The royal children were born to various royal concubines and the queen.
The queen was ranked the highest among women in the royal palace. She was the most powerful woman in the palace and she processed lots of power in royal affairs and politics. But there hadn't been a new queen ever since Queen Estelle died years ago when the Crown Prince was only a little child. Instead, the most powerful and ambitious concubine, Selene Unis, who took control of the royal palace and asserted her power as the highest ranking woman in the royal circles with no queen around.
King Augustus and the late Queen Estelle only had one child, a son: Crown Prince/First Prince Ezekiel.
First Princess Freya and Fourth Prince Demetrius were born to Royal Concubine Mahina Kami.
Second Princess Maertisa was born to Royal Concubine Calandra Gaudium.
Third Princess Lysandra was born to Royal Concubine Kachina Pupal.
Second Prince Astyrian and Fourth Princess Azalea were born to Royal Concubine Selene Unis.
Third Prince Theon was born to Royal Concubine Odessa Calidum.
Each royal concubine had been chosen from a good and powerful noble household and each one wanted her child to become the new king or queen. These women were all ambitious and powerful and each one of them looked to build up their own power and influence in the royal capital.
Their children, raised and groomed to fight and battle for the throne since childhood, trained and educated to be proper players in the succession battle, were just as ambitious and power-hungry as their mothers were.
The signs of a succession war were all too clear for those living in the royal capital to see.
It was late afternoon and lunch time now for the royal children after their morning lessons and training.
The royal family lunch was a very strange and nerve-wrecking affair.
For one, the "family" in royal family lunch was almost non-existent. The royal siblings regard each other with distrust and hatred, seeing their half brothers and half sisters more as competitors and obstacles in their path towards the throne than actual siblings they shared blood with. Underneath a mask of peacefulness and calm, rivalry, ambition, and jealousy ran rampant.
The king's illness was getting worse and worse now and it looked like he could die at any moment now. To make matters worse the Crown Prince's health was also failing and deteriorating faster than the royal healers could heal him. The rivalry for the crown grew even more intense as the possibility of the king and/or crown prince dying became more and more possible as the days passed.
The throne would be empty-needing a successor or ruler to fill it- and there could only be one person sitting in it. There could only be one king or one queen-but the question was who would it be?
A succession war looked more and more possible as the royal princes and princesses schemed and plotted, formed alliances, gathered support and built up their reputations. Among the king's 7 illegitimate children, the strongest contenders and successors for the throne-after the Crown Prince who was now bedridden and disabled-were the Second Princess, Third Princess, Second Prince and Third Prince.
The other three siblings were either too young to compete(the Fourth Princess) or had zero interest in the throne(The First Princess and Fourth Prince) so they wisely chose to stay out of royal politics and tried to not draw attention to themselves. But that didn't guarantee that they wouldn't get caught up in the bloody and messy workings of royal politics. History had shown that just having royal blood flowing through your veins was enough reason to be considered a threat and killed.
The royal dining hall was a beautiful and elegant place with bright white walls made from pure white marble and adorned with gold. The table had intricately carved finest curved legs with continued carvings throughout. Beautifully carved metallic gold armchairs feature beautiful burgundy fabric seating complimented by a rich luxurious gold seat, A solid wood frame and lavish carvings around every curve finished off the finer details of the chairs.
Luxurious and decadent dishes were brought to the table on fine white porcelain plates and trays by servants dressed in black. Roasted pig with an apple in its mouth, roasted veal dressed in a creamy and rich mushroom sauce, Mozzarella-Stuffed Marinated Olives, Beef Tenderloin Tartare with Anchovy-Cornichon Vinaigrette, Wedge Salad with Tahini Green Goddess Dressing and Potatoes au Gratin.
There was only the sounds of eating and of forks and knives clicking and clacking. But the tense was in the air and it was not the feeling you get from a casual lunch between siblings but rather from a political battleground where you needed to be ruthless and cutthroat in order to navigate your way around it. Where words and your mind were your weapons
A young woman with bright red hair twisted into a tight bun at the nape of her neck with gray eyes and wearing a beautiful red and black silk dress with a string of pearls around her neck: First Princess Freya
A beautiful girl with long black hair that flowed to her waist in loose waves with dark blue eyes wearing a elegant navy blue gown: Second Princess Maertisa
A girl with long blonde hair that was twisted around her head in two braids with silvery-gray eyes eyes wearing a beautiful white dress: Third Princess Lysandra
A little girl who couldn't look any older than six years old with locks of white hair to her shoulders with bright red eyes wearing a frilly and lacy pastel pink dress: Fourth Princess Azalea
A young man with long black hair tied back in a low ponytail with bright red eyes in a dark blue suit: Second Prince Astyrian
A boy who looked 13 to 15 with reddish-brown hair that was messy and long with silver-gray eyes wearing a handsome and well-tailored gray suit: Third Prince Theon
A little boy with bright red hair and sea green eyes dressed in a white shirt with a sailor collar and brown shorts: The Fourth Prince Demetrius
They were all sitting around the table as they ate and tried to not look so awkward and tense but failed miserably. Anyone could tell that they didn't want to be here and the tension was growing as siblings prepared to fight each other for the crown once the succession war breaks out.
