face.
"Never seen him without makeup before?" coughs Ravan. Sophie shakes her head. Hort kneels over Tedros and leans down.
"Ravan, he's not breathing."
"I know." Ravan laces his fingers together and moves Hort out of the way, clearly intending to try and resuscitate Tedros.
The first compression clearly breaks a rib, because Sophie hears a sickening crack. She looks away hastily, and finds herself staring at the sky- clouds so dark they're almost black. The snow is coming down thicker, now, and the wind has picked up, smacking snowflakes into her cheeks and sending them stinging across her arms.
A freak snowstorm, when the weather has been mild for the past two weeks? Soon, people will realise that something is wrong. Agatha will realise something is wrong. Something about the storm itself feels wrong. It's not natural. It has a frantic, muddled feeling to it- the snow swirls too hard and sticks too fast, and there's too much of it. Not created by nature, but by the hysteria of a drowning boy and his magic-
She's brought back to the present by the sounds of Tedros throwing up.
Relief bursting in her chest, she watches Ravan roll him onto his side as he retches, disgorging water. He coughs and hacks until he seems to have thrown up all the water there is, but he doesn't seem to come around- he twitches and makes a vague noise of distress, but remains unresponsive.
But despite the restoration of his breathing, Ravan doesn't look happy. He's still leaning over Tedros, and he's frowning deeply, as if whatever he hears is troubling.
"Will he be alright?" presses Sophie. Ravan doesn't reply, reaching over and prising Tedros's mouth open.
His expression goes dark.
But, in the same movement, he stands, hauling Tedros up with him disturbingly easily. He barges past them, starting at a run towards the castle, and Sophie and Hort rush after him, bewildered and frightened.
"Where's his wife?" demands Ravan, raising his voice over the howling wind.
"Agatha? The ballroom!" cries Sophie, staggering after him. "Don't we need a doctor? I can get Agatha, but-"
"No doctor can fix this." says Ravan grimly.
They run towards the Eastern tower.
"It's snowing!" says someone.
Agatha's head snaps up.
She's been sitting here for at least twenty minutes, and Tedros has yet to make an appearance. Vanessa had returned a few minutes ago, looking perfectly normal, and had passed off Tedros's non-appearence with some wishy-washy claim about collecting records. No one in the court had seemed to think much of this, even going so far as to make some joke about it being common. But the other Woods leaders and the townspeople- representatives of the everyday subjects- huddled together at the end of the table, had seemed more uncertain.
"Snow?" says Weatherford sharply. "In this temperature?"
He has a point. It's been relatively warm for the last few weeks.
"Freak storm?" offers someone further down the table. Several people get up to go and look out of the high windows. Agatha sees Hester and Chaddick, stationed at the end of the hall, look quickly at one another.
Agatha turns back to Vanessa, dread starting to drag its fingers down her spine.
"Mother. Where's Tedros?"
"Perhaps we should begin." says Vanessa, as if she hasn't heard her.
"Where's Tedros?" repeats Agatha, more aggressively this time. "You were last with him. Where did he go?"
"I've already told you, dear." says Vanessa distractedly, pouring herself a glass of wine. "Probably just taking a minute to find what he needs."
Agatha stares hard at her for a minute, trying to discern anything off in her manner. There's nothing she can see.
Frustrated, she stands and marches over to one of the windows-
There's a roar of wind, and several people jump away as a squall rattles at the window panes, making the shutters bang. Agatha stops, staring at the huge snowflakes smacking against the glass, the gardens beyond almost completely obscured by snow in less than twenty minutes.
No, this is no freak storm.
She whips back to Vanessa-
Then, somewhere in the castle, someone screams.
They're joined by someone else, and then someone else, and the sounds of shouting and running feet are added to the mix.
"What-" begins Anadil-
A bone-rattling toll makes everyone jump, and Agatha cringes back, the strike reverberating through her bones. Somewhere in the depths of the castle, bells are starting to ring, and it's not the languid, single-bell toll she'd heard at her wedding.
It's the clamorous rattle of the emergency bells she'd last heard when… when…
When Tedros was nearly murdered.
