A Prince's Harem

Confrontation

The power in which Will held as he stalked down the hall towards his drawing rooms was one not seen in anyone sans the King himself in a very long time, especially not in a consort, Will was finding his role in the royal family and was growing into its mould, not letting it mould him instead.

"Your Royal Highness," Ros curtsied beside Will as he made his way past her, joining his entourage beside Apo and Michela as the group continued down the corridors of the King's palace.

For a short moment, Will banished the rage from within him and halted suddenly, "Mich, Ros, Apo, you three don't have to be here with me, we are friends before our ranks matter and I won't blame you if you go. If you guys want to go and see Grace, I will not stop you, nor will I make you come with me to confront Shep."

Before Michela could protest, having been Will's ladies maid for both of their lives, it was Apo who responded to the prince's statement, "Let the girls go, they have known Graecie much longer, they knew them better than me, I have known her for only two weeks."

"Apo-" Will started slowly, attempting to convince Apo that he too was welcome to join the girls, that he was just as valued with the Nightingales.

"Will, I have made my decision, I won't let you confront them alone," Apo replied firmly, "Besides, someone had to make sure you make your way to the medical wing afterwards or Scott would have our heads."

Will took a deep breath before facing the two girls, taking one of each of their hands, "Send her my love, yeah? And tell her I'll see her soon," he bit his lip nervously, careful not to break the skin.

Ros gently hugged Will, not caring about what protocol would say about it, "It is not your fault that Merton attacked you both, and Graecie does not blame you, not one bit. When you see her, she will be glad you are okay and that you did all you could to protect her," she promised, stepping back to lead Michela away with a half curtsy each, hand in hand.

"Will," Apo placed his hand on Will's non slashed arm, carefully and with precise calculation, "Are you absolutely sure you want to do this right now?"

Will pulled himself up to his impressive stature, fixing his posture to appear as regal as ever, "If he has something, anything, to do with this, I need to know now, before he has a chance to destroy evidence and forge an alibi."

Apo was resigned to taking his position beside Will, very notably not walking behind him as many courtiers believed he should as a servant to the prince and not noble in his own right.

Will pushed open the door to his own drawing rooms, stalking inside with a presence that one could liken to that of his father if one was stupid enough to voice such an observation in the prince's presence.

Any movement in the room ceased as Water and Jojo set down their embroidery wheels, not standing but instead greeting Will with warm smiles, greeting him as a friend and not a superior.

"Lady Water, Lady Jojo," Will greeted warmly, he moved to stand near them to talk before Shep arrived, "Feel free to return to your embroidery, my husband will be here soon with Lord Busker but I fear I will be indisposed, if you could please entertain them until my return?"

"Of course, I will be returning with His Royal Highness to his chambers tonight to pack for his departure," Water's face turned slightly red as she quickly busied herself with her needlework, she had an infatuation with Lord Jeffrey Busker, a noble from a faerie family who was very common to see in the Fae Court.

The reminder that Scott was riding out for a secret mission hung heavy in the room, but no one let them stop their conversion.

Will let out a small hum of playful teasing at the blush along Water's face, which was quickly schooled away when a knock rang out from his door, "Who is there?" he called.

"'Tis I, Your Royal Highness," Lady Anderson replied kindly, her smile was heard through the door, "With Lord Shep."

Will sighed and fixed his posture once again, "Thank you Lady Anderson, please send him in!"

Shep entered the room with a flourished bow, his necklace hanging down from his neck, catching the light, "Your Royal Highness."

"Sit," Will gestured to his card table, walking over towards it, "We will talk over a friendly game of Black Jack."

Shep nodded his head slowly, settling across from Will, eying him cautiously as he did.

"Why don't you cut the cards?" Will tossed the deck across the table as he sat, "You used to cut them at Merton's table after all, you were his best player."

At the mention of their former captain, Shep hesitated in his reach for the deck of cards, "Why do you bring him up now?" he finally asked as he cut the deck with perfection, shuffling them casually.

Will slid his own two cards towards him once the deck was returned to the table, tossing one gold coin to the centre of the table, "Want to make this interesting with a wager?"

Shep considered it for a few moments, understanding that the only way Will would answer his questions was for him to play along with his game, "Always," he smirked, sliding a golden coin to join Will's.

Will picked up his cards and made a small face of discontent that he quickly replaced with a neutral look, "Merton was in the palace today. Uninvited, naturally, but he was here nonetheless."

"Oh?" Shep replied absently, reading Will's face as they saw his own cards, drawing another one to add to his hand, "I raise you five gold," he set his cards face down on the table to signify his satisfaction.

"I see your raise and match your bet," Will slid his bet onto the table with a neutral face, "You didn't help him, did you?" he accused as he set his own cards down.

Shep flipped his cards to reveal his amount equalling twenty one; an eight of diamonds, a three of clubs and a ten of hearts, "Of course not, I've moved on from him. Will, why don't you believe me? I have given you no reason not to trust me."

Will stood and picked up the gold from the table to add to his satchel, "Because you're wearing his emblem on your necklace," he walked out of his rooms with his cards upright on the table, an ace and jack of spades.