Kingsley Family/Alyssa/Celebration

Takes place during the War with Eponllyn. Benjamin Pryde had successfully repaired the fortifications after a successful rout of Eponlli forces from Bescanon.

Co-written with Everlight as noted.

Everlight-Kingsley

The celebration over the newly constructed defenses and the military celebrations for Lord Ulric and the others did not just take off in the streets of Old Bescan. In Water Town an hour's ride East from the bridge, where the Queens had taken residence in Riverwatch Castle as the army garrisoned the region to shore up its defenses, celebrations for the new De Lacy Gate rang out through the cobblestone streets.

The Queen of Perdan took part in a smaller, private event in Riverwatch away from the large crowds that celebrated in the towns across Bescanon. Inviting the Duke and local nobles following the presentation of the gate, her family, and the rest of the realm's upper nobility, she hoped to show her appreciation for Lord Joreb, Duke Benjamin, and the rest of the realm who had come together at the moment of the Kingdom's greatest need and driven back the enemy.

Alyssa arrived on Isana's arm, leaning in close for support. Though she had recovered from the bolt that pierced her chest during the fighting, she still felt the lingering effects, trying to hide the cough and discomfort that burned dully in her chest.

Many bowed reverently as she entered the parlor and offered her customary greetings. Her aunt however waved them all aside and swept her into a big hug. Alyssa felt her pulse quicken and her chest tighten. She coughed as her aunt released her seemingly oblivious to the Queen's discomfort and turning immediately to Isana, for whom she stood up on her toes to place a kiss on her cheek.

"Oh my darlings... Isana you look so beautiful. That colour suits you so... I can never get over how long your hair is dear! Is this truly how ladies grow it in the New World? So exotic!"

Pleasure at the happy greeting was overshadowed by concern. Isana accepted the kissed greeting distractedly, her hands already fluttering in midair seeking their guardposts on Alyssa's hip and elbow. The woman was saying something, fingers playing with the hair at Isana's shoulder.

"...this truly how ladies grow it in the New World? So exotic!"

Touch found familiar warmth and Isana drew Alyssa insistently back to her side, grateful to feel her pressed against her once again, coughs subsided for the moment. She gave a brief flick of her head, habitual, to nudge the long strands of hair that had been displaced back over her shoulder. Then she remembered herself and dredged up a small smile for the eagerly chattering woman.

"Lovely to see you, auntie. You're looking well!" She shared a brief glance with her wife, checking in, and continued. "The style is not so much Beluan, as it is my partner's desire. The strands themselves are entirely exotic however." Her expression gained the slightest tilt, a smirk of teeth, at her own subtle humour.

Lady Kingsley turned her head slightly, giving Isana a scandalous look, matching the Queen-Consort's smirk with her own. "How clever..." She answered "Oh you remind me of when I was younger and trying to catch Arthur's attentions. "Come." She said grabbing Isana by the arm and pulling her off into the room. "Your uncle will want to see you as well. Aly, when you're done having your hand kissed by the rest of the room, come find us."

Isana responded to the tug on her arm with a small grimace of irritation. Why did elders always assume they could shepherd their younger relatives around like children? Could she not see Alyssa's discomfort? A concerned glance at her wife filled Isana's gaze with worrying details: even after a long sleep her beloved's cheeks were wan, circles evident under her eyes despite her defined cheekbones, her own blue gaze unfocused in faraway musing more often than usual, her perfect posture trembled occasionally with stifled coughs or twinges. So many subtle things that shouted at the Countess and bade her not leave her woman's side.

"Just a moment, auntie. We're both excited to see you and uncle, but I uh..." her mind raced. "As Queen's Consort and Countess of Brive, I too have to make some of the formal rounds. Might as well do it together with Aly and then we can visit with you together."

Lady Kingsley frowned. "Hm." She said shortly, "As you say." She gave the royal couple a polite curtsy and took her leave back into the crowd. Alyssa took a deep breath, which was harder than it normally was and closed her eyes.

