Memory of You

Chapter Eleven: The Uncalm Before The Storm

"How's it going?"

Looking into the bewitched seven cornered mirror, Valek saw Mark looking up at him. The Queen had given the two of them the mirrors to use for communication, as it would not be intercepted unlike telephone lines. Her own mirror was of a different breed. Alexandra's seven cornered mirror could transport the user using the other two mirrors as exit portals.

"It's alright, I suppose." Valek answered, he had been traveling through Seraphine for a few days now, on horseback.

"Have you reached Canterbury & Rosslyn yet?"

"Not yet. We'll be arriving there in a day or two, depending on the weather and how long it takes to canvas Veloso. It's been raining quite a bit lately." He told his cousin.

Having stopped at an inn with Aram and a few of his men before it got too dark and cold, Valek was already planning for the next day.

"Did you come across any trouble makers?"

"I didn't, but Aram did. He got them to steer clear of Lord Whalen in Trieste by threatening to put them in the dungeons."

"Good...we can't have any of the Lord's hearing about this."

"Mark...Is David still at the castle?" He asked, concerned about what had been going on since his departure.

"He's leaving later today. Max has been assigned to shadow him, but I've checked his travel documents and it looks like he's heading back to Saarsgard. You should be in the clear to investigate his district." Mark replied, a grimace on his face. "Just make sure to steer far away from the list Alex gave you."

His cousin was referring to a list of people known to support David, which the Queen had given him before leaving. If anyone were to find out and tell David, Alexandra would be in danger. Valek knew Lord Grimaldi was more than capable of hurting the Queen, no matter how mild tempered he pretended to be.

"How is she?" Valek asked, wondering what Alexandra had been up to. Even without the Oath of The Guards, both their feelings ran strong when it came to Alexandra. He would give up his life without any second thoughts for her. She was always a source of concern for both of them. When Valek would go on trips he always found himself worrying over her safety, even more so when David was around.

"She's fine. Nicholas has agreed to watch her when I make rounds."

Slightly relieved, Valek looked at the clock.

"I'll talk to you tomorrow, Marcus...I need sleep before we head out at dawn."

"Be careful, Valek."

"I will, same goes for you...and...Take care of her."

"You know I will."

-----

Walking down the castle halls, Nicholas looked around, keeping a close eye of what was going on around him. Mark and Valek had drilled it into his head to always observe his surroundings; and with Valek gone, he felt he had to make up for the guard.

Seeing a willowy figure cross the hall, he immediately chased after it. Mark had told him to watch her when he was busy.

"Aram is gone with Valek, and that leaves me to do more work. Samuel is taking care of some of Valek's duties outside of the grounds, so I need you to watch her when I can't." He had told Nicholas.

"Lex!" he called out, unable to stop himself from using her nickname. Usually he would call her by Alex or Her Highness, but having spent so much time around her, he found himself slipping back into old habits.

"Where are you going, Lex?" He asked, catching up to the Queen. Dressed in a midnight blue gown, she looked startled to see him.

"I just wanted to walk around the grounds...shouldn't you be in the kitchen, cooking?" Her eyes narrowed with suspicion.

"I'm done cooking for the day." He told her. Nicholas had decided to bake potato wedges with roast chicken and corn for dinner and had worked on both lunch and dinner simultaneously. It would only take a few minutes in the oven to re-heat the dish.

"It better taste good, Nick." She eyed him, carefully.

"It will." He assured her. "Do you mind if I join you?"

"I'm guessing that even if I told you I minded, you would still come along?" Alexandra correctly guessed.

"Pretty much."

"Go ahead, then you can tell Mark and Valek you did your job." She smirked, seeing the look of surprise on his face. Nicholas had thought he wasn't being obvious.

"How did you know?"

"It's just like them to leave you as backup. It's like when we were little."

Walking along with her, as they headed for the doors leading to the vast grounds, he remembered the times when both guards would leave him to watch over her. Alexandra was right, it was just like them. The three of them had always shared responsibility when it came to Alexandra.

Looking at her as the sun shined down on them, he noticed the different shades of brown in her hair, and how the green in her hazel eyes became more visible. It was then he noticed an inexplicable pull towards her.

What's wrong with me? Nicholas wondered. They had been friends since they were little, but lately he felt confused when seeing her caused his heart to speed up. Shoving the thoughts to the back of his mind, he focused on their surroundings.

"So...how have you been?" He asked. Since the ball, he had only gotten a few meal times to see her. Other than that she had been over loaded with meetings, as the dignitaries from around the world had decided to stay for a few days.

"Busy...I haven't had much time to enjoy the outdoors. It's like autumn is almost over. The leaves have all changed colour and are falling already." She observed, as they walked down one of the trails.

"How about you?" Alexandra turned to ask him.

"I've been alright. Just cooking a little bit more than usual; but things should go back to normal this week."

