My Shadow

Chapter Twenty-Four

Chapter Twenty-Four

Lizzy was allowed to sleep in on Christmas morning. She had not returned to the palace till quite late in the evening. Just before midday, Anne arrived at the door with some food and made Lizzy eat. While Lizzy was eating, Anne went to run a bath for Lizzy.

She washed her hair and herself and found Anne waiting for her. Anne slipped Lizzy’s bedclothes over Lizzy’s head while she dried her hair. When Lizzy’s hair was dried, Anne tied a piece of cloth over Lizzy’s eyes before changing Lizzy into some other piece of clothing. Lizzy had no idea what she was wearing now.

Anne smiled to herself as she slipped the dress over Lizzy’s head. The dress was a golden colour with sleeves that came to the elbow and trails of what seemed to be lace trailing to the floor. The golden material reached the ground and was covered with intricate and delicate patterns. The effect of it was breathtaking, like finding an amazing place without knowing it was there.

Anne slipped the shoes on Lizzy’s feet and started on styling Lizzy’s hair. She curled it and put it up using pins. Lizzy looked truly beautiful and Anne smiled. Hopefully, Lizzy would love today as everyone else would love it.

Lizzy was blind and could not tell what was going on. She didn’t dare ask either, just in case. Maybe it was some surprise Christmas party that she was being dressed up for. She let Anne lead her out of the room to wherever she was going. She knew she was outdoors when she felt the cold hair on her arms and neck.

What was she doing out here. The blindfold was removed from her eyes and she could see clearly where she was. She was in a corner of the gardens. There were rows of chairs in which many people were sat. She saw Eddy and Louis stood at the front with another man that Lizzy didn’t know. People turned to look at her and either gasped or smiled.

Suddenly the realisation hit her. This was her wedding! This was the day she was to be married to Edward! So the dress she was wearing must be her wedding dress. Anne still had her arm through Lizzy’s and someone else joined them on Lizzy’s other side and did the same.

“Surprise!” it was Matilda. “And Merry Christmas.”

They walked down the aisle until the end where Matilda and Anne left Lizzy to walk the last few steps to Eddy. Eddy smiled at her, his eyes gleaming when she stood opposite. The man, who must be the vicar, spoke and at the end Eddy pushed a ring onto Lizzy’s hand which glimmered with many precious gems. As soon as that happened, a snowflake fell down and landed on the ground.

Eddy lifted Lizzy’s veil and kissed her and more snowflakes began to fall. It was snowing! They began to walk to where a golden carriage was waiting for them. Eddy kissed Lizzy again and said “You are beautiful.”

The carriage set off once they were inside. A shoe was thrown at the back of the carriage and Lizzy turned to see who had thrown it but there were too many people watching them go.

~*~

It was evening when they returned to the palace. The great hall was decorated and everyone was stood about, talking eagerly. They stopped when they saw Lizzy and Eddy in the doorway. Then cheers erupted from all around the room and people swarmed over to congratulate them.

The food was served on many plates and people swept around the room, picking out the foods they liked and what they didn’t. As they ate, people got into groups to talk. Matilda, Anne, Lizzy and a few other girls stood talking.

“How does it feel to be married?” a girl asked.

“I cannot believe I am.” Lizzy replied. “But it feels just the same as before, unless it changes after a while.”

“My parents want me to be married to this horrid man who owns a lot of land. They want us wed before next summer.” Another girl said.

“I can tell you that if you love the person you are married to that life is very good and sweet I cannot say the same if it is to someone you dislike.” Matilda said. “My life with Francis is nice and lovely.”

“What have you called your child, Anne?” Matilda asked.

“Thomas and I have decided to name him William. The name came to us when Lizzy described an old man that took care of her family when they died. We hope he will be as kind as that man.”

“I am sure he will.” Lizzy said.

“I heard you could fight and hunt.” The first girl said to Lizzy.

“It is true, I can.”

“A lady should not be able to do such things.” The second girl said.

“Well, maybe I am an exception. I did not grow up being a lady but merely a village girl. I had to learn to do things in order to survive.” Lizzy replied.

“You are a lady now, a princess to be exact, there should be no more of that foolishness.” The second girl said.

“And that authority allows her to do as she likes and ignore some words from a girl.” Matilda said. The second girl gasped and stormed off.

“Do not worry about her, she criticizes anyone she is jealous of.” The first girl said.

“I sort of realised that.” Lizzy said. “Some people were born spiteful.”

“My cousin being one of them.”

“Who is your cousin?”

“That girl who just left. She is a distant cousin. I do not even know her name, we are that distant.”

“I feel sorry for you.” Matilda said.

“Sometimes she is nice, when she is not surrounded by people she envies. I have heard this from family gatherings. They always talk about her.”

“Maybe one day we may meet her nice side.” Matilda said.

“Maybe.” the girl agreed.

“If you could all assemble at the edges of the room as the happy couple will make their first dance.” Someone announced. Matilda pushed Lizzy forwards and Eddy was pushed into middle. They met each other and began to dance to the music that had begun.

The room swirled as they spun around, both of them were smiling. They did not care about the people watching or about what would happen if they tripped. Their gazes were locked and it held throughout the dance. They were close enough to each other that they could hear each other breathing. Neither cared what happened, they were in their own bubble of happiness. They hardly noticed as other people began to join in as the song changed to another, slower song. The couple slowed down to match the pace of the song.

~*~

It was very late at night when the dancing finally stopped. Some of the guests had left to return home as they needed to be there for the following day. Most were staying in empty rooms that had not been used in years.

Eddy was still dancing with Lizzy. This was how he had imagined dancing with her. Obviously not at a wedding of his own but this was better. It was real for a start, and he was now the proud husband of Lizzy.

By the time the happy couple had stopped dancing, at least half the room had emptied. The rest were half asleep with the amount of wine they had drunk. No one would really notice if anyone left the room at all. Eddy leant closer to Lizzy.

“Come with me.” he whispered in her ear. With that, he lifted her up bridal style and they crept out of the room to their own new one in another part of the palace.