[b] Ella grew rigid for a moment, unprepared for Marken's compliments and the way he put on the amulet, completely unashamed of her gift. There he went again, winding her with his kind words and affection. How did people learn such methods of flattery? Toren men weren't nearly as smooth as Marken; maybe one day Ella would sit down and discuss how different Rhal was from her old home.

"W-well, with all of this settled, I suppose we should move on to helping your mother," Ella sighed quietly, "From what I can tell, the royal gardens should have any ingredients I would need for an antidote. All we need to do is find out her ailment. I will assume that the poison was concocted in Toren since none of your father's physicians know what is wrong with her."

Reaching out, Ella gently held Marken's hand, holding the palm against her lips and kissing it. This was going to be hard on Marken, but she was confident that if they worked quickly, his mother could be recovering by the evening.

"If we work quickly, I should be able to slip in the antidote with her evening meal," Ella continued optimistically, giving Marken a smile, "Let's get to it, okay? I want your mama to give us her full blessing before we marry."[/b]