Evil Queen (Ruby Rose fan fic)

FOURTEEN (Iselen POV)

"The last customer has left, do you need my help, boss?"

"No, Little B, don't worry. You can go and take a nap, I see you in a few hours..."

The boy nods and runs out of the tavern closing the door and leaving me alone while I place on the shelves the clean glasses that we used an hour ago while giving lunch to the cloth merchants of the close market. The sun shines outside and temperature is really nice, something rare in Sala even during spring... I bet my tavern that Little B has a girlfriend and he's going to take her for a walk through the port. He seems distracted lately... just like I am, I guess, because I can't stop thinking of... I don't even know what Ruby is to me. I sigh, listening attentively the noises around me before slipping out of the tavern surreptitiously and starting to walk up the street toward the fortress. The sound of paws hitting cobblestones behind me doesn't startle me anymore, I know it's Suan walking with me in order to make sure that I won't find any danger ahead... my girl seems obsessed with my safety.

The tavern was calm because my employees use to get a few hours' rest before facing another night of hard work serving food and drinks while the customers have fun. My business is doing great, the hall is packed every night, my waitresses earn a good salary and all of my employees seem happy, my uncle have embarked on a new project with a partner... life goes on around me and nobody has noticed that something weird is happening, no one has asked me why I arrive late often or I'm absent from work and nobody raises an eyebrow despite the lords and ladies of the city have been seen in public frequently.

It's been weeks since I found out that I am... the consort of the Vampire Queen. I haven't been able to say it out loud yet, it seems impossible to me, this situation is surreal... But Ruby swears that what she told me is the truth and if I pretend that nothing happened I could be putting the whole city at risk, I had no other choice but to nod and do what she wanted: I start studying again. Every afternoon I get into the palace through a side door and I head to the library where Ebla leaves some books for me before she goes to bed very morning. Suan comes with me till I walk through the door and then he lies down on the entrance hall marble floor, it's too hot outside for him, I'm afraid, and he's unable to take his fur coat off. Ruby wakes up when it gets dark, eats dinner with me and walks me back to the tavern while telling me stories about the past that supplement my readings. Actually, listening to her is way funnier than decipher those difficult books.

According to her, Innana's mirror was a present for her grandmother, the mum of the legendary king Gilgamesh: queen Ninsum was famous because of her knowledge in magic, she only used it for protective purposes, and very talented to interpret dreams, she fought demons and was an expert in medicinal herbs. In addition to that, she was the priestess of Shamash, the god of Justice and Divination, the brother of Innana. All that seemed implausible to me, to be honest, like the stories my mum used to tell me when I was a child in order to scare me... but it happened that those stories were real and, after reading the books of queen Ninsum herself that Ruby has ordered Ebla to translate for me, I have to believe that she was able to cast spells. Only an oracle designated by the goddess can make the mirror work and it's been centuries since the last time a clairvoyant managed to do it which, according to Ebla, puts me in a very special position. Vampires know that Innana only sends someone who's able to hear her "whisper," as they call it, when a danger confronts their race... it means that I'm bad news for them. But at the same time, the fact that I exist means the goddess keeps protecting and looking after them, and also that their queen is still graced with the favour of the Mistress of the Starry Skies and that's why they respect me and bow in front of me calling me Your Highness.

The whole situation leads us to very awkward moments. Marad has insisted on teaching me the ways of the court and now I'm able to answer properly to their greetings but things change when we're in public. Ruby keeps trying to find out who's going to attack Sala and has sent some vampires to visit the near kingdoms but some of them must travel farther and they need to get on a boat. They usually leave at night but sometimes the noon tide is better and the vampire takes his black cape and hoodie, jumps on a sedan chair and is carried to the port while the citizens look at him with their mouths open. When that happens, I try to stand in front of the door of my tavern with my employees because I don't want them to suspect anything weird due to my lack of curiosity but when the vampire sees me, he doesn't know what to do: his first impulse is to bow his head but he knows he can't do that because he'd draw unwanted attention. Ruby thinks it's funny but I know they have a hard time.