“We should really be heading back inside,” Orion insisted.
Damselfly felt pressured into making a decision and she did not want to make the wrong one.
“Just choose the one you like best,” Queen Etherelle assisted.
Damselfly tried to take her mother’s advice though it was difficult because she really liked a pearl necklace amongst the collection, though there was an interesting book about history, which Old Nana could read to her. Then there was a riding crop and Damselfly had been begging her parents to let her learn to ride. Choosing that item might make her mum mad though and then there were all the castle’s inhabitants to consider.
“Just make a choice or I will make it for you,” Orion demanded.
Damselfly in a panic searched amongst the items for something that grabbed her attention, only everything was beautiful and offered so faithfully that it made her head spin. Then she caught a glimpse of something strange; amongst the expensive bounty of precious metals and rare materials was a small toy bunny. Damselfly retrieved the rabbit from beneath a silver plate so she could look at him better.
“Put that back, dear, and find something nicer,” her mother added shortly.
Damselfly was not really paying attention to her mother or the crowd. She was running her hand over the bunny’s soft fur which was a dark chocolate brown with a cute white cottontail. It was dressed in a chequered waistcoat held together by gold buttons with a spiral patterning. In the rabbit’s black glass eyes, she caught her own reflection and caught the smile on her own face.
“I want this one.” Damselfly held up the stuffed toy, causing a stir amongst the crowd who had waited so patiently.
“Look at all those lovely things. Why do you want that old stuffed rabbit?” Queen Etherelle questioned. “Please choose something else.”
“No,” Damselfly replied. “It’s my birthday and this is my choice.”
She crushed the rabbit against her chest with both arms and refused to surrender under her mother’s harsh glare.
“Fine,” Queen Etherelle agreed with a slight grin.
“My daughter has chosen her favourite gift. Let the person who placed this soft toy bunny come forward and collect their reward.”
The crowd looked around uncertainly, trying to discover who had left the winning present from among their gathered ranks. A collective gasp broke out as a filthy boy, similar in age to the princess, staggered forward in dirty rags to stand before the queen.
“What is your name, young man?” the queen asked. “Rat,” the boy answered.
“What would you like as a reward for your thoughtful gift?”
“Can I have anything?” the boy queried.
“Whatever you like. If it is in my power, I will grant it to you,” the queen promised.
“I would like to visit the royal apartments,” Rat revealed.
The crowd all began chatting at once, and Orion was quick to step forward.
“That is quite out of the question, young man,” he interfered.
“Nonsense,” Queen Etherelle commanded. “Please arrange for the child to have a full tour of the royal apartments as soon as possible.”
Damselfly was pleased to see Orion defeated by her mother, and she gave the funny-looking boy a coy smile. She wondered, while holding the bunny he had left for her, what kind of name was Rat?
As the day wound to a close, the royal family returned to their secluded apartments in order to celebrate Damselfly’s birthday as a family. They had a wide, open balcony that allowed them to look down on Thronegarden from the castle ramparts; this is where Queen Etherelle decided to hold the last vestiges of the festivities. The celebrations had not gone as successfully as the queen hoped; she was certain there had been an altercation between her daughter and Luyna’s. The parade along with the host of gifts had been too overwhelming for a child who simply wanted friendship and a place to belong. Etherelle momentarily considered the young boy who had stepped forward at the parade as a playmate for her daughter, before dismissing the idea of allowing a peasant to be companion with her princess daughter. The queen still believed she could save the day by giving Damselfly exactly what she wanted, a close family occasion that they had enjoyed before their family had become royalty.
“Where is my husband?” she asked Luyna.
“The king is occupied,” Luyna replied coldly.
“Too busy for his daughter’s birthday?”
Luyna did not respond or try to intercede as Etherelle pushed past her towards her husband’s’ study; there was no question that the sorceress could have stopped her if she wanted to, but the line of command held. King Handel had changed seismically in the last few years so that Etherelle barely recognised her own husband. It had begun during the Thrane rebellion against the Fairy King when he had gone from a mild-mannered farmer to a soldier. Handel had been in awe of his older brother, Abeldine, who had been named king after the Fairy King was exiled to the Evergarden. When Abeldine had started losing his mind, it had stolen something from Handel, and the burden of responsibility once he had succeeded his brother to the throne had changed him forever. The key was in the lock as Etherelle opened the door to her husband’s sanctuary. Inside she was met by a consuming darkness and bitter cold that sent shivers down her spine. There was a tangible silence that the queen felt hesitant to break so she simply continued forward until a single guttering candle revealed a stark silhouette of the man she had once known.
“Handel,” she gasped at her husband’s appearance.
The king’s black hair had turned silver, making him appear decades older. His eyes seemed weak and sensitive to light. His regal clothes hung off him like they were several sizes too large and even his ring of office slipped from his fingers of ice.
“What is wrong, husband?” Queen Etherelle knelt at her lover’s side.
“I am fine,” Handel replied absently.
