(Youre ok! not a problem, focus :) )
Lear didn't flinch away, though he didn't reciprocate. He knew for her, that was a good sign, and he was surprised she'd taken it that well.
Well, perhaps the adder has lost some of its sting.
"I hope the day never comes when you would have to, friend." He smiled at her. "And please know, your secret is as safe with me as it can possibly be."
He checked the small crystal clock on the wall. "Would you try to sleep? I can understand not wanting to, but at some point you'll need to, and you're surrounded by friends here."
"Have some faith in me, Lear. I've survived this long. I can survive longer still." Eli gave him a convincing smile, though she wasn't convinced of that herself. She was in the den of the lions. There was no place more dangerous for her than at the palace.
She thought for a moment and bit her lip. "I'll try. I doubt I'll get much sleep though." She laid down in the bed and placed her head on the pillow. She got under the covers and curled herself toward Romulus. It took her a long while to fall into a dreamers sleep.
Lear nodded slowly at her reassurance. He hoped she could keep it hidden. To have come this far, only to get found out now would be awful, and Romulus would be incriminated if he tried to stop her execution.
He scooted up into a sitting position as she went to sleep. He eventually went and got the map, working out who would be around her if she picked the Morgan Estate.
He managed to very quietly wake up Romulus and put him back to sleep when the hour came. He was hoping not to interrupt Elia now that she was finally asleep.
Elia managed to sleep quite well, surprisingly. Her sleep was free of dreams or nightmares. However, she didn't not sleep very long. At the peaks of dawn, her eyes were opening and she was stretching awake. She slowly sat up and rubbed at her face.
She needed a bath and fresh pair of clothing. She slid out of the bed and poured herself some water and drank it all.
Lear was glad that Romulus woke up quietly the next few times till morning. At dawn, when Elia woke up, Lear nodded at her from his spot.
"Morning." He smiled. "Hope you slept well." He watched her get her water. "I asked the servants to bring up our packs. They're in my room, if you wanna step through that door. Bathroom is open in there as well, although you'll end up smelling like my soap. You could likely steal The Prince's soap if you want. In any case, your clothes are in there. Or we could ask one of the handmaids for an inconspicuous dress, until we get you more."
Elia nodded at him. "I'll take a dress if possible. I don't think any of my other clothes are clean. But im going to go take a nice long bath."
She grabbed the bottle of wine and a glass before stepping into Lear's bedroom and finding the bathroom. She filled the tub up with steaming water and stepped into it gingerly. She filled up her glass of wine and sunk into the water, enjoying it. She could work on cleaning herself in a bit. She wanted to enjoy the hot water and met it soothe away her aches and pain.
Lear rang for a maid and made the arrangements. They had a dress in roughly Elia's size up in the room in under ten minutes. He paid the maid and handmaid enough to keep quiet, though he knew the rumors would run anyway. The sooner Romulus could wake up, think clearly, and get that title signed into reality, the better. Elia would be much safer with 'Lady Morgan' attached to her name.
Romulus woke up again a while after, his head hurting him. He knew last night had not been good, and as he tried to move, he became aware of how much of him was damaged.
Well. This is my life for a while.
He sat up, groaning quietly. Lear looked over and shook his head, but he knew better than to try to stop the Prince from moving and working.
"Lear… get me some softer clothing, please…" He wasn't wearing much, currently, but if he was going to be a person today instead of a bag of sore meat, he would need to dress enough to allow him to work.
There was much to do.
Elia made it throw a glass of wine before she had even begun to wash her hair and body. The bath water had begun to turn cold and she knew it was time to wash and get out. She scrubbed her body and washed her hair. She stepped out of the water and wrapped a towel around her body and hair. She walked back to Romulus' bedroom wearing only the towel. She set the bottle of wine in the kitchenette on her way.
Upon noticing her prince was awake, she smiled and walked over to him. "How are you feeling, darling?"
Normally, Romulus probably wouldn't have reacted to Elitia's state of dress. He'd been around naked girls for it to not faze him.
Alternatively, he might have been very affected by it, and they may have gone for it at some other time.
But as it was now, he was in pain and tired and a bit addle-brained. He was sitting on the edge of his bed in nothing but a pair of shorts, working on not falling over as Lear figured out his clothing. The sight of a beautiful woman entering his room, wet-haired and largely naked, flicked all his switches, but his body hurt too much to respond. He also didn't have the brain power to control his reaction very well, and so he wound up just staring at her in open appreciation, with a dopey-looking smile on his face.
The Prince didn't even realized he'd been asked a question, until long after the fact. "Hmm? Oh, I'm alright." His voice was still trying to wake up, rumbly and low and groggy.
