Sounds of laughter echo in the halls throughout the kingdom. Nobles from the far reaches of the empire have come to hear the king's announcement. The rooms are clouded with banter from the servants to the queen herself. Everyone has asked why King Scott has called a feast in the middle of a war. The grand knights have come from the battlefield to witness the news themselves. I, on the other hand, stand on the other side of the castle, locked in a room with Hazel, who has just given me the worst news I've ever received. I am to be married to the ruthless prince. I am to stop my life in the matter and be forced to live with him. I stammer back and fall on the bed. She points towards a cart she brought in and says.
"Your clothes are there, and I'll be outside this door until you are ready."
The door finally shifts open, and she bolts out. I walk towards the cart and open it. There stands the most expensive-looking dress I've ever seen. It's embroidered with gold that shines, and a diamond necklace latches onto the back. It's thin, which means they must have taken my measurements to get it perfect. I turn it around and notice the back is wholly exposed beside the lace that stretches into an X. I unzip the bottom and feel the veal on the inside. It feels as if it's meant to be flexible. It's perfect. I shut the closet and held my head against the door. I hate it. I never want to be someone's wife. I am a knight; I want to be fighting alongside my father. I can't do that in this dress. I look upward and ponder. My father would never agree to this. That must mean the king has taken his word and used it against him. I look over to my father's sword that rests on the bed. I pick it up and look at its design again. It's magnificent, and I can't carry this with me while wearing that dress. I replace the dress with the sword in the cart. My mind is screaming for me not to put this stupid-looking dress on, but this is my father's will, even if the king holds his word. My father knows best, and who knows, perhaps I won't even need to fake being a wife for long. I love my father and my mother. They know best, after all. I drop my clothes onto the floor. The shirt they gave me folds when hitting the ground. My pants follow behind it, and I slip my left leg into the lower half of the dress, and I jump in with my right. I push the top half like a suit of armor and clasp the back X. I look into the mirror given to me by Hazel. The dress falls to the floor and, unlike most other dresses, doesn't drag. I'm taller than most, so it makes sense. I stretch my arms and legs and see that I can move freely but can't do anything drastic. I loosen the straps and finally feel free. I walk over to the bed and grab the sword. I touch its blade and infect the purity. Sometimes I like to think I'm like this blade, and the more I touch it, and I feel a connection straining me. The more impure this blade becomes, the more impure I become. I sit there on the bed, trying my best to ruin the things around me, anything to cause this day to go wrong. But within hours, the door is being knocked upon and inflows Hazel.
"It's time," she says.
She leads me into the main hall. I drag my head along with us, shunning all others and rejecting all looks toward me. Hazel tries to make small talk but doesn't prevail.
"You do look good, Klay. Even if you do not wish to be here, cheer up your father is on his way."
I ignore her words. They know I'm a big daddy girl, so even I can't hold my smile. I can't wait to see and hit him for making me a bride. We stay behind a door to the main hall. I ask.
"What are we waiting for?"
"The signal," she says.
I begin tapping my feet in frustration. We are waiting for some grand scheme from the king himself. She touches her ear to the door and shushes all other noise. It's silent. You could drop a sword and awake the kingdom with how quiet it is. Then. She gasps and pushes the door open. I follow her lead and what I witness leaves me in awe.
I've only been in this hall as a child and on special occasions. This is one of them. A table stretches from one half of the room to the next. In the corners of the room, smaller tables have been gifted to those worthy of being here but not as significant as the nobles. So knights, grand soldiers, and dukes or counts. Chairs are lined up alongside them, with notable characters filling them. Servants run across the room, ensuring every noble has been taken care of. Women have crammed the in-between of the tables. The queen sits at the other end of the table with the throne next to her. The King isn't here yet, and we are all awaiting him. I am taken back by the smell. The fumes have filled my lungs to the brim while I cough up an artery. Hazel tries her best to inform me of all who is here. The table is divided into sections with heads of the families filling the grand table. She escorts me to the elegant table and sits next to her family. I sit next to her and listen to the gossip. This end of the table is regarded for high-ranking women in our society. I don't belong here at all. They all carry themselves as born nobles meaning from birth; they were accustomed to this lifestyle. They walk, talk, and act like they are higher than any commoner. I don't get any disgusted looks from being here, but someone must be against it. The noble's breath reeks of the meal handed before my arrival. The servants run around handing out the main course while I listen to Hazel talk.
"This here is my sister K'Layah she's the daughter of Sir Frank. She was born in a village far off my father's estate. Now Frank holds that village, and she is our guest of honor. Her father has pledged a compromise with the king that will be announced."
Another girl speaks.
"I sure hope this announcement will be good. I had a peasant boy with beautiful eyes spin me around. We were so close to doing the devil's dance until my husband called for us to leave."
"Husband, you look younger than me," I say.
She cocks her head at me and sips her drink. She looks away to Hazel and continues her conversation. I look down at my plate being handed to me. It's fish caught from the nearest sea. It's one of the more poisonous ones, and if prepared wrong, it could kill you. The king had to choose this one to send a message. Someone will die here. I look around the table and examine the lady's food. I could only get a glance, but our food seemed perfectly fine. I start to grab the fish, but Hazel holds my hand.
"We don't eat until my father arrives and use your fork. You aren't on a farm anymore," she says.
I use my napkin to clean my hands and hold my head down. A man dressed in tights blows a horn, and the room fills with silence. He unrolls a paper and read from it.
"On March 5, we have the grand feast of King Scott, and his meeting today will be guarded by the royal knights. I decree they enter now!" he says.
