The Werewolf King's Bride

(From Blue's Perspective)

"Aunt doesn't sound bad at all. You are right. You should call me what is right," I said.

"Your Highness, His Grace, the duke, and Lord Abel are here," a knight notified.

"Oh, he is really here…?" Calix muttered, surprised. "Your Highness was right."

"Right?" I chuckled. "Send them here. I am having tea with my niece, so I cannot leave. They must come here."

"Is Abel the duke's son?" Ava asked.

"He is," I nodded. "Do you want to talk to him? Perhaps you two will be able to get along well."

"No, I don't think… Does he like Aunt?"

"Like me? I don't know," I said. "Maybe, or maybe not."

"His Grace, the duke, and Lord Abel are here, Your Highness," the knight declared who led them here.

"Good afternoon, Your Majesty. Sorry for coming here so suddenly. I have sent a letter just an hour ago. It was inconsiderate of me."

"That's alright, duke," I said. "Though the rule is to send a letter at least a day ago asking for a request, I gave the duke's son permission to come to meet me any time he wanted. I guess he showed you the handkerchief I gave him?"

"He did," the duke nodded.

"Greetings, Your Majesty," Abel bowed.

"Hello there, Abel," I smiled. "It's great seeing you again."

"If Your Majesty permits me, I will go somewhere. I have some business to take care of."

"Sure. I will send him back with some of my most trusted knights."

"That will not be needed, Your Majesty, as I will be coming back very soon."

"Very well," I nodded.

The duke gave a bow and left. He could not trust the Imperial knights for his son's safety, which was very much like an overprotective father. It annoyed me a bit, but perhaps I would have done the same if it came to my kid.

"Alright, now that Abel is here, let me introduce the two of you."

"Abel, this is Ava, my niece. And Ava, this is Abel, the duke's elder son. Say hi to each other."

"Hi…," Ava said.

"Hello…"

'Why are they so stiff? It's just a friendly greeting, though…'

"Will you have tea, Abel?" I asked. "If you don't like it, you can tell the maids what you want to have."

"… I don't like tea," he said. "Can I have hot chocolate instead?"

"Sure," I smiled. "Bring hot chocolate for him."

"Do you want marshmallows too?"

"Yes," he replied. His eyes twinkled for a moment, but he did it very soon as if he was not ready to express himself fully yet.

I looked at Ava. "I will stick to the tea, aunt," she said, knowing what I was about to ask her.

Iris would be surprised if she saw Abel asking for hot chocolate. She always wrote in her letters that Abel listened to them and was too obedient. Sometimes, he acted as a puppet. She told him countless times, but could not change that mindset of him. He thought he owed him his life because of what they did which was clearly wrong.

Gratefulness was one thing, but owning his own life was a completely different matter. No one owned their life to someone else, no matter what the other person did for them. We lived once and in my opinion, it was best to leave it for ourselves and not for someone else.

Abel could not blend into the new lifestyle because he felt lonely and alone. He believe no one would understand him because they had grown up with at least the basic privilege, which he had not.

But I did not as well.

At the banquet, I shared a bit of my story with him and how I managed to blend in with the new lifestyle. It was hard for me at first. There were a lot of problems. But I had my Dem who helped me with every step. In the end, I could get used to the new lifestyle.

Everyone needed someone to lead them in a new world. Perhaps he still had not found that person yet. So, I stepped in to help him a bit, if he was ready to accept my helping hand.

It seemed he was.

When I shared my story with him, he remained silent and got quite angry too, because I said he was the reason he could not get used to his new lifestyle. He was a kid, but the way he thought was not what a kid could do. If he wanted to be the duke's son mentally as well, he needed to pull himself up. And for that, he needed courage and will. He had the courage, but he lacked the will.

He got angry, but I knew he would understand that what I told him was not wrong at all. He needed to let his true self out to bring out a better version of himself.

At last, I told him that he was welcome if wanted to meet me again and gave him my handkerchief which had my stamp that worked as permission. I also told him to tell me the truth if he came to meet me and if he could not tell the truth, he did not need to come at all.

"So, how are you doing, Abel?" I asked.

"I am not well," he replied. "I have been having frequent headaches because I keep thinking about what Your Majesty said."

"That is so rude, young lord Abel," Ava said angrily. "Are you implying that Aunt is the reason you have headaches?"

"It's alright, Ava. Abel here is saying the truth just like I told him, so it's not rude. He has my permission," I said.

"Hmph," she groaned.

'Does she not like Abel? Well, it happens between kids, but it won't be okay if she acts rude to him.'

"Continue, my dear," I said.

"I think Your Majesty is right, but I also think Your Majesty is wrong."

"In what way may I ask?" I asked.

"I believe it's because I don't have someone to talk to freely and I admit that I cannot just talk to anyone freely. But I don't think I lack willpower."

'Well, isn't that because you are so stubborn?'

"Hmm," I muttered. "Then, shouldn't you prove that you don't really lack willpower?"

"… I will try," he said.

"The hot chocolate is here. Enjoy now."

The tea party was basically filled with Abel's complaints and his view of everything around him. Ava did not talk much, but she sometimes expressed her distaste for Abel's remarks. At some point, she got too annoyed.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

"It was supposed to be my and my aunt's tea party. Why is he here? Because of him, I could not talk to Aunt as much as I would have loved to!" she exclaimed angrily.

"We can always talk again, Ava. Besides, Abel did not know that you will be here when he came here," I said. "It's not his fault."

"It still is his fault! I don't like him!"

"Ava! This kind of behavior is not acceptable," I said, a bit angrily. "Isn't it only natural for us to act kind to others? We should not be rude for no reason."

"… I don't like it," she mumbled and stormed off.

"She doesn't like me. Why though?"

"… She doesn't hate you. She is still a kid," I said. "Calix, go and check up on her."

"Yes, Your Highness."

"It's alright. I hate her too," Abel said, shrugging.

"It's not alright," I said. "Why would you hate each other? Let's see. She is just five. So…"

"She is five?" he asked, shocked.

"Yes."

"Only five?"

"Yeah," I nodded. "That's what I meant. She is still a kid."

"Then, why does she talk like she is older? All the five years old I have seen before are not like this. They act like kids. But she doesn't. She even can talk so clearly about everything. I thought she was eight or more, just looks small."

"The kids from the Royal family mature too quickly," I said. "I suppose they

"I see," he mumbled. "In that case, the prince or princess will be like that too…"

"What prince or princess?" I asked, surprised.

"There is no… I heard…"

He turned red. "You heard I am pregnant?" I asked and he gave a nod. "It's a rumor. If you asked Iris, she could have told you the truth. You see, there are countless rumors around. I am the Queen, so it is bound to happen.

Just like me, there are rumors about the King, the duke, the duchess, and you two. Have you heard the rumor that Athena is actually the saint and we have kidnapped her?"

"I have… It's not a lie, is it? I don't know the whole thing because no one told me. But I believe it is the truth. Or, why would I have to be the duke's son and her brother as well?"