jay✨🖋💙

He would—it was that kind of thing exactly that had inspired my idea. Neo would balance me perfectly. Fill in all the gaps my rule had within it.

But that was only at work. Within my family, within my relationship with Elian…that was up to me to fix.

Alex pulled me into a hug, pressing his lips to the side of my head. “I love you, queenie. I know you’d never hurt her on purpose—you just need to 𝘴𝘭𝘰𝘸 𝘥𝘰𝘸𝘯 sometimes. Neo will probably help facilitate that going forward.”

“I’m going to go see her because I want to,” Alex said as he stood. “I’m going to make her some food and clean her room. If she wants to talk, we will. If she doesn’t, we won’t. But tomorrow, no matter how today goes, you need to talk to her. Face to face. Postpone the announcement.”

It was suddenly difficult to breathe through my nose. To see past my tears.

Why did I 𝘬𝘦𝘦𝘱 doing this to my children? Why couldn’t I ever seem to get it right with all of them at the same time? Why did someone always have to be at odds?

Alex’s smile went sad and wistful in the blink of an eye. “She’s just a baby, still,” he reminded me. “And she’s scared. That was a massive decision you asked her to make—on the spot, in front of someone she hates disappointing, all alone.”

“Will you take her a note?” I asked weakly. “Even if she doesn’t want to write back, it would give you a reason to go—to be there with her.”

“You know I don’t mind that, but I’m not sure that’s going to cut it this time.”

Alex turned to look out the window, jaw tense, brow furrowed. When Elian had been little, between four and eight, he’d had to play mediator between us frequently. And once she’d learned to read and write, passing notes via Alex had been one of the only ways we could talk things out without strife.

Alex’s gaze had gone withering. “𝘚𝘪𝘯𝘦—”

“I 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸,” I whined. “But there’s next to nothing I can do now without her thinking I’m being disingenuous. She’s too angry.”

“Wait,” Alex cut in. “You talked to Neo before you talked to her?”

I met his eyes miserably. “I was caught up in what I was doing—I didn’t think about it. I wanted to know if Neo would even be on board and…if he hadn’t been I wouldn’t have 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘦𝘥 to…”

“I really fucked this up with Elian,” I said, gnawing at the inside of my cheek. “I should have talked to her first. She’s exactly right; I looked right over her, and then I didn’t even go with Neo to ask—”

Was I nervous? Absolutely.

But that wasn’t what was on my mind.

All I had been able to think about for days was the look of sheer betrayal on Elian’s face.

Tomorrow—when I told Olympus of the new direction of the monarchy. Began preparations for a coronation unlike any before it. My son, the crown prince of Olympus, soon to be their new king.

They’d be excited until they realized how much he’d grown as a person.

“Are you nervous?” Alex asked, watching me pace back and forth across the living room. “About tomorrow?”

they’re gonna be so excited! 🤠

I think she’s probably always thought they’d prefer Neo, there was a time where he’d have agreed with them but that’s long gone now 😌

right! for like a week or two she’ll be second in line until Neo ascends, then first again

she’s still got a lot to work through 🥲 but it does hurt her feelings that everyone seems to think that future outside perspectives matter more to her than what’s happening right now

right! she’s trying to be proactive with the dark thoughts 🥲

true 🥲

Thea heard them too. Looked back at Elian with concern and confusion on her face.

“You stepped down?” she whispered in disbelief.

Elian looked away. “It would seem I did.”

She had only just crossed the threshold when she heard the first whispers.

𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘥 𝘥𝘰𝘸𝘯!

𝘈 𝘤𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘯 𝘱𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘢𝘵 𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘵!

𝘍𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘢 𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘰𝘯 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘥𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘥𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘴, 𝘐 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳…

Elian didn’t have anything else to say. She turned, tears still streaming down her face, ignoring her mother’s calls of her name, as she hurried out of the throne room and across the palace to Thea’s office.

“It better not,” she choked out. “Only you have the power to protect him now.”

“That’s my job, Elian,” her mother said. “It always has been.”

“I don’t 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦 if people see it,” Elian hissed. “I don’t care if history remembers I exist 𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘭. All I care about is that nothing happens to Neo because of this. If being king warps him, gets him hurt, 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘴𝘦…”

Sine nodded. “I know. You did a beautiful job, Elian—you’re an exemplary big sister. Nobody is blind to what you’re doing for this to happen.”

Elian trusted her mother to understand the reason why. She better have understood the reason why.

“I protected Neo as best I could from the day he was born until today,” Elian breathed. “I’m only stopping because 𝘩𝘦 asked me to.”

While her mother floundered for something to say to placate her, Elian looked down at the paper. “I’ve agreed to stand aside for Neo. But with the condition that once he ascends, I resume my spot. I will not do this again.”

“I would have loved to talk about it 𝘣𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦,” Elian snarled as calmly as she could. “I would have been happy to be part of the conversation. To have been asked by 𝘣𝘰𝘵𝘩 of you, not just the one you knew would break me down the fastest.”

𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘺 𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘮, 𝘱𝘦𝘵.

𝘐’𝘮 𝘵𝘳𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨.

𝘐 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘳𝘦.

Elian ground her back teeth. “Because I’m here as the former crown princess, not just your daughter. I’m not going to give up my right to succession in our living room.”

Her mother softened. “Do you want to talk about it?”