Chapter Three: Harmless

As far as Jasper could tell, Henry was on edge. The young Lycan could hear it in the monarch’s heartbeat. He could sense it in the scent he gave off. His bride-to-be was due to arrive any minute now, and the preparations were far from complete—Henry’s opinion, not Jasper’s. The young monarch would do the preparations himself if he wasn’t so busy with work and if the reports he was currently reading weren’t so crucial. This unnatural drive for perfection revealed a lot about the princess’ personality.

“I hope Selina likes it,” Henry muttered under his breath as he twirled his pen in his fingers repeatedly while he read file after file of paperwork. He must be desperate to finish all of it by tonight.

Jasper stopped tossing his rubber ball on the wall of his sister’s laboratory to stare at the overworked king. He heard from other people that the Destined Queen was pompous, self-obsessed, and overbearing. She must be hot if Henry was willing to put up with that, but then again, the child king would bend over backward if it meant the safety and prosperity of his Empire.

The young Lycan sighed before grabbing a metal stool from underneath a granite counter and placing it at Henry’s table. He sat in front of his friend, grabbing a file folder to read. Henry smiled gratefully at him before looking at his wristwatch, eyes widening before focusing on his task again. Hardly. He still kept looking at his watch every ten seconds.

Jasper was halfway through the report he was reading when a thought occurred to him… the future queen may also be dreadful-looking, owing to the inbreeding royals do to preserve their bloodlines. Was that the reason the Princess of Rozenberg was so difficult to deal with? She was masking her shortcomings and imperfections? He remembered the portraits of the past rulers that he saw in a museum once. They had obvious deformities no amount of makeup could hide. Historians wrote they lack intelligence as well. The young wolf shuddered at the picture his mind was giving him.

Poor Henry.

“Eureka!” an excited voice said, and it snapped the heir apparent—and Jasper—out of their thoughts. Henry whirled around while Jasper just looked up and their eyes landed on a girl wearing a short, white coat.

It was Jasper’s twin sister, Jade. She was standing near her laptop on the far side of the granite counter. She had papers and Petri dishes with tissue and blood samples piled high on her table. Jasper assumed scientists were orderly, but she was the opposite. When there was chaos, Jade thrived and thought more clearly.

“What happened?” Henry asked, standing up and walking towards the girl while Jasper remained where he was.

It’s nerd stuff, and the young wolf wouldn’t lie; even if he tried, he’d have no idea what they were talking about. He just knew they were making some kind of drug to help werewolves and other supernatural creatures. Jasper continued to scan the report in his hands, and it didn’t take long before the task engrossed him. Before he knew it, he was already halfway through Henry’s pile. He was stretching his tired limbs when he heard his sister’s voice again.

“Your Majesty.” Jade’s voice sounded softer, a touch higher in pitch than normal. She was clutching a metal clipboard to her chest. When speaking to the king... or any other person who wasn’t her brother, she seemed and sounded more feminine. The absurdity of it made Jasper laugh.

“Hmm?” Henry was spacing out again.

“You don’t have to be here, you know,” Jade said, smiling. “We’re just doing some tests. I’m sure we’ll manage without you.”

“No, no, sorry.” Henry shook his head. “I want to be here. I want to know if it works.”

“I’m afraid I have to insist, Your Majesty, your head is in the clouds. I’m sorry, but you’ll just get in the way.”

“How dare you kick me out of here?” Henry asked playfully. “I am your King!”

“You may be the king of the realm, but this is my lab. Here, I am the king,” Jade answered, giggling. “So what I say, goes. And I say, you’re a nuisance. Adorable, but a nuisance.”

Jasper was torn between puking and feeling sorry for them. He concluded that it’s the latter, and it’s time to put an end to their innocent flirting before it turns into something they’ll regret.

“She’s right,” he butted in. “It’s time to meet your girlfriend... before it gets dark. Jade can handle the tests and their results, don’t you, Jade?”

Jasper emphasized the word ‘girlfriend’ and just as he thought, it wiped the smile off their faces. Blood rushed to his twin sister’s face and she could only nod in agreement.

‘How could you forget I am here?’ Jasper told her, and Jade’s blush deepened. She could hear him clearly even if they were meters apart because of their mind link. Perks of being a twin. ‘The man’s taken. Get ahold of yourself.’

‘I am not doing anything wrong,’ Jade answered in the same manner, careful not to let the young monarch be aware of their conversation through her expression. ‘Don’t speak to me that way.’

“Thank you, Jade,” Henry said, touching the girl on the shoulder, making her jump. “I appreciate it. Will you text me the results later?”

“S-sure!”

“I’ll wait for you outside, Henry,” Jasper announced, slapping the table to draw their attention again. He looked at Jade meaningfully, and she scowled at him in return.

“Hey, Jay, you know a lot about girls...” The young monarch took his coat off the table and shrugged it on.

“So?” The young Lycan eyed his friend skeptically.

“What can I give Selina as a present?”

“This again? What can you give to someone who already has everything?” Jasper asked back. “What is this about this time? Have you not already showered her with gifts?”

“Well... This will be my first time seeing her after years apart.” Henry fiddled with his coat buttons; beads of sweat formed in his brows. “And it’s full moon tonight. I won’t be able to see her for three days. I don’t want her to get mad at me.”

“Just give her whatever,” Jasper said, nonchalant. “Flowers. Isn’t it customary to greet guests with bouquets or something?”

Henry beamed at that. “What kind?”

“There’s a literal girl in here present, why are you asking me?” Jasper just shrugged before walking out of the room.

“Roses,” Jade piped up.

“What?”

“Girls like roses,” Jade clarified. “Well, not every girl, especially not this girl, but… you know what I mean.”

“Yes.” Henry nodded. “Roses are Selina’s favorites, especially pink ones.”

“Wow, that’s… pretty basic of her,” Jade said. “No offense.”

“She’s not called the Rose Princess for nothing.”

“I thought she was called like that because her kingdom exports the best-looking roses in the world?”

“Hmm, yeah” Henry grimaced a little. He turned to go, but his curiosity got the better of him. “Not that I’m interested in knowing, but why don’t you like roses?”

“Oh, I don’t like all kinds of flowers, not just roses.” Jade looks through her favorite microscope before jotting something down on her clipboard. “I’m allergic to pollen.”

“I see,” Henry said thoughtfully. “I am too.”

“Twinsies,” Jade said with fake enthusiasm before turning to the king with hands on her hips. “What are you still doing here? Go, shoo! I’ll summon you when something interesting happens.”

“Okay, thanks, Jade.”

The young woman ignored him and looked through her microscope again, adjusting the dials, but when Henry turned and left, she looked up to see the door of the lab swinging on its hinges. She stared a little more before turning to her work again.

Jasper was leaning on the white wall of the hallway when Henry stepped out of Jade’s laboratory. The younger boy was smiling from ear to ear until he stopped to retrieve his cellphone from his coat pocket.

“Everything all right?” Jasper straightened when the monarch’s face turned white.

“Jay,” Henry said, looking up from his phone. “Selina is not at the border.”

____