Pryde

"Lady Kingsley!"

The cheerfully loud voice cut through the small talk as Duke Benjamin made his way through the crowd surrounding the Queen.

"It is an honor to see you again," Benjamin said to the elder woman with a smile that matched his tone.

Then he turned to the Queen, straightened his tall, gaunt frame all the way to his maximum height, and bowed low. "My Queen. If you would allow me to depart from your presence for a moment, I simply must speak with Lady Kingsley about her flower arrangements. They truly are spectacular and I was honestly hoping to get some time alone with her to see if I could arrange for some of them to decorate my humble abode."

Everlight-Kingsley

Benjamin's intervent was not expected, but was welcome, as Lady Kingsley turned to leave and bumped nearly into them. "Oh! Duke Benjamin! How lovely to see you!" Lady Kingsley gave another curtsy to the old duke before continuing. "Oh it's so unusual not referring to you as 'My Liege' any longer. My dear neice had to go and send you off to Bescanon." She glanced back at Alyssa with a mercurial smile.

"Floral arrangements? Well I'm afraid I can't take too much credit for these. These flowers are from the Queens' garden, my neice and her staff cultivated them. But I supervised their placement!" Lady Kingsley bellowed heartily with laughter at her own joke. "So I'll take your credit, Your Grace. Will you join me? At least someone will keep us company." She spared a chill glance at Isana before taking her leave with Duke Benjamin. Alyssa briefly caught his eye and gave him a grateful smile and nod.

"That man doesn't know what a service he's doing. I'll bring him a refreshment myself shortly!" Isana said as Alyssa leaned into her.

"If we're fortunate, someone else will upset her before the night is over." Alyssa replied with resignation. "Otherwise, you'll be served ice for breakfast tomorrow." Alyssa sighed. She adjusted the circlet and looked tiredly around the room. Most here were the local Bescan nobles or royal ministers chatting away about inanities. A few of them approached her and offered the Queens more platitudes and idle smalltalk. After the Minister of Imports gave a bow after some pointless report about tea shipments. They were finally allowed a break as most of the guests found other conversation. War is across the river... she thought, her eyes wandering out the window.

Isana mused to herself on Aly's words. Ice for breakfast. Heh. Far from the first time. Maybe auntie and my mother would be friends...

The Queen watched the lazy, idyllic water flow gently out towards the sea. Her chest tightened and she gave a harried cough, placing a hand on her chest and the other over her mouth. This earned a few concerned looks and a Whiteguard moved quickly to her side.

At the cough Isana face dropped towards Aly's, concern knotting her brows. Her lips touched lightly to her wife's temple and she continued softly. "Dearest, if it weren't for appearances of strength in wartime I would have carried you through this whole event, you know. Or turned it down altogether and kept you home to heal and rest! I'm afraid politics will take your life from you, my love... are you alright?"

"I am fine, dear. I would just like to sit down." The knight awkwardly stood by, uncertain of what she should do. The Queen cleared her throat lightly, trying to steady her breath. The knight cleared a short path to the edge of the room where a pair of chairs and a tea table sat near a window. "Thank you Kira." Alyssa said to the knight, who gave Isana a look before dutifully taking up a place a few feet away, shooing off approachers while the Queen caught her breath.

"The healer said that it will get easier to breath more normally with time." Alyssa smiled prettily though with a twinkle of weariness. "And then I shall carry you through the parlor.

A flutter of pride swelled in Isana at the feisty comment. The endless spring of the Queen's strength continued. "Only the parlour?" she grinned back. "Mm, I'm parched. Want some tea, darling, or something stronger perhaps?"

Alyssa, still smiling leaned forward onto the table, openly admiring her wife with a fond gaze "No, you're strong enough for me. And..." She trailed away. "Something warm is supposed to he-."

The Queen did not finish her thought however, as something brushing against her knee caught her attention and she moved her leg and turned her head reflexively to see a familiar young child looking up at her. Alyssa knew this boy, for he was the young son of her personal secretary Thea whom Alyssa had taken in following abuse at the hands of Aila Storme and abandonment from the boy's father. He looked at her curiously and around at the room with a nervous sort of energy.

