I have to admit I'm not in a great place at the moment. Not only have I got a horrible cold but I am really struggling on my MA course, having had my writing shredded for a second time this week. I have to admit I'm feeling a little sore from it XD
Anyway, I hope that you enjoy this chapter.
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
VI
The great hall was brimming with life as Dawn stepped into the hustle and bustle. Rich silks and velvets flurried around her. She tiptoed around dancers, past gentlemen, bowing her head politely as people greeted her most warmly. Misty and May followed her, changed out of their waiting clothes. Instead Misty wore a rich sapphire blue dress that swished with heavy velvets with each of her steps. She played with a sapphire ring on her finger, smiling widely as people parted out of her way. May stared round, her hands clasped in her ruby red skirts as she looked round for her parents. They should be there, she thought, among the crowds.
"You two may go," Dawn told them from over her shoulder. The pair of them scattered instantly, Misty towards her husband while May went in search of her parents. Dawn continued on wards, smiling at more people as they hurried towards her to wish her well. She blushed as someone remarked on the two sparkling hair ornaments in her hair.
She paused as she saw the Lord Privy Seal. He was wearing his usual black, talking quietly with a clerk. She changed her direction and walked towards him, her eyes flashing with mischief as she put one foot in front of the other. He must have sense her coming because he dismissed his clerk and turned his dark eyes onto her. He bowed his head as she stepped up to him.
"Lady Berlitz," he said steadily, bowing.
"My Lord Privy Seal," she replied curtly. "I see the Duke of Somerset did not run you through after all."
"No, my lady," he replied, his lips curling into a smile.
"Shame," she commented. She went to walk away from him but he held out his hand.
"Would you like to dance, my lady?" he asked. She had to do a double take at this very question, not quite expecting this.
"You dance?" she blurted out.
"Of course," he replied. "I've been at Court long enough to know how to dance."
He held out his hand for a moment longer and was about to drop it when she grabbed it, a cattish smile spreading on her lips as she wrapped her fingers around his.
"Well, lets see how well you can dance, sir," she said.
The King watched on with an amused smile as Dawn and the Lord Privy Seal stepped onto the dance floor. The room hushed at the action but only for a second before the Earl of Winchester and his wife stepped forwards too.
"He dances," the Queen stated as the Privy Seal did the first few steps of the dance. The King nodded once. "Not bad for a farmer's son."
"He dances better than me," a low voice quipped from beside the King. Cyrus turned to give his friend, Giovanni, Duke of Gloucester, a smirk. "He's going all out to win her over. Forever the servant."
"He likes her," Norfolk commented on the other side of Gloucester. "He always has ever since he interrogated her when her father was on trail for treason."
"Why, what did he do to her?" Cyrus asked. Ursula leant forwards to hear what Norfolk had to say, her eyebrow rising with interest.
"It's not what he did to her, it's what she did to him," Norfolk replied. "I think she argued with him. He does not say."
Cyrus watched as the Lord Privy Seal twirled his cousin round with all the grace of a Duke. He didn't do things by halves, Cyrus thought. Tell him to marry someone and he will make them fall in love with him. He took a swig of his wine, scowling as his cousin leant in to whisper something in his ear. What ever she said made him smirk and reply with a short word or two. It appeared as though the pair were courting quite merrily but there was something in the way they held each other – distant. It was all for show. He wasn't sure if he was proud or saddened to see it.
The music finally stopped and the pair bowed to each other before the Lord Privy Seal took hold of Dawn hand and walked her towards the King. His free hand went behind his back as he walked, his eyes darting around to see who was watching him. Dawn was smiling brightly, a soft sheen of sweat making her complexion glow in the candlelight.
"I hate this dance already," she said to him out of the corner of her mouth. He slowed his pace slightly to give her more time to talk to him privately. "It's all a show isn't it?"
"If you want it to be," he muttered in reply.
"My ladies thought your letter was very nice, very pleasing for them. I know you far too well to take so many truths from it," she went on. He stopped walking, turning her round so she had to look at him. Her eyes flashed with confusion and anger at being stopped so suddenly.
"I think you judge me too harshly, Lady," he said.
"Do I?"
"Those ornaments do suit you," he commented, eyes darting to her hair.
"I thank you for it," she said, "but I prefer amber."
