Wildfire

Seventy Seven

I do not think that my mind has fully understood yet that I am Queen, and that the man that I have found myself married to is responsible for an entire Kingdom of people... And that so many of them are so happy that we've found each other that they've traveled from even the furthest reaches of our shores to celebrate our union and ascension to the throne... I never expected to find myself so very accepted by the people... But even the higher born citizens that I had expected to turn up their noses at me just as they've been doing my whole life have knelt before us and offered me swearings of loyalty... And I find myself happy to accept all of them with the grace my parents did their best to raise me with, some of the swearings having come from ex-advisors who had been announced just like all of the other guests, their short time bowing before us and kissing the backs of our hands coming with the deliverance of several small foldings of parchment that I can only assume are the letters of apology that Emrys has asked them to write for me... More of them come my way, and while the beginning of the party is not the smartest time to hand them over to us, though I suppose they could be counted amongst the wedding presents starting to pile up on the table that Papa had smartly arranged to have set to the side of us for the smaller gifts of flower crowns and hand-stitched trinkets given to us from the villagers who come to us with much joy but not much in the way of spare coinage to spend, their thoughtfulness to bring any kind of gift at all so extremely touching... And they've done it all for us... Their King and Queen...

It seems to come with the happiness of the day that everyone seems genuine thus far with the smiles that they give before moving on from us to join the rest of our guests on the main floor to mingle and engage with the quiet roar of conversation currently dominating the room... And it helps put my mind at ease not sensing any ill will from anyone as they settle into the party and wait for the food to be brought in and presented just as artfully as it had the night I had first arrived here, likely even more so with Emrys's wanting this to be the most special celebration the palace has ever seen... Not that he hasn't already succeeded with the guest list alone... He truly managed to draw in royalty from other Kingdoms to come and wish us a happy marriage and long life, King Ashoka and Queen Karim seeming so very happy themselves. 

I was told that while the other pair of royals in attendance cannot visit with us for very long, they are at least able to spend the next few days with us upon our insistence so that the Kings might work in a tiny bit of business in before they part ways and I must say that I am so very curious about the foreign Queen... He seems so very different than myself, even his attire being opposite my own, his strange clothing whiter than snow with bright splashes of gold, whereas my own robes match the darkest shade of obsidian while playing host to my own gold stitching... He even has gone so far as to cover his face with a thin golden veil that is so dazzling when it catches that light that I am actually able to make out where he is in the room without straining my limited vision... I know not how long he has sat on his own King's lap, but I am so very excited to be able to sit down with the mysterious Queen and pick his brain for advice on how best to help govern, though I'm sure the poor soul thinks I'll ask of him what to expect from married life not knowing that I have been able to turn to India for questions of what to expect from Emrys, the runt seeming to have double the knowledge since he has twice the chaos of married life as the rest of us since he sports two husbands, with only the exception of Kanaye who left us to go find the beauty who had called to him in the market... Only to return with two wives instead of one, the two of them now learning to assist him with his practicing of the medical arts. 

...

Emrys

...

It does take some time, but eventually, my sweet shard of starlight does relax, though I know that if he could spot what I can see, he would likely not have let his shoulders drop so soon... 

I am not sure when it happened or who is responsible for its appearance, but on the table set aside to collect the presents of the people we had set the few letters from my father's old advisors who wish to be granted positions in the new court as it forms to keep them safely out of the way while the party truly gets underway... And while all of that is fine and well, and I am so glad that some of them indeed have taken me so seriously that they could not stand the thought of waiting until after our day of celebration... Someone had set a single letter off to the side, the waxen seal settled over it seams a red that is darker than blood... A single solitary rose placed atop it... It looks so very very innocent... Until you recognize the embossment of its corners... The Royal crest... Stationary that only myself, my wife, and the man who raised me to have access to with the authority to use it... So either Xiang somehow has secreted himself inside and has been close enough to reach out and touch my delicate cherub, or he has someone in here on our side of things and I have absolutely no idea who would be so out of their mind that they think working with him... staying loyal to him....is a good idea. 

I know that it could simply be a mistake... An advisor could have easily borrowed paper from Xiang's desk without thinking on which drawer he had pulled it from... But there is such a sense of foreboding radiating from that single rose and whatever message might lie underneath it that I know in my heart that nothing good could be taken away from the offering... 

I want so very badly to have Cho retrieve it and begin investigating privately, but in doing so I would be alerting Rayne to the fact that there is something off afoot, and I do not wish to knock him any more off-balance than he already is trying to juggle the joy he is finally allowing himself to feel and the weight of the wine he's been sipping as it starts to work its way into his slightly-limited vision... So I shall have to wait and let the letter and the rose plague me until the night is over and we are back to focusing on the most pressing task of finding Xiang and Shen and preventing them from making bigger fools of themselves than they already have.