Chapter 126 - A Request?

[Meanwhile, Back at the Palace]

Yvonne made sure the hidden dagger did not slip out of her glove as she ran into His Majesty's arms with worthless glee and joy. 

"My dear, I missed you so very much," Yvonne sighed as she wrapped her arms around the Emperor's thick neck. "Where were you?"

The Emperor snaked his fingers around his mistress's lower back and pulled her until her feet were barely grazing the floor. Yvonne tried to stay still despite her discomfort, but unable to do so, she slightly inched away from His Majesty's embrace. 

"Oh, just...work..." the Emperor sighed as he slipped off his heavy robe with thick fur at the edges. Yvonne immediately took it from him and hung it on a hook by his massive closet. "You know how hard it has gotten for me lately, especially since your ladies' tea party is overhead. When is it again?"

Yvonne smiled. "Just in a couple days. Care to take a seat?" Yvonne wanted him seated as soon as possible, since it would mean that he won't be getting up anytime soon. He preferred to stay where he was. 

Groaning, the Emperor headed to his bed with Yvonne in tow and flopped down on the mattress, which gave a long, dying creak under his weight. Yvonne stood nearby, just enough distance away that his arms won't be able to reach her. 

"Shall I call a servant to get you some refreshments? Some fruit, perhaps?"

The Emperor shook his head. "Your presence, my darling, is enough to free me of my fatigue. Come, sit next to me so I can be assured of your company."

Yvonne forced a strained smile. She'd never go near the man if it was ever up to her, but now that it had come to this, she was afraid she'd have to comply.

"Of course, Your Majesty," she said sweetly as she perched on the edge of his bed, while simultaneously pushing the dagger deeper into her glove. "May I ask what's troubling you so early in the day?"

The Emperor gave a frustrated groan.

"I've just found out that my personal guard passed away a few days ago. Simon Gradral was his name. He was a strange man, too stone-faced, if not anything else. I never really knew what was going on with him, and he'd never give me a chance to know how he felt on the inner side. At times, even when I knew he should feel angry, or overwhelmed or grieved, he managed to keep a straight face with no signs of emotions. And it was rare that he ever expressed his personal opinions in matters concerning me, but then again that is exactly why I decided to keep him by my side. Well, until he died, that is."

Yvonne looked into his grey-green eyes as she felt the hard edge of the dagger inside her lacey glove, wondering if it would prove to be of any use today. 

"Is that the only thing that's troubling you, Your Majesty?"

The Emperor stared at his beautiful mistress, and in a dazed state he wondered how he had landed such a goddess, such a blessing to his sight. And other than her physical beauty, she was attractive on the inside, too. Ever so caring and always asking after him. 

"No, my love," he murmured as he pulled her by the waist and made her lay next to him on his bed. Yvonne yelped at the sudden movement, her eyes wide in shock. 

As her face was pushed into his chest, Yvonne smelled a lot of different smells, and not all of them were pleasant. The mixed odors of spilled tea, sweat, faint morning perfume and fabric soap stung her nostrils as the Emperor stroked her carefully made hair, all of Stace's hard work going to waste. Yvonne wondered if she'll return to her chambers looking like she's been in a hurricane. 

"Do you know how much I've come to love you lately, my dear?" the Emperor whispered into his mistress's ear, and a shiver creeped down Yvonne's back. She tried to keep a smile on her pink-stained lips, but it proved impossible as the foul stench of the Emperor's breath made her inch away.

"I-I do, Your Majesty," Yvonne muttered eventually, regaining her composure. It was the perfect moment to pull the dagger out of her glove and stab the Emperor's heart with it, but too risky nonetheless. Both of them were stuck close together, and Yvonne could easily use it to her advantage. But would the blade even go through the heavy layers of fabric the Emperor  donned? Was it even sharp enough? She did not know, since she hadn't had a chance to check earlier. 

Sighing, Yvonne decided that murdering the sinful Emperor would be a task for another time, when things were more convenient. 

