Author's Notes: As always, thanks for the reviews. They're a pleasure to read. I've got bad news for all of you faithful readers. This will probably be my last update before school starts. I would love to write another chapter, but I don't want to make any promises. Despite the fact that I'll have school and less time to write, I am determined to at least write one chapter every month. The goal is low because I don't want to make any false promises. If possible, I'll fit more than one chapter in, but I want an easy goal.
The quote doesn't fit exactly, but the quote I would've loved to use would have given too much away (if you thought about it). So I just chose a quote about responsibility that was amusing. Seizing your responsibility does play a role in this story after all.
Disclaimer: I don't own Link or anything else from the games. Nintendo has the honor to own it. I also don't own the quote. However, I own Celestria as well as my OCs.
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"Dr. Miller says we are pessimistic because life seems like a very bad, very screwed-up film. If you ask "What's wrong with the projector?" and go up to the control room, you find it's empty. You are the projectionist and you should have been up there all the time."
-- Colin Wilson
Chapter 11: Into the Welcome Arms of Home
"Kamy?!" Veiviser's eyes widened in recognition, joy, and disbelief.
Midna watched with shock written across her face as the figure nodded her head. It really was the exiled princess. Had Livia really done that great a job that the princess had come racing to Lunaris? It seemed much too simple in a life that was often much too tough. Her eyes narrowed in slight suspicion. Perhaps she had come here to find someone to replace her on the throne? Or perhaps to open the treasury and then crown another person?
"What are you doing here?!" Veiviser didn't allow Kamaria anytime to answer his question before forging ahead with a million more questions. "Are you here to take back the throne? Are you going to make everything better? So you really don't hate us, do you? Did Livia tell you that you should return?"
Kamaria cut Veiviser off with a sharp look. "I'm here to return to my nation as the princess."
The statement was a very simple one, but it was possibly the only thing at the time that could've made Veiviser's spirits soar sky high. The boy's face broke into a large grin. He leaped off Eclipse's back and ran straight at Kamaria. If she had not been on Arion, Midna was sure that he would've tackled her. However, since she was seated on the Messenger, he simply tucked his hands under Kamaria's armpits and swung her out of the seat.
Arion growled in frustration, but that didn't stop Veiviser from twirling Kamaria through the air a few times. Mad laughter bubbled up from his throat. In a way, their joyous reunion (though it could hardly be called that since they had met the previous day) was the most amusing one Midna had ever seen. Yet, in Vei's own way, she could see that he was conveying all the happiness at seeing his old friend act like she used to. It was touching.
Finally Vei set Kamaria down on the ground. She sighed in relief at being back on her own two feet before Eclipse knocked her down to the ground.
"Stop." She hissed, giggles bursting out of her at the Messenger's ticklish mane.
Veiviser chuckled. Seeing Arion's obvious look of displeasure, Vei tugged at Eclipse. "Come on, boy. You better get off Her Royal Highness before Arion attacks."
Eclipse clambered off Kamaria and sat on the ground by Veiviser's feet. Meanwhile Midna had moved closer to the princess.
"What made you change your mind?" She asked. The doubt that things were too easy still existed in her mind despite the fact that Kamaria had said she was coming to Lunaris for good. When had life ever been simple in their world?
Kamaria glanced over at Midna while accepting Veiviser's hand to stand up. "My mother." She spoke without hesitation. "She explained to me the consequences of what my refusal would bring, so I decided that I'd come."
Midna nodded her head, sending a silent note of gratitude towards Livia. She would thank the woman in person later, perhaps as a side-trip while returning to her own realm. Of course, that would wait for after the coronation and Link's return to the Light Realm. The reminder that the Hylian would have to leave soon sent a pang of despair through Midna. If Kamaria was willing to rule Celestria, Midna was positive that she would help with Link's dilemma.
"That's wonderful to hear." Veiviser grinned at her before mounting Eclipse. "We better return right away, so we can start planning your crowning ceremony. Everyone will be so happy."
Secretly Midna wasn't sure if they would be as happy as Vei on the matter, but she agreed that it would bring joy to this world for most of the citizens. Most because she doubted the various criminals would be happy for the restored order.
