DYNASTY ── the remarried empress

𝟎𝟐𝟑. the ways of the north.

"YES, CONSORT," the king replied as if it were obvious, "in the eastern empire, how many consorts do you have?"

astrid smiled, "replying to your majesty, consorts are not a rare occurrence most emperors have an average of 15 to 20 consorts. more flirtatious emperors have had over one-hundred and some have only had one to five," 

"dear me," the king murmured, "in the northern kingdom, having a lot of consorts represent power and wealth. it is required a king have consorts,"

astrid gulped, "and how many do you have, your majesty?"

"me? i have a humble 200 women and 100 men serving me," 

astrid choked on air once again, "i beg your pardon? three-hundred consorts? does it not get quite chaotic?"

"well that's the fun of it, my dear! watching women and men fight over petty little topics. of course, my queen does her best to minimize the fallout but the harem is a brutal game of survival," the king said lightly, "plus, consorts are a simple way to keep your political officers in check,"

astrid looked at the king in confusion as he chuckled and continued, "say, if you had an official who has not been proven to be corrupt but has quite a lot of power, what would you do then? wait for the right time to catch him in the act? now that'll just be like a bug eating the apple from the inside. so you take his sister or daughter to be your consort. what will he dare do while a loved one of his is sleeping in your bed and living in the same place as you?" 

"i see, so consorts can also play a large part in court?"

"of course! all my consorts are family members of high-ranking officers. it has been how the northern kingdom has operated for centuries, generations!"

astrid pondered it for a moment before she went on her knees, "your majesty, please teach me. take me under your wing and show me how you run your country,"

the king smiled widely at her and helped her up, "i was hoping to hear you say those words. very well,"

──── after staying a while in the northern kingdom, astrid learned lots of things from the king. like how the northern kingdom prevented itself from corrupt government officials, how their slave system worked and how it protected slaves from being mistreated, and the base of how the northern kingdom worked. astrid was completely and utterly fascinated by the northern kingdom. though, old fashioned it was modern ── giving women and me the same rights, protecting it's lowest class from abuse, and how everyone, even peasants had the power. 

she had adapted to the way of life there very well. she got used to the golden nail guards that adorned her pinky and ring fingers, she got used to the painful heels, and she even got used to the very heavy headdresses. Every morning she would greet the king alongside his children and then she would greet the queen with all of the consorts. 

she found herself growing fonder and fonder of the prince and princesses. the eldest princess and daughter of the queen; margaret therese ── snobby and prissy, she believed that being the eldest and legitimate princess she had the right to disrespect everyone but her mother and father. the second princess, the daughter of a low-ranked consort; annelise dorethea ── nice and painfully quiet she found herself always getting bullied by her older sister. the first prince and third princess, are twins, and children of the second most powerful woman in the kingdom, consort pearl; theodore alexander and alexandria theodora. and the youngest princess and arguably her father's favorite, princess antoinette emelia whose mother died during childbirth.

all of the royal children had such strong personalities that clashed with one another constantly yet when astrid joined them, it became harmonious albeit chaotic at times. all of the imperial children adored astrid but theodore had grown the closest to her. they had spent their days reading, discussing worldly affairs, and everything. theodore was weak, and so they could never go horse-back riding, fencing, or any other sporting activities. 

theodore found himself falling in love with the charismatic princess. astrid was everything theodore dreamed to be ── courageous, healthy, powerful, and free. she showed him that not all royals were stuffy and boring. she was like a breath of fresh air ── the thing he needed when he was suffocating within the palace walls. 

she promised him she would bring him to the eastern empire, she promised to bring all of them ── and today, she would fulfill her promise as a marquis came to invite all of the imperial children to the wedding of lady rashta and emperor sovieshu. 

astrid at first did not want to return. she felt like her presence wasn't needed, she thought rashta would have some common sense and not invite her, navier, or nian. but again, rashta never ceased to amaze her. all three women were invited along with the four daughters of a foreign king. she packed her bags, ready to make her trip back home as the butlers then announced, "his royal highness, prince theodore is here to speak with your imperial highness,"

"let him in," 

the doors opened and theodore strided in with ease, giving her his signature shit-eating grin, and said "atty, hey."

"hi, teddy," she replied calmly, folding her clothing back into her trunks. 

"so, you're returning to the eastern empire?"

"sadly."

"aren't you worried you might outshine the empress-to-be?" theodore teased, knowing how astrid disliked rashta. 

"i couldn't give a shit. it's her problem she invited every prominent figure in society including the former empress. plus, she's never going to measure up to navier ── navier has more class on her pinky than rashta's whole body and baby," astrid scoffed, earning a laugh from the prince. 

"you must really hate her," 

"i hate anyone who steals other people's husbands ── a concubine, mistress, or consort should know their place,"

"right. well then are you packed yet? margaret is being a bitch because she cant find her pink dress."

"I'm almost done. plus, tell your sisters to keep the packing to a minimum. they are going shopping in the eastern empire."

"got it," he nodded before disappearing to relay the messages to his sisters. astrid finished the rest of her packing before going to rest for the long trip ahead.