The door doesn't move when I push. The room is locked!

I turn towards Alexander and ask him with a glance what to do. It's just a pity that we won't be able to see my room...

We look left and right to check there isn't anyone.

Instead of walking back on our steps, Alexander pulls me towards the room next to this one. He opens it, and we reach the Consort's chambers without any obstacle on the way.

«I can't believe they didn't lock this one,» I chuckle. «It hasn't been that difficult to get in.»

«Infiltrating your own home is an easy deal,» Alexander replies, taking off the dark cloak. «Now, let's see if I'll have to scold someone...»

He pushes the door to the royal chambers, and it resists.

Thank goodness, they locked this one as well.

It would be bad if it really was this easy to get in!

«Let's avoid breaking the keyhole,» Alexander comments while moving some books. He finds a key and uses it to open the door.

«How did you know?» I ask, surprised.

«This key has been here for centuries. It hasn't been used too often, at most once or twice for each generation.»

«What?» Generations?

«I found the message of your grandmother telling me the use of it. She wrote it for your mother, or for the next Consort that was going to take her place. Apparently, the Dowager Queen never found it.»

«My mother didn't use this room for long, just a few years. She moved out after my father's death.»

«Well, look at this,» he chuckles. «The note is still here as this time no one found it.»

I take the paper and read a few words on it.

«If your King behaves ruthlessly or makes you mad, lock the door, and he'll come to terms with your conditions,» I murmur. Then, there's my grandmother's signature for real. «This is how Queens made their voice heard...»

«I haven't ever used it, by the way,» Alexander states, proud like a peafowl. Did he even use this room while we were married?

«Because it can't work if you sleep on the bed. You need a wall in between if you want to lock someone out,» I point out. «I haven't ever locked the door in Stoneyard either!»

«Not our chamber's room, but the office,» he reminds me. «You locked yourself in there.»

«Oh, I had valid reasons!»

«The way you reacted was so fierce, and you immediately came up with that idea. It must be written in your being, something you inherited from your ancestors...»

«Stop wasting time, now,» I sigh. «Let's go...»

«Wait a moment,» he stops me. «Why are you avoiding the topic now?»

«I'm not evading anything. And my reaction was totally understandable. Think about the circumstances, and you'll realise.»

«But can you imagine how it makes me feel? Will you lock yourself every time we argue?»

«Only when it's something major.»

«It will make me live in fear, Thea.»

«That's good. You better avoid angering me, and everything will be all right.»

Oh, I guess my ancestors knew their deal.

While Alexander unlocks the door, I look around, trying to remember how that room looked in my dreams. Now, it's empty and dim.

Since I didn't have a Consort, it was unused. I didn't even dare to use it as a spare room, as I had enough space on the other side of the door.

«Here, my dear,» Alexander whispers, and I step into my bedroom.

It's exactly as I left it. It must have been cleaned and then locked, as all my things are in their place. Even those I forgot somewhere else.

I open the drawers of the dressing table and look for the jewels I left there. I don't need them that badly, but I'd at least like to bring with me my mother's legacy. My father's golden tools for writing are in the office, which I won't be able to reach. But the sigil with his personal sign is here. Mine has been given to Ethiro the day I signed the surrender.

Also, there are some notebooks I used for personal notes.

I turn to Alexander only for a moment, but then I'm drawn to look at him again. He's just standing there and observing me, but it feels so utterly familiar.

Only after walking to him, standing on tiptoe, and gazing around, I understand. In most of the dreams set in this room, he's either sitting, lying or standing in this specific spot.

It must be his favourite or something. It's interesting how he retained some of his habits through two lives, even some he didn't have any chance to train.

I walk back to the dressing room and sit down, looking at my reflection in the mirror. I clean the glass with a cloth before analysing the differences between Queen Theodora and me.

The clothes aren't that different, given that we both like dark colours.

I take off the earrings with small sapphire stones, and I put a pair from the drawer. Then, I let my hair loose.

I turn to Alexander the same way Queen Theodora did, trying to guess the angle she looked at him. I'm not sure if it's precise, but it doesn't feel that difficult.

I get up and stroll to my husband, get up on tiptoe and peck his cheek. I press my lips on his skin and feel the dual of what I've dreamt about.

My cool fingers are on his neck, his skin burning. My lips are grazed by a trace of a beard that has just started growing.

It feels so compatible that I just know it's precisely the same.

When I land down on my heels, I glance at Alexander to check whether he's displeased by this sudden show.

His face is difficult to read. He clenched his teeth and widened his eyes, his hand tight on his trousers.

«I'm sorry,» I whisper. I just wanted to know how it felt, but it might be painful for him.

«No need to be sorry, Thea,» he chuckles. «It's your right to kiss your husband whenever you want...»

«But the way I did it...»

«You made me feel almost normal for a moment. I'm not the only one remembering a past that has never been, am I?»

«I don't remember, but I saw it so many times. I've dreamt about it through your perspective, so I was curious about this side of the scene.»

«And?»

«It feels right.»

«Because it is right.»

«You're a bit too involved to be believed.»

«So what?»

I hug him tightly, inhaling his scent with my eyes closed. He surrounds my shoulders with his arms, enveloping me in his warmth.

There's no way this feels anything but right.

«Have you finished looting already?» he inquires after a minute of silence.

«Looting?»

«You're rummaging into a fallen queen's drawers. What can I call that if not looting?»

«I haven't taken anything yet.»

«You're planning to,» he states, pointing at the things I've stacked in the corner of the table.

«I'll keep only the most relevant things,» I murmur, caught in the act.

«Keep what's most important to you, Thea. Your mother's favourite necklace, your father's ring... Bring this kind of thing, not valuables.»

«As you wish,» I chuckle, rolling my eyes.

We stay like that for a few seconds more, but then I have to split. I need to finish stacking my valuables.

I won't be able to wear this stuff in Ethiro, but I'll pass it down to my children one day. I'll remind them that their mother was once a Queen, that no one dared to look down on me...

«Stop thinking about conquering the world and get ready, Thea,» Alexander says.

He sits on my bed as if he's done it for years, and a cloud of dust is lifted by the movement.

He coughs, waving with his hand in the air in a vain attempt to disperse the dust. He gets up when he understands he won't win that battle, and I grab my stomach hurting from laughing.

«Is my mighty Duke surrendering to a few dust grains?» I ask when I can talk back. «I thought you were invincible, but it seems there exists something that can beat you!»

«I felt like suffocating, damn it! They haven't cleaned in there from the day you left... I'll have to write a complaint once I get some paper.»

«They'll know we were here if you do that,» I whisper, getting nearer and looking at him with a conspiratorial expression. «Our perfect intrusion will be discovered!»

«Ah,» he sighs. «Are you done, by the way? We won't make it in time to visit the throne hall if we waste time like this.»

«The throne hall?» I repeat, smiling like an idiot. «For real?»

«Of course. It's your favourite place, after all...»

«Yes, I'm ready then!»

«But we won't be able to act like this, or we'll be busted.»

«Understood, commander!»

I hug him again after slapping off the dirt from his clothes.

«I won't run around and shout out loud without your permission,» I continue. «Our secret operation will be perfect.»