It had been a year since that fateful day. A year since Gwen had lost everything. Everything she had ever wanted slipped away from her with a snap of her fingers.
It had been a year since she had travelled to Cameliard and found that she was their lost princess.
And it had been two days since her father, King James, had received the wedding invitation. More precisely, the wedding invitation to the wedding of King Arthur.
Gwen had just finished dressing and was making her way to the council chambers in a hurry. Her father had summoned her, something he rarely did, so she knew that when it happened, it was for something important. Being a noble was still difficult for her, and she still got butterflies whenever she was in the presence of someone from the court. She nervously smoothed down her hair, and entered the room.
Surprisingly, the council chambers were empty. She turned around and saw her father entering. She fiddled with the ring hanging from her neck.
"Father."
"Guinevere. I am afraid I have some news. Some news that you won't take too well."
"What is it Father?"
The next three words made her go weak at the knees.
"He's getting married."
Every feeling that she had tried so desperately to block came rushing to the surface. The feelings of guilt and shame. Of sorrow and anger. Gwen had tried to move on, to exit her deep state of depression. It all looked impossible until one day when she was riding with her brother, Prince Edward, and the druid came up to them. He had told them that she was enchanted, that everything hadn't been her fault. After that day, she managed to get past her previous life, and focus on her new one, and the Lady Guinevere, Princess of Cameliard.
But now, she couldn't help it. She sank to the floor and cried.
Gwen was sitting in her chambers. She was looking out the window, deep in thought, when she heard a knock on the door and her maidservant, Lily, appeared.
"Gwen, your father told me to tell you that you had to start packing."
Gwen looked up and sighed. She knew she couldn't avoid this. Two days after the messenger had sent the invite, she had realised that she had never wanted to be Arthur's queen. She had wanted to make Arthur happy, so that she could be. And being the queen of Camelot would have made him that. This upcoming marriage was not an alliance. Therefore, Gwen could assume that Arthur had found the strength to love again. If he was happy, she was.
But the many things were bothering Gwen. Would she be able to stand there and watch the man that she loved marry another. Would the dreams of what could have been cease or get worse. Would the nightmares ever stop?
Gwen nodded to Lily, and promptly dismissed her. Gwen walked over to the cupboard, and pulled out a few dresses. She packed them into a bag, and just as she was finished, there was another knock on the door. The door opened, and her brother, Edward, was standing there.
Edward looked pretty much the same as Gwen and her father. He had dark cocoa skin, with brown eyes. He was tall and strong, but quite skinny. He walked straight to Gwen and enveloped her in a hug.
"Are you alright?"
"Yes Edward. He's happy. That's all I've ever wanted."
Edward pulled back to look at her, and then reluctantly told her:
"We depart tomorrow at first light."
I know it is short, but the next chapter will be longer. I am on Easter break right now, so expect the next update this weekend…Monday at the latest!