A King Without a Crown

The World Falls Apart Sometimes

 "You're not seriously considering moving up the coronation are you, Dad?" Elenora attempted to hide her dismay as she criticized her father in between mouthfuls of potatoes. The look her mother shot her in return could have dropped a grown man in his path if looks could kill.

"Elenora, that is no way to speak to your father. At the dinner table no less! You are a princess who knows far better manners than what you choose to utilize in everyday cases," her mother scolded sternly, the look of irritation clearly still obvious on her face. 

Happy with the silence her comments received from Elenora, the slight woman returned her attention to the glass of wine at her side, taking far more than an appropriate sip. No one dared to comment on this lack of manners, and as soon as the glass touched the table cloth it was promptly refilled by the attendant who melted back into the shadows when he had topped it off.

Camden made sure to finish his mouthful of roasted meat and cautiously eye his father before cutting through the silence, "What does El mean, moving up the coronation? Surely you aren't planning to move things faster than two years from now as planned?" 

The silence resumed again, though it held a different bite to it. Not quite the settling quiet, but the kind flooding with tension and change. Camden's heart began to race, not sure if. He wanted the answer his father was going to give him. Clearing his throat gently the stern man turned all of his attention to his son. 

"Camden, I can answer as your father, or I can answer as your King. Though I am not sure that you will enjoy either reply you are about to receive. Perhaps this is a conversation better suited for my office when we have all finished our meal," The King swirled the wine in his glass, awaiting his son's response as he followed the lead of his wife and took a drink that was far more than could be considered a sip.

"No," Camden's face dropped slightly at the tone, "You can't be serious. Why are you moving the timeline for this?"

"No answer I can give you will be sufficient. I need you to think very well before you respond to rashly. While I am still fit to rule the Kingdom of Anddom, I am no fool. I can see that relations with our borders are on thin ice. Tendah's rulers are not the only ones feeling the pressure for change. Our neighbors to the South will never be happy with my rule. Even Dantlo is waiting for the shift in power. If Anddom is going to gain from such a shift, it must be done before they are expecting it. In order for our family is to maintain the throne, we must act swiftly. Not to mention there are many alliances to be sealed and rewritten when you ascend to power. It is no longer a game I can play slowly, but this is a move I am choosing to make for the good of our people and the peace of our lands."

No one dared to move. Even the attendants seemed to shift further into the shadows at the King's tone. The only one unaffected was Elenora. She dared not only to continue eating, but then proceeded to stand as the King finished his comments. Taking her defiance one step further, she dared to speak. Elenora addressed her brother with the briefest of glares before staring into her father's eyes. 

"You are a fool to think marrying Camden off to the highest bidder's daughter will save Anddom from the tension that plagues our borders. You would go so far as to put a new puppet on the throne, but you could never dare to travel into the other realms. Heaven forbid you allow anyone from Erya or Astar near our kingdom to speak of peace, or train your daughter for the war that is inevitable," before continuing, the knife she had been cutting her meal into small bites with found it's way into the table with so much force Camden was sure it would leave a severe gash when the staff were to remove it. "You speak of change, but you will not allow the type of change which is needed touch your Kingdom. Let alone your own home."