17 17: New Friends

The next few days were the most tense that Amaris had ever experienced. Ivailo was even more preoccupied with being an emperor than he had been when she had first come to Craester Castle. Ah well, she had her assignment, and it was keeping her extremely busy.

"No, I wanted them to sleep on silk sheets. We are hosting royalty, not operating a tavern." Amaris said as servants stripped the sheets off the bed and replaced them with the silk ones that Amaris had specified. She sighed. She had worked hard before, but commanding a small army of servants and being the one that decided things were something she was not used to, and it was exhausting.

Finally, after what seemed like an endless list of decisions, the guest rooms were as ready as they were ever going to be. Amaris, with her newly found free time, sought Ivailo out to ask if he wanted to go on a walk. She found him in his study, puzzling over a map of Thoasia.

"Your Majesty." She said, trying to make her presence known. He appeared to be so engrossed in what he did, he did not hear her. "Your Majesty." She repeated a little louder, earning Ivailo's attention.

"Yes, Amaris?" He asked with an irritated tone, apparently annoyed that he had been interrupted.

"I hoped you might like to go on a walk with me."

"Do I look like I have time to go on a walk?" He asked hotly. "I have enough on my plate as it is, what with the royal visit coming up. I do not need to be distracted with leisurely activities." Amaris thought about arguing back, saying that a walk would do Ivailo some good and give him a chance to clear his head, but decided against it.

"Suit yourself then." She said with as much bitterness as she could muster.

As soon as Amaris had said those words, he knew he had made a mistake in being so mean to her. He did not blame her for trying to get him to do something different that was not staring at a map. He blamed his pride for not wanting to accept help, especially if it was so freely given. Resolving to put his pride aside and apologise to Amaris, he left the little study and went to find her. After searching through almost the entire castle to find Amaris, Ivailo eventually found her in the garden, sitting on the little concrete bench, reading a book. She looked as if she had just stepped out of a fairytale with her golden hair shining like a halo around her as the breeze blew through it, and the pale peach gown she was wearing making her look more beautiful than any goddess could ever be. It was as if she was a figment of his imagination, meant to torment his every waking moment with her beauty.

"Miss Amaris." He said softly, trying to get her attention without raising her ire. She ignored him. Fair enough, he thought; I did something similar. "Amaris." He repeated, a little louder. No response. Exasperated, Ivailo picked one of the nearby flowers, a pale pink carnation, and went and placed it on Amaris's open page.

"What?" She snapped. While the sudden outburst from Amaris was unexpected, Ivailo supposed he deserved it.

"I came to apologise," Ivailo said, sitting down on the bench. "You were just trying to help, and I took my pent up anxiety out on you, which was not fair, nor was it polite of me."

"No, it was not. I thought you could do with getting some fresh air, if nothing else it would give you a chance to clear your head." Amaris adjusted herself so that her feet laid on his lap. "I will only consider forgiving you if you rub my feet." Ivailo laughed.

"You drive a hard bargain, my Lady." He said, gently massaging her feet.

"Your Majesty, Milady." A messenger entered the otherwise peaceful garden several hours later. "King Falael, Queen Grace and their friend have arrived at Cameroux." It was as if two statues suddenly sprang to life. Amaris got her feet off of Ivailo's lap, and the pair of them stood up.

"Thank you for informing us. Have the household staff gather out the front to greet our guests, we will meet them out there." Ivailo said, dismissing the messenger with his hand. "Care to walk with me, My Lady?" He asked, offering Amaris his arm.

"I thought you did not want to go for a walk." Amaris teased as she took his arm. I wonder if he treated his ex like this, Amaris thought.

Within moments, the pair had walked through the entirety of Craester Castle and were now standing in its front gardens next to Lyra, Kafei, Radcliffe and Kieran, awaiting their guests from far-off lands. It never ceased to amaze Amaris how much strength and speed she had gained since she had first set foot in Craester Castle, like she was a rabbit that did not have any predators and so had all the time in the universe to live its life. Then again, that is probably what happened to people when they stopped being slaves for a person who worked them to the bone and beyond exhausted.

Before too long, the procession of people from the court of Asharia was visible. At least a hundred, maybe more, soldiers carrying emerald green and gold banners and shields so well polished that they could easily blind an opponent if angled correctly. Then came the royal carriage, a moving statue of moss green and gold filigree, pulled by a pair of enormous brown and white horses, easily twice Amaris's size, probably more. The servants brought up the rear, fifty humans and elves all clad in the same moss green tunics and dresses and all either on horses or leading horses pulling wagons full of luggage. What surprised Amaris the most, though, was that they appeared to all be well fed, not starving like she had once been. Is it the prerequisite that every ruler must make sure that they feed the lay people well? If so, where do I sign up? She thought, marveling at the spectacle.

The second the carriage had pulled up, a servant got off his horse and opened the door of the carriage, placing the set of stairs in front of the opening. A young, blonde-haired man emerged from the carriages' cavernous depths and stepped lightly down the stairs and onto the lawn. He could be a vampire, Amaris thought. He had a kind face, not unlike like Ivailo's in shape, with pale blue eyes and pale skin.

"Your Majesty." The stranger said, bowing deeply before Ivailo. Another figure appeared at the entrance to the carriage. A woman with fire red hair and skin even paler than Amaris's. They could be sisters, Ivailo thought. They certainly looked similar enough.

"Emperor Ivailo, I presume?" She asked in a light voice.

"That is correct. Queen Grace, is it?" He asked as a third person stepped out of the carriage, another male with long dark hair and emerald green eyes.

"Yes, it is." The green-eyed man said. "I am King Falael Wynfir, this is my wife Grace, and this." He said, patting the blonde-haired man on the shoulder. "This is Rinomve Bodaldi."

"So this is the famous Rinomve Bodaldi." Ivailo said, smiling. "I am Emperor Ivailo Garr. These are my sisters Lady Lyra, the Lady of Laws, and Lady Kafei, the Lady of war, and their partners Lord Radcliffe and Lord Kieran." He said, showing to who he was talking about. "And this." He placed his hand on Amaris's shoulder. "This is Lady Amaris Willow, the Lady of the People, and the very person who is the reason I sent you a letter."

"Really?" Falael said. "Well, thank you, Lady Amaris. You have given us an even better chance of winning the war against the Oblivion Kappa." Amaris blushed. Heavens, she was cute when she blushed.

"Thank you for the praise, Your Majesty. I did not know that the conversations I accidentally overheard in the main room of my last place of employment would actually be of some use to someone, much less a King and an Emperor."

"Perhaps, we should go inside, and start discussing battle strategy?" Kafei offered, obviously eager to present her ideas.

"That sounds like a great idea. Shall we?" Ivailo said as he showed the party of guests to the door. As soon as they were all inside the castle, Ivailo and Kafei showed Falael and Rinomve into the war room, leaving Amaris and Grace in the hallway.

"Perhaps you might like to see the castle, Your Majesty?" Amaris offered, trying desperately to connect with the stranger.

"Please, when it is just the two of us, I would prefer you to call me Grace. And yes, I would love to have a tour of your beautiful castle, and indeed get to know you better, Lady Amaris."