The King's Queen | ✔

Chapter 10

Queen Indra Astor
Age: 70

Prince Stellan Astor
Age: 70

*°*

After getting dressed, I met Ashton downstairs. He was speaking to his grandfather but their conversation seemed to be anything but pleasant. Ashton made no attempt to hide the anger that was dancing in his eyes and Prinarch Cole was getting more ticked off by his disrespect as time progressed. What a heartwarming family.

Empress Arabella and her husband were on the other side of the room and Brooke, who was sitting on the sofa, kept tapping her foot impatiently against the carpet. Her eyes wandered to the clock every few seconds. Something told me she was excited to see her other grandparents.

The country of Nalway was very far from Crysauralia which meant that visits from the queen and prince were few and far in between. After all, they both had a country to run. Having them here at the same time as the Prinarch and Prin was a very rare and special occasion.

Finally, a butler announced that the royals were almost here and we all went outdoors to greet them. Ashton walked close beside me in an effort to keep me warm from the cold winter air. He thought that perhaps I was feeling ill from the change in temperatures. It wasn't very cold in Cothe where I'd been studying and my body probably hadn't quite adjusted to the winter air.

In a few minutes, a sleek black car came down the driveway. Another procession of black cars followed closely behind it. They were the escorts for the royals. I quickly ran through everything Madame Lucille and I had discussed last night. I had to make a good impression on them. My greeting had to be absolutely perfect.

I ran a nervous hand down the sides of my dress, smoothing down the already smooth fabric and took a deep breath in as the doors opened. Prince Stellan was the first to exit the car and Queen Indra soon followed. I could immediately see the resemblance that they both bore to Empress Arabella.

Prince Stellan wore a crisp navy suit with a white shirt. His grey hair was combed back perfectly and his lips held the whisper of a smile. He had a powerful air around him, but he did not feel unapproachable, instead he felt inviting. Queen Indra was dressed in a maroon pant suit. Her presence radiated power and authority and her grey hair swayed in the breeze, bobbing lightly against her shoulders.

Their strides fell in line with each other and they seemed to match each other's energies. I wasn't sure if they were soulmates, but it did seem like it.

"Mother, father," Empress Arabella greeted them in Nalish, with a small curtsy. "The empire welcomes you."

"We greet the empire," Queen Indra returned. Her eyes scanned the faces of everyone present, before they fell on me.

It was now or never. I walked over to them slowly, and carefully did the steps of greeting the royals. After I sank into the low curtsy, I recited the Nalish greeting. Queen Indra was silent for almost a full minute and my anxiety was starting to kick in.

Did I make some grievous mistake that unintentionally insulted her? Was my Nalish so bad she could barely interpret what I was saying? Was the curtsy not low enough? Did I accidentally look her in the eyes?

I couldn't rise without her permission, so I stayed like that, my mind running through every possible instance that could have gone wrong. I was beginning to feel a lot like a statue when Queen Indra finally broke the frigid silence.

"Rise, my daughter."

Her voice was strong yet gentle. I relieved myself of the curtsy position and replicated the greeting to her husband, only this time I inclined my head slightly to the right during the bow. Thankfully, he didn't intend to make me into a living statue and told me to rise after only a second or two.