The King’s laughter rang through the throne room. His eyes glead with mischief. "Hugs eh, Elias. And here I thought that you were a frozen ice cube unable to give happiness to any woman. Perhaps I should ask you to hug too, so I may know what it feel like."
Sienna’s laughter faltered. The Queen’s teasing was adorable but the king’s suggestion was----abnormal. So much so that it silenced everyone in the room. Even his wife, the queen, appeared to be startled.
"It’s a joke." King Leon’s laughter bood once again. "If I tried to hug Elias, one of his tails would fling away. Besides, I love slling like my queen." He pointed to Elias and Sienna, "You two are very entertaining." He stood up and offered his hand to the queen. "Follow us to the banquet hall. Enough play, you are both here for business, are you not?"
Sienna’s stomach knotted. Elias took her hand, and together, they walked to the banquet hall. Lord and lady mouse beast were waiting outside the hall.
The mouse Lord’s eyes glittered with restrained fury, the whiskers he had chosen to parade out twitched. His wife was beside him, her gaze cold, her hands folded neatly on her chest. She was the perfect lady, where Sienna was not.
They settled around the table. Queen Serenya insisted on having Sienna and Elias sitting opposite her and the king. Obviously, the royal couple wanted to see every reaction of the fox lord and lady in the proceedings.
"We are here to resolve your differences." Queen Serenya said, her tone deceptively light. "I thought it would be best to do it over tea, so bread, cheese and fruit. This issue needs to be put to bed today. The palace has no patience for petty quarrels."
Sienna leaned forward. Rapidly, Elias’s hand brushed against hers, grounding her. His eyes locked on the Mouse lord, unblinking, unreadable.
The air grew heavy, charged with tension. There was a history between the fox and mouse beast n. Once upon a ti, foxes hunted mice for sport. They would unleash their cubs on the hos of the mice and laugh as the little ones did great damage.
Tis had changed. That history was over three hundred years old, but in the mories of so mouse beast n, it might as well have been yesterday.
King Leon leaned back, savoring the spectacle. He was waiting for the tea that servants were placing on the table to start flying. His bet was on Sienna. With her fiery temper, she would throw sothing as soon as Lady Mouse started squeaking.
Just as he expected, Lady Mouth spoke first, her voice sharp as a blade. "This is what happens when humans as she called them--and herself, are allowed to beco too comfortable in the society of beast n as if they are our equals. Before you speak, Lady Sienna, I would like you to know this: your words have already cut deeper than you realize."
The hall fell silent.
Sienna froze, her rehearsed apology suspended. Her language was under fire but Lady mouse could call her ’unequal!’ What did that an? Did she think she was better than Sienna just because she was born with a beast gene?
King Leon’s smile widened. "Ah," he said softly, "now it begins."
Lord Mouse picked up from there, his whiskers twitched, his claws tapping against the table. "My wife," he said, his voice low, "has endured whispers and laughter since your insult spread all over BeastNet. She is being called Mouse beast bitch and she is not the only one. This is a wound that is festering in the heart of the mouse clan."
King Leon started to chuckle and disguised it as simply clearing his throat. But, he could not hide the amusent in his eyes. "Go on Sienna," he murmured, his voice carrying across the hall. Pick up your pan, he thought. But he said, "Let us hear your defense."
Sienna sighed and opened her mouth.
Lady Mouse cut her off, her voice rising, "We already know about that weak apology you made last night. But you need to understand that words once spoken cannot be unspoken. You mocked not only but every other female that has chosen to love a mouse beast. You spat on sacred bonds, on the very essence of what makes us beast n."
Elias raised his eyebrows. He was with Lady Mouse until the last part.
Sienna’s heart pounded. It seed like she was being accused of murder or sothing worse. At this point, no number of apologies would fix things. So she said firmly, "I truly am sorry for the carelessness of my words. At the ti, my mind was clouded with rage so I chose the anest retort I could think of.
Nothing I say or do can take back what I said. I could tell you to retort in the sa manner if you are insulted next ti. I can make another public clarification in front of reporters."
"And what will that accomplish?" Lady Mouse scread.
King Leon yawned. This was boring, where was the action?
"Do you think a clarification will stop the whispers? Do you think it will restore the respect of the mouse beast n?"
Sienna’s hands clenched in her lap. She wanted to scream, to defend herself, but the hall’s eyes weighed her down. Elias’s hand brushed against hers, grounding her, reminding her that she was not alone.
She could not help feeling like she had showed up to be accused and shad. No other reason.
Elias spoke at last, his voice calm but edged with authority. "Enough. My wife has apologized but you all seem to be more interested in shutting her down and cutting her off. She is human, she did not understand the gravity of what she said."
Lord Mouse slamd his fist in the table. "And my wife had been mocked publicly. Others will whisper behind her back. Your wife has stained her honor."
Sienna lifted her teary eyes and said, "I cannot undo what I said. But I can promise you this: I will not speak so carelessly again. My apology may not make a difference but I still want you to know that I regret my words."
King Leon growled, "Enough. This is not fun at all, you are all bad guests. Dismissed, all of you are dismissed. The palace will clear up the nonsense and forbid people from using that word." He rose and pulled his wife up as well. "Can you believe them?" he asked as they walked out at a fast pace. "Next ti, no tea and snacks for any parties with grievances against each other. We should have stuck with asking Elias how he got his scent all over his wife."
The queen chuckled. "Let’s go to my room and I will show you how you can make sll stronger than Sienna."
The King’s excited roar shook the palace walls!
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