Weeks later, the couple reached the Capital and was welcomed with much tom-tom. Aston, it seemed, was back on his feet. The new scar parting his right brow even suggested that his exaggerated description of a battle with the best undead swordsman in history might be more than just bragging. Infuriatingly, however, the scar made him even more handsome, and he confidently put it on display at any opportunity he got. Especially in front of the ladies.
Shortly after their return, King William officially announced his retirement in favor of his nephew. Though the commoners were confused at Nathaniel's sudden emergence, the prepared aristocrats soon placated them, and the rumors of his activities as the illusive sixth General did the rest.
Katherine was surprised to hear that word of her ability had elevated her picture in the icelandic society to somewhat of a saintess. King William obviously prepared on this end as well, and thus nobody dared suggest that a dragsean noble was unfit to be Queen. Instead, she was flooded with invitations to gatherings, and, even more so, pleas for help in cases of injury and sickness.
Occupied with answering mail, attending gatherings, and healing, the day of Nathaniel's coronation came faster than Katherine anticipated.
"You look great!" She exclaimed as she saw her husband dressed in the robes for the celebration. It was a white suit with red ornaments and a long, red cape flowing down his back. His gloves today were white as well, yet he fumbled with them with a dissatisfied look.
"What is it?" Katherine asked. "Would you rather wear black?"
The frustrated gaze he gave her in return told her that that was exactly the case. "The crown is black, black and blue. How does red and white match there?"
"Well, maybe we should switch then?" Katherine suggested with a laugh. She wore a blue dress today with sapphires glittering on the rim and sleeves. White blossoms adorned her black hair and added a spring feeling to the otherwise cold attire.
"I doubt I'd look half as gorgeous in your dress, dear," Nathaniel joked back but finally stopped fumbling with his clothes. "Whatever, the servants must know best what colors to choose."
Katherine nodded heavily. "It definitely matches you well!"
Like rubies on pure snow, distant, elegant, and imposing at the same time, she thought. And since she was very satisfied with his appearance, she stood on her tiptoes and led his tall head down for a kiss. When she leaned back, there was a clear red smear on his lips.
"Ops!" Laughing, she pulled out a handkerchief to brush away the lipstick. "I'll wait for you inside."
The coronation ceremony was something the future king had to pass alone, yet Katherine would be sitting in the first row of the church of Skadi. Shortly after she found her seat, trumpets called from the high balconies, the great entrance opened, and the ceremony began.
When Emilian attempted his coronation, he was alone to kneel before the statue of the goddess. This time, however, two other figures awaited the Crown Prince at the end of the aisle. Aston, wearing blue and gold, grinned from ear to ear. King William meanwhile seemed solemn, if not a bit impatient. The cold in the hall of the goddess made his unmovable legs seem even stiffer in his wheelchair and the remnants of the chest wound arched.
Nathaniel exchanged short glances with both before all three turned to the gigantic statue of the goddess and went down on one knee. Well, Aston and Nathaniel did so, while King William showed his respect by lowering his head.
The priestesses entered, coating the ground under their staffs in frost. With them, they brought the golden bowl and ceremonial knife. Since the new King was brought by his predecessor this time, the blood test wasn't mandatory, yet Nathaniel had decided to do it nevertheless. After Emilian's failure, the commoners and even the nobles lost trust in the royal bloodline. He was prepared to repair the cracks and built a solid basis for his reign.
And so, the same high priestess as at Emilian's coronation ceremony first asked King William for confirmation of their relationship, before she held the golden bowl in hand and spoke the fateful words. "You may prove your bloodline."
Katherine flinched when she saw her husband casually slit his hand and red blood dropped into the bowl below. Outwardly, Nathaniel was expressionless, yet Katherine knew that this mask often hid the strongest emotions underneath.
And she was right: After all the confusion with King William and his real father, Nathaniel wasn't absolutely sure about his lineage either. Maybe someone lied again. Maybe the mother he hated had him with another lover like she did with the twins. He didn't get to talk with the Queen before she died. Below the mask of indifference, Nathaniel's heart was pounding. Now, he would finally know the truth. But of course, it was also a gamble. A gamble he only dared to take because all facts pointed in this direction.
A white mist slowly rose into the air, and once more the high priestess explained the significance of the color to the crowd. "If the mist turns blue, the man who stands before you is of royal blood and approved by our goddess. He is a rightful heir to the Kingdom."
Now, everyone's eyes were on the mist that endlessly poured out of the bowl. It was much more mist than at Emilian's ceremony, almost as if it wanted to swallow the altar, the rows of benches, and even the gigantic statue of the goddess looming above them. The figures of the high priestess and Nathaniel became ethereal, only their contours visible in the white.
And then, suddenly, the mist darkened. The change was so fast that it seemed as if a black cloth or a big shadow had fallen from above. Surprised shouts filled the air. As the mist turned into a sea of darkness, Katherine's eyes widened. Petrified, she pressed her hands to her gaping mouth. This was... this was... the darkness was so deep that it seemed as if she was in that river again, helplessly trying to crawl out.
But then there was light.
Just as suddenly as the darkness, a blue light bloomed in the middle of her sight. It was like seeing the sun from below the water, where darkness loomed around the fractured rays. And then Katherine realized that the darkness here was different than the dark river. It wasn't really black. It was a deep, almost impenetrable blue.
The sight stunned her to silence, and slowly, the startled voices around her also subsided. As the mist dispersed, Nathaniel and the priestess came into view again, the latter wearing a gentle smile on her wizened face. "All of you witnessed the color. All of you can attest that this person is of the royal blood of Icefall. May Skadi watch over him."
"May Skadi watch over him," it reverberated through the hall of the goddess, repeated by thousands of mouths. As Katherine formed the words, a broad, happy grin spread on her face. For a second, her eyes met Nathaniel's, and she saw her joy mirrored in his face - though nobody else would've been able to read the minuscule changes.
As the coronation ceremony continued on to the royal palace in a great parade, the priestesses were left behind. Now, Katherine was again by Nathaniel's side, waving at the nobles and commoners gathered in the streets from atop her dearly-missed mare Belladonna. The gigantic white shire horse was exactly the right companion for such festivities, and even slightly surpassed Nathaniel's mount, which was just as white and big but somehow didn't exactly look as fairy-tail-like. Katherine suspected that the reason lay in the unnatural length of Bell's eyelashes. Or maybe she was just biased.
Behind the pair, in lack of the ability or will to ride, the King and Lady Finley followed in an open carriage, then Aston with his cousin Lady Liliane and her father on similarly white horses. Like this, the whole royal family was gathered. Several flag-bearers, guards, and high-ranking nobles followed the parade, and red rose petals rained from the windows nearby. Opposed to the blue in the hall of the goddess, Katherine noticed that they matched Nathaniel's attire perfectly. He looked like he belonged here, praised and worshipped by everyone, though he himself seemed a bit irritated by the closeness of the masses.