The screaming and running is getting closer, and Agatha finds herself frozen to the spot. Another assassin, this time coming for her? Have they already gotten to Tedros? Or has he gotten away? Maybe this storm is the result of that, or-
The doors are rammed open.
Hort and Sophie are inside first, both damp and muddy, heaving for breath. Agatha scans them desperately for visible injury, but there's nothing she can see- no blood, no limping, no nothing. They're accompanied by a seemingly random assortment of people- nobles, servants, maids, stable boys, a couple of gardeners- and the tall, red-eyed boy Agatha had seen at the wedding.
She tenses. Tedros's assassin. Why would he be-
And then she sees who he's carrying.
Everyone else starts to scream, too.
Vaguely, in the back of her mind, Agatha remembers those stupid little lists they'd made, back in her sitting room.
(Number six- Keeps accidentally messing with the weather in the kingdom.)
The snowflakes batter at the window panes.
Agatha doesn't know whether she meant to go over to him or not, whether she'd wanted to run, or walk, or even if she'd tried to go anywhere at all-
Only that she takes one step and her legs buckle. People shout, and Callis and Sophie just about manage to catch her, but as Ravan crouches and, surprisingly carefully, sets Tedros onto the floor, Agatha can only stare, a silent scream caught in her throat.
Never, never has she seen him like this.
Tedros is frostbitten so badly he looks violently bruised, frost blighting almost every inch of his skin. (Number two- Even hot water freezes eventually when touched, and number three- Looks scary without makeup.) His hair has bleached to white, so white it looks almost translucent, and the second Ravan sets him down, the floor starts icing over.
"What happened?" cries Beatrix.
"Attempted drowning." says Hort loudly. "His magic went into overdrive and froze him under the lake."
The realisation smacks Agatha so hard she jerks, physically. The dream.
Not her.
Tedros.
So, if the dream really happened, that meant that- that meant that, on the bank-
She can't think. Almost everyone is shouting, and Dot is crying, and Sophie is trying to get her to stand up, and Callis-
Callis is gone from her side, instead kneeling over Tedros, talking urgently to Ravan and examining Tedros closely.
"We need a doctor, not a nursemaid." snaps Weatherford, rushing to cram himself next to Callis, but his white face betrays how shocked he is.
"I was the apothecary's apprentice for my entire life up until I became a nursemaid." says Callis coldly. "In the absence of a real doctor, I will do fine. Agatha!"
Agatha barely responds. Not Tedros. Not Tedros, barely eighteen, who wore flowers on his face and spent his birthday at an orphanage and had developed the stupidest, most earnest, most inexplicable crush on her without having ever seen her face, who-
Callis comes marching over and shakes her, none too gently.
"Agatha. The water got into his lungs and it's freezing. It will suffocate him unless you melt it, you understand me?"
Agatha doesn't respond, shaking so hard she's making Sophie tremble, too-
And then she does.
She surges to her feet, snatches her skirts up, and all but runs after Callis, taking the distance in three or four strides. She flings herself down before Tedros, rips her gloves off, and slams her hands onto his chest, over his lungs, trying to raise her body heat as fast, and as violently, as she can. It's not hard- she doesn't think she's ever been this frightened in her life, and her magic is responding. Still trembling, she shifts so she's as close to him as possible, and waits desperately. He's breathing, but very shallowly, and it's clearly a struggle.
Behind her, she can hear people whispering; -magic? Ice? What's wrong with her veins?- but it only feels like background noise, nothing compared to what's happening now-
Then Tedros starts convulsing.
Agatha tries to pull her hands away, but Callis doesn't let her, and Agatha watches, terrified, as he chokes and gurgles, clawing at his throat-
A horrible combination of bile, water, and blood splatters the flagstones, dribbling from his mouth- then shards of ice, scarlet-stained and knife-sharp, dribble from his mouth, clattering on the stone floor.
"What's happening to him?" cries Agatha.
"It's not all melting." says Callis slowly. "The water is bringing ice with it, it's cutting his mouth and throat."
"But what if it-"
"Pierces his lungs?" anticipates Callis.
Callis and Agatha look at each other.
"I don't know what we'd do, then." admits Callis quietly.
(Number four- Swallowing water v. uncomfortable.)
