You are a Tomato!

Their lead guard bowed even more deeply. “Your Highness, great were our struggles, as for many days and nights without sleep we tracked the vicious criminals-”

The Queen hissed and Gwydderig stopped, suddenly. He braved a look at his commander on the dais and spoke again.

“These are the raiders who disrupted your popcorn harvest, oh Great Queen.”

She laughed. It was not a nice laugh. Nervous tittering rose up throughout the hall like an echo, but stopped when she stopped.

“Even the little ones?”

Bettina did not like to be called little unless there were extra cookies involved. She particularly did not like being reminded of her size when she was feeling small and afraid, as she was now. She looked the Queen in the eye.

“You are a tomato,” she said. Claire gasped and Adolphus looked at the guards and the Queen, nervous smile frozen on his face.

The Queen laughed again, but this time no one tried to echo her.

“What does it say?”

With relief, Claire realized Bettina had spoken in German, not Welsh. She hissed at the twins – “Help me with the words,” and addressed the Queen.

“Most noble and gracious Highness,” she said. “My sister spoke out of turn only because she is so amazed by your beauty and grace elegance.” Claire was trying to speak and listen to the suggestions of both the twins at the same time, and was bound to get a few things wrong.

“We are strangers to your kingdom, travelers from far away. We did not understand your customs, or know that the little dog creatures were yours. We are very sorry for hurt/break/trespassing on your… stuff.”

Bettina scowled. The pale lady stood just behind the Queen’s shoulder and smiled at Bettina, raising her eyebrows. Bettina pouted a moment more, then followed the lady’s lead, and smiled.

The Queen questioned the children. Where were they from? How did they get here? Who are their parents? Of what clan are they?

The last question gave them some trouble. Claire answered with “von Hedwig” but the Queen was not satisfied with that. That was the name of their parents, what was their tribe? She used several different words to make her meaning clear, but Claire did not understand.

Gerhardt had been listening and fiddling with his frayed cuffs. He had been shooting furtive glances at his crossbow and stone axe, which their captors had laid at the Queen’s feet. Now he looked from the Queen to Claire.

“She wants to know what kind of vegetable we are!”