"You always challenge me, my Lady," he said, not unkindly. "Why?"
"I like to see you rise to the challenge, my Lord," she replied. She blinked then looked at him from underneath her eyelashes. "My Lord."
He let her glide away from him, a smile playing at his lips while he watched her take her seat next to the Queen. She sat down with soft humph, her eyes wandering over the Lord Privy Seal as he turned his back to her and walked out of the hall, no doubt business to attend to.
"It really doesn't become you to be sarcastic," he told her a few hours later as he walked around her rooms, eyebrows raised as he took in the décor. Tapestries hung on the back wall, curtains on the other two: one for the windows, the other as a divide for her bedchamber. He noted the large long table in the centre of the room, four chairs tucked underneath the table top and a large floral centre-piece in the middle. The fireplace was on the back wall between the tapestries with two long plush chairs placed around it.
He paced up and down, his hands tightly clasped behind his back as he walked this way and that. Dawn watched him curiously as she sat beside the fire, warming her aching legs. She had danced a lot tonight.
"And it's very odd to see you dance," she said.
"I thought you liked dancing?" he asked, turning his head to look at her. She nodded her head, stretching out her legs in front of her. Upon her silence, he decided to continue: "I've always liked to watch the courtiers dancing. I can't say I enjoy dancing myself."
"Well, the whole room was staring," she muttered. "Why did you offer to dance?"
"You like dancing. I thought you would enjoy it."
"Do you know what else I like to do?" she asked, leaning forwards on her seat, smiling at him.
"Aside from writing witty letters, poisoning the gentry and harassing me?"
"Yes."
"I suppose you like to go riding since you grew up in the country. I've had the pleasure of seeing your artwork too. Also, your father was keen on music so I would gather you played an instrument out of habit?"
"How very clever of you," Dawn commented. "What do you like to do?"
"I see, I had to guess your hobbies, now I have to tell you mine," he said, raising an eyebrow at her. She pouted at the challenge but remained silent as he walked towards her so he could sit opposite her. He sat down carefully, tucking his coat underneath his legs. An amused expression rested on his face as she thought about his hobbies.
"Do you actually have any hobbies apart from working?" she asked.
"I do," he admitted with a nod. She thought a moment longer, her eyes tracing up and down his body.
"I'm not sure what you would enjoy doing," she said finally. "Perhaps creating better ways to torture people or planning strategies for the take over of this realm."
He barked with laughter: "This is how you see me?"
"You dress in black all the time, like the grim reaper of court," she replied.
"It's my colour," he said. "What would you have me wear instead?"
She didn't comment.
"Well, since you are dying to know," he went on, "I like to write."
"As a clerk, I expect that," Dawn said.
"I keep diaries," he clarified.
"Of your day? What do you say about me?" she asked.
"That you are one of the most annoying, troublesome, brilliant women I have ever met."
"My, my, you do know how to flatter a woman, don't you?"
"I like to... keep to the truth."
Dawn rose from her chair very suddenly, heels clicking against the wooden floor until she reached the window curtains. She pulled them so she could see outside into the gardens below her window.
"When we are married," she said clearly, "I'll have to move out of these rooms, won't I?"
He thought about it for a few moments, merely out of politeness because he always planned ahead. He knew that there was not enough room for the both of them in her two roomed apartments but if she was going to kick up a fuss about it, then there was no real sense fighting her.
"I would prefer to move to my apartments," he said slowly. "I have four rooms including a study where I can work at night. There will be a spare room for you to use as you want."
"And are there any gardens?" she asked.
"No," he admitted. "But the view from the bedchamber is quite something. It's also closer to the Queen's bedroom so you would be able to meet with her often."
"I see." But she didn't. The room fell silent as she stared out of the window, her eyes twinkling with tears. Slowly she stepped back from the curtain, turning to face the Lord Privy Seal. "Forgive me, I am suddenly feeling unwell."
"It is a big change," he said but not off topic. "but I hope to make it as comfortable for you as possible. You are the heir to the throne. My priority is keeping you happy and healthy."
"Really?" she asked. "Am I such an important chess piece for the throne?"
"No," Master Shinji replied. "If I wanted, I could quite easily over ride the Act of Succession that your cousin passed within days of his ascension, but I'd much rather keep to my books and accounts. I'm a lawyer, not a King."
