Ruby Red

Chapter Two

"I hope you won't be spaced out like that tonight, General Campbell."

"I won't, Your Highness."

With a backward glance, the princess moved forward and stood in front of Fallon. "As usual, General Morrigan, you'll be with me and my siblings. We can always count on you to keep us safe. Despite your relationship with my sister, you manage to stay very focused when you have a task." She winked at Lévian.

"Don't embarrass her, Harsha. She's a fine soldier. Our relationship has nothing to do with her work ethic."

"I'm just teasing, Lévi. Calm down." Harsha snickered and returned to the queen's side. "Is there anything you'd like to add, Mother?"

Queen Marjorie touched Harsha's back and smiled. "No, dear, I think you covered it all. I would like to say a few words before you all are dismissed, though." Again, the instant the queen spoke, murmurs of conversations hushed and everyone gave her their undivided attention. If anyone could control a room just by entering, it was the queen.

"This is my first Vault ceremony, and I'm honored to know that I'm being protected by some of the finest guards in Cordavis. While I am not my husband, nor will I ever try to be exactly like him, I do hope that you all will enjoy my propositions and treat me as you would King Calum."

Her voice started to break at the mention of the late king's name. Lady Leela came over and started rubbing Queen Marjorie's shoulders, but she shook her head and raised her chin. "King Calum's heart attack three years ago was a tragedy across our land, but as a kingdom, we need to move forward. This is what the Vault is for: it's a way for our kingdom to move forward together. The people donate, and we give it back. I now have to carry out the tradition, and I can only hope I'll do it as well as Calum did."

Karis couldn't help but notice Alana rolling her eyes, though he didn't entirely know why.

"What are your plans, Your Majesty?" one of the other guards asked. A few others piped up, too. "Can we know ahead of time?" "My hometown needs an update." "How much do you think is in there?" "Have you talked to the Financial Council?"

Prince Victor chimed in without looking up from his book. "If her own children do not even know her plans, she won't reveal them before the ceremony to anyone."

"Please, Your Majesty?" Karis couldn't believe what he had just heard. Alana had joined in on the questioning. The same Alana who just minutes ago claimed to not care as much about this year's Vault. Why was she so interested now?

The queen laughed politely. "Prince Victor is right. I made it a priority that the only people who know about my plans are myself and the Financial Council. You will find out at the ceremony tonight, just like everyone else."

A chorus of disappointed groans filled the room, and the queen laughed again. "Look on the bright side. The ceremony will begin in just a few short hours, and then the whole kingdom will know. Until then, you're all dismissed. I'll see you all tonight."

The guards exited the queen's chambers, eager to gather their teams and report to their stations. Meanwhile, Lévian and Harsha bickered and laughed, with Victor occasionally chiming in with a retort to one side or the other. Lady Leela scolded the children as Queen Marjorie glided over to her desk and reviewed a piece of parchment.

"I wanted to find out what her plans for the Vault were," Alana grumbled as she, Karis, and Fallon went toward the guard's wing of the castle to change into their more formal uniforms.

"We're still going to find out," Karis added. "Just not right now."

"We still have some time to kill before the ceremony," Fallon said. She opened the door to the guard's wing, entering a common area with a few couches, chairs, and tables placed around a crackling fireplace, the only source of light in the room. The three of them stopped before heading into the separate women's and men's dormitories. "I'm sure it's all everyone's going to be talking about until then."

Karis groaned. "Oh, please. It's all anyone's been talking about for weeks. The gossip will only get worse after tonight."

"True." Fallon took her chestnut hair out of its ponytail and let it fall to her shoulders. "Come on, Alana. We need to get ready. Since we'll be on the balcony with the royals, everyone's going to be looking at us."

"All right. See you later, Karis." She went over to the door that led to the women's dorms, then turned around and leaned against the doorframe. "Don't forget to take a bath. You smell like a horse because of earlier."

"Shut up. You do, too." Karis made a face at her. Alana stuck her tongue out. "See you later."

Karis went into the men's dormitory where, sure enough, all of the higher-ranked guards from the queen's chambers were talking about what they were going to do. A couple of rowdy conversations popped up here and there about what the queen was going to do with the money in the Vault, but Karis just rolled his eyes and walked toward the bathrooms.

As the water started to fill the tub and steam created a mist in the air, Karis stared into his eyes in the mirror. Alana wanted to find out what the queen was going to do, but she had claimed earlier that she didn't care. There had to be something she wasn't telling him, and that fact hurt him.

Alana and Karis had joined the guard at the same time five years ago under King Calum's supervision. Despite their distance at first, they soon grew close after they discovered they had a lot in common. They both loved their families and their kingdom, and they wanted to make a difference and defend the royal family.

They had always told each other everything. What had changed? Did he do something to hurt her? Why wasn't she communicating?

Karis didn't care how much he had to pry. He needed to find out what was bothering Alana, and if it took him all night to do it, then so be it. He was not about to misunderstand her and lose his best friend. She meant too much to him. After the ceremony, he was going to talk to her and figure everything out whether she liked it or not.

Author's Note: It's important you guys know that Harsha uses she/they pronouns! As I write her character, I'll be alternating between she/her and they/them, just as you would in real life. As I do not use these pronouns myself, I am trying to write them as best as possible with the knowledge I have, and I do not mean any offense or disrespect. If there's anything I need to know or something I can do better, PLEASE let me know. Any transphobic comments will be reported and deleted. Thanks for reading! :)