The Crown's Entrapment

Chapter 796 To Paint Her Family

Days passed, and Bella was annoyed the moment her monthly period came. While she already expected it since Poona had warned her before that she wasn't fertile during the days when she and Amon were practically going at it nonstop, it still stung that nothing happened after all of their efforts.

[Can you tell me again when I'll be fertile?] Bella murmured, asking her wolf Poona while she prepared her materials for painting. She was going to show her mother-in-law her skill in painting, and she wanted to make sure that she got everything ready for things to be great.

[Why should I know? Aren't you supposed to be the one in charge of your own body?] Poona teasingly scoffed. [Do I have to do everything myself now?]

[Poona, do you want me to have kids or not?] She mentally rolled her eyes at her inner wolf. [Just answer the question already.]

Her inner wolf chuckled. [Fine then. Seriously, can't even take a joke anymore?] her wolf shrugged. [Based on the few days that passed, you'll be fertile in about a week from now. Give or take a few days.]

Humming, Bella mentally noted those specific days as she loaded up her cart and made her way out of the storeroom. The painting was going to be done in the Queen Mother's personal garden, and she had a bit of walking to do if she wanted to get there by herself.

[You could've always asked for a servant to take this there for you, you know,] Poona pointed out.

[And risk having the paints get mixed unevenly with all of the movement? Not a chance,] Bella scoffed. [There's a certain way that you have to transport this stuff, and I won't risk having anything left to chance if I could help it.]

It was just the logical thing that came to her mind. If she wanted something done right, then she had to do it herself. In this case, her paints were all leveled to the bottom of the cart as she slowly wheeled it out toward her destination. It was a slow process, but it would all be worth it the moment she arrived and had everything up to her standards.

And so, with a heavy push, Bella eventually arrived at her destination. With it being in the middle of the afternoon, the Queen Mother's personal garden was lit up by the sun just enough for it to look great while not being too hot at the same time, which would be great since paint and canvas had a tendency to do weird things if subjected to extreme temperatures.

"Ah, Bella. You've finally arrived."

Bella smiled as she turned to greet her mother-in-law. To her surprise, there was a table with a few snacks and drinks laid out for them, and the older woman had a smile on her face as she gestured to the already set-up spot for her to paint on with everything lined up for her to use.

"Mother," Bella greeted with a curt nod and a smile. "Sorry if I was a bit late. I had to make sure I had everything ready for the painting."

"That's of no concern, dear. You were the one who offered to paint me without prompting," Mona warmly smiled at her. "Now, maybe you want a bit of a snack and a drink before we get started?"

"There's no need, Mother," Bella lightly shook her head. "Maybe later once we're done. For now, I kind of want to just get started on painting."

"Ah, if you insist then," the Queen Mother hummed in acceptance. "Do you want me in a certain pose? Or would I be able to choose how I want to be portrayed?"

"Just do whichever pose is most comfortable for you," Bella told her. "This might take a while, and I wouldn't want you getting tired holding a hard pose for over an hour, maybe even more."

"Thank you, Bella."

The older woman smiled in appreciation as she made her way to the prepared spot somewhere near the table. It was flanked with flowers from both sides, and a chair was present for her to sit on while she put on her most regal pose.

Seeing her subject, Bella took on a sharper look as she gauged the angle and the lighting present in the Queen Mother's form. Taking the tools available to her, she set herself up in such a way that she was free to work on the painting while also being comfortable herself.

"Alright, I think I've got the angle," Bella called out to the queen as she held her brush. "Just hold still while I get all your features."

"Of course, dear."

Taking a deep breath, Bella wielded her brush and made the first of many strokes that she would have to do on the canvas. It wasn't much, but it was a start as she then began to work on the painting in earnest.

"Bella, we can still talk while we're doing this, correct?"

"We can, yes," Bella absently replied, her focus on her painting as she spoke. "Is there something you'd like to talk about?"

"I would like to hear more about my son's exploits as Osman," the Queen Mother admitted. "Are there a few more things he hasn't told us yet that you know?"

"None that I could recall, to be honest," Bella hummed in thought even as her hands moved to paint. "Well, there were some of the pirate stories he shared with me back in the day."

Smiling brightly, Bella began to recount some of the more outlandish tales her husband had told her all those years ago. Even as her mouth moved to tell the tales, her hands moved with precision as she did her best to capture the Queen Mother's beauty into canvas.

"That's… certainly a lot more than I expected based on what you said," the Queen Mother chuckled for a brief second before quickly assuming her previous pose. "I guess my son has done a lot more than simply being an admiral."

"He was a self-admitted pirate so that all but guaranteed that he would have a lot of stories to tell," Bella chuckled back. "I'm pretty sure he hasn't even told me everything yet. He might have a few more unbelievable stories just waiting to be told."

"I wouldn't put it past him to save them for his kids," her mother-in-law chuckled back. "Speaking of which, I'm rather excited to have some grandchildren to spoil. Can I expect a few little ones as soon as this year, dear?"

Bella blinked as a pinch of guilt snaked into her heart. To think that the Queen Mother was already this excited to have grandkids… She should really step up her game to give the people she loved what they wanted. Not that she didn't want children herself, but it was also her duty now.

"I'm… I'm sorry, but I don't think it happened just yet," Bella admitted. "Rest assured though that I'll do my best to conceive the moment my fertile days come again. Amon and I will make sure we have an heir in me pretty soon."

"Ah, you don't have to sound too stressed about it, Bella," Mona reassured her with a loving tone. "There's no rush to give me a grandchild or to secure the throne of Helion. If it happens, then it happens. Besides, I'm sure you and my son are doing more than enough for it to happen naturally."

Bella blushed at the implication, but she quickly composed herself as she gave her mother-in-law a grateful smile. "Thank you, Mother. I'll see to it that it happens sooner rather than later though."

"I have no doubts, dear," the older woman smiled. "Again, just don't stress yourself. Enjoy your honeymoon with Amon, and if it results in something, then that will simply add more for us to celebrate."

Bella beamed at the thought of it. Still, she was getting a bit side-tracked with all of the daydreaming when she still had a painting to finish.

Focusing on her work, a comfortable silence settled between them as they both simply let the other work. Eventually, Bella completed her painting, and she promptly showed it to her subject.

"My, this is beautiful," the Queen Mother commented in amazement the more she looked at her portrait. "Why, if I was still queen, I would've had this hung in the throne room."

"Thank you, Mother," Bella faintly blushed at the praise. "I just did my best."

"And that's more than enough for this to come out amazing," the older woman chuckled. "You really should paint more. Perhaps someday, you'll give us an entire family portrait that we can display in the castle."

Bella smiled brightly at that idea. Just the thought of being able to capture her happiness into canvas was something she had always wanted to do. Also, the thought of being able to paint her family was an honor in and of itself.

And perhaps maybe, by the time she could finally do such a thing, there would be a few more additions to the family that she could paint alongside them.