Council of Six

Ragnar

Ragnar had unwisely fallen asleep, and when he woke up, the glittering spires of Cerulea were visible. He put a hand on the glass of the carriage's window, tinted, and covered in condensation, the inner core of it still cold. He hopped out, and immediately tore of his jacket, handing it to a scowling Ryllka. He strode to the door of the palace, trying to plaster an intimidating look on his pale face, looking even paler, compared to the surrounding Miromarans.
***
"Admiral."
He walked into the meeting room, with Ryllka trailing angrily behind him, her arms full of his stuff.
"Regina"
"You're late."
"We had to take a back current. Thank you for hosting."
He took his seat, letting a wave at Astrid slip out of his stolid composure. She waved back, but only for an instant. Then she turned to wipe something off of the face of a blushing Desiderio. Ragnar quickly turned away, probably blushing himself.
"Alright. Let the Council begin. The first the thing on the table today is what to do with the Permutavi. As many of you know, there was a problem with the transaction last time, but that  issue has been resolved. However,a young man in the government, who will remain un-named, has brought to my attention that the decree has quite possibly already served its purpose, and that it may prevent positive advancements in the future. We will take a vote now."
Astrid looked, for the first time in her life, absolutely terrified. He had seen her screaming in pain in the hospital because of a polar bear attack, he had seen her in agony after being bucked off of a breaching orca, or hippocamp, but he had never seen her look like this.
Her face was white, but her knuckles, her hands, gripped tightly around Desiderio's were red with blood blush. Desiderio had his eyes closed, pressed firmly together, a shaking hand trailing over Astrid's back, tense with fear.
Ragnar suddenly realized, that if the Permutavi continued, Astrid and Des couldn't be together, and then Astrid would be in the same position he was.
No, he thought. Gods no.