"Wake up! Rise and shine, Your Majesty!" Hanna said cheerily as she threw back the thick curtain that blocked the balcony.

Light streamed into Aurora's bedchamber, but the woman pulled the covers over her head like a child.

"You're back," the Empress groaned in a muffled voice.

"I think it is sweet that you think I actually ever leave these days. Now get up!" Hanna yanked the covers back, but Aurora held on tightly.

"Go away!" The stubborn woman wouldn't even open her eyes. She would not let the Fate win. "Where are my ladies-in-waiting?"

"Anna, Bella and Candela are busy." Hanna answered unapologetically.

"And my husband?"

"He took over your very important duties and told everyone to let you sleep. It is a good thing I do not answer to him." Hanna fluttered her eyelashes innocently, but of course, Aurora did not see.

Sensing that the Fate would not give up her chipper attitude, Aurora pulled the only card she had left. It was, in the end, what made her unwilling to get out of bed. "Do you not know what day it is?"

"It is exactly one year to the day since Alaron died." Hanna answered her matter-of-factly. "And look how much has happened in that time." The Fate took all the blankets, leaving the Empress cold in only her night clothes.

"Exactly! The world has gone on without him. I have gone on without him. Allow me a moment to grieve." Aurora had spent the last week keeping herself too busy to think about the upcoming anniversary. She had run herself into the ground and now all the emotions were hitting her at once.

Throwing a robe at the fiery-haired woman's head, Hanna sighed. "Fine. You have one moment. But too many people need you for you to hole yourself up in here all day. When you are ready, I will be outside." With that, the lady with the colorless irises vanished to the outside sitting room.

"The nerve of some creatures," Aurora muttered angrily. "Thinking they should limit someone else's mourning." She would grieve however long she saw fit, she thought as she crossed her arms. Then she sighed heavily.

Deep down, however, there was truth in Hanna's words. She would not be the only one hurting today. Her family needed her. To pout alone and hide would not help anyone.

Beyond that, she knew that leaving her daily tasks undone would only leave more work for tomorrow. With a resigned huff, she stood and wrapped the robe around herself.

————-

Slipping on her favorite blue dress, the Empress already felt better. The garment had white lace along the cuffs and bottom of the skirt, and it reminded her of happier times. Aurora had felt self-conscious about her looks lately, but the gown helped calm her nerves.

"You can do this," she told herself as she lifted her chin.

The first morning tasks were the easiest and by far the best. When Nanny saw Aurora enter the room, the old woman gave her a big bear hug. The squeeze was too tight but oddly comforting.

"I'm proud of you for facing the day, dear one." Nanny said as she bucked the woman under her chin with her bony forefinger. "But if you need anything, old Nanny is never too old to take care of you again."

As much as the Empress might have loved to be coddled, she shook her head. "You have enough on your plate without adding me to your responsibilities, but thank you." Pulling her head out of the older woman's grasp, Aurora added. "I am going to see Mairwen. Do you have any idea where she might be?"

"I heard a rumor she was in the Spring Garden doing some target practice," Nanny answered. The tone suggested it was more than a rumor.

"Thank you again. I will visit later." The Empress assured her.

One side of the wrinkled woman's mouth curled upward as she sat down in an old rocking chair. "I know."

As Aurora walked along the corridor, she contemplated how much things had changed in the past year. The rebuilding and repopulating of the capital city had been a monumental task on its own, but then she had added trying to straighten out the Imperial finances, clearing out and reforming the government from the Council all the way down, and looking for ways to honor all those who had remained loyal to her. Fortunately, the newest Councilman, Metehan of the Dunesmen, had fit right in or she likely would have had even more headaches.

All of that did not even touch the compounded personal responsibilities that Aurora had garnered. Those alone made her head spin. Her step faltered.

"Are you alright, Your Majesty?" Her personal guard and ever present shadow asked her.

"I'm fine, General, just a little light headed. We are almost to the gardens anyway. I will make sure and sit down." The Empress gave a weak smile, and Nurlan let the matter rest.

Nanny was right; Mairwen was in the Spring Garden, where even in the dead of this cold winter the feeling of newness of life prevailed. A target was placed on the far end of the garden, and the princess was hitting arrow after arrow into its bullseye.

