Miavel

He really walked into the room as if he owned it. I mean, he technically did, but as if he was invited by his mother to come. And all of us knew he wasn’t.

I was relieved that he’d shown up. My churning stomach and nausea were going to be my reason for leaving quite early, but now I had the buffer I’d wanted from the beginning. Though, as a seat was brought over for him, I wondered if he would even really be a buffer at all, especially with how his relationship with his mother seemed to be worse than I’d initially thought. One glance at Claudia said everything.

“My son,” Claudia’s bubbly personality and theatrics took a new turn. She glared at him. “All those times I’d hoped you would visit and you only show up now? Uninvited?” She sighed. “I was merely speaking with the woman who is now your wife and queen.”

“Enough,” he practically growled out, his expression darker than I’d ever seen it. “I don’t see any reason the two of you would need to communicate with one another.”

I froze in place, unable to determine if he was upset that I’d accepted her invitation, upset at his mother for sending me one, or just upset in general. If it hadn’t already been obvious, there was animosity on both sides of this relationship.

“Oh,” she sniffled with a timid whisper before dabbing at her eyes. She shook her head. “I just wanted to be a part of your life…”

The tears were definitely rolling out of her eyes now. Rolling. I kept totally silent, with as little movement as manageable, as to not draw either of their attentions to me. This was just really uncomfortable.

Even I could tell she was acting it up for the servants in the room, who all now gazed at her with sympathy and at him with disappointment.

“No, you don’t,” he snapped back at her.

“Mmph. You still don’t believe me, it seems. All I wanted from today was to check to make sure you weren’t treating your wife with this same anger.” She dabbed at her eyes more, and it only seemed to cause more tears to fall. I nearly started staring in fascination at how the dabbing was only making it worse. It must be a skill to fake cry and then dab in all the other places the tears aren’t. And then she gazed my way, drawing Talyn’s attention as well. “It seems, with how quiet she is, that she hasn’t been able to successfully speak up at all. She can’t even tell me her struggles because she feels pressured by you.”

“That’s not–”

“Have you, or have you not, given her a single gift since her arrival? I know you don’t give me gifts, but it surely can’t be the same for your wife, right? You welcome someone with gifts. That’s what I tried to teach you.”

I forced my face to remain as neutral as possible. Make it seem like I was either trying to hold my own grief in because she was right, or containing my rage, trying to keep from speaking out against her. I looked down at the table, at the little cookie I’d taken a nibble of.

It dawned on me what kind of person Claudia really was. I didn’t like it, not at all.

Talyn didn’t reply to her, and I knew why. There hadn’t been a single gift, except maybe something I’d already been using. The Emerald Room was mine now. But, when I thought of gifts, the things that came to mind weren’t jewels or dresses or rooms. If I had been traded with Tianne, she would’ve popped a vein at his supposed lack of gifts, and she would’ve sided with Claudia here, demanding compensation for her presence in the palace.

But, he’d given me several gifts.

He treated me as a person.

He spoke to me normally, as someone on his same level, not as someone beneath him.

He escorted me the whole way to the audiences himself.

He gave me people to help me, that also treated me well.

He cut our time short at the banquet after our wedding, all because he saw I wasn’t breathing well.

He gave me queenship duties without me asking.

He was allowing me to go on a trip to Lord Malin’s territory.

Those were all gifts in my eyes, and I was grateful to him.

If anything, this display and words she threw at Talyn, it only made me lean his way. I understood the feeling of being put down so impressively in front of others. They always made it seem as though they were the saint and had done nothing wrong, nothing worth the anger aimed their way.

Several times, the knights of Cita treated me as less than a princess in order to silently avenge my sister and how supposedly wronged she was. They’d only heard one conversation that made me seem ungrateful and hateful toward Tianne. One conversation, not knowing my true situation and not understanding what Tianne had done.

Of course, I was wearing worn and older dresses. That was because I didn’t have money for new ones.

Of course, I wouldn’t want her hand-me-down dresses, used just twice. That was because her dresses wouldn’t fit me, as she had a much thinner frame than me. She, by giving me those dresses with the built-in corsets, was telling me to shrink and force myself into ill-fitting gowns for her sake. And that style of dress was the hardest to let out, to tailor it in order to fit me… not that I would have money for that either.

So, when she cried and claimed to have given me her newer dresses so that I would have more, despite knowing that I wore faded and old gowns more often than newer ones. She said that she wanted me to try them and look even prettier…

All everyone else saw was a monster of an older sister, tormenting their younger sister for not accepting a gift she put thought into.

It ached within my heart and soul to see someone else fight through this same situation. Of course, it wasn’t about dresses, but it didn’t need to be.

Your Majesty…

I respect your choice to not communicate with your mother if this is how she is.

I believe I’m already completely on your side now.

I’ll trust you.

Talyn.

Talyn

When Rogers had come running to find me, having searched my office and eventually found me with the knights, he was disheveled, out of breath, and his skin looked shiny as it was covered in sweat. He barely took a minute to catch his breath before he started speaking.

“Queen.” He huffed. “Dowager Claudia.”

My expression twisted. At first, I thought he had something to say about Miavel. But, Claudia? My worry dissipated, if only for a moment.

“What about her?” I sneered.

“She invited… Queen Miavel.”

My body, which normally ran warm, now felt chilled to the bone.

“When?”

I hadn’t thought it would be this soon. I was hoping the invitation would come later. If I could catch Miavel before she accepted it, then it would be alright. I didn’t want her anywhere near that woman, not even if it was for a cup of tea. I started taking off my gloves, nodding once to Alecc to take over.

“Now, Your Majesty. She’s with her now.”

Now?

Right this second?

She was already there?

My gaze whipped around to Rogers. One look told me everything I needed to know. I sprinted back into the palace before walking as fast as I could without causing alarm and panic all around with those who came across my path.

MIavel.

I had to stop this.

My hands curled into fists.

But if I did this…

I shook my head.

It didn’t matter anymore.

It didn’t matter.

Arriving, catching dear old Claudia off guard, seeing Miavel…

Miavel didn’t look alright. She looked like she was going to be sick, and her face was too pale. The tea wasn’t poisoned, right?

I wanted her out of there, to send a doctor to her, to make certain she was alright, but I had to endure Claudia’s raving and blatant lies first.

But she got in my head again, just like when I was little.

About how I hadn’t given her any gifts. How I hadn’t truly welcomed Miavel.

Nobody but I knew it, but I had wanted to welcome her. I had wanted to give her finery. I wanted to spend lavishly, for once, just on her, just for a small smile if she thought something was pretty.

But I knew her enough to know one thing. Spending money on her wasn’t what she wanted. She weighed happiness and helping others higher than that.

Even if she didn’t know everything I was trying to do for her, it was enough that she was treated well, enough that she was comfortable, that she had a place like the room full of flowers and plants to calm down in.

It had to be enough for now.

“Goodbye. We are leaving,” I told Claudia firmly.

“We?” she gasped out, “Leaving?”

I grabbed Miavel’s wrist lightly, tugging her up from the chair and pulling her toward the door.

Only when we were out of Claudia’s part of the palace could I breathe normally. Our walk back to her room was silent, all up until we reached her door.

“Get some rest, Princess.”

I tried to walk away, to turn and go, but suddenly she was there, blocking my path, hands on her hips, a glare in her eyes as she looked up at me.

My heart skipped a beat in my chest.

Why did she look so pretty when she was angry?

Why… was she angry?

Had I grabbed her wrist too hard?

Did… did Claudia already–

“Why?” she asked me.