"Are you saying I'm unsuitable to be a Queen?" Dawn asked, whipping round to glare at him.
"No," he said calmly, his features quite calm in spite of her snapping tone. "I would never wish the position of Queen on anyone. A Queen has no privacy. She is property of the state, a cargo holder, an heir maker. She has very little function than to look pretty and keep quiet. Poets write about her fashion, the colour of her cheeks or the sparkle in her eyes but they never ask her how she is, how she feels. A Queen is a very drab position to be in."
Dawn was stunned by his little speech. Despite it sounding like it was rehearsed, she felt he was being truthful about his feelings. She stood awkwardly for a few minutes before walking back to her seat, playing with her fingers nervously as she took up residence facing Master Shinji.
"You don't want to use me to get closer to the Crown?" she asked.
"I'm already far too close to the Crown than I would like to be," he replied. "If I may, I would like to move you away from the Crown too. I think it's poison. King's come and go so quickly."
"And yet their Lord Privy Seals remain for an age," she commented.
"I've been the longest in office," he said. "I have no idea why. Perhaps it's because I started young. Perhaps I've been lucky in my Kings. I thought my luck was changing until the other night when the King asked me to marry you. I thought he hated me. I thought you hated me, but it is thanks to you that he thinks so well of me."
"It's my own fault," she admitted.
"Yes," he agreed. "You are so very troublesome."
"My Lord Privy Seal," she said, sounding a little resigned to her fate now.
"Paul," he corrected her.
"Paul – no, that's far too strange – Privy Seal, I must ask you a favour for when we get married."
"Anything."
"That my cousin doesn't make it into a grand event like his coronation. I want a small wedding, private if possible. The King, the Queen, Norfolk, my ladies, my mother, your family-"
"I'm not inviting my family to Whitehall, no."
"Why?" she asked. "They are your family."
"My family are farmers," Master Shinji snapped, "and my brother is highly annoying."
"Well, you do take after him."
"I will see about the private wedding in any case," he told her, ignoring her dig at him. "I assume you want to pick out your wedding dress?"
"Yes," Dawn said hurriedly. "That will be great, thank you."
i
Her gown was almost as pale as she was as she gripped her cousin's hand tightly in her own. To be given away by the King on her wedding day would usually have been a great privilege, an honour, but she didn't feel as though it was today. She was being forced into marrying a man she didn't really trust and the whole gentry was watching her every move. The Privy Seal had planned a quiet ceremony in the small chapel in the palace at Whitehall but that hadn't stopped the King parading her around the palace in her wedding dress. It was his sign of defiance against the Privy Seal. Were they really still trying to beat each other over the power they exerted?
"Cousin, don't be nervous," he told her coldly, "today is the happiest day of your life."
She was going to say something sarcastic back to him but then she remembered he was the King and could quite soon cut off her head if he wanted. Instead she nodded, nibbling her lip as she was finally lead into the church, masses of Lords and Ladies hovering outside the door. She relaxed a little when she heard the heavy oak door shut behind her, her shoulders relaxing and her steps becoming easier. She was marched down the aisle to where her husband to be was waiting, blank faced as usual. The King stopped short of the steps up to the altar so he could lift up her veil and reveal her pale features to the world. He gave her a soft kiss on the cheek then stepped backwards. For a second or two, she stood dumbly on the spot until the Lord Privy stepped down one step, his hand extending towards her.
She took it slowly. His fingers were warm but not sweaty. Didn't this man ever worry about anything? He lead her to a kneeling pillow which she paused at before she knelt down. He copied her motion and went to take his hand from hers but she refused to let go. He half glanced at her petrified face then turned to look at the minister.
As the ageing man began speaking in Latin, signalling the cross with his fingers, Dawn's grip on the Lord Privy Seal's hand intensified. He wasn't alarmed by this, nor did the action register any emotion on his face. He was too enthralled in looking at the priest in front of him, eyeing the jewel encrusted robes and the tall arched hat on his head. Slowly, to calm her, he ran his thumb over her freezing fingers, spreading a little warmth into the flesh. She relaxed at the simple movement.
Was this the sort of husband she was getting? Was he always so comforting? Maybe she had judged him far too harshly or maybe it was an act he was putting on to show good faith to the rest of the family. Her mother was upset by the match.
