There was a letter from the summer castle, my heart raced at what my father would potentially say in that letter. Except I wouldn't know, because it was Elis' writing not my fathers. His letter was simple, no tip toeing around the topic.
"Dear Evie,
Slator has yet to speak to me, let alone I to him, but I know that he won't try anything like this any time soon. Not as long as you are in winter. I'm afraid that I don't know what is coming next. Autumn has sent little letters to summer telling us they still want to be left out of this, but it's hard to believe them. It's hard to believe any one. Don't send any information on your next move to me, just tell me if everyone made it safely to the castle.
I'll keep doing what I promised you, stay strong Evie.
- Prince Elis"
His writing wasn't as neat as usual, and the bird this was delivered with was a rare one, not the usual doves the summer castle used. Palma gently took the letter out of my hands and re read it again.
"It's his, right?" I asked.
We were all in one of the many ballrooms this castle has. It's were I had found Palma and Nazim training their acrobatic moves. Palma was as flexible and nimble as a snake, and just like one she could pounce at her prey without them not knowing what happened. I've actually gotten the chance to see her at full force before when she deemed me ready to train hand to hand combat with her, and it's safe to say that I was embarrassed for myself. She had me knocked on the hard summer ground one to many times to count.
My Aunts warm dark face looked back up to me,"This is his. I'll send him one back telling him everything is fine." She patted the birds blue, almost purple, feathers right below its mouth. It's body fluffed out in comfort.
"I thought it was from Slator too," she whispered and handed the letter back to me.
I just sighed. "Well, I'll be down stairs. I think it's time I finally pay my prisoner the proper visit."
"I'll go with you," Nazim said.
"No, I just want it to him and I."
My cousin nodded his head, understanding.
****
My steps were silent as the wind when I had gotten to the bottom of the cave. The fire from the torches were starting to dim, and Clovis had a blanket wrapped around his body - dead asleep.
Well, not as dead as I'd like.
To wake him I strengthen the dying flames until the room heated up to uncomfortable. The lighting changed from orange to blue as the shadows danced along the cell.
Clovis jolted up in the confusion, looking all around the room as his eyes adjusted. They finally landed on me, and he scoffed to himself.
"Well, well, well, I guess I'm finally worthy enough for you to visit." His voice was dried from the lack of water.
"Please, as if you are worthy of anything. If it was up to me, you'd be dead with the rest of your pathetic army."
He sat up a bit more, shifting the blanket around his shoulders. "So why not kill me then?"
I nodded to him, to the jacket he still wore around himself. "Because you have people who believe you are more valuable alive. I guess you can thank a human for saving your life - and your toes."
Clovis bit the inside of his cheek, almost like he wanted to say his usual snarky remark about Ray, but didn't. "So what do I owe this pleasure than your highness. Your husband isn't here, is this finally the time where you torture me?"
"Do you want to be tortured?"
"Frankly I'd like a warm bath and an even warmer bowl of food."
"Ray brought you a warm bowl of vegetable soup to you yesterday, don't pretend you haven't been fed."
We stared at one another, neither blinking. He did finally stand though and walk up to the cold bars, grunting as some bones cracked from his stiff posture. "What are you planning to do with me, hu Evie? If you're going to kill me, then kill me. If you're going to keep me down here until you forget about me then at least leave a knife behind so I can kill myself before boredom does."
I raised my brow and cross my arms. "Are you telling me what to do?"
He placed his forearms on the bars to rest, he seemed tired and already over the day. I guess that's what happens when you're stuck in a cell for a while. "No, I'm just trying to see what is in my future. Seeing as how it is my future, I believe I have the right to know."
The flames grew an inch higher in anger. "You are my prisoner, you have no rights to anything. And you believe you have the right to know what is going to happen to you? Why? Because you have gotten everything you've wanted? That you've never had to wait to get something, to be patient? So now sitting in a cell with nothing to do is the worst thing you can think of? If you rather be dead then tell me now and I will gladly grant that to you."
"Is this the part now where you torture me for answers? Ray was the good guy to try and get my trust, and now it's you - the brute force?"
"No I'm not going to torture you Clovis. Because there is nothing you can tell me that will chance the situation. There is nothing I can tell you to tell your father that will make him trust me."
"Send me home. It'll show my father what a good person you are to send his eldest son alive rather than dead. I'll be the messenger for peace." His facial hair now days long looked unkempt. The beard growing in its different directions.
"I'm not sure," I shrugged, "sometimes, killing the messenger, sends a message."
He tried to hide the bobble of fear his throat constricted in. "You wouldn't kill me. It's been to long."
"Says who?" Again we looked at one another. I didn't blink away from his eyes but I did continue to speak. "Tell me the truth Clovis, if you were in my position, asking the other seasons for peace, how would you go about it?"
He sighed through his nose, and stood quiet for a bit, really thinking this through. "Well, first I'd let my prisoners go, to show the other seasons the good heart I have."
