Pigsty Princess

by Nancy S. Brandt

  She didn’t know that, but she trusted her brother. He was more of a scholar than a warrior like their father. He had taken it upon himself to study the history of the kingdom and Sensitivities.

  The siblings were silent for a few moments as they gazed out at the gardens. Ursula was walking with George Evan, a maid a dozen steps behind to act as chaperone.

  “Ursula’s marriage will enhance her abilities,” Ramone said, “but George Evan will, potentially, get more out of the bonding. He only has Fauna Sensitivity. Her Air, Flora, and Water will be an asset to his estate.”

  Mariana sighed. Her brother spoke as though he were a teacher in a classroom. She loved Ram dearly, but sometimes it took him a long time to get to his point.

  “More important than all of that, though, is love. I believe Ursula loves him.”

  Again, Mariana felt off balance. Where was all this talk of love coming from? She knew Ramone and Victoria’s marriage had been arranged by the King when they were children.

  Ramone continued to watch the couple in the garden. “George Evan is a good man. He will make Ursula an excellent husband. Their love will do more to enhance his estates than her Abilities.”

  “Love?” Mariana couldn’t stand it. “What love? Their marriage was arranged by Father, just as yours was. Where does love fit in all of this?”

  Ramone blinked at her as though she’d slapped him. “I love Victoria. I have since the moment I first saw her.”

  “You first saw her when you were an infant. I know the story.”

  The Cognate Prince cleared his throat. “Well, yes. That is true. What I mean is, I have loved her as long as I can remember. I can’t remember a time when I didn’t know Victoria was the woman I wanted to spend my life with.”

  “Ram, you had no choice.”

  “Perhaps I’m not being clear. Let me try this again.” He took his glasses off. Without cleaning them, he put them back on and leaned toward his sister.

  “She is the princess of a fairy tale,” he said, his voice husky with emotion. “I am honored to be the knight in shining armor she chose.”

  Mariana opened her mouth to protest, but Ramone held up his hand to stop her words.

  “There are many kinds of love stories, Mariana. Mine is the result of fate or the Elements or whatever it was choosing to place me and Victoria here at the same time. I think we were destined to be together. I don’t think about what might have been because I am lucky enough my duty to Valborough means I get to be with the woman I love.”

  “Father says my duty is to marry Pir Leo.”

  “But it isn’t. You have no Abilities that can benefit the kingdom. I know Father is the King, and normally I would never question his words, but as I see it, you have a duty to your own heart. Valborough will benefit if you are happy. You love this man Orlando.”

  Ramone’s eyes were so bright, so eager, Mariana couldn’t bear to see the disappointment that would replace his happiness if she told him the truth.

  “I love you, Mari,” her brother said. “I am so glad you found your happy ending.” He picked the book off the table and stood. “Father will come around. He believes in love, I’m sure.”

  He kissed her on the top of her head and left her alone, closing the door to the parlor behind him.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Sleep eluded Progenna Mariana.

  She sat at the window of the parlor where she’d talked to both Natalia and Ramone, their words racing around in her head. She understood the points both of them had made.

  If she married Orlando, it wouldn’t be for love as her brother believed, but it would be a way of showing her father she wasn’t a child to be controlled and told what to do.

  However, being the wife of a pig farmer was a life she had no real experience with. A day or two of staying in Orlando’s and Adindira’s homes had proven she was completely unprepared to live the life of a commoner. She didn’t know how to bargain with the merchants or feed pigs or even wash dishes.

  Marrying the Sahdeer of Valentine would give her a life she was prepared for. In his home, as mistress of his estates, she would have the comforts and luxuries she was accustomed to. Her life would be simple, and she wouldn’t have to work the way she’d seen Adindira do every day.

  Love, which Ramone prized so highly, would be lacking in both situations, but Mariana suspected it would remain lacking with Pir Leo.

