A.N.D. - Wolf Woods

“Isn’t it peaceful tonight, Wrentree?”

“Yes,” Queen Red said distractedly from the windowseat where she was curled up. It was a beautiful night-clear, warm, with a thousand stars, perfect for forgetting the cares of being a queen and just being one of the girls with her best friends. Only two women in all the kingdoms were permitted to use her nickname, and she cherished the rare hours when she got to hear it.

Times had been... difficult. Her pronouncement had been met with great rejoicing from the people in her kingdoms and much muttering from the animals. Red had honestly expected that, given the choice between a known system of justice in their homeland and an unknown reception in a foreign kingdom under an untried king, the wolves of the Second Kingdom would chose en masse to take the collar. Instead, they had moved in a furry tidal wave down the roads and through the woods to Wendell’s kingdom. For days, weeks even, the roads had been choked with paws and boots and even a few wagons.

Red couldn’t help but feel rejected. She and her mother had worked so hard to tame the wolves, and this was how they were rewarded? She was also shocked at the amount of people who left. An appalling number of persons had turned out to be clandestine wolf-lovers, choosing to finally admit to their bestiality rather than submit their beloved... partners? pets? ...to registration and obedience controls.

For one night she wanted to forget being queen, secretary, and lady in waiting and just have a pajama party for Wrentree, Lucinda, and Madeline. But even in her nightie, with the summer breeze caressing her braided hair while Lucy perched on the bed and read the gossip sheets out loud while Maddie acted out the stories doing wickedly funny impressions, Red couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong.

“It’s too quiet,” she finally said.

“I like it!” Maddie announced. “Do you know, I haven’t heard a howl in days? Not one howl from the woods.” She came to look over Red’s shoulder. “And look at that moon! It’s going to be full tomorrow, isn’t it?”

“Yes,” Red said tiredly. Sometimes it seemed as if her life couldn’t be more focused on the phases of the moon if she was a wolf herself. There was always so much to clean up after a full moon, always at least one wolf who seemed perfectly tame and trustworthy until the full moon rose.

“I always liked a full moon,” Maddie said.

“Wolf!” Lucy teased, throwing a pillow at her.

Maddie caught it, answering quite seriously. “No, I mean it. I always thought it was so romantic, but of course I could never go out and enjoy the moonlight. Now I can. Tomorrow night I can go out after dark and not be molested or eaten or called a wolf-lover. I’ve wanted to do that all my life.”

“Well, I know someone who won’t enjoy the full moon tomorrow.” Lucy flipped through the assorted newspapers scattered over the embroidered royal counterpane. “Look what they printed in the Fourth Kingdom Gazette. Lord Anthony’s entire staff is wolves. Every single one! There won’t be a hair left of him day after tomorrow, hero or not.” She peered over the top of the paper. “Did you meet Lord Anthony, Wrentree?”

Red shrugged. “I remember a soppy man who’d been obviously beaten in battle crying over the evil queen. The girl was crying too-shrieking, really. No concern for our headaches as we woke up from the drug. Everyone was confused and worried about the magic, but honestly! Who could mourn that evil, evil woman? I didn’t stick around for introductions. I wanted to come right back here and make sure the queen hadn’t done anything to the Second Kingdom in my absence.”

Maddie and Lucy shuddered.

“Hey, look, someone’s riding up the road.” Maddie pointed out of the window.

Red leaned out, cupping a hand around her eyes to shut out the glare from the lamps behind her. “Either the wolves are chasing him or there’s an urgent message. That road leads to the Fourth Kingdom.”

“Maybe the wolves ate King Wendell!” Lucy laughed.

“Maybe he’s realized what a mistake he’s made and he’s begging you to come be his queen and fix it!” Maddie giggled.

“Maybe wolves fly!” But Red found herself laughing too. She grabbed one of the cushions from behind her and whopped Maddie in the side. Maddie squealed and swung back with her pillow.

