Memories of the Beautiful Past (STORY COMPLETED, NOW MAKING SIDE STORIES)

Siodonna's Welcoming Arms

After the banquet of last night finished, Diana became known as an elegant free-spirited lady. Commoners loved her for she was a commoner, and nobles liked her for she wasn't snobby nor arrogant. Diana now gained the title of "Lady" and "Her Royal Highness". Once she married Claude, she would then gain the title, "Empress." It was an exceptional amount of titles, Diana couldn't even comprehend it. To her, she was just "Diana", a girl who just happened to fall in love with an emperor named Claude. 

Diana spent her days at the imperial palace leisurely. She would dine with Claude for each meal and have tea with him whenever he was free from work. When Claude was busy, she would visit the library and read many manuscripts and books on the history of Obelia and of foreign nations in order to familiarize herself with the world of politics. Some aristocratic ladies wanted to become close with Diana, so sometimes she would host tea parties in the gardens. She worked quickly to learn how to act around aristocrats, but she found it too stuffy and arduous. Still, Diana performed excellently with etiquette and speech patterns. The ladies liked her too. 

One afternoon, Diana was thinking about ways she might help the empire in some way. Suddenly, a maid entered into her room and exclaimed, "My lady, the emperor has confirmed that you are going to Siodonna with him in one week!" Diana gasped with joy. She was so glad Claude was able to make space for her. In the days following the news, Diana couldn't even sleep at night due to her building excitement. 

A week later, Claude and Diana embarked on a journey to Siodonna. Claude was wearing his robes on the trip there, which made Diana happy. 

"I heard you're doing a great job assimilating into the imperial work," Claude commented. 

"I'm just humbly performing my duty, that's all." Diana replied. 

"I'm proud of you." Claude smiled warmly at her. His smile was very pure, Diana found herself reaching for it. After sharing a kiss, Claude then said, "The last time I met your family, they seemed very wholesome. Can you tell me more about them?" 

Diana told Claude everything she could think of on the spot about her family. Her father, Alvaro, is a blacksmith, while her mother, Aliya, teaches sparring. "Perhaps you can test your strength against my mother's strength?" Diana suggested. "My mom is a strong woman, don't underestimate her! She even beat my dad once, and he works all day with hot irons." Claude chuckled, "I'll look into it. Maybe if she makes the offer first." 

Her younger brother, Deucalion, was still a teenager and often likes to spar with mother. "He would make a good soldier one day." Diana said. Selene, Diana's youngest sibling, is still a little girl. She loves eating cake and chocolate, and her round cheeks stay squishy all year long. "My mom said that Selene reminds her of me, but I honestly can't remember me being that much of a glutton when I was young! Surely she must be exaggerating, right?" Diana said. 

"Actually, I can see that." Claude replied. 

"Hey!" 

The carriage was filled with laughter the whole ride from the palace to Siodonna. Once the couple arrived, they found many decorations hung all over the village, celebrating their visit. At first, the villagers were tensed up as they saw the almighty emperor standing amongst them, but Diana waved to them and greeted them cheerfully, which eased them. The whole village was glad to see that Diana has found such a handsome and accomplished suitor for her. She introduced her friends and family to Claude, and each of them gave him a flower of their choosing. By the end of all the introductions, he was holding a very large bouquet. Diana took a mental image of him holding the flowers. 

Next, the villagers gathered up for lunch. Each of the 30-ish families brought something to the long maple table. Diana's family brought a vegetable stew, and the others brought a variety of salads, bread, desserts, meats, and of course, drinks. The atmosphere was lively and cheerful as any other day in Siodonna. The children were curious about the emperor, and some brave ones ventured out to him to ask him questions, to which he gave silly responses. One girl asked him if he knew any young princes that she can marry. He said, "The only princes available are in neighboring kingdoms. Too bad they already have wives. Plus, they aren't nearly as handsome as you are beautiful, so I think you should find someone else," before giving her head a little pat. The girl blushed and ran to her parents, exclaiming that the emperor thinks she is beautiful. Diana looked at Claude with loving eyes. He has gotten much better at socializing with other people. Diana was proud she singlehandedly turned the introverted emperor into a more extroverted person. 

After the meal, Diana took Claude to her family's house. Seeing that the emperor was now taken away, some families returned home, while some went to do other affairs. Many children went to the small park to play. Today was a weekend and everyone had time to do what they wanted. Claude took in each other the members of Diana's family. They all resembled Diana, having golden blonde hair and purplish eyes. According to Obelian tradition, the groom of the daughter was supposed to have one-on-one talks with each member of the daughter's family. He did just that and even had talks with little Selene, who only asked him if he liked any of the stuff she liked (unfortunately, Claude did not like sweets, which was incredibly shocking to Selene). However, the conversation Claude has with Diana's mother was the most intense. 

"You are a good young man, your majesty. The fact that my daughter chose to be with you proves just that. I know she has exceedingly good judgement. My children mean the world to me, and I cannot bear to see them end up with an unhappy future. At first, I had my reservations about sending Diana off to marry the emperor, but now I see the gentleman in you. I rather like you, young man. Keep on making Diana happy, give her a good life, you hear me?" She told him. "Of course, miss. I promise I will give her a happy life." Claude replied. 

Diana was especially happy today. Her lover was introduced to her family, which she hadn't seen in years. It was a very special day to her. She was playing a game with her family when Claude returned back with little Selene. Her little cheeks were puffed up and she complained to Diana about how Claude didn't like sweets. Diana just laughed out loud at Selene. 

The whole family, including Claude, engaged in various activities. They played games together, had conversations, and even cooked dinner together. Claude was very clueless at cooking, but Diana guided his hands through the whole process. At night, Diana took Claude to the hills to see the stars. 

"They're much brighter here than in the city." Diana said. She was right. The stars seemed to be reachable. They looked like they were dancing in the night sky. A dancing star was right next to Claude. He held her in his arms as they gazed upon the starry night until they fell asleep on the hills. 

The couple stayed for another day and then had to return on the morning of the third day. Diana embraced her family members goodbye and promised to write regularly to them. Claude also embraced them. Diana saw a bit of disappointment in Claude's face though. In the carriage ride back home, she asked him if he was sad in any way. He looked at her.

"Thank you." He told her. "?? But, for what?" She asked.

"These two days have been the best two days of my life. I can't remember the last time I had this much fun with so many people. Thank you for introducing me to your family. Thank you for making me so happy every day. Thank you for loving me, Diana." He held her gently in his arms. 

"I love you, Diana. Thank you."

"There's no need to thank me, because I love you too, Claude."