The morning of the first festival day brought on a surge of chaotic excitement that affected everyone. And soon the news of who was going to open and close the first day of the festival spread across the Palace. Those Noble Ladies spent the entire morning shouting commands at their Handmaid’s as well as the Palace maids. They were urging them to get things for them, changing their minds about their performance outfit and crying a river when the tiniest things were out of place. Ivy, Arden and I just enjoyed the free show, quietly laughing at the manic range of emotions that was running through the two dancers of the day.
When the sun was high in the sky, we were all escorted to the large open plain on the farthest edge of the Palace grounds, on the other side of the Central Palace. Banners, flowers and ribbons of all colors were blowing in the summer breeze from the posts of every shop and game stand. There were hundreds of Shifters walking around too, all full of smile
Of all the people to run into...I thought to myself, standing there stunned as Calix clung to the Crown Princes’ neck.Wait… did Calix say Uncle?“Where have you been Calix?” The Prince asked him, looking down at him with a warm smile. “Your mother told you to stay near the library.”I couldn’t focus on Calix’s answer as I stood there, suddenly distracted by the Prince.He’s very handsome… How come I’m just now noticing this?My mind wondered, recalling the past few moments in which I was near the Prince.He was tall, with broad shoulders and well defined muscles that could be seen beneath his clothes. There were solid black markings on his arms, spaced out and scattered around him. This made him seem mysterious in a way. He also had an air of authority to him that mixed with wisdom and something else that I couldn’t place. The way he was s
The next few days of the festival passed by in a near blur, with Ivy and Arden enjoying the daily changing booths and activities. We tried many different treats and poked fun at each other while we played different games. Ivy burst into tears on the third day when I had shown her the new and simple outing dresses I had bought her. And my brother managed to sell a few more trinkets that I had snuck away from the Du Pleasant estate, adding more to our travelers fund. Little Calix even joined us a few times, introducing us to his mother who was the Crown Princes’ adopted cousin.She was a beautiful woman named Lanalee with straight coffee brown hair that she kept in a neat shoulder length cut. She had the same amber eyes as her son, but her facial features were a lot more delicate and curved than his, making me wonder what his father looked like. She was also very kind and open to us, telling us stories about herself and her son when they traveled around. She had let slip
The last day of the festival was opened by Rosanna, and she, like nearly every other Queeness, dressed in the Royal Fafner family colors of red, gold and grey. Her dress was of smooth glittering red silk that was adorned with gold. And a pale grey scattering of jewelry glinted off her body as she danced. Thankfully she didn’t embarrass herself like some of the other Queeness’ and actually stuck to her family’s Pride Dance. But the dress itself was enough to wonder what was going on in that head of hers.It was far too tight in some places and showed quite a bit of skin too, not leaving much to the imagination. Of course this made it so the men in the audience cheered and whistled loudly for her, no doubt garnering some amount of points for this challenge.After Ivy, Arden and I made it out of the arena we met up with Lana and Calix by a drink booth. We then followed the ever energetic eight year old throughout the festival, watching different side sho
*Prince Dorian*I should have known that things weren’t as I was told. I should have picked up on the signs before my opinion of someone had formed. It should have been easy for me to notice these things… if I wasn’t blinded by false friendship and lies.My choice of friends and those I kept close to me had always been a long and tedious process. I didn’t care for those that wanted to suck up to me just because of my station in life. I didn’t want those that saw me as a tool to better their lives or as some omnipotent guard that would let them get away with anything they did wrong. But even through all the nit-picking and information gathering, a fraud still managed to get through and join my inner circle.This was the case with the Du Pleasant brothers, Marcus and Samuel.I had met them during my time at the Academy and, after months of casual greetings without anything suspicious coming up, I allowed them to join my small
*Amara*Calix was sleeping soundly when his mother raced into my room, her eyes wide with fear as she searched it for her son. Once she found his little sleeping form on my bed she whimpered and rushed towards him, kneeling beside the bed and its spilling blankets. Her eyes scanned him over and over again as he slept, searching for any sign of injury. When she was finally satisfied that her little boy was unharmed, she went limp and pressed her head against the edge of the bed, her body shaking with her tears.Gingerly, I approached her, placing a hand on her shoulder as her muffled sobs rang out in my room. Unexpectedly, she grabbed my hand and pulled me to my knees, holding me tightly as I looked over her shoulder at the still crying Ivy. Once she was calm enough I helped her up and gave her a blanket to wrap around Calix, allowing him to stay warm and cozy a
My stomach was in knots for the rest of the night, and Ivy’s constant gleeful comments weren’t helping me relax. When I did manage to get to sleep I dreamed about ridiculous things that didn’t make sense at all. And they all centered around the Crown Prince. I felt like I had truly gone mad with these increasing confusing emotions and now my dreams were being plagued by this man I wanted nothing to do with. A part of me was strangely filled with peace when my mind conjured up those deep red eyes and thick black hair. And an invading wave of unwanted emotions filled me when I’d hear his voice echo in my mind. Emotions that I never wanted to feel again.Thankfully, the other piece of me was able to shove those things down once I awoke the next day. I had gotten up expecting to still feel exhausted and drained because of those dreams but I was delightfully refreshed and energized inste
He’s reporting to me?Those words rang out in my head and I couldn’t understand them at all. Why would His Highness ever report to anyone of a lower station than him? He’s a Prince! He should only ever report to his father and mother, not the illegitimate daughter of a Grand Knight and Duke. I hadn’t even taken his promise seriously last night, thinking that he would be too busy with the investigation himself to have time to let me learn what had been discovered.I blinked several times as I looked at him, seeing his warm smile grow as amusement danced in his eyes. Finally, after a long, stretched out silence, I gave in with a sigh, schooling my emotions as well as my expression.“I am deeply grateful that you took time out of your day to meet with me, Your Highness.” I gave him a
Breakfast the next day was filled with news.Ivy chatted happily as she set up the dinette for myself and my brother who was sitting on the loveseat listening intently. She had heard that because of the deaths and the chaos that ensued during the festival, the King and Queen had decided to exempt the Queeness’ from elimination. She also heard that Lady Naveyame had withdrawn as a candidate, packing up her things and reaching out to her family to take her home. This now left only ten Queeness’ within the Palace and the competition, since Lady Heliona was dead and Lady Naveyame was now leaving. This news, though sad, granted everyone a break from worrying about who won the challenge. It also shortened the competition itself by two months, thus removing another challenge that would have been thrust upon us later on. Though the break was quickly taken over as a Palace Maid along with Royal Knights