Senrid-Harvaldar, King of Marlovan Hess, was not alone in the King's Study when a courier knocked politely at the door

Senrid-Harvaldar, King of Marlovan Hess, was not alone in the King's Study when a courier knocked politely at the door. He glanced at his Commander, who was carefully examining the maps that had been spread out on a table. Bidding the courier to enter, Senrid took the seat behind a large desk, which was from a time so distant in the past, that he could not find a mention to its creation in any of the country's books.

The courier entered, and immediately gestured in the formal way of showing reverence to the King, a three fingered tap to the heart, and wordlessly handed his missive to Senrid. The Commander, for his part, remained attentive to maps, knowing, rightly, that if the King deemed it necessary for him to know what was in the missive, then he would share with the Commander. He was just fingering a possible route through the Marlovair mountains, and possibly into Tiv Evair when he heard the King chuckle. The Commander looked up at his King, who had, by now, blossomed into adulthood. He remembered a time, before the Norsundrian war, when he was taller than the King, despite the two's actual age difference. Senrid, for his part, had retarded his growth for many years through magic, for a reason that had been unknown to the Commander at the time. It was now apparently clear that the King had been waiting for his intended bride, who had been a child at the time that the Commander first met her, to grow into an adult as well.

"Stad," the King said, looking into his Commander's gaze, "I just got the most interesting news from Remalna."

Flashes of recognition phased through the Commander's eyes, "do you refer to the small Kingdom on the coast?" Stad was not overly concerned about the country, which had, until recently, king trouble, as in, a bad type of king. From what Stad knew, however, was that there recently had been revolt, a successful revolt at that. When the King did not answer, Stad continued, "have the revolutionaries taken our country to heart, and have decided to come hear and revolt? An interesting notion indeed."

The King chuckled again, a soft chuckle that held the undertone of knowledge that the other person was not aware of. Before the King could inform the Commander what it was that he knew and that Stad was ignorant of, the door opened again. This time, the new admissions were both the Queen of Marlovan Hess and Stad's wife, Fenis. The two had spent the morning cooing over Fenis and Stad's new baby, a boy, who they had taken to calling Van. Fenis now held Van in her arms, and took a place next to her husband, while Liere, the Queen, perched on the edge of the King's desk, in a grace that belied her pregnant state.

"What does the letter say?" the Queen asked, examining the papers on the King's desk.

Senrid shot her an annoyed glare, and motioned to a chair, as he was concerned about his wife's almost reckless lack of concern for her well-being, and that of the child she carried. He did not like her to be any higher from the floor then necessary, in case she stumbled. When his wife returned the look with one of defiance, he sighed, and turned back to the letter. "Apparently," he began, "there are a new King and Queen of Remalna. Vidanric Renselaeus and Meliara Astair." He looked up to spy the reactions of each of the visitors in his study. Not one indicated any recognition of the names of the monarchs.

The King took a breath before he continued, "It is interesting to note that before he became the King of Remalna, Vidanric Renselaeus was the Marquis of Shevraeth." The King elongated the last word, making sure his meaning was apparent to his listeners.

Almost immediately a smile grew on the face of his wife, who understood precisely what the King was attempting to convey. His Commander, nearly forgetting himself, whooped in excitement, and exclaimed, "knew he could do it! Marlovair will be, well, stunned." The King, in good spirits as well, penned a quick note and summoned a courier to take it to its recipient. It was late and Stad and his wife left the King's presence but not without the King noting the disappointment on Fenis's face. He pushed the thoughts aside, and instead focused on his wife.

Three months later, Vidanric Reselaeus was sitting in his favorite place in the residence, a small archive attached to the library. He was alone with his thoughts on the dreary day, and absently thought of where his wife of six months could have taken off to, and with whom, when she swept into the archives.

Instead of kneeling on the cushions, she walked to the window, and looked out. "What a horrible day," Meliara commented, "not a peek of sunshine behind those clouds."

"It's been a dreary week," Vidanric countered, hesitant to return to his work, not that his wife was in the room.

Meliara turned from the window, and took a cushion. From a pocket in her dress, she withdrew a letter. "You have received a missive, your majesty," she said as she handed over the letter with a mocking flourish.

Vidanric opened the letter, and saw the short missive, written in a neat hand, and in a language that was not his native tongue. He looked at the letter for lengthening moments, before Meliara broke his reverie, "what does it say?" she asked, completely interested in the message before the King.

It took a moment for Vidanric to find his voice, "it is from the Senrid-Harvaldar, the King of Marlovan Hess."

"Where you spent time as a young man." Meliara said, matter-of-factly, interrupting him.

"Yes, well, it merely says, 'I told you so.'" Vidanric looked at his wife. "It's a long story," he explained, to her silent question.

Glancing once more at the window, and the darkness that lay beyond, he said, "and today is the perfect day to tell it." He stood to full height and extended a hand to his wife, to assist her in rising from the pillows. Silently, he led her from the Archive, and to their rooms in the Residence.

As they walked Vidanric pushed back the nagging thought that he should not lie to Meliara, as there was another line to the letter, which read "When your heir is old enough, send him or her my way, Stad will see to the smartening up." That, of course, was a conversation for another time. Meliara and he had not began to speak about children, and he knew that she would not take lightly to leaving her first born in the hands of Marlovans. Vidanric smiled slightly, no Meliara would not like that at all, especially after her told her the whole story of his time in Marlovan-Hess, but when the time came, he would send his heir. It had made Vidanric the man he was today, and he would not trade that for all of the breezes in the world.