The Ice Queen of Lessaenes (Book 5)

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So, we've been having a little conflict over Fenorel and Saralee's ship name in the comments recently, so I decided I'd post a poll. (Thanks to Dragon_Writer993 for the idea.)

To vote, just comment your choice (it doesn't matter if it's inline or not.) All votes submitted before I publish the next chapter of this book will be counted. Here are the two choices-

Fenalee

Sarael

Now, on with the story!

............................................

I woke with a start, spitting out a mouthful of my thick, black hair in a very un-queenly manner. As my eyes drifted up, I saw Fenorel standing in front of me with his arms crossed, smirking. He was already dressed in full Iceheart attire, a crisp black suit with a blue tie and a tiny snowflake pin on the lapel. 

It must've been really late. 

"You said you were going to leave early today," he grinned. "It's almost 11:00." 

"Ugh!" I stood up, heading to the bathroom. "The Council's going to be furious!" 

"It's not like they can do anything about it. You're the all powerful Queen of Lessaenes!"  He called after me. 

I rolled my eyes, Fenorel's sarcasm wasn't going anywhere anytime soon, but at least he didn't think I was a typical power-crazed, narcissistic, Arystenn anymore. Okay, maybe some of that was true...but there were plenty of amazing things about me too! 

Sliding my sapphire encrusted purse off my shoulder, I paused for a second, deciding what to wear. Specially crafted by the Empire's finest Aurologists to defy the limits of three dimensional space, it could hold almost ten complete outfits at a time. 

I almost retrieved a stately blue gown from its bottomless depths before quickly changing my mind and shoving it back inside. Instead, I pulled out a sparkly green dress. It was still glamorous enough to tell anyone who looked at it that its wearer was a powerful Lessaenite, but Raliyel had once said that I looked less intimidating in it. 

"Wow, Sara..." Fenorel trailed off as I emerged from the bathroom in the green dress, wearing a single diamond in my hair instead of my usual ornate tiara. 

"What?" 

"That dress is...not your style. At all. You still look amazing, of course," he quickly added. "I was just a bit surprised." 

"You think I actually like to wear those annoying, long robes?" 

"I thought you only did things you liked to do." 

"Dressing like I'm from the nineteenth century isn't something I like to do," I sighed. "But tradition requires it. I'm the Queen, and I need to look the part."

"A Queen doesn't have to look pompous and overdressed all the time. You can wear what you want to, and still be feared and admired." 

"I guess you're right," I smiled, approaching the door. "I'll think about that. Anyway, I really have to go now."

I placed my hand on the doorknob, preparing to exit Soren Manor, but was stopped by Fenorel, who now stood in the doorway. 

"I'm coming with you," he smirked. 

"What?" 

"Are you saying that I, soon to be Chief of the Keeper clan, am not welcome in your capital city?" 

"No, that's not what I meant, I was just...surprised. I thought you couldn't stand to be around me." 

"We're both so full of surprises, aren't we?" Fenorel chuckled. "But I guess that's part of being a celebrity. People think they know you, but they rarely ever actually do." 

"I thought I knew you," I nodded in agreement. "Money, parties, women, scandals...But there's a person behind all that. And that person's pretty cool." 

"So that's what I'm most known for, huh?" Fenorel winced. "You know, underneath the whole fearsome Ice Queen thing, you're not so bad yourself." 

"Thank you," I beamed, opening the door. We were almost instantly greeted by a crowd of Keeper girls, barely kept back by Soren Manor's massive gate. 

"SWEET LUMYS, IT'S FENOREL SOREN!!!" One of them yelled. 

"WHERE!?" Another one screamed. 

Fenorel almost instantly slammed the door shut with an irritated grunt. "Let's use the back door, shall we?"

"Are they always like that?" I gestured to the door. 

"Every hour of every day," he nodded grimly as we approached a small, undecorated door at the back of the manor. "Even if I go out in the middle of the night for some fresh air, there'll be at least ten of 'em waiting. Sometimes, I want to kill them all." 

"I can do that for you," I grinned. 

"No! I didn't mean literally!" Fenorel's face turned pale. "I'll have to remember not to say that around you." 

"How far is it to the spaceport?" I asked as we filed into a hovercraft that rested against the wall. Fenorel started it up with his Aura, and we shot into the air. 

"It's not very far, about two arlen. We should be there in ten minutes. The journey to Lessaenes is what's going to take longer, although the newest spacejets have cut the travel time in half! I heard you can get from planet to planet in just eight hours now!" 

"At least I won't have to spend two days in a slow, cramped Rhenan ship this time," I shuddered. 

"I'm so sorry you had to go through that," Fenorel grimaced. "Although, I feel really flattered that the notorious Ice Queen would do something like that for me." 

"I'm not quite as cold hearted as they say," I smiled. "And I thought we agreed that reputations can be deceiving."

"You're right, we did," Fenorel gently lifted up my hand, tracing over the shimmering snowflake tattoo on my wrist with his thumb. "I get it now, this is what you are," he looked down at the tattoo. "I didn't cause any of this, and neither did my Serum. It was your destiny! And, knowing this, I'm telling you that I'll always be there for you...no matter what you choose to become." 

"Okay, I'm going to say something now, but I need you to keep it a complete secret," I began. 

"Alright." 

"If the Council, the Auranews, the Auraview or anyone else for that matter finds out about what I'm about to say...you're literally dead," I gritted my teeth. 

"Got it." 

"And, you've probably heard it thousands of times before, but know that it means way more when it comes from the Queen." 

"Okay, what is it?" Fenorel asked impatiently. 

"I love you, Fenorel Soren."