The Beauty In Love And Murder

Chapter Thirteen - Theodore

Zephyr and I are lying sweating on the courtyard pavement when my mother walks out of the palace, her heels clicking on the stone beneath her feet. She's wearing a blue dress today, and she has a slightly tense expression on her face. I sit up and brush myself off, offering an arm to Zephyr as I stand. I pull him to his feet and jog over to my mother, brushing myself off as I go.

My mother wrinkles her nose as I approach, then nods at Zephyr as he arrives just behind me. "Good morning, Your Majesty." He says with a bow. I cough, suppressing a laugh. My mother shoots me a look and smiles at Zeph graciously. "How many times do I have to tell you to address me as Verena, Sir Windfall?" I laugh out loud this time, and my mother bites back a smile. Zephyr is blushing slightly, so I save him from any more embarrassment. "Could you bring my sword to my quarters? Wait for me up there, I want to play chess." Zephyr nods gratefully and jogs upstairs with my sheathed sword in hand.

I offer my arm to my mother and we walk out of the courtyard towards the gardens. I know she likes walking while she talks, so I direct our steps to the pathways that weave around the fountains and flowers. My mother is quiet for a while as she admires the flowers absently, then she begins to speak very quickly. "Theo, you know how I've been wanting you to get married? Well, I've invited a princess from the neighbouring country to visit so you can get to know her. She'd be a perfect wife— she's pretty and accomplished and just about your age. Her name is Zena, I'm sure you know of her— you do? Lovely, then an introduction will be nice and casual." I stop walking abruptly, and my mother turns to look at me oddly. "You're arranging a marriage for me. Tomorrow." I say accusingly. "Well not quite," She begins, but I cut her off. "I told you I wanted to do this on my own, Mother! I don't want to be forced into some political marriage with someone I barely know. It may have worked for you, but it won't work for me. You can't go and do this without my permission."

My mother claps her hands impatiently. "Just meet her and get to know her, that's all I'm asking. Maybe you'll like her. I'm not forcing you to marry her, I'm just showing you an option, dear."

I tousle my hair in frustration, looking up at the sky as I try to work through my conflicting emotions. I want to make my mother happy, but in order to do that I have to do something I don't want. However, my mother has made some hard decisions for my sake for I suppose that for her, I can live with meeting one princess who I may or may not be chained into a marriage with. I sigh, leaning down to rest my head on her shoulder. "If you promise that I don't have to marry her if I don't want to, then I'm not completely opposed to just meeting her." My mother chuckles softly at my resigned air and pats my head. "I promise, dear. But Zena is truly a lovely girl and I would hope that you would think the same. She'd be a fit match for you, that's why I invited her in the first place." I nod, still unhappy with the choice. I've never wanted to get married— Mostly because I've never met somebody worth my time. Plenty of girls will simper and try to coax me into falling in love but I've never had any interest— They're all the same to me, and I'm not looking to be trapped in a loveless marriage with some airhead girl who act just like every other lady in the kingdom. I sigh again, knowing that the coming weeks that Zena stays with us won't be enjoyable. "I'm sorry, Mother— I have to go meet Zephyr in my rooms. If you'll excuse me?" My mother nods absently and waves a hand, offering her cheek for a half-hearted kiss as I leave. I shake my head as I walk away, ruffling up my hair as I internally throw a well-deserved tantrum. Zeph is going to get a good laugh out of this when I tell him.