11th December 1320,
"Your Highness! Your Highness wait for me!" shrieked Caila, one of the ladies in waiting assigned to the princess. Hiking up her skirts, the dark-skinned girl ran after the horse, which only made Chiffery and Zoronus burst into laughter.
"She won't listen to you Caila. Just sit down, we won't hold it against you." Zoronus said in between laughter, but the said woman didn't know whether to take the princess seriously as she glanced from Zorous to the departing horse. "B-but...But if she gets lost-"
"Caila, my dearest, who do you think you are talking about?" Chiffery piped in, still smiling in order to reassure the panicked girl. "She knows this place better than any of us. nothing can make her lost."
"Hey! I thought it was me that knew this place best!" Zoronus exclaimed, clutching her chest in mock pain, but that only earned the younger a slap in the back.
The two burst into laughter again as they lay on the cloth spread over the lush green grass, sunlight streaming across their pale, soft skin. When they noticed Caila still standing, Zoronus spoke up again. "Oh for the love of God Caila do sit down, you are making Reina and Dany anxious. Your lady will be back."
"And besides," Chiffery piped in, inhaling in a deep breath as she shut her eyes while a soft smile graced her lips, feeling content. "Today is the day after all."
"Indeed." Agreed Zoronus with a matching smile. As if on cue, the sound of horse hoofs echoed, making them all perk up especially Caila whose heart leaped at the sight. The two sisters sat up, smiling at the approaching horse but made no move to say anything as Caila rushed to the rider, fussing over nothing.
"My lady! My lady, why would you gallop away like that? You almost gave me a heart attack!"
On top of the horse sat Marona with her fiery red hairs flying wildly behind her and creating a bird's nest, but she still looked breathtaking. She smiled brightly, her cheeks flushed from the ride, giving her eyes a twinkle from the excitement as she laughed at her lady in waiting.
"Hush now! I'm perfectly fine, see? Why must you fret so?" But Caila was having none of it as she continued her rant on how dangerous it was to rid of alone like this without a chaperone and what would have happened if their parents were to find out.
Marona approached her sisters, sinking down in the mattress beside them as she took a bite from the apple tart that was prepared for them for the picnic. When no response came, Caila huffed in defeat before joining Reina and Dany under the tree, where the ladies in waiting awaited their mistresses to finish their picnic.
"How was the ride?" Chiffery asked as she fed Zoronus a piece of the apple tart while the other had busied herself into reading a book. Marona beamed, ready to answer. "Thrilling! You should both come too! The air is fresh and warm today. There's no snow and to think it's December!"
"That sounds very lovely indeed, but," Chiffery began, looking down at their clothes. "We didn't come prepared with our riding gear. How are we going to ride in skirts?"
Without a doubt, her answer sounded like a lame excuse to Marona. "I just rode in a skirt before your eyes. There seemed to be no problem. Are you seriously making excuses?"
"No! Of course not!" Chiffery flushed in embarrassment, having been caught for lying. "I'm just trying to be careful. What if someone sees us?"
The book closed with a loud thump as Zoronus put it away, glancing at Chiffery questioningly. "Since when was that a problem for us?"
Chiffery opened her mouth and shut it again. Then she opened it again and then shut it yet again. When the two realised she wasn't going to make a comeback, Marona spoke up.
"Oh come on Chiff, it's not every day we get such fine weather. Who knows,it might start snowing tomorrow."
"And besides," Zoronus began, replaying the same words Chiffery said earlier. "Today is that day after all."
Today was indeed that day. The last day of their reckless freedom. The last day they will order the servants around to let them outside the castle grounds unattended. Yes, it may have sounded like the last day to their freedom, but it was also the last day of their rule.
It means, their parents are coming back. Queen Rebecca and Prince Astrad had gone out on an expedition to the East along with King Karloi and Queen Rihanaya of the Kingdom of Hucklebee. What it was about, the girls knew not. However, their parents had left court responsibilities on them, especially Marona as she was the eldest. Of course, the chief adviser Diana was with them, helping them out as the girls were still new to everything; however they knew it was an opportunity given to them by their mother to learn the ropes of the Nation.
As exciting as it was, the girls had had their fill for a whole month on their own. And needless to say the work was tiresome for them, something they admitted wasn't their cup of tea. And that being said, they couldn't wait for their parents to come back and take the responsibilities from them. Even if it meant their one whole month of unsupervised freedom was coming to an end.