His eyes flicked back and forth between the Queen and her consort and motioned for them to get away while they could.

Everlight-Kingsley

"Hm..." Alyssa said leaning slightly forward, speaking gently and without a hint of her typical seriousness. "You aren't supposed to be here are you?"

The boy shook his head.

"And I am the only person you have seen before here?"

He nodded and Alyssa offered him a smile before leaning down to whisper to him. "Sometimes when there are a lot of people I get nervous too. Will you sit with me?"

He smiled weakly back and Alyssa helped him into her lap before calling back to her knight. "Kira, will you please send for Thea and tell her that her son has wandered off on his own?"

The knight seemed a bit surprised, but gave a salute and a glance at the child and Isana before marching off to fulfill her task.

Her attention unwaveringly on her wife, Isana overheard the quiet exchange and smiled to herself. It was a rare adorable moment and her heart sang to see her love being caring to a little one. She would be such a good parent, Isana beamed. She left the chair for the little boy and straightened, outwardly pausing to stretch while in reality she basked in the feeling of love and the perfect little scene before her. Mayhap they could talk again of adopting a little one of their own...

She laid a gentle hand on Alyssa's shoulder. "I'll fetch us some tea, darling. Young Sir, do you like tea?"

The boy looked up Isana with wide eyes before shaking his head. Isana smiled while Alyssa leaned her cheek affectionately on Isana's hand.

"Well, I've got a very important job for you, young Sir, if you're up to the task."

Now curious and at ease with Isana's lighthearted attitude, the boy nodded assuredly.

"Good! Then I task you, Sir, with keeping our beloved Queen safe and in good company."

The boy nodded again and Alyssa smiled fondly at her wife as she took her leave. The lad was not talkative, and stayed close to Alyssa, still seemingly overwhelmed by the number of people at the event.

"Don't worry about all of them. They won't bother us."

He nodded, but said nothing, still seemingly a little anxious.

"Would you like to hear a story?"

He smiled and nodded excitedly this time and Alyssa smiled back. "Well let me tell you a story of daring mission to rescue the Countess of Nascot..."

Without going into the more visceral details, Alyssa animatedly told the story of Dustiria of Nascot's rescue by the now Duchess Delphine, herself and Lady Isana's efforts to rescue the Countess from a bandit lord. The boy listened with rapt attention at the Queen's story of heroism.

Isana's tour to the refreshments was uneventful, though darkened by the burning gaze of Lady Kingsley. Alyssa's aunt watched from her post discussing floral arrangements with Lord Pryde some distance away, with a pinched expression she no doubt would have described as "simply disappointed" when the Countess offered only a nod before busily gathering the tea. To deflect the negativity leveled at her Isana turned her focus to the little finger sandwiches and shortbreads on tiered displays, selecting a couple each and daintily easing them onto the gold-rimmed saucers. The delicious morsels would be fuel for the inevitable interaction with her well-meaning but unreasonable and now grumpy in-law.

She returned to the Queen's side to find Kira had thoughtfully produced a third chair. She caught the woman's gaze and gave a quick wink of recognition, then settled in to enjoy the end of the tale. Bergamot-scented steam and the fragrant cucumber-mint sandwiches coloured the air around them.

"In the midst of the fighting, Isana returned the Ebony Pike of Defeat to Dustiria. It was the discovery of the Pike--given to Dusty by her beloved uncle and which we knew she would never have let go--that had confirmed she was in trouble in the first place. Lady de Montigny found it! It was a clue! Know well your friends, and trust your intuition. That is what we did, and how our friend was saved."

The boy's eyes were round, his whole world immersed in this fantastic tale of heroism and adventure. Isana had a fleeting thought hoping that Aly had left out the more brutal bits of the rescue. A glance to her darling's steel-blue eyes banished that worry: the blonde woman was brightly animated, a smile always hovering near to ease the tension of the story.