For King and Country

The Queen's Departure

Chapter 36

Preparations were underway for the meeting with the King. Troops had been leaving the palace and their various posts across the country for the past two weeks. The royal guard had been handpicked by Henry and Elijah, and they were currently preparing the horses, carriages, and supplies for the journey. Elijah had continued to avoid me, Micah was avoiding me a little less than Elijah was, but he was still distant.

I was hosting my last salon before I left, this one including almost every woman in the palace. It was the finale to the season, followed by a ball tomorrow night that I wouldn't be here to attend. Henry had opted out of the negotiations, saying that I was perfectly capable of doing it. And I would have Elijah with me, at least he knew how these things typically went.

I paused as Marie's fingers worked through my hair as she pulled it back out of my face with a ribbon. My hair had grown longer and thicker since my time here, and my wavy hair was falling in every direction over my back. Helena had picked out a long sleeved, blue paneled dress that was embroidered with a light gold trim. I entered the down stairs room where all the women were gathered and drinking tea. The early morning light was spilling into the room, and the women were gossiping among themselves. The three sets of the double doors were opened to the garden, displaying a marbled fountained of a goddess. I smiled politely when I spotted Josephine. The Ladies all stood, and I motioned for them to sit down almost immediately.

"Hello your majesty," One of the older women said, a smile painted on her face as she took in the dress I wore, trying to find fault in it. I smiled down at her.

"Hello my lady," I said, trying to find a place for her name. "How are you?" I nodded. She smiled back.

"I'm well, your majesty." She replied, and I turned before she could continue our conversation. I quickly settled into a seat beside Marie, and a servant quickly handed me a cup of tea. No one but my ladies knew about my departure this evening, and I planned to keep it that way. So I listened as the young women hounded Marie about her whirl-wind marriage to a Prince, quizzing her about everything from the events leading up to her wedding to when she would depart for Thanir.

"Did Fitz's father reply to his letter?" I asked, sipping from the pretty china cup I'd been handed, raising my eyebrows over the rim of my glass. Marie smiled grimly.

"Yes, your majesty." She said, "The King is not unhappy with the match, though he did express surprise that Fitz had decided to settle down in such an unconventional manner." I interpreted the words quickly. The King may not have been unhappy, but he was far from pleased. And he was probably angry that his only child from his first wife had decided to marry a girl without courting her, a girl who hadn't set foot in his court since she was a child.

"That's so good for you, Marie," Another girl who I didn't recognize leaned forward, expressing her congratulations sincerely. "Imagine, you're going to be a Queen." I smiled at her words and spotted Lady Echolyn laughing across the room in a little corner table. I stood.

"Excuse me for a moment," I said, smiling at the ladies who stared after me as I walked across the room. I stopped in front of Echolyn's little table, the ladies around her immediately parting for me.

"Hello Your Majesty." Echolyn smiled, her face glowing in the light that filled the room. "How are you?"

"Well, Lady Echolyn." I said back, turning to the women that surrounded her. "May I have a moment to speak with you?" I asked. Her eye brow cocked, a mischievous grin on her face.

"Of course, anything for a Queen." I laughed as the women dismissed themselves, settling into the seat across from her. Her reply made me realize how little I knew her. She seemed so much older than me, so much more motherly, with so much of life figured out. But the mischievous grin and glint in her eye made me remember that in many ways, she was still young. "Elijah came to see James yesterday." She said her mouth drawing into a firm line, taking me by surprise.