Anastasia Queen of the Fae

Sorrow filled the small clearing in the forest as the elfin princess sat with her two best friends. They all wore garlands of specially picked flowers on the crown of their heads, their long tresses falling to their waist in a fit of natural waves. Anastasia, princess of all things magic, toyed with the flimsy fabric of her gown. She was so very nervous that her whole body seemed to tremble with fear. Her lengthy raven locks shifted in the twilights breeze. Her large silver eyes blinked rapidly, avoiding any sort of tears that might fall down her face. She glanced toward the sky. The moon was rising and soon the party would begin, the party to end her freedom.

“It shan’t be too bad, Annie.” Matilda, a red headed fae with gorgeous purple eyes, smiled and patted her goods friend hands. “He’s rather gorgeous” She added with another encouraging tap against her companions knuckles.“...it might even be beautiful later on.”

“You never know, Annie. She could be right.” Hannah diverted, moving her strawberry blonde locks past her shoulders and focusing all her attention on her emotionally laden friend. “He could be wonderful.” Anastasia rolled her eyes and buried her face in her hands. “Well he could be.” Hannah looked to Matilda for support. “Tell her.”

“He could be wonderful..really he could.” The redhead repeated jovially. “You’ll be queen after all. That is a gift in itself...you really have no reason to be sad.”

A bright gray eye peaked out through a crack in her fingers. The expression in those silver orbs was very clear, hatred. “I don’t care about being queen, Matilda.” She said, her voice creaking with anger and fatigue. “I don’t.” She made sure Hannah understood this as well. “It makes no difference to me if I never ever get to be queen.” She took in a solid breath, her lungs ached. “It means nothing.”

“I hate this dress.” She whispered playing with the soft material. It practically sifted through her fingers like sand on a shore. It was rather beautiful from another’s stand point. It was long white and sparkled when moon beams touched its sheer surface. It was tight along the bodice and skimmed the lower part of her body with the perfect amount of skin peaking through its ties and ribbons. “I hate everything about this day.” She finished.

“It’s a lovely dress Annie.” Matilda nodded. “You look gorgeous.”

“You really do.” Hannah smiled.

“I wish I could show the world just how ugly I feel right now.” She sighed. “It’s just not fair.”

“Nothing’s fair anymore, Anne.” Hannah huffed. “We love you though.”

“Yes we really, really do. We are sisters...practically.”Matilda grasped her sullen friend in a tight hug.

“Sisters that I won’t see anymore after tonight.”

“That’s just silly. Of course you’ll see us.” Hannah remarked.

“No. I really wont. I’m to move away with Prince Braxton as soon as the last star disappears.”

“You didn’t tell us that.” Hannah’s eyebrows shot up dangerously sharp.

“I didn’t know till this morning.” She sighed. “Mother told me over our nectar and prim roses.”

“But...” Hannah sputtered, her sentence dying before it’s finish.

“That can’t be. Prince Braxton ..he.”

“Let’s not spoil our farewells with all this nonsense. There’s really no use.” Anastasia’s usual grace came forth.

“What do you mean spoil our farewells? When are goodbye’s ever good news?” Matilda snapped.

“I didn’t say it was good. I just...”

The sound of a distant shell horn was being blasted through the forest. It was time to leave. All three girls jumped at the sudden noise bombarding their special moment. Anastasia looked wistfully around her at the trees she had come to know and care for over the years. There branches drooped with her sullen mood. She gave a teary smile. Matilda was the first to rise, pulling the two females up with her. They clasped hands and stared. This was their goodbye. With one more sorrowful glance they broke away, walking toward the celebration a good mile away.

“You’re going to make a lovely queen.” Matilda whispered while hugging her friends arm to her chest.

“I’d rather make a lovely friend and stay here.” Annie whispered back. “It’s almost too much.”

“You’ll do fine.”

“It’s not that.” She looked over at Hannah who was making a brisk path ahead of them. “I’m just not...I’m not sure of anything anymore. I knew it would happen someday but I also hoped that maybe things would change before it was my time. Prince Braxton is so very stern and straight laced. You know I have yet to see him smile? I’m serious! Years of knowing that stuck up man and he has not smiled once, not even a grin.” She made a face that Matilda laughed at. “He has never touched me. Even when we first met he offered me that famous scowl of his and grunted a hello.” She sighed heavily. “And tonight...well that’s just a misfortune in itself.”

