Marianne groans as she paces in front of the balcony window of her old room in the Light Field palace. She hated waiting but her father is right about her needing to rest. He could be less smug about winning an argument, though.
Nibbling on the bilberry muffin she pilfered from the kitchen, she turns her attention to the moving distant lights scattered across the kingdom.
"I should be there with them," she mutters.
Of course, she knew that there isn't anything more she could do. She has full confidence that Bog already has Dawn, Sunny, and Vincent safe. Which only leaves the love potion thief to be found and that means a lot of flying.
Her wings are aching just thinking about it and a yawn sneaks past her defenses. Another yawn forces her to abandon her vigil and settle onto the rosebud bed. A lonely bed without her husband.
"Marianne? You should be sleeping," Dagda chides, walking into the room.
"Any news yet?" Marianne asks instead.
"None yet, I'm afraid," he murmurs, sitting down beside her. "The guards I sent into the Dark Forest haven't returned and those searching the Light Field for the thief haven't found it."
"What about the missing Breezy Meadow subjects?" she questions.
"Twelve of them are accounted for and are now temporary guests in the dungeons until the Breezy Meadow delegates return home," Dagda answers. "Sir Thadius has every single one of the Breezy Meadow subjects quivering in fear and the healers had to be sent down to the dungeons once he got through with the conspirators. Our wings may not work as well as they did when we were younger but we're still pretty spry old males."
"I'm sure Roland appreciated how strong you still are before you banished him," Marianne chuckles. "Speaking of which, what are we going to do about him selling kingdom secrets to Queen Vesper?"
"Since he has deemed himself a threat to the kingdom, I will inform the other kingdoms of his crimes. If he's still in residence in the Breezy Meadow then it won't take long before he meets the same fate those conspirators will be facing upon their return to their kingdom," he comments.
Marianne can't help the shiver at the knowledge of what will happen. The Breezy Meadow isn't averse to harsh public punishments for even the smallest crimes but only public torture and execution awaits those connected to this night's events.
"Now, enough about that. There's something I want to ask you since you're still awake," Dagda mentions. "Did Bog say anything to you about the fight that happened this afternoon between the two guards?"
"No," she answers. "That happened after he left, so he didn't know about it."
"I think he knows more than you think. When Dawn came home for dinner, she said that Bog had looked upset when he passed by Sunny's village on his way back to the Dark Forest and didn't even acknowledge her and Sunny waving at him," he explains. "Also, Sepphira finally admitted to what started the fight. The other guard, Alexander, had made...cruel remarks about Bog. When he eventually insinuated that your infant was the result of the night of your abduction and that you were only guessing about which goblin sired the infant...,"
"I'm disappointed in Sepphira, she should have hit him harder," Marianne remarks. "Why didn't she tell me what happened earlier? I wouldn't have punished her had I known she was only defending her royals' honor."
"She didn't want you to know what Alexander's opinion was of you and Bog but when she realized that he was one of the two Breezy Meadow subjects still missing, she requested that she be allowed to join the guards sent into the Dark Forest," Dagda comments.
"I'll talk to Bog to see if he heard anything," she murmurs, rubbing her stomach. "He's already pretty riled, though. One of our subjects back in the Dark Forest made a derogatory remark about the infant today, claiming that they'll be too weak to continue Bog's royal bloodline. Griselda had informed me months ago that there are a few pureblood families that looked down on halfling-bloods as inferior but it doesn't make sense with this goblin. I may not have been around her much but Yemma has never said anything to make me believe she was one of them, especially since she has two sons with a male that was a halfling-blood."
"Was? I take it that her husband is dead?" he guesses.
"Lyla, her brother's mate, had told me that Styx died a few weeks before last Beltane," Marianne confirms.
"Then as one ruler to another, I suggest that you deal cautiously when dealing with your subject. She might very well be speaking out of pain from a broken heart and not out of disloyalty," Dagda suggests, leaning over to kiss her forehead. "As a father, I order you to try and get some sleep. I have to go see if the messengers I sent to Plum are back yet."
"You sent a messenger to her? Dad, you're crazy," she groans.