All around me, I saw white, gold and blue. Early that morning, I was brutally woken up by Cecily and forced into my wedding dress. My hair was washed with scented lye soap and brushed until it was soft like silk, and afterwards it was intricately braided and tied in a knot at the back of my head.
A platinum necklace with a sapphire locket was fastened against my throat, and matching azure earrings dangled gracefully from my ears, contrasting beautifully with my wheat-colored skin. I slipped on my sable trimmed white gloves with golden thread, and deep red rouge was smeared onto my lips. My mother, still embittered by the events of past year paid no care about my wedding, despite personally getting Lisbeth dressed up for her wedding two years ago.
However, her absence barely affected me, as Claudie was able to slip out of Sterling Castle to attend my wedding, although she had to hide her identity. Now, she was no longer Anna-Claudia de Beauchamp, Duchess of Irakli, but Alice Durant, a simple handmaid Edmund had sent over to do my bidding.
She gently powdered my face and laced up my shoes, and finally she placed a white veil made from tulle over my head. "Let's go, Annie. Edmund has been waiting so long for you," Claudie said while tugging my hand.
I nodded while stepping along with her, but then I turned around to take a look at my room. The four-beam poster bed, my dark blue silk covers, the cream coloured wallpaper with rose motifs, and the roaring fireplace. After today, I would likely never stay here again, and my room would be given away to someone else.
The door clicked open, and Cecily walked in while wearing a pale blue dress made from silk, and the fringe of her hair covered one eye, concealing her birthmark. I had requested her to carry my train, as I felt that she was the most suitable person for the task.
Cecily smiled at Claudie, her own blood-cousin, but she did not return it. Claudie looked away, completely ignoring Cecily's existence, and I knew why. Edmund had remained here in Phoenicia and watched Cecily grow up, while Claudie was sent off to Terrawyn, and she only knew Cecily as the daughter of King Edward, the man who orchestrated the death of her and Edmund's father, sent her to foreign land, and exiled their mother. Claudie's heart was full of hatred for her uncle, and that eventually splattered onto Cecily as well. Not only that, Cecily was also the sister of Crown Princess Margaret du Terre, the daughter-in-law of the very man who ordered for Claudie's husband to be assassinated and to confiscate all the Beauchamp lands.
Indeed, Claudie was undoubtedly beautiful and kind, but her heart was so filled with hate that I felt concerned. She hates the du Terres for killing her husband, and she hates her uncle for murdering her father, but Cecily was innocent. With a chest so full of hate, how can there be any room left for love and compassion?
"Cecily! You've arrived!" I said in a cheerful while looping my right arm with hers, and my left with Claudie. "We're running late. We should go now!"
The wedding will take place at the Aglarose Cordesane, the largest cordesane in all of Rhyland, and it was only second compared to the Arrinella Cordesane in the capital city of Fallere, which was exclusively reserved for the marriages of royals.
Aglarose Cordesane was quite far from Winterbourne Castle, as it was in the heart of the city, while I lived closer to the southern ports. It was an enormous white building with four towers located at each corner of the cordesane. The building was made using white marble and was surrounded by a large man-made pool. To get to the cordesane, one would have to get down from their carriage and walk on a narrow bridge which was made from thick glass, and you could see the swirling dark waters underneath you.
The steps were similarly made with marble, and they were polished to gleam in the sun, creating the illusion that the floor was splattered with water. Once inside, I could see the sunlight penetrating through the stained-glass windows, casting shadows of colors on the floor.
They depicted all the noble houses of the south, the ones that swore allegiance to House of Winterbourne. On the right, I could see the eagle staff surrounded by four amber colored diamonds, and two chimeras stood on either side, their fierce claws guarding their honour, while their venomous fangs threaten everyone into silence and submission. This was the symbol of House Moreau, my mother's maiden family.
On the other side, there were two white cinquefoils against a scarlet background, and surrounding it were two silver eagles, proudly spreading their feathers to defend the flowers of hope. It was the symbol for the House of Byron, the family that Lisbeth married into.
At the very center of the hall, where the sun would pass at noon was the stained-glass window that depicted House Winterbourne's crest. The window was situated incredibly high up, and when sitting at the rows of seats, you could not see it. However, when it was noon, it would cast an image of our crest into the pool of water built in the middle of the hall, constructed so that no one could step on our house's crest.
There was the periwinkle flower large and center, and beside it was two red barbed roses, eye-catching and prominent against the white background. Silver griffins stood on either side of the periwinkle, the pride and glory of House Winterbourne.
My ancestors chose that common flower as our symbol, because we, like the flower, are nothing out of ordinary. The periwinkle is commonly seen as a weed, but it is pretty enough for people to continue to let it grow.