“You mean after the vows are made and all the guests scatter.” Matilda grinned wickedly. “You mean...”

“Yes that’s exactly what I mean.” Anastasia hissed, her eyes a soft gray. “I’m not looking forward to it at all.”

“Oh come on, Annie.” The friend nudged her playfully with an elbow. “You must be curious.”

“No.”

“Not the least bit curious about anything at all?” She giggled. “I hear he’s very attractive...all over.”

“You’re wicked.” Anastasia said without the least bit of humor in her tone. “He’s evil and you’re wicked.”

“I’m not wicked. I’m just a girl, as are you.” She smirked. “And he’s absolutely gorgeous.”

“He’s evil.” The young princess pointed out for the second time that evening. “I doubt he’s even attracted to me.”

“Of course he is.”

“We’ll see.”

“I want a letter as soon as possible your highness.” Matilda chided. “With every single detail.” She then made a little strangled coughing noise before adding. “Big and small.”

The three girls embraced just before Anastasia was pulled behind the bridal tent. Her mother doused her in a sweet smelling sort of perfume before throwing a handful of fairy dust in her hair. The young girl choked on the dicey little pieces of light, blinking as a few unsuspected sparkles stuck in her lashes and along her cheekbones.

“You took forever, child. You had me worried.” She mumbled while curling random tendrils along the young princess’s face. Anastasia sighed heavily, her eyes darting to the tents ceiling, her lips closed tight. “Where were you?” Her mother asked. Annie shrugged and bit down hard on her tongue. She could not cry, not yet at least. “No matter. You’re here now and that’s all that really counts.” She placed a long veil over her face and gave a dreamy smile. “My darling, you are beautiful. Prince Braxton will be so impressed.” She whispered. The mere name caused a tear to slip from the granite colored orb. She nodded, quickly turning away to hide her obvious sorrow. Another horn sounded, this one more lyrical than the first.

“It’s time. Let’s go.” Her mother pulled her along the grass, out the tent and into the night air. Anastasia heard the music start, a thousand strings of beautiful melody poured out through the shadows. She couldn’t breathe. She took the first few steps herself but soon her fathers powerful hand gripped her upper arm and she felt relief. He gave her a heartwarming smile before leading her to the entrance, a marble archway covered in ivy and tiny white flowers. It was far too beautiful to be so sad, and yet she was.

The whole of the kingdom was there. The crowd all standing in reverence to her, eyes glazed over, happy smiles on most faces. A long pale yellow carpet stretched out in front of her. Tiny flower petals and pieces of magic clung to its comfortable surface, and at the end, Prince Braxton. She dared not look at him. She focused on the fairies floating overhead, wishing her tidings of great joy and happiness. The stars twinkling in rhythm to the orchestra, the faces of her friends smiling at her with teary stares. She only looked at Braxton when she stood in front of him and that was enough to make her falter. She studied her feet thoroughly.

Braxton was a beautiful man. His thick brown hair and startling green eyes an alarming characteristic when added to his height and breadth. He looked as stern as ever in his ceremonial clothes, maybe even more than usual. His arms were straight down at his sides, his jaw clenched uncomfortably tight. He studied the girl in front of him with a small amount of fascination. Was she ever willing to give him more than a second of her time. The fact that she wouldn’t keep eye contact drove him insane and today was no different.

“We are here to join this Prince Braxton Cornelius Sovenste the fifth to this Princess Anastasia Moriah Greyly together in a bond of matrimony. In doing so they will be forever intertwined in all that they do.”

Anastasia gulped at that bold proclamation, forever intertwined. It was rather intense and a shooting pain shot to her chest. She couldn’t help the clenching of her fists at her sides. No one else seemed to notice her discomfort but Braxton himself, who was feeling the exact same thing.

An hour passed and the ending was near.

“Prince Braxton do you bond yourself to this Princess Anastasia for eternity, devout? Heart and soul?”

“I do accept this bond.” His deep voice echoed through her head. She glanced up to meet his fiery gaze.

“And do you Princess Anastasia bond yourself to this Prince Braxton for eternity, devout? Heart and soul?”

There was a pause in which a challenging stare went on between the two young royals.

“I do accept this bond.” She said, her voice small and timid when compared to the booming scend of his.

