Moonlight and Announcement

As they entered the room, they noticed the dinner seemed to be about to begin. Whispers flooded the hall, and a hundred different conversations echoed across the walls. As they walked to the head of table, they heard pieces of those conversations.

"Yes, the Ashgor are here, see look up there-"

"I heard myself that the King is tired of-"

"The nerve of that servant, I said-"

As they reached the Ashgor group, the conversations were mostly comparisons:

"Well, I guess the decorations in this hall are nearly as nice-"

"The cooks here use an odd flavoring. We should find out what it is, and-"

The Princes ignored the conversations and were busy discussing the Lxotu family.

"-my mom's not that interesting though. I'm sure you'd rather hear about my sister. She's got six suitors in Ashgor, and she's only fifteen."

Miashgon felt an odd disappointment, "Official?"

"Four of them yes. The other two aren't eighteen yet. One of the four is twenty-five."

Miashgon stopped walking, "Twenty-five? Thats a decade older than her!"

A female voice broke into the conversation, "Yeah," a musical laugh, "I don't think Dad'll let me have that one. Though its closer to nine years, I am almost sixteen, after all."

Miashgon spun to his left, and everything stopped for a moment. She was right there, an enchanting smile on her lips, brown hair and hazel eyes shining and bright. She wore a dark blue dress, delicately crafted with beautiful designs and even some runes sewn into the outside seam.

"Oh! I didn't-"

"My brother has been talking about me again, eh? He likes to pretend that bragging about my looks makes him seem more handsome."

Xavier smiled back at her, "Well, I needed to warn him. You are a frightening girl with an ominous group of suitors."

"I may be frightening, but you are positively terrifying. If he can survive two hours with you, he can surely put up with my 'suitors.'" This was obviously commonplace banter for the brother and sister, and he watched the conversation. The two faced eachother casually and argued for almost five minutes. Both moved proudly, and both were quickwitted.

After the banter slowed down, Zerona turned back to Miashgon, "We seem to have forgotten to you, apologies." A light, ensnaring laugh accompanied the statement.

Miashgon found himself smiling, "Think nothing of it, I enjoyed it."

Xavier tapped Miashgon on the shoulder, "I think," he said, pointing, "that our fathers would like us to have a seat."

The two Kings were indeed looking at the princes with almost impatient looks. They hurried down the rest of the table and took their seats. Xavier began his lineage, "Now my grandfather, he was a powerful king. He-"

Miashgon was not listening. He was too busy trying not to stare at Zerona. She was beautiful. He tried to shake himself, Four official suitors, she most definitely wouldn't be availabe when Miashgon turned eighteen.

Miashgon and Xavier had missed the first course, but there was still much more food before the dinner was through, and soon many people, both Rijero and Ashgor, began to relax and show their true personality. Miashgon was pleased to see so many people enjoying themselves; and Zerona never stopped smiling.

Nearly an hour later, the dessert was removed from the table. King Rawel stood, "Thank you all for coming out tonight to celebrate Trivor's day of birth. Special thanks goes to those that have traveled a great distance to be here." He took a sip of water, "I invite all to stay here tonight."

King Jarel smiled, and remained seated. "You offer is very generous, but we still have time to travel tonight, and our caravan is equipped to stay wherever we would like."

Rawel nodded, "I have no control over your actions; however, I admonish you to stay at least through tomorrow evening. I have an announcement to the public, and I believe it would be better for you to hear it in person than by messenger."

The Ashgor King raised an eyebrow, and motioned some men to confer with him. After a few seconds he stood, "You have piqued our interest. We shall stay until morning after tomorrow."

Rawel smiled warmly, "Great! I had rooms prepared on the third floor in hopes you would accept my proposition. They should be ready within the hour. In the meantime, you are free to move throughout the castle," as if an afterthought, he added, "That goes for all here tonight."

A surprised murmur ran through the crowd. The bottom floor and the throne room were the only places in the castle that those not living in the castle had been allowed into. Many headed up the two main staircases in curiosity.