We Winterbournes started out as common people, slowly gaining power and wealth through trading and centuries of politics, and it has gotten us here today. We were not breathtakingly beautiful like the women of the House of Ainsworth, as charming as the Chauvelots, nor were we ridiculously smart like the Byrons. We were common people that were allowed to survive, to gain influence and to take power into our own hands. The Winterbournes are like common weeds - there is no way to fully get rid of us.
A new window was made several months ago, and another crest has been added to our collection, but this time, it is one that belongs to the royal family. The proud golden sun in splendour shone brilliantly, but not outshining our own emblem. Red phoenixes embraced the sun in splendour, symbolizing the magnificence that the Chauvelot dynasty had brought upon Phoenicia, and how this brilliance would live on forever.
Our great king, Gregoire the First had this in mind when he came up with the design for the House of Chauvelot's crest over three hundred years ago, but he had no idea that his living descendant had caused all that magnificence to plummet, razing it to the ground.
All around me were seats full of people, but everything paled in comparison when I saw Edmund standing at the altar. My companion, my equal. Only a few years ago, I was a simple girl who had no idea of the tumultuous state of our kingdom, and even though I craved for the throne, I thought that it would remain as a mere dream.
Now, I was closer to the throne than I ever was. Edmund marrying me would give him the rich south's support, and people would follow him out of love for me, for my father. When he does become king, his power will never be purely his. A large chunk of it belongs to me, to my family, and when that time comes, we will be unshakeable.
Edmund wore a white robe trimmed with gold, similar to mine, and in his pocket was a single periwinkle. From afar, I could see his smile, soft yet blinding. I took a step forward, treading gently on the carpeted floor. My footsteps were light and calm, but my heart was not. I would be lying to say that I had no feelings for the young handsome duke, but after years of seeing him as an easy ticket to the throne, I did not even know the contents of my own heart.
The priest had begun to recite the marital scriptures, but I turned a deaf ear towards it. After this day, there would indeed be no return for me, for the House of Winterbourne. I glanced to look at the tall figure beside me, standing still and thoughtfully listening to the priest's words. My fate indeed rested on him, but his fate was in my hands. He needed me as much as I needed him, and because of that, we are equals.
After the priest was done reciting, Edmund turned to me and grasped my gloved hands tightly, looking at me straight in the eyes.
"Anne, I vow you the first cut of my meat, the first sip of my wine, from this day it shall only your name I cry out in the night and into your eyes that I smile each morning. I shall be a shield for you back as you are for mine, nor shall a grievous word be spoken about us, for our marriage is sacred between us and no stranger shall hear my grievance. Above and beyond this, I will cherish and honor you through this life and into the next," he spoke loudly for all the wedding attendees to hear, but not once did his eyes linger away from my face, not even to look at the people's reactions.
My lips curled into smile, and I began to recite my own vows, which I had painstakingly memorised last night.
"You are blood of my blood, and bone of my bone. I give you my body, that we two might be one. I give you my spirit, 'til our life shall be done.
You cannot possess me for I belong to myself.
But while we both wish it; I give you that which is mine to give.
You cannot command me, for I am a free person.
But I shall serve you in those ways you require.
and the honeycomb will taste sweeter coming from my hand."
I chose that particular set of vows to signify that I had no intent of becoming a mere consort, a belonging, but a life partner. As I finished my words, I heard murmurs begin to echo throughout the hall, but Edmund was smiling in satisfaction.
Two goblets filled with wine were brought over in a tray, and we took one each. Edmund drank from my goblet, and I drank from his. As the liquid ran down my throat, our union was sealed. The wine would soon become our blood, and our blood was unified.
Edmund then lifted my hands to his lips and kissed them gently, his gaze tender and full of admiration. Now, I was no longer only Lady Anne Genevieve Winterbourne, the second daughter of the Earl of Rhyland, but I was also Duchess Anne Genevieve de Chauvelot, wife to the future King of Phoenicia.
My rank now surpassed my own father, and the only person above me was the King himself. With this knowledge, my hunger for power grew even more, and now that our union was consolidated by marriage, my father and Edmund could actively rile up the people against the king.
My husband laced his fingers with mine and raised up our linked hands in the air, piercing through the bright sunlight and casting a shadow on the floor below us. I tightened my grasp on Edmund's hands, earnestly hoping that for the rest of our lives, there will never be another woman for him.
He would stay with me, and that is where his loyalty shall remain.
Hello everyone! This chapter marks the end of book one, and Anne and Edmund's story will be continued in The Red Throne, which is already out now! Thank you for all your love and support !