166 Complains

"Your Highness Katherine? Are you okay?"

Hearing Prince Aston's concerned voice, Katherine snapped out of her thoughts and forced a smile. "Yes, thank you. I was just ... preoccupied. Thank you for telling me about Hazel. I'm afraid I have to leave now. I remembered something important that should not be delayed. Maybe we can talk some other time - as family members."

With a smile, she excused herself and rushed out of the salon they had sat in. Though she had found her resolve, she had to stabilize it in herself, solidifying it. Surely, there were several reasons why Nathaniel didn't tell her about the patient and the mage before. If she could figure those out, it would be easier to understand him. She already had several hints: the patient's serve illness, the fast spread of the 'poison' on the day the mage did the unimaginable feat of defeating an army by himself, and finally Nathaniel's words that she had saved his life. Obviously, the powerful magic he had came with similarly powerful repercussions.

The best would be to ask him about it, yet he obviously didn't like the topic. It could even be that the retaliation of his power was the reason for this whole charade. Their wedding day popped up in Katherine's head. Nathaniel had told her that he 'could not' marry anyone. Maybe it was because he was always threatened to die. But wouldn't that also be troublesome when he became King?

Now with a new worry, Katherine was so occupied that she didn't notice where she was going anymore, until a chilly breeze awoke her. Looking around, she saw that she stood in the meadow, the save house as big as a cookie in the distance. Grass played around her ankles. Just when she began to feel insecure, she noticed a group of guards close by who smiled and bowed at her when her gaze swept over them. Reassured, she smiled back. Some of them she had healed in the morning, others were unknown faces. Most likely, they had seen her go outside and decided to accompany her quietly to assure her safety. They all seemed to be nice and responsible men in their forties or fifties, but Jack was not among the pack.

Suddenly, she was remembered of one of her very first questions when she entered the Earl's mansion. Why was everyone there so old? This riddle was still not solved. With Hazel and Nathaniel himself as the only exceptions, everyone in the mansion exceeded the age of forty.

Katherine sighed. "Maybe I should make a list of all the questions I still want to ask. But first, lets relax for a bit." When she realized how little the words sounded like herself, she giggled. "It looks like I aged when I nearly died. I can even be patient now and relax with all this chaos going on everywhere."

The giggle died away in the thin mountain air. Spreading her arms, Katherine felt the breezes tugging at her clothes, but there was also freedom in the coldness. She settled in the grass and just breathed for a while, rejoicing that she was still alive, and back with her beloved. If just every day was as easy as this, she thought quietly.

When she finally got up to return to the save house, she noticed something strange. She waved one of the guards over. "What are all the servants doing over there? Is someone departing? Who? And why?"

Then she focused her eyes on the man that just made his way out. The white hair was obviously Nathaniel's. He seemed to say something, then everybody stopped working and went back into the house.

"No way", Katherine said and frowned. "Are we moving? Again?!"

The guard seemed a bit apologetic. "It is recommended to not keep everyone in the same house, it case it is found. The King can't move easily in his condition, so..."

"So we have to move", Katherine concluded, unwillingness still edged on her face. Then she sighed. "I guess it can't be helped. Where are we going then?"

Exchanging a gaze with his comrades, the guard finally shrugged. "We weren't informed yet, your Highness."

Suddenly, Katherine wondered if her husband was delaying the departure because of her. Maybe he wanted to give her more time before she had to get accustomed to new circumstances again. If so, she was glad about his decision. In the last few months, she had moved so often that she didn't know anymore if she even had a place to call home. It was an uncomfortable and irritating feeling that she didn't like at all.

Despite this, she always knew that this save house was just a temporary solution. It was not a place to stay forever. She just didn't expect that the change would come so soon.

Thankful for Nathaniel's intervention, Katherine made her way back to the house. Just another day or two of peace would be nice. Yet she knew that a delay could prove fatal in dangerous times like this, so she had to compromise. After all, she didn't want anybody to get hurt because of her selfishness.

.

"Are the ministers still unwilling?"

The voice of Princess Helmina was sharp and unforgiving in the wide throne hall. Despite the Queen's slowly improving physic, the government was still handled by her daughter. She herself didn't turn up in the throne hall even once. Same could be said about the soon-to-be King, Emilian Icefall. Thus, the ministers and nobles were understandably impatient and unnerved. How could they lay the state's affairs in the hands of a woman, someone as young and inexperienced as the Princess to boot?

Lately, the number of complains and unpleasant questions were increasing, yet the Princess showed no sign of backing down as a temporary ruler. Worse still, the whereabouts of her brother and uncle, the princes of the Icelands and Falumor, were unknown. The foreign forces inside the palace were getting impatient and acted unruly without their leader.

And now, the ministers of the kingdom had completely refused to obey the Princess' rule.

The messenger of the unwilling ministers seemed unusually confident on the black marble floor. "My apologies, your Highness. The ministers fear they will be killed when they set foot into the palace. These foreigners are frightening opponents."

The voice of the Princess was piercing. "They do not need to concern themselves with these matters. The followers of my uncle will not dare to hurt a single hair on their heads. They are no enemies of the Icelands, but friends. As long as the ministers accept my invitation, they have nothing to worry about."

Hiding a sarcastic grin, the messenger uttered his reply as if pre-learned: "As the epitome of beauty your Highness is revered in the whole country, yet we dare not hope her wisdom to match those of the King of Falumor and his vassals. We understand that her Highness is but a young Lady fumbling to hold the state together with her mother in sickbed. We hope for her to heed the minister's advice. Please send word for his Highness, your brother, to return to the palace. If it is his will, the ministers will surely follow the command to send troops against Dragsa, as well as against the magical foe who is the assumed murderer of our King."

'Assumed' was another term for 'falsely accused' in this conversation, and both people knew it. Helmina's face darkened. She had expected the ministers to retaliate sooner or later, yet she hoped it to be later. Her preparations were not ready yet. She still needed time to fulfil her mission, time until her mother calmed down. Only then she wanted Emilian to make an appearance again. She didn't want to frighten her mother even more severely than she already was. However, the preparation of the troops also couldn't wait.

Deciding to confront her mother with reality again, she sighed soundlessly and gave a bright smile. "All right, I will send a letter to my brother. But be ready when he comes and commands you to move out. Be ready - or you will be surprised how well the foreigners and me can work together against traitors of the crown."