forum A Thing You Won't Remember

Started September 18, 2022 by @ElderGod-yellowqueen

tune

Romulus tried to kiss her back, but he was still waking up. "I rested all night and I'll rest tonight as well. It's daytime now." He sounded petulant, but determined. He noted the look, and shrank back from it, but didn't lie back down.

Lear, on the other hand, didn't flinch. "He is indeed injured, and he does need to rest, and I do know it, and he shouldn't be getting up at all. You're correct. But you try holding him down." He walked over with the Prince's clothes, and Romulus stood up, a bit shaky, but on his feet. Lear helped him into his pants, before handing him the sweater, which Romulus pulled on without issue.
"He has things he wants to do today, Elia, and to be fair, they need doing."

"And he shouldn't be the one to do." Elitita murmured to herself as she walked away. She walked into Lear's bedroom and found the dress waiting for her on the bed. She dropped the towel and dressed in it. It was more modest than she was used too. It was a square shape neckline and long sleeves. There was no sheer fabric or anything to show off her body. Nothing she was used too. But she was at the palace now, she had to dress accordingly.
She managed to put it on by herself. She found her back and grabbed her brush and a few Hari accessories. It took her a good while to brush through her hair and get all the tangles out. She braided her hair in an elaborate braid on her hair, something a noble woman would wear. She placed a couple hair accessories in, a few clips and such, to dress it up.
When she had finished, she stepped back in to Romulus' room.

Romulus was dressed and steady, managing to look soft. It was an odd skill that Lear had never quite figured out, but put the mass of muscle in a sweater and it softened all his angles by quite a bit. The kids always seemed to like him more this way.
They had made their way into the Prince's study, and were working on writing out Elia's titels and lands, and allocating her the funds to get started. Lear thought he heard the door open in the bedroom, and called out "In the study."
Romulus was simply signing what Lear wrote, but he was doing his best to read it first, checking for things that could be problematic for Elitia. So far, she and Lear had done a good job of making sure her choice was a decent one.

Elitia stepped into the study. She looked beautiful, even with a plain dress on. It seemed to hug her every curve. Her hair was fit for nobility, royalty, even. She somehow turned such a simple wear into something majestic.
She stood in front of the desk, on the opposite side of Lear and Romulus. She clasped her hands behind her back. She did a once over Romulus, noting his wear, his look. She wasn't quite sure how someone as strong as he was could look so soft, but it suited him.
"What are you boys working on?"

Lear cut her a look that said Boys?? as clearly as if he'd said it out loud. "We're working on making you a legal Venian noble, since you asked. What would you like your name to be?"

Romulus looked up at her and smiled brightly. He looked more awake, and when he spoke, his voice sounded much less raspy. "This is your chance to pick any name you want, Princess. Lady Blank of Morganshire." He liked Elitia, but that would likely be a problem of a name to keep, since some of the Venians would know it. Many wouldn't anymore, but amongst the nobility, it would be obvious.

Elia returned his smile, ignoring Lear's look. It only made her laugh. They were her boys, whether he saw it or not.
She drummed her fingers on the desk, trying ti think of name. She hadn't been expecting that, though she should have. The name she had taken on fir herself was too similar to her birth name. Elia. Elitita. It was too close. She only needed to think of a name. She couldn't understand why it was so hard. She thought back to her time at the palace. One of her friends, a maid's daughter, Ebony.
"Ebony. I'll be Lady Ebony."

Lear chuckled. "Mysterious. That should work."

Romulus just kept smiling. "Now I just have to remember that." He signed the paper that Lear slid across the table to him.
"And….. it's official. As of this moment, you are Lady Ebony Morgan, Countess of Morganshire."

Lear stepped out from behind the desk, and bowed low. It was reminiscent of his bows when they had first met a little over two weeks ago. "My Lady. Now we need you to sign some things." He slid several papers to her. "First is making Calvin and Lily your wards, and Calvin in particular your heir, with the stipulation that he take care of Lily, regardless of how their relationship ends." He glanced at her. "At this point, it looks like they'll be together forever, but they're young. No need to leave Lily in a position of needing to go back to other forms of income."
Romulus handed her the quill. "Just needs your signature at the bottom. First time you sign this signature, so enjoy it."

