"Tell me the story of how you and Father united the borderlands!"

The little boy's eyes were bright. He clasped his hands together, leaning forward with excitement. His pudgy cheeks puffed as he begged, "Please, please, please!"

Above him, the woman laughed. On her crown of braids sat a silver tiara. The metal glistened in the light of the flames. The fire made the room warm and cozy in the winter night.

The queen leaned forward and bundled her young son into her arms. The boy squealed. She blew loud raspberries into his skin, smirking at the child's shrieks.

Turning his small face to her, she scolded lightly. "How many times do you want to hear the story, child?" The queen sighed. She must have recounted the same tale a thousand times by now. It was all the boy's fault. Ever since he learned the words, "please", she found it hard to deny him anything.

"Please," the boy pouted, eyes widening to dangerous levels.

The queen blocked the adorable puppy eyes from view. "Stop it! Your eyeballs will fall out, Niko!"

The warning only egged the boy on. He widened his eyes even more. "Pleaseeeee!" He dragged out the last letter for as long as his little lungs could and broke into giggling gasps.

The doors to the study burst open. Slamming into the wall, they made a great sound. In the study, mother and son both looked up

A teenage boy strolled in. His attire was made of the best leather and wool the kingdom had to offer, and he bore a heavy resemblance to the younger boy.

The older yawned. He stretched, bones popping. The crown prince walked into the room with all the confidence befitting the heir to the throne of Eburnea.

Seeing his little brother perched on their mother's lap, he laughed. "I bet Nikolai was begging for the Borderlands story again, wasn't he?"

Jutting out their lower lip, the little boy pouted. "Mama, Kai is bullying me!"

“Your brother merely teases, Niko.” The queen patted the boy's soft hair soothingly but her eyes were trained on her elder son. "How were your lessons, Malakai?"

"Boring. The grand scholars had me recite lineage trees all day!" The crown prince rolled his eyes. "What use does a king have in learning the lineage of noble houses? I should be learning strategies! Swordfighting, war plans, things of that like."

The queen's hand froze. Her gentle expression faded into a stern one.

The woman's brows furrowed. "Unless you wish to rule over a kingdom of ash," her voice held a sharp edge to it. "Battle strategies are just as important as knowing the titles of every major family within our kingdom."

"But how is knowing that the Vellwards share second cousins with the Langards any use?" retorted Malakai.

"The Vellwards are the head of the court while General Langard leads our armies." The queen clasped her hands together. "If they were closer relatives, you would have one family controlling our army and laws." Malakai's confidence faltered, but the queen pushed forward. "They may hate one another, but if a rebel were to unite their two factions, they could turn on us as easily as the sun sets in the west."

Seeing the chided expression on her eldest son's face, the queen softened. She explained, "People know when they are not being paid their respects., Malakai You will be no king if they do not support you."

Nikolai watched the interaction with bated breath. It seemed Malakai was at the age where he and their mother seemed to butt heads. His older brother had a knack for getting himself entangled in heated philosophical debates. Still, it seemed that the queen's words had won. This time.

Seeing the chastised expression on the crown prince's face, the queen gestured for the older boy to sit by her.

Malakai huffed but obeyed.

Squeaking eagerly, Niko nestled into the older boy's side. The younger boy smiled happily.

"Brat," the older boy muttered fondly. He ruffled the kid's fluffy hair. Despite their rather wide age difference, the two brothers were close. The younger was like a shadow, always following close to his older brother's tail.

The queen smirked. A mischievous gleam lit her eyes. "Perhaps I will tell the story of the Borderlands..."

The older boy groaned while the younger cheered.

“My father’s ancestors have long held seat in the lands of Feldgrau, the border between our kingdom and that of-“

“The barbarians!” cut in Nikolai, eyes gleaming. “Vicious warriors who knew only of bloodshed and revelry!” He got to his feet, swinging his fists against an imaginary opponent.

The queen shook her head. “They are men just like us, Niko.” She flicked her youngest son’s forehead. “My best friend was the chieftain’s daughter.” Her eyes softened. “We used to play by the borders and sneak back to our fathers when the sun set."

The woman's smile was bittersweet. "We were good to each other. She taught me to sing and I taught her to write and read. I still think of those days fondly. ”

Nikolai’s innocent expression glanced up at his mother. “What happened to your friend, Mama?”

