Secret of the Snow Queen (Fire and Ice Book #1) *GOING THROUGH EDITS*

CH. 6 Bad Omens

                                                                   Aurora

I woke up to the sound of Nicolas fussing next to me; his new cries brought a sense of relief. I shushed him as he squirmed next to me on the bed. I unbuttoned my night dress and let him have the milk he wanted.

"Fussy baby," I smiled down at him, and he stared back at me in wonder. He seemed stronger today, and I wondered if taking him on my walk with Kelvin would be a good idea. I decided I would wrap him in a blanket and go on the walk. After all, I told Kelvin I'd speak with him; I wanted to talk to him, too. It would be an excellent way to catch up with him.

After Nicolas was done, I placed him in the middle of the bed and secured him in the blanket. I got out of Bed and walked over to the chair with the dress I requested. I slipped it on while the baby gave some fussy cries again. I hurriedly buttoned the dress up and returned to see him squirm again; once he noticed me, he stopped his cries, and his eyes widened in wonder. I picked him up, enveloped him in my arms, and kissed him; I danced with him in the room.

"I love you." I kissed him again, and his eyelids were starting to droop. I picked up a small blanket laid on the bedstand by Sven and wrapped him tightly in it. I danced with him again until he closed his eyes, and then I went to the door. I opened it and saw Luca sitting there.

"Hello, sister; how are you today?"

Sister? I furrowed my brows in confusion; he couldn't have thought I was a nun.

"I'm Nicolas' bastard son born to Julia, one of the servants he laid within the castle." His blunt manner surprised me. A memory of my mother slapping a young boy flashed in my mind, and then I remembered.

"Oh, well, I don't remember you much." He looked a little sad when I said that. "But it's nice to meet you." I smiled, and then I edged past him, but he followed.

"Kelvin asked that I escort you to the courtyard safely." I nodded. Was I still in danger? I had wondered why the rebels wanted me.

We made our way down the stairs, and as I walked towards the exit, the guards bowed. I stepped outside to see men sharpening their swords, and other men were shooting arrows at targets. A tall, burly man with red hair spotted me then and raised his hand.

"Gentlemen, I present the Princess Aurora bow the knee!" Luca said. Men began whooping and hollering, and others bowed, trying to show respect. I winced at the deference shown by everyone in the courtyard; not everyone bowed, but enough men were bowing to make me self-conscious. I found Kelvin, who was walking from the stable towards me. The gates slowly creaked open, and when he came close, Luca returned inside the castle.

"Princess, how are you feeling?"

"Fine, thank you." I felt his hand on my back, and we slowly walked out of the castle gates. When we were out of earshot, I sighed. "Why is everyone acting like that?"

"Well, you are the dead emperor's daughter. You are back from the dead. You're important to the rebellion's cause, whatever they're fighting for."

"Oh." What did he mean by that? "Ignatius is a cruel man who betrayed and killed my father for power. So many people died unnecessarily because of him and Morgana. The horrors..." Tears began to sting my eyes, and I stopped and took a deep breath.

"Forgive me, but I think some people in the rebellion are just as hungry for power as Ignatius and Morgana are." I didn't know many people here; I couldn't argue with him there.

"There is corruption anywhere you go. If the rebellion doesn't fight for the people on the other side, who will?" We came to some trees near the river and stopped. He stared into my eyes and smiled.