Miashgon and Xavier walked towards a large hall with many chairs in it, and took a seat. They laughed quietly as they heard some people's predictions of what the announcement would be.

"Well obviously, Rijero is going to write a new constitution-"

"Ashgor will be annexed-"

"Orna is going to attack. They've got this twenty-two year old-"

"Spies on the border-"

Every single theory pointed to war of some sort or another. Xavier had another idea, "Your father is going to suggest some sort of trade change on the border, that's what I think."

"Why would he do that in a general announcement, that seems like a within chambers sort of thing to me."

"Nah, this way, my father will have to make a public response. Great way to get things done, in my opinion."

Miashgon nodded, but was busy looking for Zerona. Xavier, noticing Miashgon's sudden indifference, began to propose his idea to other, more attentive listeners.

Zerona walked in the room. Immediately they locked eyes, and Miashgon walked up to her.

"Why hello there." She was again smiling.

"Hello to you. I have two questions for you: First, do you ever stop smiling, and second, are you doing anything important at the moment, and to both, I hope the answer is no."

She laughed. "To the first yes, but usually not in the presence of strangers, and the second, no and a question of my own, why?"

"Well," he had had a phenomenal idea during dinner, "I wanted to show you something."

"Humm- and what would that something be?"

Miashgon's smiled didn't fail, "You'll have to come to find out."

Xavier appeared at that moment, "There you went Miashgon," he noticed his sister, "ah, I warned you she had that effect."

Miashgon's smile faltered for a moment, then he took Xavier's presence in stride, "So..?"

Zerona's eyes shone, "Alright, lead the way."

Xavier followed the two, looking rather puzzled.

Miashgon led the two Lxotu siblings through the castle halls and staircases, until they reached a dark corridor that ended in a tapestry. Miashgon lifted the tapestry to reveal a door.

Xavier raised an eyebrow, "A little cliché, is it not?"

Miashgon laughed, "Yeah, but its effective." A short hall to the right followed the doorway, and then another door. As he pushed open the door, a small courtyard was revealed, with a large stepped boulder in the far corner, and a small, crystal-clear pond to the side. Moonlight bathed the entire place, and everything seemed to shine with magic.

Zerona looked around, "Wow... its beautiful."

Miashgon's smile broadened, "I had hoped you'd like it. It's the best with a full moon, but you won't be here at that time."

Xavier had wandered to the boulder, "So what's it for?"

Miashgon shrugged. "Fuldon, my father, and I are the only ones that know of it. Fuldon said my grandfather had it put in as a teenager, I find it a good place for practice and thought."

Zerona gazed at the boulder in the far corner. "What's that for? It looks like a normal stone, except for the leveled out parts on the top and side."

Miashgon grabbed her hand and led her up the leveled staircase on the side to the top, "Well, it serves an excellent dual purpose. Its the only place to sit in here," he sad as he sat on the edge, "and its great for practicing magic on."

Xavier instantly looked confused, "You've got to be joking, not a mark on that boulder from magic. Except maybe the stairs."

"Exactly," he said as he helped Zerona seat herself, "watch." He pointed at the rock below his feet, "Jixite!"

Lightning lanced from his fingertip straight to the rock. The spot it hit glowed for a moment, then returned to normal, not a mark on it, "Impervious to magic."

Xavier looked interestedly around the rest of the courtyard, wandering towards the pond.

Zerona and Miashgon looked at eachother, but neither spoke a word. Miashgon looked in her eyes, and lost track of everything. He was brought back to earth by her voice.

"Why did you want to bring me here?"

"I don't know. I guess this is my secret courtyard. I wanted you to know where to find me if you ever wanted to."

Zerona gave him a strange look, "Do you get a lot of girls by being this transparent?"

Miashgon paused, "No. I've never had a reason to be transparent. You're the first girl I've ever been interested in."

She laughed, "Now if that isn't sweet." She leaned against the courtyard wall next to her. They sat in silence for a quarter- hour, watching the moon in the sky.

Zerona stood up, "I should probably get going, I need to find my room."

