It was the sound of the crowd that Matilda remembered most from the day The Goblin Empire was born. Their new Unseelie subjects did not scream in anger at her as the throne room door opened wide, revealing their new empress draped in iron gray silk, her golden hair spired into horns. They did not mutter a hateful word nor cry for their dead family and friends. No, they were silent. As voiceless as the piles of dead that littered The Branches. They downcast their eyes, fear ripping through their muscles like ice cold claws as she passed, making them quiver and shake. They knew better than to rage against their new rulers lest the shadow of death pass over them again. Even the goblins were quiet, but while the faeries tongues were frozen in terror, the goblins bit theirs in anticipation.
Beyond the great bonfire at the center of the room, from the raised platform on which their twin thrones of gnarled, petrified wood sat, Knut waited for her with Ib and Bran beside him on one side and the young Cat on the other.
Two years had passed in the human world while war had raged in that of the fae. She had aged. She appeared six summers old. She was taller, prettier. There was now no denying her parentage, for it was a replica of Jasper's face that stared at her from a mane of long black ringlets, his dark eyes that glared at her with such hate. Matilda forced herself to ignore her niece, to focus on Knut, on this happy occasion. She'd worry about Jasper's daughter another day.
Knut smiled towards her with pride. "There you are." He smirked. "I've been waiting for you." He held out his hand, waiting for her hand to join his. She smiled in return, a knowing curve to her lips. He wore the spider web coat he'd worn for their wedding, a new silver eye patch covering his missing eye. That coat brought to mind the vows she'd made to The Hollow, to him and the journey they were now bound to take together.
This time there wasn't the slightest hesitation in her step. She practically ran.
She made her way down the center aisle in quick strides, the train of her gown trailing behind her like molten iron. The fire made her opulent gown sparkle and brought out the golden flecks in her brown eyes. She kept her gaze locked with his, her head held high and back straight, her entire being radiating strength, power. If you had never laid eyes on her before, you would never guess she was human. She appeared as other as any of the creatures around her. There was a sharpness to her gaze, a wickedness to her smile. She was every inch a goblin queen.
The crowd could not see it, but Ib did, the warmth that softened her features when she and Knut touched at last. For a moment, a very brief moment, he saw a glimpse of the young rosy-cheeked girl that lived inside the monster she presented to the world.
"Thank you for being so patient. I was afraid I was going to miss this. There are an awful lot of people I've been looking forward to seeing on their knees." Matilda whispered as she took her place beside her husband. They stood shoulder to shoulder, her hand still clasped tightly within his.
Snickering as discreetly as he was able, which for Knut was not at all, he leaned over and whispered in her ear, "Am I one of them?"
Matilda bit the inside of her cheek to keep the laugh inside. She could practically see every wicked thought that passed through Knut's head through that one black eye. "You most of all," She whispered back. She sighed delightedly as they both sank into their thrones. Her brown eyes flicked towards the crowd. All warmth evaporated from her in an instant. "Well? Go ahead," Her dark blood red lips peeled away from her teeth. "Kneel." She commanded with quiet authority. Her pearly teeth were bared, her beautiful face contorted in a soundless snarl. "Beg us for your lives."
At once, the crowd dropped to their hands and knees, pressing their brows to the floor. All except for the Seelie court and a handful of Unseelie men and women who were brave enough to glare at them with dangerous pride.
"So stubborn." Knut and Matilda chuckled with equal cruelty in their eyes, their smirks. Knut dragged his claws along the armrest of his throne as Matilda whispered something in his ear, hiding her mouth with a small hand. They grinned at one another as she leaned away. They flashed their teeth at the crowd in a wolf's grimace, the awfulness of their expressions, their auras, worsening. Matilda actually licked her teeth.
Suddenly, the room exploded in a frenzy of chaotic movement as goblins sprung forth from Knut's mind, taking shape and springing delightedly to fulfill their task. They lunged so quickly, most of the Unseelie did not have time to react. Those that did soon froze as the creature within Bran reached out a cold hand and touched them each. With sickle-like claws and mouths full of jagged teeth the goblins seized the Unseelie who had dared rebellion and promptly ripped off the legs on which they had stood so proudly, leaving them alive and screaming.
Ib's gaze slid over towards Titania and her two sons where they stood at the very back of the throne room with the elf king and queen flanking them. The elves clenched their teeth, their eyes focused on the tormented faces of the Unseelie as they begged for death. The Seelie, however, never looked away from their goblin counterparts, the hideous king of goblins and his beautiful but cruel wife. Titania boiled in rage. Electricity filled the air around her, her hair writhed in the angry winds that formed from her breath. Demetrius looked horror struck. His focus bounced about the room, flickering from the goblin emperor and empress to the dieing Unseelie and back to his own family, worry drenching his very being. An oppressive feeling swept through the room, dour and cold. A downpour of emotion drenched everyone in that room to the bone, save for the two beings perched on their thrones.
