Royal Rebels

“Tobert, if you don’t stop pacing I’m going to tie you to the chair.”

Rose was sitting in her study, reading and writing way too many letters and trying to plan for future visits from Norterra nobles and foreign dignitaries. Her assistant paced nervously, a habit he seemed incapable of breaking. His job was primarily to help her keep budget plans and letters and royal decrees organized and act as a courier, but Tobert had become an oddly close and loyal friend, despite his nervous nature.

“Forgive me, My Lady. It’s just that so many people keep waffling on whether they want to ally with Norterra again and changing their minds about visits and it’s getting very difficult to keep track of who’s coming when.”

“Well, it looks like Queen Annemarie and her husband Holden are willing to come, along with their four kids. I think at least one of them is around Charlie’s age. Lord Standish will also be venturing out of his estate in Tarsfeld to pay us a visit,” Rose said, scanning the letters in front of her.

“Eadric Standish was one of the nobles on Lorena’s bad side because his family remained loyal to yours,” Tobert remarked. “It’s a shame his father passed away before the rebellion saw success.”

“Thomas was a good man,” Rose agreed, setting Eadric’s letter aside and picking up another one. She grinned.

“Oh, and King Fillius will be coming to visit again, too,” she said cheerfully. “It’ll be so nice to see him again.”

Fillius had been the first foreign royal to ally with Norterra again after Rose took over, and the only one who didn’t require any convincing on her part. He’d been very good friends with her mother, and Rose had always looked forward to his visits when she was younger. He was fun and ostentatious. When he’d learned that Rose was alive and had taken her throne back and gotten married, he’d brought her a beautiful black and gray dappled stallion since his kingdom was famous for its horses. Rose had named him Tiberius and she went out riding as often as she could.

Rose responded to Eadric, Annemarie, and Fillius, telling them she’d be happy to receive them. Then she finished writing thank you notes to the people who’d attended Charlie’s birthday. By the time she finished with all the reading and writing her eyes were a little gritty and her hand hurt. She handed the completed letters over to Tobert, who promptly took them to the royal aviary to be sent via messenger birds.

Rose flexed her cramped hand and stood from her desk. She needed some movement and fresh air after hours of poring over letters and documents. She heard voices in the council room and tried to tiptoe sneakily by before any of the lords and ladies inside could spot her.

“Your Highness.”

“Dammit,” Rose muttered under her breath. She made sure she was smiling as she turned to address Lady Oster.

“Margaret,” Rose said. “What can I do for you?”

“An Ambassador has just arrived…from Akretha.”

Rose paused, frowning. “I didn’t think Akretha would continue any kind of relationship with us anymore,” she said. It was a kingdom that had willingly allied itself with Lorena while she was queen. They had never been allies of Norterra’s before Lorena’s reign. Margaret shrugged, though she looked worried.

“The Ambassador says that King Anders and Queen Verlina are interested in speaking with the new monarch of Norterra.”

“Let me speak with the ambassador,” Rose sighed. Margaret nodded and led her into the council room, and up to a tall man with coppery hair and a red and black uniform.

“This is Ambassador Felix Toran, Your Grace.”

“Queen Rosalie, it is an honor to meet you.” Toran bowed graciously.

“Forgive me, Ambassador, but I didn’t expect to see an emissary from Akretha here.”

“My liege and lady don’t like to let go of alliances so easily. Good friends are very hard to find, as I’m sure you know. They wish to speak with you in person; they’re making plans now to travel here. But they wanted to send me ahead, to extend their good will.”

“Of course,” Rose said slowly. “It seems that by the time winter comes we’ll be having quite a few guests in Lumafell. I hope your king and queen won’t be offended that I won’t be able to give them my undivided attention.”

“Not at all. They’ll be very understanding of your situation. Queen of a nation still recovering from a revolution, and a new mother no less. You have a great deal on your plate, Your Majesty. In fact, my king and queen have sent you a small gift.”

Toran removed a small ornate box from the pocket of his cloak and handed it to Rose. She opened it with some reluctance to find a pendant carved to resemble a rather fearsome looking dragon, made from a glittering black stone with rubies for eyes.

“My queen said that as she understands it, you have a certain appreciation for dark things,” Toran explained as Rose studied the dragon necklace. She cut him a sideways glance and wanted to make a snarky retort. But she knew this was a test; Verlina and Anders would want to know how she reacted to Toran’s visit and the gift, and she wasn’t going to make them think she was easily provoked by a petty jab.

“It’s a lovely gift,” she said instead. “I hope you’ll send my thanks to your mistress. If you need accommodations until you leave I can arrange a guest room for you.”

“That won’t be necessary, though the offer is most generous. I already procured a room in Deris. I’ll be leaving in the morning.”

Thank the saints for that.

“Well, I wish you well in your travels, Ambassador.”

Toran bowed again. “Until we meet again, Your Highness.”

Rose was relieved when he was gone, and even more relieved when Tobias came to her rescue before any other council members could accost her.

“I have some guest arrangements I need to discuss with the queen,” he said, steering her out of the room. She flashed him a thankful smile as he winked.

“Go before someone else remembers some urgent questions they need to ask you,” he said. Rose hurried to her own chambers, kicking off her shoes and removing the small jeweled crown she wore. It was more like a headband because she didn’t really like the larger crown. She only took that out for special occasions. Eli came practically bounding in from the room adjacent to theirs, which was serving as Felicity’s nursery until she was old enough for her own room.

“I just put her down for a nap a little while ago,” he said, grinning. “She’s sleeping like a baby.”

Rose managed a laugh at his dumb joke but he seemed to sense that something was on her mind as he looked at her face. He pulled her a little closer and tilted her chin up.

“Hey, what’s the matter?”

Rose smiled slightly. “Just a long day of queening,” she replied. She realized she was still holding the box Toran had given her. She made a face and set it on the vanity.

“What’s that?” Eli asked, nodding to the box.

“A gift, sort of.”

“Is this some weird political thing that I don’t understand?”

Rose smiled again and ruffled his hair. “Don’t worry, at least you’re pretty,” she teased.

“Oh, so that’s how it is,” Eli said.

She squeaked and then laughed as he tickled her and then scooped her off her feet when she tried to escape. He flopped onto the bed and pulled her with him, pinning her down to kiss her.

“Do you really think I’m pretty though?” he asked, propping himself up and looking down at her. Rose rolled her eyes but she laughed again.

“The prettiest,” she assured him.