"What are you thinking?" the Emperor asked as he nuzzled Yvonne's face, his prickly moustache and beard grazing her soft cheeks with piercing pains. She winced. 

"I was thinking about our tea party," Yvonne said, not paying much thought to what came out of her mouth. "Have the others submitted their tasks already?"

The Emperor thought about it and then shook his head. 

"Only a couple of them have proved that efficient," the Emperor said as he pushed a strand of hair behind Yvonne's ear. "Yesenia and Lorelei have already done their tasks, while Odette and Elora have yet to do so. Enya is still in the infirmary while Christabel refuses to do anything at all. I don't know what I'll do about her. She worries me so. At this rate I'll have to admit her to a mental rehabilitation institute of some sort, where she can recover."

Yvonne pursed her lips. Poor Christabel. The princess's funeral had left her emotionally scarred. Yvonne wished the best for her, and even wondered at times if she should reveal the actual secret to her. But then, no matter how much she trusted the lovely girl, Yvonne was not prepared to take any chances. 

"Your Majesty," Yvonne said as she slipped out of the bed and stood up while fixing her hair, "may I now know the actual reason why I was called to your chambers earlier at breakfast?" 

The Emperor sat up and looked at her in all her glory. Yvonne felt uncomfortable.

"Have you already prepared your guest list? I'd like you to invite a specific person to the tea party."

Yvonne arched an eyebrow. "May I know who that specific person is?"

A smirk played upon the Emperor's lips. "Elora's mother, Duchess Ingrid Obsilia."

Yvonne frowned at the strange request. Why ever would the Emperor want to invite Elora's mother?

"May I ask why am I to add her to my guest list?" Yvonne asked brazenly. 

The Emperor smiled at her boldness. 

"There's a whole lot of bad blood between the two. Both the mother and daughter were never on good terms, and it'd be great fun to see the two clash again after years of separation." 

Yvonne's smile wavered just a little at the words. My, the Emperor was a more vile man than she had thought him to be, and she knew now that she would have not a grain of remorse after killing him off, if the opportunity ever arises.

Yvonne curtsied. "As you ask of me, Your Majesty, for your wish is my command. Would that be all?"

"No," the Emperor said and tapped his lips. "I'd like a peck from my beloved."

It was as if the bile in her stomach was rising to her throat and Yvonne fought the urge to gag at his disgusting request. Oh, how she dreaded moments like these. She had always wished to spend such loving times with someone she actually adored, but really this was not what she had in mind.

Nonetheless, despite her inner feelings, Yvonne let nothing show on her serene face as she approached him and took his plump face in her hands before leaning in for a quick peck. 

"I-I'll be off, then, Your Majesty!" Yvonne exclaimed as she curtsied and hurried off right after, not letting the Emperor get a word in edgeways.

Once she had left, His Majesty fell about, laughing at his little mistress.

✿

Yvonne stormed to her room, the wood sheathed dagger clenched in her hand. 

Oh how she had almost put it to his throat in the moment she had held his face before leaning in. It would be a dream of hers to rid him of all life, so he could free her of this torture and of the world from such a vile creature. 

But alas, not all wishes came true the moment they arose. Things had to wait.

Yvonne pushed the dagger back into her glove and opened the door to her room, where Stace lolled around lazily since her lady wasn't there to keep an eye on her. 

"Your Highness!" Stace cried as she got off her lady's bed, where she had been 'inspecting the springs' and stood to attention. "You're back already?"

Yvonne didn't bother answering since she was much too tired and went and collapsed on her bed. (The springs were fine, lol.)

"I feel violated," Yvonne muttered hoarsely. "I hope I never have to come in such close proximity to him ever again."

"Oh?" Stace said, suddenly interested as she flopped down on her lady's bed without asking, since she knew Yvonne wouldn't mind. "So my skin touched today, eh? And so early in the day, too. Can't he have waited till it got dark?"

Yvonne swatted at her and Stace laughed. 

"It wasn't like that," Yvonne murmured as she rested her face against the cool duvet as memories of her recent meeting flickered through her mind.. "But God forbid another similar experience."