"That cruel clerk who put my husband to death is going to marry my poor, innocent baby?" she had cried when she realised just who Dawn was marrying. No way to make the whole situation worse, was there?
She was jolted back to reality when the Lord Privy Seal said something. It sounded like 'I will'. The priest now inclined his head to Dawn, asking her something in Latin that she didn't quite understand given the claustrophobic feeling that had just come over her.
"She does," Cyrus said from the crowd. The priest paused looking at his King then back at Dawn.
"Please," the Privy Seal said in a hushed whisper. She thought he was talking to her but when she turned her head to look at him, he was looking at the priest. "Could you repeat that for her, in English?"
Realisation lit up in the priest's eyes and he nodded before saying to Dawn: "Will you take this man as your husband until death parts you?"
"I will," Dawn said quietly. She wanted to sound a little less scared than she was but she became aware that she was shivering. The Privy Seal pushed a ring onto her finger gently. She looked at the ring, the amber colour of the stone causing her to stare at it for a good few seconds.
The priest straightened up and said the last few things in Latin before the Privy Seal got to his feet, Dawn hurrying to do the same. She allowed him to lead her back through the church, eyes unfocused as the doors opened.
"The worst is over now," he muttered to her.
"Is it?" she asked.
"Yes," he replied. He glanced at her, smiling despite his annoyance. She looked petrified. "I thought you could speak Latin."
"I can," she said. "I just... didn't understand what he was saying, that's all. I panicked."
"It's fine," he assured her. "Just try to relax. We can retire early if you're feeling unwell."
"Wouldn't that make me seem a little eager?" she snapped at him in a hushed whisper, well aware that people were watching them still.
"Not if I stay behind," he said. His voice was calming, gentle. "You look unwell."
"I'm petrified, that's why," she said. "I hate people looking at me like... like I'm the prized pig at the farmer's market."
"Don't be ridiculous, you're not a pig," he said, smile broadening on his face. "Pigs are less troublesome than you are."
"Asshole," she muttered. He gave a quiet chuckle as she glared daggers at him. Upon hearing his laughter she relaxed a little bit more, suddenly the gaze of the people milling around her not bothering her one bit. His hand tightened around hers in a comforting manner. Now she was his wife. He would protect her from everyone else. Right?
ii
"Push a pillow under your hips," Misty muttered to her as she combed Dawn's hair. Dawn blushed scarlet at what Misty had just said, muted out of mortification.
"Oh my," she hissed, "I forgot about the wedding night."
"How could you?" Misty said, giggling slightly. "It's the only incentive for men to get married."
"Oh, Misty, how do I get out of it?" Dawn asked, her eyes pleading with Misty's. Misty gave a laugh, tugging Dawn's nightgown upwards.
"Why, you pull it over your head," she said as a joke. Dawn buried her face in her hands, angry tears pouring into her palms as she thought about the up coming humiliation she would have to face. Misty resumed brushing her hair, still smiling at her joke. It was rare that Dawn could be teased so easily and Misty was not one for ignoring an opportunity. "Has your mother ever given you the talk about the one eyed-"
"Lady Ketchum, please stop distressing her."
Dawn's blood ran cold. She slowly took her hands away from her eyes so she could look at her new husband across by the doorway. He was shrugging his thick coat off his shoulders, scowling at the orange haired Lady brushing Dawn's hair.
"Get out," he told her. Misty quickly put down the brush, bobbed a curtsey and left the room with not so much as a good luck. Dawn stared at the Lord Privy Seal as he threw his coat down on a chair then walked over to her. He picked up the hair brush, moving his hand to get her to face the mirror so that he could take over Misty's chore.
"You look beautiful with your hair down," he commented.
"I don't want to sleep-"
"No new bride ever does," he said, a smile flashing across his features then disappearing. He continued brushing her hair softly, hardly pulling on her head. "I used to brush my sister's hair when I was younger. She used to sit on a stool and tell me: Paul, brush my hair, I am the Queen."
Despite herself, Dawn smiled.
"The sweat took her when I was in France," he went on. "She was married, two children. My brother and I were left with the orphans. They live with my brother now."
"They say you've been married before," Dawn stated.
"No, I haven't," he said. "While in France I did promise myself to a young French girl and we did live like man and wife for a short while. Then she left me for a squire because I was far too poor for her taste."