"Yes, they should."

Walking deeper down the path, they were covered by the remaining coloured foliage of the trees. In the silence between them, he could hear the scurrying of little animals that lived in the woods.

"I heard David left yesterday." Nicholas said, when the quiet between them had gone on for a bit.

"He did."

The look of relief on Alexandra's face was short lived. As she looked over at him, he could see worry.

"Do you think I'm doing the right thing?" She asked.

Instantly, he knew what she was talking about. The young Queen had decided to relieve certain lords of their duties, if they were found to be abusing their power. Knowing that David was on the list to be removed, Nicholas had no doubt.

"Yes, you are." Nicholas told her firmly.

"How do you know? What if I'm just doing this to get back at him? I keep wondering if I'm wrong." She told him, sounding frustrated.

"Lex, you gave him a million chances to try and change the way he was working for his district; but he didn't." Nicholas reasoned with her. "I think it's time to put an end to him leaching off of our country."

He watched as she thought over his words, before nodding to him.

"You're right...it's time to put an end to that."

Walking in a friendly silence, they turned a corner. Seeing movement from the corner of his eye, he looked to see Samuel walking in to the stables behind them. Not having been able to talk to his sister, he still didn't know what was going on between those two.

"You haven't seen Sophia, have you?" He asked, trying to sound nonchalant.

"No, not since the ball." Alexandra told him. "You haven't talked to her, have you?"

"No, something always comes up."

Strolling along the path, he followed Alexandra as she led them towards the fields.

"Is my sister seeing someone?"

"Not that I know of...why?" Alexandra looked up at him, curiously.

"Nothing...it's just that...I saw Sophia with Samuel a while ago...I was just wondering." He saw a dark look quickly flash over the Queen's face.

"Sophia did what now?"

-----

Walking briskly towards her best friend's room, Alexandra could barely contain her anger. The entire time she had been with Nicholas, all she could think of was how to deal with Sophia.

"Sophia! I need to talk to you!" She called out, as she entered the girl's room.

"Alex, what's wrong?"

Appearing from her bathroom, Sophia had a thick cotton robe pulled over her dressing gown. Judging by the look on Sophia's face, Alexandra's features must have been quite severe.

"We need to talk."

"About what, exactly?"

Not in the mood to play games, Alexandra couldn't help but glare at her.

"About you and Samuel."

Looking stunned, Sophia didn't move any closer.

"How did you-"

"Find out? It was only a matter of time. I thought I told you to stay away from the guards." Alexandra said, heatedly.

"I wasn't planning on it, it just happened." Sophia sounded angry now.

"Do you even know how hard it is to find these guys? Mark and Valek scour the academy to get the ones they can afford to trust. We can't have you playing with them...I thought we had agreed after the last time that you would stay far away from them." Alexandra was decidedly furious.

Sophia had already courted two of the previous guards, once she ended the relationship, the men would be a mess. Mark and Valek had to dismiss them so that they wouldn't compromise the safety of the castle.

"It wasn't like I was trying to attract one. Samuel came up to me one day and asked if I would like to go into town for dinner. What was I supposed to say?"

"NO! You're supposed to say no!" Alexandra said, her voice raised. "Mark and Valek are going to murder me when they find out. Samuel has been a really good addition, and now they'll have to re-post him somewhere else all because you couldn't say no!"

"Look, Alex, I didn't mean for it to happen. It's not like I go around looking for them to take me to dinner!" Sophia said, equally irritated. "I don't see what the big deal is? Are you scared they'll forget to protect you or something?"

Stunned into silence by her friend's callousness, Alexandra glared daggers at Sophia.

"You very well know this isn't about me, Sophia!" Alexandra said through gritted teeth. "For one thing, the only guards tasked with my protection are Mark and Valek, the others only shadow me occasionally. For another...Samuel and the others are given the duty of guarding the castle and it's inhabitants. I can't have someone pining over you forget his duty and let an intruder in."

"I'm so sure that's it." Sophia sneered. At times Alexandra found it hard to believe that she was the same kind hearted girl Alexandra had been friends with for her whole life.

"You know what I think Alex?" Sophia asked, rhetorically. "It feels like this is just punishment for David."

"Are you out of your mind?" Alexandra asked incredulously. "We've been through this already. I don't care about that! All I want is for you to end it with Samuel before Valek finds out."

"Seriously, I don't believe you. Alex, I know you. You're the Queen of holding grudges. You probably made up all these rules to get back at me for what happened with David."

Staring each other down, Alexandra watched as Sophia opened her mouth to say something else. At that moment a familiar deep voice came from behind them. Sophia instantly paled.

"What happened with David?"

Feeling as though her heart had frozen, Alexandra whirled to see Nicholas standing in the door way. His face expressionless as he looked at the two of them, his voice gave away the anger simmering beneath his calm façade.

"Well? What happened with David, Sophia?"