[Merriman-Crustacea, after the christening]

[merrimanlyon]

The heir to the throne of Ambergeldar has been christened with all the pomp and circumstance that the kingdom can muster, and those who were able to attend it will be speaking of the event for some time to come. But after the christening ceremonies and the formal celebration, an even more exclusive event is being held in one of the smaller rooms on an upper floor, restricted to a very short list drawn up personally by the King and Queen.

It's much quieter here, for one thing. And crowns are strictly optional.

Merriman -- the elder one -- still looks very formal and austere in his midnight-blue robes, but his posture is a good deal more relaxed than it had been a few hours ago. A small smile hovers at the corners of his mouth as he watches the little group of friends and relations clustered in a happy knot around the royal family.

Comments

[kitchen_maid]

She's not there, and then she is (it's just how these things work, when she wants them to). An elderly woman in seaweedy robes, leaning on a twisty coral stick and regarding him through the glasses that perch on the end of her nose.

"So Amethyst has named the baby after you, has she?"

[merrimanlyon]

Merriman's at least accustomed to the idea of abrupt and unannounced appearances, having made a few of them himself in his time. So Crustacea's arrival is met first with a slow blink and then with an inclination of his head in greeting, before he replies:

'And quite surprised me in her choice, I must say.'

Less modesty and more honesty, in that statement.

[kitchen_maid]

"Oh?" says the fairy. "And why is that?"

Crustacea doesn't set much store by modesty, anyway.

Honesty, though. Honesty is interesting.

[merrimanlyon]

'I had thought she would be more inclined to select a name that is slightly less...cumbersome, in a manner of speaking.' Merriman's mouth twitches wryly at the word 'cumbersome'. 'But also...well, I suppose I am simply not yet accustomed to the idea that I have a godson and a namesake. Neither possibility would ever have crossed my mind, once upon a time.'

[kitchen_maid]

"All princes have cumbersome names," says Crustacea. "It's just a question of with what they're encumbered."

She glances over at the Royal Family.

"I have a great many goddaughters, though no namesakes."

She looks back at Merriman.

"Do you think you are up to the task?"

[merrimanlyon]

Merriman's back straightens, almost imperceptibly.

'I believe that I am up to the task,' he says, quite seriously. 'But I would certainly welcome any advice from one who has more experience in the matter than I do.'

[kitchen_maid]

There's a pause -- not a long one, mind you, at least, not a long one by human standards -- before Crustacea answers.

"Never be afraid to give advice you're not sure he wants to hear. And remember that parents, no matter how well-intentioned, are not always right about what's best for their children."

Never-Fading Beauty would not have made Amethyst half the Queen that Ordinary did, no matter what Rhodesia thinks.

[merrimanlyon]

Merriman's gaze goes a little distant for a moment, turning over thoughts of well-intentioned parents and choices made a very long time ago. But he sets the memories to one side, like someone carefully folding a worn and faded garment and replacing it in a drawer, and nods slowly.

'I often give advice with the knowledge that it may not necessarily be heeded,' he replies, with a touch of a smile. 'So there is that. And as for parents...I will certainly keep that in mind, if only because it will be something of a change for me to interact with a royal family that is a good deal more...secure in its position than the one I served and continue to serve.'

It's the nearest he is likely to come to explaining the deeply dysfunctional dynamics of the Pendragon line.

[kitchen_maid]

It's possible that Crustacea does not need the explanation.

She regards him through her glasses for a long moment and then nods.

"I suspect Amethyst has chosen wisely.

"I suppose, sir, that you know that there's something of a tradition of gifts from fairies."

She's not officially the prince's godmother, but she's not especially bothered by a trifle like that.

"If you were choosing a gift for this brat of Amethyst's, what would you choose?"

[merrimanlyon]

'The gift I would give him....' Merriman trails off, momentarily lost in thought, before he continues. 'He will have to be many things to many men in his lifetime, and yet never lose sight of himself. To make difficult decisions and do so without regret -- to know where the balance lies, and understand it even if it goes against the opinions of every other man.'

He has seen the worst that men have to offer, and the best, and everything in between. And so there is really only one gift he can think of that he would willingly bestow upon anyone.

'Integrity.' He meets Crustacea's gaze, straightforward and sincere. 'Perhaps it is old-fashioned of me, but that is what I would give him, were such a gift mine to give.'

[kitchen_maid]

Crustacea smiles.

She quite likes this friend of Amethyst's.

"Then that is what I shall give him. A good quality, for a king."

For anyone, really, but especially for a king.