The three mounted their Messengers and began riding back towards Lunaris. Veiviser took the lead as usual. Midna slowed Sleipnir down a bit, so that she was riding near Kamaria's side.
"Kamaria, can you help me out with something?" Midna had never been a fan of asking for help from anyone, but she had learned that sometimes it was the only way to get things done. Like this, for instance.
The princess examined Midna for a few moments before nodding her head, "Go on." Her voice was tentative, seemingly afraid of what that favor would be.
"You remember Link? Well, he's contracted a deadly disease known as the Viduata Solis. It's due to lack of sunlight and light dwellers get it if they're confined in the Twilight Realm for a long time. I know a way to get him back there, but I'll need your help."
"I'm not that experienced in magic." Kamaria warned. "I only know the simpler spells that I learned with my magic tutor."
"This is simple magic because it works through the aid of an amulet." Kamaria nodded her head in understanding. Magical talismans made magic a lot easier. "All I need for the spell to construct a portal is two people; one person with the magic from my royal bloodline and one from yours."
Kamaria's face was unreadable as she considered this. Midna thought it took quite a while for the Twili to reach a decision, and just when she was about to repeat her question, Kamaria spoke.
"I'll help… But I want Link to watch the coronation." Kamaria said firmly.
"He's got about five days including today." Midna responded flatly. "Unless you're planning to have the ceremony before then, I can't agree to that."
"Then we'll have it in two days." Kamaria smiled. "We'll have enough time for preparations and he'll able to witness it with no risk of death. What do you say?"
Midna mulled over this proposition. Ultimately the choice would be Link's, but that didn't stop her from making a choice. If she agreed, she would have more time with Link and he would witness the crowning. However, he would be in terrible condition by then. If she disagreed, Kamaria might not help her and she would lose precious time with her love. Would Link want to go home sooner? Midna figured that he would not.
As with all things, there were pros and cons to each option. Midna finally settled on the choice that she believed to best and she quickly informed Kamaria on her choice.
--
News had spread quickly through Lunaris that the Hero of Twilight was not among the group of Messengers who had headed out. Perhaps that was the reason why when three Messengers walked through the gates, everyone turned their eyes to survey them. Two of them were familiar, the kid Veiviser aka the wanna-be hero and the Twilight Princess aka royal foreigner. However, the third figure, a slim girl on a scary-looking Messenger, was completely unfamiliar.
The crowds quickly formed a circle around the three Messengers. From their post, two guards had a wonderful vantage point to survey the stranger without jostling with the crowd for a better view. One of them, a young fellow who had joined only two years ago, scratched his head and placed his cards facedown.
"Hey Ratch, who do you suppose she is?"
Ratch lifted his eyes away from the cards he had been studying to examine the small girl. His light orange eyes stared at her and then glanced at the Messenger she was on.
"Didn't that Messenger leave these gates yesterday?" Ratch questioned, eyebrows furrowing in thought.
"I don't know." The young fellow shrugged guiltily. The previous morning he had had a massive headache from the partying of the night before and he hadn't been as attentive as he was supposed to be. Not that he was that much more attentive right now…
Ratch chewed on one of the stalks of grass he had taken to carrying around. He nodded his head. "Yeah, that's definitely the one. I remember him. No other Messengers I know have a crack in their mask. Unless they're dead, that is."
"How do suppose he got it?"
Ratch glared at the younger guard. "I don't care, Drave. What I want to know is who the missy perched on his back is."
Drave looked curiously at the girl. Red hair was a common enough color among Twili, Drave thought, fingering his own red hair. However, her hair was more crimson than the regular red. It reminded Drave of another guy. That wasn't her most unique feature though. Her violet eyes examined the crowds tactfully. There weren't many Twili with violet eyes. Drave felt that he knew who she was, but the name was just out of reach.
"She looks familiar, don't she?" Drave finally said after a few moments of silent examination.
Ratch's eyes narrowed. He was about to deny it and call Drave an idiot, but he had to admit that her crimson hair did remind him of Galathron. The guard shivered at the thought of the ruthless king.
"She's the princess." Ratch finally announced. Drave looked from her to Ratch and then back at her.
