Justin sipped from his glass, mostly to do something. Plates of food sat untouched on the small table between him and Autumnia. He was too nervous to eat. Maybe she was, too. Maybe if they weren’t betrothed, it would be easier to start a conversation.
Also, they were alone except for a few security and serving droids.
“Well.” Autumnia leaned back into her chair. “Tell me something.”
“I...uh…” His mind blanked out everything he knew about himself.
“Criton’s ghost.” She leaned forward. “Your grandfather sent an impressive array of weapons. Are you proficient with any of them?”
“A few.” Justin swallowed. “I’m best with a fencing blade. The emperor brought in several masters over the years.”
“Any particular favorite teachers?” She asked.
“Not really. They all kind of blend together.”
Her aura was iridescent, so it was blue only because it reflected his own. His was usually a shade of blue, according to his father. But Autumnia’s was pearlescent. Beautiful, but common in its refined way. How would she react if she knew how unusual Rain’s was?
Autumnia pursed her lips. “I see. Any least favorites?”
There was one, but he wasn’t sure he was ready for his betrothed to know about it. “One or two. I didn’t do well with trainers who were always shouting.”
“That’s interesting. Do you–”
“What about you?” They needed to veer away from fencing masters. “Where did you study?”
“The Academy of the Royal Armada of Gialia.” Her face was calm, but her aura waivered a little bit, and lost some of its shine.
“Military school?” Justin asked. “Are royals not privately educated here?”
“Some, but I wasn’t royal when I started at the academy ” Her aura shifted from a fan-like shape to an undulating mess.
Justin didn’t want to unpack all of that on their second meeting. “I suppose that’s a good education for a queen.”
“I learned what I needed and was glad to be done.”
“I always had private tutors.”
“So, you never had to wear a uniform.” Autumnia shuddered. “They never fit correctly and it was too complicated to get right.”
Uniforms annoyed her enough to affect her aura? There had to be more to it. “Was there anything you liked about school?”
He met her eyes and hoped his smile was encouraging. “Tell me about her.”
“Rain and I roomed together during our last four years of school.” Her face stayed politely pleasant but her aura got a touch of pink. “And I also got to know Andrew. They’ve both been irreplaceable.”
“You’re lucky to have good friends to lean on.” One of whom was due to meet him at the firing range tomorrow. “I’m curious how Lady Kortis ended up your roommate. I didn’t think she was noble by birth.”
The queen narrowed her eyes. “She is by adoption. Andrew, too. And I was only nominally more noble when they put us together.”
Justin took a bite of something so he could think. Autumnia was twenty, so when she was starting secondary school, King Gregarian would still have been alive. “But you were the heir to the throne.”
“I suppose since you don’t live here, you don’t know.” She waved her fork absently. “When I was in school, the succession was something of a mess. Prince David and his family died, and there was a bit of a gap. King Greg’s closest relatives were all sixth or seventh cousins.”
“Ah, the Solaren curse.” Generations and generations of only children, or only one sibling surviving, or only one sibling having children.
Autumnia pushed a pea around her plate. “Everyone hoped David and his wife would break the curse. If it’s real. But alas, it was not to be.”
“Are you worried about the curse?” There was no way to manipulate someone’s Aether or aura to cause the curse. Grandfather had never even mentioned the curse, and the only courtier who brought it up was found dead under mysterious circumstances.
“No. It’s not real," she said. “Just an unfortunate genetic condition combined with the usual court intrigue and a long-standing policy of isolationism.”
She gestured to him. “At least we’re getting some fresh genes.”
His genes. In their children. His face flushed. “So, you were just one of the possible heirs to the throne.”
She didn’t have the unfortunate genetic condition did she?
“When King Greg was still alive, it was my father.” Her aura lost all of its shine, and turned a dull gray. “He was killed just before the king died. His supporters basically staged a coup to put me on the throne.”
“I heard about that. The Galactic Senate supported it.” And Justin was remembering now that most of this was in one of the briefing files he’s been sent. He probably should have read them more carefully.
“Yes. It wasn’t fun. But Rain and Andrew supported me through all of it.”
Justin wanted more of that story. But he held back asking about Rain. “Actually, it does explain a few things.”
“When my grandfather set up this treaty, I tried to contact you.” He held up his hands. “Don’t worry, I wasn’t thrilled about being betrothed at sixteen, so I didn’t try very hard. I think I never heard back because I was sending things to the royal family.”
“I didn’t even know about the treaty until after I took the throne. Trust me, I would have tried to reach you.” She sighed. “The biggest shock was that my father agreed to it well before he died.”
She shook her head. “I like to think he was letting me be a normal teenager, but I’m not sure.”
“At least I got some loyal friends out of it.” She leaned back into her sleek but plush chair and crossed her arms. “What about you? Who are your friends?”
“Does Micah count?” He was more like a grumpy uncle or overprotective brother.
“I count my bodyguard.” She shrugged. “Any friends who aren’t paid to be nice to you?”
Micah was not nice to him. “Not really, but I have sisters.”
“Yes, I’ve heard your sisters have the run of the court in Perrin.”
“They have indeed taken it by force. No one stands a chance at resisting them.” Justin missed them, more than he realized. “Even me.”
“You have three sisters, yes?”
“Yes.” Technically, they were his half sisters, but Justin rarely thought about that. “Alice is the youngest, Marley is in the middle, and Christine is sixteen. She tried very hard to come with me.”
Autumnia’s aura went back to its calm iridescent color. “I’m glad you're fond of them.”
He should come up with something to say. A question to ask. But all of the questions in his mind were about Rain.
He didn’t hate his intended. That was a relief. So, he’d make an effort to make this work. His people depended on him to do this. The sooner he took over from Grandfather, the better.
“My family calls me Justin when we’re not in court. You can as well, if you like.”
She tilted her head. “Justinian too long?”
“My friends call me Autumn.” She looked at him, green eyes giving nothing away. “Please use it.”
So Awkward. I wanted to make Justin and Autumn friends without it being too romantic. Like nice, but zero chemistry. I also unfortunately don't have any art of Autumn.... and I'm saving outfit pics for when they show up in the scene (unless I've already passed the scene, but we're not there yet.) Do you think there will someday maybe be fanfic where Justin and Autumn end up together? That would be interesting...
Next week Rain and Andrew learn a little bit more about the mines!
