The Night We Met

Chapter One

WHAT!?!?!?!

"I believe you heard what I said, did you not?" said the incompetent queen. "Of course we heard what you said! But, but this is unbelievable!! Guinevere is not ready to wed, she is only sixteen for goodness' sake! The queen said, outraged. "Oh please, Anastasia, you and I both knew she is going to have to court soon enough. Why not just get it over with now? Christopher is such a kind boy, I'm sure they would be great together! You don't want our dear Guinevere to be paired up with an old man, do you?" goaded Queen Eliana. 

Of course I don't," the queen said, raising her voice, "but I definitely do not want to force this supposedly 'kind, young man' on my daughter! She is still much too young! You couldn't do that anyway, my husband will not approve of this," Anastasia finished.

"Oh, but he already did," Eliana replied, haughtily, "I got Richard to persuade him during their last meeting, and there is nothing you can do about it. How sad it must be for you, I suppose."

Meanwhile, Guinevere was still sitting, shell-shocked, in her chair. Seemingly forgotten from the whole conversation she sat and listened, just as it was her purpose to do. Although she was boiling to the brim with hatred and confusion, she still managed to keep up a calm facade. However, after Eliana said those last words, Guinevere snapped. Not being able to hold it in any longer, she slammed her fist down on the table, rattling all the tupperware laid out on the table. Startled, the two queens looked over the at the princess, finally remembering that she was actually present at the table. 

"Why do you talk like I am not even here! You talk about my life like it's a bargaining chip, and that my feelings have nothing to do with it! Do I not get a say in what happens to me? All my life I have been told to just sit down and be quiet, but I'm sick of it! If that's all my life is going to be, then I don't want any part of either of your despicable families!" 

Hot tears running down her cheeks, Guinevere walked out of the dining hall and quickly made her way back to her room. Slamming the door behind her, she laid down on her bed, eyes trained on the ceiling above her. The tears had finally stopped, and she was not calm enough to think back on the situation. Chuckling to herself, she realized how much she had messed up. If blowing up in-front of the queen of Spain didn't get you a bad reputation, she didn't know what did. 

Both queens were sitting in shock, unsure how to go about the situation. Never before have they witnessed such an outburst take place right in front of them, especially not one that came from the mouth of the usually calm and collected Guinevere.

Although Guinevere didn't take back what she said, the idea of regret lingered in the back of her mind. Most of all, she was surprised with herself. She has never yelled out like that before, knowing the unwritten rules of how she should behave around guests. Deciding to be mature and make an apology, she made her way downstairs. As soon as she reached the dining hall, she saw the two mothers glaring at each other, as if they were trying to kill each other with a single look. Wringing her hands awkwardly, Guinevere started to speak. "I am deeply sorry for my outburst earlier, I was just very surprised with the news, and I wasn't able to process it. Please accept my apology, Mother, Queen Eliana." They turned slightly and faced the princess. "All is well, Guinevere. But I do have one thing you could do to make it up to me," replied, Queen Eliana. "Yes, of course, anything to make it up to you,"said Guinevere, albeit nervous as to what the unpredictable queen might request. The queen paused for a second, thinking. "'Anything', you say," The queen queried, "Well, if you insist, I would like you to attend the Annual Spring Masquerade Ball with Christopher in a couple of weeks." Once again, Guinevere spit out her tea into queen Eliana's face.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

WHAT?!?!?!