Suitors

Cathlinn rubbed her face as she stood out in the rain with Carmichael. There were unexpected guests coming and while Cathlinn hates the dresses they made her wear, they allowed her to skip on the corset and dress herself. The look on the queen's face at seeing Cathlinn style herself was priceless and it made Cathlinn smirk. Carmichael glanced around Mei as she stepped behind Cathlinn, a small blush in the two's faces as they turned their gazes ahead. The coaches began to pull up, overhangs guarding the coachman from the weather.

Who stepped out had Cathlinn inwardly sneering. The blond king had a finely dressed woman at his side as men waited on him with makeshift umbrellas. He approached and held his arms open, a large smile on his face, "King Gary! It's so good to see you once again!" His eyes traveled over the queen and then stopped at Cathlinn. He blinked a few times before bowing to her, "And the lovely princess Monique, it's good to make your acquaintance."

"Keep it-" Carmichael subtly bumped Cathlinn and she gave a curtsey, letting her lip raise, "Its good to see you as well. I hope your travels were well?"

"You wouldn't imagine what I ran into back at my palace," the king smiled. He turned to the king and the two shook hands, "Some woman dressed as a man claimed to be the princess here."

"I assure you, that was Monique," the king replied and chuckled. "The tailors have yet to come up with any worthy designs for her current tastes in clothing." The other king turned a bit pale as he glanced at Cathlinn and she gave a mirthful smile.

"Well I'll be," he muttered.

"I personally oversaw the decoration and cleaning of your room," the Queen butted in, holding her hand out. "If there is anything not to your liking than you may come to me personally."

"Thank you, Queen Asha. Your hospitality is always greatly appreciated," he nodded. "I regret that this was so last minute. The matter just couldn't wait."

"We can discuss that in a bit. You must be tired," the king motioned for the other to follow into the castle. The two walked ahead and spoke to one another about nothing. The queen walked arm in arm with Cathlinn, a small smile on her face.

"He's quite handsome, isn't he," she asked quietly.

"If you're into womanizing man whores," Cathlinn muttered quietly. The queen blinked and stared at him before frowning.

"It is normal for kings to have consorts, Monique," she stated. "King Piroi simply hasn't settled because his taste hasn't been found."

"Or he's a nympho," Cathlinn snorted. The grip on her arm tightened a bit. "I want someone who will only have me and not resort to another woman." She glanced around the woman that came with Piroi, an almost sad look on the girls face. She didn't look any older than sixteen and it irked Cathlinn a bit.

"Be polite," the queen warned. "A king is still a king, after all."

"I judge men by their actions, your majesty, not their status," Cathlinn retorted. There was a screech and her head looked up as the hawk landed on her shoulder. The queen and the woman screamed as they stepped away from Cathlinn and the kings turned around to see the commotion. Cathlinn calmly pulled the letter from the bird's ankle and began walking ahead, frowning at the two separate letters. "I'll rejoin you shortly. There seems to be a matter I need to attend to."

"What is that thing doing in here," the Queen cried. Cathlinn stopped and looked over, tilting her head and the hawk copying her action.

"I am the one who initiated the potential alliance. So I have been the point of contact for Istvan the conqueror," she relied. "This is his hawk."

"An alliance with that mutt," Piroi shouted. His face became furious. "He requested, of all things, to have safe passage through my country!"

"He was asking permission to be polite," Cathlinn scowled and held the letters up, "He could very well have just walked right on through."

"Monique," the Queen snapped. She gave a small laugh and waved her hand a bit, "You can't seriously be trying to form an alliance with savages."

"Have you met the tribes," Cathlinn asked and crossed her arms. "Because right now, the two of you have biased prejudices based off of a split nation. Their tribes aren't singular anymore, they've united. The last tribe conceded to his rule with almost no bloodshed between them."

"You fought with them in the coast," Piroi gasped.

"Nothing I reported to the king was a lie, your majesty. I despise liars and refuse to be one," Cathlinn struggled to curtsey with the bird on her shoulder.

Mei laughed at how red Cathlinn's face was as Carmichael struggled to keep a straight face. Cathlinn was not only in pain but the face she was making was a mixture of disgust and displeasure. "It's not funny Mei," she groaned. "I didn't want to wear a corset today. It hurts."

"You're just," Mei chokes and giggled, "so expressive. And the dress is so floofy I can't take you seriously."

"I hate it," Cathlinn muttered.

"Your highness, you look ravishing. Stop with the whining," Simon played with the ink well as he sat at the table.

"Who's idea was it to bring them all at once," Cathlinn sighed.

"The queen's," Raymond rubbed his head as he circled her. "So many princes and kings are attending that it'd be rude not to show up in your best."

"Then I want a good pair of pants and a good coat. Or better yet, something that doesn't suffocate me or break my stitches," Cathlinn huffed.

"It can't be helped. It was an order from the Queen and you still have to show some obedience," Carmichael sighed. He chuckled a bit and nodded, "Besides, you have to entertain the maids somehow."

"You have no idea how bad this is for a woman's body," Cathlinn carefully sat down, wincing. "Where will they all be meeting me today?"

"All at once, all in here," Raymond replied. He turned to Carmichael and Mei, clearing his throat, "I will need one of you at the door and the other at her side at all times. This sort of thing hasn't happened in this way before so there may be complications. Simon and I will be looking over the benefits in our office so we may judge them off of that as well as her highness' opinion." Cathlinn was opening the letters, the hawk patiently waiting on the table in front of her as she stretched her legs out.

"And your highness, please be on your best behavior. I don't want to hear a man cry today because you refused to go easy on him," Cathlinn stared up at Raymond and nodded as he smiled.

"I can't promise anything. Men have fragile egos and that shit is hilarious," she smirked and he shook his head. Simon and Raymond left as Cathlinn began to read the business letter from Istvan, smirking a bit at the attempt at neater handwriting. The minute the doors opened was when she barely opened the second and she looked up, a line of men dressed in fancy clothing awkwardly standing around the door. Her eyes almost bulged from her head when she saw Istvan and she stared at the Hawk and then the letter.