Shoes are Stupid

Stealing the Throne

Philip

Philip shifted his weight between his feet, trying to decide which one was the least tired. He had been standing at the head of the throne room for what seemed like hours, but was probably closer to 30 minutes. You really couldn't blame him though, his feet were cooped up in stiff, uncomfortable dress shoes that Frances, his steward and supposed best friend, had forced him to wear. Philip scoffed at the memory.
"You have to wear shoes to greet the ambassador!"
Frances had yelled at him.
"Says who?"
Philip cringed remembering his response, he should have known better.
"Says common sense! You're a prince for goodness sake!"
The next thing Philip knew, he was being dragged by the collar to the throne room with brown dress shoes on his feet.
Now Frances stood just off to the side of the throne room, next to a smaller door that led into the palace. He seemed to be holding back a smile at Philip's discomfort.
Philip directed his attention away from the traitor he called his best friend to avoid any unnecessary strangling. Other than his parents, their servants, and Frances the room was still completely empty. The ambassador from Kutai, a country on the other side of the Great Gulf, was supposed to arrive any minute now, but this had been true for quite a while. Philip didn't know what the hold up was and quite frankly he didn't care as long as he could sit down soon.
Not for the first time, Philip wondered why the King and Queen got thrones but he, the crown prince, didn't. The thrones were clearly not the most comfortable things, what with their lack of any cushioning, but anything would beat standing at this point.
Finally, a butler announced that the ambassador would be arriving momentarily. Philip acknowledged that the ambassador would be here soon, but his attention remained mostly on his fathers throne. He wondered if he could steal it without looking like a prick.
The large doors to the throne room opened and a small figure walked in. Philip realized he basically knew nothing about the ambassador other than her gender and age. His parents said she was his age, and their insistence on him being there to greet her meant they thought of her as a potential fiancé for Philip. He knew his parents had also told him the ambassadors name, but the only thing he could remember is that it started with an "R".
The ambassador walked slowly, which made Philip wonder if her near turtle like movements are what had made her arrive so late.
Her outfit was clearly from Philip's own country, with bright colors and loose fabric that hid any shape. She wore a vibrant red floor-length dress and a matching hooded cape. The hood of the cape was pulled over the ambassador's head in a way that looked like whoever had dressed her was trying to make sure none of her hair was visible.
Philip thought she looked rather boring. He had been hoping that maybe someone from a different country wouldn't have the same shallow, stuck up look and personality that was a common trait among nobles from his country but he wasn't overly surprised when that clearly wasn't the case.
Already having lost interest in the girl, Philip's attention was easily brought to the empty throne next to him as his parents stood up to greet the ambassador.
It seemed so close, he could just sit down right now while his father was standing. Philip weighed the pros and cons of stealing the throne.
Pros: he wouldn't be standing any more.
Cons: he would look stupid and his father may accidentally sit on him.
Wiggling his toes in his cramped shoes, Philip decided the pros outweighed the cons. He was preparing to vault over the arm of the throne and into the seat when he heard the large doors of the room close. Startled by the noise, Philip looked up and realized that the ambassador had already left, which was odd because she hadn't said a word. He looked at his parents who seemed very relieved. His father mumbled,
"I was worried she would be too different, but it seems she will adopt our customs quickly."
"As long as she doesn't openly flaunt any differences that may be in her culture she will be ok."
Was his mother's reply. Philip realized that he knew nothing about Kutai other than their location, and it didn't seem like his parents knew much either. The way they spoke made Philip think that they hadn't actually known what the ambassador's culture was like, and had only been relieved it was not visible.
Frances tapped Philip on the shoulder, gaining his attention.
"So.... any thoughts on the new girl?" Frances teased. He must have thought that Philips dazed look was because of the girl. Philip shook his head.
"Not really, just that I was hoping she would be a bit more interesting. I'm bored of the same thing every day."
"And you don't really understand our culture in the first place. Despite that your parents are the king and queen. And that you are the crown prince and set to inherit the throne. And this is the only culture you've ever known."
Frances laughed as Philip huffed at his remarks. It was true, he never really fit in with the rest of the kingdom, though he wasn't sure what exactly he didn't like. He turned on his heel and started out of the throne room, effectively ending the conversation. Frances walked up next to him, and Philip heard a soft whisper from him:
"Moody."
"Idiot."

———

949 words, so not much but it's just the first chapter! I don't really have much more planned out but that's assuming anyone actually reads this and wants more chapters.

Question of the Chapter:
I'll introduce the ambassador in the next chapter, what do you think her name is?
A) Reagan
B) Ruby
C) Rain
D) Rose