Elia just shook her head at Lear with a small smile. "You don't need to bow to me, my love." It would be strange, then, that people would bow and curtsy to her. It was strange having a position of power once again. But this time she was old enough to do something with it.
She walked around the desk and sighed her name, her name, quickly, elegantly. And then jt was done. She was Lady Ebony Morgan of Morganshire with Clavin as her ward and heir, alongside Lily. She had faith in the young couple. She would make sure they had the best teachers and best clothes. But they would still be humble and understand their position.

Lear smiled at her. "I know I don't need to, but i will continue to do so." He watched her sign, and slid the next page across to her. This would be less pleasant.
"This is a pledge of your allegiance to House Vespasian. It is the same thing agreed to by all the nobles."

Romulus spoke up gently. "It says 'the Crown' in the document, but it also specifies 'the undersigner'. Which will be me. So it's not to my father, Elitia."

Lear nodded quickly. "It's allegiance to Romulus, since he's signing it. If the King were ever to sign it, it would be to him, but he would have to find this document first, and believe me when I tell you, he never will as long as I'm alive." This was a task Lear had set himself. Romulus had asked him to help protect the Venian nobles from being tied to the whims of his father, and he'd taken it personally.

Elia straightened her back. This was it. She was signing her loyalty away. She was no longer a princess. She hadn't been in a very long time but this would finalize everything. She would be loyal to Romulus or she would lose her head. She took several deep breaths, staring at the paper. She muttered a quiet word to herself, and only herself. Then she picked up the pen and signed the paper.
Her lips were in a thin line as she looked at Romulus with a nod of her head. "Okay. What now?"

The Prince watched Elitia consider what she was about to sign. He saw her internal struggle, and her decision. Her signature was the final acceptance of his offer.
He touched her arm gently, aware of what that must have taken. "Thank you."

Lear paused to give her a small, understanding smile. The allegiance oath was a difficult thing to sign as a Venian.
"I think that leads us to longer decisions." He slid her another page, with a long list of names. "These are the people living in your lands and tending the vineyards and hops fields. It's now your call whether or not they can stay."
Romulus reached over and grabbed a smaller, but equally comfortable chair, and pulled it up next to him with a small groan. "There is a mix of Haradrim and Venians on your land. There will be no judgement about who you allow to stay."
The page had the names of the families and individuals who lived there. It had their nationalities and which ones had been there before the Harad invasion. It had their roles and positions.
The page had lives listed on it, under her control now.

"I will not uproot anyone from their homes, despite their nationality. Not unless they give me a reason too." Elitia scanned over the pages but didn't pay much attention to the names. She would not kick anyone out. She was not cruel. Whether they were Venians or not, this was their home now. Unless they gave her a good reason to remove them, she would not touch them. They knew the land better than she.
She leaned back in the chair and placed her hands in her lap. Her body was slightly rigid, tense. It was intimidating, to come into a position of power. The last time she had a title, the most she cared about were what color her dress was and playing with her dolls. She didn't know how to rule, even if it was just over an estate. She refused to ask for help though. She didn't need it. She needed to prove she was strong.
"Is there anything else to be discussed or is that all?"

Romulus smiled at her decision. That made things much easier for him in the future. "I'm glad you've chosen that. The people on your land will be grateful." Many of the Venians he'd put in power had been quick to make their estates and products 'Venian only', which meant displacing families. He couldn't blame them, but it was hard to explain their right to the land to the Harad children who'd been born here. "It just needs your signature now."

Lear nodded, before answering her question. "There is more, my lady." He was being careful to be respectful with her, for two reasons. One, respect is always good, but two, she needed to get used to it.
"There is staff already in the Manor, which you will inhabit. Many of them have family on the Estate, and could easily live there. A few do not, but they can be placed in other empty spots." He slid another page to her, with another list of names and positions. "These would be your servants and attendants. The people around you on a daily basis."

"What Lear is trying to say, is that you shouldn't flinch about editing this list down. These are the people who will be close to you, and you ought to be picky about that. You'll be displacing no one by sending them home and picking all new staff." Romulus interjected. He could tell Lear was trying to suggest without telling Elitia what to do.

