Chapter 5

"Your Majesty, what is the meaning of this?" one of the older Council members asked as they all came into the Council Chambers and sat in their designated areas. Neither the Emperor or Empress said a word as they waited. "Your Majesty?"

Mikey smiled as the double doors opened. Koen led the procession with a huge smile on his face. He was getting what he wanted: his grandchildren ruling their people. Behind him was Alex with the Royal Sword.

Behind him were the new Council and Court members, including Kathryn and Jordan Jenks. Finally bringing up the rear and dressed in ceremonial dress, Aiden and Clint emerged hand in hand. Clint held Dylan on the opposite side.

When Aiden stepped through, everyone gasped. Dressed in a navy blue chiffon gown that clasped at the neck, she looked different than her jeans and t-shirt persona. With her hair twisted into an intricate design and her marks gleaming along her back, she was an entity all her own. Having Clint by her side, she looked as if she were already in charge.

As they approached the dais, she stopped and canted her head. Mikey laughed because he knew she was doing her normal thing. She wasn't bowing to anyone.

"Your Majesty?" a Councilwoman asked. She looked wide eyed between the current Emperor and the former. People were starting to chatter incessantly about what was going on and why there were people here who shouldn't be.

"Pop Pop, go ahead," Mikey said, ignoring them once again.

Koen smiled and nodded. He turned and held his hands out. In one hand was placed the sword, tip pressed gently into the marble floor. In the other hand, he took a sapphire and ruby encrusted scepter. The balance of femininity and masculinity, the scepter and sword.

"We are gathered here today to crown the new King and Queen of the Silver Court. A ruler must be kind and considerate of his or her subjects, in this case the newly restored Kingdoms. A ruler must be firm and just in his or her decisions. Corruption is not tolerated in the Kingdoms. There are many advisors in place to make sure this does not happen." He turned his green eyes to the young couple. "Clint and Aiden Miller, do you accept these terms?"

There were rumbles of dissent as they looked at each other and smiled. "We do."

"Please kneel." Koen waited until Dylan had been taken and they were kneeling before them all. "Repeat after me. As the Silver King and Queen, I promise to abide by the rules set up by myself and the other rulers. My children will be subject to the same punishment as any other person should they break the rules. I will rule the Silver Kingdom with grace and wisdom as the rulers before me."

"As the Silver King and Queen, I promise to abide by the rules set up by myself and the other rulers. My children will be subject to the same punishment as any other person should they break the rules. I will the Silver Kingdom with grace and wisdom as the rulers before me."

"My Lord and Lady?"

Everyone waited until Mikey and Katy descended the dais and took the circlets from Parker and Grant. Mikey placed the thicker of the two on Clint's head as Katy placed the more intricate one on Aiden's. The couples traded smiles before Aiden and Clint rose. Mikey turned a defiant glare at his Council.

"As of today, there is a new Kingdom. The Silver Kingdom has been established and my sister is ruling it with her husband. They have chosen their Council and their Court. Any Silver who is still on my Council is welcomed to stay but you may leave for your own," he said.

"This is absurd! You cannot do this without consulting the Council!" Igor Everwood exclaimed.

"He can and he did. He is the sovereign ruler of the Golden Court and his word is law," Aiden said. She turned her gaze to her Council. "As our first order of business, we have worked out an alliance with the Golden Kingdom but we will not reside in the same city."

"We understand," Austin replied. Electricity crackled in the air as he challenged anyone to go against his new Queen.

"Your grandmother would have never allowed this!" someone else yelled from somewhere around the room.

"And that's why we're standing here today. You have made this Council all about the Golds. Whatever the Golds wanted, they got no matter who they stepped on to get it. The people they stepped on were the Silvers and because of that, the Silvers started backing away from politics. The only way to make sure everyone was taken care of was to bring in someone they trusted," Mikey said.

"But she's an exile!"

Mikey's face changed immediately. It hardened as his eyes became laser focused. They turned a brighter shade of amber, almost to their powerful golden hue. "Of the Golden Court. Of the Silver Court she is their queen. You will not disrespect her in my presence, is that understood?"

The floor heaved gently. Mikey wasn't prone to outbursts, and he wasn't as gifted as his sister, but he could make things move just as well. When he tapped into his power, he was able to shift inanimate objects with ease. He refrained from throwing humans but he would if it was required.

"Yes, your Majesty," everyone replied in unison.

"Council is dismissed." As everyone dispersed he turned to the new rulers. "I talked to Keldin. He has everything in order. We'll start construction on your new palace. At the moment, I have booked reservations for the Council and the Court here."

Aiden took the brochure he held out and her mouth dropped. "Mikey, we can't go there."

He smiled at the reaction he knew he would get. "Of course you can. Silvers own it and have volunteered the cabins for your family, our parents, and as many as they'll hold. There are some rooms reserved for the ones who didn't get into the cabins. It'll only be until we get your palace built."

Clint nodded and took the brochure from her. "Thank you. We're honored that you'd help us this much."

"Don't worry about it. It's the least I could do to help the people. Welcome to the family, Clint."

"Thank you for having me fit in." He slipped his arm through his wife's and swung her around. "Let's go get our son and pack."

Aiden allowed herself to be pulled from the room while she was staring at her brother. He was a sneaky little thing but he was helping her. Finally she smiled at him and followed her husband.

~~~~~~~~~

Aiden's Journal

Do the dates even matter at this point? They're all running together.

Whew! What a day! I don't even have the enegry to title this one.

I never want to go through any of this ever again. If for some reason this thing crumbles around us, I will gladly disappear off the grid and live a life I have always wanted.

Although I'm tired, I have a feeling that life is about to get even more interesting than it was before. Until now, I had papers, books, finals, and a baby. Now, let's add a tiara! (Love me some Princess Diaries.)

All jokes aside, things are about to get a lot more tiring and stressful for me and my family. I really hope we can keep this level of camaraderie even in the hard times. If we lose who we really are inside, I fear we will never get it back.