Celeste froze completely under his touch, blinking hard once, then twice, to try and clear her head as she forced herself to relax. Lin wasted no time in moving towards the door, having accomplished his goal. "I'm fine." She said, forcing a smile. "It's not this I'm worried about. Just…memories. Nothing big." She promised, the fingers of her left hand fiddling with the fingers of her right, lifting from Pluto's fur. Deep breath, count to five, rinse and repeat.
Soren nodded, and dropped his hand. "Okay." he said with a small smile, then followed Lin to introduce him to the court. After he introduced Lin, he came back. "Come on, Celeste. Your turn." he said gently, holding out his arm for her to take if she wished.
This time around, Celeste welcomed the offer, gladly hooking her arm through his and using the contact to ground herself somewhat. She looked to Pluto, and then to Soren, before nodding slightly. Just before they entered the other room, she spoke quietly, eyes on the doors. "I wonder how much you remember of the first time we met. It went kind of like this, except it was you on the other side of those doors."
Soren blinked. "Oh…I had forgotten about that." he admitted with a soft chuckle. "That was a long time ago." Before…before dad was insane…before…everything. he thought. He led her out, gently escorting her onto the dais in front of the nobles. He introduced her to the nobility, keeping his arm linked through hers.
Seems like forever ago. I wonder how different each of us is now. Celeste put on the same friendly smile she tended to greet everyone with, adjusting it to be more polite and just a bit more impersonal. Despite that, her presence drew murmurs and curious and snide looks, from her hair, to Pluto, to her arm in the King's. Gossip fodder, she could tell that already.
Soren knew just how much gossip was already going to be spreading. "She's in the royal wing…" "The fiance rooms…" "We'll see whose room she visits at night…" "A witch? An outrage! With all these witch bloods running wild…" "He should stop focusing on the head between his legs and start using the one on his neck!" That last one had never made any sense to him, considering he never had anyone in his chambers at night. But that didn't stop the rumors that flew. The ones that said he was interested in men, since he hadn't picked a wife yet. The ones that said he must have an illicit lover that he couldn't wed. So many rumors about him.
Celeste's fingers tapped lightly on Soren's arm, and if he payed attention, he might notice the patterns to the taps. Morse code. She didn't expect him to know it, but she tapped out the assurances anyway. Whether to herself or him, she wasn't quite sure, but both worked. She could pick out a few of the insults and words spreading through the gathered nobles, and while she didn't like the assumptions about her, they were infinitely better than the after-effects of her father's introductions. Bad, but better. Isn't that the goal? Better. Better.
Soren's eyebrows drew together slightly. He knew morse code. Had been taught it when he was younger. He shifted his hand, tapping back, Alright? Something wrong? he led her back to the edge, having finished the introductions. The nobles mingled with each other, gossiping and talking about the newcomers and about their king. Some rumors spreading were…worse than others, by far.
Celeste blinked, glancing up at him in surprise. Had she tapped that out? More importantly, did he know morse code? I didn't realize you knew Morse. She tapped, biting her bottom lip as she looked away, letting the rumors in and trying to let them wash back out. It wasn't quite working. Thinking. Too much thinking. Looks like me messing up would have just added food to the fire.
Of course I do. I was told it was necessary for a ruler to know, though I haven't used it until now. he tapped, looking down at her with a small smile. Yes, it would have. That's why I asked you to be careful. The court has… he paused for a long moment. Taken offense to the fact that I am not yet married. That I do not have an heir. It is nothing you need to worry about.
There was that wrinkle between her brow, and the small and adorable frown, as she worried about it anyway. Why are people in power so concerned with children and legacies? Stealing lives early- She cut herself off, hoping he might have missed that. And you don't want to marry for convenience. It was a statement, not a question, because she knew the answer.
No. He tapped back. I… would rather marry someone I love, or at least could grow to love. Not…marry someone from far away. He realized that that wasn't something he should tell a stranger. I'm sorry. You don't need to know any of this. He said, looking down and ducking his head slightly.
Don't apologize. I'm guessing you don't exactly get the chance to talk about these things with others. She shook her head, narrowing her eyes slightly at him. I may be a practical stranger, but sometimes, that's the best kind of person to talk to. Unbiased. She paused her tapping for a moment, trying to think of how exactly to put her thoughts. You deserve to marry for love. And I hope that love finds you soon enough to get the pressure off of your back.
I- he stopped as a man walked over.
"Going to introduce me to your…friend, Soren?" The man asked, leaving just enough pause before "friend" that it was obvious that that was not what he was thinking.
Soren sighed softly. "Uncle, this is Celeste Sovanna, and you will address her properly. Celeste, this is my uncle, the duke."
