Stalemate | A Rise To Power

𝘑𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘢

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Junia had to wait an entire day for Ulysses to come and see her.

He didn't knock to announce his arrival and strode in unannounced, a cloak flowing behind him. Her brother had a freckled face with a sharp jaw and straight nose, giving him a stern look. It instantly disappeared when he saw Junia's face, however, and relief lit up his tired expression. He was twelve years her senior, and tall with Lachlan's green eyes, and unique ginger hair—he was considered handsome, Junia knew, from the ladies who always giggled behind their fans as he walked by.

"You're alive," Ulysses said, his expression dazed. She had never seen him so thin before and knew he had lost a lot of weight since everything went wrong. He was barely a man, not even wed, and he looked too young for the weight of a crown. Once kind, his eyes burned with a newfound resolve beneath his weariness.

He wanted revenge for their parents.

Even so, he was still Ulysses. Nothing could change that, not even the gold band lying across his head. It was strange for Junia to think that Ulysses, barely four and twenty, now wore a crown.

Junia had never imagined Ulysses as a king. She had known it was almost inevitable, but she couldn't imagine him being ruthless. She couldn't imagine her brother leading an army or calling for an execution. He was good with a sword, but she saw him more often drawing sketches of ladies or telling stories to the courtier's children. It seemed unfair that the responsibility of being king had been thrown on him before he was ready.

Junia flung herself at him. She was home. Against all odds, she was alive and had made it. Somewhere deep within her, she felt a small buzz of excitement as he patted her on the back. His rib cage was hard against her chest, protruding through pale skin, but she knew that she had also lost a lot of weight from her time on the road.

Why did Clovis leave? She assumed it was because of the mean guard, but thought about it more. Did he feel guilty about leaving Audrey? Had he gone back for her?

No. That would be suicide. He probably just went off to start a life of his own without being stuck serving princesses.

"Glad to know you're alive, Juni," he said. "Everyone was saying you were dead. When none of you came back and I was here alone..." He shook his head. "It was frightfully lonely. We had to throw a hasty coronation, and it's still hard to convince some of the nobles to mobilise."

"Mobilise?" Her eyes widened. "You're telling me that we're going to war?"

Ulysses looked surprised that she had even asked the question. "Juni, they killed our mother, and they hold our father and Malena hostage. Kael used deceit to take over Northstone Castle, and killed King Lucian and Queen Adina. You can't tell me that he should be allowed to march his armies unhindered through the South! That's what he wants to do, I suspect."

Junia swallowed but didn't protest. Secretly, she wanted Kael to pay too. Once, she would have insisted on trying to secure negotiations and make peace. Now, she was less sure.

"The curly-haired man, he一he's really mean."

"Josiah is ruthless, but he does his job well." Ulysses sighed and sat down on Junia's bed. For a moment, his eyes ran down her short blonde haircut. "Now, tell me everything. Including why your hair is suddenly so short."

So Junia did. She told him about going out with Annalee but being caught by a guard while her twin ran off into the darkness, not to be seen again. She told him about the sudden attack on the castle and their mother dying with an axe to her head. She told him about going with Clovis and walking for days on end trying to get to safety, then about the woman with the mangled ankle, and Clovis' knack for finding food. Ulysses listened quietly as she talked, patient as always, and polite enough to only speak once she had finished.