Just You Wait by rui

Chapter 10

Chapter 10

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"Welcome to Slena!" A very boisterous woman shouted as the carriage door swung open. Hitomi was ready to leap out of the confinement, but when the lady shouted, the blonde stumbled back into Van. Instinctively he reached out to grab her arms in order to steady her.

They exited the carriage arm in arm as formality (and Armand) demanded; they smiled their thanks to the servants who crawled over the carriage for the luggage much like ants on a dead carcass.

The courtyard was buzzing with excitement. Brightly colored banners were hung from nearly every tree and pole. Those who were bustling around the place had joyous smiles to share and good hearted laughter to fill the air.

"What is the occasion?" Van asked in a cool tone.

"Why!" The same servant woman who originally greeted them puffed up her chest, "Our queen has just given birth to the heir! A beautiful princess!" The Slenaian pride seeped from every pore as the woman tipped her chin a bit further in the air and smile broadened.

"Really? That's lovely!" Hitomi cooed.

From what Van had mentioned to her in last few days the Queen of Slena was supposed to be one of the nicest, sweetest women to ever breathe. Hitomi gave a brief, selfish wonder what people said about her. Doubtlessly, Armand would say that the kingdom thought of her as nothing more than a skinny hick who struck it lucky.

"Perhaps then, we should consider cutting our visit short," Van suggested in a kind, thinly veiled authoritative tone.

"Nonsense your majesty! King Coron will be pleased to have as many as possible to celebrate the occasion! The festivities usually carry on for a good fortnight!" She looked over her shoulder and winked at the couple, "a very happy time for couples in general, if I remember correctly."

Hitomi blushed as Van cleared his throat in a nervous manner.

How long did others think it would take for Fanelia to have an heir? Her cheeks, she swore, were glowing red. Van and she had been married for barely more than a month!

So wrapped up in her worries and thoughts, Hitomi became oblivious to the scenery or where they were going until the servant woman cleared her throat to gain the Queen's attention.

"His majesty will greet you, formally, at dinner. Until then," the maid pushed open the double doors and ushered the couple in. Hitomi's eyes widened as Van withdrew his arm from hers. "I hope it is to your liking. We tried very hard to make sure you two were very much at home in the castle." The woman gave a few quick directions and nodded as the other servants brought in the trunks. "I'll leave you two to get settled in then."

Van looked around the room in mild interest. It hadn't really changed much since the last time he was there, only a few feminine touches added here and there. Hitomi's deep sigh caught his attention. Like a cat, she had curled up in the large bed and would have purred if possible from the content look on her face.

"After the last two weeks in that carriage, this is wonderful!" She praise, brushing her fingers over the beautiful coverlet.

Van gave a small smile. She had been—growing on him after their swim. She still wasn't able to look him in the face without her cheeks tinting pink. They had gotten bored enough in the last leg of the trip to try talking again. More precisely, she had decided to randomly pick topics to ease the tension between them.

Turning his attention to the balcony, Van went to take in the view it offered. It hadn't changed much either. Coron gave them the largest room not occupied by a Slenian royal family, as was normal. The stone balcony had a stunning view of the flower gardens that were situated in the heart of the palace. The violets, roses, and various other exotic buds found all throughout the country side of Slena filled the space in a manicured manner.

Coron and he had been friends since their fathers forged an alliance many years ago, right before Van's father passed away. The Slena family was extremely nice to the grieving Fanelians even though the treaty was less than two months old.

"We are here because we're friends, not allies." The Slenaian king had said to Van at the funeral, as the man patted the young prince on the shoulder. "Let that never change."

It had been a pinprick of light in the darkness of depression

Deciding that a walk through the gardens would pass the time, Van glanced over at the bed, "Hitomi-"

He blinked in mild surprise. The girl was already completely unconscious on the bed. Shaking his head with a ghost of a smile, he left her in the room and ventured into the gardens by himself.

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Coron watched as the dark haired king retreated back into the room from the balcony. A grin spread across his face, knowing that Fanel probably hadn't changed from his withdrawn, hotheaded, and loner way. No more change than Coron had from being the smiling, trusting, and naïve little boy who first met Van so many years ago.

Well, except they were now both kings over their respective kingdoms and married. Coron smirked, but he was now a father. As if on cue, the small princess squeaked her displeasure over something or another and caught the King's attention.

Quickly going to his daughter, the young men smiled down at his new born who only made a gurgling sound before turning her head to the side and resuming her peaceful existence.

"Is she okay?" His wife, Mena, questioned. The creaks of the bed warned him she was two heartbeats from forgetting her own recovery and tending to her baby.