"It is nice to see you are shooting again," Aurora said after watching Mairwen make yet another perfect shot.

Mairwen turned and shook out the tension in her shooting arm. "I am a little rusty. Not nearly as fast as I used to be."

"It will come back with practice," the Empress assured her. The two ladies hugged and moved to a stone bench to sit. "Now, I'm not complaining, but why are you practicing here and not on the training grounds on the other side of the palace?"

Mairwen blushed slightly. "This area is a familiar place, and I wanted to feel comfortable when I got back into shooting. Also…Junayd's statue is blocking part of the practice grounds, which wouldn't be a problem, except the sight of it creeps me out a little." The princess crinkled her nose.

Letting out a musical laugh, Aurora was genuinely amused. "It will be moved to one of the town squares next week. I still cannot believe our Junayd managed to convince the Council to build him his own bronze statue. The man even did some fundraising and put in some of his own money to have it built. I guess he is either very persistent or persuasive…"

"Fools names, fools faces—always seen in public places," Nurlan chimed in before realizing he had spoken out of turn. The ladies chuckled.

Standing, Aurora took the bow and an arrow from her daughter and shot the projectile off toward the target. It whizzed through the air and met the rest of its brothers in the bullseye.

"It's a good bow," Aurora returned both the bow and herself to the bench. "Is it new?"

The princess nodded with a gentle smile. "Renat sent it to me from the University along with his last letter. He says that it is curved in such a way that it should make shooting easier and more efficient. Renat told me he wants to take me hunting next week when he visits and sent it ahead for me to get used to it."

The Empress raised her eyebrows in surprise. "He will finally visit! The long awaited prodigal. Will he be staying? His letters can only sustain you for so long."

"He will be here for a couple of weeks presenting his work to the Council. After that, I don't know. Renat still wants to study and make a difference, but I got the impression he is finally ready to return. The feeling is mutual."

"Whatever happens, please give me enough time to plan a full royal wedding. We haven't had one of those in too many years, and I want to do it properly."

"Yes, mother," Mairwen's pink cheeks showed her pleasure at the thought. The red and gold of her brocade dress only accentuated her womanly beauty. Soon enough, Mairwen would be eighteen and able to rule temporarily in her mother's and father's absence.

'Yet another thing to change since Alaron's death,' Aurora lamented.

As is reading the Empress's mind, Mairwen's face turned sad. "You know what day it is today is, don't you?" It was more of a statement than a question.

Aurora nodded and wrapped her arms around the princess. Mairwen did the same to her mother. "I do. How are you holding up?" The fiery-haired woman asked gently.

"Surprisingly well," Mairwen admitted. "The hole in my heart is still there, but it is not as painful as it has been. How are you?"

"Miserable." Aurora said even as she gave a weak smile.

"You are just exhausted. You need more rest," Mairwen gave her mother's shoulder a squeeze.

"Ha! Tell that to Hanna. She is the one who made me get up." The Empress was still bitter on this point.

"The Fate sure has shaken things up around here this past year. I would say aside from the forced wake-up time, most of the changes have been good ones." Mairwen came to the Hanna's defense.

"I suppose…." Aurora begrudgingly agreed. Hanna had been very helpful in general. She would choose to count her blessings.

Mairwen stood. "My break is over. Do you want to watch me shoot?"

Delaying her duties just a little longer, Aurora decided to remain. "I will watch for just for a moment. I have to get to the throne room soon."

The Empress stayed more than just a moment, and by the time she got to the throne room, a long line of supplicants awaited her. Taking her place on the throne, she listened to each request dutifully and did what she could.

Many just wanted to wish her well on the first anniversary of her victory. She wondered why so many had gathered, only to remember that she had declared it a holiday. Of course people would think she was celebrating.

Finally a figure in a brown cloak approached her throne. He was tall and muscular, but his face was obscured by his hood. Aurora wondered why none of the guards had made him show his face. Or perhaps they had and he had raised it again before coming forward. Either way, she eyed him warily.

"State your request," the Empress said regally.

The figure bowed low and straightened. "I have come with one mission in mind, Your Majesty: to request your forgiveness."

Aurora's breath hitched. She knew that voice.