"Welcome back!"
Anya cringes as she sees Lillian hug Artie in her excited voice.
"Hi, Aunt Lillian." He answers as he hugs her back.
"Anya, how are you? How was your honeymoon?"
I'm angry and upset. Our honeymoon was going great until you interrupted us for a fucking ball.
That's was what she wanted to say but the warning look Artie was shooting her and the beaming smile Lillian was wearing, she didn't say it.
"I'm fine. Really...excited." she forced that words out of her mind.
"Wonderful! Now, we must prepare for the wedding ball. It's only a few days away and we want the kingdom to remember this as the ball of the century." Lillian walked away and continued talking.
Anya sighs loudly.
"Easy girl. I don't want you exploding." Artie says as he hugs her from behind.
She sighs again and turns around to hug his waist.
He kisses her hair and lifts up her face.
"Promise me you'll behave until the ball." He asks softly, gently.
She smiles and feigns surprise.
"Artie, do you actually believe I won't behave myself?"
He raises a questioning eyebrow.
"Anya, I know you. You hurt people when you're angry."
"No, I don't."
"You don't?" His voice playful.
"Nope."
"The cook."
She smiles at the memory.
She was fuming the whole day because she had to sit through a grueling meeting with Artie and the other kings.
She specifically told the cook that she wanted no salt on her hazelnut soup.
But the cook added salt anyways. So, she grabbed the soup and tossed it at the cook, yellling at him that he didn't listen to her order of no salt.
The cook was flustered as she continued to yell at him.
She knew she was overreacting but she was frustrated all day and that was all it took to let her anger explode.
She stormed out of the room and locked herself in her room until Artie came up and talked to her.
Artie made her apologize to the cook the next day which was something she hated.
"I was mad that day."
"The gardener. You broke his garden shears."
"He cut the roses. They were my favorite!" She countered.
"It was his first day!"
She blew out a breath. Granted, she had accidents with the workers at the castle.
They were little things, though. Hardly anything to be worked up about.
"I just want you to behave yourself. Someone always gets hurts. And that someone is the guards."
Okay, sometimes the guards had to break her apart from one of the workers who pissed her off.
More than she could count.
The guards were actually worried when they weren't called upon to rip Anya off of someone.
"Anya," he whispers and grabs her hand kissing her knuckles before placing his own hand over hers.
"Just be good."
She sighed again.
Artie was the only one who could control her.
"I promise I'll behave but if I'm forced to try out dresses for the ball I can guarantee that there will be blood and it will not be my own."
He chuckles and kisses her tenderly.
"That's all I ask." He says before ruffling her hair.
She turns around and feels Artie smack her butt, hard.
"Ow!" She yells grabbing her butt.
"Remember, behave yourself and you'll be rewarded lovingly."
She glares at him.
"I hate you."
"You weren't saying that at our honeymoon."
"I was momentarily distracted." She says before running off to find the one person who she trusted completely.
Her servant, Joanne.