My breakfast with Arthur was delightful. Our meeting with the Royal Media Consultant was quite tolerable since I had Arthur by my side.
Andre came to us in Arthur's, or rather our apartments. He introduced himself with a steady handshake and I found myself drawn to his matter of fact way of handling the situation.
We all sat down after our greeting.
"So, I've been tracking the public's reception of our newest future royal, and overall it has been positive. Sixty-two percent of respondents have a favourable view of Lady Anne, seventeen percent are undecided, and five percent responded that they don't know who Lady Anne is yet."
Arthur nodded at the consultant's words.
"So, what about the rest of the respondents?" I asked although I probably would have been smarter to just leave it alone.
Andre glanced at Arthur who nodded his agreement. I frowned at the exchange. Arthur seemed willing not to suppress me, so why did almost everyone else insist on acting as if I were some delicate little flower?
Andre cleared his throat slightly. "Well, those would be the unfavourable responses, Lady Anne."
"Did you break down why they're unfavourable?" I asked. Perhaps I was a subconscious masochist, or maybe it was just that statistics were undeniably soothing, a way to numerically order a chaotic world.
He sighed and looked at his clipboard. "Sixty-eight percent of the unfavourable respondents say it is because you're too ordinary to be the mate of the crown prince, twenty-two percent believe you lack either the experience or character, and the final ten percent just don't think you're good enough for him in general."
The assessments rather stung considering they knew nothing about me, but I pushed it aside. At least I could understand the reasoning of the last ten percent. Arthur was spectacular, any way I looked at him.
If anything, I was surprised that I had not already had to fend off a lot more crazy prince loving girls who hated me because they wanted him first, even though if they just stopped prince hunting they could go look for their own mate.
I know the probability for finding happiness with a mate was about getting heads when you flip a coin, but the probability of finding happiness when you are the other woman in a mate bond is about as likely as flipping a hundred coins and having them all come up heads.
It was a foolish gamble.
My nod signalled that I understood his assessment so Andre moved on.
"I understand that you came into the palace with a number of social media accounts. I'm hoping you'll grant me access so that we can ensure that your personal accounts are secure," he explained.
I nodded. "I already did as much of that as I could, but sure," I agreed.
"We'll ensure that the privacy is at the highest possible settings for your personal accounts. We'll also vet your followers and provide you with a report. And of course, we've set up official Princess Anne accounts on all the major sites to help us control the public's perception of you. You'll have access to the official accounts if you wish, but we will also have a team to help craft your image."
I felt distinctly uneasy. "And what image is that?"
"Why, of the perfect mate for our crown prince and an excellent future queen," Andre replied smoothly.
Which told me exactly nothing specific, but I let it go. He probably knew what he was doing.
<<< << < > >> >>>
After Andre was excused, Arthur went to his meeting and I began learning about the etiquette of the werewolf court with my new etiquette teacher, Reynold.
Court etiquette turned out to be a mixture of werewolf norms mixed with some customs held onto from human culture, with a few other supernatural rules mixed in.
The only common thread I could see amidst all the rules was that every aspect was terribly dull.
I applied myself to the best of my ability, because I would presumably need to know this dusty pile of facts sometime in the future.
My head was almost throbbing with its rebellion by the time I saw my mate again.
Luckily, having Arthur next to me was wonderfully rejuvenating.
We ate lunch in our dining room and I spent most of the time admiring his profile between bites. I could not quite help myself. I was certain he knew what I was doing, but he made no complaint.
After our meal, Arthur escorted me to the ballroom, where I began to learn to properly dance with some success.
I had only danced more freestyle or slow dances before at school dances or weddings, but now under the watchful gaze of a dance instructor I was forced to practice over and over.
Arthur was perfect at this too, of course, and being with him was the one positive side of the ordeal.
It was not that I disliked dancing, it was that my cloud of mediocrity seemed to infest even my steps when dancing with the most handsome man in the land.
At least it was difficult to keep my attention on my inadequacies when I could feel his solid muscles under my hands and smell that intriguing scent that first caught my attention.
Finally we were freed and we went back to our rooms where Velda helped me into a dress for the occasion of meeting my mate's father. The king.
It was absolutely insane that I was in this position. I would not be at all surprised if I suddenly woke up and found myself in a hospital room hooked up to numerous machines only to realize that this whole episode of my life was little more than the dream ramblings of a comatose mind.
But I did not wake up, so I found myself in a fancy deep blue dress and walking on the arm of my mate towards the private formal dining hall of the king and queen.
Apparently, according to Velda, there were seven different dining halls in the palace of different sizes and functions, and the one to which I was heading was the most intimate of the options.
I wondered if the queen would resume her bombardment of questions once I arrived. I could feel my heart pound and my breathing quicken as we approached the wide ornate doors.
"Don't worry, Anne. My father is going to love you," he assured me.
I hoped he was right.
Arthur led me over to one of the ten seats and sat beside me. I had thought he would be on the opposite side of the table, but I was pleased to find myself wrong on the matter.
