Page 49 of Kingdom of Feathers

“I heard another rumor you might be interested in, Your Majesty. About the possibility of an invasion.”

Basil straightened, and the rest of the group went still. It was a little hard to believe the servants would gossip accurately about military plans, but he supposed he shouldn’t dismiss whatever the maid had heard too quickly.

“It’s all over the castle that when your father died, the king’s advisors suggested he march on Tola,” the servant said, seeming nervous at everyone’s unwavering attention. “Apparently it was the princess who stood against it, and convinced her father not to consider that course.”

Basil lifted his eyebrows. He felt a flare of warmth somewhere in the region of his chest at the idea of Princess Wren defending his kingdom before they’d ever even met. He remembered the seemingly incongruous impression he’d formed almost upon first meeting her, that she was his ally, not his enemy. He wanted her to be his ally, somehow even more than he wanted it from King Lloyd. From everything he was hearing, he was becoming more convinced that the king had indeed meant it as an insult when he fobbed Basil off on his heir. But Basil was better pleased with the arrangement than ever. Surely if they were left alone, he and Princess Wren could get something done. At least the silent princess, alone of all Mistra, seemed willing to talk to him.

Somewhat ironic, really.

“And King Lloyd listened to her?” he mused aloud. “Well, that’s a count in his favor, if nothing else is.”

Lord Baldwin raised an eyebrow. “Is it a count in his favor if he was swayed by sentiment, Your Majesty?” he asked delicately.

“Being willing to listen to counsel has nothing to do with sentiment,” said King Basil dryly, his thoughts flying to his own father. “And everything to do with humility. An important virtue in any leader.” He sighed, running a hand through his hair. “All right, Lord Baldwin. I daresay it’s too soon for you to have had much success—”

“Not at all, Your Majesty,” Lord Baldwin interjected. “I’ve made inquiries about the princess, as you requested.”

Basil blinked at him, surprised. “You’re efficient. What did you discover?”

Lord Baldwin rolled one shoulder uncomfortably. Just as with the nobleman’s reaction to the front line, Basil found Lord Baldwin’s overblown discomfort whenever the princess came up to be inconsistent with the rest of his behavior.

“Well, she’s certainly considered eccentric, to use the more polite term. The rumors are true, that she’s been thoroughly examined for any sign of injury, or any magical blockage to her speech. There was nothing.” He cleared his throat awkwardly. “It seems the damage is to her mind. Apparently it’s not unheard of, if there’s been trauma…”

Basil frowned. “Do you mean that the trauma makes her unable to speak, or unwilling?”

“Apparently the line between the two can be a little hard to determine in such cases,” shrugged Lord Baldwin. “But it seems to be generally accepted that her mind has been affected in some way by what she witnessed.”

Basil shook his head incredulously. “I don’t know what that means. She seems to me to be a perfectly rational person who just…doesn’t speak.”

One of the guards cleared his throat. “What about that is rational, Your Majesty? If shecanspeak, but won’t, surely that’s a sign of…damage.”

“It’s certainly a sign of something,” Basil muttered to himself.

“Then there are the swans, of course,” Lord Baldwin said, wincing slightly as he said it.

Basil chuckled. “Yes, I met them, actually. Unless I’m mistaken, they didn’t like me much.” He bit his lip thoughtfully. “And one of them seems to be following me.”

“What?” Lord Baldwin asked, looking perplexed. “Through the castle?”

Basil shook his head. “It stays outside, but I’ve spotted it multiple times throughout the morning. Any time I’m near a window, it seems to kind of…keep an eye on me.”

He couldn’t help but laugh at the looks on his team’s faces. They ranged from offense to open alarm.

“I don’t mind it,” he reassured them. “At least the bird makes no secret of its surveillance. Honestly, it’s less irritating than the guards who are clearly tracking my every step, but still try to look like they’re just going about their business.”

“Yes,” I’d noticed that, Your Majesty,” said one of the guards grimly. “In light of that, don’t you think it would be wise to have your own guards with you at all times?”

“No, no, it doesn’t trouble me, really,” Basil said, waving a dismissive hand. “It’s no more than I expected. The guards aren’t going to attack me. They’re just making sure I’m not snooping anywhere I shouldn’t be.” He smiled. “And the swan isn’t going to hurt me, either. It’s probably just curious. They seem to be incredibly tame birds, probably domesticated enough to recognize a newcomer to the castle.”

“Yes, the princess has well and truly domesticated them,” Lord Baldwin confirmed. “It is the strangest of her oddities. I mean,” he sounded pained, “they say she even knits them clothes.”

“That is certainly unusual,” Basil acknowledged dryly.

Lord Baldwin seemed emboldened by the agreement, and he hurried on. “Apparently…” He winced slightly, as if not wanting to say his next words, but Basil fixed him with an expectant stare. “Apparently,” Lord Baldwin tried again, “people think she’s sort of…replaced her brothers with them.”

“How do you mean?” Basil demanded.

Again Lord Baldwin rolled his shoulders in obvious discomfort. “Well, there are six of them. According to general reports, the group were on their way to hunt swans when the incident occurred all those years ago. The princess seems to have sort of adopted some of those swans, and general opinion is that she tried to replace her lost brothers with them.”

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