A/N: So incredibly tired...but determined to keep updates coming.
TheRanger'sDaughter: Gabe will take on a bigger part later in the story, and a lot of your curiosities will be addressed. I don't travel until Saturday, but I am literally working up until right before I go and then a coworker is picking me up when I get back so I can go straight back to work. It's a logistical nightmare, but I think it will be soooo worth it.
Alex: Relatable was correct :) Glad you like Reese!
Disclaimer: I'm not John Flanagan.
The next day, Elizabet sat in a comfortable chair with Anne perched in front of her. She'd coaxed the girl into removing her blindfold by playing with her hair. Anne sat smiling as Elizabet wove the strands into a complex pattern, chatting away about a time Robin took her to listen to a puppet show. Alicia flitted around Elizabet's bridesmaids, Courier Sarah-Beth and Lady Pamela, making sure their dresses for the wedding were perfect. Gabby had work to do with Caitlyn while Kane volunteered to accompany Robin to the docks for her work. Though Robin traveled independently now, he still felt nervous about letting her go anywhere alone.
Her family's schedules left Anne in need of someone to spend her day with. The other little girls were somewhere in the castle on a scavenger hunt orchestrated by Carissa, far away from wedding preparation. Elizabet gladly took on Anne as her sidekick.
"Your Grace, what do you think?" Alicia prompted her. Elizabet sighed. The only one opposed to Anne's being there was Alicia. Alicia wanted Elizabet to stress about her wedding as much as she did, while Elizabet felt perfectly confident everything that needed tending was being tended. Elizabet wanted to enjoy her last days as Elizabet O'Carrick surrounded by family and friends, not fussing over whether her bouquet had enough clover or if the chocolate cake had enough tiers. She especially wanted her constant companion to stop referring to her as 'Your Grace' among friends.
"It looks fine," Elizabet answered with just a glance.
"You're sure we don't need an extra button on the back?" Sarah-Beth snickered. Elizabet tossed a glare at her. She and Pamela both giggled while Alicia became visibly flustered.
"Your Grace," Alicia began, but she was interrupted by Julia marching in through a side door.
"Your Grace," Julia cut Alicia off. "I'm here to make sure everyone is decent. More guests have arrived."
Elizabet turned her glare to Julia, but it didn't last long. Uncle Calvin and Aunt Tammy followed in behind her. Elizabet leapt to her feet and crossed over to them, leaving Anne perched on the floor in front of the chair. Anne's brow furrowed and her hands flattened over the chair's cushion. Julia knelt next to her, taking her arm and guiding her up as she whispered what was happening. Anne latched onto Julia's skirts. New people always brought out her shyness.
"You made it!" Elizabet exclaimed, throwing her eyes around Tammy. Tammy laughed, locking her arms around her niece.
"We wouldn't miss it," Tammy assured her. Elizabet kept her arm around Tammy in a side hug as she nodded to her uncle. She'd tried to keep a civil relationship with him over the years, but hadn't been able to bring herself to hug him since he made a scene at her sixteenth birthday. That seemed like a lifetime ago, but it still etched in her memory.
"Elizabet," Calvin greeted her.
"Lady Alicia," Pamela prompted. "Would you bring up lunch for all of us?"
Elizabet could almost see the daggers flying at Pamela from Alicia's eyes. She waved Alicia away, nodding for her to obey the request. It wasn't considered appropriate for someone in service to a female member of the royal family to take orders from anyone but those above that member in rank, meaning aside from Elizabet Alicia need only take orders from Scout and Kineta…perhaps one day Hazen's wife and Mara. Pamela fit into the royal line somewhere in the mid-thirties. Elizabet met her at the Academy and then they reunited when Pamela took a post at Roscrea helping Kineta manage fundraisers and the Ward.
"Who is this?" Tammy asked, smiling to Anne. She frowned and glanced to Elizabet with a raised eyebrow when Julia began helping retie the blindfold.
"This is Anne," Elizabet said, leading her aunt over to the little girl. She took Anne's hand, gave it a squeeze, and then connected it to Tammy's palm. Anne whimpered slightly. She tried to retreat into Julia, but Julia gave her no sanctuary. Elizabet knelt next to Anne, keeping her hand on her back so she'd know she wasn't alone. "Anne this is Tammy, my aunt. She could braid your hair if you like."
"When does Mummy come back?" Anne whispered.
"Later," Julia answered softly. "She's with Caitlyn working on some things. Daddy and Robin will likely be back first."
"Robin," Tammy repeated, looking over to Elizabet. "This is Kane and Gabby's child?"
Elizabet nodded. Unfortunately, Calvin figured out Anne's origins and couldn't resist calling her on it.
"Such a pretty hair color you have, Anne," he mumbled. Tammy and Elizabet both shot him a look, as did Julia. He shrugged and collapsed on a bench.
"I want Daddy," Anne whined. Elizabet could see her uncle's comment cut her to the core. She sighed, pulling Anne into her arms. She looked to Julia for help. Of everyone in Roscrea, she trusted Julia and Warden to help with Calvin most. They'd spent enough time escorting her to and from Claymound to know how to handle his antics.
Julia swept in the moment she was prompted. "Anne, why don't you come with me? We'll go for a ride on the beach. Does that sound like fun?"
Whether or not Anne was up for a ride didn't matter. Anne wanted away from strangers, and joining Julia would get her that. Julia rested her hand on Anne's shoulder and led the poor girl out of the room. Elizabet waited until they were gone to turn a glare on her uncle.
"What?" he asked, feigning innocence.
We're not doing this," Tammy ordered. She turned to Elizabet, smiling all over again. "We're both happy for you, sweetheart."
Elizabet tried to force a smile, but the doors opened again. This time her parents joined them, flanked by Daniel. Elizabet mouthed her thanks to the Araluen Ranger Commandant that had served as their Liaison throughout her childhood. He and Julia must have split up when her biological family arrived. He simply nodded back, confirming her suspicions.
"Welcome back to Roscrea," her mother said diplomatically. "Would you join us for lunch?"
"We…" Calvin trailed, but Sean cut him off.
"We insist," her father said. His tone made the order clear. Calvin looked back to Elizabet. She turned her eyes to the floor. Tammy took Calvin's arm and tugged him towards Sean and Kineta. Elizabet shut her eyes as the door closed behind them. Why must Calvin be so hateful to the people who took her as their own?
She opened her eyes when she felt a hand on her shoulder. Elizabet found herself face-to-face with Ranger Daniel.
"Easy," he whispered to her. "The next few days are about you, Elizabet. Not them."
"I just want to have one day they aren't trying to undercut my family here," Elizabet sighed. "Well, not they. Just him."
Daniel nodded. He tilted his head to where Pamela and Sarah-Beth huddled together. "Go have fun," he whispered to her. "Quickly, before your lady-in-waiting comes back."
For a moment, Elizabet considered how rude it'd be for them to disappear after sending Alicia for lunch. Then she thought of how effectively Alicia had been ruining her mood for weeks, stressing over minor wedding details Elizabet really wasn't concerned about. She motioned for her bridesmaids to follow her and together they disappeared through a side door.