"She's fine, love. Already back asleep so nothing to worry about." He gave her a wide smile. He saw her nod through the sheer curtains surrounding their bed and watched as she leaned back against the small mountain of pillows.

"How are you?" Coron was concerned about his fragile bride. The birth had taken a great toll on her body and the healers had mumbled, after the fact that they almost lost her twice during the long delivery.

Pushing the veil aside to sit on the bed, he gently took one of her hands and squeezed it lightly. He was very proud of her; she was always so strong without losing the tenderness that normally marked females as fragile. It wasn't like that with Mena. She was sympathetic and sweet, but had an abundance of good sense and knew when to put her foot down. Coron wondered if Van had been so lucky in his bride.

"I'm fine," she gave a weak smile. "Are they here?"

"Yes. Both of them."

Butterflies flew throughout her entire body and Mena felt tears well up in her eyes. "How did you get them to agree? I thought you said that they hadn't accepted any invitations."

With a big grin, the king laughed.

"That's true, but Van and I have known each other since we were knee high to our mothers' knees. He might have come under the guise of treaty, but probably came because we are friends." Leaning down, he placed a whisper of a kiss on her forehead. "You need your rest, my love, and I need to be formal with the guests."

Mena watched as her husband gave the same type of kiss to their petite daughter before exiting the room. The queen reclined her head back and stared up at the canopy of the bed. The fire light made the violet colored shadows dance erratically with the cream of the material in a fun little play of light and darkness.

Closing her eyes, the exhausted woman drifted back to sleep with only one name on her mind.\

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Hitomi had been putting the finishing touches on her face when Van came back to the room. Without a word, he snatched up the clothes left out for him, and disappeared into another room.

"Where were you?" Hitomi asked casually. She had been somewhat nervous when she woke up alone. Over the past two weeks in the carriage, camps, and inn rooms she had grown used to his constant presence. A part of her even admitted to finding comfort in it.

Poking his head from the closet he hid himself in, he wasn't sure whether to be amused by her question or annoyed. For whatever reason, he answered. "I was in the gardens."

She turned quickly on the bench in front of the vanity.

"They have gardens?" Hitomi couldn't keep the excitement from her voice.

"Yes," he answered, emerging from the closet. His jacket was still undone, shirt half-buttoned, and his hands fiddled with the cravat that didn't want to cooperate. Growling under his breath at the material, his hands were soon joined by his wife's as she expertly tied the puff of material into the shape it was meant to be in. She brushed off the bits of dust that only a woman could see and smiled up at him.

Van was somewhat speechless by her forward actions, but dismissed it by quickly buttoning his shirt and jacket. She had a light pink tint to her cheeks, still hanging onto the memory of that afternoon were her body had been unknowingly on display through her white clothing. He hadn't known what to say or how to acknowledge her state without getting her mad or something akin to that.

He hadn't been that close to a female, besides Rai and Merle, since he was 16 and all those old insecurities came back up. Shaking his head, Armand made great timing as he came through the door with a big smile. He gave a deep bow, and announced dinner was being served.

Offering his arm to Hitomi, they made their way to the dining hall.

She wasn't an idiot, despite her embarrassing moments. Being stuffed in the same box with the King for three very long weeks, she had come to know his 'cool' look from the 'icy', but this was different.

At the lake he went from happy and relaxed to restrained and on guard. She couldn't remember seeing anyone like this ever before and it made her head hurt trying to analyze him without his help.

Men, Hitomi glowered.

Coron greeted them with open arms and a large smile when they entered the dining hall.

"Van! It's been far too long!" The man gave a bear hug to the now stiff-as-stone black haired king. Hitomi was left in the doorway with a wide-eyed, eyebrows arched expression of disbelief.

"N-Nice to see you as well," Van wheezed, a smile showing up on his face that added to Hitomi's shock. She'd never seen him smile that wide! It was probably the same face Merle got to see, a friend's face and smile. It must be nice.

"I hate to say this, seeing as how this is the first time in many years we've gotten together, but I hope you'll excuse me if I leave suddenly. You see, we have had a recent addition and I'm very eager to get back to both of them." Coron smile full of white, straight teeth that made Hitomi rethink about her own hygiene next to this man's. His thick blond hair and brown eyes gave him and open and honest face. "My wife sends her regrets that she is unable to attend this evening."

"It's quite all right, Coron," Van assured, pulling out the seat for his wife and once she was seated, he too sat down.

