Arthur led me to the part of the palace where Kayla and Rory were being housed as my special guests.
I knocked on the door and it opened almost instantaneously. Kayla barrelled out. "Reunion tour!" she cried excitedly as she nearly tackled me.
She glanced at my mate and tried to look solemn and did some sort of weird pseudo curtsey that made my attempt actually not look too bad. "Your Majesty?"
"No need for formality," he said easily.
She apparently decided to take him literally because she then dragged me away from him into their rooms like a predator pulling its prey back into its den.
Kayla babbled for several minutes straight while dragging me around and showing me the suites they had been lent for their stay. "It's amazing here. I never imagined anything like this. And I missed you so much, every time I do something where you used to be there, I just get this little twinge of pain. Ah, maybe we should really move up to the capital. My head's spinning."
My head was also spinning, but I let her drag me around and wear herself out. Somewhere in the back of my mind I could see that Arthur was standing back and talking with Rory who was surprisingly interacting more than normal.
Trust Arthur to charm even my quiet friend, I thought, appreciating my mate's amazing ability to handle apparently every situation.
I could imagine him being dropped on some deserted island and having a shelter and a food supply established within a week.
And he would look fantastic doing it, too.
There was something appealing about the idea of being trapped alone with him on an island, until I recalled that I would not have indoor plumbing or the internet. I needed those things, although my Neanderthal ancestor would probably be ashamed of his soft werewolf descendent.
"I basically just packed my entire closet because I have no idea what to wear. I guess Rory and I might have to go shopping before tomorrow. Want to come?"
<Can I go to the mall with Kayla?>
<Yes of course. You're not a prisoner, but you'll need security.>
<Just checking.>
<I don't want you to feel trapped, Anne.>
I felt my heart swell like my chest would explode.
<But if you and Kayla would prefer, the royal clothier can help them out.>
I glanced at Kayla. "Would you rather just get prepped up here? Arthur says the royal clothier can take care of you."
Kayla grinned. "I'm not going to turn that down. But we should go shopping before I go."
"Definitely." I had no huge desire to go, but I knew she would love an outing. Maybe we could find time to take them sightseeing, or at least lend them a guide.
Arthur was on his phone. "You've got an appointment within the hour, Kayla."
"Wow." She looked at me. "He's amazing."
I was torn between agreement and pleasure at Arthur's sheer amazingness and a tiny flicker of entirely irrational jealousy.
Apparently Kayla could read me as easily as I could read her. "Awe, relax. He's got nothing on Rory. But I'm glad you got someone who's a close to as great as mine."
I laughed at myself. "This mate bond thing is insane."
"I tried not to go on about it too much before you found yours, but I know, right?" Kayla made an excited little jump before she rushed off again.
<<< << < > >> >>>
I had enjoyed my time with Arthur, but having Kayla and Rory with me made everything that much better. Going with Kayla to her fitting was a lot more fun than being poked and prodded myself. She was genuinely excited about everything related to the palace and I could not help but be swept along in her optimistic buoyancy.
The guys were off getting Rory something to wear.
Having Arthur with me and my best friends was possibly the best thing I had experienced, since he seemed to mesh seamlessly into the group.
As children, Kayla, Rory and I had gotten along well, rarely fighting. Kayla, for all her unending energy, was extremely good natured, while it was almost impossible to make Rory angry. Kayla just laughed at me when I was morose and Rory acknowledged and assisted with problems.
We were fifteen when they figured out that they were mates. Rory came to the realization faster than Kayla did, but he did not say a word for months and I only found out he knew when Kayla did.
Kayla took longer, but the moment that she realized the knowledge for the rest of the town and then the pack quickly followed. It was always celebrated when two mates found each other.
None of our families and friends were particularly surprised. People always speculate about children who were very close and my friends and I were no exception.
I was not surprised either, I would have been more shocked if it turned out the two had not been designed for each other.
