Court Of Night

Afloat

Fie Wright's P. O. V

My fingers raise up before dropping back down onto the cushioned armrest that extends from the base of the metallic throne. The drumming of my fingers not making a sound in the otherwise chatty hall as Malleus voice looms over the other restless chatter. A few more people had joined our small gathering, causing the other's voices to rise bit by bit. I can tell the intensity of the other pointless talking is getting to Malleus, his hands on my shoulders weighing further down on me. I press my own hand against his, hoping it'll calm him down which I manage to do so by just a bit.

Asha catches on to the wary glances I've been sending her for the past five minutes, her own eyes showing a hint of understanding as they glaze over, the ceaseless chatter slowly coming to an abrupt halt. The people who weren't focused on my mate before, now take in his tense form, jaw clenched with the one hand that wasn't on my shoulder flexing with the strain as his bicep bulges from the exertion to not lose his temper then and there.

"How long has it been?" Malleus whispers to me, not bothering to bend down as his voice travels and reaches me easily. Frowning, I glance down at my hand, finding no watch on my wrist or anything else that could tell the time. Squirming for a second, I glance at Asha to help me once more as she rolls her eyes at me in a joking manner.

"Nearly twenty minutes." I mumble back to him, not wanting my voice to get overly loud and heard by the rest of them. Malleus nods his thanks while I take a quick glance at Asha, mouthing my own thanks to the woman who winks back at me teasingly.

"Your Majesty, what about the issue that we discussed about, the certain incidents occurring in the forests. Do you think that has anything to do with what is going on?" Comes the gravelly voice of the man I'm starting to despise. My motives for the hatred being childish, I'll be the first to admit but something about him tells me that he's a sleaze bag of sorts. It must be some sort of sixth sense. That or the fact that even now, his eyes have dropped from the King and over to me, once more settling into a narrowed glare.

My own stare is one of nonchalance, hoping to convey the fact that I could honestly give a lesser shit in regards to his opinion about me. However, I can't stop the curiosity building within me when it comes to the words he just said.

An incident in the forest? As far as I know, there's only one huge forest surrounding the city and it's the one we were travelling through to get from my pack to this realm. Granted, I haven't been attending any Queenly duties which would let me pick up on this fact since I've been focusing on my advisory position. I frown slightly at the thought of me neglecting my other duties that are just now dawning on me.

My mind flits back to the keeper of the gate to the Realm of Tenebris. The man, Thaddeus, didn't seem to mention anything out of the ordinary except that he was there to take us to the gate since it would be unlikely we'd find it. Back then I thought it was simply a nice gesture on part of the man who looks over the entrance since he was Marcus' friend.

Maybe it was more than that and he wasn't letting on?

My frown deepens even further, so sucked into my thoughts I barely hear the loud clang of the door opening, the knob clashing with the bare stone walls and creating an echoey sound that pulls me out of my less than self appreciated conundrums. Glancing up, a wild-eyed Ezra stands in the threshold, his once carefree persona nowhere to be seen as his hair sticks up amuck, jaw clenched and fists balled up at his sights. The man a sight to behold as he walks up to where we are, dodging the multiple hands that shoot out his way to stop him from approaching the King.

Worry courses through me as I stand up to go rush to him, only to find Malleus at my side with a hand wrapped around my waist, preventing me from going anywhere.