He took my hand and I smiled at him, only to have my expression falter as I heard two pairs of footsteps walking into the room.
"Good evening," Arthur's mother said as she walked past Arthur and took her place at the end. We repeated the greeting. The king walked to the other end and I frantically tried to recall what I was supposed to do in this situation from my recent lessons.
The answer failed me and I looked to Arthur and tried to convey my dismay to him using my eyes.
"Father, this is Anne. Anne, this is my father, King Gerard."
"It's a pleasure to meet you," I squeaked.
"The pleasure's all mine, Lady Anne. I had begun to worry about what had happened to Arthur's mate, so you are a most welcome surprise."
My smile was shaky. "Thank you."
"No need. I recall how uneasy Cindy was when I first found her, right, dear?"
"You'll become accustomed to it, Anne. You would not have been chosen as my son's mate if you could not handle it."
I smiled at her faith, but could not really summon the feeling myself.
Truly, this was going to work if I had any say in the matter, but I would put in the effort to accomplish that myself, not rely on some silly fate or Moon Goddess to sort my life out for me.
Arthur's father began asking me gentle questions apparently designed to get to know me better, and Arthur's mother showed no signs of the inquisitive woman of the previous day. I answered the king's questions. He actually surprisingly seemed to be a quiet, gentle soul. I could certainly see Arthur in his features and part of his demeanor.
I thought about my mate's mild wild side and wondered if it came from his mother, his father, or some preponderance of Neanderthal DNA. Perhaps he had more than I did, but I did not mind. If I were being completely honest I sort of really liked his confidence and the sense that he would break the rules, but only if it were really important.
<I did not expect him to be so relaxed looking,> my wolf suddenly said, making me jump. Arthur looked at me with a concerned expression, but I simply shook my head to let him know that there was nothing to worry about.
<I hadn't expected you to come back so soon.>
<Well, I wanted to meet my new pack leader, of course. I would have preferred to stay focused on Pierce, but unfortunately the physical world is sometimes worth my attention.>
<So how is Pierce?>
<He's wonderful, as expected. We hit the absolute jackpot. I've never met a better wolf in our life. You should see what that wolf can do...>
She sounded deliriously happy and I was pleased for her, but I decided not to ask for clarification.
The next course was served and I continued to eat. I glanced at Arthur periodically for reassurance. He was talking to his mother during the meal. I smiled to myself. He was so handsome, even when eating. It was truly astounding.
<So what have you been doing while I was preoccupied,> my wolf enquired.
<Saw the city, went out on a supper date, met Brandon's mate, talked to the royal media consultant, etiquette lessons, and now we're meeting Arthur's father, as you can see.>
<So nothing too exciting?>
<I don't know if I would say that,> I argued.
<Nothing you did really caught my attention until now,> she commented. <I could feel your moods changing but nothing alarming, although you are certainly are nervous now.>
<I'm not nervous.>
<You really are. Instead of worrying about what the king is thinking, focus on your food. I need energy and they're definitely feeding us properly right now. This duck is fantastic.>
<You would have loved what we ate last night on our date.>
<Oooh, describe it to me> she demanded.
I did as she asked, detailing everything Arthur and I ate. When I finished, I realized that the table was quite silent and I wondered if they were talking to their wolves, too, or perhaps each other. I caught Arthur's eyes and I smiled. His gaze turned from blue to golden for just a moment.
I supposed Pierce was catching up with what he missed with Arthur as well. I wondered what they talked about.
"So, Cindy tells me that you're a very reasonable young lady," the king commented. "Are you excited for your welcoming celebration?" he asked.
"Well, honestly I'm a bit nervous about it," I said.
"Understandable. And you can call me Gerard when we're not in the public eye, Anne."
"I will then," I said, although it felt just as strange as when the queen had told me to do it. They both seemed nice, but I doubted I would ever be really comfortable around them.
Arthur on the other hand, seemed to be able to handle every situation he landed in. My dread at my inadequacies blossomed inside me and I looked at him again. I really did not feel good enough for him.
He smiled at me and I returned it. If he said he was satisfied with me, I decided I would be a fool to question it.
"Arthur mentioned that you've marked each other already," his father commented.
I nodded, feeling my face get a bit hot at the memory of the topic at hand. "I thought it made sense to just go for it, you know, since it was definitely going to happen. Now we can mind link if something serious ever comes up."
"I was not criticizing, Anne. I'm actually pleased that you're taking your mate bond so seriously. I could not be happier."
"Thank you then, Your Maje—" I corrected myself. "Gerard."
He nodded.
I heard Arthur's voice in my mind. <Do you still want to know about the issues with the Blood Mourning Pack?> he asked.
<I do,> I agreed.
Arthur leaned towards his father, "Anne was wondering about the Blood Mourning Pack situation," he explained.
Arthur's father frowned. "They're troublesome indeed. It all began with a broken bond."