The ballroom has fallen silent, apart from the toll of the bells and Tedros's gasping breaths-
A sudden quake makes everyone stagger, and Agatha looks up to see spikes of ice bursting from the steepled roof of the ballroom, more starting to replace the beams and dragging down the pillars.
(Number three- Not very good at controlling magic.)
"This isn't conscious, is it?" says Sophie weakly, watching the ice shift along the roof. Agatha slowly shakes her head. No, it's not. It's too muddled, too chaotic. It's a subconscious reaction by his magic, trying to defend its vessel, just like the book had said.
Tedros starts retching again, shaking so hard his head knocks against the floor, more bloody water seeping from his mouth. Agatha increases the temperature, praying his magic will remain matching hers, and she won't burn him…
Then Beatrix asks what they were all thinking.
"Who did this?" she demands. "Hort? What happened?"
There's a pause.
Slowly, Sophie, Hort and Ravan turn to stare.
Agatha doesn't.
She already knows who they're looking at.
Unbelievably, Vanessa laughs airily.
"Don't be ridiculous."
"I saw you push him!" hisses Sophie, starting to her feet. "You've been spiking his drinks so he can't control his magic, you knew he'd freeze himself under the water!"
"I think you'll find that was Joseph's role." says Vanessa calmly.
(Number seven- Only just come off of ivy- might get more powerful?)
Everyone turns. Weatherford is exactly where he'd been, knelt next to Tedros's feet, and he looks stricken. Tedros is throwing up more water, and his breaths have turned shuddering, speeding up and becoming more frenzied.
"I didn't- you only told me that it would be for his own good- I had no idea that you'd try and... try and kill him!"
"He did this to himself." says Vanessa."You can't prove I pushed him."
"All three of us saw you." says Ravan coldly.
Everyone starts shouting again, and Agatha turns, about to finally speak up-
Something snags her veil.
Agatha spins back around, and finds that Tedros has caught the end of it between his fingers. One of his eyes is open the smallest bit, a slit of bloodshot whites and blue only just visible. Agatha stares at him, breathless. He makes a weak gesture and his hand slips slightly on the fabric. He looks desperately confused, and she can see his gaze darting wildly.
But Agatha realises what he wants.
With shaking hands and the overwhelming urge to cry, she pulls her veil off.
She doesn't think he could smile even if he wanted to, but he doesn't need to- before his hand drops he presses his fingers, shaking madly, to the scar next to her mouth. Agatha snatches his hand and plants a fierce kiss on it, then leans down and presses her cheek to his cold, frost-riddled one. If she doesn't say it now… when will she?
"I love you," she whispers desperately, voice shaking almost as hard as he is. Tedros digs his purple nails into her hand and whimpers in fear. Agatha swallows hard, fighting back a wild, hysterical sob-
"Well!" cries Vanessa suddenly, her voice suddenly cutting through the clamour. "Well! May as well just come out with it! I tried to kill him! I tried to kill the stupid boy. Agatha will be forced into the position of Dowager Queen, and she'll need support, won't she? I can fulfil that. I can! Everyone will love me, then. They don't love me now, but they will. They will!" Her voice rises, cracking randomly. "I'll be the true Queen." She scans the room. "So few of you! Twenty witnesses aren't so hard to dispose of, not when it all looks like a tragic, uncontrolled, accident."
The room rumbles again, and out in the castle, more people start shouting. Agatha shakes Tedros, trying to get him to stop, but he seems to have slipped back into unconsciousness.
"You didn't count the guards." says Dot bravely. "Or the nobles."
"Ah, them." says Vanessa. "About that."
The conversation at the wedding.
Agatha turns-
"The guards are on her side," she says hoarsely. "So are the nobles."
A second. Agatha looks at the people still on her side.
"Run."
It seems that they're still willing to take an order from their queen, even under these circumstances. They do, sprinting for the doors...
And the whole hall explodes.