"But-"
"That's it! No buts!" We are going to ride the horses we brought and that's final!" Zoronus declared, to which Marona nodded earnestly, much to Chiffery's dismay. When the two sisters began getting to their feet, Chiffery huffed in frustration and she stood up hesitantly as well. Marona sighed at that. "Now now Chiff. Today is the last day. Let's end it with a memorable race."
"Yes! Let's race!" Zoronus exclaimed in excitement before pushing the two towards their horses that awaited their masters for the ride.
After ordering their three ladies in waiting to wrap up the picnic and asking the three knights to stand by instead of following them, the three sisters galloped off into a race towards the valleys, their hairs flying wildly behind them.
With her heart racing as the wind beat furiously against her face, Marona giggled, feeling her spirit escape its cages and fly towards the sky as she glanced at her sisters on both sides. They had matching expressions, even Chiffery. Sure they were wearing skirts which made the position uncomfortable and immodest, but that is how they were. Carefree and reckless.
Since childhood, the three sisters have spent every waking moment together, in each other's company, with no one ever coming in their way. They knew everything about each other, about their likes and dislikes, their wants and needs, their secrets and promises, everything. They were thick as thieves, and their parents couldn't have been more content.
Queen Rebecca knew there would come a day when she would have to give them their responsibilities, especially Marona who was the Crown Princess, but there was still time. A lot of time. And until that time came, she would let her children enjoy their youth as much as they want, given their royal boundaries of course.
And of course the princesses weren't just enjoying their lives. Aside from their free lives, they also had to study royal etiquettes. They needed to know not only the basics of being royalty, but also to be knights, and of course the perfect influential figure for the public. And thanks to that education, the sisters were well prepared when it came to combat, or appearing in the public.
They were anything but a disappointment.
And because the Queen knew this and trusted them, she had entrusted the duties to them and had ventured off to fulfil her quest along with her husband and her ally, the Kingdom of Hucklebee.
But now that was coming to an end, and the sisters couldn't be more impatient. They rode on for what felt like an hour before they came to a stop in the middle of the valley, smiling to themselves and trying to catch their breath.
All of a sudden, the smile on Zoronus' face disappeared as a chill ran down her spine, making her squirm.
"I admit, it was rather a good idea to come out for a ride." Chiffery was saying with a bright smile, but a single look at her younger sister had her smile dropping as well. "Zoe? What is it? You look pale."
"The air." Said the girl, looking around her as if searching for an imaginary being before she finally looked at her sisters. "It's…awfully cold suddenly. The wind isn't warm anymore."
It took a while for the two elders to finally digest her words as the smile disappeared from Marona's face as well, a chill running down her spine. "You are right, sister. The weather has turned awfully chilly all of a sudden. I guess it shall snow soon."
"Just like that?" Chiffery was baffled, to which Marona only shrugged. "It's December after all. Let's head back."
Without another word, the three broke into a gallop and not long after, they reached the spot they had left their ladies in waiting. But as they drew closer, they noticed something else. Their Ladies in waiting and knights weren't alone. There was someone else with them on horseback.
Diana.
Marona and her sisters came to a stop, exchanging a look before they turned back to Diana who looked like she had seen a ghost. Her usually tight bun had come loose with fringes as if she had ridden all this way in a hurry. Her suit was dishevelled and she was out of breath. Something was definitely wrong.
"Diana? Is everything alright?" Marona asked but the woman seemed unable to reply as she dismounted her horse and stood before the towering three. "Your Highnesses. I-"
But no words left Diana's lips as she panted, but the girls knew her hesitation to reply wasn't because she was out of breath. It was something else. It was fear.
"Diana. Speak." Marona was deadly serious, one that her sisters had never seen her as before. Even when she had attended cabinet meetings, Marona had managed to keep her air of carefreeness , but never like this. This was a very different side of Marona, one that even Diana had never seen. And it was enough to get her talking.
"Your Highnesses, it's Her Majesty and His Highness."
"Have our parents arrived already, Diana?" Chiffery asked carefully, feeling like she knew what the answer to that was. but at what gravity, she didn't know. So the one to question next was Zoronus. "Diana. Where are our parents?"
And as boldly as she could, Diana still didn't reply, as if the words hurt her mouth. As if speaking it out loud was taboo. Perhaps it was.
And her demeanour, her expression, and her hesitancy to not reply was giving enough of a message to the three girls as their hearts leaped.
"No…"
"Your Highnesses. I'm terribly sorry."
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