"I bet she's kicking herself now," Dawn mumbled. "You're rich now."
"Hmmm," he said with a nod. "Not too rich, though. A lot of the money I receive from my trading and accounting business goes back to the crown in taxes. I have enough to live off of."
"And now you have my riches," Dawn said.
"I'll leave them to you," he told her.
"I thought you loved money," Dawn said, looking at him through the mirror.
"I love my money," he admitted. "I don't like taking other people's."
He placed the brush on the table gently. Then he put his hand in his pocket, digging something out for him to show her. He produced a pouch, placing it in front of Dawn on the table. She slowly unwrapped the gift, eyes widening when she saw what it was. It was a beautiful amber necklace with stones big enough to make the Queen's jewellery look obsolete and tiny. Each stone was expertly set, glowing with a rich colour.
"To match your ring," the Privy Seal said, whispering in her ear. He leant into her, kissing her cheek. Dawn felt a flash of nostalgia when his breath tickled her ear. She didn't want to remember the interrogation, not today, but his actions were so like then. She closed her eyes, biting her lip as she cradled the necklace in her hands.
"Thank you," she said. Please, she wanted to say, please don't make me. He must have sensed her thoughts because he drew away from her, walking over to the other side of the room so he could remove his jerkin. She watched him through the mirror, finding it odd to see him in such a matter of undress. The jerkin was tossed on top of his coat. Underneath the jerkin he wore a white under shirt with a high neck. He then kicked off his knee high boots, pushing them next to the chair. He seemed to realise he was being watched now, turning his head to stare at her reflection.
"What?" he asked. He didn't sound like him suddenly, much rather confused than the Lord Privy Seal she was used to.
"Nothing," she replied. He began to untie his breeches, pausing as his gaze returned to her innocent one through the mirror.
"Your last husband never shared a bed with you," it was a statement.
"No. We never shared a room. I was one side of the house, he was on the other," she replied. He nodded once.
"The King is having us on, isn't he?" the Lord Privy Seal said, eyebrows raising as a smirk washed across his face. He held out his hand, telling her to come over to him. She slowly stood up, turned around then walked towards her husband as if she was on her death march. He reached for her hand with both of his, placing it gently against his chest. He was warm. Underneath the shirt and the flesh, she could feel his heart beating. Happy that she was preoccupied with feeling his heart beat, he took his hands from hers, putting them around her shoulders so he could pull her into him. As she came closer, his hands trailed down her spine back to rest at the middle of her back. She placed her head on his shoulder, tears springing into her eyes.
"Do you want me to destroy him, sweetheart?" he whispered to her. He put his cheek against her forehead.
"Yes, please," she muttered back, unable to stop the tears rolling down her cheeks.
iii
Cyrus didn't expect his Lord Privy Seal to be so normal the day after his wedding. He expected a little spring in his step, a smile or some little comment about the night before but he was as expressionless as usual. He arrived at the King's chamber at nine with his dossier full of things needed to be done that day. They sat at the long table in the King's parlour, the morning sun peeking through the windows.
"Did you actually go to bed last night?" Cyrus snapped, irritably as the fifth document was placed in front of him to sign and stamp.
"Of course," the Lord Privy Seal replied calmly. That is all he said on the matter, changing the conversation to a more business like tone. He pointed out the key things about the document, only falling silent when the King signed it. He was quick to pour the wax next to the signature so that Cyrus could stamp it with his seal.
"So?" the King asked.
"So what, sire?" the Lord Privy Seal asked in reply, their cold eyes meeting. Did he really have to ask?
"Will I have to tell my wife to expect a new member of our family or did my cousin manage to beat you off with a stick?" Cyrus said finally, a smile crawling onto his lips as he imagined his cousin smacking his Lord Privy Seal. The Privy Seal didn't say anything for a second or two then he reached into his dossier for another piece of elegantly written parchment. He placed it on the table in front of the King, still silent. "Oh I see."
"Sire?"
"She did beat you up, didn't she? I bet you had to sleep on the floor."
While the King scribbled his name on the bottom of the parchment, Master Shinji rolled his eyes. Was the King just being perverted or nosey, he couldn't be sure.
"No, sire," he said finally. "Although she blames you for the whole experience of yesterday."
