The Legend of the True King of Maraudia

The Ladies of Avalon

The following morning, Lily awoke to an empty bed. Of course, she had. After the previous night's activities, Lily had rushed James out of her chambers and into the night. Allowing herself to fall asleep in his arms was not something she could do. Although the prince's arms were warm and comforting, letting him stay the night would be crossing a line. Their arrangement was about sex, and sex only. Falling asleep cuddled up next to him would only tempt her to feel something she knew she couldn't. So, even though she hated the cold that washed over her when he left, she just snuggled deep into the blankets on her bed trying to substitute his warmth.

Not long after she woke, her maid, Mary, scurried in the room to help her get ready for the day. Mary pulled the princess out of bed to help her slip into her corset and day dress before braiding Lily's hair back into a single French braid. As Lily slipped on some jewelry and lightly powdered her nose with the lightest of makeup, another maid rushed into the room, carrying a small scroll of parchment.

"For you, Princess." The new maid said, bowing slightly as she handed Lily the note. After a quick thank you, the new maid quickly retreated from the room.

Mary finished up the final touches on Lily's braid as the princess read over the parchment.

Princess Lillian,

On Saturday evening, the kingdom will be hosting a ball in honor of the completion of the knight's tournament. Planning events such as this one are one of my favorite past times. Since you are staying with us, I would like to extend an invitation to the ladies of Avalon to help me in planning the affair. If you chose to do so, please meet me in the throne room after breakfast. I would love to hear your ideas.

Queen Euphemia

While Lily was never too keen on planning royal events, she knew an invite from the Queen wasn't one she could easily ignore. This trip was about bringing the kingdoms of Maraudia and Avalon together. Turning down the Queen's request wasn't one she could do without a good excuse. Unfortunately for her, she didn't have one.

It wasn't long before Tawny came knocking on Lily's chamber door to come to escort her to breakfast. "Did you receive a note from Queen Euphemia this morning?" Tawny asked as they sat down at one end of the table. The great hall had been returned to its original status with its one large rectangular table, surrounded by many chairs. The moment they sat down, servants were immediately setting plates in front of them, filled with every breakfast food they could imagine. Lily thought that Maraudia was truly doing everything in their power to make this treaty happen.

"Yes, I did. Are you going?"

"When the Queen of Maraudia personally asks you to attend a meeting with her, you can't decline. Are you?"

"In the spirit of friendship, yes I'm going. Queen Euphemia is lovely, and I'm sure we'll spend more time conversing over lunch than we will be party planning."

"Do you think Petunia will be making an appearance?"

"There are very few things my sister loves. Impressing people and party planning are two of them. Most likely she'll be talking Queen Euphemia's ear off the whole time. We'll barely have to do a thing." Tawny responded, picking up her water goblet. Lily could tell her lady's hand had a slight tremor. Noticing it too, Tawny immediately grasped her cup with both hands to steady it. "Have you still not heard from Xenophilius yet?"

Tawny shook her head no and returned her focus to pushing her food around with her fork. "It's been days, Lily. It's killing me not knowing."

"I know, Tawn. Hopefully, he'll write soon."