  Certainly, she would be grateful to the old man for being willing to bond with her even with her Insensitivity. She might even come to be fond of him, but never would she fall in love with him.

  On the other hand, Orlando was young and quite handsome. If she were looking for someone she could fall in love with, he was a definite possibility.

  She didn’t know him well, but he seemed to be a good man even if he was poor. The interesting thing to her was he didn’t act poor.

  As she thought about it, she didn’t know how she thought poor people lived and acted, but she’d always figured there would be more misery, less happiness. Adindira and her family were happy, except for her worry about her husband.

  If Mariana agreed to her father’s plan, she could, potentially, convince him to release Elnys as a favor to her.

  She paced her bedroom. Could she learn to be happy with Pir Leo? Even if Natalia was right, and the old man would die and leave everything to her and her heir, provided Bella did enter a convent, was that enough? Waiting for a man to die for her life to begin?

  Shaking her head, she stared at her face in the mirror, trying to imagine what she would look like in a few years, or even longer. The Sahdeer of Valentine might be old, but he wasn’t ill or enfeebled. He could conceivably live another ten years.

  She’d be over thirty years old then. Would she be too old to attract someone she could love? Wouldn’t she be busy raising at least one child? Valentine wanted an heir. It wouldn’t be possible to enter this marriage without the expected physical aspects.

  A shudder ran through her at the thought of lying next to him in a bed, while he touched her.

  Would she have to touch his withered arm? Would he touch her with it? Was the skin cold? It always seemed so cold and dead. Pale and wrinkled. What would it feel like on her skin? On her breasts?

  Suddenly, she knew she couldn’t do it. She couldn’t let her father give her to that man. Her parents would be angry, but the thought of bonding with Valentine soured her stomach. The details of the marriage act might be a mystery to her, but she knew it required them to be naked together. It couldn’t happen.

  It was intolerable that her father, who claimed to love her, would put the needs of Valborough, needs that were never totally clear to her, ahead of her happiness.

  She would marry Orlando. She would go through with this plan.

  Mariana was frightened at what she was going to do, but she’d already told King Jonathan she loved Orlando, and she was going to stick by that.

  ****

  Adindira carried two buckets of water from the pump to the pig trough. “I’ve said it before. You’re out of your mind.”

  Orlando glared at his sister. “You can stop saying it anytime.” He kicked the gate to the pigpen open.

  “You cannot be serious.” Traren took a drag from his pipe. “This is the craziest thing I’ve ever heard. You’re really going to marry her?”

  “It doesn’t appear I have much choice.” Orlando raked some of the old straw out of the sty and threw it in the wheelbarrow. He’d add it to the compost pile behind the barn later. “Those guards are going to see to it I don’t run away.”

  Three royal soldiers stood awkwardly in the yard outside the pen. They were far enough away they couldn’t hear the conversation, but not far enough to make Orlando comfortable.

  Adindira glanced at them, shaking her head. Traren just rolled his eyes, but refused to acknowledge they were there in any other way.

  “Why is the King so insistent?” Adindira finished washing out the water trough at the edge of the sty
. “I’d think he’d be thrilled if you didn’t return for the wedding.”

  Orlando shrugged one shoulder and pulled more hay out of the sty. “It’s a game. He’s trying to call Mariana’s bluff. She announces we’re in love so he won’t make her marry that monster, and he wants to see if she’ll stick to that.”

  “So if you don’t show up, she’ll have to marry Valentine.”

  “Exactly.”

  “So?” Traren shrugged. “What difference does it make to you who she marries? Probably would serve her right; she’s a royal.”

  Orlando straightened up and rolled his shoulders. The aches had to be from stress. He’d done this work regularly since he was old enough to hold a rake. His body never complained before from simply mucking out the sty.

  “She is the fourth child, Trar. She’s not the enemy. I doubt if she even knows the kinds of laws her father passes.”

  “No. She’s too interested in clothes and balls and flirting with other bored nobles.”

