The group was still relaxing during their picnic in the castle garden, and even Kira had joined them for a little while to flee from her birthday responsibilities of receiving congratulations from all kinds of people. As the nation's queen, she was naturally quite popular, and many wanted to see her on such a day.

“By the way,” Kira faced Anna and Ari. “Are the two of you staying now, or will you go back to Sophia’s home for a few more days?”

“Hmm…” The duo looked slightly troubled.

“How is the, uhh… actual mood in the castle?” Ari looked back at her. “You and mom and all said it’s basically like nothing happened by now, but is that actually true…? We hadn't met anyone when we came here, so I have no idea…"

“Well, I think it might be slightly more complicated than just black and white…” The queen scratched her cheek. “No one is going to do anything truly stupid as you’re now pretty much a part of the royal family…”

“I-I am?!” The jaguar got surprised by it.

"Well, duh," Maya answered her. "What did you think you become when dating the first princess?"

“Ah, right…”

“Exactly.” Kira nodded. “In fact, if Nathan would renunciate his right of the throne as the firstborn, you’re basically in the line for the next queen. Well, second queen in this case, but it’s still effectively the same position as mine.”

“Nathan…?” Sophia glanced at her cat.

“Her older brother, the first prince.” She answered her. “Also, you heard his name before…”

"Maybe I should get a checkup…?" The blonde got ever so slightly worried about her memory.

“It’s definitely not a bad idea.”

“I-Is Nathan planning to do that…?” Ari sounded more than just a little worried. “He is coming back eventually, right…?”

“It is the plan for him to return, yes. Also,” The queen first nodded before looking at Anna. “If anyone, it would be you who has no plans to become the ruler in the future, right?”

“Absolutely!” She agreed. “Me having no interest aside, I know that I’m not the right person for that position. I’d probably do a decent-enough job with Ari by my side, but no… It wouldn’t be a good idea.” The princess knew that she was no model queen material.

“I have to agree.” Kira smiled at her. “I do believe it would work, now with Ari more than ever, but it’s just not who you are.”

“Also, judging by how long grandfather remained on the throne, don’t you and father still have MANY years left?”

“That is also true.”

"Depending on how soon Nathan settles down and finds a partner, isn't it entirely possible to skip a whole generation?"

"Hmm…" The queen paused for a moment before her eyes started wandering between Anna and Ari. "I think there's a high chance that you two beat him to the punch in that regard.”

"…" The two in question only reacted with an utterly crimson face.

“You really are amazing!” Maya enjoyed her way of teasing a lot.

“You know, as Sophia is a tiger, your kid will, in theory, also be able to become the queen, you know?” Kira immediately jumped at the opportunity. “And we all know that you two will most likely beat those two to the punch, as well."

“…” The cat-girl also turned silent with a similar expression as the couple.

“You really should’ve seen that one coming…” Chloe lightly rolled her eyes.

“Alright!” Once the queen finished enjoying her reaction, she finally got back to the initial topic. “I think it’s fine for you two to return to the castle.”

“R-Really…?” Ari, now more than ever, seemed slightly dubious.

“Again, you two are royalty, so there was never going to be anything serious happen by the people working in the castle. They’re all trusted and in favor of us. It was quite the thing that happened, though…”

“…”

“Not directly because it’s something outrageous or scandalous. It was just the sheer unexpectedness. Almost everyone knew that the two of you are basically a couple in all but the actual definition. Still, you jumping over so many hurdles all at once was a lot to take in. Not to mention that these kinds of events are always somewhat awkward and embarrassing if a third party gets involved.”

“Urgh…” The two took some damage.

"I promised everyone a nice punishment and literal and figurative kick out of the castle if they do anything stupid, but for a little while, you will get a small stare or a tiny blush from others you come across in the castle. That’s just how it is.”

“I-I don’t like the sound of that…” Anna hung her head in response.

“Don’t worry too much. It won’t take longer than a month before no one cares about it anymore. It probably won’t take that long even. You are the first princess, but it’s not quite the same as a loud prince who was already in training for taking over the throne… and his wife, who also had no idea that some places in the castle aren't overly soundproof…"

“…” The tall princess tilted her head while thinking about those words. “Wait… You and father…?”

