Sins & Virtues

Chapter Fifteen: Too young to be King

Bree

Powrie Dunn, Wychwood Leap

The news of the envoy arriving from Amity preceded the Cleric by exactly four days.

The lands of Wych were difficult to navigate, even for the most skilful of messengers. It was easy to get lost or for bravado to draw arrogant feet into sticky mud that held on tight. They didn't get many merchants from other kingdoms, only the cities on the outskirts and near the borders fortuning from exotic trade.

Lucky for the Cleric, they had stopped at Brookhill, who sent them along to the capital with a knowledgeable escort.

Bree used the opportunity to distract the court from himself, with a party in the palace gardens on one of the clearer days.

When Bree was still little enough to sit on his uncle's lap, King Nicolas would tell him stories of his travels around the seven kingdoms in his youth. It was practically unheard of for princes and princesses, especially heirs, to travel to other kingdoms, but King Jonathon; Bree's grandfather, was happy to allow it. Nicolas was a self-proclaimed playboy who enjoyed parties. He would tell Bree of the soirees in Casskade; dark and sordid affairs held in the dark amongst candles, the garden parties in Marinoss; sunny and elegant functions that stopped at sundown, the festivals in Brynn; lively and free in their open fields.

This was before Bree was old enough to attend official court events, so he would ask what Wych parties were like. Each time, Nicolas would claim the same thing. That Wych wasn't as scandalous and didn't have as many secrets as the other kingdoms. So their parties were boring.

Bree scowled at Deldry from across the room, as another gaggle of courtiers stepped away, each smiling as if the interaction with the young king had gone exceptionally well.

The court function was teaming with every Wych Duke and Duchess who were able to make the trip, drawn by the first official event held by their new child king, and every other lesser lord and lady, or those wealthy enough to receive an invitation, all gathering in small socialising groups spilling out of the ballroom into the gardens. Flutes filled with the kingdom's famous gooseberry wine clinked as the socialites toasted, and attendants wandered about with trays of garlic mushrooms and goat's cheese pastries.

Only a year ago, Bree would watch the courtiers and the servants and the minstrels from his seat at the top table, testing himself on who was who and watching his uncle flirt and chat. He had watched with interest and amusement before, but everything was different now. Before he was almost ignored, now he was the centre of attention and didn't like it one bit.

The ballroom was at the rear of the palace and built in a perfect circle. The side of the walls that jutted out into the gardens was covered in glass doors, reaching from floor to ceiling, with sheer almond-coloured drapes strung up out of the way. With the clear day, the doors had been thrown open, welcoming the unseasonably warm day and the blue sky was spotted with white fluffy clouds, drifting on the light breeze that fluttered the drapes.

With the movement of the guests, some of the minstrels had already moved outside onto the grass, drawing even more out to enjoy the gardens, decorated with ponds and rose bushes.

Across the room, Deldry ignored his glare, speaking with some of the young ladies she actually got along with. Bree's friend was a charming woman but not quick nor eager to make friends. She had dressed for the event as he had, in a long hickory-coloured dress that reached her ankles, showing off the laced boots she had begrudgingly put on whenever she shifted.

She met his gaze and gave him a wink.

' Your Grace,'

Bree looked around and found Duke Raine coming toward him with a bright smile. He wore a smart doublet with his family crest stitched into the breast; a cobalt raindrop surrounding a weeping willow. He was accompanied by two boys, one Bree's age and one a few years older.