Hunted Princess

A Royal Announcement

Siberia raised her brows, the King had departed after watching her victory. She didn't know if she should be proud or scared, perhaps the other competition was tougher than she expected. They arrived at the entrance of the tunnel, the other competitors were barely visible in the arena.

"This is where I leave you, congratulations on your win today. May the gods be fair in your next match." She bowed and went back the way they came from, her small frame disappearing in the darkness.

August let out a sigh, looking out into the tunnel pathway, "Well, best not to keep the King waiting, shall we?"

Siberia nodded once, "Was it just me, or did that Halfling seem a tad jumpy?" She kept her eyes forward, the familiar tingling of being in front of a crowd settling in her skin.

August shrugged, "Nerves perhaps, most maids are just wallflowers expected to be silent, not necessarily deal with royals on a face to face level, much less while in the presence of an Askar."

They walked out of the tunnel into the light, a light applause broke out in the crowd as they took their place amongst the others. She quickly scanned the other askars, trying to take note of who was left.

August leaned in close to her ear, "Clara was killed by Danilo, and Carlisle nearly made it out with his life. It was a brutal match that was called within minutes, not even the King found it to be fair to let him die. That bear will be your toughest competition in this entire tournament."

She clenched her jaw, "I wouldn't count that fox out just yet. There's a reason why she's still standing."

He turned his attention to the Trainer next to him, launching into a meaningless conversation to pass the time. Siberia looked out into the crowd, eyes landing on Riker who was deep in conversation with a female, laughing and smiling brightly at her. Jealousy and pain flared in her heart, unable to tear her eyes away from the pair, she continued to watch as he called a servant over to pour more wine. The female stood and excused herself from the booth, touching his shoulder as she left. Riker settled back in his chair, looking out into the arena and locking eyes with Siberia. Shock crossed his features and she felt a prod at her thoughts, pushing it away she moved her gaze off of him and found Milo sitting in his own booth. Killian stood in the shadows, arms crossed and a scowl marring his features as he stood guard for Milo. The spark sat alone, looking bored out of his mind while he played with the flowers that were in the center of the table.
"Milo doesn't seem to amused to be here." She whispered to August, swallowing her emotions.

"He's not used to all this 'royal play' as he calls it. He'd much rather be back home, tending to the garden and the pub. I offered to send him back with Killian, but he refused. He said he would rather get used to it now than later when we're mated." August chuckled.

Her lips twitched at the corners as she fought a smile, "So it's official, you two will be mated."

"Absolutely, after this whole mess is over, we will hold the ceremony back on the grounds and Milo will take over the siring and help raise the younglings. He wants a child of our own, so once we're settled we shall look at adopting." August's smile could be heard in the tone of his voice, vanilla filling the air.

Her response vanished as a fanfair of trumpets announced the arrival of the King, silencing the crowd as they all rose.

"Lords and Ladies, His Majesty, King Donovan Payne and Her Majesty, Queen Elinora." Jameson's voice flowed smoothly through the arena, sending chills down Siberia's spine.