Before the carriage even came to a stop, Mikhail could see the Emperor's steward standing at the entrance to the main courtyard.
Such tidings were ominous. He had fully intended to escort the Princess to their rooms, instruct his men to keep a close eye on her, and then meet with both his head guard and Ilya.
A summons from the Emperor likely meant that he was to be given orders. War had been a welcome respite from the Emperor's near constant orders. Years ago, the mere sight of the Emperor's steward would evoke in Mikhail an overwhelming sense of dread-- the fear of what terrible act the Emperor would demand of him next.
He had long since learned to repress that feeling. It was a trick he had learned from the war. The orders were something done by another man- a different version of himself. These days, when he saw the steward, the only feeling he had was irritation.
However, the Emperor's timing could not have been worse. It would be dangerous to leave the Princess with nothing but her own thoughts to occupy her time, escpecially after what she had learned from Grieta. It seemed that every time he turned his back, she was injuring herself, escaping, or attempting to kill some one.
Mikhail heaved a sigh, and turned his attention back to her. Though she still held his hand, she appeared to be so deep in thought that she didn't realize that he was watching her.
A few strands of her hair had come loose from her braid, and clung annoyingly to the side of her face, hiding the curve of her cheek. He wanted to reach out and gently brush them away with his hand, but held back, not knowing how she would respond.
If only she would do what he asked instead of always demanding a reason! If only he could know what thoughts were truly in that head! If only she would--
Mikhail pressed his lips together and quickly glanced away. He was more like his brother than he cared to admit. The thought of marking her-- of forcing her through a ceremony to bind her to himself occurred to him for the briefest of moments.
He felt queasy and disgusted with himself. He remembered staring up at his brother through a haze of pain and anger as Emperor Grigori carefully arranged his face to appear sad and regretful.
"You must understand, dear brother, that any other Emperor would rid themselves of a threat to their throne... but I... I care for you my brother... I want to protect you, but to do that, I must know that I can trust you... completely."
The words came to him as clearly as if they'd only been uttered a week ago. Monsters didn't love or trust. Monsters enslaved and devoured and destroyed and thought it roughly the same thing.
He removed his hand from hers, causing her to startle slightly and glance up at him. The strand of hair taunted him by hanging irritatingly close to her eye.
"I will have to see the Emperor. He has sent his man for me..." he began, trying to find the sort of words that people who weren't monsters used. "I'd like it if you'd... Grieta is a master at manipulating others and causing them to do things that.... if you would say to me that... I should like it if you would remain in our rooms and wait for me to return and not... will you agree not to do anything foolish?"
"Foolish?" she repeated, raising an eyebrow.
Mikhail groaned inwardly. No matter how carefully he tried to avoid the pitfalls, he somehow always managed to trip and fall directly into the wrong choice of words with her.
"Alright then, nothing foolish, I suppose," she agreed calmly, the faintest trace of a smile gracing her lips.
"That makes me think you intend to do something very foolish because I chose a word that can be subjective," he admitted nervously.
The Princess studied him in silence for a moment, and her faint smile returned.
"I will wait for you to return. I will not escape, attack anyone, or throw myself from a window. I give you my word," she agreed as the carriage came to a stop.
Mikhail nodded and then opened the door and stepped down. He turned immediately to assist her, taking her hand.
The Emperor's steward had seen him and had started to walk forward. Mikhail turned quickly to the Princess.
"I will return... as soon as I can," he muttered. The strand of hair that had irritated him so, still clung to her cheek. Swiftly, he brushed it away and tucked it behind her ear. A faint blush rose across her cheekbones, as if his finger had painted it there.
Mikhail turned and walked away, signaling to one of his Bludston guards with a nod of his head.
"My Prince, our Emperor summons you to his private office at once," the steward announced as Mikhail approached.
"Yes, of course. Let me first speak with my-"
"The Emperor's summons are urgent and cannot be put off, even by a Prince of the Empire," the steward said sternly.
"Indeed, and I shall answer to him at once, if you'll-"
"This way, my Prince," the steward interrupted once again and turned to lead him to the Emperor.
For a moment, Mikhail imagined drawing his sword and slicing the man's impertinent head from his shoulders. He knew he could do so with few reprecussions. The Emperor would be irritated but ultimately dissmissive. For what reason would a servant be so disrepectful to one who's reputation was as frightening as his?
He glanced over his shoulder to see the Princess watching him intently. As their eyes met, she looked quickly away, her cheeks burning once again.
