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Concerned for her surrogate mother, Skye ordered her to take a day of rest. Peggy had refused at first, but Skye told her that if she didn’t take the day off now, it would be two starting tomorrow. She blustered at first, but knew it was a sign that she was getting sick.

“Have you ever even been sick?” Tidas had asked jokingly, but Peggy thought seriously on it.

“When was the last time? Me late twenties? Early thirties? ...I blame this stuffy-arse palace! Bloody breedin’ ground for more nastiness than I care to comment on.”

Skye snickered at her servant’s extremely accurate barb as she dressed. Peggy had laid out a lavender-colored dress for her to wear to the final Mage Trials. It had a modest bust line for once, but the material was nice and light.

Tidas dressed lightly as well. A loose-fitted white shirt with comfortable pant, and his favorite boots. He was going to have to shower and change afterwards anyway, so he wanted to be comfy while he could.

The weather had been mild so far, and everyone prayed that it would hold; at least until they had reached the Highlands. Petrie said that it was already snowing on occasion there. If they waited too long, they’d be stuck in the Highlands until the first thaw..

************

When they arrived at the arena; Genie, Petrie, Celestia, Aero, Maevis, and Nicolas were all waiting. Lawrence was already on the balcony with his father and Lucas, who hugged Skye as soon as he saw her. After, he told her that he and Petrie would be leaving as soon as the trials finished, and they went to the R&D department to pick up his altered sensory suit.

.....

When Skye looked at Petrie, she had to fight the urge to mess with him. He was clearly hung over; squinting his eyes and plugging his ears whenever the noise kicked up. Being in an incredibly good mood, she opted to heal him instead.

After she’d finished, Petrie looked at Skye with a cheeky smile as he said; “Now I know why Tidas married ye..”

Skye chuckled at his joke; “That was decided long beforehand, but he’ll admit that it ’tis a nice perk. Shasta, too.”

“That’s the feisty feline, correct? Wouldn’t mind a few scratches on me back from her,” Petrie commented, making Skye snap her head over to Lawrence.

He was heavily engaged in a discussion with Magnus, much to Skye’s relief. She really didn’t want to deal with an international incident when technically the Highlands weren’t a fully-recognized kingdom yet.

“Shasta is the fiancée of Lawrence. He’s Tidas’ brother, and the king of Ruscovic: remember? Ye met him at the Summer Games?”

Petrie’s expression when blank for several seconds before a glimmer of recognition lit his features; “Oh, Aye! Grand time, that was! Well, Ima happy to hear that she’s well taken care of.”

“Aye, she is,” Lawrence said as he stood next to them; leaning against the cement railing with a cocky grin.

Skye chuckled; “Are ye sure that ye don’t have a trait? That’s some keen hearin’ ye got..”

“No magic, just pure talent,” Lawrence replied as cockily as his grin had suggested that he would.

The three stood and talked until Celestia came flying over to her, and nearly smacked into the side of her face. Apparently they’d shrunk back down to their normal sizes shortly after Skye and Tidas had retired for the night.

When Maevis and Nicolas joined in, the noise was a bit much, so Skye stepped off to the side. She’d just taken a deep breath when Genie tapped her on her shoulder. Beaming at him, Skye jumped on him again for a hug.

After the usual pleasantries, Genie stated; “I guess we’ll have to postpone that dinner one more time, unless they won’t be holding another banquet tonight?”

Skye flashed a small smile; “Oh, there’ll be a banquet regardless.. I just don’t know if there will be any Victors..”

Genie quirked an eyebrow; “Why would you think that?”

Skye smirked cockily; “Well, not to sound arrogant, but: Ima not down there..”

Genie barked a sharp laugh; “That sounded like nothing But utter arrogance.”

Skye’s grin widened; “Just watch, you’ll see.. I’d bet money on it.”

Chuckling again, Genie said; “I’ll take you up on that, but how about loser pays for dinner?”

“Winner picks where to eat? Yer on! Just don’t get angry when ye see a bunch of zeros on the bill. I can eat quite a bit, ya know? And me favorite place has become quite popular.”

As the competitors filed out, Skye realized that the match-ups were fairly equal to yesterday’s. The difference being that only one Elemental mage was out there. Skye hadn’t been aware that the guy was a Fire mage, and had instantly smacked herself for not paying attention to those competing today.

She’d only met a Fire mage once, and it was when she was child. The King of the Fire Nation had sent a representative for the first time, and one of the guards had been a Fire mage. They were very rare on the Star Continent, but the most common Elemental mage found in the Fire Nation.

The tracks were set up nearly the same as yesterday, with exception of Zas and Shasta’s sections being moved up slightly. The mages in charge of the course thought it would give more competitors a chance to make it passed them... They were wrong.

