Royal Rebels

A little over two years had passed since the rebellion and Rose's ascension to the throne, and Eli still wasn't used to the life of a noble. He cared little about the silks and the gold, but having Rose by his side every day made him happier than he ever thought he could be. Then his theory was disproved, when they made a new addition to their family.

When Rose announced she was pregnant, Eli had been terrified that his dark magic tainted soul would give the baby horns or make it dead inside. Instead, Felicity was the most perfect baby Eli had ever seen. She looked like an angel with her rosy cheeks and dark curls, and Eli didn't know he was capable of helping create such perfection.

He was lying in bed and shaking a rattle in front of her, and any time she giggled or squealed it would put a big smile on his face. He was so hypnotized that he didn't notice Rose walk into the room until she scoffed at him.

"Eli!" she scolded. "You were supposed to be ready an hour ago!"

Eli lifted his head to look up at her, eyeing the beautiful green ballgown she wore. There were emerald pins in her braided hair to match the satin, and it was no wonder he had such a beautiful baby. His wife was stunning too, even when she was annoyed with him.

"You look nice," he said. "I like the braid. Very nice."

"Eli," she huffed.

"I know," he said, "But look. Look at this."

He shook the rattle in front of Felicity again, and she let out another tinkling laugh. Eli beamed at Rose, and she looked like she was trying not to smile. Eli reached over to grab her hand and yank her onto the bed with them, and that finally broke her. She laughed and kissed Eli.

"You are a menace," she giggled. "Both you and your daughter. Now get up, we have to go. I have to get Fifi ready, I can't worry about you too."

"Just stay a little longer," Eli said.

"It's going to wrinkle my dress."

"Please?"

"Fine."

Rose had stepped into the role of queen with all the grace in the world, though Eli wasn't quite so good at it. He and Charlie had both been awarded the title of "Duke", though it was really only a formality. Rose wouldn't have been allowed to marry Eli if he wasn't a man of title, so one of her first royal decisions was to give him the title. A fancy label didn't change who he was, though.

Even in his finery, he still chose to wear dark colors and blend into the shadows. He pulled his sleeves down to cover the chain-like scars of his multiple posessions, but he couldn't do much about the empty look in his eyes or lack of emotion or charm. He gave what love he could to his family, but there wasn't much left to offer to anyone else. While he didn't intend it, he had a reputation for being the dark, terrifying, brooding husband to the queen.

Rose came out a little while later with Felicity dressed in a frilly pink dress and a bow in her curls. Eli forced a smile as Rose fixed his collar and kissed his cheek.

"I know you don't like it, but you look very handsome when you clean up like this," she told him. "Don't worry, it's a relatively intimate affair."

"So there will only be fifty or so blood royals judging me instead of a couple hundred," Eli said. "Sounds fun."

"It's your brother's birthday," Rose said. "It's an old tradition that the sixteenth birthday is a big event. He wants you to be there."

"Charlie is good at being a duke," Eli sighed. "I'm not."

"Charlie isn't good at being a duke, he's good at being a socialite," she reminded him.

"Still, the people actually like him."

"They like you, too."

"They're scared of me," he said. "They think I'm dead inside and full of dark magic. Like I'm another Lorena, bound to destroy my family and take over things."

"You could never," Rose insisted. "We haven't been around long. Rumors tend to float around. Soon enough, they'll see you the way I do."

Eli didn't agree, but he just forced a smile and nodded. He carried Felicity as they headed down to the banquet hall. He stayed a couple steps behind Rose, since the queen always had a formal announcement when she came to events. Since Eli was a lesser title, he had to stay behind her. Not that he cared. He was proud of Rose and the power she had.

Like Eli had said, Charlie was born to be a duke. Freshly sixteen, he was growing to be a polished young man. Eli had protected him for most of his childhood, which made the boy easy to teach and mold when they got to the palace. He had tutors to give him a proper education, and Tobias personally saw to training him in sports, fencing, and hunting. All things that Eli never had, and was a little too old to pick up. He tried to find time to read when he could, but he was much slower than Charlie was. Not to mention his broken soul often made it hard for him to focus or understand some things.

Charlie was telling some story to a couple other girls his age, and the girls seemed positively enamored. Eli supposed that at their age, they probably fell in love several times a day, every day. Charlie looked up and beamed when he saw Eli and Felicity, but the girls eyed him warily and flicked their fans open to hide their curious, but intimidated expressions.

"Eli!" Charlie grinned. "You finally showed up. Can you believe all this? Apparently they do this any time someone of a noble title turns sixteen."

"I guess you're a man now," Eli chuckled. "How does it feel?"

"Like I have the whole world ahead of me," Charlie said. "Gene Bleaker said that for his sixteenth, he went on a tour of the whole world. And Donovan said that when he turned sixteen, his father took him on a hunting retreat."

"What do you want to do?" Eli asked.

"I don't know," he shrugged. "Nothing, I guess. I don't think any of that stuff is... you know... me."

"Sure it is," Eli reassured him. "Like you said, you have the whole world ahead of you. There's time to figure it out."

Charlie smiled and nodded, and Eli let him go to rejoin the party. He wished he had better advice, but this world was so far from his life experience. When Eli turned sixteen, he treated himself to an extra helping of bread rations. Then he immediately regretted it, because he felt it was a waste.

Felicity babbled on his arm and he found himself with a genuine smile again as he kissed her cheek. Maybe he would never be a model duke, but he was happy with his family. He only hoped he was enough for them.