Allegiance

Chapter 52 - Final

The office in the Elven palace was elegant and peaceful. The brown wooden floors contrasted nicely with the dark gray walls. Paintings of different landscapes hung on the walls, as well as a beautiful black tapestry with a brown and green tree sewn in the middle. The office was filled with two brown leather couches on the side walls, which had coffee tables in front of them, a large brown wooden desk in the middle, which had a large brown leather chair behind it, and two smaller leather chairs sitting before it. Behind the desk was a beautiful gray stoned fireplace with pictures of the royal family on it.

Sitting on the leather couch on the left side of the room, where Arthur and Tessia. They were both looking at the pieces of paper in their hands while more papers were scattered on the coffee table. Tessia looked over the paper in her hand with a bored expression. She sighed as she read the last paragraph, placed the paper on the coffee table, and signed her name at the bottom.

Arthur's eyes flicked to his wife and smiled humorously as she leaned back into the couch, rested her head against the backrest, and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Getting tired?"

"Getting a headache," Tessia grumbled as she rubbed her temples. "I don't remember running a kingdom being this much work."

Arthur chuckled and put the paper he was reading down. He shifted closer to Tessia and hooked his arm around her shoulders. Tessia smiled and leaned into her husband, resting her head on his shoulder.

"Look at the bright side," Arthur said, giving Tessia a soft kiss on the top of her head. Tessia hummed happily, nuzzling her head into Arthur's shoulder. "At least your parents are taking care of the council business. Means less work for us."

Tessia nodded, "That's true." She opened her eyes and smiled lovingly as her gorgeous teal pearls met her husband's azure gems. "Have you read through everything?"

"Not everything," Arthur sighed. He chuckled, "I was starting to get a headache, too. Maybe it's time for a break." He looked toward the double doors which led to the hallway. "Should we go see what the others are up to?"

"We could," Tessia said, and her lips curved into a smirk as another idea came to mind. "Or," She gently grabbed Arthur's chin and turned his head to face her. Arthur's brows raised in pleasant surprise as her lips met his.

Arthur didn't hesitate to return the kiss, closing his eyes and enjoying how sweet her lips tasted. They broke the kiss and smiled at each other. "I like this idea more," Arthur said, and Tessia giggled. Arthur leaned in, giving Tessia a deep, passionate kiss.

Tessia completely melted from the kiss, knowing she would never get bored of his touch. They broke the kiss, and Tessia smirked as she shifted on the couch. She bit the corner of her lip and hiked up her elven robes, preparing to straddle Arthur's lap. However, she and Arthur froze, hearing someone knock at the door.

Arthur and Tessia grumbled, as Tessia sighed, "Typical." She slid off Arthur, sitting beside him again, and stared at the door with annoyance, "Come in."

The door opened, and a young maid with brown hair walked in and bowed, "Sorry for the disturbance, your Majesties."

Arthur forced a smile, doing his best to hide his exasperation, "It's fine. What is it, Mary?"

Mary rose elegantly, "Council members Alduin and Merial have just returned."

Tessia smiled with joy, "Oh, good to know. Is dinner almost ready?"

"It'll be another two hours, your Majesty."

"Understood, thank you," Arthur said, politely dismissing her with a gesture.

Mary bowed again before leaving the room and closed the door behind her.

Tessia stood up and smoothed out her elven robes, "Shall we go and see everyone?"