They did not seem to notice it. If they did, they didn't care.
Try as he might, Ib couldn't quite grasp what it was that Lysander was thinking. His face was expressionless and while the others brewed storms in their hearts, he was completely calm. Ib wasn't sure which was worse.
"Let me make something very clear. Your kingdom is no more. You are now, all of you, subjects of The Goblin Empire." Matilda said in a rumbling, assertive voice. The Unseelie watched her and listened as if she were a god, fear rending their pride from their souls. Delight flickered in Matilda's eyes like a fire at the sight of that fear, that anguish. Her red lips twitched as she sat back in her throne, sinking into it as if it might meld with her spine. "You faeries have always treated the goblins like vermin, despite the fact that Knut is and always has been your better. Now it is your turn to show us all the respect we are due." Those eyes were focused on the Seelie as she spoke those words, directing them towards all of faerie kind, not just those with black wings.
Ib prayed they hadn't noticed.
"All Unseelie subjects are hereby required to assist the goblin workforce in rebuilding and expanding our city, but rest assured that you are all free men and women. You will be provided with temporary housing, food and gold to do with as you please in compensation." Knut said. "But that is a concern for tomorrow. For today, we have much to celebrate." He twitched his fingers and a hoard of goblin servants surged out of the shadows cast by the bonfire. They laid out tables of petrified wood, laden with both goblin and Unseelie delicacies. The food quickly filled the throne room with delicious steam. A goblin band brought out their drums. With clawed hands and elf skull masked faces they beat out a primeval tune. Goblets of wine were passed out to all of the crowd, each nearly overflowing.
Though the food went largely untouched by the non-goblin guests, they drank their fill of the wine, most of them probably hoping it was poisoned. The goblins went to dancing, twisting about as they always did in that churning, nonsensical dance. Upon their tongues were shouts of delight and reverence for the two gods before them. All while everyone else stared at them with a mixture of disgust and horror.
"May I tell them about the baby?" Knut whispered to Matilda as she tore at her meat with her teeth.
"Not now. I need to speak to you about that. Privately." She answered, earning a worried look from him. She hated making him panic, but she was still debating whether to tell him that it was twins or not. If so, she wanted to tell him when it was just them, alone. Matilda licked the fat from her lips, noticing Titania and her entourage approaching the thrones.
"King Knut. Queen Matilda." Titania half-heartedly angled her head in respect. Her action was mirrored by her children. Only the elves had the sense to bow.
"It's Emperor and Empress now, Titania." Matilda flashed her teeth. "Do try to remember."
"Apologies," Titania muttered through clenched teeth. "I will remember next time." She set her shoulders back and shifted her gaze to Knut, ignoring Matilda completely. "We will be leaving now. We've our own recovery to see to in The Summer Branches."
Knut turned his head, angling it so that his one eye could study her. "You can't. We have not discussed the terms of our treaty just yet." Reaching into his coat pocket, he retrieved a folded piece of parchment sealed in black wax.
"It can be discussed at a later date. For now, we wish to go home." She said.
"It does not bode well for our treaty if you can't even be bothered to discuss the terms with me now." Knut swirled his goblet of wine. "Is it a lost cause? Should I treat it as such?" His finger drummed against the rim of his goblet. Green flickered in the depths of his eye. Matilda began to chuckle. Titania stared at him, her hands fisting in her thin skirt.
Lysander was the only one that glanced Bran's way, saw the slight twitch of one of the child's own index fingers. "For the love of The Hollow." He hissed. He snatched the treaty from Knut's hand and opened it, forcing it into his mother's hand. "You saw what Bran can do and unlike his mother, Knut has complete control over him. Don't be stupid." He whispered to her, glancing over his shoulder towards Matilda, his eyes lingering a little too long on hers. She looked away from him and sipped her water.
Reluctantly, Titania read the treaty. Slowly the pinch in her features lessened. The tension in her shoulders released. Her two sons, reading over her shoulder visibly relaxed as well. "You...you're not asking for anything? No land, no gold, just an annual meeting?" She said, already suspicious.
"Not a meeting, a party." Knut corrected. "To celebrate the anniversary of the empire's birth...and Mab's death."
Matilda swallowed her protests with the aid of a big gulp of water. Had it been left to her, she would have asked for all that she could squeeze out of them. She hadn't expected him to act so quickly, to draw up the treaty without her...
As if knowing her thoughts Knut was quick to explain. "Your husband, Hollow bless his pitiful soul, wished for a lasting peace. He went about it the wrong way, but it is a goal he and I share. If I were to push the boundaries of my empire further beyond what was originally promised, it would have brokered a mistrust between us that I do not want."
"A warmonger wishes for peace." Demetrius scoffed. "I thought you lot loved fighting, bloodshed." He glanced towards Matilda. "I know she does."
"We do." Knut nodded, "but not when we are trying to begin a family." Knut squeezed Matilda's hand, looking into her eyes. He said a little more sternly, "We have what we want. What is yours is yours. We will not ask for more than that."