Five of the eastern side guards charge for Hester and Chaddick, knocking them over and forcing them to the floor, despite Chaddick's bellowing for them to stand down. Half a dozen more burst through the doors and force the townspeople back, even bullying back the Woods representatives. The guards stationed at the back of the hall come running forwards, and the nobles-
Hands seize Agatha from behind and start trying to drag her away, towards the doors where they're taking those disloyal to Vanessa. Nobles she recognises, people from Tedros's court- the Chancellor, the Secretary of the Treasury, the three noblewomen who had fawned over her wedding dress- all of them and more turn on them, towing them towards the doors, horrifying far from where Tedros still lies, helpless. Weatherford remains beside him, shell-shocked. Agatha kicks and bites and tries to burn, but they keep her hands firmly affixed behind her back, throwing her into the wall. Callis, Beatrix, Anadil, Dot, Hort and Ravan get the same treatment, and even…
"I expected better from you, Sophie." says Vanessa softly, stopping in front of her daughter. "It seems I was wrong."
Agatha holds her breath, waiting for Sophie to grovel, to beg for forgiveness and side with Vanessa like she always has…
She doesn't.
"Go to hell." says Sophie dispassionately, and spits in her mother's face.
Even though it's completely inappropriate, Agatha lets out a wild cackle of triumph-
Vanessa backhands Sophie as hard as she can. Several people gasp, and Beatrix grabs Sophie to steady her. Vanessa marches away, wiping her face furiously.
"Guards!" she shrieks, as the guards and nobles form a line a little way away from Agatha and the others. "Keep them here. Restrain the Queen. First, we need to finish what we started."
She glances at Tedros. Everyone catches her meaning.
Agatha starts forward, but the nobles block her path, holding swords to her throat. She raises her hands, veins returning to a rich orange, and they hesitate, suddenly fearful… but apparently, someone gets brave. Before she can summon a flame, one of the guards grabs her by the hair and throws her backwards, drawing his sword back to strike. Agatha regains her footing, snaps her fingers for a flame-
Even years later, Agatha will never be able to forget the sound.
Behind them, Tedros lets out a terrible, choked wail, and a wall of solid ice erupts between Agatha and the nobles.
Agatha is knocked back onto the flagstones by the force of it- it bursts from the stone, cracking a huge fissure in the floor, surging upwards to the roof in a matter of seconds and lurching to the walls just as fast, screeching against the wood and the stone until it settles, heaving frost and steam, between them.
Agatha leaps to her feet and slams her hands against it, but it's solid, completely frozen. The guards make a similar movement, but quickly give up and turn away... back to where he's lying.
Frantic, Agatha feels for a break in the wall. What was he doing? They could get to him and no one could stop them! Chaddick and Hester were still restrained, and everyone else was behind this damned wall!
Looking through the cloudy ice, she can suddenly see him, visible between a gap in the guards. He's just conscious again, looking right at her, and...
Something slips from his cheek and clatters against the floor.
(Number five- tears freeze once out of body.)
She understands, then.
He's trying to save her, even if it means he dies himself.
The guards start to circle Tedros. Agatha turns to the people behind the wall.
"Run." she says, finding herself eerily calm. "Go. Get out, now. Get to safety and tell everyone what's happening. Find a doctor. A good one. The best. You understand?"
The townspeople clearly do, bashing open the doors and fleeing down the corridor almost immediately, ushered along by the Woods leaders who seem to have understood the gravity of the situation. Beatrix runs after Reena, and Ravan goes stoically with them, casting a grim glance over his shoulder. Hort and Dot reluctantly follow.
"Agatha-" begins Callis. Then she stops, as if realising something. "Come on." she says, turning to Sophie and Anadil. "Quickly, now."
"But-"
"She's going to bring down the wall." says Callis.
Sophie's eyes widen, and she grabs Anadil's arm and starts pulling her away.
"But Hester-"
"Hester can look after herself, for the moment." snaps Callis, following them, and pulling the huge doors shut behind her.
Agatha exhales slowly. Good. They, at least, will be safe from what she's about to do-
The sound of swords being drawn echoes behind her, and there's no time to do anything slowly anymore.
Agatha turns, the image of Tedros's desperate face in her mind, and slams her hands against the ice, releasing all the anger, the fear, the resentment and self-loathing she's felt over the last few months, the last few years, her whole life-
The wall hisses, steam billowing everywhere, and water runs down Agatha's arms. She barely notices, face twisted into a snarl, and she forces more and more heat into her hands, veins glowing so bright they're sure to burst into flame, like molten metal, the depths of a forge.
