The Emperor's Unwanted Consort

"Your Highness, I don't think His Majesty will come to see you tonight as well."

"We don't know that, Anne. Let's not assume things." Was Aurora's sweet reply, as she dabbed her perfume on her wrist, the scent of almond blossom wafting inside her chamber. She was in high spirits, with high expectations to see Tesarius, but the same could not be told about her maid Anne.

For Anne was agitated and anxious, wondering what type of reality check would her Lady go through to finally realize that the Emperor was indeed following the ranking system. It's not like Aurora didn't know that, however her love for the man made her believe he would put her somewhere in the middle of the list, hoping that he was pining for her as much as she was for him. 

"Yes but, His Majesty has already visited Lady Jenivive, Hanna, and Madeline, the first, second, and the third Concubine. It's highly likely he will visit Lady Laira tonight as well." Anna tried yet again, only to receive a soft chuckle from her Lady. "You fret too much, Anne. Tesarius and I have known each other longer than the arrangement we have now. I'm sure Tesarius is waiting to meet me too, its his responsibilities as Emperor that is holding him down."

Anne wanted to believe it. She had seen the love in Tesarius's eyes when he was cosplaying as Julias to Aurora. She knew he loved her as much as Aurora loved him. So Aurora saying all this seemed very plausible to happen.

So why was Anne still finding it so hard to believe?

Why was there a nagging feeling in her heart saying things were not as they seem anymore?

"I'm sure Tesarius will come see me tonight. I'm sure of it." Aurora was saying with a cheery voice, making Anna plaster a faint smile.

"Alight. But-"

"Hah!"

The sudden noise of a chuckle had the two ladies freezing and their smiles falling as they turned to the only third person in the room, watching as she smiled slyly.

"Is something funny, Amy?" Anne's voice was dark as she glared at the girl, who didn't feel threatened at the least. "Do share the joke with us."

Amy chuckled some more, waving her hand in front of her as if dismissing the whole issue. "Oh, it's nothing! It's just so laughable, is all!"

"What is? Do tell me!" Aurora was smiling again, seeing the laughing woman and taking it as a positive sign. Anne, however, wasn't feeling any of that.

All too suddenly, Amy stopped chuckling, face turning stern as she literally glared at the princess. "Do you really believe His Majesty will come to you tonight?"

"Lower your gaze, young la-"

"Oh be quiet, will you!?" Amy cut in between, startling both girls with her sudden change in demeanor, wondering what has possessed the girl to lose her composure like this. Or has she always been like this?

Aurora watched in utter silence as Amy approached her vanity and scanned the contents on it, humming to herself before she grabbed a bottle of perfume and stared at it.

"Hmm." She said, as if thinking to herself. And then, she dropped it.

CRASH!

The sound of the glass bottle crashing against the marble floor had Aurora yelping in fright as she jumped out of her seat right at the same time Anne was in front of her, pushing the girl behind her as she glared at Amy.

"ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND!?" Anne screamed, eyes burning in rage while Aurora whimpered in fear, all the while the girl did was stare at them in amusement. "What scared of a little glass?"

"The princess could have been hurt!"

"But she isn't?"

"You insolent brat! You dare act this way in front of the Princess? The Emperor's Concubine!?"

If Anne thought she had somehow managed to intimidate the girl or even scream some sense into her, she was absolutely wrong. For now Amy was laughing out loud, a full blown laughter which, had this been any other concubine, would have resulted in her death.

But Amy knew exactly the kind of princess Aurora was. And she was using it to her full advantage.

"Emperor's Concubine? Princess? Let me help you come down to earth." Amy said, taking slow predatory steps towards them while Aurora flinched, never have had seen such a change in behavior. With her eyes set in a glare, she said. "Inside the Velarys Dome, you are nothing without the ranking system. In side the Women's pavilion, we have our own hierarchy. And right now, you are nowhere nearly close to the top, both in the Women's Pavilion, and the Velarys dome. In the Women's Pavilion you are naturally the lowest rank holder, and in the Velarys Dome, any chance of taking a high position all went down the garbage when you made up lies about knowing His Majesty before coming to Lanterbur."

"T-They are not lies!" Aurora yelled, tears gleaming in her eyes at what Amy had just told her. "It… It is true! We have known each other before!"

