The Castle

  Before the sun had even hinted at an appearance, six women were raised from their beds. They had shared a large, lavish chamber for the four days since their arrival but hadn’t spoken to each other much. They were washed, fed and escorted to the courtyard and library each day, always together. The maids and servants who attended them rarely spoke either. They gave them basic instructions and details about the day but that was all. Oh but they watched the women. Curious eyes traced them wherever they were. It was supposed to be respectful, but the women knew otherwise. They were the talk of the Castle.

  This fifth morning was different. They were scrubbed until their skin was nearly raw and shining and then they were lined up to dress. On their first day one of the very first things that had been done was get their measurements taken. Now they were able to see the fruition of the measurements in forms of various fine dresses laid out on each of their beds while they were bathed. Their skin was oiled and massaged, hair meticulously curled and faces powdered to perfection. Then they were squeezed into uncomfortable corsets, itchy stockings and various tight undergarments to support the frilly weight of the gowns of which they were too, unceremoniously shoved into.

  The whole while not a single one complained. Not a single question was raised or frown to be had. Their faces remained perfect, pretty masks. They smiled slightly when looked in the eye.. They bowed when addressed and answered direct questions. Just as they had been taught. More than anything they watched. And waited. They knew what they were to become and what role they had to play.

  As the first rays of the sun flickered on the horizon, the girls were led out of their chambers and in a new direction for the first time. They marched across the velvet carpets with their silken slippers through the exquisite castle halls. Down marble staircases they glided, back straight and smiles on their faces. They were the picture of youth and beauty. Everywhere they went people stopped in the halls to marvel at them and they offered small waves with gloved hands in return. They knew they would only have to endure the worst of the stares for their first few days here. Then they would be clad in head to toe tan robes, faces covered except for their eyes, beauty never to be flaunted again. But for now, they put on the show they were taught to.

  They were brought to the great hall, huge mahogany doors opened wide at their arrival to reveal a gorgeous room adorned with a monumental crystal chandelier. It sent sparkling light cascading onto the swirled white and gold of the marble floor, columns and walls. The ceiling was rich mahogany paneling that matched the doors. At the end of the great hall sat four enormous chairs on top of a raised dais. The chairs were so large they seemed to swallow their occupants as the women gracefully glided the length of the long hall. The swish of their skirts and silken slippers whispered echoes around the walls as they went. The servants who led them filed off to take their places along the walls. The women walked the last half of the room on their own, maintaining their neat line until they reached the dais. Once they did, they lined up in front of it, smiling up at the thrones before them and falling onto their knees in a bow, nearly pressing their heads to the floor in supplication.

  After a long pause came the King’s drawled, “Rise,” and they did as they were bid, standing fluidly as one unit and looking up at those seated before them.. Not a single woman dared move a muscle once risen even though their corsets dug in painfully with every shallow breath they took. They studied the occupants of the thrones in front of them, to which they were presented, with only mild looks of interest. They were taught to remain politely interested and not gawk at their surroundings, no matter how extraordinary they were.

  The thrones were solid gold, each one wide enough to seat three grown men and the backs of them at least ten feet tall, rising up behind the backs of the royals seated upon them. The backs of the ornate thrones were carved into curling, golden tendrils that wrapped around one another and jutted toward the ceiling, making them look as though they were giant, golden flames. Each throne was piled with beautiful pillows of fine materials such as velvet and satin. They were in shades of deep purple, emerald green and periwinkle and jewels were sewn into them, making them glitter brightly in the light of the chandelier.

  The princes seated upon their thrones to the right of the dais rested among the pillows casually, legs crossed, looking bored. The King was sitting on the edge of his throne, leaning forward with his chin propped on the back of his hand, elbow resting on one knee to support his head. He wore a golden crown that matched his throne, the biggest of the four, with diamonds, rubies, topaz and amber melded into the swirling design, also made to look like intricate flames. He tapped his fingers against his jaw as he watched the young women in front of him, face expressionless. On the fourth throne, to the far left of the dais, sat The Queen. She sat back straight and head angled slightly toward the woman, bright hazel eyes and a strip of creamy white skin the only feature visible from under her concealing tan robes. She kept her hands folded neatly in her lap. She could appear to be made of stone for how little she moved, aside for her slight breathing and occasional blinking.