"I knew you'd understand. I'm sure you'll be in the same position soon enough," the innocent statement caused both the King and Queen to turn a lovely shade of crimson. "Or not."

Clearing his throat, Van kept the conversation in a safer zone.

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Two days after they arrived, Hitomi was baffled when Coron requested that she visit the Queen of Slena. Mena, as Hitomi found out her name was, had been locked up in her room since her daughter's birth. She apparently was dreadfully tired of being in there alone and being bored. She loved her daughter, but longed for conversational company.

"But why me?" Hitomi asked the back of the maid's head for the twelfth time.

"Because the Queen wishes to talk to you," the maid snapped, irritated by the constant badgering.

Hitomi screwed her face into a displeased frown. Well excuse her for being curious, but it wasn't every day some random royalty invited her into their bedroom! Flattening her eyebrows, she decided not to think it basically happened twice in the past month.

"Here we are. Do not forget, she is still weak." With that, the maid swung the door open and gave a stony expression to the Queen. Hitomi entered the darkened room and jumped when the door slammed shut behind her.

Swallowing her sudden nervousness, Hitomi slowly walked closer to the center of the room. Her blonde head turned from one side to the next, trying to find someone who (hopefully) didn't suck blood lurking in the shadows.

"You must be the Queen of Fanelia."

Hitomi jumped at the voice and whirled around to see a veiled woman sitting elegantly in a high-back chair near the fire.

"I'm so very pleased to meet you. Please, sit."

Obediently, the female filled the empty seat across from the other woman.

"I-it's very nice to meet you as well," clearing her throat, she gave a shy smile. "I've heard much about you."

"From the people and my husband no doubt," Mena's hazel eyes almost sparkled with laughter.

"Trust me, they wouldn't think so highly of me, the people that is, if I hadn't given them their new princess. Coron, well, he exaggerates," she paused, "a lot. I think it's his hobby, teasing me."

Hitomi's smile came full force and naturally as she leaned back in the chair, comfortable with her, hopefully, new friend. They talked and soon found themselves opening up and laughing like school girls.

Elsewhere on the grounds, Van and Coron found themselves facing each other, both wielding a sword, and dripping with sweat.

"Do you fold?"

Van smirked, "you know better."

Coron grinned, "I suppose I do in some odd ways."

He barely twisted out of the way as Van charged him. "You still aren't charging with everything you have, Van." Coron suggested, and it got a sharp growl out of the black haired royal. With a quick attempted slash from the annoyed King, Coron's grin faded a touch. "Heard it before, right?"

"Every session." Armand offered and had to quickly duck as Van changed his direction and aimed at the brunette. "Seen! Not heard, got it!"

Van glared at his rebellious knight.

"I'm going to fold then," Coron handed his practice blade to Armand who promptly, and rather too gladly, reached out for Van's sword.

Van glowered and Armand quickly retreated to the back of the room where the cleaning supplies rested.

"So, on a more personal note, Van." Coron crossed his arms, his chest heaving slightly from the exertion of their exercise. "Is it true that your marriage was arranged?"

Van made gave an annoyed growl, as he put a hand on the wall and leaned against it. "What about it?"

"Why?"

"I didn't have a choice. I was told I had a bride chosen for me when I got back from a trip." Van confessed, closed his eyes, and pushed himself slightly off the wall in order to sheath his sword.

"That's not the Van I knew." Coron was only a bit more tactful than Armand and Hitomi. "You had someone lined up when I left— "

"Don't," Van hissed. "Don't ever mention that to me."

Taken back by the sudden viciousness, Coron's shock overrode his curiosity only to be swallowed up with pity. Van hadn't had an easy life, it was true, but then—then she had to happen to him. Shaking his head, Coron gently touched Van on his shoulder that tensed instantly.

Ripping himself from his friend's innocent gesture of compassion, the raven haired man pushed past him and stormed into the hall. It wasn't any of Coron's business, it wasn't Armand's, it wasn't anyone's! No one had a right to know!

"Van?" Came a soft voice that caused him to turn sharply toward it.

Hitomi stepped back from him, seeing his expression. She only wanted to tell him how nice the Queen was and he was giving her the look of death.

Van's eyebrows twitched with another internal battle. No one. Without a word to her, he continued his path to the courtyard.

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"What is wrong with you?" Armand, who seemed more interested in the contents of his cup and the specks of dirt under his nails, asked in a should-be concerned voice. Hitomi had been lost in thought, overlooking the courtyard of the palace when the knight shook her out of her stupor. "If you were anymore out there, you'd hit your head on one of the low flying ships."

