Epistolary Companions
Aurora POV
As we approached the elegant white gazebo, the rhythmic clinking of fine porcelain and the soft rustle of leaves filled the tranquil space.
The Queen Mother of Valdora did not wait for us to reach the threshold; the moment her eyes locked onto our approaching figures, she rose gracefully from her chair.
She moved with a fluid, measured elegance that spoke of decades spent navigating the perilous, razor-thin lines of court politics and high society.
Kieran stepped forward first, the rigid, dominant posture of the Alpha King softening imperceptibly into the affectionate familiarity of a son. He bowed his head slightly, leaning in to press a warm, respectful kiss to each of her cheeks.
“Mother,” he murmured, his deep voice carrying easily over the gentle bubbling of a nearby garden fountain.
“Kieran,” she replied, her tone rich and remarkably smooth, though her eyes were already drifting past his broad shoulder to land squarely on me.
“It is wonderful to finally see you both looking so well. Please, forgive the slight disarray,” she added, gesturing elegantly toward the two maids who were hurriedly straightening the cutlery and adjusting the third linen napkin.
“I had rather short notice of your sudden emergence from the royal wing. The staff is just putting the finishing touches on the table.”
I swallowed hard, the mortifying memory of my arrival in the pristine gardens flashing vividly in my mind’s eye. But as the Queen Mother’s gaze swept over me, there was no trace of the aristocratic judgment or disapproval that I had been dreading.
Instead, her eyes performed a slow, clinical, and profoundly perceptive sweep of my person.
She took in the impeccable tailoring of my midnight-blue dress, the clean, glowing flush of my skin, and the absolute absence of the dirt from when I first arrived here.
But her gaze lingered longest on my head.
“You clean up remarkably well, my dear,” she said softly, a genuine, approving smile curving her lips as she stepped out of the gazebo’s shade.
She took a deliberate step forward, extending a graceful, ring-adorned hand toward me.
“We did not have the opportunity for proper formalities during your... dramatic arrival. I am Seraphina Blackwood.”
I took a steadying breath, drawing on the quiet, anchoring strength Kieran was projecting through our newly forged mating bond.
I stepped out from the protective shadow of his massive frame, determined to show her I was more than a feral stray.
I slipped my hand into hers, giving her a gentle squeeze and a smile.
“It is an honor to formally meet you,” I replied, my voice steady despite the frantic fluttering in my chest. “I am Aurora. Aurora Argentis.”
Seraphina did not gasp. She did not even blink in surprise at the confirmation of my highly coveted, supposedly extinct bloodline. Instead, her smile turned profoundly melancholic, and her delicate grip on my fingers tightened with a sudden, entirely unexpected maternal warmth.
“I suspected as much,” Seraphina murmured, her voice dropping to a reverent, hushed whisper that seemed to suspend the very air in the greenhouse.
“The moment I saw you drop from that wyvern in the gardens, even buried beneath the dirt and Kieran’s oversized travel cloak, your hair gave me pause. But seeing you now, properly in the light... it is undeniable. You have her eyes.”
My breath caught in my throat, a sudden, electric shock shivering down my spine. “Her eyes?”
Seraphina nodded slowly, her own gaze shimmering with the heavy, poignant weight of a distant memory. “One piercing azure, the other a swirling, tempestuous mercury silver. They are incredibly striking, and entirely unique to your bloodline. You share them exactly with your mother, Queen Lyanna.”
I froze, my heart stumbling wildly over its own rhythm. The floral-scented air in my lungs suddenly felt too thick to exhale. My mother. Hearing her name spoken now, with such quiet, profound familiarity by Seraphina, completely derailed my racing thoughts.
“You...” I breathed, my voice cracking into a bare whisper as my eyes widened in absolute shock. “You knew my mother?”
Seraphina offered a soft, wistful smile, her thumb gently brushing the back of my hand before she released it and gestured gracefully toward the chairs.
“I did,” she said, her voice carrying a profound, nostalgic warmth as she settled back into her ornate wicker seat. “Please, sit.”
Kieran walked up and pulled a chair out for me, his hand resting reassuringly on the small of my back as he guided me to sit before he took the seat beside me.
“You see. Long before the Draconians brought their fire and the world turned its back on Argent Kingdom,” Seraphina began, her eyes distant, “our kingdoms maintained a cautious peace. We met at the yearly border gatherings between Valdora and the Argent dominion. Lyanna was...
an absolute force of nature. She was brilliant, fiercely protective of her people, and entirely too stubborn for her own good.”
I couldn’t help the small, watery laugh that escaped my throat. “That sounds exactly like her.”
Seraphina’s smile deepened, but as she looked at me, her expression shifted into one of genuine contrition. She leaned forward slightly, folding her ringed hands neatly on the pristine white tablecloth.
“Aurora, my dear, I must apologize to you,” she said, her tone shifting from fond remembrance to earnest regret. “When you first arrived, I fear I came across as terribly harsh and overly direct.”
I shook my head quickly, feeling a fresh wave of heat rush to my cheeks. “No, please, you don’t need to apologize. I dropped a group of massive wyverns into the palace, and I was completely covered in dirt and monster ichor. I didn’t exactly present myself with any royal grace.”
“Even so, I was being a bit rash,” Seraphina said gently, her gaze unwavering and fierce.
“But I must admit, I was in a state of absolute shock when I saw you. Then Kieran snarled at me and declared you as his mate, my mind simply couldn’t process what I was seeing. Beneath the dirt and my son’s oversized travel cloak, I couldn’t fully recognize you.
I couldn’t believe a true Argentis had survived. But the white hair... and a glimpse of those mismatched eyes... it struck a chord deep within my memory.”
She paused, her eyes performing another slow sweep of my face. “You really are the very image of Lyanna.”
A heavy, emotional lump formed in my throat. Beneath the table, Kieran’s hand found my knee, his fingers giving it a gentle, grounding squeeze. The steady, comforting pulse of his unwavering support washed over my mind through our bond, keeping me anchored as the weight of the past rushed in.
“You know. We didn’t just speak at the border gatherings,” Seraphina continued, a fond twinkle returning to her eyes.
“Your mother and I were actually quite close. We were epistolary companions, of a sort. We exchanged letters across the borders for years, secretly sharing the burdens of royal life, court gossip, and the endless frustrations of managing incredibly stubborn Alpha males.”
My breath hitched, my mind instantly snapping back to a vivid memory I hadn’t thought of in almost a decade.
I saw the grand, sunlit study in our palace. I smelled the distinct scent of melting lavender wax. I saw my mother sitting at her heavy mahogany desk late into the evening, a delicate quill in her hand and a soft, genuine smile on her beautiful face as she filled pages upon pages of parchment.