The King (Vikklan AU)

* 32 *

~*Ta'dei*~

"Mister and Missus Simon Minter, I presume?" The door greeter asks, nodding to Simon. He had a strange vibe to him; one that sends a shiver down my spine. Simon must have felt it because his hand squeezes my shoulder reassuringly.

"That's us," Simon says with a smile.

"It's an honour to meet a beautiful woman such as yourself, Missus Minter," The greeter takes my hand and presses a kiss against it. Simon's hand moves from my shoulders to my waist, holding me tightly against him.

"Thank you," I say with a smile, pulling my hand away from him gently after Simon's reaction toward him.

"You're a lucky man, Mister Minter," The greeter states with a smile. "Such a beautiful family you have." I instinctively look over to Fvendal, who was tightly clutching onto Simon's hand with both of his and looking at the greeter with suspicion.

"Thank you, Forrest." Simon nods to him before guiding us inside.

"Is he always like that?" I whisper, smiling to a nearby celebrity.

"Only to those he finds attractive," Simon murmurs quietly, his eyes scanning the many tables scattered around the large room. "Father said to meet him by the-"

Before Simon could finish talking, Fvendal pipes up. "Nana!" He shouts happily, letting go of Simon's hand and running over to Simon's mother who stood nearby.

"Fvendal!" Simon's mother exclaims, leaning down and hugging the excited child. "There's my handsome boy! Oh you're so tall now!" I smile as she fawns over the boy she thinks is her grandchild.

"Hey, mom," Simon says with a smile, letting go of me to go give her a hug.

"Simon! I didn't think you would've brought Fvendal with you tonight," his mother embraces her youngest son before turning her attention back to Fvendal. "He's grown so much since I last seen him."

"He's been growing like a weed," I state, walking over to speak with them. "You've just caught him in the middle of a growth spurt."

"Ta'dei, look at you! You're glowing! I see Simon has been taking good care of you." I blush beneath her praises.

"Thank you, Mrs. Minter. He has been doing a fine job."

"Ta'dei, sweetheart, you're also a Mrs. Minter. Call me Tanya, or better yet, mom."

"You're not mom, you're Nana!" Fvendal corrects, poking Tanya in the arm.

"Speaking of being a Nana," Tanya begins, looking at Simon. "When are you two planning on having another child? You're not getting any younger." My face heats up at her question. Do I want another kid?

Simon clears his throat. "We're still waiting for the right time, mother."

"That time will be coming sooner than you might expect," Tanya winks at me before holding her hand out to Fvendal. "Say, Fvendal, why don't you and I go compare your height to Papa? I want to see how tall you've really grown."

"Okay!" Fvendal takes her hand with his, and the two walk off toward the stage.

"What did she mean by that?" Simon asks, looking at me with curiosity.

"What did she mean by what?" I ask, meeting his curious gaze with my own.

"Never mind." Simon wraps his arm around my waist. "Let's go find a place to sit," he murmurs into my ear.

"Good idea." I look over my shoulder toward the entrance of the building to see a large crowd being parted to make room for someone important. "It looks like the royals are about to make their debut."

"Let's not wait to be shoved into the crowd then."

~*Vik*~

"Your highness, you and your family will be seated at the front table just by the stage. It is to the right of Mr. Minter's table, and left of his youngest son's family," The greeter states, pointing to a certain table on the map.

"Thank you," I nod to him before turning around to speak with Lachlan. "Middle table, row closest to the stage."

"Have a wonderful night," The greeter states.

"To you as well," Lachlan says with a smile before taking my hand and leading me into the building. Our children follow in pursuit. "Did Minter switch up the seating arrangements like we asked?" He asks, leaning down to whisper in my ear.

"Yes," I whisper back. "We have been seated with one of his son's near the left edge of the room."

"Good," Lachlan mutters, looking over his shoulder at the greeter. "He looked a little too eager for us to sit at that one location."

"He had an accent," Seto states, speeding up his pace to match ours. "It was faint, but I heard it as he started speaking with another guest. Imperial."

I nod, and Lachlan tightens his grip on my hand. "Preston," I turn to the undercover guard at my side. "Could you lead a small group to investigate the upper level?"

"Of course," Preston nods to me before moving to communicate with a group of more undercover guards.

"Why are they acting to cautiously?" I overhear Parah ask Seto.

"Imperial spies love to visit Trunkeet," Seto explains, "It's a great place to gather and share intel on the enemy."

"Sounds like this would be the first place the empire would attack then," Parah mutters.

I sigh. "That's what we fear," I mumble to her as we near the table we were reassigned to. A young couple was already seated there, speaking to each other between sips of wine. The man was obviously of the Minter family, with his brown hair and blue eyes, but the woman's red hair and green eyes made her strikingly familiar. Where have I seen that woman before?

"Ta'dei Aceti?" Seto asks as we walk closer to the table. I raise an eyebrow in curiosity. Aceti? That family name is usually heard in the capital, not here in Trunkeet.

The red-haired woman looks over at us with a surprised look on her face, but it's the man that speaks up. "Greetings your majesties, my name is Simon, and this is my wife, Ta'dei Minter," He corrects my son, standing up and bowing to us. The woman does the same, appearing to be stunned at our appearance.

"My apologies, Mrs. Minter," Seto begins, nodding his head to the red-haired woman. "I was not informed that you were married."

"It was only a few months ago," the woman explains with a small smile. "I plan to announce the marriage in the next week or so."

"Good to hear," Seto states before turning to look at Lachlan and myself. "Father, this is Lady Ta'dei Minter. She is the head of medicine here in Trunkeet. I stayed with her and her family with my visit here two years ago."

"I see," I nod to the woman. "Thank you for your service, Lady Minter."

"Of course, your highness."
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Ta'dei is like a magnet for awkward situations...