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“Does Magnus know about everything? Or did you omit certain things?” Shasta inquired.

Skye fidgeted in place with a guilty expression; “I didn’t tell him about me dreams or the voice, but he probably knew I was holdin’ out on him.. I hate lyin’. It does nothin’ but cause issues.”

Shasta chuckled; “Only if you suck at it.”

“Why would I want to be good at it?! I don’t like it!”

Maevis interrupted the two; “Because you’re a princess. Avoiding revealing truths about yourself for your own protection isn’t lying, it’s more like self-preservation.”

Skye grimaced; “Well it sure as hell feels like lyin’.. Tis Magnus we’re talkin’ about here.”

Maevis and Shasta shared a look. Skye’s a sweet person, but she clearly didn’t understand what a king’s responsibility was. The two knew that if Skye would’ve revealed her dreams, things could’ve become far more complicated than they already were. Magnus would’ve most likely Had to tell his council about prophetic visions. Especially if Tidas was a verifiable witness to it.

“It’s adorable that you think being his favorite daughter-in-law trumps the kingdom’s security, but I highly doubt he would keep an apocalypse to himself,” Shasta stated a bit more sarcastically than she would’ve liked.

.....

Skye saw her friend’s point, even if she’d said it in an asinine way. Thinking on it now, she must’ve realized it somewhere inside her. Embarrassing herself in front of Magnus hadn’t ever an issue, so not ‘wanting to seem crazy to him’, seemed like a flimsy excuse. Skye had said and done plenty of things over the years in front of him that must’ve seemed insane.

Her dreams and the voice combined with her traits matched up with the Catalyst legend too well. If Skye would’ve told Magnus, he would’ve had to judge and treat the situation like the king that he was. Skye would most like be treated like a sacred object instead of the person that she is. Locking her away for ‘safety reasons’ until they could figure out what to do with her.

‘Tidas would never-Oh.. He’d most likely get similar restrictions since I was Stupid enough to tell Magnus it involved him. Damn it.. Why does this need to be so bloody complicated! It’s not like I Want the world to end! I’d never choose that!’

As Skye’s face scrunched in dismay at her thoughts, Maevis commented; “I know Magnus cares for you dear, but I don’t see anyone that calls themselves a king taking a chance on your good nature. No matter how well a person may know another, they could never fully know what the other was thinking. Kings must keep their entire kingdom in mind with every decision they make. Even if Magnus trusts you with his life, he’d be considered a fool to trust his kingdom to you.”

Skye felt a touch offended by the old Pixie’s words, but completely understood the gravity of them. She was basically saying that no one would follow a king who put his personal feelings ahead of the well-being of the kingdom. Marco was cool and calculated. If Magnus wavered in his dedication to the kingdom in any way, he was old enough that the nobles could talk Marco into immediate succession.

Magnus had always celebrated his birthdays on the final day of the Summer Games. He was turning seventy-forth this year, and was the longest living and ruling King of Alcon in their history. His intelligence hadn’t waned at all, and he looked to be in his sixties instead of his mid-seventies. Aside from the attempted poisoning that Skye had remedied last night, Magnus was as healthy as a man in his fifties. His judgement being called into question was the only way he could be dethroned without an act of murder.

“Don’t fret too much dear.. We’re just starting out at this point. We don’t even know what all of the legend means yet. There might even be something in a different legend that could simply make this whole thing a moot point; we just don’t know yet.”

Maevis mentioning the other legends reminded Skye of her dinner plans. ‘Marie will have insight. She’s the biggest history and culture fanatic I’ve ever seen.. She’ll know where we should start diggin’ first.’

Before the women could get up in another discussion, Shasta insisted they begin their actual training. Skye agreed wearily as Maevis flew up to her perch. She scanned the arena to make sure no one was particularly paying them any attention, but everyone was. It wasn’t unheard of for the training area’s terrain to be altered during sessions, but this was a whole new level.

Some of the trainees felt insulted that the princess was segregating herself from them. Assuming it was motivated by noble arrogance instead of privacy, many began to speak badly about her. Maevis couldn’t hear them, but Shasta and Skye could due to their Tank traits.

“What? Princess too good to train with the rabble?”

“How stupid is she? She’s a Water and Earth mage. It’s not like we can steal her moves or something..”

“Does she think she’s better than us or something?!”

“Probably.. She’s a princess! All the royals are the same!”