Elitia looked down at the paper, looking over the names. None of them were familiar to her. She couldn't make a decision by just looking at names on paper. "I think I would need to meet them before making a decision. And I wouldn't even know who to hire in their place if I did decide to fire them all right now."
She didn't know anyone. No one outside the brothel and her few regulars. And she couldn't hire any of them. She wouldn't want to hire any of them. None of them would be fit to serve over an estate. She would need to meet her staff, and spend time getting to know all of them before making changes to her house. But that would mean spending time away from the palace, from Romulus. It would take weeks, possibly months, to choose how to arrange her household. She would need to examine everyone's strengths and weaknesses. See who spoke about her when no one was looking. Take a look at ledgers. it would be a long process.
"What next?"

Lear nodded. "I figured that would be the response. We do have replacements picked, should you want them sooner rather than later."

Romulus spoke up. "I vet them personally, and they're all Venian. None of them would know you, though. We could be sure of it."

Lear watched her reaction. "And this doesn't have to be done today. It's just a matter of putting your mind on what needs to happen over the next while. The flip side of that, is the longer you have them around you, the longer you may feel unsafe."

Romulus nodded along. "Which is why your next order of business is choosing your personal guard." He looked up at her. "What would you want in a bodyguard? If you'll give me your qualifications, I can tell you who among my men fits them. Or, if you have someone in mind?"

Elitia only nodded at them. "I will keep that in mind."
She turned her body to look at Romulus. At his question about who she would want to guard, her first thought was you. He couldn't be her guard. He was a prince. It would be laughed upon for her even to suggest a thing. The only other person she could think of would be Alak but she couldn't be sure if he would even want to leave the Prince's service. So she didn't suggest either.
"You're better at this than I am. I have faith that you will choose my guard well. I wouldn't even know where to start unless we're judging looks." The only guards that had been in her life before Romulus was the "guards" at the brothel that was mainly there to drag back whores should they escape, or to throw out patrons who took things too far.

Romulus nodded slowly, before looking at Lear. "I'll need your help, I'm cloudy." His head was hurting, and he was doing his best, but for important details like this, Lear would need to do his thinking for him.

Lear nodded at him, before pulling out a clean sheet of paper. "Couple of questions: Would you prefer someone intimidating, to deter people, or someone understated, to keep people's suspicions down? Do you want a Venian guard specifically, or is any ethnic group ok? And would you prefer a female?"

Elitia reached her hand over to grab Romulus'. She stroked his knuckles with her thumbs, trying to provide some comfort. She knew he was hurting and she wished everything in her power she could make it stop.
She turned to Lear. "Someone understanding. Preferably Venian, but I trust your judgment. As long as they are trustworthy. And gender has no preference to me. As long as they are good at their job, male or female."
She was not afraid of men, as some might think or others might that have gone through the things she had. Women could be just as cruel as men. She learned that in her early days. It gave others power if one coward before them. So, she did not cower. She held her head high and kept her back straight. She did not let anyone intimidate her.

Lear nodded, taking notes. "Men are a bigger pool to pull from. Understated, narrows it down. Trustworthy, preferably Venian…" He was running the list in his head, but Romulus knew his soldiers better.

"Uriah." he said quietly. The short Venian was not built like a ton of bricks, but his skill in many ways was unmatched. He would be the kind of quiet strength that would be good for Elitia to have around. He wouldn't make people nervous, wouldn't make them think she was hiding something, but he could provide protection easily.

Lear snapped his fingers and nodded. "Perfect. And he would be understanding of your situation too, should you ever choose to share it." Romulus had pulled Uriah from a slave-labor mine about 5 years ago, and the young man had become one of the Prince's most loyal soldiers. "I can have him assigned to you by lunch, and we can have you heading towards your estate in time to get there tonight."

So soon? Elitia looked at Romulus with concern. He wasn't well. He wouldn't be for a long while. She didn't want to leave him while he was so vulnerable. He needed help, someone to help care for him. She could be that person if he allowed her. "Tonight? Is that wise? I don't want to pop up on everyone and be like 'Surprise, I'm your new lady and you all must follow me.' That feels a bit much. Shouldn't they have some warning?"
She picked at her nails in her lap. A bad habit. One she desperately needed to work on.