"A Great War." The queen’s eyes clouded as her shoulders dropped. “By the end of it, she was the Chieftess of the Wenge tribe and I was queen and married to your father. Our people clashed and bled on the battlefield. It was no longer appropriate to... stay in touch.”

Malakai’s brow furrowed as a thought occurred to him. The older boy titled their head. “How did the war end, mother? They speak of the great Duel of Feldgrau but what led to it?”

“Friendship,” smiled the queen. Her voice was soft but words were hard. “Yelani and I set up a momentary peace. It was then that your father challenged the chieftain of Wenge, Fadye, to a single duel. The winner would decide the fate of the war."

"Most thought it was a suicide mission. Fadye was said to have the strength of ten wolves and the foresight of a hawk.”

“But Father still beat him!” piped the younger boy eagerly.

The queen sighed, “Your father may have won the battle, but Fadye took his ability to ever lift a sword again.” The queen shook her head. “It was only the sisterhood of Yelani and I that ensured a treaty for peace could be sought. Your father sought an end to the war so that he could ascend the throne of his father, and Fadye honored the agreement of the duel. As a sign of good faith, we pledged to one day wed our children to one another.” She ruffled the two boy’s heads. “But who knew both Yelani and I would birth little brats instead of princesses!”

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The two twisted away, one with an annoyed expression and the other with delighted laughter. The queen smiled, and pressed forward her tickling attacks.

Suddenly, the frown on her youngest son’s face caught her gaze. Pausing, she turned her attention to smoothing out the fearful lines on his young face. “What is it, love?”

In a small voice, the little boy’s asked, “Does that mean there will be war again?... Because I wasn’t born a girl?” His voice wobbled, clearly on the verge of tears.

The queen’s heart squeezed, while she simultaneously held back her laughter. This small child of hers was so precious. He may have a face like glass, but he had a heart unlike any she had known. With that, she pulled her son to her chest and smothered the adorableness in kisses. “Of course not, love. We have since changed the treaty to have our eldest sons pledge brotherhood to one another.”

The little boy sniffed, "Really?"

“Of course, it wasn’t ended, brat!” Malakai crossed his arms. “They have more to lose if our treaty was called off. Trade routes, stability on their western front…”

“I see someone has been paying attention in some of their classes,” teased the queen.

Huffing, the prince dodged the incoming hair ruffle. “Of course!” He crossed his arms once more. “But if it were to come down to war, we would win, of course!”

Sighing, the queen rubbed her forehead. This son of hers...

“Malakai, do not speak of war so lightly,” snapped the queen. “You are too young to understand the destruction that simple words can cause. There are some things that even the king's will cannot fix. As the crown prince, you must be mindful of what you say-”

“But the treaty fixed the peace!”Malakai's stubborn frown hid the hurt in his eyes. "What else is there worry about?"

The crown prince glanced down at his little brother but the younger was staring at the flames with the same blank expression he had on when he was with others. "I heard one of the maids say that the evil Wenge will send assassins after us and that is why we must always have a guard at our door."

"That is not true, Niko. The guards are just there in case you need help." The queen's brows pinched. “It seems that even though the war is over, both of our peoples live with distrust against one another.”

She placed one hand on each of her sons’ shoulders. “You two have a great responsibility. You must protect this peace at all costs.” She tightened her grip, a sudden desperation coloring her words. Her sharp nails dug into tender skin. “Many will try to usurp the peace as a means to gain power. You must swear it to me, boys." There was a desperate gleam in her eyes. "Hurry now! Swear that you will protect one another and always choose the betterment of the realm!”

“Mama, you’re hurting me!” cried Nikolai.

Malakai grimaced, "Mother, stop. Please."

The woman quickly let go, regret pooling in her eyes. She didn't know what had come over her. The woman held a hand against her throbbing temple. "I am sorry, my loves. I... I don't know what came over me." Except that she did. These days, a certain bad premonition hung over her like a dark cloud. Her sons needed to be prepared, in case she was no longer there to protect them.

Before she could say anything more, the doors to the room burst open once more. A cold gust of wind blew in.

A tall, spindly woman lounged by the door. The dark silks she wore only elongated the sharp edges of her face. A small tiara sat atop her intricate updo, a lavish contrast to the queen's simple braids.

The other woman was straight and gangly. Like a stick... except for her protruding belly. She had that infuriating sneer on her face.

“Consort Rewanna,” greeted the queen tiredly. If her husband had to find a second wife, why wasn't is someone more tolerable?