While I had been genuinely incredibly happy for them, I had also secretly felt a bit out of place. It was not that they tried to be excruciatingly adorable, in fact I think they actively tried not to leave me out as much as possible, but things had changed. Rory was a planet and Kayla a moon hurtling around it and I was simply a comet that occasionally got caught in their gravity.
I was not flying around the paired up universe solo any longer, because I had finally found my own permanent orbit.
Kayla came out from behind the curtains for the third time in about the tenth dress she had been given to try on.
"Oooh! I love this one too," Kayla said, twirling around. "They're all too great. This clothier lady is amazing! There's too many decisions, how I will I ever decide?"
"I like the pink one or the grey one or the red one," I said quickly. I had been keeping track because I knew the question was coming and offering my opinion would speed up the process.
"Of course you liked the grey one."
I shrugged. "It looked good on you."
I could practically see the furious thinking going behind her eyes. "Which one do you think Rory will like best?"
"The red one."
"That's the one, then," she said, her words reverberating with sheer excitement.
She disappeared behind the curtains and re-emerged in her own clothing.
We found them outside the room.
"Were you waiting long?" I asked them.
"Nah," Rory said as Kayla bounded over to him.
Arthur smiled. <Rory seemed to consider it a reasonable amount of time.>
<Kayla had to make decisions and that's never a quick process,> I explained as I took his outstretched hand. I saw Kayla grin with delight at our action and I barely felt my embarrassment under the pleasure I gained from my contact with him. Why did the feel of his hand send electricity sparking throughout my nerves?
Arthur pulled me a bit closer, as if he had felt the temporary separation between us as acutely as I had. <Unfortunately, we still have a few things we have to do this afternoon. I couldn't rescue you from etiquette lessons, but Kayla and Rory can go along with you if they want, and Miranda insists that she wants to see our technique after yesterday's practice.>
I nodded. <When?>
<Half hour for etiquette. While you're doing that, I need to go and see my parents.>
I nodded again, reluctantly, then looked towards my friends. "I've got lessons in a half hour, but you can come if you want."
"What sort?" Kayla asked cautiously.
"Etiquette. I also have dancing practice. You two can come."
"Oooh, fun," Kayla said with a smile. "I mean the dancing, not the lessons. We'll dance, right, Rory?"
He did not nearly as excited with the idea as Kayla. "Sure."
"And I guess I could tag along to your other lessons, since I'm a wonderful friend, for moral support. Rory's not going to come along, though."
I smiled. "Sounds good."
Since we did not have much time to kill, Arthur showed my friends around the palace a bit more. It was a nice refresher for me, because although I was already becoming familiar, I did not know everything by any means. The place was ridiculously large.
<I just can't believe you're living here,> Kayla said, her voice in my head a bit louder than might have been necessary.
I smiled. <I know, I still feel like it's not real.>
<Well, if it's a hallucination, I'm having it too.>
I chuckled a bit. Arthur smiled at me quizzically. It seemed nothing I did got past his attention. "Kayla and I are sharing hallucinations."
"Oh?"
"We're trapped in a hallucination where we're walking through the royal palace with you."
He grinned. "Is it a good one?"
I laughed, "What could be better?"
Sadly, the time came to go and work on my etiquette. Oliver seemed determined to slam as many facts into my poor head as possible before my welcoming celebration.
He stood in front of a whiteboard with a bunch of lists on it. "Most of the people you meet tomorrow night will grant you some leeway in consideration of your common background, but it's still best to make the absolute best impression that you possibly can upon first meeting, so we're just going to review the basics today, my lady." Oliver turned his attention to Kayla, "And you may also pick up a few pointers today if you are attentive."
Kayla held up her hands in surrender. "Hey, I'm just here for moral support."
Oliver did not seem impressed with her response, but he did not argue further.
I nodded, thinking about revisiting the tedious information I had already been taught.
