Stone Queen

Second Husband

It's comical how easy it is to tell so much about someone just by how they dress. Lords and ladies wearing muted whites, blues and blacks were obviously traditional people, and though their colors were plain they made up for it with the quality of the fabrics and also the haughty and prideful look on their faces, these were the people of the west. In stark contrast to the west, there stood the southerners with bright glittering fabrics and gaudy jewelry that paired well with their care-free faces. Between both parties were the easterners that wore simple grays and remained with passive expressions, forever the mitigators between the opposing areas. Last to walk in was the north, they were no doubt imposing with their sheer might. In walked lords donned in battle gear and ladies with a serious twist in their lips. I suppose it did make sense, the north motto was some sort of 'always be prepared.' It seemed pointless to me, you can never be fully prepared for the future. What they wore wasn't the only thing that stood out in this court room, the northerners were built to survive, large bodies accompanied with huge muscles was a far cry from the thin delicate bodies of the rest of the court.

"It seems you all know why you're gathered here." The response to my statement is grim silence, "Good, I won't waste my breath explaining it then."

"Who will be the next King? you have no heir and all King Theorin's, may the gods give him peace, family is dead." A lord from the west gazed at me with power hungry eyes. His hooked nose making him look like a vulture.

"like it isn't obvious, Lord Viensil of the south, he's always by her side. It's only logical that she should marry him." A voice answers, most likely a western lord.

"That southerner! I find it hard to believe he could possibly make a decent king." A westerner spits back.

"like you would be any better!"

"Now, I think it's best we all calm down and think about this rationally."

"Of course that's coming from the east!"

shouting continues back and forth between the court members while I gaze on in amusement. It can be so entertaining when people act exactly as suspected.

"What do you plan to do, My Queen?" a voice speaks louder than any others in the room, its deep timber silencing all other voices in the room, I smile.

"It's reassuring to see my whole court hasn't resorted to childish antics. As for what I plan to do, I'll rule until I can find a suitable king. And I will enforce my late husband's laws, make no mistake, I will rule harshly on any disobedience."

"What would you have all of us do then, stay here until you find your groom?" an old woman says with a nasally voice.

"Do whatever you wish, you're all adults who should be able to care for themselves," Viensil speaks up from my side, previously standing silently next to the throne.

"All who wish to stay will have a room to stay in, in the castle. Dismissed."

As suspected, the only ones to stay were the mothers vying for their son as a king, and any eligible man of a decent age. What was surprising was that the north, known for being antisocial and staying far away from royal matters, stayed. Well, a lord stayed along with his entourage. This was the lord that spoke during court, he was also commonly known as the King of the North. Theorin was very worried about an uprising supporting this lord as a new patriarch would occur.

"Is it really necessary for you to get a new husband?" Viensil asks as he sets down a cup of tea in front of me while I lounge on a couch across from him.

"Of course it is, do you really think those pompous assholes would ever accept a woman in power?" I scoff, it wasn't usual for him to be so naïve.

"You know, I wouldn't be apposed to it. I know you would never ask it but it's not like I have any better options."

"Don't be a fool! You have no wish to be married, you hate all forms of responsibility, and you deserve far better than anything I have to offer." I set my tea down and grab his hand. "Please understand, I want a better life for you."

He stared be straight in the eyes and a small smile lifts his lips. "You ought to give yourself more credit than that my dear, after all, you're the only woman I could ever picture myself marrying. Besides, I love you, Imogen. I don't plan on leaving you."

"enough Vi, you'll make me blush." I roll my eyes.

"Fine, if I can't marry you then I might as well help you pick who you're spending the rest of your life with. I'll give you my top five. From the west is Lord Marcus Celion, he has all the characteristics of a great ruler but completely traditional, and he would most likely kill you for complete power over the throne after your first male child. Next, a lovely man from the south, Lord Emil Duchamp, extremely charismatic and your best bet if you are interested in starting a harem. Two Lords from the east show potential, Lord Willum Cordot, easy to control so you wouldn't have to worry about giving up your rule, the only problem is he's tightly under his mothers thumb, Lord Cardin Lecoul seems to be the best candidate of them all, strong leadership, open-minded and cunning but there's something about him that I just don't trust. Lastly is Lord Kaden Ascovin of the North, famously dubbed the King of the North, he's a candidate for obvious reasons given his nickname but there hasn't been a northman on the throne for two centuries so it would be a bit of a controversy." He finally finishes.

And here I was going to suggest Thomas Albison." I smirk.

"Which lord is that? He doesn't sound familiar."

"He's not a lord, he's the baker." My smirk grows, knowing he's falling for the joke I'm playing.

"Why the hell would you want to marry a baker? besides he holds no title." His face pales and his lips screw up as if he ate a sour berry, he can be such a snob.

"Yes, but he is so attractive."

"You drive me crazy, you know that?"

"It's my specialty." I tease. Viensil became quiet and a thoughtful expression grew on his face. I wasn't used to him being this serious.

"How will you decide who replaces him?" he asks, the sorrow leaking out of his voice like much like water leaking out from a cracked dam.

"No one could ever replace him, but if you are asking how I will decide who I will marry next then I was thinking of a competition of sorts. Organized by you, of course."

"Oh Imogen, you truly do know how to cheer me up. I love competitions." He nearly squeals, "I just have one question, can there be casualties?"

I let a sigh escape my lips, Viensil always did have a flair for the dramatics. I once asked him to decide on the menu for a ball the castle was hosting, and he threatened to have the chef's entrails removed for making the meat taste bland. The more man fainted on the spot.

"Try to limit it, Vi, most of the court would already like to see me dead, we don't want to give them any more encouragement to try and assassinate me."