Meet LUCASTA. They are SIXTY-EIGHT years old and hail from LONDON, ENGLAND. Lucasta embodies the star, BELEL. They use she/her pronouns. Their faceclaim is LUCY BOYNTON.
Belel reminds me of a wedding ring flaunted in public, yet laid upon the dressing table in private. Whispered words of ‘but be the serpent under’t. Entitlement coursing through the ( blue ) bloodline. Betrayals, like axe-swings, digging into the bark of the family tree. Magazine-piles, and gossip-site Chrome windows. The Thrombey Family Theme (2019) by Nathan Johnson. False apologies & another person between the bedsheets, back pressed to a locked bedroom door and smiling. A rose-tinted past and inherited memories of heyday. .
BIOGRAPHY
Royalty may be a dying concept — their titles an indication of symbolism and standing as opposed to any true power, but in Europe it does continue to exist; and nowhere more intensely than in the United Kingdom. You still, of course, have your republicans and your royalists, your two sides both of whom believe completely that they are right. But the royals are indelibly a symbol of the British and their culture abroad, and such is not changed between the magic and mortal societies.
Magic has run in the British royal line for time immemorial, and yet ( to those without their own magic coursing in their veins ) it is a secret kept locked away within the walls of the palace. It is habitual for the family’s members to cover up their marks, and even — as in families of noble birth there is little concept of trust; brother has killed brother for less, and Richard III locked his nephews in the Tower of London — to hide them from each other.
The daughter of the family ( born in the same year her mother succeeded to the British throne ) was born first and yet, upon the birth of the Queens’ — yes, ‘queens’ was very much deliberate, as we love lesbian icons — first son, the first-born became the second in line.
The rules regarding the royal marriage may have been cast aside, yes, but those of succession had not been so treated; and being twelve years her brother’s elder, she was old enough to understand what had been taken from her. Old enough to confide it in her aunt, who knew the tale of the second perfectly.
How there would be an urge to find a marriage to some other noble family, this blue-blooded habit of entangling themselves with others so that they might expand their circle of influence: that’s how we ended up with the Habsburgs, many a royal advisor had pointed out reasonably ( and had been, for their troubles, ignored. )
Her aunt hadn’t necessarily had a leg to stand on when it came to her argument that she would be a better queen than her older sister, because — simply — her sister was older.
But Lucasta was older than her brother, and her aunt was adamant that she stand her ground about her right to the throne if she felt so strongly about it; her aunt became her confidante and mentor, guiding her on the path to take the throne from her brother, and she was the first that Lucasta showed her mark to: the mark of Belel.
And her aunt ( the Princess Royal ) was no fool; she knew that such a person could move worlds, if only they properly knew how. Any magical politician worth their salt sought to find the Belel-gifted and their way with words, and yet in some cruel irony ( for the politicians anyway ) it proved to be a royal. One of those to whom the world of parliaments is irretrievably closed.
However, some years later, her second prediction came to pass: marriage did come inevitably along.
Marriage to a Turkish family’s ‘final rose’ — no really, that was her name — and it was the beginning of a dynamic that should’ve been exclusive, but never was. However, the marriage was popular with the people, and Lucasta’s wife proved important for her image, so she continued to ’abide with it’ as she worked upon her true mission.
'Abide with it’ here meant 'continue, while cheating.’
Sowing the seeds of doubt and mistrust in her brother, who she had always talked down to and diminished, but now talked down about and diminished to others with her aunt’s participation and encouragement. Why the boy still loved Lucasta, why her wife still loved her, she could never say, and yet it didn’t seem prudent to dismiss them. It still doesn’t.
When finally her parents conceded and letters patent were issued to adjust, the long game played by snide words and half-smiles, Lucasta became the Princess of Wales again: the heir. The heir, who they came to love; how could they not, a future Queen so well-spoken and whose words were so… meaningful?
And so she decided to attend Polaris, since a long-term charm offensive was over. However, it meant revealing her mark, and that means her brother — who decided to attend with her — now has some knowledge of how events may just have come to pass.
INCLINATION
Belel sponsors witches who are gifted in the particular magic of worth. That is, they can determine an item’s worth, and cast spells to make them worth more or less. Most Belels throughout history have been able to use this to their advantage, especially in terms of creating wealth, but the current Belel is also able to utilize their magic when it comes to words and self-worth. They can manipulate words to make them be valued more, depending on who the speaker is, or they can work on someone’s own self-worth. Sought after by magical politicians, Belel is truly someone whose magic can change the course of history.
CONNECTIONS
Filling the role of Docherty Hawthorne’s Misery Loves Company.
Taking Back the Crown: The brother Lucasta usurped to take his position as heir apparent to the British throne. Given that she covered up her mark — so no one could guess what she was doing — up until they came to Polaris, he had no idea what influence magic had upon what she’d done; but it’s always been a pretty negative relationship fuelled by Lucasta’s disdain. Talking down to him with words that just had an inexplicable weight, convincing their parents ( and him ) he just wasn’t fit for the throne… there’s so many reasons he ought to cut her off and out, but for some reason he can’t stop idolising her.
It’s Burning Down the Bloodline: Lucasta’s aunt — the Princess Royal — and her confidante. Partner in crime and right hand if you will; the aunt is the younger sister to Lucasta’s mother, the Queen, and she has lived her life in resentment. So when her niece confided the same feelings to her, she resolved to make sure that Lucasta did what she didn’t: acted upon it.
I Want It All: This muse is the person Lucasta is cheating on her wife with. It’s been going on for a while — perhaps their relationship even dates to pre-the arranged marriage — but now the pressure’s on: this muse wants to marry the next Queen of England, but Lucasta is reluctant to make the move to get divorced, or to admit that even this muse isn’t the only one in her life outside of her marriage.
Penned by Shannon ★