Among The Darkness

Twenty Six

"Your Highness," A guard says from the doorway. "You have a visitor. May he enter?"

"Yes, he may enter."

Three months had already come and gone. Bowyn was still in the same condition and Tabari had been working hard to keep the palace functioning properly. Tabari was constantly in a state of stress. He was always tired, dark circles under his eyes.

Tabari always kept Ambrose by his side. The little pup could not handle the absence of his father so in turn, he clung to his mother. Fearing that Tabari would leave him as well.

Ambrose currently lay asleep in Tabari's arms as he sat in his unofficial office finishing up the last of the paperwork to send to a fairly new ally. Tabari had signed a peace treaty with a small Kingdom just west of their own. They were new and needed protection from other Kingdoms who wanted to claim the land as their own. Tabari could not help himself, hastily signing a peace treaty. The Queen was an omega. Her name was Shasta. Her husband wanted his kingdom to be a highly agricultural area. The pack consisted of mostly farmers and a few warriors. She promised to trade grains and livestock in return for their protection. Tabari agreed and began trading with the kingdom immediately, as the surplus of food kept his people from starving.

"While you are here," Tabari says to the guard. "Bring this to Maybell. She is assigned to deliver the papers. She will know what to do with them. Do not lose them."

"Yes Your Highness," the guard says, taking the papers and exiting the room. He leaves the door open for the visitor to enter.

A tall man walks into the room. He had straight reddish-orange hair and a thick beard. He was burly, muscles bulging from his clothes. A golden crown sat atop his head. Tabari had never seen this man before. This King.

Tabari stands, holding Ambrose tightly to his chest. He bows his head in respect, keeping his eyes downcast. The King before him does the same, his head dipping as a sign of respect to the Queen.

"I am King Wilbur Aragon. Your husband His Majesty and I are good friends. I have come to pay my respects to you and your family. I understand that His Majesty has a wife and son. I did not expect to find a male when I was informed that his wife had taken control of the Kingdom. Though I must say, you are doing fantastically at running a Kingdom with little to no training."

"Thank you?"

"It was meant as a compliment. May I ask your name, Your Highness?"

"Tabari. My name is Tabari. And this is my son Ambrose."

Wilbur smiles at the small pup in the Queen's arms. He could not believe that he was gazing upon his longtime friend's pup. He was informed that the pup was not biologically theirs. He was surprised that Bowyn took on such a task, taking care of a little human being. He just had to come and see for himself among other things.

"Well, it is very nice to finally meet the two people that make my dear friend very happy. How is His Majesty doing?"

"Not well," Tabari says shakily. "There is no change. The doctors believe that the poison had reached his brain. But I do not have the heart to let him die. I still hold onto the dream that he will wake soon. But the doctors advise that we say proper goodbyes because it could be a matter of time before he finally succumbs to his injuries. I hate it though. My son misses him greatly. Bowyn would have loved to see Ambrose crawl for the first time. When my pup is awake I can barely get him to sit still. He loves to crawl around my legs while I work. My pup is half a year old yet he can already feel the pain of being away from Bowyn. It is terrible to watch the people I love suffer like this."

"That is awful. I never thought that I would see the day that Bowyn falls. It feels so... surreal... I know this is a terrible time to bring this up, but Bowyn and I made a deal before the battle that left him bedridden."