  The woman carefully looked between the four people surveying them, trying not to look too curious or, equally as bad, too indifferent. They stayed there for a few moments while they were assessed. Finally the King lounged back, in much the same manner as his sons beside him.

  “Tregan,” The King said, gesturing to the women in front of them. “You first.”

  The prince closest to the King stood, straightening his fine blue tunic and moved to walk down the short stairs at the side of the dais. He walked slowly in a line in front of the woman, peering up close into each of their faces as he passed, a frown on his own face. He walked behind them but they didn’t turn, allowing him to look them over as he pleased. He stopped at the end he started, close to the stairs.

  “The second one in from left,” He said matter-of-factly and returned to his throne, sitting stiffly and turning slightly to survey the woman he spoke of. She stepped forward, out of line and curtseyed in his direction. Her skin was golden and smooth, not a single blemish in sight. Her long, dark brown hair cascaded to her waist and was partially tied back with a pale blue bow that matched her gown. She had deep brown eyes and her lips were pink and full. She was of average height out of the women and had voluptuous curves that her dress had been designed to show off. The King observed her appraisingly for a moment and nodded, then signaled for a servant to step forward. The servant hurried toward them, took the young woman by the elbow and guided her away and out of the hall.

  “Beck,” The King said, motioning to his other son to stand once the woman was gone, out the doors the way they had entered.

  The younger prince at the end of the dais now stood and made his way to the edge directly in front of the women. He did not move to go down the stairs to assess the women as his brother had. He stepped up in front of the woman on the far right and looked into her eyes.

  “Her,” He said, gesturing with his hand to the woman in question. The same woman he had seen in the second round of the auction. He had known when he first laid eyes on her she would be the one. While all the women wore similar stoic, serious expressions, there was something in this woman’s eyes that intrigued him. Something cunning. Something intelligent. Tregan, of course, had chosen the woman from the fourth round. Beck was not surprised. The woman had barely stepped out onto the stage when Tregan had declared her as the prime candidate.

  The woman Beck chose stepped forward, curtseying the same way that the prior woman had. She offered a small smile up at the prince and he returned it briefly before returning to his throne. This woman had delicate alabaster skin and cheeks that were always slightly rosy. Her eyes were a deep, dark blue and lips, while a little thin, were naturally a beautiful shade of red. Her hair was so light it was almost white, tumbling to just beneath her shoulders.

  The blonde woman watched as The King assessed her and once again signaled for a servant to come forward. She let the middle aged man take her elbow and lead her away out of the hall. She struggled to come to terms with what had just happened. Under her calm facade, her heart thundered ferociously. He had chosen her as his first wife, she knew, and the implications of what that meant had her mind reeling. While the eldest son, Tregan, was heir to the throne, meaning she would never sit as Queen, she was still going to become the chosen Princess of Prince Beckett. This is what all of her training had been for. The servant let go of her elbow once outside the hall and let her follow him back up through the castle.

  She noticed that people of all kinds, some finely dressed and some in little more than rags, had lined some of the halls to get a glimpse of her. She realized they probably knew that she was chosen, being the second escorted out of the hall, and the news would spread through the kingdom like wildfire. She barely was able to contain the deep blush that unconsciously came to her cheeks at the realization. She offered small waves and smiles to the people, mostly men and the occasional robed woman, gawking at her throughout the castle.

  The servant led her to a new area of the castle, far away from the chamber she had shared with the other women. He turned down a long hallway lined with windows that stretched from floor to ceiling. The carpet was a deep blue with embellished golden swirls. Every third window was a scene in stained glass all the way down the considerable length of the hallway. There were golden statues and pedestals holding glass cases with various artifacts and jewels inside. There were no onlookers in this part of the castle and the woman realized they must have entered part of the Royal Family’s private quarters. The hallway was absolutely breathtaking. It was as bright as being in the courtyard and the stained glass sent colored, dancing lights across the floor and adjacent windows.