"So, as you'll recall, Lady Anne, you're in a unique situation amongst pack dynamics. As a common member of Desert Night, you no doubt instinctively respected your alpha, especially when he was asserting dominance."
My wolf had never been particularly good at instinctive submission, but luckily living in the most rural town I had very little contact with our alpha. That had been a double blessing when his odious son had rejected my sister.
I had actually had to learn to behave myself in spite of her strong predilections, but I did not bother to explain it to Oliver.
"So how did you previously deal with your alpha?"
I considered. "Submissive body language, listening respectfully, obedience..." I had mostly just copied the people around me who managed to stay under the radar.
I saw Kayla's amusement at my answer. She was well aware of my struggles growing up. It was hard to conform when your wolf thought she was dominant to everyone around her. We were a mismatched pair, but we generally made it work.
"Things are obviously very different now. How will you deal with your former alpha and luna when you come into contact with them now?"
I could not remember the right answer, so I tried to think of what the teacher wanted to hear. "Well, I don't see any reason to disrespect them, but I imagine I no longer have to act like they have any right to my obedience?"
Oliver's face showed me that my response was definitely was not the correctly worded answer. "Yes, but there's more to it than that." He launched into a long explanation about what I should do now and seemed overly concerned that if I did not firmly but politely establish my place it could cause trouble further on.
<I'm pretty sure you can handle being dominant,> Kayla commented in my mind. <All you have to do is stop suppressing your wolf. You should let her out and meet him and his lecture might get a lot more interesting.>
<If I let my wolf off her leash and we come into contact with Wilson I'll probably rip him to pieces.>
<You can handle her. I'm surprised she isn't growling at you for the leash bit.>
<She's paying almost no attention right now to anything that isn't Arthur's wolf.>
Kayla considered. <When I realized that I was Rory's mate my wolf barely stopped talking about it. I couldn't sleep when she was paying attention for weeks.>
<Maybe that's because she already knew him. Mine's constantly in the Wolfscape with him. Making up for lost time with him, I guess?>
<That makes sense.>
"So, what will you do when dealing with members of the vampire council?" Oliver asked. He sounded a bit put out so I wondered if he could tell Kayla and I had not been paying attention.
I scoured my memories. "Well, it depends on who the member is you're talking to. I think with the regular members, the rules are pretty much the same as for anyone else. And didn't you say something about when inviting vampires they expect a visit period of twenty-four hours before and after the event to ensure safe night travel?"
"That's right."
<Nice save,> Kayla said, but she kept her gaze on the etiquette instructor as if she was not the worst influence in the room.
<You're going to get me in trouble.>
Kayla simply smiled.
The lessons continued until Oliver seemed to have exhausted his ability to continue incessantly droning. "Although you should really know the correct way to handle every situation, if in doubt, act poised and don't let your insecurities show. Remember that you will be wife to the future king and that you are inferior to no one barring His and Her Majesty while they are on the throne. Be gracious and respectful and you'll likely do fine."
"Thank you," I said. I appreciated the unexpected vote of confidence.
"Can I ask a question?" Kayla had kept her mouth firmly shut during my lesson although she had given plenty of commentary in my head.
"Yes, of course."
"So, I've been wondering... I'm a common pack member, but at the same time I'm Anne's best friend. Where do I stand?"
The instructor paused to consider. "Well, your behaviour will reflect on Lady Anne, so I encourage you to be on your best. You won't be under the same level of scrutiny, however. You may have a small amount of influence and perhaps some might try to use you as a connection to Lady Anne and thus to Prince Arthur."
Kayla nodded. She looked unusually serious. "Thanks."
He turned to me. "I won't see you again before the welcoming celebration. Good luck, ladies."
"Thank you," I said again. He bowed and left the room.
Kayla leaned back in her chair. "That was so boring."
I nodded. She was not wrong, but the cram sessions did give me a measure of confidence I did not have before. I felt the tiniest glimmer of anticipation for the upcoming celebration.