“You may enable him, Severin, but I’m not going to.” Elle lifted her chin and braced herself against the desk. “I know you’re smarter than you pretend to be, Lucien. Your whole family knows—you couldn’t run the Rangers so efficiently otherwise. But unless you wise up and start acting like a real crown prince, we’ll be forced to treat you like the idiot you pretend to be. That is why you were left out of the decision.”
Lucien croaked angrily. “You have no right to judge me! I do what I can—but we can’t all be brilliant like you and Severin. Some of us aren’t as clever, and that’s all there is to it!”
Elle snorted. “You can’t possibly claim you are unintelligent. You knew I was Ranger Seventy-Eight when Severin couldn’t even recall that I was a woman!”
“Elle, that’s enough,” Severin said in a gentle tone. He picked up Elle’s right hand and tugged her backwards. The ex-Ranger sighed and nodded to Severin.
Lucien, however, was not so easily appeased. He was angry enough to throw a wine glass, but at the moment he couldn’t even slam a door shut. “I don’t have to listen to your preaching. I’m leaving.” He made a show of turning around so his back was to them.
“I’ll call for Henry,” Severin said. “He’ll escort you around.”
Lucien had to swallow a croak—which burned in his heart instead.
Elle walked around Severin’s desk so she once again faced Lucien. “I can take you to your room. You’re a well-built frog, but I can handle it.”
“Flattery will get you nowhere right now,” Lucien said.
“Will you attend the Summit, still?” Severin asked as he joined his wife.
“Of course,” Lucien grumbled, though he was tempted to refuse. Severin so rarely asks me for anything, I had better do this. Even if it’s going to be the most humiliating experience ever.
Severin nodded. A moment passed before a rare teasing light entered his eyes. “If you’re so against being a frog, you could always break the spell.”
Lucien released a wheezing hiss. “Blackguard.”
Severin outright smiled—another rare expression. “I can recall the many times you reminded me I could break my curse.”
Lucien tried to roll his eyes, but his frog eyeballs didn’t work the same way as his human ones. “I regret ever pushing you towards anyone—and I have apologized for that numerous times! Besides, it would be very hard to break my spell thanks to the specifications the Lady Enchantress put on me.”
Elle laughed. “Indeed.”
“It would be rather hard to find someone who dislikes you,” Severin said.
“Agreed,” Lucien said.
Elle paused. “Wait, what?”
“Lady Enchantress Angelique said I had to find someone who found me distasteful and get them to fall in love with me,” Lucien said. “Finding a girl who dislikes me that much would be quite hard.”
Elle looked back and forth between Lucien and Severin. “You both truly believe that?”
“Yes,” Lucien said.
“I am not so blinded to believe that Lucien is beloved by all, but he is universally liked,” Severin said. “He is quite popular among nobles and the ladies of the court.”
Elle scrunched her eyes shut and pinched the bridge of her nose. “Sometimes you two are so disconnected from the regular populace, it’s offensive.”
“What do you mean?” Lucien asked.
“I mean there are plenty of working-class girls who would love to knee you in the gut,” Elle said. “They’re in the royal palace, even. I met many of them while working as a Ranger.”
Severin nodded. “I would expect as much; however, we are in Chanceux. The only eligible women here are members of royalty or nobility, and my staff—towards whom Lucien will not make improper advances.”
Lucien gulped. There was a slight warning of thunder in Severin’s voice. I forgot how he dotes on his servants.
“There are palace servants here, as well,” Elle pointed out.
“Doesn’t matter,” Severin said. “This is only for two or three weeks at most. He wouldn’t be able to romance a girl so quickly.”
“I beg your pardon!” Lucien croaked. “I could too!”
Elle—goaded on by her husband’s observation—grinned slyly. “Three weeks is not so bad, Lucien. Severin was cursed for roughly three years—mind you, he was a cat, which is far more likeable. Oh, yes! Severin! Did you know Crown Princess Gabrielle brought her talking cat? I was going to see if he would like to meet Esses.”
Lucien tilted his froggy head—which meant his whole body moved. “What is Esses?”
She grinned. “My forest cat from Queen Cinderella!”
Disgruntled, Lucien settled down into his cushion again. “You are obsessed with cats,” he decreed. “You may return me to my room.”
Severin picked up the cushion with such care, Lucien didn’t even fumble. “I’m sorry we had to do this, Lucien. But our choices were limited.”
“Yes, yes,” Lucien grumbled. “You just better make sure this ruddy Summit is worth it.”
“It will be,” Severin promised. “We will have to make arrangements for you to be carried around now. I would normally assign a guard escort, but I would prefer to keep the number of people aware of your situation limited. Perhaps they could dress as servants.”
Elle snorted. “No soldier of yours could ever pass off as a footman. Henry is as close as we can get.”
As Severin carried Lucien from his study, Lucien mulled over their conversation. He doesn’t think I can win over some shrewish girl set against me, does he? Hmm….
Summit representatives continued to arrive all afternoon and evening, but the majority of them arrived promptly in the morning. This was something of a shock as they hadn’t been expected for another day or so.
Perhaps it shows that Severin is right; things may really be worse than we estimate. Everyone seems eager enough to discuss the matter at any rate. Lucien peered out of an open window from the comfort of his cushion as he heard trumpets announce the arrival of yet another guest.
His window overlooked the vast chateau gardens. A number of the representatives—mostly of the female persuasion—were touring the gardens whilst Severin and Elle greeted their early guests. Lucien could even see gold-haired Sylvie—his little sister—weaving in and out of the throng of representatives, holding her gold-colored ball as she smiled at everyone.
In addition to the foreign lords and ladies, a number of servants edged through the gardens as well—carrying trays of drinks and pastries.
As he watched everyone chatter and laugh, Elle’s words echoed through Lucien’s mind. “…there are plenty of working-class girls who would love to knee you in the gut.”
Lucien tried to sniff, but it came out as more of a croak. “What does she know? I don’t care what some commoner thinks of me!”
“Time to be wettened, Your Highness,” Henry announced.
Lucien grumbled and waddled off his cushion to sit on the moist towel Henry had placed on the window frame. “This is stupid.”
“The Lady Enchantress made it very clear that if your frog skin is not appropriately moist, you will experience discomfort.” Henry squeezed water from a handkerchief over Lucien.
The water felt good—though Lucien would never admit it. “The Lady Enchantress is secretly a hag.”
Henry stared down at Lucien dispassionately.
“I know, I know, she was just following Severin’s orders. But I didn’t have to be a frog,” Lucien complained.
“I suppose not,” Henry said.