Day 209-210 (187th-188th)

Day 209 (187th): 3 days until coronation
Set woke me, a hunk of meat in his mouth.
"It was cold on a plate. Is it alright for me to eat?" he asked.
Sleepily, I informed him he could have any meat left lying around from the reception. Thumping his thick tail, he vanished, happy.
When we arrived downstairs, several guests were just leaving. Gavin and Mara did not appear until after mid-day. We ate left-over reheated food before we headed out to look around.
The tent city was slowly being disassembled. The florists were carefully transferring the flowers to protective buildings they used to house their plants. Where our dome had ended, wizards were gathering the red snow for "later use". Many clerics were having a crisis of faith after seeing the true forms of their deities. The spots where the elements had arrived were being investigated and documented. The fire element had left a scorched trail between its arrival point and the wall of the city. The air element had twisted the grass into a circle at its point of entry and blown over trails of grass on the path to and from Selvis Prime. A large pool and many deep puddles marked the water element's source and path. Fresh turned earth gave us the earth element's route. All of these were also of interest to citizens and merchants. Many were collecting them as charms and souvenirs. As we were noting all of this, we discussed whether to part now or journey the rest of the year together. We decided to postpone the final decision until after Mara's and Gavin's coronations.
By evening, all evidence of the reception had been cleaned up and transported away. Mara's dress was being taken apart and reworked for others to use. The city's remodel had resumed in earnest after the snow stopped. Falcon returned to Demagram to continue training the new riders. Leo said he was going to journey himself to see his place in the world. Everyone had to find their place in this new world. These thoughts followed us to sleep.

Day 210 (188th): 2 days until coronation
Callie woke me up before dawn. She said she had a terrible dream where, upon separating, we all aged rapidly and died almost simultaneously. She recounted this dream in tears. I assured her it was just a dream, a product of her own fears. The others awoke while Callie told her dream. The others said they had also dreamt of our parting, but the emotion varied.
"Kayla," Callie began quietly, "can you foresee our future? I know your seer skills are not strong, but it would ease my mind and everyone else."
"Unfortunately, I cannot yet will myself into a vision. They come on their own. Maybe something either today or tomorrow will trigger one."
"I guess it will have to do," Callie said, almost defeated.
As we got up, Set popped in and announced he had caught a "really long fish"". He stepped back to reveal a headless water snake. Screams echoed in the room, scaring Set into my arms and bringing a half dozen people to our door. I took Set and the snake to the balcony, out of sight of all the others.
Set was actually sobbing, "I...don't...understand. Other...dragons...show...their...kills. No...one...screams...at...them."
"They were frightened, my friend. Girls and women sometimes scream when dead things are shown to them. They were not screaming at you. They screamed in fear from the snake you caught. Here, eat it before it goes bad. When they calm down, they will apologize."
"If you say it is alright, I will be fine."
Set hopped down and began eating the snake. Kendar came out to join me with two plates in his hands. Set stopped eating and watched him, leery that he might shout at him.
"Fear not, Set," Kendar said gently, "Snakes do not bother me, alive or dead. Continue your meal."
Set renewed his activity while Kendar handed me a plate. He was chuckling. Finally, aloud, he told me why.
"They have faced demons, gods, and other perils with iron wits, but shriek at the sight of a harmless, dead snake. It is quite amusing."
"At the end of it, Kendar, we are still young girls and women. In spite of all these perils and events, that has not changed. They reacted as girls and women sometimes do," I said as I took my plate from him.
He nodded and began eating. Set finished the snake with a slight slurp and set about cleaning himself. Sarah shyly walked out on the balcony, embarrassment plain on her face.
"Set, we are sorry. We got use to seeing you eat mice, rats, squirrels, and such. The presence of a snake, even dead and headless, startled us greatly. We screamed in fright, not at you. Please, accept our apology."
Set cocked his head as he listened. When she had finished, Set walked over and rubbed her leg, purring as he did. Sarah smiled and rubbed his head by his horns. His tail thumped and little smoke puffs escaped his nostrils.
"I will convey your acceptance to the others. We have to accept that you are getting bigger which means your food will, doubtlessly, also become larger. Does Bo have a reason to be concerned?"
Set thumped into a sitting position and gave her a scowling look. Sarah laughed and rubbed him again.