  “She’s a person,” Adindira said, scowling at their friend. “She can’t help the situation she was born into.”

  “So, we’re on the side of the tyrants now?”

  Orlando set the rake against the side of the pen. “Listen, I’m not saying I’ll be best buds with the King now, but there could be some advantage to having the Progenna on our side.”

  Traren narrowed his eyes, and Orlando didn’t miss the subtle change in his stance from casual to ready to attack if need be. Traren’s hand moved to hover near where he hid a dagger in the waistband of his pants under his tunic.

  “Like getting Elnys out of that dungeon.” Adindira positioned herself between the two men.

  “The King hasn’t scheduled the execution yet, so that’s a good thing,” Orlando said. “We’ll get him back. Mariana will be a big help in that regard.”

  “You’re not going to tell her about us, Lando,” Traren said. “She can’t know about the rebels.”

  Orlando took a deep breath and held up both hands in a surrendering gesture. “Relax, friend. I have no plans to tell her our secrets, but she is a Chaos Sensitive. We might find uses for her.”

  “Like getting Elnys out of the prison.” His sister looked at him as she emphasized the words. “Let’s not forget why you’re doing this.”

  ****

  Mariana sat on her bed, staring at all the lace, satin, tulle, and taffeta spread on all the horizontal surfaces available. Her mother and Liliana had summoned Beatrice as well as several seamstresses who were employed by noble families with homes nearby.

  All these women, as well as a few of Mariana’s friends, chatted in various small groups about the fabric and, more importantly, the swiftness of the engagement.

  Natalia had come with Beatrice and she took the measuring tape from the dressmaker. “I’ll measure the Progenna,” she said to her employer, who agreed and hurried away to speak to the Queen.

  “I’m so glad you’re here.” Mariana embraced her friend. “I was afraid you wouldn't want to talk to me again. ”

  “Well, I have a job to do.” Natalia wrapped the tape around Mariana’s waist. “So, you’ve decided to marry the pig farmer.”

  “We’ve only been here a few days, so it must have been love at first sight,” Liliana said from her seat near Mariana. She had come to the palace to be part of the wedding planning, even though her baby could make an appearance any moment. “It is so romantic.”

  “Romantic?” Liliana’s friend and lady-in-waiting, Cihana, hovered around the Royal Princess’s chair. Cihana was the daughter of Rupert and Jessica, the Margrave and Margress of Petrowin. “It sounds rushed.”

  She regarded Mariana as though studying a strange bug she’d just found on her window sill. “Why the hurry? Is there possibly something you’re not telling us?”

  “The Progenna is exactly the same size she was a year ago when she came here for the last Autumn Season,” Beatrice announced, taking the tape from Natalia and shoving it in the pocket of her smock. “I’m sure there is no…physical reason she is in a rush for this wedding.”

  The nearly solid sigh of relief that went through the room stunned Mariana.

  “You all thought I was pregnant?” she asked. “You thought I was that kind of woman, to have a baby without a wedding first?”

  “Honey, don’t be so upset,” Liliana said, her own hand resting on her expectant middle. “Sometimes these things can happen before we even know…what’s happening.” Some of the girls on the other side of the room giggled and Liliana rolled her eyes.

  “I don’t mean we don’t know what’s happening. I just mean, sometimes things move faster than we expect.”

  Mariana put her hands over her ears. “Stop talking. I don’t want to discuss this. Orlando and I haven’t even…”

  She stopped. Did she want to tell all these people she and Orlando hadn’t even held hands before today or kissed? Would they believe a couple could be in love without those things?

  Instead, she decided it was best to say nothing. Let the women draw their own conclusions.

  Her mother shook her head. “Of course you’re not with child. I didn’t believe you were.”

  “After all, Mother,” Mariana said, “the swiftness of this wedding was not my doing. Why was Father so insistent I marry Pir Leo?” She picked up a piece of light pink satin and ran it through her fingers.