“Aren’t you cold?” the queen asked, feeling the chill in her partner’s hand.
“I am perfectly fine,” the king answered absently. “Orion takes good care of me.”
“It is our daughter’s birthday today,” Etherelle explained.
“How can it be when yesterday is today and there is no tomorrow,” the king queried.
“I think the best present we could give our daughter is to all be there for her,” the queen requested.
“Daughter?” The king seemed confused and it broke Etherelle’s heart.
“Damselfly.”
The name seemed to rekindle something within the broken shell that was her husband; his eyes became more responsive and he nodded his head defiantly.
“Of course, I will attend my daughter’s birthday,” he stated firmly though when he attempted to stand the effort was too much.
“Let me help you, my dear,” Etherelle responded.
Placing a large robe across her husband’s shoulders, which hid much of his recent atrophy, she allowed him to lean on her as they left the freezing room and walked across to the balcony. As the king moved, he seemed to grow in stature and strength so that he could soon walk unaided, a tiny spark illuminated his dulled eyes and a half smile seemed to cross his face.
“This is a new beginning for all of us,” Queen Etherelle promised.
“Yes, I believe you are right, darling,” the king acquiesced.
During her ‘parents’ absence, Damselfly had been looking out over the balcony with her rabbit clutched tight to her chest. She was trying to remember what the moon and stars looked like since they had been absent for so long. Old Nana always told stories about the moon and stars; now they seemed more like characters from a story rather than actual entities.
“Why did you choose that filthy bunny?” Coral asked disgustedly.
“Maybe because it is ugly just like her,” Celeste joined in.
Damselfly noticed that Coral was wearing brand new shoes and Celeste had on a gold necklace, both of which were presents donated for her birthday. Instead of bringing t
his up, Damselfly attempted to ignore the twins, focusing instead on imagining the moon and stars. The children of the moon, so called for their crescent-shaped birthmarks, were not accustomed to being ignored and they definitely did not like being ignored by Damselfly.
“Stop it,” Damselfly cried as Celeste pushed her.
“Or what?” Coral asked.
“I will tell my mother,” the princess warned.
“Well, our mother will never believe you,” Celeste grinned.
Before Damselfly could react, Celeste tore the toy rabbit from her grasp and held the stuffed animal over the balcony.
“Give it back,” the princess begged.
“Is this the only kind of friend you can make?” Celeste laughed, enjoying the attention.
“Maybe we’ll send you over the balcony too,” Coral threatened.
Damselfly felt something inside tighten up as she closed her fists in anger and lashed out at Celeste who stumbled back, surprised by the sudden attack.
“What did you do that for?” she demanded.
“Give me back my rabbit,” Damselfly ordered.
The confrontation had caught Orion’s attention and the sorcerer was making his way towards them from across the room. Fearing the consequences, Celeste threw the stolen toy behind her back and looked suitably innocent as her uncle descended upon them.
“Is there a problem?” Orion posed.
“No, we were just playing, Uncle,” Coral replied sweetly.
“Is that true, Damselfly?”
The princess looked at the seemingly innocent twins and back to Orion, who always made her feel small, and nodded.
“Good, then please keep the noise down,” Orion said before turning on his heel.
Damselfly breathed a sigh of relief until she heard a pair of stifled giggles. She turned round with a sense of dread and followed the twins’ gaze to where Trigger the Dalmatian was destroying her toy rabbit.
“Trigger, no,” she screamed, running over to the dog who thought that this was some kind of game and dashed away.
When the king and queen strode out onto the balcony, they found chaos: Damselfly was chasing Trigger around the space while the dog continued to hold the toy bunny in his mouth.
“What is going on?” Handel demanded.
Trigger, hearing his master’s voice, dropped the toy. Damselfly grabbed the torn rabbit, trying to repair the damage and when the dog pressed closer, she pushed him away.
Trigger, stung by the dismissal, slunk off to a dark corner while Queen Etherelle came forward to check on her daughter.
“We’ll get you another one,” she offered, looking at the haggard toy.
“I don’t want another one,” Damselfly answered stubbornly.
Queen Etherelle, realising the day had not gone as planned, finally forgot her agenda and decided to follow her daughter’s lead.
“Let me clean him up for you.”
Damselfly reluctantly relinquished the slightly damp torn rabbit to her mother’s care and waited on the floor where she had found him. Etherelle walked purposefully to Luyna who was standing nearby and thrust the toy in her direction.
“I want you to bring this toy to life,” she demanded. “To be a friend to my daughter.”
Luyna seemed unwilling to comply at first; however, the queen’s countenance confirmed her stance, and the king was watching the drama intently from across the balcony.
Distastefully, Luyna accepted the slightly damp, torn toy rabbit and with a whispered word in the animal’s ear she brought it to life.
“Wah,” the creature cried.
“It’s all right,” Etherelle comforted, taking the shaken rabbit from the sorcerer.
