@rosebloomed : i for one am sorry that you're forced to live with this. “
with this, the humiliation of such a decision made with her entirely unaware, told with the other lords gathered in small council as if the lady alicent hightower had not been a member of her household, one of her own ladies in waiting ( her best friend ) and she, who had been crowned and acknowledged officially as his heir apparent and named successor, had known naught of it. her father had told her that the purpose of his remarriage would be to shore up their defenses, to ensure that they would be better defended, and yet in this... it is a sign, to some, that his mind had already been made, that should his new wife deliver him a healthy boy, he would restore him to his rights, and strip her of the titles that the princess had only been given to start with, to spurn the uncle who had insulted her lost little brother... for without daemon, there had been no other real choice. though there were those who did not agree with the match, those who whispered that ser otto hightower had overstepped, grasping — overreaching, reaching for power and prominence, reaching to sit a boy of his own blood upon the iron throne, and using his maiden daughter to achieve it. he had only sent her to sit with him, alicent had claimed, to talk, and read, and that she had not known of her father's intentions.
and perhaps she had not. perhaps she had not wanted to. that she had not wanted to see... could not bring herself to realize where it was to end was a thing that she could not fault her for. that she could not bring herself to acknowledge that there was no recourse to be had in this, nothing and no one with the ability to circumvent both the will of her lord father, and the king. even if the marriage could not have been prevented, she only wished that she might have been informed, prior, so that she might brace herself for the public revelation. so that alicent could be presented with the truth, too, in a way that it could not be ignored any longer, so that she too might be armed with the knowledge to face it as best as she well could have done. though there was little one could do to truly prepare for the reality of marriage, even knowing a betrothal was in the offing ... was better then being met with the announcement as the two of them had been. moons had turned, and weeks had come and gone, the time since lending itself to preparation, the gathering of food and drink necessary to feast the wedding guests, and the waiting for their arrival; lords, ladies and landed knights all, traveling to participate, or simply watch the promised weeks long tourn held in honor of his grace's remarriage, and the crowning of a new queen consort.
sunlight shone brightly, as thick and heavy as a curtain falling before the pair, and streaming steadily through the apertures that ran parallel — lengthwise, down the expanse of narrow corridor; separated only by the tall, pale red pillars that cast long columns of shadow across the tan stone floor. if one merely turned their head east, when the sky was overcast, one could see the movement from the hall that stood in eternity by its side ( now, however - only faint impressions of figures could be seen as they moved about, and so too could they see them, she thinks, she hopes. such kind, seemingly innocuous words could prove dangerous if she answered, and that answer lended too much in any singular direction that implied more then a contained range of feeling of the circumstances ) connected to each other by the antechamber at it's crown that led to another corridor, that at last, led to a hall of doors that led to the bed chambers intended for at least a week's long remaining guests, and those with the expressed intention of residing with a permanency among them. the princess' head turns, her chin lifting the slightest bit, lips curling upward at their corners into the beginnings of a warm,seemingly easy smile. her shoulders back, and her spine straight, the meticulously constructed image of assuredness is betrayed only by the consistent idle movement of fingers, the pad of the thumb of her right hand brushing the garnet face of the thin silver banded ring on her left pointer finger, hidden in part by the waterfall of maroon velvet that half conceals where her hands curl lightly around one another.
" it is the way of it, is it not ? " her voice is kept carefully low, lofty words bearing a certain degree of softness as she continues, " his grace, the king has observed the proper six moons in grieving his late lady wife, and now that his mourning period is thought done... his duties necessitate the taking of another queen, and subsequently, the siring of more heirs, " for her father had an obligation to the crown and realm at large to fortify his succession, to ensure stability, no matter how deeply the thought of her mother being replaced pained her ( with alicent, of all people... alicent, would be the avenue of which she would be discarded, set aside for good and all. for the future queen consort's success depended upon it... or else it would be she who was deemed a failure for her inability to give the king a healthy child, and made to endure tragedy, after tragedy.... her mother's existence of seemingly endless loss and pain, set upon the shoulders of her sweet, dutiful, quiet friend. she would sooner be replaced then see it come to be ) and no matter how much the notion of her mother's line being discarded pained her... it was the likely end of it if her former lady could carry a healthy son. her father was never one adept in dealing with the consistent tension that the choosing of her over a prospective brother would bring about, and she would never ask it of him. often her father tread the path of which the majority of his councillors spoke in favor, and there were nowhere near enough of them speaking for her for the princess to dare believe.
" i am young, and hale. but i am one person, and i have no children of mine own. with my uncle's disinheritance, i am my lord father's sole successor, " should anyone seek to destabilize the crown, they needed only worry themselves with killing her, " 'tis a long known obligation for any who might hold land or title, and one that is far older then my father. his choice of bride was a surprise, i will confess — but these things oft are, " the groom usually was the one who made the choice, or the bride's father, and the discussions were held between the two of them, rarely involved in them were a prospective daughter, or the bride herself, until the arrangement was solidified. iron slithers its way between her organs, tightening around her insides, the truth, though it may well be, that did not make it any easier to bear repeating. the princess' smile grows, then, into something well and truly genuine as amethyst and cornflower eyes soften, " i am alright, in truth. it does not pain me. though i would not have you think that i am at all unappreciative of your concern, good lady. i see it, and i am endlessly so. it is very kind of you, and it does you a great deal of credit. " even with the influx of questions that wondered, that prodded, waiting impatiently for answer of when the king would at last set her aside in abidance with tradition, and precedence — even as they increased by the day, by the hour ( which was as inevitable and overwhelming as the rise and fall of the tides, the tug and pull of the current as it rushed free, and then crashed into each other - she could not stop it, nor slow it down ) it felt wrong, in its way, for the questions to hurt. all they had expected was everything they had been taught to expect, and she alone stood in defiance as the water rushed forth around her. not a stone but a reed, dragged this way and that, rooted to the sea floor, unable to escape the tumult.
