[6]

It had been three full cycles since the Vida family had returned home, but today they had finished packing their wagon with their belongings, the house River had spent so long in and raised his children in now sat empty. Astra had said goodbye to the wild hive of bees, and Elios visited his favorite berry bushes, River ran his fingers over the door frame, feeling the notches In the wood marking his and his children's growth. "Bye-bye house!" Elios called out as they left, River took a nervous breath as he tightened his hold on the reigns, still anxious about moving to the city, even if it was on a large plot of land behind the castle. He was granted the title of Duke by the King, he was given this title for the act of healing the third prince and aiding in the collection and making of the medication for the young princess. Their new home would come fully furnished, of course, they had put in their thoughts on the furniture and where their rooms should be placed, so they did not save any furniture. "Papa, will we have maids and butlers? i don't think we need them, we can dress ourselves, bathe ourselves, and we can cook and clean... they seem unnecessary," Astra said as she played with twine, River hummed as he leaned back so she could hear him better. "We will have one maid and one butler, not to help with bathing or dressing, they will help with laundry, fixing things in the house if we need them to help, running small errands and collecting any letters, and greeting visitors if we are busy, and just watching the house when we are out, but they will join us for meals and act more like friends otherwise, like an aunt and uncle of sorts," She hummed as she agreed with what he told her, it didn't take long for Elios to fall asleep, and Astra soon following his lead.

River felt uneasy with all the eyes on him as their carriage moved through the busy street, he sighed in relief when he had made it to his property, away from all the eyes. "Greetings Your Grace," The man and woman both greeted, their heads lowered as they bowed. "Please, no need for such formal titles, I would prefer you to call me River, or Sir if that is what you would be more comfortable with, only use those titles when we have guests and titles are necessary," He said with a nervous laugh, his sleepy children holding onto his coat as they tried to wake themselves more. "I see, my name is Laurene Brew, Sir, and it is an honor to work here, I must say we were a bit surprised to read in our contracts how lax our duties would be, but if it is your wish, then we will follow it," She said with a small bow and a smile, the man gave a warm smile too as he introduced himself. "I am Gilbert Hause, we look forward to our time working for you,"

A few days after arriving at their new home, the Royal Family visited them, and they came bearing gifts. Laurene prepared tea and small finger foods, and Gilbert greeted them and got them settled in the family sitting room. Astra and Elios happily greeted them, their Papa had still not joined them. "I apologize for the absence of His Grace, he will be joining us shortly, he is currently in a cold bath to soothe a fever, i assure you he has no illness that could be shared, with the formal appearances to greet the other nobles he has had to attend in just the last three nights, and right after a move, the stress of it all has taken its toll, but the young lord and lady have taken to it quite well, the sunny and outgoing young lord Elios, and the prudent but leery lady Astra," The family seemed pleased and unsurprised by the thoughts others have on the children, but they also worried about their father. "And their thoughts on River?" Philo asked, Laurene sat her tray down before answering this question. "The calm and elegant doting father with a sagacious aura, but... he seems to be blind to the advances made on him by the single noblemen and women," She said with a small look of worry, Philo hummed, unsurprised to hear any of this. "Sorry to keep you all waiting, I hope the children have been behaving," River said as he entered the room, his voice sounded slightly strained, and he was paler than usual with a slight flush to his cheeks and tiredness in his eyes. Gilbert hurried to assist him in walking to his seat, the poor man shivered slightly as he leaned back into his seat even with the blanket now draped around his shoulders. "Oh you poor dear, if we had known you were unwell then we would have come another day," Hannah said as she worriedly looked over him, she was surprised to see the slight glimmer of scales on his neck and jaw. "It is alright, Your Majesty, I truly appreciate your visit, it is calming to see familiar faces,"

Sophia came up to him, her little hands grabbing hold of one of his trembling ones. "River, can Elios and Astra stay the night with me? My birf day is tomorrow and I wanna spend more time wif dem," He cooed at her cuteness, not only did she ask politely but she still sounded so small, he couldn't help but remember when his kids sounded like that, and fumbled their words. "Of course, as long as His Majesty is alright with this?" He looked up, Philo smiled as he nodded, and his daughter squealed as she now chased after the two other children who were hurrying to pack an overnight bag. "Thank you, there are going to be many other children at her party tomorrow, but she wanted to spend the most time with her true friends, hopefully, this gives you time to rest," Hannah said with a smile, River hummed, struggling to keep his eyes open. "I- I am very sorry, I am not a good host at the moment," He said after a small shake of his head, Roland chuckled as he caught his older brother practically cooing. "Don't you worry one bit, We will leave your gift for later, we should start getting the children into the carriage," His children gave him kisses once they returned, both promising to be on their best behavior before running off. Geordo remained in the sitting room with him, he cleared his throat as he moved to kneel next to his seat. He placed a small gift in his hands, a soft smile on his face as he quickly stood. "I look forward to seeing you again, I hope you feel well soon," He then left, Laurene raised a brow as she hurried to sit on the arm of the chair and look over at the box. "What did he give you?" She asked, he shrugged weakly as he opened the thin yet long box. Inside was a dark silver chain, thin and dainty, it was three chains attached, small gold and red stones hanging off of them with a larger flat stone. "A beautiful head chain, Sir, do you feel the same as his Royal Highness?" River tiredly looked up, a slightly puzzled look on his face. "River, Sir, when someone gives jewelry to another it is a sign of deep romantic feelings, and from a prince? he must be quite serious about his feelings,"