"You mean the one that went missing?" Drave had not been in service at the time, but he could recall the news of an exiled princess spreading through the city. "Now that you mention it… I do remember seeing a little girl with red hair and purple eyes whenever the royal entourage passed by. She was always so cute, but look at her now. She's grown a bit and she looks so much more mature sitting there." He shook his head in wonder. "Wow, she's-"
"Shut up! I'm trying to listen." Ratch leaned over to slap the back of Drave's head.
Drave scowled, but didn't retaliate. He would get revenge later when he was done listening to Veiviser and Midna's words.
"Princess Kamaria Reia Catalystra of Celestria has returned!" Veiviser shouted loudly to answer all of the main questions being fired at the group.
"I knew I was right." Ratch muttered smugly.
The crowd went wild. They pushed at each other to get a better look at their future ruler. A pickpocket who had been plotting to rob someone backed away from his victim. He didn't want to be the first prisoner of a new reign.
"You really found the princess. I didn't think you would."
"Where have you been all this time? Were you safe?"
"Why didn't you come back as soon as Galathron was dead?"
"Can you pay my husband? He's been working for days without any reward!"
"When's the ceremony?"
"What's the first order of business, princess?"
"Can you deal with those thieves that broke into my house earlier? I want them arrested!"
"You've grown quite a lot since I lost saw you."
Those were just some of the things that flew out from the mouths of the bystanders. Midna and Vei both glanced over at Kamaria to see how she was taking it. From the look of her, she was not taking all this noise very well. Her body was trembling and sweat coated her brow. To her credit, her face displayed absolutely no sign that she was taken aback by all this, other than the sweat.
"You ok, Kamy?" Veiviser murmured. If the crowd had been quieter, they may have heard, but their own raucous questions blocked everything.
Kamaria was about to nod her head before deciding that a lie would not help her out at all. "It's just all this noise and the smell… It's been a while since I've smelled this type of odor. It's putrid."
Midna nodded in understanding. When accustomed to living out in the cleaner town of Honap, it must be a shock to come into a city with its varied scents, not all of which were pleasant. The noise levels would not be helping Kamaria deal with the stench either.
Veiviser's eyes narrowed in determination. At the top of his lungs, he hollered, "Shut up everyone!" They quieted down, more out of shock than obedience. "The princess needs to get some rest. We'll be escorting her to the palace. Questions and requests can wait for later."
Before people could complain, the Messengers began running. The crowd parted to allow them passage.
"I guess we won't be able to play cards as much anymore, eh Ratch?" Drave sighed, a small grin on his face.
Ratch turned to look at Drave before rolling his eyes. "At least we'll be getting paid again. It'll be good to work for money once more."
"Yeah…" Drave said dreamily, thinking of the bar that he regularly attended. "I was running low on money for drinks anyway."
"Idiot." Ratch muttered before sitting down to finish their card game.
--
Rather than go to Naeva's house, they decided on heading towards the palace. Once there, they could tell Aleron the good news as well as the other palace workers. Plus, Kamaria wanted to see what the palace looked like and Veiviser couldn't say no the girl.
"Wow." Kamaria breathed softly as she beheld the palace.
"It hasn't changed too much on the outside." Veiviser said with a light shrug. "But I guess it does still look impressive if you haven't seen it for a while."
Kamaria agreed with a small nod, eyes still bulging at the sight of the obsidian castle. She finally took her eyes away from the structure to look at the guard perched up on the gate-tower.
Midna was shouting at him. "Can we go through?"
The guard glanced over the three of them. Aleron hadn't told him to expect visitors, but on the other hand, these were familiar visitors. They had visited two days ago to go to the library and free the imprisoned Messenger.
"I suppose so." He shrugged before looking closely at the girl. "Is that…Princess Kamaria?!" It was the most excited Midna had ever heard the guard be.
She smiled up at him with a dazzling smile. "It's me. I'd like to come inside my home." Her tone was confident and charming, but Midna couldn't help but wonder if there had been an undertone of malice in the girl's voice. She shook the thought off.
"Of course, Your Highness." The guard quickly began turning the wheel, resulting in the door to fall down. "Come on in." He said cheerfully.
"Thanks." Kamaria shouted back before nudging Arion. "Let's go. You can go and check out the stables while I look at the interior." The Messenger nodded his head in agreement.
