Her quarters shifted and melted, replaced by a wall of marble. Queen Patti held her breath and used magic to enhance her hearing, hating to rely so much on it. Hearing nothing, she said a quick prayer to whoever would hear and glanced around to see if any saw her rather abrupt appearance. No one seemed to notice, instead focusing on chatting about how well the Empress looked in her streaked hair. Patti stifled a grin as she took note of a rather rich-looking woman wearing streaked hair, similar to Karen's. "~Karen's gonna flip when I tell her about this!~" Patti thought to herself. If anything Karen was vain about, it was her hair. Spending hours each day dying it, both at the beginning of the day and at the end of the day.
Making sure her hood was in place; Patti joined the stream of expectant people heading towards the main room where the speech was to be given. Stepping inside, she took note of her surroundings. Nothing overly showy, she had seem more spectacular at Karen's palace, but still respectable. Taking care not to attract attention, she stood in a nearby corner and observed the people around her. Picking one out of the group of hundreds, she strived to remember where she had seen that face. Young like her, dark complexioned and handsome. Patti choked down an exclamation as she recognized Jehan, one of the several men vying for her hand. Eyeing him speculatively, Patti thought about the possibilities. He really WAS handsome, and funny too. She remembered when she had invited him to her summer palace in the quiet, seaside town of Chocolate last summer. She had invited Karen as well, come to think of it, which would explain his presence. They had gotten to be good friends that summer. Throwing caution to the four winds, she slowly made her way to the young man. He had his hand stuck in his pocket, which suspiciously had a large bulge in it. She knew it wasn't a weapon, Jehan was NOT that sort of person, but wondered idly what it was. Pretending to accidentally bump into the man, she said slyly, "Oh, excuse me for bumping into you. Say, do I know you from somewhere?" Jehan turned around, and eyed what looked to be a middle-class resident. "~Do they let just ANYBODY in here?~" Jehan wondered, slightly irritated. "No, I don't think so, ma'am, but your voice sounds familiar," He responded, a thoughtful look on his face. Queen Patti lifted the hood slightly away from her face, but not enough for the surrounding people to take notice. Jehan quickly drew in a breath and his normal carefree smile returned to his face. "Well, I suppose maybe I do. Although why the person I think you are would wear that style of clothing is beyond me!" He teased playfully. Patti smiled and responded, "Because there's an old friend here that I thought would need some moral support, which is why, I assume, you're here." Jehan laughed and held up his hands. "Busted!" He exclaimed. "You might want to put that dama-fruit in a less noticeable place. If one of Karen's attendants saw you suddenly reach into your pocket to take it out, you'll be on the floor before you know what hit you!" Patti said, pointing to the fruit in question. She had figured out what it was after catching a whiff of the aromatic scent of the dama-fruit. Jehan's face turned devious as he whispered, "Shh! That's the plan. I just happen to know that Doni Lee's going to be her attendant tonight. If you remember, she was there last summer. She knows me well, or she should. And if not, I get to enjoy freaking out one of Karen's attendants!" Patti laughed loudly, and then quickly stifled herself. Another outburst like that would get her caught. "I'm guessing that Karen doesn't know you're here?" Jehan asked, poking her in the side. "Shh! Nobody know's I'm here! Not even Tanin!" She whispered back confidentially. Jehan's face turned incredulous. "The famously laid-back queen of Chelestra out slumming it? I'm SHOCKED! What would the people THINK?" He mockingly said, grinning. "The people won't know about it if you keep your big mouth SHUT!" She retorted, poking him back. "Now, if you plan to go see the Empress before the speech, you had better book it!" Jehan glanced at his own watch, and his eyes widened. Making an exaggerated bow, he said grandly, "If your highness doesn't mind, I must take my leave. Might I see you at the party after the speech?" He finished questioningly. She nodded and shoved him away, "Now, go! You're gonna be late! And remember, you didn't see me!" She hissed after him. Saluting, he maneuvered his way around the groups of people. "~He really IS cute!~" She thought, staring after him. Making sure her hood was in place for the hundredth time, she made her way back to her corner, which provided an excellent view of the stage. She saw the speaker take his place at the podium, and silently wished Karen good luck. She settled back to listen to the speech, most probably one of Karen's most important to date.
"Good evening Ladies and Gentlemen. I am Empress Karen of Imperial Ruok. Ruok is the empire which has helped you and, so to speak, kept you afloat all these years." A rumble swept through the crowd at Karen's words, which Patti understood. Renoka's people were proud, and they hated to rely on other people. Karen's opening line hadn't been the greatest, but she still had time to redeem herself.
"We have helped you in numerous ways. When you had several seasons of drought, not only did we supply food, but medical care also. We have kept the Seakings in the North from attacking you, as they did so long ago." Patti detected a catch in Karen's throat, for understandable reasons. That bloody war had left both of them orphans, and the sole heir to their respective thrones. "And now, we have almost run out of ways to help you. There is another way, though. If you were to become an official kingdom in Imperial Ruok, we could never forsake you. The next ruler cannot take the protection away. It has been suggested in the Senate that, that be what we do." Patti's curiosity was piqued at the last sentence; she hadn't heard anything about the Senate. She made a mental note to ask Karen at a more convenient time.
"You would have an elected Royal family member to rule as your leader, and their first child, be it man or woman, will rule in his or her place after departure from life. I will get a ruler among your own people, if you wish." "~No, I don't think that would be necessary~" Patti thought wryly as she took note of several of the higher ranking families having greedy looks on their faces. There were definitely candidates for the throne; it's just a matter of the right one.
"There will be a vote on this matter tomorrow and the day after. Vote yes or no. I will leave you with these words to digest: Renoka of Imperial Ruok." Patti was impressed with the last line, which more than made up for the first sentence. Before Empress Karen could depart the stage, Patti used her telepathic skills to say, "~Good job Karen!~" Empress Karen paused and glanced out among the crowd, and quickly picked out Patti. Lowering her hood, Patti gave Karen the thumbs up and teleported out of the palace. It was best to not stay long, even if she had promised Jehan she would be at the following party. All in all, Patti thought, Karen did nicely, and almost guaranteed Renoka a spot in the Empire.
