𝐌𝐫𝐬. 𝐌𝐚𝐣𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐲 | Choni

One

The view of his kingdom and his people from the balcony, left the King feeling uneasy.

This unease was only slightly soothed by the warm, slender arms that wrapped their way around him. This unease was so familiar to him throughout his reign that he could barely decipher where he ended and it began.

His father’s ruling before him was carried out with such cruel intent and malice that he didn’t know how to follow it. That was almost three years ago now. He could admit he was a coward and afraid of what change might mean to the respect he has earned from his people.

Everything he does, he does for his wife and children. He and his wife stood looking out as their people went about their tasks. Some of these tasks included the keeping and ordering of the Southside Serpents.

When he was a boy he’d accompanied his father to the Southside. He thought it was going to be a day of celebration and a chance to create a working relationship with the Serpents. The day ended in bloodshed and loss.

His father then decided to try and prevent the inhabitants of the Southside from endangering the Northside population. That decision involved taking the living Serpents back to Riverdale and putting them to work. They were stripped of their freedom and their dignity.

Prince Clifford could never make sense of this decision. From his short time spent in the Southside, the Serpents had been welcoming. There had been no hostility towards the Northsiders.

King Clifford lived with the doubt this memory created every day.

His Queen knew how much it weighed on him. She had hoped there would be a change to the enslavement of the Serpents when he took his place as King, but the voice of the people proved too challenging.

From an outsider's view, the Serpents kept at the castle were housed in the same conditions as they had when they were first brought to the fort. But under the rule of King Clifford, those conditions were improved upon; warm comfortable beds, clean clothes, and all the food they could ever wish for.

The King wished he could do more for those in the rest of the kingdom, but that proved difficult when the Northsiders were so accustomed to the way they’d lived for many years and the cowardice the King felt.

To go against the former King’s rule was seen as an act of treason. He couldn’t risk his position and the lives of his family. He was drawn and conflicted.

________

The birth of his youngest child had been much the surprise. Not an unwelcomed one, but it meant some change to his eldest daughter’s plans.

Given the age difference between Cheryl and Andrew, for much of Cheryl’s life, it was expected and planned that she was to ascend the throne after her father. Andrew, a son’s birth, meant he now stood second-in-line to the throne before his eldest sister.

Cheryl’s future as Queen of Riverdale had vanished overnight. Clifford and Penelope couldn’t help but feel guilty and responsible for this change of events. They never dreamed of having a son, especially after having two daughters over thirteen years before. Andrew, of course, at six months old knew nothing about the upheaval his birth had caused.

Never having had any expectations thrust upon her, the King’s middle child was very content with how her life was. She liked to fill her days with any activity that took her fancy, as long as it fits within the etiquette of being a Princess, of course. Clifford took great pride in his youngest daughter’s attitude to life. He could see a bright and happy future for her.

The King and Queen only ever had their daughter’s happiness in mind, but of course, you can’t always know what it is that will bring someone else happiness.

With the pair moving blindly in an attempt to secure Cheryl’s ultimate happiness and security, it was inevitable that they would fail. They should have done what Cheryl wished from the beginning; to be left alone to make her own choices. She finds that she has to force their hand to finally get the future that she wants.

This is where our story begins.