There's an immense cracking sound, like something being snapped in two. Vanessa and her cronies turn, apprehensive. The wall splinters, fractures-
With a scream, Agatha flings her arms wide and the whole thing explodes.
The guards and nobles fling themselves to the floor as ice shoots across the room, scattering into every corner and embedding itself into walls.
They're barely back on their feet when Agatha steps over the crack in the floor.
"Never mind him!" screams Vanessa from the flagstones. "Never mind! I'll get the throne anyway! KILL HER!"
"You tried!" shouts Agatha, lighting her hands. "You tried!"
Behind them, Tedros is coughing again, and now there's definitely more blood than water.
So, mercy is not on Agatha's mind when her first assailant reaches her.
He barely stood a chance; she ducks his swing, lights her hand, and grabs him by the collar. He screams as his doublet catches light, inexplicably fast, and flings himself to the floor, nearly stepped on by the next wave of guards coming for her. Agatha makes a violent slashing motion, expelling fire so quickly and aggressively that it blasts them all backwards, knocking them onto their backs. Wreathed in flame, turns for her next opponents; three guards, all sprinting towards her. She snarls and swipes diagonally, splitting them up as they dive out of her way, forming a circle around her.
Foolish of them.
Agatha spins, skirts fanning out, and brings her hands around with her, sweeping her fire in a circle- before snapping her arms outwards and blasting these men away, too. As she slows, she notices that the outer skirt of her dress is on fire.
Ah, well. She didn't like this one anyway.
She heads at a run for the guards restraining Hester and Chaddick, selecting two fingers instead of her whole hand, this time. Better for precision, which she needs to avoid injuring them. She sends the first guard sprawling, deliberately aiming for his feet, and shoves the second one so hard she leaves a melting dent in his breastplate. The third gets her shield fused to her arm-guard, and the fourth gets blasted backwards into a pillar. The fifth flees, scrabbling away, and Agatha lets him, turning to Chaddick and Hester-
Hester barely has time to shout a warning before Agatha's knocked off her feet.
Her head glances off the flagstones, and she lands in water that's at least an inch deep. Gasping, she tries to roll over, but the guards who tackled her grab her arms and drag her, deliberately towing her through the water- the water she'd created, melted ice- and dropping her at Vanessa's feet. Dizzy and disoriented from a combination of the fall and the water, Agatha looks vaguely up at Vanessa, who is finally back on her feet.
"Get rid of her, now." says Vanessa coldly. Behind her, she hears Chaddick yell, and the clash of blades, but it's unlikely either he or Hester will get to her in time. Weighing up her options- attempting to fight whilst in water, or just going for good old brute force?- Agatha takes a breath...
And feels a horribly familiar catch in her throat.
Oh, how cruel. Did her magic have any respect for her at all? In any aspect? Was she to die hacking her lungs out on the floor?
For some reason, all she can think is how irritating that is.
She doubles over, struggling for breath. Vanessa sighs- despite her lack of interest in Agatha, she must recognise the symptoms.
"Well, that makes things easier. Quickly, now."
The guards draw their swords. Mind racing, Agatha wipes her hands desperately on her skirt, trying to get rid of the water so she can-
One of her rings catches her attention. Not her wedding ring, or her signet ring, but the very first one Tedros had ever given her.
The dragon crest.
Agatha stops trying to inhale, because something has occurred to her. Her chest stings, aches, burns, but she doesn't breathe out, because she's had a thought. An insane one, but a thought.
What if she tried to-
"Now," Vanessa hisses-
Through the guard's legs, Agatha catches sight of Tedros, muttering something through bloodied lips… and she recognises the formation of the letters, from the sheer amount of times he's said it before. Usually in admiration, or enthusiastic greeting, or when he said it at the wedding, or any of the countless other times he's said it, or-
He's trying to say her name.
Agatha puts her head back and howls in rage, letting her chest burn, burn, burn-
Until, with a roar, a column of flame explodes from her mouth, clawing into the open air and bursting forth, rocketing towards the ceiling. Everyone around her sprawls onto the stone, and Agatha staggers to her feet, spitting embers and smoke. The nobles most loyal to Vanessa rush towards her, and a few guards, but they're a paltry nuisance, now. She snatches the remnants of her flames from the air and draws them out like she's unsheathing a sword… then thrusts her hands forwards and lashes it out like a whip.