“A dog had me.” the rabbit looked around, frightened.
“He won’t hurt you again,” the queen promised, straightening the bunny’s chequered waistcoat and ruffled fur.
Queen Etherelle carried the rabbit across to her daughter who looked up at them through teary eyes and slowly a smile lit up her face.
“Happy birthday, Damselfly,” she whispered.
The princess was extremely gentle with the rabbit who was still scanning around as though danger lurked just around the corner.
“My name is Damselfly. What is yours?”
“I don’t have a name,” the rabbit replied. “I don’t even have a tail.”
Damselfly lifted the bunny so she could see a tear where his fluffy white cotton tail had been bitten off.
“What is a rabbit without a tail?” he bemoaned.
Damselfly looked up as her parents came to stand beside her. It had been a long time since she had seen her father and yet she instinctively sought his help to make everything all right.
“Father, my rabbit has lost his tail and is very sad about it,” she explained.
“Well, let me see what I can do.”
King Handel took the shivering rabbit in his hands and removed a gold button from his robe, placing the button over the hole where a tail had once been.
“What do you think to that?” the king enquired.
The rabbit investigated the button carefully, wrinkling his nose at the strange tail, before nodding his head in evident satisfaction.
“I will call him Buttontail,” Damselfly announced.
“I think that is a wonderful name,” the queen declared.
“Very good,” the king agreed.
Buttontail seemed rather proud of his new tail and was happily placed back in Damselfly’s arms as the small family enjoyed their first meal together in a long time. “This is the best birthday ever,” Damselfly stated, surrounded by her friends and family.
Chapter 3
The Saddest of Times
Passage from History of Thronegarden recorded by Archivist Scroll:
Although time has stopped, it is incorrect to say nothing changes. After the events marked by Princess Damselfly’s birthday, there was a tangible change in the air.
It was not just a lull after the celebrations; the absence of time has begun to reveal unexpected consequences that no one could foresee. I believe the previous King Abeldine’s madness may be a symptom brought on by a lack of time; with death nullified are we all immortal or are we all damned?
Thronegarden itself appears to be suffering as the centuries-old stones crack daily, crops do not grow and where there is no death there can be no birth.
The darkness that has been creeping into our lives manifested in the failed assassination attempt on our current King Handel who survived thanks to the intervention of Lady Luyna. The usurper, known as Blakast, seems to be suffering from a similar mania, though his affliction appears to have made him violent towards those in authority. Little has been discovered about where Blakast came from, why he targeted the monarch or if he was working alone. All we know right now is that he does not have magical powers; instead, he manipulated a powerful artefact to bypass the castle watch and attempt his coup. Not since the repression of the Fairy King’s reign have the people of Thronegarden felt such fear.
History reveals much to those with vision. Such instances rarely fade away. No, they only add to a greater reckoning and the residents of Thronegarden wait. An eternal waiting that shows cracks in the skein of our reality that cannot be fixed by magic or kings or even birthday parties. The wheel has stopped turning, Death has fled and those who would try to harm us have been banished to the Evergarden.
So why do we feel afraid?
Blakast the usurper is not our enemy, only a product of the age. History tells us there will be more and with them comes the inevitable fallout. Some of us say without death there is no fear, though those of us wise enough to know that there are infinite things worse than death.
“Is it nearly lunchtime?”
“We only just finished breakfast.”
In the absence of time that had followed Damselfly’s birthday celebration, events had gotten worse. She had not seen her father since and even her mother had been unusually absent. It would have be
en unbearable for the princess without her new companion, Buttontail. The animated rabbit had fast become her best friend and they spent every moment together.
“Perhaps we could ask for some brunch.”
Buttons, as Damselfly called him, was obsessed with food, unless he was afraid, which was almost always.
“Maybe you could ask Orion?” Damselfly teased.
Buttons shuddered at the mere mention of the sorcerer’s name, and the princess absently stroked his fur reassuringly until he calmed down enough to think about food again.
“I don’t see why a snack is out of the question seeing as breakfast was so scant,” the greedy bunny posed.
“You ate half of mine and Old Nana’s breakfast on top of your own,” Damselfly ridiculed. “You will be too fat to run away from danger soon.”
The duo sat on Damselfly’s bed waiting for the Princess’s tutor Palen to arrive; the scholar was late although technically in the void of time there was no early or late.
“He’s late,” Buttons instructed.
“I do not feel like learning today anyway,” Damselfly rebelled. “Perhaps we should go exploring?”
“Palen will be angry if he arrives and we are not here,” Buttons fretted.
“No one notices me at all,” Damselfly stated.
“It seems one is always popular when they are in trouble,” Buttons mused.
Damselfly kicked her legs over the edge of the bed. She was still wearing the fairy wings from her birthday despite Coral and Celeste’s ridicule; she liked them. The princess imagined flying away somewhere that the moon and stars still shone.
A place where she did not feel trapped or obliged to behave like a princess, but could act as a child for once.
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