After they analyzed the entire trial from the previous day, the judges and course creators all agreed: Skye was the key to everyone’s passing.

When she’d blocked the other two teams at the start, it gave her team time to wear down, and ultimately beat Zas after Skye put up the second wall. Clearing the way for teams D and F(after they broke through the second wall).

The other teams got passed Shasta because of Skye as well. She was distracted while fighting because she was worried about Zas going after Skye. On top of that, she’d also warped the wall. It slowed down the teams, but it all gave them time.

They could hear Zas fighting on the other side, so they knew they’d be going up against Shasta. They came up with strategies, and worked together to make sure that they could at least, get by her. Skye warping of the walls gave them cover, too.

Shasta’s area started just a bit before Zas’ did on her side, so a section of it was affected by the Skye’s magic. It made the area too narrow for Shasta to use her speed in, and with Manics and Tamers to contend with; she needed her agility.

The final reason Skye was responsible for everyone’s success, and the biggest: She took down Tidas. No one thought it was possible, but they had all watched it with their own eyes. Their reactions had been genuine, especially Tidas’. It was the funniest part of the trials.

One of the judges had been one of Skye’s dance partners during the feast; not that she realized it. She just thought he was a prying fan, but spoke to him in the same way that she would’ve if she’d been officially approached.

They spoke about her tactics, and when she’d decided to hide her Tank trait. Skye didn’t tell him the specifics, but did tell him about how long she’d been hiding it.

The judge had been shocked that Skye not only kept the secret, but had a wide array of backup plans. He wanted to ask more, but could tell that she was becoming annoyed with him. She’d already danced with him twice, and practically ran whenever their eyes met..

Skye was the whole reason that the trials had worked yesterday, and without her: everyone failed.

A few had gotten passed Shasta and Zas, but No One got by Tidas. Even at the end when it was six Hybrid Tanks against him.. Tidas beat them all. The crowd had enjoyed the show, but were still a bit bitter not to have another set of Victors to talk about.. Until a few of the judges had announced their findings.

“This will be the only year that the Pillars participate within the Mage Trials as obstacles. After much deliberation amongst ourselves and the king: we came to the conclusion that without an extraordinary mage such as Princess Skye participating each year, no one would ever win..”

He explained most of the reasons why the two trials had turned out so differently, which led Skye to realize who the man was. ‘He looks So much younger than what he actually is! Lucky!’

After the crowds had accepted the outcome, the competitors had to be dealt with; “Due to the unforeseen difficulties; all mages will be accepted into the RMC this year, if they wish. For those of you whom still wish to rank above Private: General Zas will be holding individual tests to see what you qualify for. This is not a guarantee of rank, but a chance to earn it. Think carefully before you decide to participate..”

After a conclusion speech from Magnus, Marco actually stepped up to the podium. He spoke about how it was every mage’s responsibility to protect their families by serving the kingdom. And that if the people worked towards the prosperity of the kingdom, then they were ultimately working for themselves to prosper.

The then droned on about various ‘projects he had approved of for the betterment of the people’. Which was a sly way of taking the credit for Tidas’ Public Works Projects.

At the end of his long-winded speech, he’d made a comment about how ‘he and his future Queen looked forward to serving their people to the best of their abilities’..

When he’d finished speaking, Marco had looked directly at Skye. He had no expression on his face, but his eyes were piercing. A cold shiver of foreboding ran down Skye’s spine as her eyes went hard.

The extreme fear she’d felt towards her brother-in-law had shifted into contemptuous caution over the past year. He didn’t scare her anymore, but that didn’t mean that Skye was going to underestimate him, either. They stared each other down a few seconds until Tidas came to stand behind his wife.

He’d seen his brother staring at Skye, but couldn’t do anything about it. He knew that Marco coveted her, and had planned on keeping her very far away from him due to it. But that was before Skye became an RMC Member..

‘At least her rank offers her some protection from him, but that’s only as long father is still king. Who knows what kind of shit he has planned for when he becomes king...’

‘Everything he’d just said...I Know that he was implying that Skye would be his Queen..’

As anger surged through him, Tidas hadn’t realized that Skye had stood up, and was now directly in front of him. She cupped his cheek gently, then whispered; “Out yer head, love.. Yer place is here, with me..”

When he looked into Skye’s eyes, and she saw the light return; she kissed him lovingly. His jaw was tense, but loosened the longer her lips worked his. By the time he’d fully come back to her from his dark place, Tidas’ breathing was ragged.

With a cheeky smile, Skye wrapped her arm around her husband’s and said; “Come on! We best start headin’ to Alfred’s now, if we want to avoid the dinner rush. Genie’s buyin’!”