Miashgon jumped down off the boulder as Zerona climbed down the stairs. They found Xavier sleeping next to the pond.

"Ah, you two are finally ready to leave then?" He looked up at the sky, and moon, "Its a little late."

Miashgon nodded, "Follow me, I know where your rooms are."

They quickly walked down a hall, left Zerona at her door, and headed down another hall, talking.

"So, you like her, huh?"

"Definitely. She's beautiful, pensieve, her smile-"

"Yeah well, you've got lots of competition, so be careful."

Miashgon stopped talking, but his eyes were distant, "So you'll be leaving tomorrow."

"Yes, but I highly doubt it will be long before Ashgor throws a retaliation celebration to get you down there. Especially because of this 'stay the night' business. So I'll see you within the month."

"Yeah, probably. This is your room. I'll see you tomorrow." He headed down to the second floor, his mind on the Lxotus.

---

The next morning, Miashgon was up early. He soon found Xavier wandering down to the second floor. "What are you up to?"

Xavier grinned, "I'm hungry."

Miashgon led him to the kitchens, where one of the cooks got them some breakfast.

While they ate, Miashgon showed Xavier around the castle some more, revealing all the shortcuts and passageways that he hadn't shown him the night before. After a couple of hours, they ended up in the courtyard.

Xavier stood in the center of the courtyard, and looked around. "This place is about big enough to spar in. How good are you with the sword?"

Miashgon pulled a steel longsword from his hip, "Well, I'm no master..."

Xavier unsheathed a similar sword, and moved himself into a defensive position, an evil smirk on his lips.

Miashgon sprung into an attack, swinging quickly at Xavier's torso. Xavier stepped backwards, and parried Miashgon's next swing, which was aimed slightly higher. Miashgon attacked violently time after time, each one blocked elegantly, but accompanied with a step backwards. After a few minutes, Xavier was pressed against the wall, with the stones to his left, and the pond to his right.

Xavier suddenly attacked, lashing out at Miashgon with a swipe. Miashgon blocked it, but it allowed Xavier to turn, and give himself more room to manuever.

Miashgon went back to offensive, pushing Xavier back towards the boulder. After a specifically hard parry, Xavier shouted "Ope!" sending a burst of wind straight towards Miashgon.

Miashgon fell onto the grass, face up. He quickly rolled to the right to avoid the steel blade coming for him. Then he cast a spell of his own, "Michatra!" The grass around Xavier's feet grew quickly, and soon ensnared his ankles like vines.

Xavier's sword, no matter how hard it was thrust, was unable to cut through the grass. Finally he waved a hand at it, "Tuerchem." The grass caught fire and shriveled, giving him just enough time to leap onto the first step of the boulder.

He had been to distracted by the grass to notice Miashgon climbing the steps before him. A point tapped Xavier's back.

"Checkmate."

Xavier turned, and gave an exaggerated bow, "You beat me, this time. I shall have to practice more."

"Yes you will," Miashgon laughed. He sat down where he was, "Whew! What a way to start the day."

"Yes, well-" At that moment, the door opened. An elegant figure came in, the smile seeming even more radiant and enchanting in the morning than it had been the night before.

"Zerona!" Both boys said at once, one sounding slightly more excited than the other.

"I figured you'd be here," She said with a smile, "Father wants you in the assembly hall at noon, some sort of noble entertainment, so you better change out of training clothes."

Xavier nodded, walking towards the door. Suddenly he turned around, "Hey, shouldn't you two be going as well?"

Zerona nodded, "Yes, Miashgon ought to change as well." She took his arm, "I'll make sure he doesn't get in trouble on the way."

Xavier raised an eyebrow, then briskly walked away.

They walked down the stairwell, chatting about the weather and the announcement. All to soon, they were at his door.

"Well, I guess I'll see you around noon."

"Yes, you will. Look for me."

Miashgon went into his room. He found a dark green velvet shirt, and a pair of pants to match it. He combed his hair, put on a pair of dress boots. Quickly, he walked through the hallway, and found his father in the meeting hall, sitting next to the Lxotus.