Lear almost snickered at him from across the room. Romulus could be such a boy sometimes, for a man carrying all the weight he carried. Pretty girls still do the trick.
"Elia, I laid out your dress on the bed back in my room. Didn't want to interrupt your bath but it's in there." She wouldn't have necessarily seen it unless she was looking for it. He walked over to the Prince with a couple of soft-looking knitted garments, done in the typical royal red and black. He was always aware of how big Romulus was, but every time he helped the Prince pick clothing, he was reminded. The sweater he'd chosen was big enough to fit 2 people his size, or likely 3 people of Elia's build, and Romulus would fill it out nicely.
Elitita giggled at Romulus. She hadn't been expecting him to be this affected by her. She had been in states of near nakedness before and he hadn't reacted this way.
She walked forward to the prince, giving him a soft smile. She looked over his wounds briefly, taking in the severity of them. She bent down and gave him a sweet but swift kiss. "I'm glad you're feeling better darling. Now, will you tell me exactly what you are doing up? You should be resting. Your body needs to rest. Lay back down." She had crossed her arms and gave him her scary look, the one only women could truly do.
"Why are you letting him get up, Lear?" She turned her look on him. "He's injuried. He needs to rest. You know he needs to rest. He should not be getting up at all."
Romulus tried to kiss her back, but he was still waking up. "I rested all night and I'll rest tonight as well. It's daytime now." He sounded petulant, but determined. He noted the look, and shrank back from it, but didn't lie back down.
Lear, on the other hand, didn't flinch. "He is indeed injured, and he does need to rest, and I do know it, and he shouldn't be getting up at all. You're correct. But you try holding him down." He walked over with the Prince's clothes, and Romulus stood up, a bit shaky, but on his feet. Lear helped him into his pants, before handing him the sweater, which Romulus pulled on without issue.
"He has things he wants to do today, Elia, and to be fair, they need doing."
"And he shouldn't be the one to do." Elitita murmured to herself as she walked away. She walked into Lear's bedroom and found the dress waiting for her on the bed. She dropped the towel and dressed in it. It was more modest than she was used too. It was a square shape neckline and long sleeves. There was no sheer fabric or anything to show off her body. Nothing she was used too. But she was at the palace now, she had to dress accordingly.
She managed to put it on by herself. She found her back and grabbed her brush and a few Hari accessories. It took her a good while to brush through her hair and get all the tangles out. She braided her hair in an elaborate braid on her hair, something a noble woman would wear. She placed a couple hair accessories in, a few clips and such, to dress it up.
When she had finished, she stepped back in to Romulus' room.
Romulus was dressed and steady, managing to look soft. It was an odd skill that Lear had never quite figured out, but put the mass of muscle in a sweater and it softened all his angles by quite a bit. The kids always seemed to like him more this way.
They had made their way into the Prince's study, and were working on writing out Elia's titels and lands, and allocating her the funds to get started. Lear thought he heard the door open in the bedroom, and called out "In the study."
Romulus was simply signing what Lear wrote, but he was doing his best to read it first, checking for things that could be problematic for Elitia. So far, she and Lear had done a good job of making sure her choice was a decent one.
Elitia stepped into the study. She looked beautiful, even with a plain dress on. It seemed to hug her every curve. Her hair was fit for nobility, royalty, even. She somehow turned such a simple wear into something majestic.
She stood in front of the desk, on the opposite side of Lear and Romulus. She clasped her hands behind her back. She did a once over Romulus, noting his wear, his look. She wasn't quite sure how someone as strong as he was could look so soft, but it suited him.
"What are you boys working on?"
Lear cut her a look that said Boys?? as clearly as if he'd said it out loud. "We're working on making you a legal Venian noble, since you asked. What would you like your name to be?"
Romulus looked up at her and smiled brightly. He looked more awake, and when he spoke, his voice sounded much less raspy. "This is your chance to pick any name you want, Princess. Lady Blank of Morganshire." He liked Elitia, but that would likely be a problem of a name to keep, since some of the Venians would know it. Many wouldn't anymore, but amongst the nobility, it would be obvious.
Elia returned his smile, ignoring Lear's look. It only made her laugh. They were her boys, whether he saw it or not.
She drummed her fingers on the desk, trying ti think of name. She hadn't been expecting that, though she should have. The name she had taken on fir herself was too similar to her birth name. Elia. Elitita. It was too close. She only needed to think of a name. She couldn't understand why it was so hard. She thought back to her time at the palace. One of her friends, a maid's daughter, Ebony.
"Ebony. I'll be Lady Ebony."
