Queen's Obsession

Chapter 6

*Suzanna's P.O.V*

The first thing I discovered about Pandora was that she was a time person. She carried a pocket watch that she almost constantly had in her hand. Her fingers were constantly tangled into the chain as we walked to the dining hall.

I sat at the end of one of the tables after getting a plate. Pandora had stopped towards the middle of the table that was a bit more populated than where I sat. She eventually joined me, dragging Captain Orion with her by the collar of his shirt.

"Must you drag me woman?" Captain Orion grumbled as he sat down across from me. Pandora sat down next to him, rolling her eyes at his complaints.

"You wouldn't have come with me so willingly unless I dragged you," Pandora shrugged. I dug into my breakfast as the two bickered. It was quite clear that they had something going on between the two, something a bit more than friendship.

I had gotten about halfway through my meal before Pandora's attention turned to me. She was clearly quite exasperated with him.

"I believe you've met my idiot husband, I'm sure he wasn't much fun to ride to our kingdom with," Pandora said as she flicked her hand towards him. Captain Orion snorted slightly as he sat back slightly in his seat. So I was right about them having a closer relationship than a friendship.

"He was fine to ride back with, we just talked most of the time," I said as I dug my fork into my scrambled eggs. That seemed to catch Pandora's attention and she leaned forward in her seat.

"About me? About my sister?" Pandora asked softly. I made the mistake of looking up, feeling myself drawn into her dark green eyes. There was something dark and dangerous lying beneath her words.

"Just what it was like to work with the both of you," I answered as I took another bite of my eggs. I glanced away from her gaze for a moment before hesitantly making eye contact again. Gone was the dark and dangerous look, replaced by something much lighter.

Queen Seraphina was clearly a touchy subject for Pandora. I would endeavor not to speak badly about the Queen for as long as Pandora could be around. Something told me that if I did then she would make the experience very painful for me.

"He wouldn't know what it is like to work with Seraphina, he's always got a reason to be outside," Pandora said as she smirked slightly. "My sister is a lovely person, you'll love working around her," she informed me with a small grin.

"I'm sure it will be great, I've never worked for a Queen before," I said with a small smile. Pandora grinned slightly as she checked her pocket watch.

Once I was finished eating and put my plate away, Pandora gave me the grand tour of the castle. She seemed to keep the guards away with a simple look, her eyes narrowing when one would get too close.

"I normally advise my sister against hiring people that I don't vet myself but she took such an interest when she saw your file that she went against my advice," Pandora said quietly as we walked to the throne room.

"What made Queen Seraphina take an interest in me?" I questioned softly.

"Well you're young and we normally never get young applicants as well as the fact that you had qualifications well beyond most," Pandora said as she played with the chain on her pocket watch, tangling it around her finger.

"Is that all?" I asked as I played with a loose strand of my hair. It was small, basically unnoticeable to most. My hand went to my bracelet as I tightly wrapped my hand around the small teddy bear, tracing over it with my thumb.

"I truthfully don't know why she took such an interest in you, my sister works in mysterious ways not even known to me most of the time," Pandora answered honestly as she frowned slightly. "Word of advice, do not mention her husband or son when in her presence. My sister has not recovered well from either of their deaths," she stated.

"I will make sure not to mention either of them then," I said simply as my thumb pressed tightly into the teddy bear. It dug into my palm slightly as Pandora led me to the entrance of the throne room.

"My sister awaits you," Pandora said as she gestured to the grand doors. I went to step forward, pausing when she grabbed my wrist. "If I find out that you have hurt her in any way, you will not leave this kingdom alive," she warned quietly, meeting my gaze challengingly. I nodded my head in understanding as she let go of my wrist.

As soon as the door opened, it shut slowly with a sense of finality. Perhaps it was the door closing on my life before this kingdom. I shook my head, taking a deep shuddering breath to steel my nerves.

"I'm not that terrifying am I?" a harsh laugh broke the silence. A shiver ran down my spine and I forced myself to look ahead. The woman on the throne had a black veil and her dress was pitch black to match it. A part of me wondered whether she got hot in it but I managed to repress saying that.

"Cat got your tongue?" Queen Seraphina asked as her leg bounced slightly. She clearly was quite impatient if her words and actions were anything to go by.

"No, I'm sorry your majesty," I shook my head quickly, my face flushed slightly. I curtsied to her after taking a few steps forward. I didn't know what was a safe distance to stay away from her but I figured staying away from the guards that stood at the steps of her throne was a good idea.

"You're a shy little mouse," Queen Seraphina said as she stood up. She walked down the steps, her heels clicking with each step she took. She reached me with ease, stopping just in front of me. "Follow me, this is hardly the place to get to know my new court scribe," she said as she gestured with a flick of her gloved hand.

This woman was absolutely terrifying. I didn't feel comfortable enough talking to her in front of her guards and now she wanted me to follow her? Fear made my hands tremble but I simply nodded my consent as I followed after her.

Every time I try to wait to publish a chapter I always end up caving in and posting it.