As the insults piled up, Skye channeled all of her frustrations into her sparring with Shasta. Instead of attacking right away, Skye had told her friend that she had a move she’d like to attempt to perfect before the trials. Nodding, Shasta was a bit surprised when the ground indented, then large stones came up through the ground, lining the circle.

The massive amount of confusion Skye saw on Shasta’s face made her burst out laughing. It also caused her to forget the nasty comments going on all around the arena for the moment. Catching her breath, Skye explained her plan.

“I don’t know who I’ll fight be fightin’ in the trials, but I do know that Tidas is the final obstacle. I need a plan to specifically deal with him if Ima gonna win.. That’s why I came up with this.”

The indent in the ground was in a circular shape. It started shallow along the edge, then sloped and deepened as one reached the center. The rocks were evenly spaced all around the edges, similar to the last time they’d fought. Knowing Skye used the stones to change her direction, she realized that her friend must still not be able to stop properly.

“Ya know, we really need to work on your breaks,” Shasta commented with a cheeky grin.

Skye sighed; “I need room to run! I can’t figure any of the finer details about my Tank trait without being able to let loose, but at the same time, I can’t let people see me.. No one can know about me new trait yet, or I won’t be able to be Tidas.. The element of surprise is a major factor in my plan.”

Shasta grinned devilishly; “Ahhh! I So wish I could see the look in his face when you reveal your Tank trait! He’s gonna freak! Haha!”

Skye grinned at the mental image that popped into her head, but pushed it to the back of the line. She had too much to learn and work on before the Mage Trials, and they were approaching fast. Getting Shasta back on point, she asked; “Can you show me how to pivot again? I don’t want to snap an ankle.”

Shasta barked a sharp laugh; “Would it really matter if you did? You can heal yourself.”

Skye flashed an indignant expression; “It still hurts! And I can’t be worryin’ about it while Ima fightin’. Please just show me?”

“Alright, alright.. Killjoy,” Shasta had whispered the last part as she walked away, but was still met with an, “I heard that!”

Several hours later; Skye, Shasta, and Maevis emerged from the arena entrance, and rejoined Klaus and Ronnie. Shasta bid her goodbyes until tomorrow, and Maevis flew off; preferring it to being stuck on a horse. After mounting Thoth, the three headed back to the palace so she could shower and dress before dinner with Marie.

It hadn’t taken long for Skye to ready herself. Peggy had all of her things ready and waiting. As she scrubbed away the sweat and grime from training, Skye made a mental note to do something special for Peggy on her birthday. It was three days after Magnus’, and she was determined to make it a special one.

Once she’d finished dressing, Skye had Klaus and Ronnie grab her research, then she attempted to head out the door. She was in a bit of a rush, but Zazzy clung to her like a scared wee child. She missed her mother and wanted her to stay, but Skye promised to do something special with her in a couple days if she was good until then. Understanding her mother, Zazzy released Skye’s skirts and allowed her to leave. Her heart nearly broke as the baby dragon flashed the saddest look she’s ever seen as she latched the door shut.

‘I really need to spend some quality time with Thoth and Zazzy.. Me poor babies will think Ima abandonin’ them if I don’t..’

************

When Skye arrived at Marie’s quarters, she was pleasantly surprised to find Maevis just fluttering up to the doorway. They happily greeted each other again, then politely asked the guards at the doors to announce and open them. After Marie acknowledged them; Skye, Maevis, Klaus, and Ronnie all shuffled through the doorway.

Marie stood up beaming; “Skye! Mae! I’m so happy you requested dinner! I was dreading going to the banquet hall tonight. Karena planned a surprise concert right after the meal, and I did Not want to sit through that.”

“Oh, come now, Marie; give credit where it’s due. She does have a beautiful voice,” Skye said with a bashful expression.

Marie scoffed; “You’re far too kind a person for this hellhole of a place, sweetheart.. You are right, her voice is lovely, but her personality is just so unbearable.”

Maevis both nodded and spoke vehemently; “That lass is one of the most stuck-up, selfish humans I’ve ever met! She just Cannot Stop Talking about herself! And gods forbid that you say something positive about Skye in front of her..”

Hearing Maevis, Skye began to inwardly panic. ‘What?! She Openly doesn’t like me now?! Shit! That’s the step before she starts her gossiping and plotting.. Damn it! I’ve tried So Hard to stay off of her radar! Does she think Marco has a thing for me?! Ima so screwed..’