II. The Impact of Her

~ Epilogue ~

Another hectic day for the king of Western Wind.

Just after he awakened from his sleep, he immediately summoned the higher nobles of the court for a meeting. He skipped his greetings to his still sleeping wife and rushed to prepare himself. And when he arrived in the accepting room, he was told of a big problem at the pier.

Some of the fishermen complained about not being compensated properly. They also needed new fishing vessels to meet the growing demands of exportation and of their own economy.

James wasted no time. He ordered for the royal carriage right away and accompanied the nobles to the pier.

~*~*~*~

It took almost half of the day for everyone to settle down.

James and the nobles brought all of the fishermen into the nearest town hall to discuss the issue. It took a huge amount of patience, and a lot of back and forth between the two parties. But after a long deliberation with the nobles and his royal advisors, James finally gave the fishermen the assurance that they needed.

New fishing vessels would be constructed and provided for. It wouldn't happen quickly but they were assured that it would be given. James also approved a temporary compensation support for them whilst they waited for the new boats.

It was hard for James to approve of that compensation. But he was left with no other choice. He knew that if he didn't do anything to appease the public's uproar, riots would conquer the entire kingdom.

And that was the last thing that he wanted to happen.

And James couldn't deny the fact that when he was taking care of that matter, Robert's words played over and over in his mind. He remembered the last conversation that they had about approval of compensation. Robert's warnings struck a chord in him. Even though he didn't want to admit it, he kept those words in mind and heart.

Robert was right about one thing: he had to make people content in order to keep the crown. But Robert also reminded him, time and time again, that balance was needed. James gave so little credit to his heir when it came to politics. But he couldn't deny that what Robert said made sense in the long run.

'I must thank him once I get home,' he thought to himself.

~*~*~*~

It was late in the afternoon and James was still at the pier.

The nobles were sent back home as they had no other business being there. James stayed behind to oversee everything, to see if everything was maintained properly.

"Make sure that they all have their own spare ropes," James said as he spoke with the caretaker. He continued, "They must have enough ropes for everything. And make sure that the new fishing nets are in process. They can't use the same nets all the time."

"Yes, Your Majesty," the caretaker replied.

Out of nowhere, the captain of the guards arrived with two of his men. He rushed to the king and knelt. "Your Majesty," he greeted.

"Captain," James greeted back, with his brows furrowed, "What brings you here?"

"It's Her Majesty. She is ill. She is unable to leave her room, let alone her bed," the captain replied with his head still down.

James' world came into a stand-still.

'My Amelia.'

~*~*~*~

James paid no attention to anybody else when he arrived at the castle. The captain and his men stayed closed behind him as they made their way to the master bedroom.

James didn't blink. His gaze remained straight-forward with only one thing in his mind: his beloved.

The doors of the master bedroom were immediately opened as he approached. The guards stayed outside of the room as the doors closed.

James stood frozen by the door as he saw his dearest wife, sleeping. Still the same as he left her.

He took slow strides towards her. And as he reached the bed, he carefully slid back under the covers and held her in his arms.

'She was rarely sick. And whenever she was, she was never in this state,' he thought as he closed his eyes. His hold on her tightened as he prayed silently, 'What happened, my love? Why are you ill?'