He sat on his father's left side, and looked towards the Lxotus on the right. Zerona looked back at him, and smiled. A comical play began, but Miashgon had already seen it. He spent most of the time quietly watching Zerona, who laughed beautifully at every quirk or gimmick in the production.

After the play was over, lunch was served, and Miashgon sat next to Xavier and Zerona. They talked and laughed about the play, and sat for a while, even after all the others had left.

Eventually, the time came for the announcement. Miashgon's father had asked him to accompany him on the stage for the announcement. As Xavier and Zerona retreated to the meeting hall to sit, Miashgon head out another door to get to the stage.

"Dad," Miashgon said as soon as he got on stage, "what is this all about?"

His father put a finger to his lips. "You will find out very soon. I like your outfit, green is a very good color. Plus it complements mine perfectly."

Miashgon rolled his eyes, and followed his father to the front, standing slightly behind him, and to the right, respectfully.

The room was filled to capacity, and everyone was whispering excitedly. The King raised his hand, bringing silence to the room. "Good afternoon. I am glad you could be here to hear this very important announcement. I promise that you have not wasted your day in coming here, and of course, you have my permission to spread the gossip firsthand afterward." A twinkle flashed in his eye, and a chuckle rose up in the crowd.

"Now, I have not made many royal announcements in my time as King. It has been a long time too, nigh unto thirty years. In fact, I'm sure there have been those of you keeping track that could tell me that I have been king for exactly twenty-eight years and five months, and you just can't wait until it is over." Another laugh came from the crowd. His father had always been known to make things lighter by joking.

"Now, all laughter aside, this is a serious matter. My announcement today is that I have decided to relinquish the throne." The crowd gasped, and whispering started again. The king silenced the crowd with another hand, "Yes, in one year and seven months, the day after Miashgon's eighteenth birthday, I shall abdicate, and the crown will be given to him."

He smiled, turned, and walked off the stage, Miashgon right at his heels. The volume in the room rose quickly, as people talked excitedly.

As Miashgon reentered the meeting room, a cheer rose up from the crowd. He ignored it, looking for the Ashgor group. Xavier wore a blank expression, as did his father, but Zerona was smiling at Miashgon once again.

Miashgon's stomach felt as if it had disappeared. He had always known that he would have to be king sometime, but he had expected years to come. The nobility was excited, and began to come towards Miashgon, eager to congratulate him, and begin forming alliances and bonds.

Miashgon was saved by Zerona, who grabbed his hand and pulled him out of the room. They both went up the flight of stairs and stopped.

"Well, what a surprise, huh?" muttered Miashgon.

"Yes. You'll do a fine job though, I'm sure. You're a prince!"

"Right. There is quite a difference from a King and a prince though."

Just then a shout came up the stairs, soon followed by the shouter, Xavier, "Your-soon-to-be-highness! How does it feel?"

Miashgon smiled. "I guess it feels good. I'm sure it won't by the time I get there though. I have so much to do until then."

"Yeah, a couple minutes after you left, a great debate was sparked by a noble that said you wouldn't be able to handle this country, you being a boy and all."

"Maybe he's right. We'll find out won't we?"

"You'll do fine. Besides, with your father doing this, it probably won't be that long until I'm given a throne. Then we'll have some good times." The same evil smirk from the morning crossed his face again.

At that moment, a messenger came up the stairs. "Prince Xavier, your father has changed his plans, he is needed at the capitol. We leave in ten minutes. Your things are already ready to go."

Xavier nodded. "I guess this is goodbye then." He shook Miashgon's hand, and ran down the stairs.

Zerona and Miashgon made eye contact for the final time that day, and spent a moment in silence. Zerona spoke quietly, "I hope it won't be too long before we meet again."

Miashgon nodded, "I hope the same. Farewell, and make sure your brother doesn't get himself into trouble." They both smiled, and embraced. Zerona kissed Miashgon on the cheek, and then hurried down the stairs.

Miashgon watched her leave, then turned towards the third floor. He had training to prepare for.

---