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Upon our meeting, I had realized that I wasn't afraid of the darkness—I welcomed it
Anonymous
Amazement, the subordinates in the room could do nothing but stare in sheer wonder as their King laid out the plans before them. They knew, from the moment she left for Avaion, that things were going to be adjusted in order to accommodate their newfound Queen. The revised plans for guards around the castle and the assignment of shadows were nothing short of clever. Although the changes were drastic from an inside perspective, no-one would be able to detect the subtle outside changes. A sure sign of their King's impressive strategy skills.
"Any questions?" Ace spoke in such a regal manner that those before her nearly lost their ability to speak. Although all who worked underneath her had been beside her for her entire reign, they still managed to get tongue-tied. The nostalgic action caused laughter to erupt from Ernesti.
"I see some things will never change around here... If you have a basic understanding of what's happening please feel free to leave. The King and I have more pressing manners to attend to," The hearty voice of Ernesti broke through the trance that held everyone captivated. In response, everyone collected themselves and their belongings before exiting the room with small smiles and a bow. In the course of two minutes, the room was cleared of everyone deemed unimportant.
"You ran them out before I could conclude the meeting," Ace stated, her eyes scanning the itinerary created by one of her most trusted ambassadors.
"Pshh, You don't have to follow Eliza's instructions so closely. Especially when you didn't even say anything when I told them to leave,"
"Yeah...I know,"
Ernie had squinted her eyes in mild confusion, openly baffled at how someone who held so much power could be so aloof at times. It was not often that Ace showed it, but at times her age often flashed through—no matter how much she blended into modern times with her youthful looks.
With a heavy sigh, she smiled at how relaxed she felt back in her King's presence. Her time away made her respect for the woman before her intensify tenfold. She couldn't understand how she managed to last nineteen years away from her other half and remain perfectly intact. Maybe it was due to her years before she was King, but Ernie knew—she knew her master had waited longer before and this lifetime was a simple reminder that time meant nothing to Ace.
"Sometimes, I sit and wonder why I started following yo—"
"Because you lived a life of monstrosity and found comfort in the presence of my existence. I had become the first being who could withstand your disastrous ways. More or less, I was also the only reason you avoided death and persecution," Ace's words caused a hefty grin to spread across Ernesti's face, she had worked hard to gain the reputation of the Devil's Serpent and any reminder of that hard work was not frowned upon in their household. Unlike many Kingdoms and homes, where some things weren't meant to be spoken on, Ace held no rules on how they used their freedom of speech as long as it didn't correlate to the King's relationship with the Queen; then all power to them.