"That is what I thought, but I had to ask for Bo's and Lisa's sakes. They will be pleased."
With a final rub, Sarah went back into the room. Set puffed some more then returned to lay on my feet as I finished breakfast.
A valet found us and informed us Gavin and Mara wished to see us right away. We found them in the throne room, obviously concerned about something. Mara's face brightened when she saw us.
"My friends, this is something with which only you seven can aid us. We have received four letters, all from my 'older siblings', demanding we turn rule over to them. They all say they will be here before the coronation to formally protest my 'theft' of the Selvis throne."
"May we see the letters?" I asked.
Before she could touch them, the sheets floated to my hand. I looked as stunned as the rest because I had not called to the letters themselves. I looked at the papers and saw the emotions that still clung to them from their writers.
"One, this one," holding it for the others to see, "is a complete fake. The emotions here are jumbled and distorted. Plus, you can see where 'Selvis' covers another name that was rubbed away incompletely. This one can be ignored."
I handed it to Kendar to do with as he wished.
"The other three believe they have a legitimate claim. Two are absolutely convinced while the third is unsure, but has been told he is a Selvis heir."
I handed the three to Alice. She studied the papers. She singled out one.
"This one, the one Kayla said was unsure, has lived at a monastery as long as he can remember. He has received lessons due an heir being groomed for the throne. The monks, specifically the Abbot, are certain of his bloodline."
She held out a second one, "This female has only the claim of her late husband that he was the eldest of the Selvis heirs which makes her daughter the next in line, she thinks."
Finally, she held up the last, "This other man's claim is thready at best. Duty and honor prompted him to write and put in his claim. I doubt his claim is genuine."
Anna received the letters from Alice. She held them silently for several minutes.
"I cannot glean anything more. So many layers are upon these that it is difficult to separate them."
Foreseeing our need, Kendar produced a wizard's glass to view the writers of these claims. We placed them upon a table with the glass in the center of them. We drew the swords and encircled the glass and papers. Mara suggested starting with the one from the monastery. The glass rolled over that page and an image formed. We saw a man who resembled both Mara and Marrissa and the paintings of the late kings of Selvis. He looked worried and weary. He was on horseback, alone, with only the barest of supplies. We, then, focused upon the woman. The glass revealed a woman with a smug look in a carriage with a young girl. The girl had no resemblance to anyone of Selvis blood. They were both dressed very fancy with many bags on the carriage. Lastly, we focused upon the other man. He was on horseback, dressed in an old Selvis uniform. Around him were other males dressed in similar attire. They rode with military precision in formation. Neither he nor any who rode with him looked like any of Selvis lineage. However, Mara said he looked familiar but could not remember a name or where she had seen him before. With coronation two days away, we were certain they would all be here by tomorrow. With some guests leaving, there would be plenty of room for them. Servants and soldiers were alerted and given descriptions of these people.
As a lark, we looked at the writer of the fake. As we sort of expected, he was a rag-clad hermit in a remote area near the sea. We watched him pen two more letters. One claimed he was the long-lost son of King Neroska of Taynok while the other stated his claim to the estate of Mashasto the Grand from Harlak. Kendar told us that Taynok was the home of a race of lizard people and seriously doubted this man had any reptilian ancestor. Kendar also reported that Mashasto the Grand from Harlak was a child's story he had heard as a young boy. If such a man was real, his "estate" had passed through so many hands by now that several hundred people had either a part of it or could claim to be entitled to it. A group of clerics were sent to find him to prevent him from getting himself in trouble.
The rest of the day was fairly uneventful. More merchants and guests left, including Lord Carmon. We helped sort out the wedding presents and pen thank-you letters to the givers. We actually discovered that two presents were cursed. While we could tell the givers hadn't known of the curses, they were there specifically against Mara and Gavin. Callie was able to determine the Baaloc construction of the pieces and we decided it was a last ditch effort to harm the pair. While we thanked the givers, the items were destroyed. Many others had small bits of magic around them, blessings every one.
By dinner, the thank-you letters were being sent and a place had been found for all the usable items. Money and things just for wealth were tucked into the treasury.
Our military clad claimant arrived as we were headed to bed. They were given a light meal and shown to their room.