  “It’s all politics,” Ursula said, taking her mother’s arm. “Come over here with us, Mari. I want to see how this pale yellow taffeta looks against your skin.”

  Mariana followed them to the other side of the bedroom, but the question lingered in her mind.

  What was so special about the Sahdeer that her father would want his daughter to be married to a man twice his age?

  ****

  The wedding was not what Mariana always dreamed of. After seeing Liliana’s a couple of years ago, she’d anticipated something similar, if a bit smaller, given her place in the birth order.

  Her wedding was indeed smaller, but not at all similar.

  The guest list could have been written out on half a piece of parchment with room left over for the dinner menu.

  Besides her immediate family and older siblings’ spouses, the witnesses only included a few people from Talla. Orlando’s sister and her three sons were there, along with a few people Mariana didn’t recognize.

  She glanced out into the huge chapel from the hidden room at one side where, legend had it, the first King of Valborough had spied on secret meetings held here by his enemies.

  “It looks so empty,” she murmured.

  “There wasn’t time to invite anyone.” The King stood behind her. “If you’d chosen to wed the man we selected, you could have had the royal wedding you expected.”

  While this wasn’t the official state function most royal weddings were, the King was dressed as though he were entertaining honored guests from neighboring, more powerful kingdoms.

  He wore his most impressive, highly decorated robes. Gold embroidery surrounded emeralds set in intricate patterns along the bottom hem and across the shoulders. Small beads the size of mustard seeds covered the back of the robe in a mosaic that depicted a black knife in a field of red roses, reminding all his subjects of the King’s nickname before he took the throne.

  When he was the Cognate Prince, Heir Presumptive of Valborough, the whole kingdom knew him as Jonathan, the Black Knife, in memory of a unique weapon he had forged himself as proof of the strength of his Fire Sensitivity.

  Mariana had grown up with stories about her father’s prowess in battle due to the strength of his Sensitivities and his ability to lead and inspire men. Soldiers under his command fought with more passion until some said the knife he forged was imbued with power itself, killing enemies almost as though it had a will of its own.

  Eventually, the rumors said, enemies would run away in fear when he pulled out the weapon on the battlefield.

  Had her father selected this reminder of his po
wer for her benefit or for Orlando’s?

  The crown he wore today had been specially made for his coronation. The red and black metal echoed the beading, but the amber firestones set around the coronet were reminders of her father’s strongest Sensitivity.

  On his last birthday, Mariana had given him a one-of-a-kind red Fire Stone pin, which he claimed to love. Today, she noticed he wasn’t wearing it. Clearly, that was another subtle way he showed his disapproval.

  “Why Sahdeer Valentine?” Mariana faced him.

  The King sighed. “There are many things that went into the decision I made. This is not the time or place to discuss them. We probably should be going soon.”

  “When would be the time?” Mariana crossed her arms over her chest. “After I’m married to Orlando?”

  “Who you claim to love, my daughter. Is this not the case? Tell me now, and we’ll call off the whole thing.”

  “And I would marry Pir Leo? There isn’t another option.”

  “I have given you the choice, Mariana. Marry the man the Queen and I selected or the man you say you love.”

  “This does not explain why it had to all happen so fast.” She peeked out again at the nearly empty chapel.

  “Look, my child.” He took her shoulders and spun her to face him. “You have to trust me. The reasons are complicated, but Pir Leo was the best choice among the eligible nobility to be your husband. He would provide and care for you. However, if he doesn’t please you, and you prefer Orlando, then for the sake of everyone involved, we had to have the wedding quickly.”

  Mariana scowled. “Everyone involved? What does that mean?”

  Her father embraced her. “Please trust me, Mariana. If you don’t marry your pig farmer today, things in the palace could get very uncomfortable for you in the future.”

  “Father, I don’t understand.”

  He kissed her forehead. “I know. Someday, I hope I can explain it all.”