TRIGGERFINGER (ORIGINAL STORY) - SEASON ONE

S01E04 Clash In The Kingdom! A Girl Named Meadow! (Part One)

She knelt down in front of her Queen, a nail polish brush in between her fingers as she gently maneuvered it across the Queen's toenails, taking extra care as to not let it smudge. It was a dark red, matching the Queen's gown and throne. She looked up, the Queen resting her eyes and enjoying being pampered the way she always was. The life of a handmaiden, not the life Meadow had envisioned for herself but the life she was forced to lead. The castle walls around her a Kingdom for the Queen but a prison for her.

"Now the pinky toe," Queen Honey ordered, as she wiggled her toes.

The Queen was an old, rather large woman who had ruled the Kingdom for many years, for as long as Meadow had been there anyway. She was cruel, not just to Meadow but to everybody else around her. There were times Meadow had even seen her imprison people just for looking at her the wrong way. If she wasn't looked at in anything other than admiration, it was considered a crime to be paid for. Luckily, she had her eyes closed, so she couldn't see the frown on Meadow's face as she stared at her. Her long blonde hair flowed from her crown as the sun peaked in through the window. Meadow wished she could have hair like Queen Honey's but instead, she had been born with a bright orange that clashed with her gray handmaiden's rags.

The large doors at the front of the throne room opened, and in strode Queen Honey's royal advisor, Mr Grant. He had his hands behind his back, a straight posture, and as the Queen opened her eyes, he bowed, his head almost meeting his knees. He cleared his throat as he came back up and smiled.

"Your majesty," he said. "Your ceremony is ready for you."

"Ah yes," she replied. "Very good."

She gave Meadow a light kick with her foot after finishing the final stroke with the nail brush. Meadow stood up and bowed, taking a step to the right of the throne. In came six royal guards in suits of armor, carrying a large plank of wood on their shoulders, another throne sitting atop it. The Queen got up, and Meadow took hold of her gown so that it wouldn't touch the floor. They went down a few steps and as the guards lowered the plank of wood, they walked onto it. Queen Honey sat back down on her new throne and Meadow stood beside her.

"Remember girl," Queen Honey said to Meadow. "Your role is to stand there and look ugly in your rags so that I look lavish in my gown. Be careful with what facials you pull. Do not smile, do not clap, do not show any emotion whatsoever. Be as dull as you are."

Meadow nodded. "Yes, your majesty."

"And do not speak. You are by no means allowed to speak."

Meadow nodded again, this time not uttering a single word. The guards lifted them up back onto their shoulders, and walked them towards the door. The knee of one of the guards buckled, and he nearly fell underneath Queen Honey's weight but he quickly caught himself. Lucky, Meadow thought to herself, as there surely would have been punishment should the Queen have noticed.

***

"That currency isn't accepted here," the owner of the lodge told Kore. "You need Dome Sanctuary coin."

"Here," Marianne replied. "I'll cover it."

Marianne paid the owner of the lodge, and in return he gave them keys to their rooms. Ash and Shade were to share a room, as were Kore and Scabs whereas Marianne got a room to herself. But before they could even explore them, and test out the beds, they were interrupted by the sound of trumpets outside. The owner quickly left the lodge, and told them to hurry up before they got in trouble. They all followed and joined him outside where there was a huge flock of people congregating, dancing, singing.

"Some kind of parade?" Kore asked the others.

"Heck yeah!" Scabs said, as he started dancing alongside the others.