I am a lioness. I will not cringe for them.

Hypatia Vitello // 40 // Queen // Mother // Wife // Lion "Some women are lost in the fire; some women are built from it”

[alyciacromwell-blog1]

Alycia held her head even higher with pride as she walked through the halls of the Keep. The servants stared downcast as she passed, which only brightened the smile on her face. Oh, she heard the whispers — betrothed to one brother, the King dies, and suddenly she’s betrothed to the other? The Keep loved a good story, and she was its star this time. During this time, she’d begun making changes to the Keep. Little things at first, but it soon became clear among the servants who was in charge. She wore the title of future queen proudly, almost forgetting there was a queen already — until Hypatia herself walked through the door. Alycia glanced up, smile twitching uncertainly on her face. “Why, Hypatia darling, you came! I didn’t think you would.”

[hypatiavitello]

Hypatia had not noticed her, until she had almost collided with the Cromwell girl. The Queen stopped and glanced her over. She did not smile and her eyes were green eyes. She did, however, notice the lack of proper address. "Queen." came the only reply. "Queen Hypatia will do.". Hypatia linked her hands and stared down at the little doe-eyed blonde. "My son's crowning and you think i would not come?" The Queen dared a snort "For one who will soon be joining my family, you do not know me every well Child." 

[hypatiavitello]

The Queen had been confined again. As custom, she had been given the better part of a month to mourn her husband before her son was crowned. In that time she had been cut off, no one had come or gone from her room save the cook that brought her meals 3 times a day. Hypatia had tried praying at the start. She had knelt by her alter and closed her eyes but the more she spoke to the gods, the angrier she became. Finally, she had to stop or else she would have done something regrettable. She had then simply sat at her desk, re-reading old letters and writing new ones she never intended to send. Finally, she was able to leave her rooms. The Queen wore black, still, so long after Zion's death. She had slashed her skirts too, an outward sign of her grief. Hypatia then called for her ladies who flanked her as she strolled through the castle, much to the surprise of those inside. Stoney faced she walked, intent upon finding a familiar face. She did not doubt that in her absence, much had changed. 

[truthdaughteroftime]

[holdenvitello-blog1]

He never knew Hypatia to care so much. Was what he had done so terrible? Did he save a kingdom or did he merely rip his family apart? “It was stupid for him to go. I wish…’ He stopped himself, looking away. “He never did have much sense.”

[hypatiavitello]

Hypatia had to agree. She nodded gently "You're right, but you know as well as i when his mind was made up, you nor I could have changed it." Hypatia glanced out of the corner of her eye at her brother "Perhaps it was fate..." she said, her smirk was as dead as her stare "...fate that i would be widowed at 40, and my children fatherless so soon." She wanted to weep then.

[alyciacromwell-blog1]

"You’re to be my mother," Alycia continued softly, not entirely sure if the woman was hearing her nor if she cared. "I don’t want to lose you too."

[hypatiavitello]

Hypatia managed a sideways glance and a bitter smile "Your Mother...yes." she replied. The Queen took a deep breath, but did not look away from the candles "I'm going no where." came the gentle, but steadfast reply. 

[kingantonyvitello]

Antony only lifted his head to watch the flames flicker. He stayed silent, reaching for his mother’s hand and carefully taking it in his own before he finally sighed, just slightly. “I like to think that one day he would have been proud of me” He said quietly. “I know it is unlikely, but perhaps I will be the King he once dreamed I would be”

[hypatiavitello]

Hypatia felt her sons hand slide into hers, his fingers curled around hers and she was instantly reminded of when he would do that as a boy. When he would hold her hand and not let go. He is not a boy now....he is your king. Hypatia closed her eyes, the thought made her ill. She had worked to give her son the throne, contended with each of her husbands vile bastards...but she never wanted it to come to this. She did not want to goodbye to her husband. She was not ready. "He was proud of you" she managed to croak out. "So fiercely proud...the day you were born he held you so tightly, he promised the world to you Antony..." she told him, tears pricking at her eyes. Finally, they fell and the Queen had to choke back a sob "He loved you so much..." she told him, her voice quivering and her tears shinning in the candle light.

[holdenvitello-blog1]

Holden lit the candle slowly, as if he was in a dream. Despite his part to play in Zion’s death, he found himself mourning him more than he thought. The tiny flickering flame seemed to echo his own uncertainty, and he watched it dully. “I always thought he would be too stubborn to die.” 