Whoever had been riding so urgently was close to the gates. If it was a message, she would know soon enough. If it was a wolf chase, her guards would take care of it. In the meantime, if Maddie thought she could recrown her queen with a pillow, she needed to be taught a lesson! Getting a better grip on the corners of her cushion, Red pounced.

Feathers were flying and all three women were shrieking with laughter when there was a knock at the door. “Your Majesty! Your Majesty, urgent news from the Fourth Kingdom!”

“Suck an elf, the wolves really did eat Wendell!” Maddie scrambled to the bed and bravely hid under the covers. Rolling her eyes, Red snapped her fingers and Lucy obediently opened the door.

It was hard to project royal calm when you are the shortest person in your kingdom, you’re in your nightgown, your braid is half pulled out, and there are feathers in your hair. Still, Red nodded as regally as possible as her Lord Chancellor stepped in and tried to dip in a creaky bow.

The poor man really ought to retire, but he’d been a father to her ever since rebel wolves had eaten King Carmine when she was just a toddler. She’d be lost without him. As he stood up from his bow, she was shocked to see how drawn and grey his face was. Whatever news that messenger had brought, it was even worse than the wolf pardon.

“Uncle Chancie, what’s wrong?” She’d blurted the childhood nickname without thinking and was ashamed. Losing her reserve, she blushed like a baby.

He laid a gentle hand on her head in forgiveness, then lifted her chin. “We need your strength now more than ever, my dear Lady Queen. All the kingdoms will look to you now to know how to react.”

Uh oh. Red gestured him gracefully to an armchair. He was stuffy, stubborn and correct, but he looked ready to pass out any moment. Besides, she wanted to sit down herself, because whatever news this was, she wanted to be braced for it. She sat as primly as she could on the windowseat as Lucy clambered up on the bed and clutched at the emerging Maddie.

“As you know, my liege Lady, just before the coronation of King Wendell, the Trolls invaded his land and ravaged the border towns between the Third and Fourth Kingdoms. As you also know, the Trolls run their kingdom on slave labor captured from the humans around them.”

Red nodded, trying not to react to the shivers and moans of her friends behind her. Mothers frightened their children into behaving with stories of what the Trolls would do to those who strayed. Some of the stories were even true, memories of past battles along the Second and Third Kingdom borders.

“As you also know, the Fourth Kingdom had only a small, ceremonial army. There are no monetary reasons for other kingdoms to invade them-their entire economy is based on tourism and mutton exports. Besides, who would dare lift a hand against the fabled House of White?”

“Queen Christine the Evil did,” Red pointed out.

Lord Chancellor bowed his head in acknowledgement. “So she did, and in doing so this last time, she managed to kill or send to the trolls almost all of King Wendell’s standing army. Although the loss of their king left the entire Troll Kingdom too disorganized to continue the attack, King Wendell is also left defenseless.”

“It was all over the newspapers,” Lucy quavered, holding them out. Lord Chancellor spared her a glance with only the slightest hint of rolling eyes. Everyone knew Lucinda was a terrible gossip, but her obsessive newspaper reading meant that Red knew more about the other kingdoms than their own rulers did. “The Fourth Kingdom Gazette said that King Wendell had a secret plan to rescue his people.”

“And you believe this plan has bad consequences towards us?” Red prompted.

She would not have believed it possible for her Chancellor to get even paler, but he did. “The worst possible consequences. Last night, several wolfpacks of indeterminate size snuck over the border into the Third Kingdom. They took the trolls by surprise, sniffed out all humans within fifty miles of the border, herded them back, and killed any Trolls who resisted. Today, King Wendell sent the Troll Trio a message saying that unless all other prisoners were returned tomorrow, he would send his wolves back tomorrow night... during the full moon.”

“That’s ridiculous, they’ll eat the people as well as the trolls!” It was the silliest plan she’d ever heard of, and she wondered how many of the captives had already become inadvertent “army rations.” But she could still feel a shiver going down her spine. Even her soldiers, who often fought against the lupine menace, bunkered down safely during the full moon. Wendell had turned his wolf problem into the most terrifying of superweapons.