I rolled my eyes, he continued.
"Then I'd try to get on their good side. Give them land, give them things only winter can give. Also because it's important to me, I'd keep hassling them to take me seriously."
"It sounds easy, doesn't it. Give them this, give them that, show them this, show them you care, and never give up, because someone needs to budge - right?" I said, "Yet I've done that. I've sent letters to spring and autumn, how I would have offered land as a peace treaty, diamonds from the most dangerous mountains I have here, I have shown them that I am not a threat."
"How have you done that?"
I looked him dead in the eye, "Because when given the chance I did not attack, unlike spring. The first opportunity you had, the season jumped on it. And that, is my case. Even now, I am only Queen of one, not two seasons."
He shrugged his shoulders, "Fine, I'll give you that."
"So it seems we're at a stand off? It's my turn on the chess board and I have two options, play the game peacefully, or burn the game to the ground and create new rules."
He didn't say anything to that. He might complain about the situation of staying in a cell was useless, but I didn't think so. He wasn't such a smartass after being by himself for a while.
"What about Autumn, tell me what they are up too."
His green eyes looked into my brown ones. "They don't talk to anyone."
"I find that hard to believe, they did give up their land in order for you to attack me. That doesn't seem like they're as isolated as they want me to believe."
It was his turn to roll his eyes. "So what? They're passive aggressive and that's all. That's as brave as those little breeze benders are going to be. Especially with that old king on the throne. He's annoying and doesn't like to be bothered."
"Have you met him?"
"Eh, a few time. Nothing interesting about him. Boring and monotone are the two best words to describe him."
"Last question," I told him, "You've told me what you would do in my position, but what do you actually think is going to happen?"
He casually blinked and shifted from his right to left foot. "I think you're going to try and retaliate. Causing an all around war. Spring and Summer will combine, and Autumn will too - within time or out of fear, leaving you alone. You're season would suffer and come close to dying out. You're kids, husband and everyone you love will suffer because of it." He answered truthfully.
And he was right, it would be the logical action to fight back. It was a war now after all, and in the five years of my rein, I wasn't the one who attacked first.
Turning away, the fire staying at it's strength to keep the room warm, I started to head out the cell, officially ending the visit.
"I see that happening too, and that's why I am not going to attack," I said on my way out, loud enough for him to hear.
I'm not going to attack, and that's the truth, but Alagan is.
*****
By the time night came strolling around I was back in bed with Ray. He laid on his stomach while I sat lightly on his back, massaging the treatment into his skin. The warm gel ran smoothly against his muscled skin. With my thumbs circling the nerves knotted in his neck and shoulders I spoke to my husband about the troubles on my mind.
"I think Autumn might be a bigger problem to us then I've been thinking. I've underestimated them, brushed them away, yet they gave up their land to spring to let them attack me. And how could I fully blame them, they don't know me. Not one bit. Spring and Summer royals have met with King Cedar years and years ago. He knows them, he doesn't know me. How can I get him to know me though without him thinking I'm going to kill him."
Ray grunted his response into the pillow.
"You know very well I can't hear you."
He turned his head slightly to the right, lips exaggeratedly out to make his words clearer, "You don't."
I sighed, "That doesn't help!"
He mocked his sigh and turned his body around so he was on his back. He patted his ribs, a silent command for me to massage him there, I listened. Dipping two fingers into the glass container to grab more gel and setting it back on the bed carefully so it wouldn't spill out. I rubbed my palms together to gather my summer heat and placed my them over the almost healed bruises.
"My only plan right now is to let Alagan take over spring, and he could without much of a problem, but what would that do? Summer - and definitely Autumn now - would try and stop us. There goes another war. Granted it'll be hard for them to combine their forced because they have us in the middle, but still... so many innocent people will suffer. Why can't they see that."
"If you don't want Alagan taking the Spring throne, then stop him Evie." Ray placed his calloused hands on my exposed thighs. The silk short yellow dress I wore tonight made it look like I was a drop of golden sun. It was one of his favorite.
Well, his favorite was when I wore nothing at all, but that didn't count.
"It's not that. He deserves the throne because it is his, by birth right. But I need to get Autumn to accept me." I rubbed his ribs slightly harder, he grunted from the pain but didn't make any gesture for me to stop. "I think I'd have to bring Alagan with me into Autumn, to talk to him."
This time Ray's hands did stop mine, but not from the pain. "You are not going into Autumn powerless. He may be a hermit crab, but given the opportunity he will kill you."
I brought his dark hands to my lips and kissed him. "Did you not here the part where Alagan will come with me? Until I learn how to use my powers in all the seasons, he's my secret weapon... Speaking of a secret weapon, I have some news that's going to change everything."
"Life changing news? Let me hear it," he said with a smirk.
And life changing news it was, that smirk left his face before I had even finished telling him about my brothers and I's conversation.