Lear chuckled. "Mysterious. That should work."
Romulus just kept smiling. "Now I just have to remember that." He signed the paper that Lear slid across the table to him.
"And….. it's official. As of this moment, you are Lady Ebony Morgan, Countess of Morganshire."
Lear stepped out from behind the desk, and bowed low. It was reminiscent of his bows when they had first met a little over two weeks ago. "My Lady. Now we need you to sign some things." He slid several papers to her. "First is making Calvin and Lily your wards, and Calvin in particular your heir, with the stipulation that he take care of Lily, regardless of how their relationship ends." He glanced at her. "At this point, it looks like they'll be together forever, but they're young. No need to leave Lily in a position of needing to go back to other forms of income."
Romulus handed her the quill. "Just needs your signature at the bottom. First time you sign this signature, so enjoy it."
Elia just shook her head at Lear with a small smile. "You don't need to bow to me, my love." It would be strange, then, that people would bow and curtsy to her. It was strange having a position of power once again. But this time she was old enough to do something with it.
She walked around the desk and sighed her name, her name, quickly, elegantly. And then jt was done. She was Lady Ebony Morgan of Morganshire with Clavin as her ward and heir, alongside Lily. She had faith in the young couple. She would make sure they had the best teachers and best clothes. But they would still be humble and understand their position.
Lear smiled at her. "I know I don't need to, but i will continue to do so." He watched her sign, and slid the next page across to her. This would be less pleasant.
"This is a pledge of your allegiance to House Vespasian. It is the same thing agreed to by all the nobles."
Romulus spoke up gently. "It says 'the Crown' in the document, but it also specifies 'the undersigner'. Which will be me. So it's not to my father, Elitia."
Lear nodded quickly. "It's allegiance to Romulus, since he's signing it. If the King were ever to sign it, it would be to him, but he would have to find this document first, and believe me when I tell you, he never will as long as I'm alive." This was a task Lear had set himself. Romulus had asked him to help protect the Venian nobles from being tied to the whims of his father, and he'd taken it personally.
Elia straightened her back. This was it. She was signing her loyalty away. She was no longer a princess. She hadn't been in a very long time but this would finalize everything. She would be loyal to Romulus or she would lose her head. She took several deep breaths, staring at the paper. She muttered a quiet word to herself, and only herself. Then she picked up the pen and signed the paper.
Her lips were in a thin line as she looked at Romulus with a nod of her head. "Okay. What now?"
The Prince watched Elitia consider what she was about to sign. He saw her internal struggle, and her decision. Her signature was the final acceptance of his offer.
He touched her arm gently, aware of what that must have taken. "Thank you."
Lear paused to give her a small, understanding smile. The allegiance oath was a difficult thing to sign as a Venian.
"I think that leads us to longer decisions." He slid her another page, with a long list of names. "These are the people living in your lands and tending the vineyards and hops fields. It's now your call whether or not they can stay."
Romulus reached over and grabbed a smaller, but equally comfortable chair, and pulled it up next to him with a small groan. "There is a mix of Haradrim and Venians on your land. There will be no judgement about who you allow to stay."
The page had the names of the families and individuals who lived there. It had their nationalities and which ones had been there before the Harad invasion. It had their roles and positions.
The page had lives listed on it, under her control now.
"I will not uproot anyone from their homes, despite their nationality. Not unless they give me a reason too." Elitia scanned over the pages but didn't pay much attention to the names. She would not kick anyone out. She was not cruel. Whether they were Venians or not, this was their home now. Unless they gave her a good reason to remove them, she would not touch them. They knew the land better than she.
She leaned back in the chair and placed her hands in her lap. Her body was slightly rigid, tense. It was intimidating, to come into a position of power. The last time she had a title, the most she cared about were what color her dress was and playing with her dolls. She didn't know how to rule, even if it was just over an estate. She refused to ask for help though. She didn't need it. She needed to prove she was strong.
"Is there anything else to be discussed or is that all?"
Romulus smiled at her decision. That made things much easier for him in the future. "I'm glad you've chosen that. The people on your land will be grateful." Many of the Venians he'd put in power had been quick to make their estates and products 'Venian only', which meant displacing families. He couldn't blame them, but it was hard to explain their right to the land to the Harad children who'd been born here. "It just needs your signature now."
Lear nodded, before answering her question. "There is more, my lady." He was being careful to be respectful with her, for two reasons. One, respect is always good, but two, she needed to get used to it.
"There is staff already in the Manor, which you will inhabit. Many of them have family on the Estate, and could easily live there. A few do not, but they can be placed in other empty spots." He slid another page to her, with another list of names and positions. "These would be your servants and attendants. The people around you on a daily basis."
