The most boring day of King Dane's reign to-date began with an ambush by his council in his personal chambers.
"Please explain why you're all here," he asked of his council of seven, who saw fit to intrude in on his breakfast.
"Your Majesty," Sir Dobson began, "I have met with the Grand Duke of Qeaya. His daughter is most love—"
"I was here first," Lord Grimmauld said as he shoved Dobson to one side. "Your Majesty, you must meet the princesses of Ilien. They are both so wonderfully charming. They came with their Crown Prince brother, and the gifts they brought—"
"That is incredibly shallow of you, Grimmauld," Lord Higgins said. "Your Majesty, we should not ignore the potential matches within our own kingdom. The Earl of Courmont is well-connected with several respected peers of both Qeaya and Melina, and his daughter—"
"—is your goddaughter," Lord Sneddon interjected. "We all know that, and I'm not sure his Majesty would appreciate being your godson-in-law."
"Pray tell, what is wrong with being my godson-in-law?"
"Calm down, children," Duke Daroch said with a stroke of his beard. "If we have Meltec on our side, Majesty, we would have better access to both Qeaya and Kronad."
"What is the use of having access to Qeyea and Kronad when we do not have the men and gold to do much more than wave a white flag when they crush us in between? An alliance with Serras would give us much better access to Qeaya," Sir Bassus suggested.
"Unless you've been living in a hole, you'd know that we're already on friendly terms with Serras," Dobson said. "What more would we gain from a political marriage with them?"
"Unless you've been living in a hole, you'd know that it's the North that's on friendly terms with Serras, not us. What say you, Sleigh?" Sir Bassus asked with a nudge into the fat belly of his colleague beside him.
Lord Sleigh grumbled incoherently and yawned. Such contagious things yawns were, Dane covered his mouth with a hand and yawned, too.
"Look, if what we really need are men and gold, the Duke of Hartford has plenty, and he has three daughters," Sneddon said.
"And the reason why his three daughters are all unmarried is because of how ugly they are," Grimmauld said.
"That is not very nice, Grumpy." Sneddon was the first to descend to petty name-calling.
"The truth is not always nice, Sneezy." Grimmauld returned the favour.
Ever the peacemaker, Daroch diverted all attention back to Dane. "What do you think, Your Majesty?"
Dane took a few more bites of his buttered bread, then a sip of water from his goblet. Finally, he lifted his gaze to his councilmen, who belonged more in a children's play-yard than his chambers.
"I have heard all of your suggestions, and I agree with everything." He smiled. They smiled back. "Every kingdom and house you have named is a worthy ally and there are great benefits to nurturing a relationship with all of them, including our greatest threat, Qeyea." He continued to smile. They nodded and smiled wider. "By the time our guests depart, I expect each one of you to have negotiated a partnership with each potential ally you have vouched for. The ball will go on for three days. You have plenty of time to meet with all the delegates." His smile grew. Theirs froze. "As for my new Queen, that is my business. Not yours."
"But Your Majesty, everyone believes you will be choosing your bride at the ball," Daroch protested.
Dane stood up, still smiling. "Since you lot spread that belief, that is your problem. Not mine." He strode out of his chambers, leaving a stunned council staring after him and his half-finished breakfast.
YOU ARE READING
Bride to the Cursed: a Snow White retelling
Fantasy[COMPLETED] When a king makes an order, he expects it to be followed. When King Dane divorced his wife, he expected her to get out of his sight and stay out of his sight. Not reappear three months later in his bed, spouting nonsense about being a 'l...
