Matteus watched with satisfaction as Azra was fitted into his outfit for the second time. He mirrored the same ethereal beauty present thought the Alfonsi bloodline regardless of gender. The full suite of light blue and white silk accented by gold only made him look even better.
It felt like just yesterday that he was holding the small baby in his arms and now he was preparing to present him to the public as the official Crowned Prince.
Adaline, I hope you can see him growing well.
Rudely interrupted from his pleasant musings, a call from the door echoed loudly into the silent room.
"Enter."
The knight bowed to both King and Prince before addressing Matteus directly.
"You're Majesty, Sir Ryan is requesting an audience with you. He's currently on the lower floor but..."
"How long before he tries to force his way up to this floor?"
"He... may have already started trying."
"Very well, lead me to him."
Casting a glance to his son, he was out the door.
Ryan seemed to be more agitated than was normal, even for his high energy borderline chaotic personality. He was so different from his late father. The man was quiet and meek, how he produced such a colorful offspring Matteus would never know.
The King breezed into one of the guest rooms on the lower levels of Asteri. Hair and clothes settling gracefully as he sat. Completely unperturbed by Ryan who had begun babbling upon his entry. Feathered hat fluttering every which way as he moved his head about.
"Slow down and start from the beginning."
Matteus demanded as he patiently waited for a maid to pour his tea.
"The Queen of Amaryllis, she's coming!"
That caught his attention. Matteus looked up, his eyebrows already pinched in confusion and slight alarm.
"When and why?"
"Her informant send word ahead of her. She might be at the Wanderer's Edge come noon. As for why, her informant tells me she has important business to discuss with you, that is all I know."
Matteus let out a sound of exasperation as he tried to sip his steaming tea in hopes of it calming him. It was ineffective.
What horrid timing. With Azra's Debutante only days away the last thing he wanted to deal with was that sneaky fox. For that was exactly what she was.
Irine was relatively young when she assumed the throne and wasted no time introducing herself to Alfonsi and Matteus... She was difficult to say the least.
"You don't think she would come straight to Asteri would she?"
Matteus immediately shook his head. Though he knew Irine to be head strong she was not foolish enough to march into the floating castle. Instead, she would choose the next place that could not deny her entry.
Turning to the knight that guided him to the room Matteus gave a command.
"I will be leaving to meet the Queen at the mansion in the noble's residency. Prepare accordingly."
It was one of the many things Matteus hated about being the King. Every outing took hours to conduct, people needed to informed and despite his assurance that he was able to protect himself perfectly, knights accompanied him everywhere.
Ryan straightened at the news, a hungry sparkle in his eye as he addressed the king.
"Your Majesty may I-"
"No, should there be any information that needs to be repeated to the public then you will be notified. You will not be attending the meeting."
The man muttered under his breath and sullenly left the room not long after.
Matteus closed his eyes, intending to soak up the temporary calm before it was inevitably drowned out by the force that was Irine.
- - -
"You're late."
A blood vessel pumped at Matteus' temple.
"Considering you only sent word of your arrival hours before you arrived, I think I can be excused."
His sharp tone was not lost on Irine as he glared her down with golden eyes. Even in the large tearoom of his mansion, the pressure of him was still heavy on her shoulders.
The presence the old man gave off was no joke.
Still she straightened her shoulders and gave him a playful smile.
"Do you know why I came?"
"I am certain you will enlighten me."
"You're quite mean Matty, not even inviting the neighboring nation to greet the future King of Alfonsi. After which his mother died so I couldn't visit then. Not long ago I came to understand you were holding his debutante. Tell me, was my name on one of those invitations?"
"There is no need for Azra to come into contact with Amaryllis until his coronation. Him coming of age is hardly reason enough to call the nations into attendance."
Irine braced her elbow against the edge of the table, leaning her chin in her hand to grin gleefully at Matteus who narrowed his eyes at her.
She knew something, and if it was what he was beginning to suspect she knew, then things were bound to get complicated.
"You are awfully protective of him, almost as if you're hiding him from me. Any particular reason why that is?"
The two gazed at each other for a moment in dead silence.
"How much did you pay for the information?"
"Irrelevant, all that matters now is that I know and my interest has been peaked."
"I suppose."
"I can assume that the informant has been dealt with?"
"You assume correctly."
Irine leaned back in her chair. As expect of Matteus, despite her initially having the upper hand in the conversation, he seemed far more relaxed than she expected him to be. He really never failed to intrigue her.
"How much do you know of the ancient Amaryllis scriptures?"
"Not much past the surface."
"The actual stone tablets are as old as the twin towers themselves. No one knows who built them, the same goes for the tablets. When you really think on it, it's quite silly for us to follow these words with such dedication when we know nothing about the author who wrote them. It could have been a demented old man for all we know."
"Religion is usually that way is it not?"
"Yes, filled with holes my people constantly fill with their hope. Whether it is true or not doesn't concern me, well that was until I heard about your son."
"Azra is not the All Father."
Irine flinched slightly at the scathing tone he angled her with.
"What is it you think I'm here to do?"
"I have my own set of unsavory ideas. In each scenario I can think of you will try to take him."
"Correct. My people would treat him like a God, not a prince. They would worship him as the All Father and pray to him. Though it won't last, they would soon come to expect things from him. Just as every fortune will be placed upon him, so would every misfortune. For as many followers a God has there are many who scorn him. He would be loved, hated and everything in between."
Matteus glanced out the window where the landscape and fence of the mansion were visible. He wasn't looking at it, couldn't see it really.
All he could see was Azra. His teary lavender eyes when he lost his first tooth. The wobbly first steps he took toward his open arms. The way he squeezed his leg in the tightest hug when he gifted him his own personal library for his ninth birthday.
"He is my only son, this ability he has does not-nor will it ever change that. Scriptures and beliefs be damned."
Against her will Irine smiled, melancholy heavy on her heart. Would things turn out the way they did if she had a father like Matteus, or even just a friend?
Shaking herself out of a rare stupor she smiled brightly at him.
"Well, it has all become trivial now that I am Queen."
"How so?"
"If I was my father's daughter I might have even resorted to kidnapping him despite the risks but alas, I am and continue to be a disappointment to my family."
Matteus glanced at her from over the rim of his tea cup, confusion clear in his eyes as he waited for an explanation.
"If he is the child of the scriptures and everything goes according to them then Llyria will become a paradise for us all. But what exactly is paradise? No hunger? Having a full meal every day without work? No pain? I am sure everyone has their own definition, but for me, it is a world without worry. Knowing what will happen tomorrow and every day after."
She gazed at the ceiling decorated with a beautiful crystal chandelier that bounced the natural light around the room. Despite the pleasant visuals there was a prominent frown on her lips.
"Knowing what will happen tomorrow is borderline frightening. What is the point of living if there is no excitement or worry for the unknown that is tomorrow. Paradise sounds so incredibly boring to me and if there is one thing I absolutely despise, it is boredom."
"How selfish."
Irine tilted her head back and clutched her stomach as she laughed, curls bouncing and shoulders shaking in her mirth.
"Isn't it?"