The duke. Celeste didn't tap it out, only thought it to herself, and it took quite a bit of control not to frown at the man. Instead, she gave him the same smile she'd given the nobles as a whole, bowing her head slightly in greeting. "A pleasure, sir." She said, her voice soft but clear. Be polite. You don't have to like him, but be polite. That part was accidentally tapped on Soren's arm, but she seemed unaware of it.
Soren raised an eyebrow slightly. I know? Is something wrong? He tapped quickly. "Is there something you need, Duke Kaer?" He asked.
The Duke shrugged. "I heard you put her in the fiance rooms, rather than the ones I advised."
The muscles in Soren's arm tightened. "Yes. You know very well that Alana's rooms are off limits, Jacos. You overstepped your authority." He said in a warning tone.
"And why is that? Your sister has been dead for five years now. Why not put her rooms to good use?" The duke said in an infuriatingly calm voice.
Soren's fists clenched. "Because I said so." He said in a dangerously low voice. "I am the king, and you need to remember that."
Thinking. Was Celeste’s response, and no further explanation came. She stayed quiet, watching the conversation with that same calculating look that didn’t match her smile.
She cut in smoothly, before things could escalate too much, an oddly believable and persuasive tone to her voice. “Actually, it is a very good thing I didn’t end up in those rooms. I’m terribly allergic to a plant that was in there at some point, and though I’m not sure how recently it was, my familiar warned me of the plant’s presence. It really would be a disaster if I had ended up having an allergic reaction. I’d hate to throw a wrench in planning for the upcoming festival, just because a plant doesn’t get along with my genes.” It was almost lighthearted, the casual way she said it.
Soren took a deep breath.
The duke smirked lightly. "Oh, maybe that's why you moved her? Or is she here to warm your bed?"
Soren stiffened. "Get out." He growled at the duke. "Before I throw you out on your ass."
Captain Mikhail made his way over, quickly taking the duke by the arm. "Come with me, sir." He commanded, leading the duke away.
The duke was smirking.
Deep breath, count to ten, rinse and repeat. Celeste tapped to Soren, repeating the phrase a few times like a mantra. I know I shouldn't have spoken out of turn, but- The duke had seemed entirely too familiar. His personality was one she'd seen plenty of times before, and he was a man unafraid of anything, under the assumption that nothing could touch him.
It's alright. He just knows exactly how to get under my skin, and he does it every time he can. Soren replied. I'm sorry for my overreaction. He sighed softly.
Captain Mikhail came back. "The duke has been escorted out. But, sir…you can't always fix the issue by making him leave. It's making you look…"
Soren looked down at the floor for a moment. "I know, Captain. I…will try to be better." He said.
Don't apologize. It's not your fault. Celeste tapped, while listening to the two men talk. A small part of her had almost expected to be punished for speaking, habitual fear that followed actually being punished for even breathing too loud. Mentally shaking off her worries, she patted the fabric of her skirt, before slipping her hand into one of the folds, where she'd found a pocket while re-hemming. Thank you Ailisha. She thought to herself, sending out a prayer of good fortune to the witch that had given her the skirt.
Captain Mikhail sighed softly. "It it not your fault. But the court…you know the court." He said.
Soren nodded. "I do. I need to figure out something that will appease them, but…" It may not be my fault, but the court sides against me. He tapped back.
"Short of marrying one of their daughters or making someone else king, I don't know what you can do." The captain said gently.
Soren nodded. "I know. We can talk about this more later." He said.
Captain Mikhail bowed, and assumed his normal position a few feet away, silent.
And yet, you blame yourself for that, too. Celeste didn't even register tapping back, too focused on searching her pockets for whatever she was looking for. It took her a moment to withdraw a green banded stone, holding it in the palm of her hand as she studied it. "I can't offer much, and I hate it." Fixing was one of the few things she considered herself good at, so not being able to fix things was something she hated. "But…here. I remembered I had this in one of my bags. Malachite, the warrior stone, to help with wisdom and transformation. It's connected to instinct, and has a history with royals in the desserts my mother hailed from, as it's supposed to help them make better decisions. I don't have much to offer right now, beyond this."
Perhaps I do. He tapped. He looked at the stone, hesitating for a long moment. "And you are…giving it to me?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. He looked down at her, those strange blue eyes studying her carefully. "I don't see…why. You owe me nothing. There is no reason for you to help." He pointed out slowly, eyes searching her still. He wasn't sure…why she would help him. Why she would try to help him fix this court. It hated him because he wasn't letting them do whatever they wanted as his father had. He was trying to hold them accountable. They didn't like that very much.
"I have things to make up for, and a bit of a bleeding heart." She said, by way of explanation. And that was true enough. She felt like she owed a penance to the world, for what her father had done, and what she had done to him. Paired with her innate desire to be good, helping people was almost required of her. She met his eyes, the colors in her own swirling rapidly. "I'm giving you the stone, yes. If everyone in the world only helped those they had a 'reason' to help, what kind of world would we be living in?"