Yin and Yang

[WP] You are one of the most feared villainesses in the world. Evil armies, dark powers, you have it all. Your husband on the other hand is the exact opposite, being truly kind and mild mannered. He is still supportive of your endeavors, even trying to be a villain himself to...varying results.

*****

"Believe me, they're gonna lov- loathe this!", my dearly beloved exclaims, his eyes brightening up in what he perhaps believes is mischief. He desperately tries to gather a flock of birds in his arms, trying to keep them locked but there is always one who flays up and rushes around in search of an exit.

The more I watch the spectacle, the more I ponder on whether I should have convinced him to secure the throne room instead. Not that it will be needed to, but I dare hope to spare him of the mockery whenever he tries to help, bless his heart. "I see that dear, but need I remind you of the last time?" I would have cursed it back then many times, but his blinding naïveté and silly overbearing smile have somehow wormed their way in and will never let me go.

My dear poor, sweet fool seems to have given up in his lonesome conquest and turns to the guards standing at the gate: "Help me, if you please," he shouts, supposedly in what he hopes to be a harsh and commanding tone fitting to his stature and status. It instead resembles the wailing of small dirty mutt, eyeing a pair of ribs out of it's reach. Adorable.

I glimpse over to the soldiers, trying hard to maintain their composure, only a few snickers emerge from under their helmets, stopping once they notice me. Figments of smoke darken up the surroundings, unnoticed by the jolly plumpy man who focuses on the geese around him - deaf to the crackling of the lightning springing and hissing about, as if the dawn of a rainy morning is brightend up by the awakening sun and tears the sky open with unbearable noise - the punishment this pestilence daring to insult their king will face themselves. The men pale only so slightly, the large bafoon in front of them doesn't see or notice it, only the slits in their helms reveal their eyes, wide and shaking at my sight.

"Well, what about it?" The lovely fool asks again, more perplexed now. The iron gear quakes and squeaks quietly as the soldiers move in a hurry, their gaze flickering ever so often towards me, clouded in the dark fog, uncontrollable strings of light shooting up from the tip of my hands. "O-of course, my lord".

It takes a while before I breathe out ever so slightly, whisking away the mist in front of me. I cannot afford more problems, especially not concerning respect towards their king. My gaze wanders to the great windows, expanding into the fields and meadows of my empire. In the far off distance, the red-blue colors of the Mazkarian empire float calmly in the wind, the top of their yellow, red and green tents raking upon the hills like mountain tops out of clouds.

Seeing the ruckus he has caused, I do not doubt that my dear Magnus will succeed with his distraction - but I am more than certain of the feast that Claudius and his men will hold afterwards. A mere number of birds might inconvenience the king, but it may also serve him and his hunters in practice of easy targets.

The sound of shrieks of both animal and human behind me clutches my head in an iron grip and scratches thin at my nerves. My fingers snip up towards the cluster at my sight, cold seeping through the walls, moving fast and without any visible mark, until it has grasped at it's target and both soldiers and birds are frozen in their movement. The stifling chuckle in my chest raises Magnus attention towards me, who had dared not to move before he notices my amusement.

His gaze drops slightly, one hand coming up to scratch at the back of head: "I apologize for the trouble, my love" He gazes up to me, reeking of self-disappointment. He might have caught onto the laughs and scornful looks, now guilty of his ineptitude and inability to provide help for the upcoming battle.

I shake my head slowly, presenting him a tender smile. His appearance and demeanor had been both a light and inconvenience in my measly day, but it his genuine sense of what seems good and right as well as his loyalty that has endeared me to him. I reach out to my dear, his head leaning onto the shoulder of the hyacinth coat, covering the slightly brighter tight-puffed sleeves latched onto the golden sprinkled gown. My hand comes to softly stroke his arm, up to his shoulder and then the slight stubble on his cheek, not fully grown like the goatee I adore. I lean up tentatively to peck at his lips, securing a slight smile but still apologetic look from my husband.

"Don't be, my dear. Your idea was quite amusing, although simple-minded." He scowls a bit at this, a bit hurt by the comment before I sweep my palm over his face, fingers caressing his hazelnut hair. "But what matters to me is that you tried dear. And that you tried to do so for my interest." His face brightens up a bit, eyes sparkling like the sun shining through leaves at the peak of the woods. A warmth exudes within my chest, similar to the first time he made me this smile, beaming up at me from a cell, not seeing the monster that most perceive. A simple farmer from the outskirts, lovely and honest to a fault - utterly blindsided to the blood and bones, he is there and he will be there until the end of time.

I poke at his nose and turn away from him, the smirk still persistent on my face: "It is for this bizarre nature of yours and the exhausting amount ideas that appear to me so earnest, dear, that you have succeeded in a battle that I have never lost before we met." His own hand comes to reach for mine, rubbing one of his fingers over our wedding bands.

"However, unfortunately whenever you offer your support it strangely also benefits our foes." He startles a bit in embarrassment, back now into his gleeful state, more carefree and unapologetically honest: "For all I can say is that I'm not a great thinker in those matters, verzeih mir Liebste but who am I to outbid a brilliant power such as yours?"

He comes up to my sight, looking out into the fields. Seeing the harvest, the workers there, all the green and sun above them. My eyes are fixated again to the enemy lines at the far back. I was always able to tell apart between bootlickers and lies, promises of loyalty made for their own benefit or out of fear. Most of my men are brutal and simple in this regard. This dearly beloved, cheerful man has proven me so often again, that he is honest in every word. And the only one who also has broken through the walls of my heart and captured it.

"If I may suggest then, my beloved, I could imagine a delightful twist in your plan." This overwhelming smile of his that struck down the cold-hearted Dragon of the West, goes into it's full length as he bows before me and motions for me to take the lead.

I nod in gratitude, stepping forth toward the chaos we had shoved aside. For all I can say, if it weren't for this man, this conquest and my life wouldn't have been half as interesting as it is now.

*****

THE END.