[hypatiavitello]

Hypatia watched each litle light, engrossed in the way the flickered and danced. For if she did not turn her attentions to something else, she would have starting wailing again. The Queen snorted a dry, bitter laugh "As did i" she replied, trying to feel some sort of warmth through the numbness. "I thought he would die an old man...i thought he would have lived...with me." The Queen swallowed thickly, her voice breaking somewhat "Taken by a boar. Zion would laugh at the absurdity....if he were here."

[alyciacromwell-blog1]

Alycia approached the woman slowly, as if she was a wounded animal, and rested her hand on the Queen’s shoulder. “When I was a girl, I lost my elder brother. Now, I can hardly recall the sound of his laughter…but I’ve never forgotten the happiness that radiated in my heart at the sound of it. I’m sorry for your loss — but when someone is so ingrained into who you are like your husband is in you, you never fully lose them.” 

[hypatiavitello]

The Queen tensed up, she had not been expecting the girl to touch her, and the sudden contact made the Queen want to tear herself away. Yet she held fast, standing still, like one of the statues in the courtyard. She could hear Alycia Cromwell talking, and her hand on Hypatia's shoulders told her that the girl was definitely beside her. Yet Hypatia didn't seem to be listening. SHe was staring into the fire light, her eyes drying of tears in the heat. I will not cry, she told herself, not in front of her. "Yes" came a reply, sometime after Alycia had finished talking. 

[cerseis-lannister]

"I will not cringe for them."

[virsenya-deactivated20170102]

[hypatiavitello]

"If Zion Vitello was truly dead, no one was safe … least of all her son upon his throne. When the lion falls the lesser beasts move in: the jackals and the vultures and the feral dogs. They would try to push her aside, as they always had."

[Listen]

So Cold - Nikisha Reyes || Snuff - Slipknot || The Rains of Castamere - Tina Guo || Vermillion Part 2 - Slipknot || Everything Burns - Anastacia || Never let me go - Florence and the Machine || Everybody wants to rule the world - Lorde || Gloomy Sunday - Emilie Autumn || My Body is a Cage - Peter Gabriel || My Immortal - Evanescene || Gone - Ioanna Gika || Hurt - Johnny Cash || Summertime Sadness - Lana Del Rey || Never too Late - Three days Grace || Hymn for the Missing - Red || The Ghost of You - My Chemical Romance || Broken - Seether || Roses - Poets of the Fall || Echo - Jason Walker || Love the way you lie (Part 2) - Rhianna || Cold - Evans Blue || Running up that Hill - Placebo || House on a Hill - The Pretty Reckless || Memories - Within Temptation || Ave Mary A - Pink || 

[holdenvitello-blog1]

"Do you have any candles I can light?" 

[hypatiavitello]

Hypatia swallowed thickly before nodding to the gilded candle holder beside her. A few candles remained unlit. As he passed her, Hypatia handed the smaller wick to him, before coming to to stand next to her brother. Hypatia glanced to him out of the corner of her red rimmed eyes, wondering if he was hurting at all. Holden had never been one to show much emotion, at least not in public and she knew he and her husband had never gotten along. Do you grieve she wondered Are you feeling as lost as i am.

[kingantonyvitello]

[hypatiavitello]

For a moment she could have sworn it was Zion. He was standing not far away, bathed in the light of the candles she had lit. He was watching her, but the shade of his eyes were wrong..they were too bright. This was not her Zion. Reality hit her hard, making her eyes tear up and her heart seize in her chest. The Queen took a moment to gather her throughts, before she turned away from the flames. She crossed the room and stopped beside her son, she said nothing, she did not even touch him. She simply stood.

[alyciacromwell-blog1]

"The loss of a loved one… I can’t begin to imagine the pain you’re going through."

[hypatiavitello]

Hypatia should have expected visitors, but she barely knew which end of her was up and which was down since getting the news of her husbands death. Her had stilled suddenly "No." she replied "You can't" her tone as flat as the glance she gave the girl over her shoulder.

[holdenvitello-blog1]

"Hypatia…" 

[hypatiavitello]

She heard her name, at least it sounded a lot like her name. Hypatia did not turn, she continued to light the candles until each one possessed a flickering flame "What..." came the reply, monotone and dead.

[hypatiavitello]

[gameofthronesdaily]

"What good is power if you can’t protect the ones you love?"