Chp.34: Contrast.

Next morning.

"Aww?" Duncan yawned as he got up.

The morning was grey and there were mild drizzles.

"Damn. I slept very well." He said as he stretched sitting on his chair itself.

"But my neck is sore. Why?" He thought to himself as he noticed that he slept on the chair while working.

"Aww man. This is so awkward and painful as well." Duncan said as he stretched his back once again. "I bet she is still sleeping..." he was going to say as he looked at the bed by the side of his working table.

But he was surprised to see that she had already left. "Hmm? So that means she is not sleeping like a spoiled child." He said in a light mumbling voice.

"She is really mysterious. I can't seem to predict her actions at all." Duncan thought to himself. He got up from the chair and he could feel his legs all frozen.

"What's this?" A letter was sitting there, near his pen stand. It was actually beside all the disoriented papers and documents, but it was noticeable enough to stand out.

"Is this something Lady Rachel left?" He said as he picked up the small note. It wasn't that big to be called as a letter actually. Anyways, so Duncan opened the noted up and started surfing through the words.

"Thank you your majesty.... my honour... pleasure..hope you had a good sleep... I am sorry..." He just picked up words as key words and skimmed through the letter until one sentence made him stop.

"I wish you could've slept on the bed." She wrote it in the letter. In ink.

He suddenly blushed and could feel his heart beating. "Wait, what?" His mind constantly kept on repeating as he couldn't take his eyes off from that one sentence.

"What did she mean? Is she crazy?" Duncan was now all arguing with himself and being unreasonable. "We are not even lovers." He said as he couldn't stop blushing like a maiden.

And then he suddenly stopped.

"Yes, we are not even lovers." He said in a serious voice. Everything just came to stop in that moment. The rain outside, the pendulum, everything was just so clear in that very moment and yet so unclear.

"What am I even thinking?" Duncan turned around and went back to his seat.

"Becoming lovers? Do I even have a chance?" Duncan thought to himself. He suddenly felt all upset. He kept that little note aside and started to clean his desk. He decided to keep his emotions in control.

"We are not even close. We are strangers." He thought as he frown appeared on his forehead. "We are just tied by a marriage. A fake marriage." Duncan mumbled.

"No,no I should not think about these things first thing in the morning." He said as he shook his head and shooked off his thoughts.

There was a knock on the door.

"Yes, come in." Duncan ordered as he piled up the documents on the side.

"Good morning your majesty." A voice called for him. He looked up at the person standing in front of him swiftly.

Her voice was melodius and stable. She was tall, sturdy like a man and yet elegant. She had an aura around her. A graceful aura that no one can ever ignore. No man can ever ignore.

"Stanton?" Ducan said in his morning husky voice.

"Yes, Duncan. I mean your majesty." Said the woman standing in front of him.

He felt a huge rock as it fell on his heart. The feeling that was so painful like the emotions he treasured, getting crushed. Getting crushed once again as he looked at her smile. A wide smile that was plastered on her face and her eyes that showed nothing but pity for him.

"Isabella? Why are you back?" Duncan mumbled.

"Hm? What did you say?" Isabella stepped a little ahead towards Duncan's table.

"No nothing." Duncan said as he continued to look away from her.

"Why isn't he looking at me?" Isabella thought to herself. "Didn't he change in all these years at all?" She assumed. "Pfft. How cute." She thought. "You couldn't get rid of your mumbling habit after all." She said as she giggled.

"It's not what..." Duncan got flustered when Isabella said so, but before he could say anything a voice called out for both of them.

"It seems to be a pleasant morning, your majesty." It was Regina, or lady Rachel D'Azure - The current queen and Duncan's wife.

Isabella turned around to look at Regina's face and Duncan stood up abruptly from his seat. Regina walked towards the work table crossing Isabella.

"It seems that the maids in your palace are going to have a lot of free time, since the queen herself is serving you the morning tea." Isabella taunted.

Regina remained silent as she carefully placed the tray with the teapot and cups down on the desk that Duncan just cleaned.

Duncan remained silent as well since he was too surprised to see Regina serving him tea first thing in the morning.

But as soon as Regina was done, she looked at Isabella, "It seems that Stanton's couldn't actually afford to train their daughter. Guess all the money went into building railway tracks." Regina taunted her back.

Isabella quickly made a pitiable face and looked at Duncan who was standing there, "Your majesty?!" She said in a voice that almost felt like she was going to cry anytime now.

"I am the one you should be addressing lady Stanton." Regina said. "I am the queen after all." Regina casually shrugged her shoulders.

Isabella gave her a stare but then bowed down, "Pardon my lack of knowledge your majesty. I was unaware of your status as the queen. Since you haven't been crowned as one." Isabella said in a soft yet sharp voice.

"Hmm." Regina just ignored her and went ahead to pour the tea. "What would you like to have your majesty?" She asked in a polite and respectful voice.

"Ah... um.." Duncan couldn't keep the thoughts that he started having after reading that letter behind. "Earl... Earl grey... I guess." Duncan said as he tried maintaining his presence as the king and hiding his flushed face behind his stern mask.

All while Isabella was just standing there in a bow position after she got ignored by Regina.

"You dare ignore me. I will not forget this insult." Isabella gritted her teeth as she looked at Regina and Duncan getting all cozy with each other.

"You will never be happy Duncan. Not when I am here all sad." She thought as she was almost cursing Regina and Duncan.

And Regina wasn't dumb enough to not notice this hostility at all. In fact she was enjoying this hostility as she now knew who her first target would be.