Coronation Preparation
“Your Majesty, you’ve arrived just in time!” Mathew announced, making his way over to me. “I have Talia here to take your measurements for the ceremonial dress that is to be made.”
Clearly, they were not wasting any time to get the ball rolling on these events. It was as if the execution had never happened. Mathew took my hand and led me into a small sitting room with a stool set up for me to stand on.
“We will leave you to get things settled while I chat with your guardians and consort,” Mathew said with a bob of his head and swept out of the room.
The woman named Talia was shy and looked slightly older than me but not by much. “You’ll have to forgive them. They have been waiting a long time for this moment.”
“I hope to have their energy when I reach their age.” I giggled, trying to ease the awkward atmosphere. “Do you need to remove my dress, or is leaving it on all right?”
“If you are comfortable taking it off, it will give me a chance to get all the measurements I need and record them so I can make you whatever is needed in the future. I am the best our village has to offer by way of a seamstress,” Talia explained.
“Are you the one who did the stitching on my cloak? It is absolutely stunning. I’ve never seen finer work in all my life.”
“Yes, Your Majesty, that is my work,” she answered with a slight blush on her cheeks.
“Then I will slip out of this dress so that I selfishly might be able to get many things your talented hands have created,” I shared with a smile and turned my back to her so she could help me with the ties.
Soon, I was in my shift, standing on a stool as Talia worked quickly and silently, moving with the precision of years of practice. There was something so simple about this interaction that was soothing after the craziness that had been happening around me.
The fire in the sitting room filled the space with warmth so I didn’t feel the chill while standing in my undergarments, and the soft sound of her taking notes and muttering to herself was welcome.
Then all too soon, the moment ended, and Talia was helping me put the dress back on.
Taking a deep breath, I opened the door and found Paxton waiting, guarding it while Eleazar was lecturing the others.
“You didn’t need guardian lessons?” I asked, pausing next to him.
“They promised to fill me in later, but none of them would pay attention unless someone was here. I’ve seen my fair share of ceremonies while wandering through the kingdoms that I can catch on faster than most of them,” he shared with a shrug.
“One of these days, I would love to hear about what it is that you did while you were presumed dead,” I commented as I headed into the building’s main space.
“Now, when the queen heads to take her purification bath, only the women can escort her past the archway. The purpose of this is to wash off the old life before being crowned and then staying pure until the ceremony is over. Do I make myself clear?” Eleazar demanded.
The guys glared at him, daring to suggest they would ever sully me in any way. “I don’t think that will be a problem… my honor is still intact.”
The viceroys turned to look at me when I spoke.
“Of course, forgive me if you thought we were to assume otherwise, but the world has changed around us so much that we didn’t want to be unclear of expectations,” Lawrence explained.
“These rituals are meaningful to us all, and we don’t want to dishonor the gods by not following them as they should be. ”
“Of course, and I wish to honor them and our people by following them,” I assured as I sat with the others. “Now maybe we can go over these expectations together?”
Lawrence turned to the others, and they seemed to speak to each other without using words, but when they agreed, they all nodded and turned back to us.
“Let us start at the beginning, shall we?” Mathew suggested.
“The event will take place a week from today. That will give us time to examine the castle and make the preparations needed. Talia is skilled, but getting a dress done sooner than that would take magic that none of us have discovered yet.”
“Sounds fair to me, plus it will give us time to adjust to things here as well. I would love to be able to spend time in the castle as well, learning what we can that might be hidden away,” I said, smiling over at Sal, who nodded excitedly in agreement.
“There will be a lot of work on your part that needs to go into this, Your Majesty,” Eleazar warned. “Once we get through this, then you will have more time to call your own.”
“All right, where do we start to get this whole thing moving?” Cole interjected.
Eleazar gave him a disapproving look but ignored the snark.
“It would be best if you go up to the castle, check things out, and make sure it’s only the drawbridge that needs immediate attention.
Then with Talia working on the dress, it leaves us to prepare you for the vows you make to your people, the dragons, and the gods.
They will need to be memorized, and unfortunately, the people who wrote them were long-winded, but the bright side is you already know how to read the language, making it easier. ”
“Who knew learning a dead language would come in handy?” I mused out loud, thinking back to the game of strategy my father and I used to play. “When does the cleansing bath take place?”
“That won’t be until the day before the coronation,” Lawrence answered, waving that information off.
“Before we get to that, you’ll need to visit the Dragon Lands and greet the dragons who gather there along with your partner, Vasin.
They will need to know who to reach out to if they have concerns or there is trouble on their borders.
When that has been accomplished, meet with General Alsten to set expectations while your guardians work with the command leaders to set up security for the day of the coronation.
Then there is the banquet after the coronation to start preparing for, along with the need to pick staff to work in the castle once you reside there full time. ”
Hearing all of this caused my brain to start overheating like a pot boiling over.
I’d been thinking that a week would be plenty of time to figure all of this out, but as they listed everything that needed to be done, I realized I was starting from scratch.
There was nothing in place, and I would need to build the environment I wanted to live in for the foreseeable future.
