Dragoneria (IN REVISION)

Chapter 1: The Gift [REVISED]

WELCOME ABOARD, ye might adventurers! I hope ye all will read this chapter and enjoy it thoroughly. If yer liked it enough, perhaps ye will stick around for quite some time, as I, yer captain of this ship, will (hopefully) in time will be able to release all three books I have planned for this trilogy.

Ok, sorry for the pirate accent there, and yes, I am planning to eventually turn this into a trilogy. But without further ado, I bid thee to commence in your read of this finely crafted chapter.

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"Lady Aqua!" called a feminine voice from outside the queen's war tent. "Somebody has presented you with a most exquisite perfume."

"Who could it be now?" the woman inside, Lady Aqua, inquired.

"I haven't the faintest idea. I found them waiting just outside your tent with this bottle and a short note."

Aqua's lady-in-waiting Olivia pushed her way through the thick, textured wine red panels trimmed in gold rope that sealed off Aqua's spacious living quarters. The young queen was sitting cross-legged on her bed, which was situated at the center of the tent. She was in the midst of preparing for the evening, carefully knotting her long, deep golden brown locks into a fancy, braided crown.

Olivia unfolded a small square of parchment and read from it, "'To my dear Aqua, the fairest maiden in all the land.'"

"Well, that answers no questions," the queen humphed. "Let me have it."

"Yes, my Lady." Olivia produced a small, bulbous perfume bottle with yellow tinted glass and a black spray bulb. She set it on the small mahogany table beside the bed, then crossed the space and came to a halt before an elegant blackthorn wardrobe, which stood beside an ovular floor-length mirror carved with floral design. Olivia opened the well-oiled closet doors and pushed aside the clothes on the racks to find Aqua's formal attire, which hung neatly to one side.

Aqua sighed, lifting the bottle and turning it over in her hands. It seemed to be just another token from her numerous and tiresome suitors. "Are you sure it's safe?" she asked, her forest green eyes coloring with mild cynicism. "Could it be poisonous, do you think? I wouldn't put it past those men to—"

"Aqua, it's just a gift, for goodness sake!" Aqua caught Olivia's eyes in the mirror as they rolled in their sockets. "Would you wish to try it?" the servant woman asked.

"Perhaps, but wouldn't the fellow who delivered it have given you his name? I don't even know this man," Aqua replied, disdainful of the gift.

"She said that it was crafted by the finest alchemist in the land, Aqua," Olivia replied firmly, pulling out a shimmering dress that appeared to have been woven out of silky grass. "What is wrong with you today, Aqua?"

"She?" Aqua replied, rising from the bed. Something in the back of her mind began churning, but she couldn't quite place where her sudden apprehension had come from. "Who is this woman? She must have told you her name! Are you sure you were paying attention?"

Olivia draped the dress over her arm and huffed in mild exasperation. "Aqua, if I may be so bold, I think you're being paranoid, childish even. Just because you don't want to marry doesn't mean you have to be a killjoy and drive everybody away!"

The two women nigh on glared at each other for a solid minute, then finally Aqua's shoulders drooped. "I'm sorry," she apologized. "I don't know what came over me. I just feel as though something is off."

Olivia sighed, a long cooling-off breath. "I'm sorry as well. I shouldn't have snapped at you, milady. Perhaps if you just tried a bit, you could—Aqua?" The queen's servant frowned suddenly. "Aqua, snap out of it!"

But Aqua couldn't hear the alarmed words of her closest friend. An enchanting whisper swirled through the air, bringing with it the smooth, honeyed words of a fair lady. Her suggestive voice echoed into Aqua's ear: "The aroma is rather lovely. I'm quite sure you will appreciate the fragrance of..." Her voice faded with the passing breeze, leaving behind a lingering sense of ease.

It was enough to make Aqua curious. She flipped open the top and breathed in the perfume's hearty aroma of pine trees and flowers, inhaling the memories of the forests where she had grown up. Aqua again felt a sharp twinge of suspicion, but this time it felt more distant, not so urgent as before.

Just a little can't hurt, now can it?

"I think I shall try it after all," she said, her voice strangely calm.

"Um, milady? Maybe you shouldn't do that..." Olivia began, but her warning went unheaded. Not noticing the strange look that had formed on the other woman's face, Aqua raised the bottle to her left wrist and squeezed the bulb, spritzing a little onto the inside of her forearm. The woman was right: the scent was indeed very pleasant and refreshing. She sprayed more on her neck, then misted it into the air, dancing through it and giggling like she did when she was a young child. Her earlier misgivings were all but forgotten as her blue satin evening gown floated about her. It smelled so wonderful.

"I must find this lady and thank her," Aqua said, half to herself. "It is unfortunate I do not know her name, or I would acquire a bottle for you as well, Olivia." Aqua sighed wistfully, noticing dully through the haze of her euphoria that Olivia had backed up to avoid the cloud of perfume.

"I don't know how you stand that," she muttered, mildly confused and suspicious by the queen's change in attitude. "Too piney for me." Aqua brushed aside her comment, feeling lighthearted and foolish.

"Well, I must be going.  Will you join us at the banquet, Olivia?"

"Of course!" Olivia replied, setting aside her unease for now. "But milady, you haven't changed into your formal attire yet," she said, holding out the green dress.

"Ah yes, thank you." Aqua took the gown from her and quickly changed into it.

"Now you're ready," Olivia smirked, adding a few fresh roses to complete the look. "Please, allow me to escort you there." She offered her arm in lighthearted jest.

"Of course," Aqua replied with a smile, taking a moment to regain her composure and clear her mind of the perfume's heady scent. She was glad for Olivia's company. Tonight's Gathering with her Council would not be wholly pleasant. Problems had arose with the Southern tribes, and they had to discuss military tactics and ways to deal with the invading forces. She had to be the leader they expected. She had to show her father she was worth of the title, Queen of Aspenfall. Doing so would be much easier with her trusted friend by her side.

Olivia gathered up her things and tucked them neatly away into a colorful, earth-toned patchwork cloth bag. She slung it across her shoulder and pausing to straighten Aqua's hair clip.

"Alright, mother," Aqua quipped, laughing at Olivia. Her friend smiled back at her, a teasing glint in Olivia's deep blue eyes.

"Okay, let's get a move on," her servant chided. "You'd best not to be late!"

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Yup, you guessed it. I threw in a bit of old English accent at the end of the first author's note. Eh, what can I say? We've been reading Romeo and Juliet in class and I also like to act. Acting is my life after Frozen (no I'm not a little kid) and song references. So I encourage you guys to share your comments down below, and feel free to leave any tips or advice as well. Thanks for reading, and I hope you'll stay with me!

UPDATE: The first chapter is now rewritten! (Although I may end up combining it with Chapter 2 to add some length. Lmk what you guys think!) I really hope you'll stay with me and have patience as I work on rewriting this book, and then continuing it.

~Misty out ❄