It is tradition in the land of Dreadnaught that on the eve of celebration, a grand feast is to be held in the castle. Even in a time of mourning, these traditions must be adhered to, and so solemnly Vivienne disrobed from her black garments and donned a more appropriate gown in the red and gold of the royal crest.
The dress she wore had been her mothers, silk and velvet, embroidered with golden roses which fell like a blanket of petals along the train. She had always coveted the dress, a coronation gown passed down through the generations, but now as she wore it she felt out of place, like an imposter. She ran her hands down the heavy red fabric at her waist, praying that she could simply take the dress off and climb back into her bed, but below her tower she could hear the music ascending from the great hall and the merriment of her guests.
Alone but for her two guards, Vivienne left the sanctuary of her chambers for the festivities in the hall. Though it was common for villagers to dine in the castle, rarely was the royal dining room open to the public, but tonight the castle was filled with nobles and commoners alike. Vivienne hesitated at the door to the hall, fearful of the scene she was about to enter, but knowing she had no choice but to continue, she allowed the doors to be pushed open and her arrival announced.
Instead of applause and cheer, as Vivienne entered there was silence. Eyes bore into her from all directions and she could feel the tension in the room. The great hall was filled with tables, though few people sat. Flanked by guards, she made her way to the Queen's place at the head of the hall, where a grand, gilded throne awaited her. Alongside the throne were seats reserved for the nobles and advisors, though to Vivienne's shock, all were empty. Even Paddoc's seat was vacant. With an empty feeling of abandonment heavy in her heart, Vivienne took her place and watched as the eyes in the room slowly grew bored of watching her and returned to their chatter and drinking.
The hours passed slowly and the great fast was served, although the seats surrounding Vivienne remained empty. She could only imagine the whispers between the commoners bellow her. Vivienne Lamina, the great Queen of Dreadnaught, abandoned by her advisors.
Vivienne ate in silence, though food tempted her little, she was determined to remain strong in front of her people. Below the brave face with which she smiled down over the hall, she was terrified.
As the meal drew to an end and pudding and wine were being delivered to the tables, a man approached Vivienne. He was well dressed, though not well enough to be noble, his clothes emanated the look of a squire or advisor. His clothes were plain, but well made, though he wore no armour and carried at his hip a sword.
As he accosted the Princess, every eye in the room followed him and watched him as he bowed and addressed her.
"Your Highness," he said, avoiding her eyes, "I have been sent here by the lords of the land to deliver this."
He drew from within his riding cloak a letter, fastened with the royal crest.
"On who's behalf precisely," Vivienne asked, eyeing the crest as she took the paper from his hands, "for this is the symbol of my family."
The man bowed his head and began to back away from her, "That is all I am at liberty to say." He stated, before turning on his heel and marching from the hall.
Vivienne stared at the envelope, her finger traced over the neat scrawl of her name, before she roughly tore it open. As soon as the letter was unfolded and in her hands, she became aware of the silence in the room, as her guests had continued to watch her even after the man had left.
Her eyes flicked across the curious faces that lined the walls around her, before commencing her reading.
Vivienne Lamina,
Princess and Heir of Dreadnaught,
You will by now have noticed our absence from your feast, and though we enjoy such events, we feel it would be inappropriate at such a time to be seen at your table. When your Cousin, Lord Darle, sits at your side, we will again join your cause, until then we bid you good night.
Vivienne felt her body begin to tremble as she skimmed over the signatures at the bottom of the page, every name she read felt like a knife in her gut. Refusing to allow herself to cry at this moment, while so many eyes were on her, she instead turned her fear into anger as she held the letter over a candle in front of her and watched it as it burned.
As the last ashes of the paper fell to the table and scorched the wood, her guests pointedly turned away.
Vivienne looked over the hall, over the people she would rule. Her nobles had made a point of their absence, it was clear she did not have their support, but what of these families and workers who had prospered under her mother's reign, did she have theirs? What of her best friend who had promised to be by her side, where was that wretched girl now.
A/N: Very short chapter I know! This was actually supposed to be the first half of the next chapter but I couldn't find a way to meld them together, so I'm just splitting them in two. Anyone want to try to predict what is going to happen? I'm going to be keeping my secrets to myself, but if the book description is anything to go on, Vivienne might not be in the castle for much longer!
On another note, Camp NaNoWriMo is killing me, it feels so weird to be sitting down every day and having to reach a word count goal, but it's getting easier as days pass. Still going to try and smash out a few more words today. Might post an update on Friday as well. If I don Monday, Wednesday and Friday that gives y'all 3/week without stressing me out too much!
Also thinking about putting together a Pintrest board of all my inspiration for this story (costumes, characters, etc.) as currently I have everything saved in a folder on my computer and thought if might be interesting for you guys to actually see some of the things I talk about.
YOU ARE READING
The Chronicles of the Runaway Queen: Escape to Danger
Fantasy*This version of this book has been abandoned in favor of a re-write - currently in progress*