“Yes…” Kira looked a little awkward now. “It’s not the first time something like this has happened in the castle… From what we’ve heard from Menzor’s father, it’s actually something close to a tradition already…”

“Seriously?!” Anna got loud. "Wait, I have never heard about that! Well, I'm kind of happy about that because I didn't really need to know that about my parents, but…”

"That much is only natural. It was quite some time ago.”

“Really?”

“To be more precise… It happened roughly 9 months before you were born.”

“…” She once again went silent. It was a bit too much information for her liking.

“Why do these kinds of scenes always end up being loud when a tiger is involved.” Fen was with them the entire time, but he was just quietly napping for most of it. Still, he thought it was the right time to make a comment. "Our own tiger also has christened our mansion in that regard… More than once, too. Many times, actually. All the time, to be exact..."

"G-Go back to sleep, Fennyfenny!" The blonde immediately got flustered, as well.

“Should I do a group session soon where I teach everyone my sound-dampening magic?” Chloe tried to help them.

“PLEASE!” Sophia, Maya, Ari, and Anna all raised their voices.

“Next time,” Kira looked at her older daughter and the jaguar again. “Use Anna’s room for that. Every room of the immediate royal family has thicker walls and doors that stop sound from traveling.”

“…” Two just looked at each other before hanging their heads in defeat.

----------------

Kira stayed with the group for a little longer while they chatted some more. Still, she was eventually picked up by two maids because another group of people who wanted to congratulate the queen on her birthday had gathered in the castle. While she was at it, she also took Ellie with her. The little tiger protested a little because she wanted to keep cuddling with Maya and Sophia, but she decided to go with her mother in the end. Before leaving, though, she collected the violet dog plushy between Chloe and Aura again, gave it a good squeeze, and made it wave to the two fellow canines before reluctantly following after the queen.

“So, are you staying in the castle now…?” Sophia looked at the runaway couple. “The topic took a rather weird turn, and that part kinda got forgotten… Just curious, of course. It’s fun with you two in our home, so you can stay as long as you want~.”

“…” Anna just scratched her cheek for a moment before looking at Ari. “S-Should we try it…?”

“I can’t say I want to. Like, at all, but… Do we have much of a choice? Kira decided against having a birthday party, so we, first and foremost you, didn't have to make a public appearance. Still, our birthdays are in the coming week, so… A ton of people will want to congratulate the first princess, as well…”

“Urgh…”

“Also, it sounded a little like the folks in the castle first have to see us a couple of times rather than us just disappearing for a while until they forget about it again…”

"Yes…" The princess hung her head even more. "Though, the moment something too awkward happens, we're back to the mansion!”

“Sure~.” The blonde had nothing against the idea. “Actually, if you want to, we can keep the portal in your dressing room, and you can head over whenever you want. Somehow, that makes it like there's almost no difference between you being in one of our guestrooms or here. It’s about the same distance to relax with us in our living room.”

“We’re definitely going to keep the portal!” Anna raised her voice. "That thing is the best invention since inventions were invented!"

“Uhh…” More than one of them wanted to mention that that’s not exactly how it worked.

“S-Shut up! I just wanted to get my point across!” She got a little embarrassed.

“Well, I like that plan!” Sophia smiled at her. “You two can come over whenever and however long you want!”

“Thank you.” The duo was happy that they were this welcome in her home.

"Chloe, you're staying, though, right?" She then faced the fox-girl.

"If you'll still have me, I'd like to continue to stay in the capital and with you, yes."

“Perfect!” The blonde’s mood was great. “You can absolutely stay~. Living with Maya and the sleepy wolves," She glanced at the duo napping on the grass behind them. "It's the best, but really, the more, the merrier!"

“Yup.” The cat-girl agreed. “As long as you never dare to enter our bedroom when the door’s closed. That means it’s Sophia and Maya time.”

“I-I would never do that!”

“Good.” Maya smiled at her. “That’s pretty much the only rule I have. A bit of help in the household would be appreciated if it turns into a long-time stay, but as I said before, you can even move in for good if you want to." She also was a fan of having company.

“Okay!” Chloe just nodded a few times. “Thank you!”

Afterward, they kept chatting for a good bit later, but the moment the sun wasn't at the perfect angle anymore, the temperature started dropping rather fast. One girl liked that very much, but all the other cats absolutely weren't a fan of it. Because of that, they soon packed up and went back inside the castle. Also, as it had been a long time, Sophia and the others then decided to head back home for the time being.

 

 

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