"Theodore... good morning." The queen greets the prince stiffly. I'm still above him, staring at the queen in horror. I pull myself off of Theodore, sliding off the edge of the bed to curtsey.
"Mother." Theodore says with no emotion. "I'd appreciate it greatly if in the future you send word that you were coming rather than... surprising my fiancee and I." I tense, having forgotten that we have a false arrangement to play. Theodore reaches out and tugs my arm, pulling me back into bed with him.
I shoot a look at him before I let him pull me into his side, resting my head on his chest reluctantly. The queen purses her lips and I almost cringe. Something about her doesn't quite frighten me, but she does have an air about her that seems less than benevolent.
The queen advances towards the bed and Theodore's arm tightens around me. She pauses about six feet away, staring at the magnificent red gown from last night's ball strewn onto the remaining sofa in the middle of the room. Her eyes narrow at me once more, and I decide I'm not going to talk during this exchange.
"Theodore, dear, I came up to tell you personally that I'd like to see you at the court dinner tonight that I'm having in Zena's honour, to introduce her to the court." Theodore growls low in his throat. "I'll be there. As will Adrienne." The queen purses her lips and her gaze flicks over to me briefly. "As you wish... I shall see you tonight then." Theodore nods dismissively and I think I see the queen's eyes flare with anger— but the light disappears after a split second.
She leaves silently, her gown trailing upon the carpeted floor and her entourage stepping silently behind her. The guards pull the doors shut and Theodore exhales deeply as they close. I look up at him and see frustration written plainly on his face. His grip on my waist tightens until it's painful, and I try to shift away.
"I'm sorry she's so terrible." I turn and look at him and he's staring across the room, gripping the sheets in his fists. I feel my heart twisting at his expression. "She's never... been like this before. She was the sweetest person in the world, but recently she's been different." I nod, unable to feel empathy for him, no matter how I try. I don't know what it's like to watch parents change; I was torn from mine too early.
I crawl over to him from the edge of the bed where I sit and rub his shoulder. "I'm sorry." I whisper, not knowing what else I'm supposed to say. I'm not good at feelings— I never have been. After all the killing and the building up this mental reinforced house in my head, I find myself incredibly detached from situations that should spark emotion.
As I watch Theodore's head hanging and his black hair falling over his eyes, a memory rises to the surface of my mind.
"You're tired," My mother says to my father softly. It's evening, and I'm in my small bed across from my parents' mattress. My father is sitting hunched over on the edge of it next to my mother, and I watch them with wide eyes. My mother envelops him in a hug and he holds her, sighing deeply into her neck. I watch the tension leak out of him like water from a tap and relax into her arms. They look happy, and I wonder if I'll ever love somebody the way they do right now.
Tentatively, I move toward the prince. I lean my head on his shoulder and wrap an arm around him, hoping that this won't push him away. "I'm sorry you feel like she's being cruel," I whisper. His head leans against mine after a moment and he takes my hand in his, rubbing his thumb over my palm. "Thank you." He says quietly.
We stay like this for a while, sitting in silence filled with strange emotion with no way of expressing it. At three o'clock, Theodore rises from the bed.
"I'm sorry, Adrienne. I'd love to stay like this, truly, but I need to go prepare myself for the horrible upcoming event that is tonight's dinner." I laugh and wave a hand towards the door. "Go. I shall see you in a few hours, Your Grace." Theodore winks at me roguishly and bows, then exits the room with his jacket in hand. I watch him leave, a cold feeling settling into my skin where I was pressed against him minutes ago.
I ring the bell on the night table tentatively, still unsure of the action, and my ladies-in-waiting file into the room after a moment. "How was breakfast?" Gwen asks innocently after the three of them rise from their curtsies. "It was perfect." I say with a small smile. Cianna and Gwen beam at me, and Kaltis nods in approval. We chat for a bit before they drag my reluctant form out of bed to prepare for dinner tonight.
Kaltis has already found a gown for me tonight— evidently new racks of gowns are placed in my dressing room at Theodore's command, so I shall not have a shortage of clothes to wear while I stay here in any event. I find myself thinking of Theodore's eyes as I muse over dresses with the girls, and in an impulsive moment, I timidly requested that tonight's gown be blue. Kaltis agreed without question and has been scouring the many options at my disposal since.
Gwen and Cianna are busy weaving jewels into my hair, leaving most of it showering over my shoulders in ringlets, but some of it braided up around the crown of my head. A pretty shade of blue wings out from my eyes, smudged and light. Gwen brushes a rosy pink rouge onto my cheeks, and I look to be barely blushing. Cianna places a pendant with a deep blue stone set in white-gold vines, the cold metal settling against the hollow of my throat. I smile at the two girls in the reflection of the mirror as Kaltis walks over with a blue dress resting over her arm.
I look in the mirror as the dress settles around my body, and take in the details of the gown in awe. It's a pretty blue shade overtop of a pink dress, with pale pink flowers sprinkled across the sheer fabric. My shoulders are bare, and the train trails behind me slightly. I'm smiling at myself like a child as I stare at my reflection, when I'm guided by the hand into a set of heels much higher than I am used to. In a moment of complete giddiness at how much of a lady I look like and wanting to make Gwen smile, I spin in a circle and Gwen screams her admiration delightedly.
After fifteen minutes of the girls fussing over my hair and my gown, I'm ready to go downstairs. I'd no idea that a whole hour and three quarters had past, and now it is almost time for me to head down to the dinner and the dance with the prince.
I realize nervously as I wait that I will have to see the queen, and Zena tonight. I don't want to interact with either woman in any way— not because I am afraid of them, but because I am afraid of what they may provoke me to say.
I wonder how Theodore would feel if I were to take a swing his mother.
He'd probably be appalled and I'd be executed on the spot, but it would be a nice feeling. She doesn't sit right with me; something about her feels disingenuous, and I know my instincts are rarely wrong. The queen is hiding something, and I mean to find out what.
YOU ARE READING
The Beauty In Love And Murder
Fantasy{ "Who are you?" He asks in that smooth, chocolatey voice that I'd been admiring not half an hour earlier. I curl my lip scornfully. "I'm not obligated to tell you that." The dagger increases in pressure against my throat, sending more blood trickli...