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  At the end of the hallway, the servant stopped in front of a set of huge white doors carved with beautiful vines that had been inlaid with gold. She glanced across the hall to a matching set of doors. On the dead end wall of the hallway was a gigantic portrait of Prince Beckett wearing the Royal clothes of his house, fine cloths of flaming reds and oranges. He sat upon the throne in the painting, appearing to contemplate something in the distance. It was a striking rendering of the young prince and she found herself having to tear her eyes away as the servant cleared his throat. She looked away from the portrait between the two doors and slightly raised her eyebrows at the servant. He bowed to her and gestured to the door to her right.

  “Your quarters from this day forth, my lady,” He said, curtly.

  Then he gestured to the identical doors across the hall.

  “You betrotheds quarters, our Prince Beckett of House Reagant,” The servant said, bowing low to her before straightening and turning toward her room and pulling open the doors.

  If she hadn’t been so thoroughly trained to keep her emotions in check she would have gasped at the sight. The room, in itself, was larger than most houses throughout the kingdom. The receiving room alone could have fit nearly half of her class back at the training hall. The room was bright and cheery thanks to an enormous window cut into the domed ceiling. She walked through the room, the carpet matching the blue and gold one of the hallway. The room was circular with two, smaller sets of ornate doors leading deeper into her quarters. They were thrown open wide to reveal a view of the rooms beyond that were equally breathtaking. The carpet ended at the doors and a marble floor began in both the bedchamber and the powder room. She went left, to the powder room first, marveling at the gold woven through nearly every surface within.

  There was a huge window behind the washtub that was half stained glass and half clear glass. The lower half was a stained glass underwater scene, a multicolored school of tiny fish swimming through multiple shades of blue water. She approached and realized that stained glass covered her body, just below her collarbone. This allowed her privacy to bathe but when she stood, she was still allotted a view of one of the gardens below.

  There was a pure gold wash basin set upon a marble pedestal with a circular mirror set into the wall behind it. The mirror was designed to look like the sun with shards of multicolored glass of yellows and oranges attached around the outside to look like its rays. The walls were a white plaster from midway to the ceiling and with the lower half being made of the same white marble swirled with gold as the floor.

  She returned to the receiving room and noted the servant stationed at the doors they had come through, now closed. He watched her with a blank expression as she ran her hands over every surface of the ornate furniture within the room before she turned into the bedchamber. It was the most exquisite room she had seen in the castle so far. There were tiny, circular windows lining the ceiling around half the circumference of the room, allowing just enough light in but still making the room darker and cozier than the others. She could see into a large closet already stocked with many gowns, hung in a row. She would have investigated but she was distracted by the main attraction of the space, the bed. Deep purple along with the gold decorated most surfaces of the room, including the gigantic rounded bed situated to the left and taking up the entire wall. She turned to the bed, blush rising furiously to her cheeks once more. She tried not to think about who she would soon be sharing it with and moved on toward another set of open doors at the back of the bedchamber.

  The final room, only entered by walking through the bedchamber, was the largest of the four she had been given. It also had gigantic floor to ceiling windows that made up three of the four walls of the room. On the one directly ahead was another large stained glass scene, the biggest she had seen yet. There was a table made of fine wood and set with five chairs, obviously for taking meals and there was a smaller table in one corner, surrounded by hanging plants and with a delicate tea set atop it, obviously to spend morning tea and gazing out at the same garden the powder room overlooked. There were large bookshelves stocked to the brim with hundreds of books and a cushy lounge off to the side for reading.

  She was drawn to the large stained glass scene, glowing brightly in the sun streaming through it. It depicted a beautiful woman with blue-black hair that flowed down to her knees. She wore a white gown and her piercing blue eyes were uptilted slightly. She was reaching out with a pale white hand toward the room. She was surrounded by golden flame and autumn leaves blown by a wind, both swirling together and around the woman. The sky was a mix of purples, pinks and blues with the setting sun and rising moon both visible in the background, indicating either sunset or sunrise. The woman stood there for a long while, studying the image. It was the most beautiful work of art she had ever seen in her entire life and as she gazed at it her eyes filled with tears from its beauty.

