TROUBLE
1370 Words
The council hall was full of silver, gold and white marble, Sunlight streamed through the tall windows, Amaris followed just behind Elias and Rael, her boots clicking softly against the polished floor as the low hum of conversation dipped the moment she entered.
The tables curved in a grand crescent, every seat filled with nobles, envoys, and angelic delegates. Their gazes followed her like ripples spreading through still water.
"Why are they staring like that?" She thinks.
Rael leaned close, his grin just shy of wicked. "You've caused a scandal and haven't even said a word yet. I think I'm impressed."
Amaris didn't look at him. "Well don't be, If I fall on my face in front of everyone, will you still be impressed?"
"Delighted," Rael whispered back, earning a stifled laugh from her.
But the murmurs around them grew louder, threading through the hall like smoke. Making Amaris feel unsettled.
"She looks just like her," someone whispered.
"It's uncanny."
"Do you think it's coincidence? Iris vanished after the war-now she reappears, or someone bearing her face, and suddenly strange things begin again..."
Amaris felt the words land on her skin like cold rain. Iris. The name again. Always whispered, never explained. She didn't know who Iris was, but every time someone said it, the air in the room changed-as if she'd just walked through someone else's memory.
Elias, seated beside her, caught the direction of her glance and leaned slightly forward. "Ignore them," he murmured. "Rumor is the council's favorite pastime."
Before she could answer, a low voice commanded the room to silence.
King Kieran Malek sat at the head of the chamber, his crown glinting faintly under the pale light. His presence alone stilled the noise-measured, composed, and edged with quiet authority.
"We have received troubling reports," King Kieran began, his voice deep and deliberate. "Storehouses and archives across the lower provinces have been broken into."
The room stirred.
"And what was taken?" a councilman asked.
"That's the thing, Nothing," the King said. "Not a single item reported missing."
Rael raised a hand with a serious look, his tone irreverent. "So they're tidy burglars? How considerate."
A few quiet chuckles broke the tension, though Elias's and his father..The King's glance toward his him was equal parts warning and amusement.
"It may not be theft they're after," said a woman seated near the front. "It could be... searching. Or signaling." Her gaze flickered toward Amaris, careful but unmistakable.
Someone else muttered, "The last time this happened... it was because of her."
The room went still.
A councilman spoke up, his voice firm but dismissive. "The war has been won. We have nothing to worry about. Let's not waste time chasing ghosts."
King Kieran's gaze swept the room, sharp as a blade. "Let's not jump to conclusions," he said evenly. "The last war cost too much to be repeated over superstition. There is no war now-but we will remain vigilant."
A respectful murmur of agreement rippled through the chamber, though the unease didn't fade.
Amaris focused on her hands, trying to steady her breath. Who is Iris? she wondered. And why does everyone look at me as if I should know?
Elias sat beside her, silent but watchful, his presence steady in the thickening air.
Rael leaned toward her again, his voice low, teasing just enough to make her exhale. "Well," he said, lips quirking, "you've officially managed to frighten half the council. Impressive for your first meeting."
She arched an eyebrow and looked at rael as if he was insane. "That wasn't my goal and I didn't do anything."
"Maybe not," Rael replied. "But I'm still giving you full credit."
Elias shot his brother a warning look, but Rael only smiled wider, unbothered.
The council resumed its debates-security patrols, divine treaties, whispers of celestial unrest-but Amaris barely heard them. Beneath the formalities, the titles, something else lingered: an old story, a shadowed name, and the unsettling sense that her arrival had awoken something that had been sleeping far too long.
And when her gaze met Elias's across the table, she saw the same awareness mirrored there. He reached out and put his hand on her's in reassurance.
Something was beginning...or it had already begun and we didn't know.
Elias
The meeting ended in a rustle of fabric and polite goodbyes. Chairs scraped against the marble, council members filed out in clusters, and the air that had been thick with speculation began to thin again-though the unease lingered in the air.
Amaris didn't wait.
The moment King Kieran dismissed the council, she was on her feet, moving fast, the heels of her boots echoing down the corridor. Elias caught the way her shoulders stiffened, the measured rhythm of her steps betraying the storm beneath her calm exterior.
Rael leaned back in his chair with a sigh, watching her disappear through the double doors. "Well, that went... smoothly."
Elias shot him a look. "smoothly?"
Rael grinned, standing. "Fine, awkwardly, then. You looked like you wanted to punch half the council, protective are we?"
"They were talking nonsense," Elias said shortly, straightening his sleeves. "Dragging Iris into it, again. You'd think they'd have learned to stop worrying about ghosts."
"Maybe," Rael said, his grin widening, "or maybe they just enjoy watching you get defensive whenever someone mentions her."
Elias froze mid-step, not wanting his face to betray his words. "I wasn't defensive."
"Oh, you were," Rael said teasing, following him out into the hall. "You get this little frown-there it is!" he added, pointing to Elias's face. "Right there! It's like clockwork."
Elias exhaled through his nose, forcing the tension out of his jaw. "You're very annoying"
Rael gasped in mock offense. "Oh, that hurts. And here I thought I was your favorite brother, if it makes you feel better you're my favorite older brother."
"You're my only brother," Elias muttered rolling his eyes.
"Exactly," Rael said, clearly pleased. Then, in a sing-song tone that echoed down the hall, he began, "Amaaaaris and Eliassss, sitting in a tree- K-I-S-S-I-N-G.. h, I, j, k"
Elias said "that makes no sense"
Rael keeps singing.
Elias turned sharply. "Rael, shut up."
Rael burst out laughing, clutching his side as they rounded a corner. "You should see your face! You're blushing!"
"I'm not-" Elias cut himself off, rubbing a hand over his face. "You're ridiculous."
"Maybe," Rael said, still chuckling, "but you like her. And she likes you. Everyone can see it."
Elias didn't answer. He didn't have to. The truth of it was something he barely wanted to admit to himself-especially now, feeling something for someone he just met..it's scary. Especially with the whispers of Iris, the rumors, and the break-ins that had no explanation.
They stepped out into the castle courtyard. The mist had thinned. Ahead, he spotted Amaris standing near one of the fountains, her reflection rippling in the water. She looked lost in thought-pensive, maybe even troubled.
Rael sobered slightly, noticing Elias's shift in expression. "You're worried."
Elias's gaze stayed fixed on her. "If the reports are true-if people are breaking into archives, and not taking anything-it means they're looking for something. Something connected."
"Connected to her?" Rael asked quietly.
Elias hesitated. "I don't know." His tone dropped lower. "But I don't believe in coincidences."
Rael folded his arms, his teasing replaced by rare seriousness. "Then we find out what's really going on."
Elias nodded once, eyes still on Amaris. "Agreed."
As they started toward her, Rael couldn't resist one last whisper, just loud enough for Elias to hear. "Still," he said, grinning again, "if destiny does involve you two sitting in a tree, I expect an invitation... unless she leaves you to be with me of course."
Elias groaned. You don't give up.
And yet, Rael replied lightly, you love me anyway.
Elias didn't answer this time-just shook his head, the faintest smile tugging at the corner of his mouth as they approached Amaris. Because despite Rael's teasing, despite the politics, the danger, and the internal questions... his brother wasn't entirely wrong.
- Writer
