The Island With No Parallel

Uncle Stretton's Visit

The princess was the only one that suspected less than righteous reasons behind his visit. But it wasn't like she could share the reasoning behind her thinking. She couldn't exactly tell her parents that it was because an invisible fox told her so.

They made their way to the dining room, accompanied by a set of servants with the task to manage the serving of the meal. Just as she was entering the room, she felt a jerk as Renen grabbed her by the forearm and pulled her in slightly.

"This is embarrassing," he hissed.

"What?" she objected, matching his tone.

"You've invited your favorite servant again?"

He was looking at Yunara, who had taken her usual position against the wall, dutifully awaiting orders from the royals that dined in front of her.

"She works here. It's what she does," she replied matter-of-factly.

"Then have her do it elsewhere. Do you know how obvious it is that you've formed a friendship with your handmaiden? You bring her everywhere you go without fail. And it's starting to look silly. Well, sillier than you usually look, if that's even possible. Why don't you get rid of her for once and for all? If you had any sense of pride, you'd see she's a nuisance. You've trained her to think she deserves to be in our presence or something."

She turned on her brother with an icy chill to her tone. "You will not bother her. She is a good servant that has served me well for many years, and has treated me as a sister better than you have. So I suggest you find something else to criticize me about. Father hasn't complained about her ever, so I don't see what your problem is."

"Hmph," he merely grunted. "Father is a buffoon."

Hearing the words come out of his mouth left the princess in such shock, she hadn't realized that he'd walked away after saying it, and was seating himself at the table. Regaining her composure, she joined him, the doubts that filled her mind about Renen resurfacing themselves. He was never so cold before he started receiving and writing letters to Lord Stretton all of a sudden. And she suspected that his recent loath towards his family arose from that relation, as well.

When they were little, she and Renen used to be so close, she recalled with melancholy as the servants brought out grapes, nuts, and olives for the first course. But the more he grew into understanding his birthright to the throne, the colder and more distant he became. It was like he didn't just want to be king, he wanted to outshine his father, for some reason. A reason the princess never came to understand.

The dinner carried on much like in the parlor. Uncle talked of his latest travels to the Elven countries, and the incredible scholars and philosophers that he spoke to during his visit. Uncle was always traveling outside of Ecencia, a habit the young royal never understood until recently. But now, the fact that he'd been to the Elven countries might confirm her suspicions. He could have gotten the necklace from there, if he had it. But still, it was too early to tell.

By the time dinner was over, the princess was starting to think that her sources were wrong. Usually, when uncle was around Renen, the two of them were always talking, even more than the King and Queen, to the princess' dismay. But this time Renen was mostly satisfied with listening. It seemed she would get none of the information she was looking for from his conversation.

"How odd that your uncle would come to visit you, isn't it, Princess Cadri?" asked Yunara. The two were headed to the princess' bedroom so that she could prepare for bed.

"Yes, it is," the princess surmised, more to herself than to her servant. Then she decided to shake herself off. It was possible her sources were wrong. Perhaps her uncle wasn't making his move quite yet. Perhaps they still had time after all. Still, she had to be certain.