Veiviser followed after Kamaria before glancing back at Midna and Sleipnir, "You guys haven't fallen asleep yet, have you?! Middy's still awake?"
"Don't call me that." Midna's eyes narrowed at the boy.
"You let me call you that earlier." Veiviser pouted.
"That was a one-time thing."
"Fine." Veiviser grumbled before slyly adding, "Whatever you say, Middy. Hurry up."
She scowled at him, but decided to leave the complaints for later. "I've decided that I'm not going in. I want to hurry up and check on Link. I'll make sure to tell Naeva about Kamaria."
Veiviser sighed. "Alright… I wish I could see their faces when you tell them."
"I'll see you later." Midna waved a hand at Veiviser and Kamaria, both of which waved back at her. Then she turned Sleipnir around and charged off, leaving the two alone to walk into the castle grounds.
Veiviser stared at Kamaria, taking in her facial expressions as she looked around the palace grounds. It had been a while since she had seen them, but he couldn't tell that much had changed. With a grin, he called to her.
"Will we be finishing our fight sometime?"
Kamaria glanced at him, confusion twisting on to her face. "What do you mean, Vei?"
Veiviser felt a flutter as she used his nickname, but he felt disappointment as well. How could she forget about their fight? Sure, the subject was a bit random at a time like this, but she had mentioned it in the letter. Then again, it had been a long time ago.
"Remember? Our fight on the day you were exiled." His tone was just as eager as before, not letting on to the disappointment that bit at him.
"When we have time." Kamaria smiled. "Right now, we're probably going to be too busy working to bring about order and prepare for the coronation."
Veiviser frowned before smiling hopefully, "Right after you get crowned?"
"If there's time." She nodded though she was a bit hesitant about her answer.
Veiviser, being the clueless Twili he often is, missed the note of hesitance. Instead he grinned widely and agreed, "It's a promise then."
The two proceeded through the castle grounds towards the castle itself. Much to Vei's amusement, Kamaria gaped at every little thing. Well, not at every little thing, but she gaped at the fountain, the statue, the fancy shrubbery, and the castle itself. When he pointed it out to her, she denied it with an adorable pout on her face.
"You remember Aleron, my dad, don't you?" Veiviser asked as the two climbed up the grand steps leading to the double doors of the castle.
"Of course I do." Kamaria said nothing more.
"He didn't think that we would be able to find you or convince you to come back. I'm going to enjoy seeing his face when I tell him you're back." Veiviser had already run through a variety of expressions his father might show, all of them incredibly amusing to the boy.
Kamaria nodded her head, but said nothing.
"Dad!" Veiviser shouted loudly as he opened the doors. His yell echoed through the large foyer. "He should come soon…" Veiviser said with a smile
"Hmm…" Kamaria nodded though she really wasn't paying attention. Instead her attention was on the statue of Jericho, eyes narrowed at the past king.
Veiviser didn't notice her glare because he was too busy watching out for his father. Soon the stoic Twili came into the room, weariness tugging at his face. Black bags hung under his eyes, indicating the restless night he had had.
"Vei, what do you want? You know I'm busy." Aleron's baritone voice seemed to be growling.
He came to a sudden halt as he noticed a sweetly smiling Kamaria (by now, she had turned away from the statue). His eyes widened in recognition and shock. His mouth was agape and fluttering, as if trying to search for some words to say. Veiviser took the pleasure of taking a mental picture of the moment. This might be the last time he took his dad off-guard and he wanted it to last.
"Who is this?" Aleron finally asked. Rather than his composed voice, it came out as a stuttering gasp.
"This is Princess Kamaria Reia Catalystra." Veiviser announced with a hint of pride in his voice. "Also known as Kamy."
"You found her." Aleron shook his head in wonder. In a smooth motion, he walked up to the princess and knelt down, bowing his head. "Princess… I am Aleron Elliptil, a loyal messenger."
The girl smiled pleasantly. "I remember you." Aleron kept his head bowed. A few moments passed before Kamaria realized that she had to order him. "You can get up."
