He's My Knight in Shining Armor (Akagami no Shirayukihime Fanfiction)

Chapter 11

The next day, the noblewoman's husband arrived in a carriage early in the morning. The same people who greeted her greeted her husband. She joined them and showed him into the castle, followed lengthily behind by everyone else, as she showed him towards the Second Prince's office.

"I hope that you've been content here," Her husband murmured softly, just low enough for her to hear but inaudible to anyone else.

"Of course, my lord," She answered back honestly. "They've done nothing but show me hospitality thus far. I hope it will be the same for you."

"And the girl?"

"She is everything the rumors depicted her out to be."

They stopped talking after that, only seconds before they turned at a hallway and reached Zen's office. The prince took the lead, showing everyone into his office, before taking his seat at his desk.

Obi eyed her husband warily, his eyebrows slanting in silent concentration. Please don't do anything stupid, dear brother.... Claire thought willfully in her mind.

She paid no attention to him since she knew that if she did, her husband would soon notice and demand to know what enamored her so. She instead shifted her gaze back to Zen, giving him an indifferent but modest look.

"Lord Hesoge," Zen began in his royal voice, "I'm glad you've decided to stay with us. May I ask for the reason of why you've decided to do so?"

"I've recently been trusted with deciding Tanbarun's trading partners, and seeing as we do not have an official trading system set down, I've taken the liberty of journeying all the way here to establish one." The lord's face was kind, his slight smile hiding the greed lurking in his eyes. It was indistinguishable to everyone save for her. He took a piece of paper out from his coat and stepped forward to hand it Prince Zen.

"Why the sudden change?" The Prince asked, blinking in confusion as he glanced down at the paper.

"Prince Raji has decided to reevaluate the kingdom before his coronation to become king to ensure that everything is just," The lord explained. "He's making an effort to become a respected king."

Zen smiled. "I'd like to see what he does when he becomes king."

"As do I," Hesoge agreed quietly, bowing ever so slightly. "If you'll excuse me, I'll take my leave for the day. I'm thoroughly exhausted and I'd like to take a break from politics for the moment to relax and take a stroll around the castle. Would you mind if I did?"

"No, of course not. You're free to go," The Prince gave his permission. "However, tomorrow, I'd like to discuss this matter further."

"As you wish, Your Highness," The nobleman humbly responded and then glanced at his wife, grabbing her elbow. "I'm afraid my wife has taken slightly ill, albeit through no fault of yours. She needs to rest in her room immediately."

Liar, she thought, biting her tongue. I'm not the least bit sick!

She averted her gaze, subconsciously resting on Obi. His clenched fists at his side trembled as if he were trying to restrain himself from doing something. Dear brother, please don't do something you'll regret!

"That's unfortunate. Would you like someone to show you to your room?" The host suggested to his guest, oblivious to the clear anger his aide was in.

"I am grateful, but I'm afraid I have to decline," The diplomat declined the offer. His eyes raked across everyone in the room, raising an eyebrow curiously at Ryuu but shifting his gaze to Shirayuki. It was full of covetousness and made her uncomfortable. "My wife knows the way to our room."

"If she is well enough to remember, I see no reason to object." The Prince turned his gaze to the woman in question. "If that's all right with you?"

"Oh, don't worry about me," Claire quickly assured him, waving her hands frantically. "I'm sick, but it's nothing a good night's rest won't cure."

"Then let's be on our way, shall we?" Her husband asked rhetorically, his grip tightening hurtfully on her elbow. She let out a grimace with its corners slightly up in a semi-grin to try and suppress any sounds that might come out her mouth. She willed her brother not to do anything once more and gave a small curtsy to the prince before following her husband out the door.

A/N: In the last chapter, I portrayed Claire as a mean woman when she spoke to Shirayuki. I always felt like a good writer makes every character likeable, even an antagonist, so that's what I'm going to try to do. This gives a little bit of an insight as to what Claire's life is like, but this does not quite explain why she acted the way she did to Shirayuki. That will be saved for another chapter in the near future.

Thank you for taking your time to read this and for being so patient with me as I awkwardly try to write. Please leave reviews with suggestions as to how I can make this fan-fiction better. I cannot become a better writer if I have no criticism to take into consideration.

I have a special surprise for Valentine's Day for the AnS Fan-fiction community, so if you want to read it, please be sure to look for it! It's going to be a Mitsukiki fan-fiction!

Until the next chapter!

Your lazy writer, Kartara, signing off!