The passage ended in the main room in the twins' bedchambers. Their father had tried to put them in separate lodgings years ago but had given up when they had both refused to eat, sleep, or do anything until the abomination ended. Instead, a door was constructed, at Ava request, between the two connected rooms so they could still be together. It allowed each of the siblings to have private space.
Aleczander washed from the basin and donned a royal blue tunic with ruffled sleeve ends; he always loved the light swoosh the fabric made as it slipped over his head. Most of Alec's clothing, including the tunic, is imported from the markets in Cyrus. The merchants of the eastern shore sold fabrics that folklore said to be sewn from the silk of remarkable worms raised by the elves of the Vale. His trousers and cape were fine-looking ivy green. He pulled on his favorite black boots. Looking in the mirror, he had to admit he looked good. Look out ladies, here I come, Alec thought as he attempted to pull a comb through his black curls.
He swore under his breath as his comb was stuck in his mass of hair. Alec stopped fussing as Ava took the comb from his hands and gently teased the curls out. "Patience is a virtue, little brother."
Alec smiled at his younger sister. He was her elder by only a few minutes, and he thought, Even though you can still pummel me with that sword of yours, I can now out lift, out climb, out ride, and outrun you.
Ava had washed her hair and brushed it out by the fireplace to dry it. It was still quite cold in Articia despite winter's waning. Once the season made it uncomfortable to set a fire, it would be more difficult to dry her hair; she would have to allow much more time to ready herself for castle events.
When her hair was clean and dry, it naturally curled and waved beautifully past her shoulder blades and down her back. Her midnight blue gown and deep green cloak were identical in color to his garments, so they matched. Ava looked in the mirror quickly. She never spent much time admiring herself in the reflecting glass; it was a functional device. Like her clothing, her brush, her comb, it served a purpose-to ensure that she would be presentable in court. Otherwise, she never really concerned herself with her looks. Though she did make the mistake once of asking Alec about her appearance. He completely misinterpreted her request; she had only wanted to know if she was presentable, but he had pulled out one particularly embarrassing love letter from a baron's son and read it aloud to her. It reminded her why she was not particularly fond of the note or its author.
Ava, your face was beautiful to gaze upon,
your cheekbones high and flushed with color
and seen with spotless complexion.
You full red lips curved in a smile,
straight nose curved only slightly,
not pudgy but not overly long.
Your chin is delicate but strong,
almost like iron-filled glass.
Your eyebrows are, like your hair,
jet black, but not too thick.
Your eyes, a stormy gray
were always hinting a smile.
Ava knew she was stunning and held herself like someone who knew it. However, that was the absolute worst poem she had ever gotten from any of the noble courtiers. "Alec! Where did you get that?" Why did I keep it? "Give it to me now!"
"Sure," Alec replied, handing her the parchment. "I made many copies." Aleczander smiled to himself as he took his sister's arm and led her down the hall. Though told by many that he was handsome, compared to Ava, he felt rather plain.
Despite their rush, the two walked into the grand hall a little late.
"I told you we should have skipped practice today," Alec hissed through his teeth as everyone in the room cheered for a prince and princess of their kingdom. While Dominic would be high king one day, and the only one who could not marry into another kingdom, Tristan and Aleczander would be kings, and Ava a queen with many freedoms that their oldest brother would not realize. The position of high queen would be reserved for Dominic's wife, whenever he got around to choosing one; but there was no rush while King Henry was still on the throne.
"It's called being fashionably late; it's something normal princes and princesses do," she whispered as she smiled and waved to a particularly attractive noble's son.
Alec winced at his father's glare as he and Ava took seats on each side of their mother, as they always did during formal occasions. She nodded to them, smiling as if to greet them. However, her motherly demeanor did not fool the twins.
"The point of this affair is for your brothers to be cheered, not their younger siblings." Her voice was icy and meant to be harsh. Having dealt with this their whole lives, they knew what to do.
"I'm sure they will, mother," Alec started, "because the attire that you acquired in Cyrus for our brothers…"
"… is sure to leave all of the nobles in the hall in jealous admiration," Ava finished, not even bothering to look at her mom.
Alec and Ava had been finishing each other's sentences for years. This canny ability is one of the unusual traits that the goddess gave to the Artician twins. The queen found this trait charming in her youngest children and the pair used it to soften her mood whenever they found themselves in a tough spot, and the twins frequently found themselves in a tough spot.
Their mother sighed. Queen Angelica of Articia looked more like a mother than a queen as she straightened her son's cloak and pushed a lock of Ava's hair behind her ear. She smiled as she turned back to their father.
"Nice job on Alec's hair, Ava." The queen commented as the corners of Ava's mouth turned up slightly and Aleczander's face turned a slight shade of red.
Before Ava had a chance to tease him, the front doors flew open with a bang, and in walked Tristan and Dominic, clad in the magnificent gold and silver of the royal family. The only ones allowed to wear such brilliant colors on that day were Dominic, Tristan, and their mother and father. Ava and Aleczander would not normally include such extravagance in their wardrobes until they came of age at sixteen.
Dominic took a seat next to Ava and Tristan sat next to Alec. All of her children surrounded Queen Angelica. The king sat alone at a solitary table, according to a tradition that had begun a millennium ago when Articia consisted of mostly nomadic tribes and the leader of the tribe sat alone above the rest of the tribe. Later in the evening, Dominic would leave his mother's side at the table and sit at the right hand of the king. This would be the symbol of succession for the royal family. The King and his heir sit alone at their own table at all royal functions. Dom now sat at the table with the king as a symbol of the royal succession.
Of course, the funniest thing about the formal occasions was that they did not match the preferred life of the royals. The family usually took their meals at a table in the kitchens, a most informal setting. It was especially cozy in the winter when the cook fires warmed the area, making it the warmest and most comfortable location in Castle Articia. Though it was unusual for any royal family to eat in a kitchen, the king treated the entire castles workforce as part of his extended family. There is no one in his employ whose name and story he does not know. It is because of this that so many ordinary folk are devoted to the king. It is why they all take up arms to defend the king and country so readily whenever needed. He is noble and distant when he is required to be, but openly friendly to his subjects when not involved in matters of the state.
It was unusual that there was only a high king in Articia. It has always been a tradition and necessity to have large royal families to manage the significant amount of territory in the kingdom. A plague had afflicted Articia when King Henry was a young man and all of his siblings and his mother succumbed to its deadly effect. As a result, for a relatively brief time in Articia's long history, Articia