The castle would have nothing left in it, or at least I assumed, seeing as it’s been four hundred years, whether it had magical protection or not. Food would need to be stocked, jobs assigned, and so many other things I’m sure I wouldn’t think of until I discovered we didn’t have it.
Helena… I needed Helena. She would know how to help me.
Being the steward’s wife and having to help deal with all the clans’ needs, she would be a person I could trust to help me deal with all of this.
I turned to Cole, grabbing his arm as if he was the last link to my sanity.
“Do you know where your grandparents were put up?”
“Yes…” Cole hedged.
“Great, now I need you to get Helena and bring her here now,” I ordered, needing him not to argue with me. He must have seen something in my face because he quickly kissed my forehead and left.
“Love, are you all right?” Gavin asked, reaching out to place a hand on my knee.
I opened my mouth to answer, but I wasn’t sure what to say.
It would be a lie if I told him everything was fine, but I didn’t want him to worry or make it sound like I couldn’t handle all this.
Finally, I settled on just being honest. “There’s just a lot more than I expected to deal with.
I’ve been so focused on getting us here and safe that I hadn’t taken the time to worry about what happened next.
I don’t know the first thing about running the inner workings of a castle or bringing on all new staff from a group of people I don’t know.
My hope is that Helena will be able to help me sort this all out so I can worry about other things no one else can help me with. ”
“Wisely said, Your Majesty,” Mathew said as he handed me a cup of hot tea. “This is a personal blend I make that seems to help me when I feel overwhelmed. Shall we wait for Helena to join us before we continue, or would you rather us keep going?”
“There’s more?” I cried, my shoulders slumping as I fell back against the chair I was sitting in. “Fine, tell me what else I need to do.”
There was an awkward pause as if they weren’t sure if they should continue, but Lawrence took me at my word.
“The day of the coronation, you will need to get ready here since part of the ritual will be having you ride up to the castle and be announced. Once you enter the throne room, you will make your way to the front where the throne is, and we will be waiting for you. This is where you will give one of the vows, but we will help prompt you in a call-and-response-type situation. Then you will be given the key to the castle, and you’ll turn to the left and give your vow to the dragons, face center and give your vow to the people, then turn to the right and give your vow to Sheca as a whole and the gods who protect it. ”
“Speaking of the gods…” Izel cut in. “I can’t say I am familiar with what you are talking about. We never had a deity we paid homage to back in Norden.”
“Hmm.” Eleazar mused, rubbing a hand over his beard.
“It appears we might need to make some adjustments on that bit since those who came from Norden won’t know what we are talking about.
Now that the castle is open, the Holy Place will be available to us, and we can bring back our worship to its rightful place.
We can teach them of our gods they have forgotten but who have never abandoned them.
Let us dwell on that for a day or two, but if you would like books or information on the gods, we can supply that. ”
Izel motioned his thanks and for Lawrence to continue. He cleared his throat as he tried to remember where we left off.
“I believe I was facing to the right, giving my vow to Sheca and the gods,” I offered, hoping it would help.
“Ah, yes. Once you have completed all of that, you will take your seat on the throne, and we will place the crown on your head. The magic within the castle and what lives inside you will meld, giving you full control over everything within the castle walls. This is how the previous king was able to lock the place up as he did for his return. Without the key and your magic, nothing would have gotten through that barrier,” Lawrence stated.
“It might be best to have you enter the castle’s keep first just in case any other backup protections are set in place. ”
“Smart idea,” I agreed. “If it were me, I would put up extra blockades in areas where something important resides.”
The older men all muttered their agreement, fell silent once again, and looked over the men sitting before them until Mathew turned to me. “Then there is the matter of announcing your consort or consorts as it were…”
“Explain to us what needs to be done or is expected from this part of the coronation,” I suggested, knowing this would be easier if I understood what was involved in the event. If I could have avoided the whole thing being a public display, I would have without a second thought.
“There will be a simple ceremony tying you together in the eyes of the gods and our people. It will be expected that from this point, you will consummate the union in an effort to produce an heir for the future of your reign. That, of course, will happen later. It will just need to be witnessed by someone who can be trusted and isn’t attached to you, such as a guardian or family member,” Mathew instructed, wringing his hand the whole time, uncomfortable with the topic.
“If you take more than one, the act will only have to be confirmed with one of them, and from that point on, you will be left to do as you please for the rest of your rule. It is an old tradition, but it is one that the people feel gives them the most comfort knowing you will provide for the future.”
“I see. Does this need to be decided now, or do we have time to talk among ourselves in the coming week?” I inquired.
“We will just need to know a day or two before so that we might know how to plan our remarks for officiating the union.”
“Then that is when you will have your answer. I don’t feel comfortable giving that information before we have talked,” I said simply.
Thankfully, Cole and Helena arrived, and we put a pin in that topic for now.
Just as I’d hoped, Helena was who I needed to help me with the staff and banquet details.
Working out what we could took up the rest of the morning, and I couldn’t have been more relieved to have some of my list checked off.
The plan was to break for lunch and then head up to the castle now that the weather had cleared and the sun was peeking out of the clouds, giving us plenty of light to work from as we opened the castle.