The remaining nobles fall with screams, the smell of burning hair and fabric trailing after them, clutching faces or hands or necks. Agatha steps over them and stalks forwards, snatching her flame around her side and letting it lash out again, and again, and again, the reach getting longer and the heat more intense every time. Everywhere she steps, the water hisses and shrivels away, bursting into clouds of steam, and Vanessa's cronies tumble to the floor, wailing in pain. Soot-streaked guards flee for the doors, and nobles back away. Agatha ignores the vast majority of them, letting them run. She'll get their names out of Weatherford, later, but, for now, she's looking for…
She turns and sees her approaching too late.
With a scream, Vanessa crashes into her, knocking them both to the ground. Agatha kicks and bites as Vanessa scratches at her, screeching, completely unhinged now, utterly beside herself. Agatha grabs her hands and tries to push her off, Vanessa snatches them away and tries to get her hands around her throat. Agatha takes a breath, intending to try and breathe fire again-
But it's unnecessary, because Vanessa is simply-and suddenly- torn from Agatha, so aggressively that the older woman nearly headbutts the floor, kicking and wailing as she's bodily snatched away by- by-
Callis drags Vanessa across the floor by her hair, letting her flail and scream, before kicking the french doors open and throwing her out onto one of the high balconies. Agatha sits up, pushing her hair out of her face, and finds that chunks of it are coming away, burnt, in her hands. Great. She's going to have to beg Beatrix to fix it.
Looking across the hall, it's carnage- the huge crack in the floor where the ice wall had erupted, noblemen and guards groaning on the floor, more staggering out of the doors, random patches of ice sparkling on the pillars, the ceiling, even out on the balconies. A lot of people have snuck back in through the doors- Ravan, Dot and Hort are absent, but Beatrix and Sophie are hovering, stunned, and several townspeople have shuffled back in, with similar expressions, touching the newly iced pillars and gazing at the ceiling. Even as they do, there's another distant rumble-
Then Agatha sees Chaddick go running across the hall, and remembers who's causing it all.
"He's still breathing." says a white-faced Weatherford as they approach. "Just."
"Why are you still here?" snaps Agatha, barging him out of the way and kneeling next to Tedros in her ruined dress.
"You can't seriously believe that I had any idea what was going on-"
"Clearly you didn't, else you might have been useful." growls Chaddick, as Agatha stoops over Tedros. He's no longer choking or convulsing, but his breathing is scarily loud, and laboured.
"I can't believe this." says Chaddick faintly. "I should've gone with him, I knew there was unrest-"
"There was no way you could have foreseen what was going to happen, especially as it happened so quickly." says Agatha sternly, even though she's been harbouring the same regrets.
Callis comes to stand over them, brushing her hands off. She looks grimly down at Tedros, for a moment.
"Guess he's not in any state to decide what to do with Vanessa." she says.
When Agatha steps out onto the balcony, it's still snowing hard as hard as it had been when Sophie had been at the lake, maybe even harder. Everyone else crowds in the doorway behind her- townspeople, servants, random palace staff who'd been told what was happening and rushed to see, guards still loyal to Chaddick, noble guests who'd remained for the meeting... Chaddick and Hester have even carried Tedros with them, more because he started getting agitated when Agatha stood to leave, than any hope he might be able to deliver a verdict. Sophie is sat with him, trying to keep him calm and to make sure he doesn't stop breathing. The palace doctor is on his way, but he's having to fight his way through the blizzard.
Vanessa stands on the end of the balcony, right foot on the stone and the left dragging idly over the ice that's replaced the other half of the floor. Agatha looks down at her, lacing her narrow flame between her fingers. She looks very queenly, Sophie thinks, even with chunks of her hair and gown burned off, the chemise beneath riddled with holes and soot. The snow melts the second it hits her.
"You won't kill me." Vanessa says. She looks a mess- makeup running everywhere, hair ruined from where Callis had dragged her, gown ripped and burned. Good. Touching her bruising face, Sophie sincerely hopes that Agatha will. Being burned to death would suit the witch that she was.
