The Assassin Queen (Book Four)

Chapter Seven-Alexandria

As I stared down at my brother's dead body, I realized something. I was to become the crowned queen of Talahan. A wave of shock and nervousness came around me. Aaron put his arm around me, but I did nothing to acknowledge his presence. I was lost, lost in my own selfish world. I should have been mourning for my only brother. Rowen, Rowen. Sometimes I felt like he was more of a father than a brother to me. He was the one that was always there for me, the one who protected me. He wiped my tears when I cried. He helped me when I was wounded.

Rowen was always there for me in the worst times. I regretted ever feeling annoyed by him, ever hating him for not letting me explore the world outside of the kingdom. Now looking down at his cold, dead body, I felt....lost. As I stared at him, a memory came back to me. It was something that I hadn't thought about in a long time.

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I was nine years old. My father wanted to take me hunting, since I had recently learned how to use the bow for the first time. It was one of the only times my father wanted to and could actually do something with me, so of course I said yes. It was a chance to see the outside world with my father by my side. We rode our horses to the woods, where we could hunt together. I didn't fully understand what hunting was, since I was a young girl at the time. As we traveled through the woods, we came upon a small pond.

The pond had crystal clear water, and the sun seemed to shine down on it. In the middle of the pond, their was a beautiful swan. She was simply laying on the water, relaxing peacefully. I wished that I could lay on the water like she could, and relax the way she did. But her peace and relaxation ended when my father shot an arrow straight through her. The swan yelled in pain and flinched before she died. Her limp body floated on the water. The clear water now had a new color, blood red.

I gasped. Tears streamed down my face. "Why?! Why did you do that?!" I yelled. "It's hunting, Alexandria, what did you think I was going to do, let a fine meal sit there?" Father asked. I gasped. A meal?! "This is cruel! We live in a cruel, horrible world!" I yelled. Then, I led my horse back to the castle. I made it run as fast as it could until I reached the castle.

I remember crying in my room for hours until my father finally came home. He told me I was a coward, and that if I couldn't kill a simple swan, I would be a horrible queen. That made me even more upset, and I cried for hours. I sat on my balcony and whimpered. Then suddenly, somebody walked over and sat next to me. My sixteen year old brother, Rowen. He was smiling at me. I wiped my eyes and looked at him.

"I'm a coward" I said as more tears spilled from my eyes. Rowen put his arm around me and smiled. "Your not a coward Alexandria, you just have a kind heart. And father is wrong. He has a heart of stone, that's why he's a horrible King. You have a heart of kindness and love, which is why when the time comes, you will be the best queen Talahan has ever known" he said.

I smiled and hugged my brother. We sat there in an embrace for the longest time, and the best part about it was that we both skipped dinner.

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As the memory came in my head, something happened to me. I...cried. Tears streamed down my face. At first, I had no expression. I stood there like stone as the tears fell from my eyes. But after a few minutes, I couldn't help but sobbing. I cried and cried until I could barely breathe. "Alexandria....." Aaron quietly said. His voice was full of pity, and their was sadness in his eyes. But it wasn't sadness for my brother, it was sadness for me. He didn't want to see me cry. I couldn't help it though.

I threw my arms around Aaron and cried on his chest. His shirt got a huge wet spot from my tears. He wrapped his arms around me comfortingly and kissed my head. I sobbed as he lead me out of the room, away from my brother's dead body. That was the last time I saw Rowen.

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The coronation came after the seven day funeral. I cried and prayed for my brother through the entire week, something I didn't do for my father. Then finally, the day of the coronation came. A beautiful black dress was designed for me. As the seamstresses and stylists helped me with the dress, I couldn't help but feeling sorrow. If Rowen had lived any longer, he would have been a great King. He didn't have enough time on the throne to be a great King of Talahan.

"Wow, you look amazing!" A voice said. I looked over to see Ryia standing in front of me. She was waring a beautiful dress too, it was long and red with a black sash around it. The maids attached the long, black cape onto my dress and began fixing my hair. "Ryia...what if I'm not good enough?" I asked. "Huh?" Ryia asked. "What if I'm not a good queen? What if all of Talahan hates me?" I asked.

Ryia laughed. "Are you kidding?! You will be the best queen that Talahan has ever known!" She said. I sighed and smiled at my sister. She smiled back and took my hands. "Don't worry sis, your going to be the greatest queen in the world!" She said. I smiled and hugged my sister. She hugged me back. Then, it was time for the coronation to start. It all seemed like a blur to me.

I dozed off for a bit, because most of the time I was simply sitting on the throne, listening to the pope make his announcements. Then, I was asked to stand. He placed the crown on my head and said, "I announce, Queen Alexandria of Talahan" I stood up straight as the king's staff was handed to me. My father wielded this staff when he was king, and my brother as well. It was a gift passed down from generation to generation in the royal family.

It had powers, many powers that the people of Talahan didn't even think existed. I didn't even know that some of the powers existed in this staff. "And now, our new queen will make a speech" the pope said he stood aside, and I looked at my people. They were all staring at me with hope in their eyes. I had a speech memorized, but I didn't want to say it anymore. I wanted to say my own speech, my own thoughts, not something someone wrote out for me.

"When I was nine years old, my brother told me something. He told me that my father was a horrible King, because he had a heart of stone. I agreed with Rowen, and I still do. My father wasn't a good King. I don't know if Rowen was a good King or a bad one, because he didn't have enough time on the throne for me, and you to decide" I said. I looked at my people. Their full attention was on me.

"But on that same day, he told me that when I grow up, I would be the greatest queen of Talahan, because I had a heart of kindness. I still have a kind heart, and I promise to you all that I will live up to my brother's words. I will be the greatest queen Talahan has ever known" I said. As I made this speech, I realized something. I realized that whoever killed my father and brother will now be aiming to kill me. I am this person's next victim.

But I'm not like Rowen, and I'm certainly not like my father. They couldn't do anything to stop their own deaths. But I refuse to be like that. I will fight for my life, no matter what it takes.