I looked back one last time but she had already disappeared from view. I won’t see her again for two months. How will I survive it? “I’m going to the training field.”
A nice round of hand-to-hand combat with my trainers should help to take my mind off of things at least for an hour or so. But I wasn’t holding out much hope that it would last.
NARRATOR
As Prince Jai headed to the sparring field and Lady Mia was placed in the palanquin flanked by guards and the palace ladies who would be staying with her for the next few months, someone else watched from afar.
Unbeknownst to the two lovers someone else had been privy to their time in the garden. A very heartbroken and angry Princess Rowena had followed the two after evading the guards and spies her uncle had placed around her.
It was her father and grandmother that had warned her, after she’d shared her suspicions that the note Mia had received had been in fact from Prince Jai.
Even though she’d gone back later and found a note that was purportedly from her brother, she wasn’t too sure that it had been the same one the girl had received from the eunuch.
When she’d gone back to her room that day and there were no sweets awaiting her from the Crown Princess, she got the idea that they did indeed favor the other girl.
After destroying the room in a fit of angry tears and ordering the servants to clean it up she’d eaten until she made herself ill, then threw it all up again.
Then she’d overheard the some of the eunuchs, those useless things without genitals, whispering amongst each other and her anger had only grown again.
Everyone was excited that the Prince seemed so enamored of his future bride. He’d even had a private meal set up for the two of them in the Orchid Palace.
A place that was forbidden to all because of its significance to his mother and father. The insult was too much for her to bear.
How was she to show her face ever again? Both her father and grandmother had let her down this time. They’d promised that Prince Jai would be hers. That she would one day sit on the throne as his Empress.
Lady Mia wasn’t even from a good family. Her father had been living in exile as a traitor all these years, so why had he returned now? Him and his daughter?
Now she was to leave the palace, since her family did not reside on the royal grounds. That was a privilege only enjoyed by the Crown Prince and his family along with the Emperor and Empress.
How was she to hold her face up even beyond these walls? She’d bragged to all who would listen that she would be the one chosen.
She’d celebrated too soon, and the shame she felt at the ridicule she would face from those who dared was insurmountable.
How was it that some nobody like lady Mia had snatched the throne right from under her. Someone who was so beneath her? As she thought of the unfairness of it all, her ire rose until she could hardly breathe.
In her pique Princess Rowena Threw a two hundred year old vase across the room, shattering it against the wall. Her ladies in waiting came running, and assessing the damage, set about cleaning it up.
They’d had a good laugh earlier once the news of the selection reached them. Even though they knew the young princess would be a handful to deal with after such a great letdown, it was still better than having her get that close to the throne.
Everyone who knew her and her father knew that that was the worst thing that could happen for the kingdom. And most had looked on with baited breath for the outcome, only now able to breathe easy again once it was over.
So though they expected to deal with her wrath for the next little while, and bear the brunt of her temper, all in all it was better this way than to have to endure years of her on the throne. That they all agree, would be a disaster.
Narrator
For the first month after Lady Mia’s departure, Prince Jai, when not busy with his studies, could be found on the training fields working himself to exhaustion.
At night, in the quiet solitude of his room with just memories of her to keep him company, he wiled away the hours writing odes to his love. It was the only time he felt at peace, those hours spent remembering her.
At the end of the first month tragedy struck. His beloved grandfather, the Emperor, who had fallen ill not long after the selection, succumbed to his ailment and passed away in his sleep.
It was an unexpected blow to all in the kingdom, but more so for his grandson who’d loved him without reservation. The grief that fell over the kingdom was felt by all near and far.
No one thought there was anything suspicious about his untimely death, as he was getting up there in age. Though it was whispered that he’d been in good health before the illness struck.
It was thought that the crowning of the princess would have to be postponed, but in the end, the Emperor himself had left an edict with his son the Crown Prince now Emperor, that there was to be no delay.
The bloodthirsty Empress Valeria, who was not too pleased that her husband had gone to such lengths to thwart her efforts, could not resist getting her hands bloody once more and it was she who had slowly poisoned her husband in the days following the selection.
So incensed was she at not getting her way, that she had not given much thought to the fact that her actions might prolong the thing she wanted most. Getting rid of Lady Mia.
In the end it worked out in her favor. With the Emperor gone, Prince Jai was now indeed the Crown Prince first in line for the throne after his father.
It would be a small matter in her mind, to get rid of the new Emperor, putting the younger and more easily manageable Crown Prince Jai on the throne, with her granddaughter next to him.
Then things will be, as they should’ve been all along. With her son finally gaining the power he should’ve had from his birth. Finally, she could see all of her hard work coming to fruition.