The main doors open, and all heads turn. In came men outfitted in shining armor. The first set of men, only three in counting, had light and fixed armor. The next group had armor of a more medium build; you could tell their armor was sturdier and more complex to penetrate than before. The last set, well, we know them well. It was my father's set—the grand knights themselves. Sir Joseph, Prince Cnut, Sir Gabriel, and Sir Luke. My father comes in last, his helmet resting in his arms. He walks behind the prince. They walk down the main table and stand next to the throne, awaiting orders.
The man in tights resume.
"These knights have been given the order to protect the royal family earnestly. With that, I introduce the great king himself, King Scottsdale the great."
The flaps behind the throne open, and an ailing old man emerges. He saunters and stands upright. He raises his hand, and all other nobles stand. I forget I am among them and quickly try to rise in unison with the rest. My foot gets caught on the chair, which only throws me off sync, and I nearly fall over. I draw attention from all in the room and look down in embarrassment. I can feel their stares at me as my face begins turning red. I look to my father, who looks at me with amazement. His face reassures me, and I continue looking up to the king as the others follow suit. His face gazes back at mine, giving me a weak chuckle. He raises his hand downwards as all sit in motion. He takes his seat last and instructs his knights are free to roam the court. My father remains by his side, whispering among the king. They share secrets, and my father points at me and laughs again. Wait a minute, are they talking about me! My face gets red again, and I look at Hazel. She's staring at my father. I break her gaze and talk to her.
"When will we be able to eat," I ask.
"Soon, big hungry, he might give his announcement first. We take a break before the big feast," Hazel says.
Nobles begin moving around and speaking with members of their families. My father waves up to me, and I know that's the signal for me to greet him finally. I stand up and walk towards him. My walk slowly turns into a run, and I reminisce about being that little girl finally able to see her father. My eyes begin tearing up. The thought of being unable to see my father again, of one day witnessing another knight come home telling my mother the worst news.
"My father was killed in battle."
I could never live without him and, finally, hold him again. He's taken aback by my force but still holds me up. My face pressed against his armor, and the makeup smeared on the part of it, but he didn't care. He caresses my hair and speaks.
"It's been too long, Klay. I've missed you. Tell me how your trip has been."
I pull back tears filling my eyes. I can barely speak. He shakes his head and says again.
"It's ok, my daughter. This reminds me of the first campaign. It was pitch black out in the rain, and when I returned, a little girl was holding a candlelight. At first, I thought it was your mother mad at me for taking so long to return, but when I noticed it was you, I could do nothing as you ran through the mud and tackled me. I remember your bruise when you fell, and I almost lost you. I put you straight to bed, and you wouldn't let me go. We both fell asleep in your bed that night. You wouldn't let me go once you got a hold of me. It didn't matter that I was in armor or anything. You held onto me. I remember the bath we had to take and how mad your mother was at me for sleeping with you. The next few days were spent me nursing you from the cold you got. Tell me, Klay, do you feel sick again?"
My face reddens as I give a fake cough.
"Yes, you should stay with me until I'm back to health. I've missed you, dad. Do you remember when we trained the first time, and I surprised you by splitting that arrow in two? It took me one swing and many attempts, but I stood up all night practicing that. Or that one time I managed to pull your sword from you, me besting the great Defender."
"I was going easy on you, Klay," my father says.
We both share a laugh. He escorts me to another seat next to his. We continued the conversation by talking about what we used to do. This moment is filled with happiness, and our laughter attracts the attention of the nobles. The sound of other people dies out as my father, and I share a hearty laugh. I take notice of this and stop laughing. My father continues his laugh as the king signals for silence. His dies down too, and the king stands and speaks.
"I have gathered you all here for three reasons. One is the birthday of my dearest friend's daughter. Yes, yes, congratulate her on your own time. Another is the merging of our two houses. My son Cnut will marry Francis le bouclier du Royaume des cieux daughter. This union will solidify the pact between the lower class and us nobles. I wish them both a happy and long-lasting marriage. Lastly, I called this meeting to agree on what we must do if this plan fails. I fear the worst will happen if the peasants rise against us again. They started with a small army, but who to say they won't bring thousands or even more? Our military can't be everywhere, and I know they tire of this endless war. So this marriage will be open to all, even commoners."
The room fills with murmurs and dirty looks. The one sitting at the lucky table stands up. I don't know who he is, but he is gorgeous. He speaks,
"I think I can speak for the best of us 'lower class' when I say that if our great leader Frank can stand for this, we can bear a little longer. The people love him and to see one of us become queen; mayhaps in a couple of years, it will be us telling the king what to do."
His last line gets a chuckle out of the crowd. The King raises his hands again.
"Now, let us enjoy three days of celebration ending with my son's marriage. Open the doors to the public and allow the commoners to join us in this feast." the king demands.
The doors are swung open, and slowly, people begin walking in. A handful of them run up to the king's throne and start kneeling downward towards him, but to my surprise, many women run up to me, bombarding me with questions. I quickly became overwhelmed, and my father stepped in.
"Please, lady K'layah has a lot going on. It's best to wait until after the marriage to ask her questions." He says.
The females give a weak bow and run over to the food table left out for them. Once the commoners were given access, many nobles began acting normal. Throughout the whole castle, everyone ran around and played like they would at home. Many peasants touched relics and paintings, but none ever stole them. They would be unruly but never out of place. This continued while the king sat there on his throne. He would wave to the commoners, but his eyes never left his target.
He was searching for the traitor looking with his hawk's eyes like he took flight above the halls. The King knew who the traitor was even before he made the speech he knew. Even before he stepped foot in the main entrance, he knew the biggest threat to his crown was the man standing by his side the entire time. My father never plotted against the king, but the people favored our family. In fact, the commoners valued us more than the king. If my father spoke against him, he would win in a heartbeat. The biggest enemy to the crown was not my father, though. He would never betray the king. I looked over to the king, and our eyes met for the final time. I was the biggest threat.