You Are Made of Iron

Chapter VII pt. 6

Zeilla left the room feeling embarrassed, and she hurried back to the reception room where she hoped to find Ronan. She was out of luck, because he had not returned from the errand he had been sent to do. She walked up to a desk, where someone was checking names off a list.
​"E-excuse me sir?" Zeilla said, trying to get his attention. He looked up sharply as if not used to being addressed so.
​"Are you speaking to me young lady?
​"Yes sir, I was just wondering if I was placed in the wrong room by mistake."
​"Can you tell me your name?"
​"Zeilla. My name is Zeilla."
​He looked at his list again, running his eyes over all of the names until he found hers. "Oh. Oh! Yes, yes." He looked up. Your room is that way," he pointed to the hallway she had been lead to, "Purple doorknob."
​Zeilla was surprised, so it wasn't a mistake, "But sir, there's already someone else in that room."
​"Have you considered that they have the wrong room?"
​"Well, she doesn't think she does."
​His eyes were drawn to his papers again, "Can you tell me her name please."
​She hesitated, "S-she said that her name was Alliez Heather."
​"Alliez Heather?" he looked up, he didn't even need the list to tell her, "Ah yes, that was her room, but she's been moved. She wasn't very happy about it, put up quite a fight. She's used to getting her way because she's the princess and all."
​"She's the princess? But who moved her?"
​"Why The Empress of course. Who else would do something like that? Or could for that matter."
​Zeilla gaped at him, "Why in the world would the queen–"
​"Empress." He corrected.
​"Why in the world would The Empress move her own daughter to a different room just to make space for me? I mean surely there are other rooms."
​"There are." He confirmed, "But if you're really that baffled as to why, why don't you go and ask her yourself?" Zeilla blinked. "Every day except Sunday, between one and three o clock the queen has a private audience with all of her subjects." He explained, "To sign papers, resolve disputes, and even to answer any questions that reporters might have."
​"I think King Galleon might have something like that, only almost no one goes there because if he deems it a waste of his time, then the people who came to him are punished. And I think that he only does it once a week."
​The man shook his head and clucked, "I've heard rumors about that King Galleon he's not a very nice one is he."
​Zeilla snorted, "You have no Idea. I've met him. Even with all that power and prestige he still could never get a woman to go for him."
​He smirked, and then paled as he looked up behind Zeilla.
​She jumped, "How do you do that?" Maeron grinned.
​"Oh, it's just a little trick I learned a while back. So what are we talking about? We wouldn't happen to snubbing a major king would we?" he said leaning his elbow on the wood desktop, his expression was extremely amused.
​"N-no s-sir."
​"Ohh, I like this one don't you?" Maeron said to the man at the desk, "She stirs up trouble and then lies about it."
​Zeilla stared down at her feet, "I wasn't meaning to cause trouble sir."
​"First of all; what did I tell you about looking people in the eye when you speak to them?" she looked up. "Better. Now, I've personally met King Nyver and I can tell you that he doesn't actually hold those audiences at all. He usually visits the woman who, as you so elegantly put it 'won't go for him' instead."
​"King Galleon actually fancies someone? What type of horrid person is she?"
​Maeron frowned, "Why do you assume that she's horrid?"
​"Well... just because..."
​"Because Galleon Nyver actually likes her? You are unbelievably prejudice." She looked back down, "Zeilla. I am still speaking to you." She gulped, raising her eyes, "Almost no one is mean to every person they meet. On a totally different note, why are you here gossiping with Hubert instead of having a look around your room? I actually thought that you would be asleep, you've definitely earned a rest after how Silas was treating you."
​Zeilla quickly explained what had happened and when she got to the part about Alliez trying to make her start a fire, Hubert grimaced as if he wanted to say something to her just not in front of Maeron. However the look was not lost on Maeron, it was beginning to appear that nothing was.
​"Was there something you wanted to say Hubert?" He asked almost innocently.
​"Nothing your majesty." His hands flew up to his mouth.
​"Aww, now you've gone and let the cat out of the bag. Anyway, continue Zeilla."
​But her eyes were wide and her mouth was opening and closing as if she couldn't decide how exactly how to respond to this news. Finally she settled on, "Y-you're a king?" she choked on the last word as she said it.
​"Well, I prefer the title Royal Wanderer. It sounds-"
​"Are you The Emperor?"
​"Technically yes but I don't-"
​"Does that mean that you're Alliezes father?"
​"It does. But-"
​"You don't look like her."
​"Maeron frowned, "Zeilla! That is the third time you've interrupted me! Are you quite done?"
​"Yes sir, sorry sir." Zeilla said, sufficiently cowed.
​"Now, continue your story."
​She summed up the rest of what she was saying by ending with, "I couldn't start a fire so she told me to leave."
​"That's all?"
​"Yes, your majesty."
​"Don't call me that." He snapped. She seemed to deflate, almost like when she was cowering from her master. "Sorry, follow me." That was odd for him. He wasn't used to apologizing for himself, usually other people were doing it for him.