Chapter 18
Chapter Eighteen
Henry didn’t care whether there were guards watching.
He jumped up, grabbed Stefano, and kissed him until neither of them had any breath left.
He’d thought he’d never get to hold Stefano again—and still wasn’t sure that this might not be the final time—so he refused to let go.
The two of them stood there, embracing, eyes closed.
The lingering aches from the previous day’s torture ebbed away.
“I won’t leave you,” Henry said eventually. “If she marries you, even if we can’t be lovers, I won’t leave you.”
“But you deserve—”
“Shut up, Stef.”
Stefano made a sound halfway between a laugh and a sob, but he didn’t argue.
“I’m so proud of you,” Henry said. It was about time someone said that to Stefano. “You’re doing hard things.”
“Most people do. And I’m well overdue.”
Henry was overdue too, but in a different way.
His first role would always be to belong to Stefano, whatever the nature of their relationship.
But he needed to discover what other interests and worth he could have.
He was more than simply Stefano’s beloved.
And also Stefano deserved a beloved who was more than that.
Anyhow, all of that might be moot, depending on what the Fraysians decided. So for now he and Stefano could have each other. His prince felt extra solid against him, and extra strong.
“It will all work out, somehow,” Henry said. And he meant it.
“I admire your eternal optimism. It’s one of the things I missed when we were cursed.” Stefano’s laugh was muffled by Henry’s shoulder. “If I have the chance, I will write the most accurate, insightful book about frogs.”
“All the universities will plead for you to give lectures.”
They were still holding each other and chuckling when the door opened.
The king entered first, followed closely by the princess, with Jusufi and Ebuka right behind.
Henry tried to read their expressions, but they were all carefully neutral.
All except Dianora, who seemed to be hiding a smile behind her hand.
Stefano and Henry regretfully parted and everyone took their seats.
The ensuing pause was extremely pregnant. Henry had to bite his tongue to keep from screaming.
“My daughter,” the king said slowly, “has an idea.”
“It’s a wonderful idea, Papa, it really is. And you know it.” She smiled and clapped her hands and wiggled in her seat before apparently remembering that she was a princess and a young adult, at which point she stilled but didn’t stop smiling.
“It is… an intriguing idea.”
Oh, spit it out! Henry thought and bit his tongue again.
And then, to his considerable surprise and concern, the king, the princess, and the two others all locked their gazes on him. He wasn’t accustomed to scrutiny like that and involuntarily pressed back in his chair.
“Both of your parents are deceased, correct?” the King rumbled.
Henry frowned slightly, confused at a question that seemed to have little relevance. “Um, yes, Your Majesty. A long time ago.”
“Hmm.”
Dianora bounced again. “Here’s the thing.
A marriage between my family and the Thanytsian royal family would probably at least delay war.
And if, as Prince Louis hinted, King Cyrus does die soon—sorry, Stefano—and something unfortunate happens to Philip—also sorry—before war can start?
Everything could work out well for both countries. ”
True enough, Henry thought, but he was still confused. “If you’re asking whether I’ll accept your marriage to Stefano, of course I will.”
Her eyes were bright. “Ah, but the real question is whether I will accept your marriage to Stefano.”
“Pardon?” Stefano was obviously bewildered too.
Ebuka stood. “It’s an unconventional solution, but….” He smiled at the princess. “It’s clever. His Majesty King Verzant adopts Henry Marsh, and—”
Involuntarily, Henry bleated in surprise. The gods only knew what he would have done if Stefano hadn’t been holding his hand. Firmly.
“Please continue,” Stefano said tightly.
With a slightly annoyed nod, Ebuka did. “Prince Henry would not be heir—that role will remain with Her Highness—but he will be a member of the royal house. And when he weds Prince Stefano, the houses will be joined.”
Henry couldn’t find the words. There were no words. He gaped so much that he began to wonder whether he’d been cursed as well, if he’d become a giant, stupid fish. When he did speak, it was in a tiny voice. “But I’m nobody.”
“You are not!” Stefano retorted fiercely.
“I quite agree,” said the king. “You have proven yourself honorable, loyal, and strong. The early stages of our acquaintance were… unfortunate. But I would be very pleased to get to know you better. I think you will prove a valuable addition to the family. Assuming, naturally, that this is what you want.”
What he wanted? He’d never even dreamed of something like this. He still couldn’t answer.
Dianora rose, walked over to them, and took their free hands in hers. “We could have peace. I would have brothers. We would all have roles to fulfill, but we could also be ourselves within those roles.”
Stefano stood, pulling Henry up as well. They made a tight little circle, the three of them. Henry had been taught that circles had an enchantment of their own, a strength. A sense of completion.
“We’ll have to work for this,” Stefano warned them. “And it won’t all be easy. My father, my brothers… still difficult. But peace. Love. Family. Hope. We might have all of them.” His face glowed with a joy that Henry had never before seen.
Henry thought about peace, love, family, and hope—and about curses and frogs and iron bands, and fathers and kingdoms and journeys—and he thought about what a confusing, complex place the world was.
But mostly he thought about love.
“Yes,” he said. Loudly, firmly. “I am honored to be adopted into the house of King Verzant.”
“Yes,” whispered Stefano.
Like the opposite of iron bands, something freed and opened Henry’s heart.
He remembered some of the stories that Stefano had helped him with when Henry was learning to read.
“We will have our happily ever after,” Henry said.
He was smiling. It felt good. And he knew their future would be magnificent.
THE END