Chap 18
Sofia's portrait hung on the wall at eye level as you entered the chambers and King John was horrified to see most of her personal touches and baubles still on display. Ianto had been placed in a dead woman's mausoleum.
Ianto was in the bed with the draped half closed. The large four poster bed had been a lavish gift for the newlywed couple many moons ago and King John silently berated his son once again for his thoughtlessness.
"Excuse me dear boy, can I have an audience?" King John politely asked quietly.
Ianto sat up with a gasp and turned to face him. John felt his heart clench as he clearly saw the pain on the elegant young man's face.
"Please, your majesty. It is your kingdom that holds me. I have no quarrel with you." Ianto said sadly and laid back against the pillows.
"I believe my son has caused you immeasurable pain with his inability to understand politics" John chose his words carefully and was encouraged by Ianto's polite nod.
"Please. All I have are rumours and whispers from the walls. Tell me what has happened." He asked.
"I have been a fool and I deserve my fate. To be wed as a Cocked Queen as your son rules my kingdom was not the deal I thought we had made. Yet, here I am. In a dead woman's bed waiting to bond my bloodline away. I should have died with my sister, better to have died a hero than become the laughing stock your son has made me" Ianto said bitterly.
"I was also led to believe you and Jack would rule as equals, sharing your combined loads. This is the first I have heard of these nasty rumours. As to these rooms, I can only apologise for my son's stupidity at not anticipating the extreme discomfort this decor must be for a man of your military background." The king shook his head in confusion.
"My servants have been dismissed. I am alone." Ianto's voice broke as he looked at his future father-in-law. "I am to be a caged bird with no company save for the ornate mirror hanging in my gilded cage."
The king groaned as he saw the mistake and he begged his leave to go thump his son.
.
.
.
When King John repeated Jack's words the young Prince Regent all but howled for his blindness. Vowing vengeance for this attempted sabotage e once again approached Ianto's wing.
To his relief he found a different Guard who gave the Harkness salute. Slipping beyond the heavy drapes he saw the rooms for the first time through Ianto's eyes and he chastised himself. Sofia was everywhere. How insulting.
Jack entered the bedroom to plead his case and stopped dead in his tracks. Ianto stood before him facing the windows as he went through his daily yoga routine.
Naked.