With those words a powerful surge of energy passed through both their chests. Anastasia gave a small gasp at the sharp hiss of pain running through her heart, while Braxton merely flinched. The crowd watched in awe and the royal families turned to a single phratry. During this brief moment of uncomfortable shifting, Annie’s eyes had slammed shut. With opening them she saw the young prince nod in her direction. She returned the gesture to him.

“And the last step of bonding is in the kiss.” The elderly priest stated closing the traditions book shut.

“With this your destinies shall be forever tangled with one another.” He added. “And with this your future sealed.”

She hadn’t thought of this at all. There had been so many other things to worry about, the kiss had been the least of them. She bit her lip and waited patiently while her new husband pushed the veil back away from her face. The guests all waited with anxious quiet, while Braxton leant down to catch her mouth in a chaste kiss. Anastasia braced herself for another jolt of pain to slice through her chest but was pleasantly surprised and a delicious warmth spread throughout her body, starting at her lips and ending at her toes. She was startled as he pulled away, taking that gorgeous feeling with him. His eyes darted away from the young girl back to the priest.

“And so it is done.” The elderly gentleman smiled while patting the two young royals on the shoulder. The crowd went into an uproar, confetti flying, fairies giggling in midair. Men yelled congratulations as babies threw freshly picked flowers at the young couple. Braxton took his new bride by the arm and walked her down the aisle. She couldn’t ignore the rushing heat his hand produced on her pale skin. It sent tingles straight to her spine and the thought scared her. Braxton didn’t seemed at all pleasantly phased by the recent turn of events. If anything he seemed more abrupt than his usual charming self. He dropped her arm as soon as possible and they parted ways, Anastasia to the brides family, Byron to his own.

‘Oh you are just gorgeous. Long live our princess Anastasia! The dress brings out your eyes. You and Prince Braxton make a lovely couple. Are you happy dear? Because you look just wonderful.’

That and countless other questions and compliments flew at the young fae from every angle. She painted a smile on her face, shaking hands and looking down in a bashful shutter. Her husband was pushed across the busy fairgrounds, talking to the men about the women that now occupied their lives. Braxton hadn’t said a word, merely sipped on his sugar tonic from a shiny crystal teacup shaped like a flowers base. He swished the liquid around in the glass, staring down at its bubbling surface. Everything was moving dreadfully fast around him. In just a few hours he would be on the road toward his own kingdom with his new bride, to live in a home that they would share for the rest of their lives. He glanced in her direction. She was rather pretty for a fae. He was partial to his own kind with their stubborn spirits and coy grins, but there was no doubting this particular females good looks. Her raven hair was set in spirals down her back, tiny flowers laced between random tendrils and behind her right ear. Her eyes were a particular gray, like that after a storm. Big and bright. Sad and curious. All at the same time. He was so far into his study that he had failed to realize those huge gray eyes flutter up to meet his gaze. He turned away leaving her confused and sullen.

“Oh you look just perfect.” An elderly lady hugged the fae tight to her chest. Anastasia merely smiled.

Two hours later the royal family made it’s way back to the sacred grounds to bid farewell to it’s newest couple. The carriage was packed and Anastasia stood waiting for the most important goodbyes of all. She hadn’t seen her friends all night and had refused to leave until she got a hug from both of them. For once the prince didn’t argue.

“Annie.” Hannah cried out over the crowd, receiving many perturbed glares for doing so. Soon she and Matilda reached their newly married friend and hugged her tight. Matilda stepped aside.“This is madness.” She sighed, refusing to let go. “I can’t believe you’re leaving us. What are we to do without you?” Anastasia pulled away and offered her most realistic smile, shaking off tears and other bits of salty emotion.

“Well for one you are to marry Kinnety.” She grinned. “And then you are to come visit me.”

“Are you sure his highness will allow you friends?”

“He has no power over me.” The princess glared. “I’ll do as I please.”

“Do please be happy then.” Hannah kissed her cheek and pulled her in for yet another embrace. “You will be happy?”

“Goodbye Hannah.” A single tear streamed down the fae’s face. “I will see you again.”

Hannah nodded and left Matilda to say her goodbyes.

“You will be so good for him.” She whispered about the prince. Annie rolled her eyes and laughed.

“Promise me you’ll watch out for Hannah.” She said cautious of prying ears. “She’s so soft hearted.”

“I’ll promise that, only if you promise to write me.”

“Of course. Details..big and or small.” She grinned. “I’m going to miss you two terribly.”

“And we you.”