"So long as you agree to the treaty, of course," Matilda added. Her eyes flicked towards Lysander, met and held his stormy gaze. "Ensure to us that you can be trusted allies and you will have us at your disposal should you ever need our aid. That is what I offered you and it still stands. You may not think that you have any enemies left, but war has a way of returning like a bad rash. It is always good to have allies, even in peace times, don't you agree?" Lysander was an ambitious, dangerous man. War was inevitable and when it finally did rise up again, Matilda was certain it would be from within that doomed kingdom.
Titania sighed heavily, passing the treaty to Demetrius. "What do you wish to do, Demetrius?"
He looked at it like it might turn into a goblin at any moment and bite him. "Me?"
Lysander tucked his fisted hands under his onyx cloak. He shifted on his feet, glancing towards his brother's new crown of antlers, the bright sun burning between them. "You're The Summer King now. This is your decision to make."
Demetrius' lips were pressed into a thin line as he scribbled his name at the bottom of the document. At its completion, the treaty glowed a bright green then exploded into darts of light.
"Thank you, Your Highness, you will not regret your decision." Knut smiled, tucking the treaty, suddenly whole again into his breast pocket.
Demetrius' throat bobbed as he swallowed, his shining, beautiful face sallow as if he were ill. "I pray not." He muttered. He turned on his heel and strode towards the door with powerful strides. His mother followed close behind, not caring to give either of the goblin lords a second glance. Lysander lingered for a moment, bowing his head towards them before following suit.
After the Seelie had left the room, Tova stepped up onto the pedestal, her hands tucked behind her back. "Thank you," She said, smiling warmly, "for not demanding more of them. I know that you could have." Her large eyes flickered a glance towards Bran, barely settling on him.
"Don't thank me," Matilda muttered. "That was all Knut." She swatted her hand against his chest. "Why didn't you ask for more? We could own the entire Hollow."
"I knew you'd be angry." He chuckled. "Forgive me, but I had to draw it up fast. I knew they'd want to leave as quickly as possible. I didn't want to make demands, at least not right away. I do have a smidgen of respect for some members of the Seelie court, Lysander namely. He's much better suited to being king than his meat headed brother. If they chose their kings the same way we do, he would be. And although they were hesitant, they did keep their end of the bargain." Bringing her hand to his lips, Knut kissed her knuckles. Matilda's cheeks flooded with color. "They helped you save me, kept you safe. For that, I am eternally grateful."
"I suppose if you put it that way, I can forgive you," Matilda said coyly. "Eventually."
After all the feasting and dancing was done, Knut led Matilda to a familiar sitting room, the same one from whose balcony she had seen the goblin city for the first time.
"I'm so tired, I think I'm going to sleep away the next...six months or so." Matilda sighed, nearly dancing out onto the balcony. It felt so good to be home.
Knut followed her, returning to her side. "It is probably wise to get all the sleep we can get before the baby is born." He looked down sheepishly at her slippers. "What did Edda say?"
Matilda gently touched his cheek, "He's okay, Knut." She said, feeling his entire body sigh in relief.
"Really? The iron didn't hurt him?"
Wrapping her arms around his neck, she hugged him tightly. Her eyelids fluttered as she took in the scent of him. Her heart felt swollen. Her chest ached with all the happiness it held. "She said we were very lucky, but she doesn't believe the iron bothered him at all. His heart was strong." She kissed him chastely and smiled up at him. "He's perfectly healthy."
He cocked his head at her, a smirk tugging at his thin lips. "What's with that look?" He asked.
"What look?"
"That sly one," He poked her nose with a claw. "Is there something else you want to tell me, Mouse?"
"I have no idea what you're talking about." She feigned innocence. Let it be a surprise for as long as it could, hopefully until the twin princes were born.
Knut wasn't convinced in the slightest. His lips twitched, peeling away from a sharp canine. "Fine, keep your little secret."
Releasing him, she returned to the railing and looked out at the ruins of the city below. "The Unseelie better work their blue fingers to the bone. I want all of the construction finished by the time the baby comes. I won't have my son's first sight of his kingdom be a pile of rubble."
Knut's fingers slide down the nape of her neck to her shoulder blades, petting her lovingly. "Then we will have to meet with the architects first thing in the morning to draw up our plans for the expansion."
Matilda's smile broadened. He hadn't forgotten his promise to rebuild the city in their own design.
Knut grinned at the city below, his face full of joy, of hope, excitement. "Matilda, I feel like we are on the verge of becoming what goblins were always meant to be, fulfilling our true purpose. We are building something greater than anything my forefathers could have imagined." His arm slid around her waist and pressed her to his side. "We're going to build it together you and I." Matilda laid her head sleepily against his shoulder, absolutely content for perhaps the first time in her life. She had everything she had ever wanted and soon she'd have more. A family. Their family.
Of course, everything he said, everything he promised, would turn out to be nothing but the truth.