Bad Blood

Chapter 2: Doubts

"Our beloved Queen Cassandra was shot dead by an anonymous person. The Crown's opening an investigation to find the killer."

"Queen Cassandra killed for her recent statements?"

"Was the murder a statement to our Crown?"

"Queen Cassandra's final days, the most beloved Queen of all time."

--

Princess Amelia threw away the roles of news. She laid down in her bed, snuggling in her sheets. She was devastated by the news of her mother. And what hurt her the most was that she learned it through the media. No one in this castle came to her to inform her.

She always felt like the Crown didn't accept her as a princess, like she wasn't real royalty. It's not her fault her mother never talked about her dad. She didn't choose to be a bastard... Yet that's exactly how they labeled her as: a bastard. A child that doesn't have a father.

Amelia was scared. She knew now that, without her mother, life was going to get difficult. She knew people were going to test her, see if she was a good queen. How was she even supposed to follow into her mother's footsteps? Her mother never taught her anything about ruling a kingdom. She tried, but she was always adviced not to. By the Crown.

Maybe Prince Piers was going to be king now, maybe he'll take over. After all, he has 'real' royal blood. He has two children who can rule after him.

Why didn't they say anything about Lorena or Vincent? They didn't have a mother, yet they were fine. They were full-blooded royalty. Why wasn't Amelia the same then? She never understood that, how they made their decision. Maybe they simply didn't like her. Or maybe it's because her mother was the queen and people expected more from her...

Suddenly her bedroom door opened. "Amelia?"

Amelia sighed, looking at Vincent. He was her only friend now. He was all she had left. Sure, she had Lorena and uncle Piers, but they weren't the same. She felt that they didn't really like her. Unlike Vincent, he was great.

Vincent walked to Amelia's bed and sat down on it. "I'm sorry for what happened to your mother," He caressed Amelia on top of the sheets. He was trying to comfort her, but he didn't know how to. He couldn't imagine what it must be like, being in her shoes. "I'm here for you."

Amelia nodded. She looked away for a bit before looking at him. "What did they say? The Crown?"

Vincent shrugged. "Not much," He looked away, to nothing in particular. "They're debating on who's going to rule now."

Amelia looked at him. "Debating?"

He nodded. "According to our rules, you should rule now. But they doubt you're ready for it, they think you're too young."

Amelia sighed, snuggling deeper into her sheets.

"So they're thinking about giving you an advisor, someone who'll support you until you're old enough." Vincent looked at Amelia and noticed she wasn't having this. He knew she doubted herself, and he wouldn't blame her. The media and the Crown were harsh on her and, now that her mother's gone, they'll be even harsher. "I'm here for you." He repeated.

"Thank you."

He smiled a bit and then caressed Amelia again. He stayed with her for a long time, as that's what friends and family do for each other.

__________________________

"Queen Cassandra, Kingdom to the South, was shot dead by an anonymous person. The Crown's opening an investigation to find the killer."

"Was she killed for her recent statements?"

"Was the murder a statement to her family?"

"Queen Cassandra's final days, the most outspoken Southern ruler of all time."

--

King Alden put away the roles of news, he then took the time to process the news. Queen Cassandra was dead, she was gone. And for what reason? Who'd kill someone that genuinely wants the best for her people? Only a monster would do that.

When he first heard the news of her passing, he was dumbfounded. He was in shock that that could still happen today. He knew that royals were a target but he knew that security around them is supposed to prevent things from happening. Why did Queen Cassandra's security fail?

"It'll be weird to negotiate with another ruler," Queen Louisa said as she sat down next to her husband. She handed him a cup of tea. "I wonder if they'll let Amelia rule."

Alden sighed. "I doubt it," He then looked at his wife. "They don't have faith in her."

Louisa gave her husband a look. "Can you blame them?"

He sighed as he shook his head. "It's stupid, that's all."

"Mom, dad?" Felicity entered the living room. She went to sit down in front of them. "Is it true? Is it true Queen Cassandra's dead?"

Alden looked at his wife before they both looked at Felicity. "Yes," He said to which Felicity looked down. "Unfortunately."

"But how?" Felicity shook her head. "She's a queen, she should've been protected against that, shouldn't she?"

"Yes, that's what we were thinking too," Louisa said. "Something's not right over there, I hope Amelia will fix it."

Felicity looked up at them. "She must feel so lonely," She then got up. "I can't imagine losing the only parent I have."

Louisa looked at Alden, they shared a look. For long they suspected that their daughter was intrigued by Amelia. The way Felicity speaks about Amelia, the way she's interested when it comes to that family... They feared for Felicity's feelings, if there were any.

Felicity looked at them. "Will we have tightener security now?"

Louisa looked at Alden. "Maybe we should?" She wasn't sure if they should. What happened to Cassandra was in an entirely different kingdom, with different rules and government. "I'm not sure though."

"No, we don't." Alden sipped the remainder of his tea. "We're safe."

"Ok." Felicity then smiled at them before leaving the room again.

Alden kept looking at the door, thinking about his own daughter. He was really worried about her, about her future. Whoever gets to sit at that throne in the South, will play a big part in how both their kingdoms will work together. Queen Cassandra kept her kingdom separated from theirs and they remained peaceful. But if the next ruler wants it differently, then there's little they can do to stop that.