"No," agrees Agatha. "I won't. But you'll still stand trial, and you'll be exiled from both kingdoms if you're found guilty. That means giving up your crown."
Something sparks in Vanessa's maddened eyes.
"And you-"
"I will take your place, yes, that's how succession works." says Agatha impatiently. Vanessa's smile slides into a snarl, and she stamps her foot like a petulant child.
"That will never happen. I-"
"You'll what?" snorts Agatha. "No one here will help you, now. The nobles who have already will be thrown out, as will the guards. And as for home… well, you know they only pretend to like you, for the most part."
"That's not true!" cries Vanessa. She starts to pace, sliding slightly on the ice. Callis, leaning on Agatha's shoulder, snorts at the sight of her.
"Listen," says Agatha. "Just come quietly, and-"
"I refuse to be imprisoned like some commoner!" shrieks Vanessa. Agatha sneers.
"I'm not putting you back in your rooms, they're too easily escapable."
"Oh, yes, you would know, wouldn't you?" lashes Vanessa. "Stealing that painting like you did. I should have known Sophie would cover for you."
"Yes, I had the audacity to steal an unauthorised painting of me from your rooms and destroy it, how terrible of me." snaps Agatha. "Either you come quietly or you get dragged to the dungeons. Either way, you're under arrest."
"You can't arrest me!"
"I'm the Queen of Camelot, which is where you currently are." says Agatha sourly. "I absolutely can."
Vanessa stalks back and forth, muttering furiously to herself. Yara and Chaddick look expectantly at Agatha, clearly waiting to be told to grab her.
Tedros shifts, and Sophie looks down-
His eyes are open, and he's looking right at her. Sophie opens her mouth to ask what, and he turns his head very slightly. She follows his gaze, past Agatha and all the way to Vanessa's feet.
Cracks are blossoming in the ice she's walking around on, and they're growing fast.
Sophie's head snaps back down.
There is a very clear question in Tedros's eyes.
Slowly, Sophie looks up at Agatha- at her scarred face, at the bruises from where the guards and Vanessa had grabbed her. She touches her own smarting cheek. Listens to the squeaking, struggling sound of Tedros's breathing.
She looks back down at him.
"You admitted in front of numerous witnesses that you tried to kill the King." Agatha is saying. "I don't think you've got much of a chance of being found not guilty."
Vanessa turns furiously on her, and Callis steps forward, shoving Agatha behind her and hounding Vanessa into the corner- Sophie tenses, but Agatha immediately pulls Callis back.
"Don't, just leave her- last chance, Vanessa."
"Won't you even acknowledge me as your mother?"
"Only when completely necessary." says Agatha coldly. Vanessa leers, but she doesn't say anything else, just looks down at the semi-conscious Tedros, who gazes vaguely back at her.
"Think he'll see tomorrow?"
"Shut your mouth." Agatha says blackly, suddenly very quiet. "Chaddick, take her away."
Vanessa's eyes widen as Chaddick and Yara start through the crowd. Clearly, she hadn't expected Agatha to actually do it.
"You are under arrest for charges of high treason and attempted regicide, both of which you have admitted to in front of numerous reliable witnesses." says Agatha coldly, drawing herself up. "Take her to the dungeons."
They reach for Vanessa-
With a scream, she lunges for Agatha and Callis. Callis grabs Agatha and pulls her back, Agatha tries to do the same for Callis-
And Tedros seems to find his question answered, because he turns his head away.
Sophie's eyes widen.
The ice beneath Vanessa's feet shatters.
For a second, Vanessa seems to hang in the air, eyes bugging, mouth open-
Then, with a screech, she plunges through the hole, disappearing from view, wailing all the way down-
There's a sickening thud, followed by the sound of something breaking, and a splash.
"The lake." whispers Weatherford.
For a minute, there's no sound but Tedros's squeaking breaths, and the howl of the wind, and the ringing of the bells. Agatha and Callis clutch one another, shocked. Sophie's jaw sets. Everyone else stands, white-faced...
Then Tedros starts to choke violently, blood and water spurting from his mouth, and everyone rushes to his side as he twitches and spasms-
But his eyes are open, and, as they carry him away, Sophie finds that it sounds much, much more like laughter.