He dismissed the image of the steward's head rolling across the ground from his mind, and fell into step behind the man, beckoning to his guard that he should follow as well.
"See that the Princess is escorted to my rooms at once. If she wishes to leave the rooms at any time, she may do so, but only so far that she remains within the eastern wing of the palace. No visitors, not even under guard," he ordered as the soldier approached.
"Of course, my Prince."
"First, however, I need you to run ahead and find the captain of the palace guard and Sir Anton and send them to me-- with great urgency, do you understand? I expect to see them before I reach the Emperor's private office."
"I understand, my Prince," the man nodded.
"Then go now, and run!" Mikhail ordered.
The soldier nodded fervently and took off like an arrow shot from from a warbow.
The Emperor's steward continued to walk as though he had not heard the conversation.
It was only a few minutes before he saw Sir Anton and the Head of the palace guard hurrying toward them.
Mikhail motioned for them to approach and walk with him.
"Did you send for us, my Prince?" Sir Anton asked.
"Indeed. I need you to secure a writ from the office of the palace guard, and lead a troop to the East River District to arrest Lady Grieta Kend. She will likely already be aware that soldiers are coming for her, so secure the main gates of the city and send soldiers into the streets to look for her as well. You will need to make haste," he commanded.
"Yes, my Prince, of course, but I will need to know the charge," Sir Anton answered.
"She made an attempt on the life of the Princess of Vezda, my intended," Mikhail answered quickly.
If the men were suprised by his accusation they did not show it. They had reached the door to the Emperor's private office, and the steward knocked twice.
"My Prince, forgive me, but just before you arrived, we recieved a delivery from the Imperial Brothel," the head of the palace guard quickly informed him. "A gift from the Lady Grieta to the Princess of Vezda..."
Mikhail froze. The door opened and the Steward announced his arrival, but his feet had suddenly fused to the floor. He had underestimated Grieta once again. In the brief time which he'd stopped the carriage, a rider from the brothel must have overtaken them and reached the palace first.
"What did you do with this gift?" Mikhail asked, attempting to keep his voice calm and his tone even.
The steward announced him for the second time, in a louder voice.
"We took it to your rooms, my Prince."
His rooms... which the Princess was likely entering as he spoke. Every instinct in him demanded that he run there at once, but the Emperor was waiting, probably growing impatient and angry.
Nothing foolish... he reminded himself. She had promised.
"Go there at once and remove it," he ordered. "With urgency, do you understand?"
"Yes,my Prince," Sir Anton and the guard answered as one and bowed to him.
Mikhail turned and entered the Emperor's office.
Emperor Grigori stood beside his massive desk, his arms clasped lightly behind his back. Although his posture made it seem as though he was in a calm mood, the dark shadows beneath his large and wild eyes suggested otherwise. He did not allow Mikhail to reach him before he greeted him.
"Where have you been, brother?" he asked in a light tone.
Mikhail paused and glanced bewteen the smug face of the steward and the Emperor's somewhat strained coutenance.
"The Princess was invited to dine with Lady Grieta this day, I accompanied her there," he answered quickly, while kneeling down.
"Lady Grieta, was it?" the Emperor repeated. "Do you truly think it wise to allow the Princess to attend visits outside the palace so soon after she was posioned?"
"Indeed I do not, but the Princess insisted," Mikhail answered.
"She insisted..." the Emperor repeated, an odd, calculating look crossed his face. "Is she aware of Lady Grieta's profession... or of your long term friendship with her?"
Again, Mikhail stole a quick glance at the Emperor's face. Something was off. It felt as though he was walking directly into a trap.
"The Princess received a correspondence from her this morning in which Grieta stressed her Vezdan heritage and alluded to the fact that she was well aquainted with the late Queen Ora. I believe that was the Princess's motivation for accepting," he replied.
"A correspondence sent this morning," the Emperor muttered, more to himself than to Mikhail. "And did she speak at all of where she was last night?"
"Your highness?" Mikhail asked uncertainly, glancing up at him.
"You were visited by one of her girls last night, were you not? Where was Lady Grieta last night?" The Emperor demanded, his voice rising in anger.
"I was told she was unavailable," Mikhail answered simply.
"Unavailable because she was meeting with a messenger from the Duke of Yevin!" The Emperor screamed. "Unavailable because she was plotting revolt! Unavailable because she is, and has always been, a poisonous, vile, traitorous creature! And you... you who have spent so many nights in her company- what sort of creature are you?"