Letters from the Brothers
The rest of the party went off in an uneventful manner, the last guest left at a reasonable hour so the family plus Vanessa and Jess gathered in a circle of chairs in the middle of the foyer. We had mother’s gifts in a small pile in the center. It was Vellum custom to only open gifts with family and close friends. Since Vanessa was close friends with my mother and Jess was my close friend, both women got to stay. Most gifts were cards with shop cards for various stores in Vellum, my mother had commented that she would have to visit me one day soon to have a shopping day. There was one gift that was rather small with a card attached. The envelope was gold and so was the wrapping paper, but the card had an embossed lion head on the front. My mother mentioned that it was from His Majesty King Lucien. She opened the envelope first, it read: “Dearest Talia of Blackwood, may your birthday be as happy occasion as the birth of your beloved daughter. Please take the attached gift as a token of my esteem and good wishes to you who sacrificed so much for our kingdom.” A single tear rolled down her cheek at the mention of sacrifice and I knew full well she thought of my uncle Talon. She said, “How very sweet of Lucien to remember me yet again on my birthday.” She opened the small golden package and inside was a jewelry box. Inside the jewelry box was a small pendant with a crest with a pegasus on it. She exclaimed, “Oh my gods, this is truly an honor!” My father leaned in and said, “The Pegasi Crest is the highest honor the King can bestow on a family member of a fallen.” In my mind, I likened it to a purple heart, and I thought that was very thoughtful of the King to do something so wonderful for my mother.
At that we heard the doorbell sound, my father looked around at all of us and said, “I cannot imagine who that is, everyone that matters is here.” Delilah was already at the door, and you could hear, “Official messages for His Grace Duke Reginald Batiste and The Batiste. Please note that the message for The Batiste is for her eyes only by order of the King.” My mother looked at me at that announcement and I shrugged. I had no idea why the King would be sending me a message when I had never met the man. Delilah delivered the letters to the intended recipients. I was handed two envelopes one had the castle seal on it which, from what my father had told me, was official orders and the other had the lion’s head on the seal. The castle letter was addressed to The Batiste while the other simply said Alexandra scrawled across in elegant penmanship. They each had different handwriting so clearly written by two different people. My grandfather saw the lion head letter and said, “You got a letter from Lucien himself. I find that surprising but since the courier said for your eyes only, I’m assuming he means this letter as he would never keep official orders secret unless it was for Citadel spies. I won’t ask you to tell me what he says though as that would violate his orders. Could you please tell us your orders though?” I nodded and opened the castle letter.
The letter stated the following: “To The Batiste, in your father’s absence in his official homes, you will perform his duties. This will be as follows: you will attend every ball, tea party and official throne invitations. Beyond that, you will inspect Blackwood in Vellum in three days with the Duke. There you alone will meet with a gate keeper there in the glade where the blood altar sits. You will also hear the concerns of the families that live in your lands once a week and address their concerns. You will perform these duties for one month or longer depending on how long the Duke takes on his orders.” I looked up at my father, “Okay 1, what the hell is a glade and blood altar? And 2, what orders?” He rubbed his neck and stated, “1, Vanessa had a magical item that will guide you there I believe.” He looked at Vanessa and she smiled and nodded. He continued, “Two, I assume my orders are here in my letter.” He opened his letter to find a smaller message inside and he read it: “Vanessa Tannen is hereby summoned to the King for a special magical item commission, please go to the castle at once.” Vanessa smirked and rose from her seat and said, “When my King commands, I must obey. I will see you all later, especially my little goddaughter. Remember your promise to come take tea with me.” I nodded and she sauntered to the door and left.
My father then read his orders: “His Grace, Duke Reginald Batiste, will train The Batiste on basic knowledge of how to perform her duties in Vellum. In two weeks’, time, after His Grace has delivered The Batiste to the Vellum Blackwood, he will make his way to a place called the United Kingdom to set up diplomatic relations with this country. Lord Kellen has already set up a meeting with the Prime Minister and the monarch of that nation. His Grace will be acting envoy until such a time as the King finds a suitable permanent replacement.” My father nodded and looked at me, “Well little rose, you have to rest up tonight because tomorrow you will train to take over my duties.” I nodded then rose from my seat with both letters in my hand and one from the King’s brother in my pocket. I didn’t protest because I wanted to see what these brothers had to say to me. I simply stated, “Fair enough, I’m tired anyways. If you all will excuse me.” I made my way to my bedroom and closed the door behind me. I immediately went to my desk and placed the open castle letter on it and pulled the letter from Blake out of my pocket. I sat on my bed and opened the first letter from Prince Blake.
His handwriting was not nearly as neat as his brother’s but still legible. It read: “Dearest, please do not be alarmed at my contacting you. No doubt by now, you have heard from many that I am the wicked older brother of the King, but I wanted to write to you and show that my character is not so severe and drastic as I am made out to be. I merely want the throne and my lady by my side ruling Vellum. You have made quite the impression on me from a very young age. I remember when your parents brought you to the castle. I peered in your carriage and saw the most beautiful pair of violet eyes and saw in them my destiny. I have spies everywhere and they all tell me that you are beautiful, kind, and intelligent. I expected nothing less from one who is touched by a Goddess and my most beloved one. I will find a time and place for us to meet and will send Burnett with another message once you settle in Vellum. Until then, please take care of yourself and know that you are always in my thoughts. Forever yours, Blake” For some reason, I thought I should have been getting a creep stalker vibe, but it just seemed sort of desperate in a way. I placed the open letter inside of my desk with the intention to find a place to hide it later.
I pulled up the letter from the King from the bed and turned it over in my hands a few times before I finally opened it. It read: “My lady, it is not normal for me to write letters to someone I have never met in my life, but I felt that I should since your family is so close with mine. Please accept my humblest welcome to Vellum. I had intended on meeting you at your ceremony but was called away to urgent business at the very last minute. I would like to apologize to you for that absence. By all accounts, I have heard that you are indeed a daughter befitting the House of Batiste being wise, kind, and witty in your actions and thoughts. I truly look forward to meeting you at the opening ball where your father will away from the United Kingdom long enough to present you to me and the Queen Mother. Until then, please feel free to keep a line of communication open with me and write to me if you wish. I would like to continue the bonds your family has had with my own with our generation becoming the bridge. I would also ask that you go easy on our dear Headmaster. I believe he has met you and requested permission to get you up to speed on our customs and formalities. If you have questions, I would be happy to be an intimate source of knowledge for you. I know our dear Headmaster will be limited in his interactions with you, so he won’t always be able to answer all of your questions. Josiah, his scribe, is a close cousin with Marquis Maigny and he will scrutinize you on behalf of his cousin. You will need to hold your ground with him when you are alone, this is a tip from a friend to another. Another tip, I would like you to address any correspondence with me for my eyes only. I am humbly your servant my lady and forever gratefully yours, Lucien.”
I smiled at this letter and thought to myself that I would take him up on his offer to gain knowledge from him and form a friendship with His Majesty. If grandfather deemed him worthy of friendship, that was enough for me. I tucked the letter into the drawer with the other letter. I dressed into my pajamas and laid my head on the pillow. As my mind drifted off to sleep, a thought popped into my head in the Grand Pretre’s voice. One gold and one green, were the King and his brother my potential destined ones? Or had the two not made an appearance as of yet?