"Why?"
"You're the one who told us to marry," the Privy Seal said. "And that is the last order of business today."
"When did you have time to do all of this work?" the King asked, suddenly interested. They'd both been busy at the wedding then the feast the day before so how could the Privy Seal still have work to give to the King at nine o'clock the next day.
"Oh, these have been sat on my desk for the past fortnight," the Privy Seal admitted. "My Captain in France always said to look busy even when you haven't got anything to do."
"Sound advice," Cyrus agreed. "You can go if that's all you need me to do."
"Majesty," Master Shinji said with a low bow. He then excused himself. He was mobbed by people as he walked through the great hall. He managed to wave most of them away, brushing past the remainder as he continued through the great hall. He was stopped by the Earl of Winchester as close to the main entrance.
"A word," the Earl said, his usual goofy expression was gone. He seemed completely serious about whatever he wanted to talk to the Privy Seal about. They huddled into a corner so they could talk privately for the time being.
"It is about the Lord Baron of Doncaster," the Earl mumbled.
"I presume he got to Spain in one piece," the Privy Seal quipped, secretly glad that he had made it without being attacked by pirates or anything in that nature.
"He sent me this," the Earl continued, slipping him an unsealed letter. The Lord Privy Seal took the letter, glancing around to see if anyone was watching them before he read the contents.
Ash,
Please let Misty know I arrived safely at the Spanish Court. The King has been more than courteous in welcoming back after my absence, despite knowing I'm only here because of the crisis in England.
Many people are remarking that the King of Spain does not like the fact King Cyrus has taken up the crown in England. He says it gives him many worries about the future. There is even talk of war between the two countries. I will report to you if I hear anything sufficient. In the mean time, please alert the Lord Privy Seal. He should know what to do and may be able to influence the King.
Please send me news as often as you can.
Brock, Lord Baron of Doncaster
The Lord Privy Seal scowled at the paper then passed it back to the Earl who quickly folded it up and slipped it into his pocket.
"Thank you," he mumbled to the Earl. "I will write to the Lord Baron immediately."
The Earl nodded and walked away, fading into the crowd instantly while the Privy Seal thought about the letter. He continued to think about it even when he walked into his private rooms. He paused at the door, smelling the scent of rose water drifting from the bedchamber.
"Dawn?" he called. The first reply he got was a splash followed by:
"Don't come in, I'm in the tub."
Like he cared about that. He walked into the bed chamber anyway, looking across the room at a frozen May in the corner, then turning to look at the back of his wife's head. She was quite happily washing her arms, one leg dangling out of the tub.
"Why do you sit like that?" he asked her. She jumped. Her arms dropped to cover herself while the leg slung over the side of the tub splashed back into the warm water.
"I told you I was bathing," Dawn snapped.
"I'm your husband, you should get used to me being around you, even when you're not wearing anything," he told her. "Maple, out."
"Yes, sir," May said with a bob. She ran out of the room, making herself busy in the other room instead. His attention returned to his beetroot red wife sat in the tub. She turned herself round so she was laying on her front, her hands gripping the edge of the tub and her two large sapphire eyes peering over the top of them. Her feet rose out of the tub at the other side, resting toe side on the metal edge of the tub.
"How long have you been in there?" he asked.
"Since you left," she replied. She moved her head so that her chin was now balancing on her hands.
"That was well over two hours ago," he said. He went to step forwards but Dawn stopped him with a splash.
"Come any closer and I'll scream," she warned.
"I have to get past," he said, pointing to the cabinet on the wall behind her. She glared at him. She was not going to let him get that close to her. "Are you serious?"
"Yes," she told him. "It's embarrassing."
"I'm your husband," he said.
"I don't care," she snapped.
"Why don't you get out, then?"
"Well you're still stood there. And my robe is on the bed."
He looked to his left, finding the offending garment spread on top of the blankets. He grabbed it and went to give it to her when she raised a finger at him. He rolled his eyes then clamped his hand over them, his other hand holding out the robe for her to take. He heard the water swish in the tub as she climbed out. Seconds later the robe was ripped from his grasp but he daren't remove his hand from his eyes.
"Are you done, yet?" he asked.
