Two Of The Same Piece || Book 1 (The Beginning)

CHAPTER 33

Josephine listened to the rumors of Sonia's alleged dalliances, while they had run wild for a week now, Josephine hadn't paid much heed to it. She was rather busy with Rachid, while she still craved for Leo, Rachid proved to be pleasing.

Sonia had locked herself in her room, yelling accusations against Rave, each viler than the next. Rave, unsurprisingly, denied them. It was quite a messy situation, that Josephine frankly didn't wish to be a part of.

"What do you think, your majesty?" Rachid asked, sitting across her at the dining table. A meal of roasted venison, vegetables in curry and skewered strips of meat, and cool sweet cider was placed before them.

"Sonia and Lina dislike Princess Ravenna for seemingly no reason." Josephine lied smoothly. "I have half a mind to banish Sonia. It would be a fitting punishment for her lack of modesty."

"You are the queen, my love. I will follow your commands." Rachid said, his face not betraying his emotions.

"Good," Josephine said after a while.

--

Rave burned the letter from Taiskin. A letter full of condescending comments and insulting advice. It wasn't worth it to reply or converse with him. He was as obstinate as an ass. The palace was still ablaze with Sonia's rumors, courtesy of Rave. Just a show of power to those buffoons. She was a princess, and they were ants under her bejeweled feet.

Rave shook her head as she sat and wrote a letter for Aurilean. It hurt her pride and dignity to write it, but she had little choice. It was a letter, a simple one really, begging him to have her called back to Rayner. It hurt her pride deeply to have to beg Aurilean like this. This was not how princesses behaved. They didn't beg their husbands for anything.

It would take a better part of three months for this letter to travel to Bellayong than to Rayner by sea. It would take a long time, but she had no other options. If her father wouldn't let her leave, then she would get Aurilean to pressure them. It was how things had to be.

--

Rina stared at Sonia's letter to her. It was impossible. How could Josephine banish Sonia like this? When she herself was guilty of the same crime. Rina recoiled at Josephine's recent behavior. Rina wondered if it was Rave or Rachid, who influenced so much trouble for everyone.

Rina hadn't heard of her sister's marriage until weeks later. She and Taiskin had left for Evergrown, a pretty agricultural city north of Bellamin. Taiskin had mentioned Leo's family were from there.

Her own blood sister hadn't thought of inviting her. Taiskin had held her all night as she had cried over it. Bellayong was overwhelming foreign to her. In all ways. She had a governess to teach her customs and the Bellan language.

Even the queen consort was helping her adjust. It was strange to eat in the same hall as the commoners and denizens of Bellayong. Bellan royals usually dined with the commonfolk in an open hall. It was to build trust between the people and the royals. Rina hated it, but she had swallowed that opinion at first.

Cressida, the queen consort, had confided in Rina that she herself had hated this early in her marriage. But alas, as time passed, people learn to live with things and so did she.

Bellayong's crowded palace and loud nights slowly seemed less and less strange to Rina. She was getting used to it. Life was faster in Bellayong, everything happens so quickly that Rina could barely keep up. All the Thinlinyte jewels in her dresser, which once seemed to glow so brightly, seemed plain to her now. Her attention nowadays was always on the Bellan style of jewels. It looked so exciting to her now.

Rina stared through the large windows of her tower chambers. Her personal chambers were high in one of the Glass Towers in the palace. It was perfect, she had a lovely view of the lively city far below her. She didn't know that this unchanging, colorful view of Bellamin's districts would become intensely familiar to her soon.

--

Josephine burned Rina's letter of insults in the blazers. Who was she to question her, the queen? Josephine could only scoff. Rina had thought she could talk to her like this now that she had married a princeling. Josephine, in her reply back to Rina, reminded her that Taiskin was not yet king, but she was a queen for more than a year now.

Sonia's family had begged but Josephine had banished them. All of them, except Lina, remained of the family. Lina wanted to go with her family, but Josephine just wanted an excuse to flaunt her authority over all.

The merchant was already gotten rid of. Rave hadn't said anything, nor did she act smug. She only watched with a boredness that only a royal princess could dare show. Rave was no saint either, Josephine was so tired of her attitude. She would barely converse with her, a huge breach of etiquette for sisters-in-law. But Josephine saw how distracted Rave seems, so she chose to ignore this offense.

Yet Rachid seemed to take this offense seriously. "The Bellans think that just because they have married your sister, they can do whatever they please." Rachid snapped.

"Really? Is that so?" How dare he snap at her?

"Rave isn't above showing respect to you."

"She has personal issues she is going through now." Josephine said, "And I don't like hearing another woman's name on your tongue. Also, disobeying me? Questioning me? Seems like we are having a conversation, princeling." Josephine touched his throat lightly.