Luke laughed out loud at her rather quick denial of his hypothetical proposal. “What happened to ‘I will always try to do what I truly believe is in your best interest’?” He was referring to something she said when they were having an argument the day before, though it was not something he really expected from her. It was just that he was not as insensitive and apathetic as the media sometimes painted him. When she announced that her family would not come see her, that there was nobody that she would request to be at her bedside, Luke heard the pain in her voice and saw the tears threatening to spill from those green eyes. He kept his mouth shut and avoided prodding emotional territory, especially because he was not equipped to deal with a crying princess. 

Therefore, he tried to lighten the mood by teasing her and apparently it worked. Rhiane denied him, yet again, but it worked. Her face lit up as she grinned while imagining the names and faces of the people whose veins she would volunteer as her betrothed’s target practice. The sadness in her eyes retreated, behind the wall of defense she built around herself. Unknown to the princess elect, the person standing in front of her was no stranger to hiding loneliness behind a confident smile. The prince was firm on his belief that a royal and a peasant had nothing in common, but the truth was he and she were more alike than they would both admit. It was not the time to explore those similarities though.

Feeling that he had successfully evaded the task of calming down a potential breakdown, his royal highness made his way back to his seat. The Airforce uniform jacket hang at the back of the chair. “No. Of course not. I would not have eaten anything from Evolab after what I saw happened to you.” He may have undergone procedures as precaution to such assassination attempts, but the thought of something bad in his food was enough to suppress his appetite. Besides, he was too angry to think of anything else other than who was behind the attempt and how best to penalize the responsible party. 

Noticing the soft light gazing the edges of his communication band, Luke picked it up and read the message. It was that moment when the door silently slid open again. 

“Rhiane, my dear, I trust that you are feeling better.” The queen’s voice was as sweet as the scent she wore when she glided into the room followed by her daughter, who was smiling sheepishly. 

The heir stiffened halfway through the message he was typing back at the sound of his mother’s voice. He turned the display off and put the device in his back pocket. Although it was not enough to hide the entirety of the device, at least there was no chance that the queen would catch a glimpse of the messages. “What are you doing here?” He asked, honestly baffled by the sudden appearance of the mother-daughter tandem.

“Visiting the sick, what else?” Unlike her older brother who rushed into the sick room empty-handed, Callista carried a basket of fresh fruits. It was not something she personally picked for the princess elect, but was most likely a result of a request to the royal kitchen. She set her gift down on Rhiane’s bedside table. The princess paused beside her future sister-in-law, who was resting against the pillow, then gently threw herself at the older woman with a well-meant hug. “I hope you get well soon, Rhiane.” The hug was not intended to last longer than necessary. Cally pulled herself away before it got awkward, then smiled at the patient. “I hope you like fruits, because I brought a lot for you.” She turned to her brother then continued, “Luke may steal some of it, because he eats a lot, but don’t let him, okay?”
“I am just making sure that our princess elect is recovering well,” the queen reassured. “I hear from Isaac that her system is responding well to the anti-toxins and that there is no longer any threat to her life. I wanted to see for myself that the reports are true.” When she smiled, it was as if an older version of the princess’ face was smiling at Rhiane. “Otherwise, it will be unfortunate to ask you, Ms. Black, to travel even if you are feeling unwell. Looking at you now, however, I am more at peace with the schedule of your tour that will depart tomorrow.”