She didn't want to believe what Amy was saying. About the whole hierarchy system and the likes. Even if it were true, she did not want to believe it was something negative. But no matter how naïve she may be, even Aurora knew what it meant to be in lowest level of a ranking system.

Amy chuckled again, fidning delight in the princess's glassy eyes. "Of course, little princess. Whatever helps you sleep well at night. But that does not change the truth. And the truth is this. You are a nobody here. You were a nobody the moment you set food in this Dome because of your foreign blood, but you had a chance to change that by gaining supporters like Princess Amalia did. But of course, you had to lie about knowing the Emperor. How foolish!"

Amy was laughing again, and Anne was fuming. Meanwhile Aurora was trying her best to hold back tears, which was proving very hard to do so given her nature.

"But I do know him…" Aurora muttered under a sob, at the same time Anne spoke up. "You think you can get away with this insolence? No! I shall report about your behavior to the head maid and you will be spanked for it!"

"The head maid? THE HEAD MAID!?" Once again, Amy was laughing out loud, like everything they said amused her. Perhaps it did. Rubbing the tears from her eyes, she said. "Oh you foreigners are so dense it's actually cute! Do you really think I work under the Head maid like the rest of you? No! I work for Her Highness the Empress Dowager! She is the one thar sent me to be with you!"

A long silence fell after that as the two Rovamerian's took in this new information.

Amy was assigned… by the Empress Dowager? Anne thought, her eyes slowly turning to look at her Lady. But why? What is going on here? is there more to this elaborate scheme than we were told? Was marrying the Emperor not it? Then what?

What is it that no one told us before sending us here?

"Is this how things are run in Rovamer?" Amy was all calm again, as if she was genuinely curious. However, she did not wait for a reply as she continued, stalking the room. "Well, that is peaceful, but so boring. What's a Palace life without some drama? Hmm?"

"You could get killed for talking like this. And I know that is a rule of all Nations." Anne hissed back, but Amy only chuckled. "Oh, you needn't worry about me. I told you, didn't I? I work for the Empress Dowager. While I know she can dispose me off anytime she wants, right now I serve her a crucial purpose, and she cannot risk losing me. So no, I wouldn't get killed, silly Anne. So stop worrying about me, and worry about your outcast of a princess."

"O-Outcast?" Aurora whispered, which was exactly what Anne was thinking too. "What do you mean by that?"

Amy raised an eyebrow, as if she was actually shocked. "You don't know? By the Lord! Everyone in the Velarys Dome is talking about you as the outcast! You are basically the laughing stock of the Women's Pavilion! And you say you didn't know!?"

It felt like Anne's world was crumbling down around her at Amy's words. Her hands begin to tremble while her lips quivered in terror. Slowly but surely, she glanced at Aurora in fright, unable to believe what she just heard.

Aurora… my princess… is an outcast?

No. This cannot be. Not after everything she went through to be here.

She didn't even want to come here, the least that could be done was to give her a peaceful life. If what Amy is saying is true, then…

Anne couldn't even think about it, dread pooling inside of her. With eyes turning glassy, she glared at the smirking girl before her. "You are lying."

"You don't have to believe me if you don't want to, but that will not change the truth."

"You-"

"If you don't believe me, then I suggest you step outside, and take a look around you. You will know what I mean." Anne wanted to laugh. She wanted to tell Amy that nothing out of the ordinary had happened in the last three days, so today should be nothing. Yet the confidence in the girl and something about her words had instilled a doubt inside Anne, and she couldn't help but ask. "What is that supposed to mean?"

For a long time, Amy said nothing, a sinister smile forming in her face as she folded her hands behind her back. Then, with the calmest of voices, she said. "Did Your Ladyship know there was a tea party in the Velarys Dome? Hosted by Lady Jenivive herself?"

"W-What?" Aurora whispered, which only made the girls smirk widen. "Oh, so you didn't know."

"That is-"

"Isn't that saying enough?"

At this point, Aurora couldn't even tell if Amy was trying to insult her, or look out for her by giving a reality check. Because even if it was her looking out for Aurora, she had a very rude way to do it. Especially if she's working for the Empress Dowager.

Wiping her tears and straightening herself up, Aurora fixed the creases in her dress before she announced. "I shall go to the tea party."

"WHAT?"

This was not only the reaction of Anne, but Amy included, for the two girls were equally shocked to hear the Princess's words.

