The Emery Chronicles: The Red King's Romance (THIRD BOOK)

Chapter 20

Chapter Twenty- A King's Decree

The next morning, Roux awoke with Carmine still in his arms. A smile spread slowly across his face as he watched her sleep. The sunlight seemed to cast a glow over everything, so the forest seemed to be under a pretty little haze. Carmine's eyes slowly fluttered open and she smiled up at Roux.

"Good morning," he whispered to her. The sound of birds chirping and leaves rustling in the breeze was a beautiful background to their sweet morning. Carmine simply pecked his cheek in response, sitting up and finding her dress lying under a tree. Roux groaned and pulled her back so she lay on top of him. He moved strands of her hair away from her face and kissed her addictive lips.

Carmine pulled away again and this time stood up to pull her dress on. "No more, you need to get up. It's your wedding day."

"What?" Roux asked her in disbelief. Had all this been a dream? Was he just another fling to her that she was so ready to give him back to her sister?

"I mean, you need to decide what you're doing," Carmine plopped back down next to him, caressing his face. "It's your wedding day to my sister. But you love me. So what is his majesty going to do?"

Roux slumped back against the grass and Carmine giggled at his dumbfounded face. She pecked his cheek again and then stood and pranced away, completely unbothered. But Roux was left with a mystery: what would he do?

***

Roux was still puzzling over it later, pacing in his bedchambers. It was still early morning, and he had plenty of time before the wedding. But it still seemed like not enough time. He thought he had a solution, but he was still nervous.

Just as he was circling his room for the umpteenth time, Edom barged into the room and locked the door behind him. The advisor looked disheveled, but a bright, anxious smile was plastered across his face.

"Edom! Thank the gods," Roux exclaimed at his sight. He went to his friend and threw an arm across his shoulders, leading him into the room. Edom could sense the Red King's nervous energy, and took a seat on the bed to listen to what he had to say. "I've a predicament. I went ahead and lay with Carmine."

Edom sat up, about to exclaim, but held himself back. He decided to let Roux explain, which he went on to do. "I love her, Edom. I really, really do. And she loves me! So I'm going to tell the nymphs that I'm going to marry her instead. The only problem is, they'll think I'm shaming the older daughter. So, if you agree, I'll tell them that Loral will have the honor of being your bride, so both sisters will be in the royal household! What do you think?"

Now Edom had to talk. He stood and let Roux sit down this time, his own nervous energy apparent. "I want to help you, my friend. But I'm sort of in a predicament myself. I fell in love with my whore, but it turned out she wasn't a whore but a rich lady from the White kingdom who wanted to assassinate you, but instead fell in love with me."

"Pardon me?" Roux stood up, his eyes wide.

"Yes, and I married her last night." Roux's eyes widened even more, though Edom didn't think they could. "Yes, she was here for...unfortunate...reasons. But we fell in love with each other and I wanted to be with her forever. She be mine, and I be hers. Isn't that what you want with Carmine?"

Roux closed his eyes and sighed. "You're right. I am hardly one to judge you. But you're sure she's safe to marry? If she was an assassin..."

"She was just confused," Edom explained. "But it's true love. I've never felt this way before."

The two men sat on the bed and sighed. "Me neither. Love is a mischievous creature, isn't it?" Edom nodded and they both sighed again.

"What are you going to do?" The advisor asked his king. Roux shrugged before replying.

"It'll come to me, I suppose."

***

The nymph community was busy, everyone bustling around to complete preparations for the wedding. Roux walked out into the middle of the fuss, going up to Chief Ormond. He whispered something in the nymph leader's ear before leading him to the center.

"Everyone! Everyone, please permit me your attention." All of the nymphs gathered around at Roux's voice booming across the community. Roux could see Loral and Carmine join the crowd, Carmine looking at him as if trying to figure out what he was up to. He simply flashed her a small grin before turning back to address the whole community. "When I made my promise to your Chief, the promise of a marriage in exchange for assistance in time of war, I told him I would marry his daughter. His daughter; but I never specified which one. I cannot marry Loral today. Instead, I will be marrying the daughter I fell in love with: Carmine."

The crowd whispered and chattered excitedly, Loral raising her eyebrows at her sister. It wasn't anger, just surprise. Ormond was taken aback, unsure how to react. "B-but, my eldest daughter?"

"Loral is elder, which generally means the first to marry. But it also means the first to make her own decisions and live her own life." Roux turned to Loral in the crowd. "Loral, I'm sorry. I wish I didn't have to do this in this manner, but you deserve better." Loral shook her head, unsure how to react. Roux continued, again to the crowd, "I decree Loral should be bestowed the title of Chief of the nymphs as the current Chief's eldest child, as should any other female be allowed to compete for the title in the future. It's the life she wants, so who are we to deny her?"

Again, an uproar from the crowd. But there were many supportive cries, mostly from the younger females in the community. They were shouting agreement while some of the older members of the community shook their heads and grunted.

"Our culture, our customs," Ormond said, the crowd silencing at his words. "What makes you think you can change all of this?"

"What about me?" Loral shouted. She climbed up to the podium to stand between Roux and her father. "What about what I want, father? Our kingdom of Autumn is about the winds of change, but our customs never change. I understand tradition, but can't change be a good thing?" She shocked her father into silence, who only looked down on his child with a torn expression.

"Put it to a vote," Roux suggested. "That's another custom isn't it? You and the other elder members of the community should vote."

"The elders would never vote in my favor," Loral whispered to him frantically.

"Trust me," he whispered back. He turned back to the crowd, "All of you elder members: don't you have your daughters, granddaughters? Women you love and cherish and would give the world? So why wouldn't you give them just this small bit of world, the community? Why deny them the chance to be Chief? Why does your love have its limits?"

"My love for my daughter is not limited!" An older man in the audience cried. He was big and gruff, and he looked angered. Angered, but confused. His face cleared a little as he said, "I would deny my child nothing."

"Neither would I."

"Nor I!"

"My daughter can have the world!"

"So what's the vote?" Roux shouted. "All those opposed to allowing females Chiefdom?" Some hands were raised. "All those in favor?" More hands were raised, and Roux turned to see Ormond raise his own arm slowly, pulling Loral in for a hug with the other.

"Congratulations to my daughter," he said. "The next Chief!" More pandemonium from the crowd who cheered loudly. "And as for my other daughter," Ormond turned to the crowd to find Carmine. The usually sprightly girl slowly made her way to them, blushing. Ormond helped her onto the podium and put both his hands on her shoulders, looking down at her contemplatively. "So you fell in love with the King?"

Carmine blushed deeper and shrugged, unsure what to say. Roux smiled at them, looking every bit as besotted with her as her father could see she was with him. Ormond chuckled and said, "Well then I suppose we congratulate my other daughter on being the next Queen! C'mon, we have a wedding to put on!"