Carolene's fingers twisted on themselves,her eyes darting to the floor.
Words hovered on her lips but she swallowed them,her mind contemplating her next words and it consequences.
Would they save or maim her?
She had already decided to tell the Emperor the words Gerald had whispered in her ears before the hunt but the words just wouldn't form.
Her eyes drifted to Ramses who sat watching her, eyes expectant.
She was sure he could sense her uneasiness but it was best to speak of this in his presence because he was the only one who could protect her from the sword of his father.
How he would do that as a child she didn't know but Ramses was like an adult stuck in a child's body and his father loved him dearly,he would not want to hurt him.
"Your imperial majesty...my life is yours as well as that of your people...if I may dare ask you,do you plan on keeping me alive now that Ramses is come of age".
"Since your life is mine why inquire this of me?"
"Gerald left me some information before his demise...I know you are intent on discarding me to keep that about his imperial highness a secret...however,..I intend to trade you this information in exchange for my life your imperial majesty".
Tyran's gaze fell on Ramses whose eyes remained on Carolene.
He had heard what she said and he was certain he understood it all but this wasn't something he would discuss Infront of a child like Ramses.
She had raised him,no doubt he loved her like a mother.
"I bear no intent to harm you"he said,his voice laced with traces of obvious falsehood.
"However General Ren will accompany you to my quaters today for a chat...you may leave us".
Carolene bowed before turning the door knob to the passage way connecting the queen's bed chamber to other rooms.
"Hmmphh!"Ramses hissed and looked away."Simply put you don't want to discuss such matters Infront of me,just say it father...I am not dumb".
Tyran let out a shallow chuckle rubbing on his head as he stared at Ramses.
"It's not like that".
"Father!"his gaze was intense and heavy and for a moment Tyran thought he was staring into the eyes of an enraged adult."If you hurt Carolene,I won't forgive you".
"I won't hurt hu_"
"I know you're lying...you might hurt her to protect me....I never got to see mother and she was the one who raised me".
"You_you never asked about your mother"
"Her?...you mean the one who troubles you constantly in your sleep?...ever since I was a baby whenever I slept nxt to you..."
You never where a baby
Tyran wanted to say but didn't voice out the words.
"...I watched you cry your eyes out whenever you dreamt about her, perhaps she was the reason why you act all weird while sleeping..."
"Weird?"Tyran raised a brow.
"Hugging, cuddling and rubbing your lips against the pillow licking on it while you sleep...yuck!!...what's that even called?....and your movement against the pillows on the bed was weird enough"Ramses arms embraced himself while he shook his head, sticking out his tongue as a shiver ran down his spine causing an obvious brief tremble.
"So cringe!...you would cuddle the pillow,raise your leg against it while_"
"Stop_tal_king!!..."Tyran cut in feeling embarrassed,his face flushing.
"You mean you...you saw all that?"
Ramses nodded.
"At first I thought my father was going crazy then I thought it was normal for Semonios to sleep that way as I never saw anyone else sleep except Carolene who never did that...then I watched you sometimes mention her name in your sleep...was it Fiona?"Ramses tittled his head as he tried to recall."Fiona I miss you,I long to see you,dont leave me,why did you leave me,fiona I love you,Fiona I want to hold you this way forever,our child is doing fine Fiona Fiona Fiona_"
Tyran's hand swiftly rested on Ramses's lips preventing him from speaking further.
"That's enough".
He got to his feet and cleared his throat.
"You must have had some good memories with her and her absence brought you great pain and loneliness...I never asked because I never wanted you to be reminded of that pain... I've seen what mother looked like in her portraits at the passage way...she was beautiful... indeed drives you crazy even in death".
Tyran cleared his throat and walked towards the door without turning to look Ramses's way,his steps as though calculated were in a disordered fashion.
He was certain his son noticed this as well,sometimes he wished he was just an ordinary child.
Ramses giggled.
"Now that you mentioned it first,You haven't told me how she was like yet...look at you go feeling embarrassed father...You should see yourself,what a spectacle to behold..."he clicked his tongue.
"if that is what love does to a person then spare me I'd rather not fall in love when I grow up... I'd never!!!".
Tyran stopped to look at Ramses,delighted to hear those words from him.
"Then you shouldn't...It would even be better you hated females... and never let those feelings weaken you...never ever_fall_in love!!"
"Hate?...is quite extreme"Ramses muttered but Tyran didn't answer instead he walked on, through the barrier and out of sight.
************************
The streets were cold as a certain servant walked down an alley back to the house she once lived with her husband.
Rahun shivered as she walked as snow against the old brown hat she wore, cursing herself for being unable to afford a winter coat.
Unlike workers at the palace,servants received no wages but we're only sheltered and fed,with the cruel fate of serving their owners for the rest of their lives,their branded bodies bearing a mark ownership and a cruel testament to a life claimed by another.
They would be killed and disposed of if caught trying to escape perhaps thrown into the lake or their bodies left at some place to decay and no one would ever bother asking about them,no one knew them.
Most had been separated and long forgotten by their families while some were taken as a result of the huge debt their family owed.
In her case she was taken as a child after her father had fallen out of the emperor's favour and years later she had heard all her family had passed away in one night which was quite suspicious.
She had married a fellow servant and had birthed a daughter,another generation of slaves for the emperor but both had been killed the night her husband tried to cross Urah's boarder to escape with their daughter.
He would find someone who would open a barrier to the human world he would always say and Rahun had always tried to talk him out of it.
But he preferred a life of being hunted by savages than birthing a slave child...he could at least protect her from the savages in the forest surrounding the human world but was powerless against the Emperor.
Rahun was just of a thousand of the emperor's servants,though one who had served the late parents of the emperor highly respected amongst the other servents and disregarded amongst nobles.
She hated them for that,hated the royals the most.
Suddenly Rahun felt a coat drapped against her shoulders, falling down her sides to cover the most of her body.
She touched the furs of the coat on her shoulder.
It was warm and fury.
Rahun turned around to stare into the eyes of a tall tanned man in a hood with a scar cutting through his eyes, across his face.
"Who are you?".
"A friend who can give you everything you desire including your freedom".
Rahun looked ahead and her eyes caught sight of a wanted poster few paces away.
Her eyes drifted to him then back at the poster before a loud gasp escaped her lips but it was too late.
In an instant she had been knocked out,dropping into the hands of this unknown man.