"Your Highness, what are you saying?" Anne's eyes literally begged. "You cannot possibly be thinking-"

"I have decided, Anne. I shall go to the tea party." Aurora smiled. It was a thin one, but a smile nonetheless.

However, the others weren't having it. Amy included. "Do you hear yourself? You want to attend a tea party you weren't even invited to? Don't you know what that means?"

"It could mean Lady Jenivive forgot to invite me."

"OR SHE DOESN'T WANT YOU THERE!" Anne almost hollowered, trying her best not to fly off the ring but it was proving so hard to do so. She couldn't believe Aurora's words. "Your Highness, please think rationally. Id Lady Jenivive didn't invite you, it is not because she forgot. There are only six of you inside Velarys Dome, how could she have forgotten?"

Aurora looked like she was thinking over Anne's words, a frown marring her face as if deep in thought, until she spoke up. "You are right."

Anne smiled, relief filling her over. "Yes, so please-"

"There are only six of us in the Dome. Which means we will be seeing a lot of each other. I must make good acquaintance of everyone."

Anne stared with horror. Amy scoffed. And Aurora all but waltzed her way out of her chamber and her quarters, before heading towards the garden in the center of the Dome, where she knew the tea party was most likely held.

She enough, when she got there, they were all present. All five of them.

And boy, where the surprised to see her.

"The sixth Concubine, Lady Aurora has arrived." Announced the knight stationed at the doorway, which was completely useless for the ladies inside had already seen her, some gaping at her with their jaws dropped, while some scoffing in disbelief.

Jenivive was one of them, as she placed her cup down. "I can see that. Someone decided to show up unannounced."

Anne stilled behind Aurora, making her wince at her Lady's lack of reaction. Because if anything, Aurora was still smiling. "Good day to you all, young ladies! I heard there was a tea party being held, so i decided to stop by! would you mind if I joined you all!?"

Aurora's excitement was contagious, innocent even, but not to the right audience. For now many sneered in shock. The ladies exchanged looks, but the one to speak up was Laira. "Were you invited?"

Aurora stared at the brunette, trying to keep her smile from slipping and staying brave, which was proving hard to do so. "N-No, I heard from Amy that-"

"Then it seems we have a mole in our midst."

Jenivive suddenly said, smirking at everyone at the table before turning to Aurora, staring at the girl up and down. "Because I made sure not to let the news reach the corner of the Velarys Dome, but it seems like it did, given you are here, standing so pompously."

Anne all but wanted to drag her Lady away instead of bearing with this humiliation, but somehow Aurora still had a lot to say, wondering why she wouldn't just leave. "T-That is not the case, L-Lady Jenivive. I-"

"It is nice to see you too, Lady Aurora." Hanna suddenly spoke up, making the others give her the look while she only stared at Aurora. "But this party is hosted by Lady Jenivive, and unless she hasn't invited anyone in, it is discourteous to show up uninvited. Were you invited, Lady Aurora?"

She wasn't. And they all knew it. So it only made Aurora wonder why Hanna would even ask something like this. She was the only one not being mean or rude to her among them all, yet somehow her words, her indirect taunts, hurt more than the others.

Aurora swallowed the bile forming in her throat, trying to answer without breaking down. "I-I-"

"Isn't it obvious?" Intervened Madeline, taking a sip of her tea before turning to look at Aurora with a sly smile. "Lady Jenivive made she the news didn't reach 'the corner' of the Velarys Dome. Yet here she is. Isn't it saying something?"

"Lady Madeline," Aurora begin, only now noticing the girl for who she really was because up until now, she had only heard that Marquess Edward's sister was in the harem as well, and it was that very Madeline that she studied with. "It is good to see you too, after all this time. I was hoping to acquaint myself with you as well, for Marquess Mormont and I are already in familiar terms and I hoped-"

"You and my brother? In familiar terms?" Madeline all but accused, her tone filled with venom as if she couldn't comprehend the thought of Edward being familiar with the laughing stock of Velarys Dome. "Spare me the pleasantries, Lady Aurora, but you do not have to go so far as to weave out lies about knowing every single noble man of Lanterbur to prove your worth. It is unsightly."

"Indeed. You are absolutely right, Lady Madeline." Laira piped in, not getting even a glimmer of acknowledgment from the said girl, yet she continued. "It seems like the princess is on a quest to start a rumor about herself. Rumor about being familiar with every aristocrat in Lanterbur! What is next? That Your Ladyship already knows His Majesty? Oh wait, you already said that!"

