Chapter 8: I am a Little Lady

The plan was simple, yet profound. Queen Iselda proposed that she and Laima should marry. Through this union, they would both hold an equal right to protect and guide Elliott. Together, they would unravel the mystery of where he came from and the history hidden in his past. It was a remarkably clever move, one that turned a difficult situation into a shared destiny. In this way, she could keep both Laima and Elliott within the safety of her palace. Iselda questioned why she was pursuing such a peculiar attraction. If Laima hadn't been harboring such a mysterious and intriguing secret, perhaps Iselda wouldn't have acted with such haste. The truth was, she had fallen in love far too soon... Was it meant to be this way? In the stories she read, it always unfolded like this, an instant spark, an undeniable pull between souls.

Was Iselda rushing everything? Her entire world had been contained within these four walls. Her parents had been happy, yet theirs was not a tale of mad passion; they were together simply to rule. Iselda, however, yearned for real love. Perhaps she had already found it, or at least, she chose to interpret these stirring feelings as such.

As she sat in the palace garden, she looked across at Laima. She was breathtaking in her sapphire dress, her sweet curls framing her face perfectly. To her right, the topazes caught the light, their reflection casting a blue shimmer over her warm skin. Within moments, Iselda’s heart softened. Ever since Laima’s first steps into the palace, Iselda had tried so hard to maintain a facade of a spoiled and carefree ruler, but she could no longer wear that mask of indifference. If she was to proceed with this marriage, she had to be honest and bold. Today, she would strive to be calm and truly herself, whatever that might mean.

Elliott was still constantly stuffing spoonfuls of food into his mouth. He seemed perfectly content as long as he was eating; he was generally a happy child, anyway. Since his arrival, Iselda had found a true reason to hold onto life. Otherwise, she would have had nothing to do but wander the empty, problem-free Tunnel, with its endless hallways and bare, burgundy walls. Laima and Elliott were among the best things that had ever happened to Iselda. They had given her a sense of purpose, and she truly wanted to try her luck with Laima.

"So... what do you say?" Iselda asked, her eyes widening as she took a deliberate sip of her tea. "To getting married?"

"Yes, wouldn't that be wonderful? You, Elliott, and I could all live a safe and peaceful life here. And you could be queen. Wouldn't you want that?" She was only now realizing the weight of what she was promising Laima. Queenship? It offered magnificent possibilities. Was it right for her to do this? She mused that being outside of her control would only make everything worse.

"I mean, who wouldn't want to be queen?" Laima pushed the olives off her plate with her fork and looked at Iselda. "But is that all? I don't think you're going to give me all of this without question, Iselda."

"Of course not; I wasn't born yesterday, Laima. All governance will remain in my hands. Your only role will be to stay in the palace and care for Elliott and his needs. Don't view it as house arrest! You can do whatever you wish, but I won't allow anything that would tarnish my palace." She widened her eyes, searching Laima's. "If you agree to be a queen worthy of my Tunnel, let's have a trial and see how it goes. Otherwise, we'll have to think of something else, I suppose. Any complaints? Comments?"

Laima tried to process the information cascading toward her. Everything was moving with such velocity. Was she to be queen? Right now? All because she had felt pity for a child. She didn't come from a realm where goodness usually triumphed, but the idea of being part of this Tunnel and changing things truly drew her in. She couldn't say no.

"You'll give me and Elliott separate rooms."

"As you wish," Iselda waved her hand dismissively.

"And nothing will happen between us," Laima added, pointing her index finger between the two of them. "Nothing romantic or sexual. Nothing. Okay?"

Iselda stared at her blankly, looking slightly uncomfortable. "I don't understand. Do I look like a pervert? Do I give off a vibe like I'm in love with you? Huh?" Her eyes widened so much her eyebrows practically vanished into her hairline. She couldn't believe Laima would suggest such a thing.

"I wouldn't know, Queen. I've only known you for two days." Laima maintained her usual cold expression.

"Okay, there's your chance." Iselda spread her hands out to her sides. "We can get to know each other until Elliott's last days."

Laima couldn't fathom why Iselda was so assertive and eager; in truth, no one could. Elliott had finally finished his meal. With puppy-eyes, he kept glancing at the omelet on Laima's plate, which she still hadn't touched. His only real concerns were fun and food, though occasionally he wondered about his own past. Just occasionally.

"Laima, are you going to eat that?" he asked, pointing to her plate with his little fingers. Suddenly snapped back to the moment, Laima blinked and saw his hungry eyes. "No, Els. You can have it," she said, extending the plate toward him.

Returning to the point, Laima was okay with it all. She didn't want to overthink anymore. She simply wanted what was best for Elliott, and that was happening right here in this palace. Iselda was being good, perhaps too good. Even though she had sneaked in, even though Elliott was a Naturalist, even though the Tunnel had its problems... she still wanted to try. Laima glanced around and let out a short sigh.

"Okay, fine. Let's do it. Make me the queen of this Tunnel then, My Queen."

Iselda's eyes sparkled, and for a moment, they looked like the crystals surrounding them. "Okay then, let's settle into a routine for a month. When everything is stable, we'll make a public announcement and marry with a beautiful but simple wedding. We'll say we adopted Elliott. There won't be any problems." Everything was clicking into place in her mind. "Once we become a family of royals, no one can interfere with us anyway."

"But what excuse will we make if someone asks why we adopted a Naturalist?" Laima asked.

Iselda pursed her lips. "We'll just say we wanted to adopt a child whose power we fully understood. I think that is a perfectly logical excuse. What do you think?"

Laima actually liked the plans Iselda was laying out, which was starting to terrify her. "But won't anyone ask how we got him here?"

Iselda let out an unexpected laugh, tears welling in her eyes. "Laima... Laima... Laima. What do you think is happening right now? We're talking about queenship. Who is going to question you, my dear?"

Laima was caught off guard by the Queen's use of pet names. She raised her eyebrows in a mix of disgust and surprise, her face wrinkling. "Okay, okay... it's going to take me a while to get used to this." She took a deep breath. "It's not that, I mean, I-I, uh. Ugh. I mean, I need to get used to being queen."

 "Let's make it two of us." 

"Yeah" A quiet silence fell between them. They both watched Elliott eating ridiculously. Noticing this, Elliott froze, his mouth still full. "Yeah?" 

Iselda and Laima smiled sweetly. Iselda rested one elbow on the table and supported her head with her hand, saying, "You're Prince Elliott now." Directing her focus to Elliott.

Laima nodded, "Yes, Prince Elliott of the Crystallized Tunnel, huh? Quiet mouthful." She pinched his cheeks. Elliott, without knowing the weight of the words, swallowed the bite in his mouth and said, "Prince?"

They both nodded and said together, "Yes, Prince." 

"Whooaa..." Elliott's eyes lit up, a silly smile on his face. Looking first at Iselda, then at Laima, he asked, "What is that?"