He straightened up. "Let us retire to the sitting room. Before Veiviser called for me, I was discussing matters with some of your most loyal subjects. On the way, I'll inform you on the status of the city. Come along." Aleron waved his hand to the princess.
"Can I come too, Dad?" Veiviser asked, eyes shining hopefully.
"Only if you behave."
"I promise I will." Veiviser grinned.
Aleron nodded shortly before launching into an explanation of the conditions in the city. He talked about the increased crime rate, the drop in workers, the loss of some of the best warriors and advisors, and the loss in money. Kamaria listened, nodding her head at some points, but keeping silent for the most part. Veiviser completely tuned his father out, instead focusing his attention on Kamaria.
"We'll need the treasury to be opened as soon as possible." Aleron added after finishing his explanation.
"I can do that once we're finished speaking with the other responsible Twili about both the issues and the coronation."
"Here we are." Aleron halted at a door.
He opened it, revealing a comfortable sitting room. It had been the room where the king would meet with his advisors to discuss things. There was a large circular table in the room, which was surrounded by multiple chairs, most of which were empty. A grand throne was among these chairs, but no one sat on it. They had been discussing something before the arrival of the trio, but now they were silently staring at the two unexpected guests.
All in all, only four Twili were sitting there. The other members were deployed around the city, doing their best to keep things in order.
"Is that who I think it is?" A Twili with ash-colored irises surrounded by a bright yellow was the first to speak up.
"I don't know. Who do you think it is?" Veiviser asked with a huge grin. "If you're thinking the greatest Twili to walk the earth and the hero of Lunaris, then yes, I am him."
Aleron glared at Veiviser and hit the boy. "Behave." He hissed before answering the man who had originally spoken. "This is Her Highness, Princess Kamaria Reia Catalystra."
All four Twili immediately bowed their heads. A short and stout Twili waddled up to her and kissed Kamaria's hand.
"It is a pleasure to meet you, Princess. You don't know how happy I am to see you again." Kamaria nodded her head, but kept silent.
Aleron spoke up. "That is Porter. He's a gardener, but he's been helping us out a lot as well as tending to the gardens. "
Porter was very short. He had nicely trimmed hair, light red in color. His eyes were perhaps the oddest part of him, other than his stature. The irises were a dark yellow while surrounding them was more yellow, slightly lighter than the iris. This gave for the impression that his eyes were just two colors; yellow and black. All the yellow in his eyes made it no surprise that his markings were yellow as well. He was dressed in a black overcoat that hid his gardener uniform.
"You can all get up." Kamaria piped up, seeing that the others still had their heads bowed. They stood up and smiled, waiting to be introduced by Aleron.
"This is Vaschel." Aleron indicated the Twili who had first spoken, the one with the ashy gray eyes. "He's a soldier."
Vaschel has dark green hair pulled into a ponytail. His face was weary and there were bags under his eyes, but his ashy eyes were sparkling with happiness. A fang jutted out from his smiling mouth. He wore a black chest-plate with the crest of Celestria stamped on it as well as black leg armor and shoulder pads. His teal runes shined brightly.
"Never got any higher than a foot-soldier." Vaschel shook his head, grinning widely. "I was just a bit too impulsive to get any higher."
"Don't you mean stupid." A female Twili hissed at him. Anyone could tell it was good-natured and not meant to be mean.
Vaschel chuckled. "You would know."
"Morgana." Aleron nodded at the female who had spoken. "She worked alongside Vaschel."
"Unfortunately." She sighed.
Morgana looked nearly identical to Vaschel. Her hair was the same shade though it was pulled into a longer ponytail. Her teal runes seemed to be the exact same as Vaschel's in design. They even wore similar armor. The only difference, other than the body parts that distinguish male and female apart, was that her eyes were a sandy yellow with flecks of gold around the iris.
"You were just as reckless as me, sis." Vaschel countered. When Morgana didn't say anything, Veiviser realized that both siblings were equally rash.
"Finally we have Ramaine." Aleron gestured to the final member. "She's actually the only one of us who joined after Galathron's death."