"Yes," she replied. He took his hand away finally, squinting in the bright light. She was stood on the other side of the bed, running a brush through her hair. Seeing she was engaged, Shinji continued to the cabinet, wrenching it open and collecting some parchment and a quill.
"Is that all you needed?" she asked him. "There's plenty of parchment and ink in your office, go there."
"Sush," he warned her, raising his finger to his lips. He returned to the cupboard, pulling out a lump of wax and a brass stamp. "This is a personal letter."
"So?"
"So I don't want to use the paper from my office. It's quite distinguishable. This is not," he told her.
"So you're sneaking letters past the King now?" she asked. He gave a frustrated grunt as he walked back into the parlour. He set down his writing things on the writing desk in the far corner of the room. Dawn was close behind him, interested in what he was doing, well aware she was just wearing a robe and nothing else.
"Who are you writing to?" she demanded. The Privy Seal looked round at her, glaring menacingly at her. His eyes darted over to Misty and May who were stood folding sheets by the long table in the middle of the room. They were watching the couple like a pair of spies.
"Tidy up the bath tub," he barked at the pair and they shot off into the bedchamber. He turned to Dawn now, his voice lowering. "I am writing to the Baron of Doncaster. I've heard he has made it to Spain."
"And?"
"And I would like him to try and get hold of something for me that you can only get on the continent."
"And that is?"
"Do you have to be so nosey?"
"You're writing to people, ambassadors, without using the proper channels," she hissed at him. "How do I know you're not plotting with the Spanish to overthrow the King?"
"Fine," he said, rolling his eyes. "If you must know, I'm looking for saffron."
"A spice?"
"It's quite good for medicines," he lied.
"You're lying," she accused him. "I know you are."
He rolled his eyes, turning his back on her so he could start writing the letter to the Lord Baron. He began writing in his usual flawless cursive handwriting.
Lord Baron of Doncaster,
I hear you have arrived in Spain and are well looked after by the King. Upon arriving, I hope you have found the climate and the city to your liking, although I feel that the summer in England will be warm this year. You may be disappointed to hear.
I would beg of you, if you would, to send me a small pouch of saffron at your earliest convenience.
As you may have heard, I have had the pleasure of being married to the Lady Dawn Berlitz. I am hoping that married life will suit me as well as it does Sir Ketchum, however, my wife currently thinks I am a felon. Can you imagine?
"Hey!" Dawn yelped in his ear, causing him to grin. He turned to look at her.
"It is the truth, isn't it?" he asked.
"But still, you shouldn't tell him that," she replied in a half moan. He continued his writing before he dusted the paper with sand, folding it up and sealing it with green wax. He stamped the wax with the brass seal, leaving it on the table to cool. Dawn eyed the paper carefully before she was brushed aside by her new husband.
"I need to go now," he said. "Leave that there."
"Yes, husband," Dawn replied sarcastically. She gave him a small curtsey before she turned and made her way back into her room so that she could finally get dressed.
iv
The couple ate tea together in silence which was odd because they usually got along so well. The Queen sipped at her goblet regally while her husband neatly cut up his meat with a sharp knife.
"It's a shame Dawn couldn't join us," Ursula said out of the blue. "Maybe we should invite her and her new husband to dine with us one night."
"I would prefer not to," Cyrus replied. "Not the Lord Privy Seal."
"He can't be that bad, surely?"
"You don't know him," Cyrus said. "He's a servant through and through. He has nothing to talk to a king about."
"Maybe your cousin?" Ursula suggested. "That's a common talking point."
"How he's defiling her?"
"... Fine, maybe not."
They lapsed into silence once again. Ursula wondered what Dawn and her husband would be talking about during their dinner. Probably nothing, she decided. Nothing the Lord Privy Seal had to say was strictly to Dawn's liking.
"No," Dawn gasped as Master Shinji placed his goblet down on the table. "Really?"
"Of course, why do you think the Lady stays round the Queen's rooms?" he asked her. Dawn giggled like a young girl, holding her hand to her mouth.
"I never thought of it that way," she admitted. "What else do you know?"
"Far too much," he said. "I know a lot about everyone. For example, Lady Goldenrod, is expecting her first child."
"Lady Whitney?" Dawn asked. The Lord Privy Seal nodded. "That's really good. I heard that her and Morty had been trying for an age."
"So is Lady Blackthorn."
"No."
