-month 4-
I have not heard anything from Edward in the longest time. So the news I received today took a while to reach my ears, and was especially surprising.
I thought everyone seemed quiet today. But when I asked what was wrong, Sir Tyler just laughed and said they'd all stayed up too late last night.
So I was the last person in Denalham--probably in the whole of Duremia--to find out. But find out I did. I was restless one day, and insisted on an afternoon horse ride around the grounds. My companions and I passed by an open window where two maids gossiped while washing clothes.
"Can he do that?" one of them was saying. "I've never heard the likes of it before."
"Oh, he's the King," scoffed the other. "I reckon he can do whatever he has the mind to do. Just think, though, without even tellin' the poor Queenie! Here she is thinkin' she's still married and he goes and gets a divorce."
"And then marries some other girl. If I were her, I'd be madder than a bee at that rotten king."
The others with me had quickly tried to hurry me along, talking loudly to cover the the unknowing speech of the maids. But I rode on and then turned to look at them calmly.
"Well, that is interesting news. And no one thought to tell me!" I said lightly.
They all looked down, shame-faced.
"We didn't want to upset you, Majesty," muttered Sir Matthew.
"Upset me?" I laughed merrily. "Why would it upset me? I can't believe I didn't think of it a long time ago. After all, it's a disagreeable thing to depose one's husband. And now he's not my husband! He can be another woman's headache for a change."
My companions smiled uncomfortably. This obviously wasn't what they had expected.
"Now, that just leaves one interesting detail," I added. "Who's the poor lady stuck with him?"
"They're not actually married yet..." explained Sir Eric carefully. "Just engaged. But she comes from an earldom in Vampyria. Her name is Beatrice."
"Not a very pretty name," I grinned, and everyone laughed, mainly from relief.
For a minute, I had been thinking it might have been Lady Kirstin, a countess from Vampyria. He had seemed to get along with her pretty well...very well, in fact. But she had always kept him at arm's length, barely sparing him a glance.
That was that. The rest of the day was spent carefreely.
But I had to stifle my sobs that night in my pillow.
 LadyAlisyn · Sun Aug 02, 2009 @ 12:57am · 0 Comments |
