Chapter 156

FELIX

The rest of the day went by in a blur.

The crowd quickly dispersed from the castle, returning to their homes and towns and contending with the new information that I had presented to them. Thankfully, the anger seemed to have mostly died down, and I was finally able to go out into the crowd, shake hands, and talk to people one-on-one.

There was still a great deal of suspicion when it came to the dragons. I decided that when the dragons were well enough, I would open the royal aviary for a public viewing so that people could see the beasts up close. Besides, Ignatius would love nothing more than to show off in front of a crowd.

At Mila’s suggestion, I was placing a royal liaison in each town, village, and community, so that we could continue to have open dialogue about magic, dragons, and the health and safety of the kingdom. That way, the people could express their concerns and I could keep them updated with our newest information.

My first action in this new Fresonia was to make it clear that humans and magical beings were to be treated equally. We were not Abernathy. I expected my kingdom to be one of freedom and equality, and I never wanted humans without powers to feel somehow less than those who had magic.

Lady Isabella was being brought in from the South Smythe Islands, and would be placed under tight supervision in the castle. Mila and I had decided that it was best to prevent Isabella and Charles from interacting for a few days. I still did not trust either fully, and together, they were a lethal combination.

After the news from the other kingdoms came pouring in, and my speech was pushed on the evening news, the riots in the furthest reaches of the kingdom started to die down.

The information I received from other kingdoms was the same–once their monarch had come clean, things were finally starting to settle and calm down. We decided to have a council meeting later that week to set some ground rules moving forward.

I felt relieved and at peace for the first time in months, years, maybe. There was nothing hanging over my head–no lying, no curses, no missing wife. Except for the magic, everything else had settled down. Now I just had to be a king.

The thought of ruling the kingdom had once overwhelmed me, nearly broken me. But now, with a true partner by my side, the idea of being a king felt far less daunting.

My parents were glad to see Mila again, but I made sure that their reunion was brief. Too much had gone wrong over the past few weeks and too much had happened that day to try to have a long conversation about what had gone wrong between them all.

Coming clean was the first step. Mila and I had agreed to have a good night’s rest and work on healing the magic the next day.

I could tell that my wife was apprehensive about returning to the castle. She was still struggling with the fact that my family had tried to kill her, and clearly had some lingering trauma about all the other violence that had been leveled against her in the castle for her many past lives.

When I asked her if she wanted to spend the night in my city apartment instead, she was visibly relieved.

We had not been in my apartment for a long time, since before our wedding. Being back here felt simpler, easier, almost. Here, we were not King Felix and Queen Mila and Samuel and Sofia and a Dragon Knight and a great enchantress. Here, we could just be Felix and Mila, two people in love.

Mila offered to make us dinner, and went to work preparing a simple soup for us while I picked out a wine for us.

“It feels odd being back here,” Mila remarked.

“I was just thinking the same thing,” I told her. “I can’t even remember the last night we spent here.”

“I think it was before my kidnapping,” Mila said finally.

I nodded solemnly, but suddenly, she started to laugh. I looked at her, confused.

“What’s so funny?” I asked.

“Nothing,” Mila said, wiping tears from her eyes. “It’s just–what an insane few months it’s been. When Charles kidnapped me, he had no idea what he started.”

“It all worked out in the end, though,” I told her.

She smiled at me. “I think so, too.”

We had a quiet, peaceful dinner, overlooking the lights of Fresia and talking about everything and nothing. We avoided any topics that were too heavy–such as what exactly we were going to do with my traitorous brother and his lover, and when she would be ready to speak to my parents.

When Mila finally stood at the end of dinner, her eyelids were fighting sleep. “I think it’s time to go to bed.”

I took a long time washing my face and brushing my teeth, wanting to see whether Mila chose to get into my bed. Sure enough, she was already under the covers when I arrived in the bedroom, wearing a giant t-shirt sporting the logo of my favorite of the Fresonian soccer teams.

“You look beautiful,” I said, climbing into bed after her.

Mila smiled at me drowsily. “So do you.”

I reached for Mila, and her eyelashes fluttered. I kissed her deeply, a thrill running through my body at the feeling of her mouth against mine. I poured all my passion and love into that kiss, and Mila arched against me, pressing our bodies closer together.

I had zero expectations for our first night back together, despite the reaction my body had to her proximity. Truthfully, I just wanted to be with her, and whether or not we slept together had no outcome on my joy.

“Felix…” Mila moaned softly. “Felix, if it’s alright with you, I don’t want to have sex tonight. I want to make sure we’re as strong as possible as a couple before reintroducing the ah, physical aspect.”

I pulled back slightly. While I would be lying to say it wasn’t on my mind, I certainly never wanted to pressure my wife into doing something she had no interest in.

“Of course!” I reassured her quickly. “We don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do. You don’t even have to sleep in here if you don’t want to. You still have your other bedroom. That’s always an option for you.”

Mila playfully smacked me on the shoulder, and I grinned at her.

“Don’t be silly,” Mila scolded me. “Of course I’m sleeping in here. You will be expected to hold me all night. After all, I’ve been through quite the ordeal. I might need you to comfort me when I wake up screaming.”

I touched her forehead. “I’ll fight whatever demons haunt you.”

Mila rolled her eyes. “No need. I just want to be spooned.”

I laughed at that and pulled her tightly into my arms. “I love you, Mila.”

She kissed the tip of my nose, her cheeks flushed with happiness. “I love you, too.”