"What Lear is trying to say, is that you shouldn't flinch about editing this list down. These are the people who will be close to you, and you ought to be picky about that. You'll be displacing no one by sending them home and picking all new staff." Romulus interjected. He could tell Lear was trying to suggest without telling Elitia what to do.
Elitia looked down at the paper, looking over the names. None of them were familiar to her. She couldn't make a decision by just looking at names on paper. "I think I would need to meet them before making a decision. And I wouldn't even know who to hire in their place if I did decide to fire them all right now."
She didn't know anyone. No one outside the brothel and her few regulars. And she couldn't hire any of them. She wouldn't want to hire any of them. None of them would be fit to serve over an estate. She would need to meet her staff, and spend time getting to know all of them before making changes to her house. But that would mean spending time away from the palace, from Romulus. It would take weeks, possibly months, to choose how to arrange her household. She would need to examine everyone's strengths and weaknesses. See who spoke about her when no one was looking. Take a look at ledgers. it would be a long process.
"What next?"
Lear nodded. "I figured that would be the response. We do have replacements picked, should you want them sooner rather than later."
Romulus spoke up. "I vet them personally, and they're all Venian. None of them would know you, though. We could be sure of it."
Lear watched her reaction. "And this doesn't have to be done today. It's just a matter of putting your mind on what needs to happen over the next while. The flip side of that, is the longer you have them around you, the longer you may feel unsafe."
Romulus nodded along. "Which is why your next order of business is choosing your personal guard." He looked up at her. "What would you want in a bodyguard? If you'll give me your qualifications, I can tell you who among my men fits them. Or, if you have someone in mind?"
Elitia only nodded at them. "I will keep that in mind."
She turned her body to look at Romulus. At his question about who she would want to guard, her first thought was you. He couldn't be her guard. He was a prince. It would be laughed upon for her even to suggest a thing. The only other person she could think of would be Alak but she couldn't be sure if he would even want to leave the Prince's service. So she didn't suggest either.
"You're better at this than I am. I have faith that you will choose my guard well. I wouldn't even know where to start unless we're judging looks." The only guards that had been in her life before Romulus was the "guards" at the brothel that was mainly there to drag back whores should they escape, or to throw out patrons who took things too far.
Romulus nodded slowly, before looking at Lear. "I'll need your help, I'm cloudy." His head was hurting, and he was doing his best, but for important details like this, Lear would need to do his thinking for him.
Lear nodded at him, before pulling out a clean sheet of paper. "Couple of questions: Would you prefer someone intimidating, to deter people, or someone understated, to keep people's suspicions down? Do you want a Venian guard specifically, or is any ethnic group ok? And would you prefer a female?"
Elitia reached her hand over to grab Romulus'. She stroked his knuckles with her thumbs, trying to provide some comfort. She knew he was hurting and she wished everything in her power she could make it stop.
She turned to Lear. "Someone understanding. Preferably Venian, but I trust your judgment. As long as they are trustworthy. And gender has no preference to me. As long as they are good at their job, male or female."
She was not afraid of men, as some might think or others might that have gone through the things she had. Women could be just as cruel as men. She learned that in her early days. It gave others power if one coward before them. So, she did not cower. She held her head high and kept her back straight. She did not let anyone intimidate her.
Lear nodded, taking notes. "Men are a bigger pool to pull from. Understated, narrows it down. Trustworthy, preferably Venian…" He was running the list in his head, but Romulus knew his soldiers better.
"Uriah." he said quietly. The short Venian was not built like a ton of bricks, but his skill in many ways was unmatched. He would be the kind of quiet strength that would be good for Elitia to have around. He wouldn't make people nervous, wouldn't make them think she was hiding something, but he could provide protection easily.
Lear snapped his fingers and nodded. "Perfect. And he would be understanding of your situation too, should you ever choose to share it." Romulus had pulled Uriah from a slave-labor mine about 5 years ago, and the young man had become one of the Prince's most loyal soldiers. "I can have him assigned to you by lunch, and we can have you heading towards your estate in time to get there tonight."
So soon? Elitia looked at Romulus with concern. He wasn't well. He wouldn't be for a long while. She didn't want to leave him while he was so vulnerable. He needed help, someone to help care for him. She could be that person if he allowed her. "Tonight? Is that wise? I don't want to pop up on everyone and be like 'Surprise, I'm your new lady and you all must follow me.' That feels a bit much. Shouldn't they have some warning?"
She picked at her nails in her lap. A bad habit. One she desperately needed to work on.