"Scary isn't it?"
"Yes," Dawn said. "I will stay away from her if I can help it."
Dawn dabbed her mouth with her napkin then placed it on the table next to her plate. She got to her feet and walked over to her new husband, placing her hands on his shoulders. She ran her fingers through the black fur of his coat wondering where he'd gotten such rich material from. Her hands forcefully kneaded his muscles underneath the fabric.
"What are you doing?" he asked, not that he was complaining.
"My mother used to do this to my father after dinner," she replied. "Is it not a normal thing to do?"
"I have no idea," he said. His eyes closed and he sank back into the chair. Dawn continued to massage his shoulders finding that the muscles were knotted under his clothes. How stressed was he? She stuck her thumb into his flesh making him grunt from pain but when she attempted to pull away, he told her not to. "I spend far much time huddled over."
"I can see that," she said. "Your shoulders are riddled with knots."
"I never had anyone to care about me before," he told her. "I pleased myself. Ate very late into the night. Slept for a few hours between midnight and five o'clock. I worked the rest of the day. Now, I guess, I will have to stop that."
"Yes, I don't want to be woken up at five in the morning," Dawn moaned.
"Well, you're a lady of status. I bet you've never seen five in the morning before," he teased her. She replied to him by sticking her thumbs deep into his back. He chuckled at her futile attempts to hurt him. His head rolled back and he looked up at her. "It is true."
"I have seen five in the morning before," she snapped. "The day when my father was dragged out of his bed by you and your guards."
"I'm sure that was seven o'clock," he mumbled in reply. "You have to pay guards more to get them up before six."
"And my father wasn't worth the extra money?"
"No, it wasn't worth the extra hassle."
Dawn huffed, clawing at her husband's shoulders until a hand shot up and grabbed hers. She froze on the spot. Had she hurt him? Maybe he was going to hurt her now. The Privy Seal pushed himself so that he was sat properly now. He tugged at her hand, pulling her round until she was sat on his lap. She placed her hands on top of her skirts, staring at him in the eyes. He stared back at her, his eyes darting round her face then to her hands.
"Thank you, my shoulders feel much better now," he said.
"You're welcome," she replied. "Why am I sat on your lap?"
He jiggled his knee causing one of her hands to fly out and grab his thigh. He chuckled at her, placing a hand on her knee to steady her.
"This is what my father used to do after dinner," the Privy Seal explained. "Of course, he'd thank my mother for cooking the food on our table. Tell her that she was a magnificent woman who had given him so much."
"And what are you going to tell me?" Dawn asked. The Lord Privy Seal leant forwards.
"You are a very troublesome woman," he whispered. She squeezed his thigh tightly causing him to laugh again. When he leant back into his chair, still chuckling at her, she attempted to get off of him. He allowed her to stand up and walk back to her chair where she threw herself into the seat, her eyes focused in on his face.
"I hate you," she told him. The moment the words left her lips, she regretted saying them. He didn't say anything, merely grinned at her as if he knew that she didn't mean it.
"We have much to work on," he said. "I should stop teasing you."
"If you do, how will I know when you're unwell?" she asked. He stared at her quizzically for a second or two before she spoke to him again. "The way you look at me sometimes, you're eyes so filled with concern, it scares me more than you hitting my head on a table."
"Why?"
"Because I don't know what you're going to do next," she said. He reached forwards, offering his hand to hers. Slowly, she put her hand in his, watching as his fingers wrapped themselves around hers. "Because before, you were going to marry another woman and you left her."
"For as long as I will live, I will protect you," he promised. "She betrayed me when she left me. I never saw the point in running after her. Perhaps I didn't love her like I thought I did."
"And you'll never betray me?"
"No, I won't. I promise I will never betray you," he said. He raised a finger at her. "But I want you to promise me that if anything bad happens, a revolt, a rebellion, whatever, you should betray me and go to the winning side."
"How can I do that?" she asked.
"Because, I am telling you to," he replied steadily. "I want you to live. Being married to me can be detrimental if I was on the losing side. Save yourself. That's what I'm asking you."
"I promise," she agreed slowly, nodding her head. Happy that she meant it, he pulled his hand away from hers and slunk back in his seat. "Paul."
He cocked his head to the side as she said his name.
"You were right," he said. "My name does sound weird."