The large gate cracked open as the royal carriage rode into the surrounding, coming to a halt at the palace of Valeria. The coachman jumped down from his seat and walked to the side of the carriage, opening the door. Azrael took a deep breath before climbing off the carriage, his dark boots coming in contact with the damp ground. The atmosphere appeared moist, a cool gentle breeze blew, carrying the smell of rain with it.
The coach man quickly moved to the other side of the carriage as he opened the door, stretching his gloved arm out to her, to which Renata held, stepping off the carriage. It was her first time in king Azrael's palace and indeed it was large. Even though she couldn't see much, with the little she could make out in the dark, she could tell Azrael's palace was a beautiful one. There were fire torches hung on every wall of the palace, brightening up the place.
Sevastian who was standing stiffly at the main entrance, walked towards his king. He held a black umbrella in his hand. "Your Majesty, welcome back," he greeted with a deep bow, his gaze travelling from the king to the person behind the king. His eyes narrowed as he wondered who she might be.
"Sev!" Azrael exclaimed before glancing behind him, his face betraying none of his thoughts. "Allow me to introduce to you Sevastian, my advisor, and Sev, this is Princess Renata of Arcadia, I am certain you must have heard of her before." he simply announced, his eyes fixed on Sevastian.
Sevastian's eyes widened in shock but was quick to regain his composure. The Princess of Arcadia had accompanied the king to the dragon kingdom, he said to himself. "Your Highness, Welcome to the royal palace of Valeria. It is a pleasure to finally meet you." he finally greeted with a curt bow as he quickly stepped to her side to ensure she was covered by the umbrella, shielding her from the drizzle.
"Thank you for your kindness Sir Sevastian". Renata responded with a polite smile, her heart racing as she noticed Sevastian come to stand by her side.
"It is late and I assume Princess Renata is tired from the long journey, see to it that she is properly rested and taken care of," Azreal said to Sevastian.
"I will do so Your Majesty,"
"Princess, I will leave you to retire for the night, perhaps when you are properly rested we will discuss tomorrow," Azreal said to the princess.
"Thank you for your kindness Your Majesty" She responded. Even though she wanted to spend more time with the king, she knew it would not be possible as she was exhausted and in need of a hot bath and good food. "Good night," She whispered but loud enough for the king to hear.
"Good night, rest well Princess," Azreal turned to Sevastian, "Visit my study when you are done".
"I will," Sevastian replied, making his way through the main entrance with the princess trailing beside him.
From the corner of his eyes, Azreal noticed something moving in the window of the third floor. His eyes raised to meet a pair of green eyes and before he could react, they disappeared behind the thick burgundy curtains. A slow smirk appeared across Azrael's face as he already knew who those green orbs belonged to. His shy pet was peeking at him through the window, how sweet of her.
He had planned to see her immediately he arrived, but she would have to wait as there were other pressing issues he had to deal with. He strode slowly into the palace and towards his study, his heels clicking against the marble tiles, breaking the complete silence and stillness in the hallway.
The door cracked open as he stepped inside, closing the door behind him. Azreal walked over to his chair and settled into it, allowing his head to rest on the top of the chair, a deep sigh escaping his lips as he closed his eyes enjoying the silence surrounding him. Before he could fully enjoy the silence, the door swung open, allowing Sevastian to step into the study.
Even without opening his eyes, Azreal already knew it was Sev who stepped into the room, being a royal blood dragon had it's peaks and that was one of it, he didn't need to look before he knew who was around his space.
"Your Majesty, you asked for me,"
"Is the Princess taken care of?" Azreal asked, his eyes still closed.
"Yes she is, I sent a maid to bring her dinner and attend to her other needs," Sevastian responded.
"Good. Tell me, what new information do you have on the rogues?" Azreal asked.
"Unfortunately, Rohan has found nothing new, although he is still working on it and I received news that no rogue has been in sight, no trace, nothing at all."
"Well, that is good because I really do not want to deal with another engagement to please any other king," His fingers ran through his hair.
"Engagement? Is that why she is here? You are going to wed the princess?" His eyes widened.
"No! I would prefer to rip my eyes out than marry her,"
"Seriously, Azreal? Rip your eyes? The princess is not that bad," Sevastian said, his arms crossed over his chest.
"She is completely boring and cannot even look me in the eyes, I would die of boredom if i take her as a wife,"
"Elysia finds it hard to look into your eyes too Azreal, mind I say you are already falling for the girl," His lips tipped up to what appeared to be almost a smile.
A short laugh escaped Azreal lips, "Elysia is different and amusing, you of all people know I am incapable of loving anyone other than myself."
"I truly believe you Your Majesty," Sev said, sarcasm lacing his words.
Azreal opened his eyes and looked at Sevastian, "Perhaps I should give you the Princess, you two would make a wonderful match, two extremely boring people."
"Me? Boring? I am everything but boring and no,I do not want the Princess or anyone," Sev replied.
"I am curious Sev, we have been together for longer than I can remember and I have never seen you fancy a woman, could it be that you like men? I see the way you look at Rohan," A broad smile appeared across Azrael's face as he spoke.
Sevastian mouth fell to the ground, his face now red in embarrassment. "W--what? Just because I don't smile at every woman that crosses my path, does not mean I like men, I do not like men at all," He tried to defend himself.
"Are you sure Sev? It is totally fine if you like men," Azrael's smile broadened at Sevastian's face.
"I think you should retire to bed, you are certainly tired and have no idea of what you are saying,"
"As a matter of fact, I indeed have something to do, someone less boring to visit," Azreal rose from his chair and walked towards the door, "Sleep well friend," He slapped Sevastian playfully on the shoulder before walking out and closing the door behind him drowning out the words of his friend that he didn't bother to catch.