Right then, I knew that all of this was planned. Father left when he learned that I was married and his messenger disappeared too, probably because he knew I was about to take his messenger into investigation. I dismissed the maid servant and sat down on the chair that used to be my father's.
I looked up at Fergus who was waiting for my decision, "Send a messenger to every country around us. Offer them an alliance, and ask for a representative from them. We will have a big meeting here. I am afraid that with all of this happening, the English will launch a war against us. And I cannot take the underlying risk of being too comfortable. We must be prepared." I stared seriously at the papers in front of me.
"Well then, I will send a letter of invitation to every possible kingdom, small or big, that could possibly accept our offer of alliance. Allow me to also send a messenger to my clan. I would like Lachlan to know what is happening at the present," Fegus said respectfully to me.
"Tell the highlanders to come here. For the meantime, Duncan will provide them shelter and food. The least thing we want is the last living clan to disappear. You have preserved your heritage and identity, we must protect it as well."
He murmured his thanks and left the library. Looks like the strategy I had in mind will be used earlier than expected.
Dinner time came and I was called to the dining table.
"Where is Fergus?" I asked the maidservant who prepared my meal.
"The Duke had run errands, my grace. He said to call you at dinner and advised us to tell you that you should eat first. He told us that he will be back shortly."
I nodded and let the maidservant leave the dining area. I sat there motionless, staring at my food. As I was planning to wait for Fergus so we could share a meal together, he appeared in the doorway.
I stood up and watched him go near me. When he was a few feet away, he stifled a small bow and both of us sat down.
"I have good news. I already sent the messengers with the letters. I also managed to meddle a little in the letter's content. It said there that if they agree to an alliance, they should write back to us and let their representative bring it to us in person. In that way, we could save our time instead of waiting for a reply and send another letter to call their representative."
"We shall wait then, I hope that some kingdoms and clans will be able to send a response as early as tomorrow morning. Have you sent a letter to the northern vikings as well?" I probed.
Fergus nodded in response. "Northern vikings have long been believed to cease to exist since the 11th century, but as a clansman myself, I know they are still some of the surviving clans. I instructed the messenger I sent to head directly to the borders of Scandinavia. If indeed there are still some of them, then the borders are the best way to spot them. Clansmen are quite protective of the borders since it could be their option for a home."
Amazed at the way he thinks, I gave him some words of praise which he took by heart. Indeed his experience as a laird of a clan helped us in this kind of situation. He is indeed going to be a great duke. Being proud of his roots and always keeping the knowledge and virtues he had as a clansmen.
After that conversation, no one dared to talk again. We ate in total silence and left the dinner shortly then decided to proceed to the library to talk.
"So, you want to be the only one to talk to them tomorrow?" Fergus asked the moment we entered the library.
I nodded in approval. "You need to be there of course. As a duke you should never stand behind my shadows, but I want to preside over the meeting first. I shall discuss my strategy and plan to them then you could provide counter solutions and alternatives after. Also you can provide answers to their queries. I need your support on this, for your clan and the whole people of Scotland."
"Rest assured, I will do all your biddings. Just take it easy, you are a great leader. You won't have the title of a duchess since you were a kid when the high officials did not see any potential in you. If anyone comes to question you tomorrow, just tell them everything but not our plan of course. They would not believe you are a duchess without a confirmation so I also asked a messenger to send a message to the king. I wrote to him asking if he could provide a document or at least a copy of the transcript of his official announcement during our wedding. I also added that it would be much appreciated if he adds his seal to mark its legibility since you told me that every royal has their own symbolic seal."
I smiled at him, "Thank you for your thoughtfulness. I shall repay you one of these days, although you are now my husband, an act of kindness must be repaid. For now, I think it is best if we think of the endless possibilities of what comes tomorrow. We are currently in a pre-war. I have thought carefully and concluded that they have been preparing everything slowly since the day my father proposed the marriage alliance between me and Edward. However, we must not forfeit and be cowardly. They are preparing, so are we."
He nodded, "Alright, take care then. I'll just be in the stables if you need me. I'll help the guards roam around."
Soon after he left, I started doing some paperworks left by my father. I used to hover around him when he does these things so even though he is not here to guide me on my duties as a duchess, I still know how to do some of the work.
I continued to do so until such time that the moon is already almost at the centre of the sky. I sighed and went to the room, upon finding out that Fergus is still not there, I called a maidservant and ordered her to call the latter.
I was facing the mirror and combing my hair when Fergus entered. "I prepared the horses in case something goes wrong and alerted the grooms to make space in the stables for the guests."
"For sure most of them would go on a traditional carriage rather than horses alone but thank you for the preparations." I placed the brush down and faced him.
He sat by the edge of the bed and nodded at me. "You should rest early now, you'll host tomorrow's meeting. You need all the energy for tomorrow. Although I will be there, I will only spectate because I know you want to take all of these matters at your hand. Especially because this concerns the involvement of your father. Both of us are aiming for the best interests of all the people of our motherland, but you have as much right here since the primary person involved for a coalition is your direct family member."
"Alright, you should probably rest too. If anything happens, you need to catch me and my responsibilities tomorrow. Also, aren't your clan going here? You sent them a letter right?" I asked.him while making my way towards my old cabin that now turned into our room.
"Yes, by now if the messenger did not stop for a short rest, the message should reach them now. And knowing Lachlan, he does not want to move while it's dark so they will set off as soon as the first light of tomorrow breaks. I'm expecting them to arrive midday." He fixed himself and made himself comfortable in a semi-lying position.
I slipped under the sheets. Although we are now married, I am still not used to married life so I usually sleep with some distance from him. Fergus being a gentleman and understanding as he is, he never said a word about it and understood my situation. He also distanced himself in bed to make me comfortable enough. Sharing a bed is one, but being side by side in the bed is another.
"Good night, Victoria. Take a rest now, I'll be waking up early tomorrow to make preparations so you would not have to worry about anything else other than the agenda of the meeting."
I did not say a word after but only looked at what he was doing. He stood up from the bed and turned the bright torches off making the room a lot dimmer and left the little candles and some small torches dimly lit from a distance.
After doing so, he returned to the bed and looked at me too.
"Good night, Fergus…" I whispered and turned my back at him as I felt him do so too.
We both laid there, listening to the silence of the nights and the sounds of crickets accompanied by a dim light. With our backs towards each other, listening to our own heartbeats and breath. Trying to decipher whether one is still awake or not.
Because of the big day tomorrow, I tried to sleep early. Both of us ended that night in peace listening to the sound of nature and slept soundly.