Romulus smiled at her, a slightly crooked expression owing to his messed up face. "As long as you don't waltz in, firing off decrees, I think you'll be ok. And they'll have advance warning, Lear has already dispatched a messenger who will be there within an hour or so from now. So by the time you ride up tonight, they'll be ready."

Lear nodded with him. "And these dear people have been looking for a Lord or Lady in the Manor. It gives them a sense of identity, and a status that comes with being attached to your name now. That's something you provide them just by being Lady Ebony."

Romulus made eye contact with her. The swelling had gone down enough for his eyes to be expressive again, which was a good sign. "And the sooner you're out of here, Elitia, the safer you are. Spend some time in your new home, get your personage established, and then, when you come to court, if you decide you wish to, nobody will think twice about it. Because right now… you're vulnerable." He wanted her to go, not because he didn't want her care, or because he didn't think she could help, but because right now, she had the papers signed but nobody knew who she was. She wasn't protected by her title yet. She would need to time for people to associate her face with Countess of Morganshire, and then she could be safer. His eyes were pleading with her to that effect, that she would go and make herself safer.

Lear watched their interaction, before gently breaking the brief silence. "Uriah can serve as your right hand man while you are vetting and establishing your house. He's a good judge of character but he'll trust your decisions." Lear was writing some things down, getting the papers ready to reassign the soldier. "Also, there's a lady who deals with much of the bookkeeping at Morganshire. Her name is Valiel. Venian, in her early 30's. If you feel you can trust her after a bit, she would be another one to help you vet more people."

Romulus hadn't taken his eyes off her face, but he nodded slowly as Lear spoke. "They'll help you, and anything you need, send me a letter. Even the civilian Wulves are very fast, and there are riders posted in every town. I can receive and respond to your questions within the hour from Morganshire."

Lear slid one more sheet to her. "That just needs your signature to accept Uriah as a bodyguard, and then we're done here in the office." The rest was legwork, which he'd probably do himself.

Elitia held Romulus' eye contact. She should look away. She should have and maybe they wouldn't have convinced her to leave so soon. But she held his eye contact, she saw his pleading eyes, and she caved. She nodded her head and bowed it to her lap. She silently signed the last piece of paperwork and then she was done.
She turned her head to Lear. "Lear, could you be a dear and give us the room?"
She just needed to be alone with Romulus, just for a little bit.

(Ughhh sorry its short.)

(you're ok! Not a problem 🙂)

Lear nodded, gathering up papers. "Oh, I have so much to do, even if I wanted to stay, I need to go. Just make sure he lays down at some point ." He smiled at her, before bowing to them both and heading out of the suite to go handle the preparations. He had papers for Calvin to sign, as well as Uriah, and a messenger to send to Morganshire, and then there was other business to deal with today, papers the Prince would need to sign for the other teens, but. That could wait a bit.

Romulus watched him go, before looking up at Elitia.
"Whatcha thinking, princess?"

Elitia bowed her head in response to Lear and watched him leave. Once the door had shut, she stood up and took the two steps to stand before Romulus's legs. She raised her hands and gently held his head in her hands. "I feel uneasy leaving you here like this. Not that Lear can't care for you himself, but, it would ease my worries to watch you heal. Being away, anything could happen, and I wouldn't know. I worry about you."
Standing in front of him, she was only an inch or two taller from the large male. Their faces were only inches apart from each other. Worry was laced in her eyes.

Romulus smiled at her. He leaned into her touch, before leaning forward and resting his head on her shoulder, eyes closed.
"I've had to heal here many times, I'll be alright. And you can write letters, which I will respond to. We'll keep you posted on my health if you want, Elitia. But." He kissed her cheek.
"You need to go and get established and set up. You gotta write those letters anyway, to send us your receipts for everything you purchase so we can cover costs. You gotta keep us posted on Calvin and Lily and their education and things, so we can pay for that too. But that requires you to be there, and focus for a bit, and then. Then, when you've become Lady Ebony a bit more than on paper, then you can return as a courtier if you wish. I'll be healed by then, I'll be healthy, you needn't worry." He kept his head rested on her shoulder.