The ministers she had in her pocket were already in place, ready to do their part when the time came. So she had made peace with letting the girl get so far as the naming ceremony, because in the end, everything she wanted will be hers for the taking.
The new Emperor was crowned with all haste within days of his father’s entombing, as it was inauspicious for the throne to be left empty for any length of time.
And it seemed as though immediately after the burial and crowning it was time for the new Crown Princess to return to the palace for the ceremony that would make her new role and title official.
Amidst the flurry of activity that ensued there were dark deeds afoot. The old seer had convinced the now Empress dowager that it was best to wait exactly two months after the crowning to get rid of the girl.
“Your Majesty, if there is another death in the royal family so soon after the Emperor’s passing, it’s bound to raise questions. The people will be unsettled, believing that something untoward has befallen the kingdom.”
“Superstitious fools.” She paced the room as her mind worked. It didn’t matter if they put the thing off for a few weeks. After all, the marriage won’t be consummated right away, but still, she wanted the girl out of the way sooner rather than later.
“And you have seen this date as the most propitious time for us to do what needs to be done?” The seer just simply nodded her head, while in her heart she wondered at the coldness of the woman before her.
That she could speak so easily of taking the life of one who had done her no wrong was chilling. In the past month and a half she’d come into the woman’s presence only when it was unavoidable.
The cleansing she subjected herself to after each meeting was tiring and each meeting took more and more of her virtue. She carried on with the reminder that if not for her the child would die at the hands of another.
She’d already prepared everything back at her hidden cottage in the woods, leaving nothing undone and nothing to chance. The task she was about to undertake was a delicate one.
One wrong move would bring disaster, not only for her, but for the girl as well as the
future of the kingdom. If the Empress should get wind of her true intentions, her life would be forfeit, but she couldn’t worry about that now.
Her focus was on being meticulous in her actions so that she gave nothing away. Else her years of planning would’ve been in vain. At least she’d bought the two young lovers some time.
Two months in which to get to know each other, before they were torn apart. She did not let the sadness of her thoughts show as she listened to the instructions of the Empress dowager.
Thankful that this would be one of the last times she would have to endure the other woman’s presence for a while.
MIA
“Father, Des…”
“I know, he’s having a hard time with the parting, but I’ve already made arrangements for him to be part of the Emperor’s guard. That way though he may not be at your side, he will still be close.”
“You must promise to take good care of him.”
“I know and I will see about having him moved to the Crown Prince’s detail soon, so that he can be closer. But daughter you must promise me.”
I turned to look at him, the seriousness of his tone alerting me. “What is it father?”
“You must keep your relationship with Des a secret.”
“Why? I don’t understand.”
“It’s like this. Though you and everyone here see him as your brother, to the rest of the world he’s not. It would not be tolerated if the closeness between you two was made known outside these walls.”
“That’s stupid.”
“It very well maybe, but that’s the way it has to be. Promise me, or I will keep him here.” We both knew that was easier said than done.
For the past month and a half since I’d returned home, Des had spent every blessed minute drilling it into my head that I must be careful when I moved to the palace.
He didn’t seem too sure of my ability to take care of myself without him there watching over me. Not even my brothers were as worried as he was.
I sympathized with his plight, as I too was having a hard time imagining my life without my shadow in it. But always in the back of my mind was the reminder that Jai would be there.
I still carried around the note he’d slipped into one of the books that day when I left. I know the words by heart now after rereading them so often.
‘I miss you already and you have not yet left the palace grounds. I will count down the days until I see out again. Until then, always remain, my sweet Mia. Your Prince.’
As the days progressed my excitement grew until there was no longer any fear left. I’m going to miss my family sure, and from all that the court ladies who followed me home have said, I know my life will become much more encumbered than I am used to.
But all my angst and last minute worries went away the night before when I received the missive from Jai. He’d sent me a single orchid cutting from the garden we’d walked in that last day.
Now it was time to leave on my journey to the rest of my life and I was more than ready to get started. Mother has been pestering me for the last two months until I can recite the royal etiquette in my sleep.
With the people from the palace here I’ve had to sneak away to train the way I used to, and my days had been filled with nothing but lessons on what was right and proper, with more of the same to look forward to once I returned to the palace.
The day came and with it my nerves returned. This is it. It’s really happening. In just one more day I am going to be crowned as this nation’s Crown Princess, first in line for the throne of the Empress.
How did this happen? How in just the space of a sparse few months had my life changed so drastically? Those are questions I still have no answers to.
When I think of that first day we met I still have so many questions. I still never got around to asking what he’d been doing that day but I guess I’ll have all the time in the world now.
I barely gave thought to anything else but seeing him again as I was seen off by my parents who would be following a day later. For all intents and purposes this would be the last time I see my family in my home.
