Banished

Chapter 4

For the first couple of miles
I was still deciding
what emotion to feel

Anger towards my father's replacement
or excitement for my new ruling power
or confusion towards the
entire situation.

First, I am angry.
I am crossing my arms as I ride on
Peter's horse, who walks in the direction
of the castle.
but once when the grey stallion
started to trot over some
debris from the storm,
I lost balance for a second,
and I gripped Peter's shoulders.

"I won't bite."

He said, noticing at how quick
I was to release him,
and after a couple more
dead trees to trot over,
I was holding on to him for the
rest of the time.

Peter told me,
most likely for the sake of
keeping up a conversation,
that we were to meet up with
our soldiers by the gate.
Peter had told them
that night, to see him
there at noon, and if he wasn't there by then,
to go looking for him.
Peter and the men had been
separated in the storm.

Other than this, we didn't talk much.
But then when I grew comfortable
around him, after the sun came up,
I asked him what life would be like
for us. As the great rulers.

He said he'd been preparing for it ever since
my father approved the marriage request.

I fumed there a moment there at how
I had no idea of this,
and how my father would do that to me.

But Peter once again noticed and said
that he was just doing the best for me.
I knew he was right, so I moved on.

He said his and my father
we're very close.
They'd grown up together.
So it was expected of my father
to accept for me.
And so the 4th nation is in great debt,
but my father simply wished for Peter to
do one small task for him.

To look after me.

I can't believe Peter when he says this.
I feel almost betrayed.
But that's nothing to what I felt when
I arrived at the castle.

The Strong Castle. The Grace Castle.
The Great Castle.
Call it what you will, that castle was
a sign of peace and safety to me ever
since I was born inside of one
of its rooms.

But in that wet, sunny day,
I had it all taken from me.

From Peter's father.
Allow me to explain this to you.

Peter's father, Perceval Godfrey was a
very decent, wealthy and happy man.
Until my father died.
Some say he was the one who ordered
the assassins, but I say that
would have been too obvious.
He was too much of a coward.
Anyway, Peter was bound
to take the throne.
My father's reign was coming to an end
soon, after all.

So why did the means of King Perceval
change so quickly?

This is my theory:
The King of the 4th nation
desired more
than a just partial control of the 9 nations, no.

He wanted full rule over them.
Through Peter, of course.
But there was still one problem for him.

Me.

Being queen, and by following
the rules of the monarchy that is
the 9 nations,

The King and Queen both have authority.
Equal authority.

And so King Perceval was worried
that I would interfere.

So Peter and I, with our hearts full of
hope and excitement
was for a reign over
absolutely nothing.
An imaginary kingdom.

It's funny how some hearts can go
corrupted so quickly.
After just one physical event.

To sum it up:
King Perceval of the Harvest
was no longer King Perceval
of the Harvest Nations.
He was ruling all 9 nations,
through my dead father's wishes.
and the only thing that he needed to do,
would be to keep me out of the picture.

Thing is, the my father was not
expecting to die so soon.
He wanted Peter as his successor,
but as King Perceval was still
in the ruling age, of 49,
his son, Peter, of 17 would
not be take the throne.

So Perceval, using my father's will
of him and his son Peter to look after me
was used it in a much different way than
what my father was hoping.

The King of the 4th nation
banished me.
Exiling me from my own kingdom.
And took over it himself.

And nobody ever questioned his power.
Peter had no choice over it.
His father now had the throne.
This may sound very twisted,
but such is the monarchy of
the 9 nations.

My father should have seen it coming.