The princess couldn’t help the tears that began spilling out her eyes. She attempted at keeping back a sob but only managed to choke on her own emotion. Quickly burying her face in her hands to hide from the prince’s intense gaze. To her, crying was weakness and she was so very weak lately. It pained her to think that everyone could see just how he had gotten to her.

“Please stop, Annie.” Matilda began sobbing too, wrapping a pair of pale arms around the brides shoulders. “It’s going to be good I promise.” She spoke this into her hair. “You are too good for anything else.” This only caused yet another sparkly set of tears to slip down her cheeks. She nodded and gulped down what seemed to be an unhealthy amount of air.

“I can’t do this.” She whispered to her anxious friend. “I really just can’t do this. I’m so unhappy. I’ve never been this unhappy in my entire life. I’m not ready.” She spoke so swift Matilda struggled to understand. One member of the party had heard every word. Prince Braxton watched quietly as his new bride sobbed and mumbled incoherently into the night.

“We need to leave.” He cleared his throat in a domineering way. A set of steely gray eyes shot to meet his gaze. She did look rather pitiful and for a moment he was jarred. He felt uncomfortable with that piercing gaze shooting through him. He half expected her to scream but she only looked back at her friend and whispered another goodbye.

“Goodbye everyone.” She gave a teary smile. “I hope to see you all again very soon.” The crowd of close family members all replied with smiles and tissue gripping waves. She couldn’t take anymore of this emotional farewell. She hurried into the carriage, letting her head drop against the back and for the first time that night taking in a full breath of air. Two seconds later Braxton sat across from her, his eyes darting outside the window.

“How long is the drive to your home?” She asked, voice cracking at the most inopportune time.

“Long. You should sleep.”

“How long is long?” Her tone more crisp this question.

“Hours and hours.” He bit. “I suggest you sleep.”

“I’ll sleep when I’m ready.”

“Fine, be tired then. It’s not as if I really care.”

“Of course not. Caring would mean you’re not...” She stopped and reinstated her gaze outside the window.

“Mean I’m not what?” She winced at his hateful tone, turning even further away from him. She couldn’t avoid the fact he had leant forward, that he was nearly snarling in her ear.

“Nothing.” She sighed, tears threatening to spill down her now paling cheeks. “Nothing at all.”

Braxton released the breath he had been holding in for what seemed like ages. Slowly leaning back against the leather seats, staring at his new bride with a mixture of sorrow and anger. It was at the very moment he decided to argue further that the young princess released her first two tears. One streaming down her cheek and landing on her open palm, the other dangling from her jaw before plopping unceremoniously on her gown. His heart ached at the sight of it all, he had to do something.

“You really should try and sleep, princess.” He cleared his throat, eyes softening quickly. “It’s at least a full days drive.” With that said both members of the unhappy party exhaled, not feeling the least bit better than minutes before. The prince, still in pain from his wife’s free falling tears. The princess, still crying because her life seemed to be quickly resembling a nightmare.

Just as the prince said, they made the final stop at his large and impressive estate a full day later. He had grown up in the family castle but upon the year of his marriage was given a massive home in the center of Nottoway Valley. The green and floral scape surrounding this lovely home was enough to fall in love with, but what really stole a fae’s heart was the actual mansion itself. Standing large and sparkling with shiny marble and silver fixtures, was Anastasia’s new home, her own personal hell. Even the young princess was taken aback with the beauty of it all. Her breath hitching in her throat, her eyes widening while taking it all in.

“This is Nottoway.” The prince stated, taking the first step out of the carriage. He offered the princess his hand but she refrained and helped herself from the shiny travel means. Braxton didn’t flinch at her reaction, it was somewhat expected from her. She kept her distance as they made their way toward the entryway. She noticed there were no servants bustling about, no one to take their bags, no one to make her feel uncomfortable with their questioning gaze.

“There are no servants but if you should want a lady in waiting that can be arranged.” She watched their trunks floating toward the lovely home. “It’s enchanted. There are no limitations on magic on the Nottoway Property.” He went on as she followed close behind. “It’s your home now too..I suppose.” He cleared his throat. “Do as you wish.”

“Where’s my room?” She asked, gaze finally moving to his stern features.

“You’re to stay with me.” He stated calmly. “That’s understood.”

“Don’t expect me to enjoy it.” She mumbled, not quite sure if he heard her or not. She didn’t care.