The royal dinner was one of the few times the royal children ever bothered to interact and be in each other's presence excluding royal events such as royal birthdays and weddings.
There was no talking among the siblings, only the sounds of eating and chewing.
A blur of silver whooshed past the second princess before it embedded itself into the wall behind her. It was a shard of metal shaped crudely into a blade. The Third Prince giggled a little before he summoned another shard of metal from thin air and threw it with such a force that it embedded itself into the wall just like the first one.
"Sorry, sister, but I couldn't help myself since you looked at me with those eyes."
The Second Princess finished off the last of her roasted veal before setting her fork and knives down neatly on her plate before speaking.
"You better watch out as that throne is mine. I didn't like that look in your eyes as if you're going to be a king one day. "
The second princess said those words with venom in her voice. She was warning everyone to not mess with her. Of course, such a bold claim would not be without some backlash.
The Second Prince whipped around to glare daggers at his older half-sister.
"Very bold but I'll be the one to sit on the throne. Just watch me."
Fighting and shouting broke out at the dining table as each prince or princess with any real ambition or eyes on the throne fought each other.
Freya quickly excused herself and left the dining hall before she got caught up in another succession fight.
Her maid servant followed closely behind her as she walked down the long hallway back to her room.
Freya stopped and looked out of the window. The sunlight streamed through it and she looked at the royal gardens. Her eyes were serious and grave.
"I see nothing but fighting and blood being shed in the future. The future looks so scary but I also see a ray of hope."
….
So far, no one knew about Arya and that was good. There had been rumors going around as to what happened to her after that botched execution-that Arya was killed in secret or she was imprisoned once again- but no one knew about Arya and her true identity as a princess.
After the king left to attend to his kingly duties and responsibilities, stating she would make it up to her later on, Arya was left with just Myna, Catalina and Elijah for company as they ate their lunch.
Myna was not prepared for two more people to feed but she quickly managed to whip up more food for all of them.
Now they were all seated in the dining hall of the royal mansion, eating Fresh Tomato and Grilled Shrimp Kabobs, Endives With Shrimp Salad, Creamy Grilled Chicken with Buttery Mushrooms, Onion Soup and Slowed Cooked Beef Brisket.
Elijah scooped a generous portion of the fricassee onto his plate and Catalina helped herself to three shrimp and tomato kabobs. Arya put a little bit of everything onto her plate and bit into a piece of the brisket. It was buttery, freshly made and so tender that it melted in her mouth.
She turned to look at Myna who looked uncomfortable, just picking and prodding at her food.
"This is really great, Myna!! You're an amazing cook!"
Myna's smile looked embarrassed as her cheeks pinkened and a small smile played across her face.
"Oh, thank you, your highness."
Arya almost face-palmed at this. It's only been a couple of hours since it was revealed that she was a princess and a long-lost royal but she was being treated much differently now to the point it made her a little bit uncomfortable. But she said nothing and instead poured herself a glass of ice cold water from a silver pitcher while Myna protested and said that she should be the one doing that.
"It's okay. You don't need to do everything for me, Myna. There's also no need to be so stiff and formal with me."
Catalina and Elijah ate their food with all the grace and manners benefitting high-ranking nobles. How in the world did they look so regal and attractive even while they were eating?
Catalina set down her fork and knife and dabbed away a few bits of food around her mouth.
"Thank you for the wonderful meal, Miss.Myna. It was truly remarkable how you made all this by yourself. This was one of the most enjoyable meals that I had ever had in my life and I do say so genuinely."
Myna blushed and she seemed to be relishing the praise like it was the most delicious delicacy in the world. You get the feeling that nobody had ever complimented or praised her before.
Myna took a bite of her food, swallowed and paused for a few seconds before speaking.
"Thank you all for your kind words. But my cooking skills are nothing and are only what is required-"
Elijah cut her off, his mouth still full of food, forgetting his table manners for a few seconds.
"Nothing?!! You call all this nothing?! Good woman, take a little more pride in yourself and what you can do!! This is some of the best food I have ever eaten in my life!!"
Myna turned her head away and buried it in her hands but Arya knew that she was blushing.
However, matters turned a little bit more serious as Catalina and Elijah discussed what was going to happen from now on.
It turns out that Catalina and Elijah were no ordinary nobles. They were highly trained and skilled bodyguards who had only just recently graduated from the Royal Training Academy a few months ago.
They were assigned to be Arya's bodyguards/trainers.
It came to the king's attention that Arya needed proper training and education.
That was easily solved with Catalina and Elijah being her personal trainers and the king was arranging for Arya to have a personal tutor.
Arya looked out the window.
A little blue bird was singing away, perched on a branch and Arya watched as it finished off its song before taking off into the sky.
Was she a caged bird here?
Would it be better to run off than stay in this pretty and golden cage?
Only time would tell if she made the right choice to accept her new identity and stay.