The Convert Queen: Prophecy Fulfilled

Chapter 13: Building Up To Goodbye (Part 1)

The rest of the evening passed without incident. Once the meal was over, there was dancing in the hall, the music being provided by th eKing's Musicians, whom Aleyna had heard practice in the palace gardens the evening before.

Aleyna danced with Eyvan and Arner, as well as Petor and a handful of other guests, including some of the Mynythian contingent, and though she tried to look happy, she couldn't quite silence the poignancy in her heart. If Leena stayed for the rest of the night, Aleyna didnot see her once they had left the high table.

It was midnight when the carriage took the three of them back to Aleyna's town house. Once hidden inside, masks were dropped and false smiles were exchanged with expressions of stress and strain. The banquet had not been easy for any of them.

It wasn't long before Aleyna and Eyvan went upstairs to bed. A chance look back over her shoulder to bid Arner goodnight, revealed the king of Mynythia was uncomfortable at the thought of having to guard his bride-to-be from the hidden powers he often spoke of as she lay in the arms of her lover.

Yet Aleyna would not give up any of the time she had left with Eyvan, no matter how it made anyone else feel. All thoughts of the gentle kiss she had shared with Arner were now gone, and in its place was a heated longing not to be parted from Eyvan. This must have been harder for Arner to tolerate than Aleyna realised, as when she rose the next morning it was to find Regnar in her home instead.

'Where's Arner?' Aleyna had asked, without thinking.

Regnar had raised his eyebrows and shook his head in disbelief. 'Arner knows this is difficult for you, but it's difficult for him too. He is still a man.'

Aleyna flushed, and went on to the kitchen. Regnar's footfalls followed her. 'He asked me to make you aware we will be departing the city tomorrow morning.'

'Tomorrow? That's not enough time!'

'I'm afraid it's all the time we have.'

'But...but... There is too much to do. I have my house to close up, my work at the Academika. I have friends and colleagues to say goodbye to. And Eyvan... Oh, I can't bear this! Can't we delay one more day?'

'My lady, we should have started for Mynythia as soon as the prophecy manifested. Out of respect for you, and your lack of understanding, we have already delayed longer than is safe.'

Eyvan stepped into the kitchen, clearly having overheard Regnar's announcement. His hair was tousled and his eyes full of love for her. Quietly, he said, 'Aleyna, we will make sure it is enough time. Come here.' He opened his arms and she ran into them.

Suddenly she was crying like a baby. 'I don't want to go. I don't want to leave you.'

'I know, sweetheart. But that was never the reason you were going. You're going because it's the right thing to do, and it's the only way we can keep you safe.'

Regnar slipped out into the hallway.

'How can you be so calm?' Aleyna mumbled into his chest before trying to pull away. 'How can you be so...strong...and sensible? How can you take this in your stride? You've been so understanding, and you sit there with Arner, laughing and joking, and...and...'

Eyvan refused to let her go. Instead, holding by her upper arms, he looked into her face and said, 'I can do this because I believe in you. Because I love you. If I have to give you up, I will be happier to do it if I know the man and like him. If I like him, then I'm sure you will like him, and if you like him, I believe you could be happy. And I do like him, Aleyna. I couldn't have picked a better man to look after you. That's all that matters to me at the moment. Maybe it's the healer in me. Maybe if I was a warrior I would have been able to fight the whole world for you. But I'm not, so I can't. Besides, my knowledge of Spirits is a little lacking.'

Eyvan smiled at her, and her heart just melted. He held her tightly as she gave way to sobbing. 'Damn these spirits and their stupid prophecies,' she whispered into Eyvan's shoulder.

A knock at her front door must have been answered by Regnar. Arner, who was the last person Aleyna wanted to see at that moment, walked into the kitchen.

'And damn you, too,' she said to him, breaking free from Eyvan's hold and running out of the room and up the stairs, but not before she heard Eyvan trying to smooth things out.

'What has happened?' Arner had asked.

'Pay it no mind. She's upset, and because she's upset, she's angry. She will calm down in a bit. She knows she hasn't the time to waste crying.'

*

Half an hour later, there was a light tap on Aleyna's bedroom door. 'Can I come in, my love?'

Aleyna assented. Eyvan stood in the doorway looking at the mess Aleyna had made of her things. Yes, she had been crying since she'd come upstairs, but she had been going through her possessions too.

'This is good,' Eyvan commented. 'I had wondered if you might have escaped by climbing out of the window and shimmying down the drainpipe. Are you all right?'

'I will be,' she said, with a soft smile. 'I'm sorry for acting like a baby.'

'Ah, it was nothing out of the usual for you,' he quipped, only narrowly dodging a cushion Aleyna had thrown at him. 'I surrender, I surrender,' he laughed, with hands up in the air. He stepped into the room and sat next to her on the bed. 'I need to pop out for a bit.'

'Why?' Aleyna couldn't keep the alarm out of her voice.

'I want to get a few things of my own sorted at the hospital, to see if someone will cover my shift this evening. I won't be long.'

'All right.'

Eyvan stood up. 'I think you should go downstairs and talk to Arner. Regnar's been sent to get your saddlebags.'

They went downstairs together and parted at the door. Aleyna tentatively walked to the kitchen, but when she entered it was empty. Yet the door which led into the garden at the rear of the house was standing ajar.

Aleyna stepped outside and followed the twisting path under apple, pear, plum and cherry trees. She eventually found Arner sitting on the bench by the pond, his head in his hands. He looked thoroughly dejected.

Quietly she approached, but he gave no sign of noticing her, not until she sat down on the bench next to him.

'I'm sorry,' she said in a low voice. 'I keep taking things out on you, and it's not fair. You're not my enemy. You're not making me do anything I've not agreed to. We are partners in this, aren't we?'

He sighed. 'In Mynythia, marriages are not like they are here. They are more like business partnerships built around companionship, family and the home. The things that endure. There is love too, of course, but we can be married to one person and love another. Mistresses and lovers are not uncommon. Neither are they frowned upon.'

'Are you trying to tell me you have a mistress waiting for you at home?'

'No.' He shook his head. 'I'm trying to tell you that you don't have to love me, Aleyna. No one is expecting you to. I'll never ask anything of you, except that we might try to be friends. I could never replace Eyvan, and I'll not try to. You have nothing to fear from me. If that's what's been worrying you, that I would try to bed you, I give you my word, I would never hurt you like that. You must think me a monster.'

 Aleyna put her hand on his. 'You're not a monster, Arner. I know that. And I think we will be friends. Come back into the house and help me decide what to take, will you? I fear I need the voice of restraint to stop me packing up all I own. How much stuff can I fit into a saddlebag?'

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[Word count for chapter: 1365, Word count for whole story: 17,643]

Thank you so much for reading this chapter. I hope you enjoyed it. If you did, please consider voting for it and / or leaving me a comment to let me know what you think.

This was another long chapter to write, so I made the decision to split it into two again, so it wasn't too overwhelming to read. You can find Part 2 in the next chapter. Enjoy!

Have a great day!