Laira released a shrill laugh, earning a few chuckles from the others, yet no one indulged in the girl's snarky remarks, as if they didn't need her to step in. and Laira knew that all too well.

"Let us go, Your Highness." Anne whispered, tugging at the woman's arm gently. The tears in Aurora's eyes were a second away from spilling, yet somehow, she managed to keep her composure. She had come with the expectation of proving Amy wrong. But proved herself wrong. Amy was right. She is the laughing stalk of Velarys Dome.

What she expected, she didn't know. However, this was uncalled for. She never lied about knowing the Emperor before, it was merely a hidden truth. But her naïve self didn't know that a truth without evidence was nothing but falsehood. And this was the Emperor's harem of all places, where everyone will vie for the Emperor's attention. Her saying that on their first day only made her look like a stuck-up liar. But Aurora didn't know it. 

And now here she was, the official outcast of the harem. With a final curtesy to the five ladies, Aurora took her leave, not even receiving something as little as a nod from them as she exited.

Once she was out of that place and in the safety of the corridors, Aurora released the breath she didn't know she was holding, grabbing the nearest pillar to balance herself as her legs finally gave out under her. Anne went out to steady the girl, while all Amy did was stand back and watch. "Aren't you just the dumbest?"

"Mind your tongue, girl." Anne hissed, but all Amy did was roll her eyes. "I told you, but you didn't listen. This is what happens when one forgets their place. Good luck fixing that reputation of yours, princess."

So saying, she walked away from there, going Lord knows where. Anne continued to rub Aurora's back, unable to say anything of comfort, having had already told her this was a bad idea. No sooner had Aurora lost balance, she was straight again, sucking in a deep breath and wiping the tears from her eyes.

Then, turning to Anne, she smiled. "I'm okay now."

"B-But… Your Highness-"

"I need some fresh air, care to walk with me?"

Anne didn't need to be told twice.

Behind the Velarys Dome was a large lake, large enough to be called a river as it connected all the palace. One could use boats to reach the said Palace's. in the center of the lake was a gazebo, but to get to it was yet another bridge, so pretty, with the trees scattering their shade and lanterns hanging around it, it looked like a scene from a fairytale book, especially how the birds chirped every now and then and swans swam across the lake leisurely. This place was quiet and serene, and curtesy to being in the 'corner' of the Velarys Dome, Aurora had the easiest access to the lake and its beauty, and the others would have to cross through her quarters to get to it.

Aurora and Anne made their way across the bridge and towards the gazebo, letting the air brush against her face with the soft humming of the water's delicate waves. Here, Aurora felt at home, the only place where the culture and people didn't constantly remind her that she was no longer in her motherland.

The silence between them was peaceful, but Anne knew there was a lot bothering Aurora, and that was all proven when the girl suddenly broke the silence.

"I kind of knew this would happen?"

"Knew what?" Anne asked softly, to which Aurora smiled down at her lap. "The Concubine's disliking me. When Amy said all that, I already expected it. I just… hoped I was wrong."

"I'm sorry, Your Highness. I'm sorry you had to hear all that. Don't let it bother you, for you know what you share with His Majesty is real, so what they say doesn't matter." Anne tried her best to comfort, and judging by the light laugh the princess released, it seemed like she was already better.

"You don't have to worry about that. As much as I hoped to be liked by them, I cannot help it now that they don't feel that way. And I won't let it bother me. So long as I have Tesarius, that is all that matters. All I need is him."

Anne gulped, unsure why those words seemed to feel so daunting. She still felt suspicious about this whole thing, but unless she knew for sure, she would say nothing. Nonetheless, she was glad none of this was bothering the princess.

"I thought I would find you here."

The sudden voice of a man had the two jumping out of their skins, their little peace being disrupted as they both jumped on their feet on alert, only to be greeted by a chuckling man. "Apologies, Your Highness. I didn't mean to startle you."

Anne scoffed, while Aurora tilted her head sideways at the arrival of the man. More so because there was a man in the Women's Pavilion. And that shouldn't be happening.

Because this was not just any man. But the Marquess.

The man offered a curt bow that boxy grin still on his handsome face. "It is good to see you after so long, Princess Aurora."

But all Aurora could say was this.

"Marquess Mormont? What brings you here?"