The girl smiled slightly though Veiviser thought it was rather unsure. Whereas the other members all looked to be in their 30s or 40s, Ramaine was 18. What an 18 year-old was doing in this dusty room full of older people, Veiviser had no idea. She was a pretty girl and she could've easily gotten herself a job elsewhere. Magenta hair cascaded down to her shoulders in waves. Her eyes were a dark red that reminded Vei of wine. She had blue runes that gave off a light glow. Ramaine was dressed in a dark gray dress with a slit skirt and slit sleeves. An apron was tied casually around her waist.
"I've been helping out with the cooking here since the old chefs died." Her voice cracked a bit at the mention of the old chefs.
Veiviser noticed, but he didn't really take much note on it. Instead he plowed ahead with a question, "Why are you here when you can be having fun outside?"
"Veiviser." Aleron growled, giving the boy another nudge.
Ramaine smiled sadly. "Not everything's about fun. I want to help out here."
"Why?" Veiviser asked again, earning yet another nudge from his father.
"My parents were the old head chefs, but they died when Galathron did…" Ramaine looked down at her hands before looking back up. "They didn't like Galathron that much, but they were loyal to the crown and I'm going to do the same." She looked over at Kamaria. "I promise to serve you."
"You should make her head chef once you're crowned. She's an exquisite cook." Morgana said. Vaschel nodded his head in agreement.
"I'll have to taste your food sometime." Kamaria nodded her head.
Ramaine smiled at the princess, "It would be my pleasure to cook you whatever you want." The words sounded a bit odd coming from her mouth since they were simply words spoken out of duty. Whether those words were actually true or not was left standing for debate at the moment. Ramaine had never known Kamaria and despite the good stories about her, she wanted to judge the princess for herself.
"Let's get down to business." Aleron said. He moved over to sit down on a chair, motioning for Veiviser to sit down next to him. Kamaria eased herself into the throne.
"All the guards will come back to work when they hear there's money to be made once more. And if they're still working, they'll start working harder now." Vaschel said.
"Now that we have a princess, we'll be able to solve the problems easily. We just need to plan the coronation." Porter added before asking, "When shall we have the ceremony?"
"I was thinking in two days." Kamaria said. Veiviser marveled at the fact that Kamaria sounded so calm while addressing all these people. She sounded so confident. It was amazing to see his friend like that.
"Two days?" Porter yelped in alarm. "But how will we be able to have a grand ceremony in two days?!" The others looked just as surprised, but they made no comments.
"We need speed right now, don't we?" Everyone nodded in agreement with Kamaria. "If I'm crowned faster, then more people will listen to me and we can solve the problems faster. Planning something lavish would be an expense of time."
Aleron nodded his head. "It's true that people are more likely to listen to her once she actually has a crown on her head. By law, a ruler must be crowned before they can give any large orders. She won't be able to promote any new commanders or heads without being crowned."
"Well, then let's take a vote on it!" Vaschel smiled. "That was the way the old advisors used to do things, wasn't it?"
"Except for the fact that Galathron made them vote his way every time, it was a good system." Morgana agreed, a small smirk on her face as she thought of the dead king. "My vote is let's do it."
"Same." Vaschel nodded his head.
"The sooner the better." Ramaine agreed.
Porter sighed, dropping his shoulders. "I suppose we could put something together if we use all the time left today and tomorrow."
"Then it's decided." Kamaria nodded her head, pleased with the results of the vote.
"Yay!" Veiviser jumped up in joy. "Kamy's going to be the queen in two days!"
Aleron lowered his head, muttering something that sounded an awful lot like a curse against his son, and then proceeded to yanking his son back into his seat. "Veiviser, calm down."
Vaschel and Morgana both laughed in amusement, hiding their smiling mouths behind a hand. Aleron glowered at them, but that did not stop their giggling.
Veiviser yelped in pain as Aleron pulled at his long ear. "Stop it, Dad! You're hurting my ear!" When it didn't stop, he complained. "I'm going to tell Mommy and she'll leave you without dinner."
This caused Vaschel and Morgana to laugh louder, both of them doing a sloppy job at hiding it. Ramaine had started laughing as well, but she made no attempts to conceal. Porter chuckled despite his strong desire not to. Kamaria simply rolled her eyes, but this went unnoticed by the others.
Aleron finally let go. "Veiviser, you said you would behave." His voice was tight as he stared at his son.