Rewanna's eyes narrowed. “I apologize. Was I interrupting something?” sounding the least bit apologetic. The consort clasped her hands together. “Nevertheless, the king was merely requesting your presence. Arganus was hoping that we could take the evening to enjoy dinner together… as a family.” Her lips curled up at the last words.

Malakai burst to his feet. Pure rage filled the crown prince's chest. He pointed an accusing finger at Rewanna. “We are no family!”

“Malakai,” warned the queen. “Mind your manners.”

“Oh it’s all right," Rewanna waved away the older boy's harsh words. "It seems the young prince hasn’t quite grasped the situation yet."

Stepping forward, she continued, "It is my duty as his stepmother to teach him.”

Malakai's eyes bled with pure hatred. He snarled silently. By his side, Nikolai glanced at the scene with a blank expression but there was a worried purse to his lips.

Rewanna smiled, but it was cold and sharp. Her hand reached down to caress her rounded belly. “Crown Prince, it is your younger brother that I am carrying. The son of the king! Your father has even named me as his consort." Her voice dripped like poisoned honey. "When my son is born, you must treat him well and teach him the ways of being prince as you have Nikolai. Eburean will look to my son as third in line for the crown-”

“You lie!” Malakai’s brows darkened. He stalked forward. “A few weeks ago, you were my mother’s lady in waiting and now you expect us to believe-“

“Malakai, if you say another word, you will be grounded in your chambers for two weeks.” The queen stood and grasped her son by the shoulder. Her nails dug warningly into the skin. She whispered lowly. “Enough of this.”

Malakai shrugged off the hold but held his tongue.

“It seems there is still much for you to learn, Prince Malakai,” smirked Rewanna victoriously. “Now, as I was saying, Arganus has requested-“

“You should refer to Father as His Majesty,” a young voice interrupted.

Rewanna's mouth snapped shut. Her eyes widened alarmingly. In all her years in the castle, this was the first time she had heard the youngest prince trade words with someone other than his family. To all others, he held a frosty disposition and had earned himself the whispered moniker as the "ice prince".

All eyes turned to Nikolai. The boy sounded bored. “Except for the queen and her children, all others are expected to address the king as His Majesty.” He paused and nodded to himself. “Yes. To be a good mother, you must learn so that you can teach your baby well." Nikolai stared straight at Rewanna, causing her to falter back at the sharp look in those blue eyes. "I don't want my younger sibling to be made fun of at Court. It would be embarrassing if they were heard saying the wrong address. People might think Consort Rewanna as a bad mother.”

The room was dead silent. Intentional or not, the implications of the prince's words were clear.

So long as Rewanna was only a consort and not a queen. No matter how favored, Rewanna's children would have to refer to their father as His Majesty. Although not illegitmate, they were not considered true heirs or royalty. They would be forced to watch as their siblings were considered higher and more legitimate. In truth, even if she bore a son of the king, their claim would be weaker than a royal cousin or legitimate uncle.

Even though her family was of a lower ranking, Rewanna was still a lady of a noble house. These etiquettes had been drilled into her as they were every noble girl. It went against tradition for kings to take a second wife while the first lived. Most of Eburean were already whispering snide remarks as is.

In a single sentence, the little boy had managed to strike the woman where it stung most.

Nikolai stepped forward, the sharp look in his eyes was a mirror image of the queen. Rewanna shivered. No child of four name days should be able to speak so eloquently. It was unnerving.

“It seems there is much that you have to learn as well, Consort Rewanna,” commented the ice prince.

Turning around, the boy smiled happily and clasped his mother’s hand. “Come Mother, Brother," he chirped brightly. "Father awaits us!”

Dragging them along, Nikolai took the lead as the three walked down the hall. The queen and her children didn’t bother with a greeting as they passed the other woman, still frozen by the door. A polite cough snapped the spindly woman out of her thoughts.

Rewanna and her retinue of maids were forced to curtsy as the royal family walked by.

Head bowed low, Rewanna gritted her teeth. She clenched her fists so tight, the nail broke skin.

Nikolai walked with his back straight and hands clasped tightly to that of his family. It didn’t matter if it was the barbarians, evil regent Rewanna or even the world itself. He glanced up at his mother and older brother who had begun bickering anew about some random tapestry and its value. He had seen the proud gleam return to his mother's eyes and the happy smirk on Malakai's face. The ice prince swore to himself.

I swear it, Mama. I will protect my family and people.