I looked back with a touch of melancholy. I’d only known this home for a few months since father had regained the title, so the buildings and the land didn’t hold any special meaning.
But it was the people I was leaving behind. I searched out Des as he stood with the rest of my family, his face set in stern lines of worry. We’d had a long heart to heart before I left.
Father had promised to hurry his recommendation for the Emperor to have Des be part of Jai’s personal guard and I guess I’d have to be satisfied with that. But it was going to be hard having never been apart before.
My sadness lifted the closer we got to the palace and I put everything else from my head, but seeing him again. Had he really written me poetry like he’d promised? Or had he forgotten that promise as soon as I was out of his sight?
I held the orchid plant safely in my hands as the palanquin rocked along surrounded by the guards the Emperor had sent to escort me to the palace.
My heart raced as the palace gates came into view. I noticed that it was a different gate from the one I’d entered the last time I was here and mentioned it to my personal maid. There was no refusing one this time.
“You’re now a member of the royal family, this is the gate you will use. The Crown Prince has ordered that you are to be housed in the Orchid Palace my lady.”
I was surprised by this news since I’d been told that I would be staying somewhere else. I’d heard the story of the Orchid Palace from the court ladies, who all seemed to think it was a great show of affection that the Crown Prince had dined with me there the day I left.
I have to admit to a feeling of warmth that touched my heart at the news. It was a good start wasn’t it? That he was going to all this effort? I lifted the curtain and looked out at the grounds as we passed through the gate for the last time.
Crown Prince Jai
“She’s here!”
“Ai-Ai, Your Highness you cannot go rushing off…” I ignored eunuch Van as I rushed out the door. I’d been up since before the sun came up, counting down the hours until her return and now she was finally here.
I walked hurriedly once I left my palace grounds instead of the running lope I’d started out on. Let that be enough for him. He hurried to keep up, grumbling all the way.
There was a smile in my heart. I’d never experienced it before but I knew what it was as soon as I felt it. This kind of joy, even for a prince of the realm, is not so easily come by.
I’ve never spent so much time thinking about another’s happiness, or worrying myself unto death over their wellbeing. I’d thought I’d loved before. My parents, my brother, but nothing had ever come close to what I feel now at just the thought of her.
My knees grew weak when I saw her alight from the palanquin. My eyes ate her up from my hiding place as I watched her turn back as soon as her feet touched the ground and held her hands out to her serving maid.
She took the plant in her hand and brought it to her chest. The smile on my face could not be contained. It had been a spur of the moment decision to send her the rare flower. Just a reminder of the time we’d spent together.
I’d begged father to allow her to stay in the Orchid Palace instead of the other they’d had picked out for her. No one else is aware of my love for the place, or that I often sneak away there when I want to get away from everything.
And though we’ll never be given an unattended moment together until she became my wife, I still wanted her there. I knew the next few weeks were going to be grueling for her.
That even though the court ladies had been dispatched to her home to get started on her lessons in deportment and proper palace, etiquette, the bulk of her lessons was just beginning.
I wanted to make it as easy for her as possible and figured the beautiful surroundings that had served my mother so well would do the same for her.
Mother had been touc
hed that I wanted my future bride to walk in her footsteps so to speak, but she too had no idea of the significance for myself and beauty. Now I have a new lady to pick flowers for, for the rest of my life.
“Now you’ve seen her, come away from there before the Emperor has my hide. No one would believe I’ve taught you anything.” I grinned over my shoulder at him but allowed him to drag me away once she disappeared inside.
“Did you remember to send her the welcoming tray?” I’d ordered the kitchen to prepare her favorite treats and had picked her plum blossoms myself and placed them where she would sleep.
I’d even wrapped a few gifts and had them waiting for her there, so she wouldn’t be too sad about leaving her family, something I knew must be terrifying for the young girl.
Though most are struck by the beauty and grandeur of the palace, only one who’s lived here his whole life would know the hardship that can be found. The stifling feeling one can sometimes get, shut away as we were from the rest of the world.
From our short acquaintance, I knew that she was a free spirited adventurous girl. And that the court ladies were going to do their best to quell that in the next few weeks.
But I’m going to do everything I can to see that they do not change one little thing about her. I like her just the way she is and see no need for her to become someone else just to please me.
“Come, I have to go see father.”
“Your father, the Emperor, has court this morning. He won’t be able to…”
“My father will make time for me.” I had no doubt about that, as I know my father well.
MIA
“Am I really going to stay here?” I looked around the lovely appointed rooms of the palace as I walked in ahead of the court ladies. That day Jai and I dined here I hadn’t had a chance to look around.
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