Veiviser gave him a toothy grin. "I did say that, didn't I?" Before Aleron could agree, Veiviser turned to Kamaria. "Are you going to invite your adoptive family to the coronation?"
Kamaria's lips pressed tightly together. "No. They told me that they didn't want to leave the village, but they sent me off with their blessings."
"Okay." Veiviser shrugged. "Are you okay that they can't come?" He didn't really like the family except for Livia because they had kept Kamaria back, but he knew that Kamaria did love them.
"I'm fine." Kamaria shrugged offhandedly before returning her attention to the rest of the group. "Now how about we get back to planning the coronation? We'll need food, someone who can manage everyone, some décor, and all the regular rite equipment."
"I can manage the menu." Ramaine volunteered. "I think I know exactly what I need to make."
"That sounds good."
"I'll send Naeva to help bake some stuff as well." Aleron offered up.
"The help would be nice. Your wife's pastries are incredible." Because she was an honest person, Aleron knew that Ramaine meant it.
"I can help manage people. People have said that I have an eye for the aesthetic." Porter said without a hint of arrogance. "I would be delighted to help with the decorations."
"What does aesthetic mean?" Veiviser muttered, but his question went ignored by the others. He glanced over at Kamaria, but she showed no sign of not knowing the word. Either she had learned it before or she was just guessing its meaning.
"Morgana and I will start by spreading the news of your arrival. We'll inform all the old staff to report back here to help with the coronation." Vaschel said.
"That's a good idea. We'll need more workers to get the coronation done."
They sat there for a few hours, laying out plans for the coronation. Veiviser had eventually fallen asleep in his chair, completely bored by the talk but unwilling to leave. His gentle snores were drowned out by the planning going on around him. Eventually someone shook his shoulder.
"Huh?" Veiviser groaned groggily, blinking open his eyes. He looked at Kamaria who was standing by his shoulder. "What's going on?"
"We're going to unlock the treasury. Are you coming?"
Everyone else was already waiting at the door. Veiviser blushed, the white parts of his face reddening brightly. It looked rather ridiculous with his bright orange hair.
"I'm coming."
The walk to the vault where all the money was kept was not a long one. The door was made completely of a shiny black stone. It was rounded like any regular vault door, but it lacked any sort of lock. The surface was completely smooth except for an intricate design in red.
"The first thing I'm doing is going to the bar to celebrate." Vaschel grinned, rubbing his hands together eagerly. He wasn't much of a drinker, but Vaschel did like to drink every now and then to celebrate events.
Morgana rolled her eyes. "As lovely as a drink sounds, we're going to have to work our butts off to deliver the news of Kamaria's return and to recruit all the old workers."
Vaschel sighed sadly before smiling. "I'll only get one drink to go."
"One." Morgana said sternly before smiling widely. "I think I'll have one too since you're already going to the bar."
Kamaria ignored their whispered conversation. She walked right up to the large door. Nervously one of her hands stretched out and touched the treasury's door. For a while, absolutely nothing happened. Veiviser's ears drooped in disappointment. Kamaria's eyebrows knit together, her eyes narrowing as she stared at the door.
A low rumbling bellowed up. Slowly the circular door began to roll to the side, groaning in protest. Finally it had slid completely opening, revealing the dark interior of the treasury.
"We're getting paid!" Vaschel yelled triumphantly. Morgana and Ramaine responded with similar cheers of delight. Porter clapped his hands together while Aleron just smiled.
Quietly, Veiviser asked Kamaria, "Can I get paid for finding you?"
The words were meant solely for her ears, but his father had been standing right next to him. He smacked his son's head and that was the end of Vei's quest for coins.
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A/N: I'm so proud that I was able to write a longer chapter to make up for the shortness of the last chapter. This was a great chapter to write though it took a while to plan the new OCs (they won't be too important, but I needed more people to work in the palace) and then to actually write out everything. Originally I was going to have a scene with Link and Midna, but I think I'll be moving that scene to the next chapter. Or it'll just be a deleted scene. I'm not sure yet. I'm sorry to say that I don't think I'll finish another chapter before school starts, but I'll try. Reviews are always nice to have, so go ahead and tell me what you think!
Twilight Phantom Dragon