  Eventually another servant came in behind her, feet shuffling on the marble floor and drawing her out of her admiration. To her surprise, a woman, clad in the tan robes indicating she was married, stood silently behind her. When she turned toward her, the woman bowed deeply and motioned for her to follow. She led her into the bedchamber and shut the door to the receiving room where the male servant still stood by the doors.

  “My name is Remy,” The woman in robes said in a quiet voice once the doors were shut. “I have been assigned as your personal handmaiden.”

  The young woman stared at the robed woman, Remy, in surprise. She realized she hadn’t really conversed with anyone since arriving at the castle. The other chosen women hadn’t seemed inclined to speak to one another. Their duties here were far more important than idle chatter. They took in each detail of their trip and new home with vigor but they awaited their duties silently.

  “Well…,” She began in response, breaking eye contact. “OK. Thank you.”

  Remy began moving about the room, checking drawers in the elegant cabinet in the corner and nodding to herself in apparent satisfaction of its contents. Then she moved to the large closet attached to the bedchamber.

  “Are you hungry, my lady?” Remy called from inside the closet, voice slightly muffled.

  The soon-to-be Princess didn’t reply, thinking about the question. She hadn’t eaten breakfast before she was dragged down to the Great Hall and it was now about midday but her stomach hadn’t growled in protest at all. Her nerves were likely the culprit, the days events still leaving her mind reeling. She thought about asking for food but the thought of sitting still and eating something made her nauseous.

  Remy emerged from the closet carrying two frilly gowns and laid them on the bed. She turned to The Princess when she was done smoothing out their fabric.

  She moved to Remy’s side to examine the gowns that had been selected. One was a stunning muted red with a modest, square neckline and gauzy skirts that fluffed out fully from the waist. The other was a pale purple satin with a V-shaped neckline, though not cut deep enough to be considered scandalous. It was more of a straight gown with significantly less gauzy, frilly material to its skirt.

  “I thought they both complimented your skin tone nicely,” Remy said, looking between the dresses and the young woman’s body. “But now that I have them up close to you, I think the red one would suit you more. The purple may make you look colorless. The red can compliment your rosy cheeks.”

  The young woman ran her hand down the fine material of the red gown and nodded. She didn’t really know much about these fashion choices though she had been taught some in training. She knew this part of her life, wearing gowns and makeup, were but a fleeting moment before she would be covered up in tan robes forever. That’s why she didn’t pay much heed to these lessons and was grateful for another woman’s advice.

  Remy took her nod as agreement and immediately gathered up the purple gown and hung it back in its place in the closet.

  The soon-to-be Princess cleared her throat as Remy emerged and the handmaiden met her gaze questioningly.

  “Excuse me,” She managed, trying to maintain eye contact this time. “Where will I be wearing this gown exactly?”

  She knew it was wrong to voice her questions. She was taught to do as she was instructed no matter what and act grateful to be doing it. But she couldn’t help herself, too many thoughts and feelings were tumbling through her mind, she needed some clarity on what was to happen now that she was the Prince’s chosen bride.

  Remy stared at her for a moment, hard eyes assessing her from beneath her masked face.

  “You will be dining with the Prince tonight,” She answered, gesturing to the gown. “It is important to look your best for your first private meeting with him.”

  The young woman nodded, carefully keeping her face a cool mask of non-emotion as she thought through what that meant. She wasn’t about to ask any more questions but Remy continued her explanation without further prompting.

  “You will dine with him privately every night this week as will the chosen bride of our other Prince,” She explained. “It is important to get acquainted during this time. At the end of the week you will be measured for your wedding gown and also for your matron robes.”

  When she mentioned the robes she flourished her hand down her body, indicating her own robes as reference.

  “Then,” Remy continued, “You will be wed in three days time after that. There are already plans being made for the big event. Most of the most important Dukes and Lords of the Kingdom will already be well on their way here for the big event. I imagine the first will be arriving either tomorrow or the next in preparation. They would want their chance to catch a glimpse of the Royal prizes.”

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