"What's your point?" Hitomi was rather grumpy. Who wouldn't be if one's spouse seemed to have sat on a bee and have it retained there? In other words, he was being a spoiled, irritable brat and she didn't know why. Hitomi knew better than to ask because all he'd do was give her that look. Still, she wanted to know.

"My point is there is something on that wee little mind of yours, and it is my duty to know what it is."

"No, it isn't." Hitomi leaned back against a side of the stone framed window. "You are just being nosy."

"That isn't true," Armand replied hotly. "In case you have missed seeing a mirror in the past few days, you don't look beastly. If you don't look well, then neither do I."

"I thought that if I was looking like a dog, it would make you seem attractive." If it could have been possible, Armand's ears would have flattened backward like an upset cat's.

"You look like something that got cleaned out of a stable. If you look bad, it is my responsibility to find out what and try to improve your looks. Since you are no picnic to work with anyway, why oh why are you making my job harder?"

Hitomi stuck her nose in the air and turned away. "You don't always have to be so mean to me. It wasn't like I asked you to be my bodyguard or whatever."

Sighing, the chestnut, wavy haired man plopped down next to the queen and drew one leg up to his chest. "I know." Hitomi blinked at him in surprise. Was he going to be nice now?

"But it's not my fault your stuck with me either, Queen."

Perhaps not.

"So what is it?" Armand questioned again. "Why have you been pacing like a caged neko these past few days?"

Hitomi drew her eyebrows together and slowly closed her eyes. It had been four days since Van had stared at her with that dark expression and since then he had been frigid toward her. He wouldn't be in bed when she fell asleep nor was he there when she awoke. It was like that in Fanelia, true, but Hitomi, for the first time, came to a scary conclusion.

Maybe Van had a mistress?

He was grumpy because he missed her!

Or what if her sister was right? What if it was a him!

Her eyes widened in surprise. It made sense to some degree! Maybe the old maid, what was her name? Rai! Or even the neko girl, Merle? She was only a few years younger than Van and treated Hitomi like something found in a litter box! What if it was both?

What if it was Armand? They seemed close, too. There were so many possibilities.

Nibbling her lower lip, the blonde tried to construct a list of people in her head of just who it was her husband was missing. Maybe that was the main reason he was so upset with the arranged marriage! Maybe she prevented him from being with his true love! Maybe the laws forbade—

"Ow!" Hitomi yelped. A sharp rap on the head from Armand made her line of thought stop in its spiral from bad to obscure.

"You were thinking weird thoughts," Armand pointed out knowledgeably. "Stop it."

Rubbing the lump on her head, Hitomi couldn't get the possibility of Van with someone else out of her mind. She'd have to ask him. Wait, that was a bit too forward. Perhaps there was a way to twine it into a conversation?

"OW!" Hitomi let out a louder yelp as Armand kindly rapped her on the head for a second time. "Will you stop that!"

"Stop thinking weird things and I will."

She couldn't have picked a better time to ask Armand a question than when he was harmlessly sipping from his cup. His reaction was enlarged eyes, to choke on the wine, spray it out over the floor and himself, and turn to her with a look that was court-jester comical if he hadn't replied with, "What in the seven pits did you say?"

Feeling rather silly, Hitomi laughed a bit and repeated her question. "Is Lord Van interested in men?"

He cleared his throat, and coughed rather harshly. "These are the type of weird thoughts I was trying prevent."

"It's just a question." Ah-ha! He wasn't giving a firm no or yes so that always meant yes! It was so simple! So Van preferred guys. Maybe this was Armand trying to protect his king and lover!

How sweet.

On second thought, Hitomi shuddered, eeeewww!

"You are an idiot," Armand sighed. "King Van is strictly a lady's man." Catching his slip of tongue by the sudden perk in the Queen's attention, he shook his head. "I mean he's a man only interested in ladies, not men."

So, Hitomi's mental detective thought cleverly, he is in love with another woman.

It was a slight relief in an odd way to be thrown over for another woman instead of a man. What if it was an older woman though? How weird! How awful to be picked under a granny!

"Stop it!" Armand jumped to his feet."Whatever question is formulating in that little sun-baked brain of yours I don't want to know!"

With that, he took off down the hall—or at least he tried. His earlier shower of wine on the stone floor wasn't dry and the man soon found himself staring at the ceiling while moaning in pain.

Was it ruder to laugh or to step over him and laugh out of earshot even though he would know what she was doing?

She started to chuckle, but was soon holding her stomach and failing miserably to hide it. A laugh at his expense was something she had looked forward to for a long time.

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