Her Rightful Place

61: The Hearing

"Your Highness? Your Highness! Begging your pardon, Princess, but you must wake up," Babette's voice assaults Mireille's sleeping ears. "Monique and the others have come back from Khandazar."

Suddenly, Mireille is wide awake, heart pounding in her chest with concern for Monique. "What time is it?" she asks as she gets out of bed. Babette and Clothilde are standing by with a dress for her, and all three of them work to get the Princess presentable. In the next room, where Christelle sleeps, Mireille can hear that she, too, is getting ready.

"Not much past midnight, I would guess," Clothilde replies. "But the King ordered that the hearing for Nagren's family occur as soon as they returned. The page just woke us with the news a minute or two ago, and he sprinted from the main gates of the Palace of Roses, as best I could tell."

"Good of them to make sure that we are present," Mireille remarks. She means it, and knows that even a month ago, such a thing would never have been thought of.

"Your father wishes it," Babette says, as though that should settle the matter. Mireille exchanges a quick look with Clothilde, who knows as well as Mireille does how unusual a Princess's inclusion in such an event is. "And it closely concerns a member of your household."

"I still cannot believe that Monique agreed to stake her life on these Khandazarians. She hates everything about Khandazar," Clothilde mutters. "Do you think the rumors could be true, that she and that former ambassador—"

"I know he would not be opposed. You can see it every time he looks at her," Mireille interrupts before Clothilde can inadvertently spread the rumors further. "But she would never do such a thing, especially not with the current arrangement in which they find themselves."

"Are you ready?" Christelle inquires as she enters the room, effectively terminating the speculation regarding Monique, much to Mireille's relief.

"I think so. Do I look presentable?"

"You both look good enough for after midnight, as far as I am concerned," Clothilde assures them as she makes a minor adjustment to Christelle's sword belt; the blonde has taken to wearing her knight's garb to any and all official events she can.

"Then let us be off." Mireille and Christelle leave their chambers and head for the Throne Room, accompanied by Marcel and Edouard, who are their usual armed escorts as well as their combat tutors.

"I hope this is just a formality. I hope none of his family members make this difficult," Christelle mutters.

"I hope the same, for Monique's sake. This cannot have been easy for her," Mireille replies in kind.

"No. I do not imagine the soldiers she travelled with took kindly to a female knight."

"If she is anything like you, she proved her worth early on," Marcel asserts. "And once she did, their complaints would be moot."

Christelle smiles at the implied compliment. No further conversation is had as they move swiftly through the palace corridors to the Throne Room; all of them would have preferred that this hearing could have occurred at a decent hour. It must be worse for them, though, Mireille realizes. They've been riding all day and must be exhausted. But that cannot be helped, with relations between Vyrunia and Khandazar so tenuous. No unnecessary risks must be taken.

The King is already present in the Throne Room when Mireille and Christelle arrive, but his Royal Ministers are still making their way to their seats. It will be a much smaller audience than Nagren's hearing, on account of the unreasonable time.

"Ah, Daughter. Good of you to get here so quickly," King Christophe greets Mireille.

"I would not miss this for the world, Your Majesty, and am honored to be included in these proceedings," Mireille responds with a slight curtsey. "Will not our Queen be joining us?"