It was midmorning, just a few hours after breakfast and I was in the back gardens with Samuel, our groundskeeper, assisting him with watering the flowers and collecting trimmings for some centerpieces when the sound of approaching footsteps interrupted my task. Thinking that it was another member of the household staff, perhaps Marie with a list of groceries that needed my approval I did not look up just yet.

"I will be but a moment. These irises need my attention."

"Marie did say you were back here," said a masculine voice that nearly made me drop my clippers. "But she said nothing about you playing in the dirt. Again."

It was Father, his arms behind his back, watching me with an unusually stern expression on his face. I rose up from my kneeling position and dusted off whatever dirt I could from the front of my dress, hoping that it would ease the frown on his face a little. Technically I was not allowed to assist anyone whose job it was to maintain the upkeep of the house, but I often did as I pleased anyhow. Watering the flowers and picking the dead leaves off the plants were among the simpler tasks in the garden anyhow, so I never saw the reason for all of the fuss.

"You're here early today," I said in what I hoped was a light, teasing sort of voice. "Is everything quite alright? Did some miracle occur that made the palace bureaucrats come to make an easy decision for once."

"Now we both know that that is never going to happen, even in the event of a miracle." His gaze lingered on the hem of my dress, which had dragged in the mud. Though he made no mention of it, I could feel his further disapproval radiating off of his very being. After several long moments of silence he said this: "Come now, Violette. Gather your basket and meet me in your office. There is something that I have been meaning to discuss with you."

He turned on his heel and left abruptly after that.

Though he clearly expected for me to follow him, I hesitated in taking a step. "Do you have any idea what this might be about?"

I asked Samuel, who was hunched over a few feet away, pretending not to listen. Gossip, as it was in any household, ran rampant amongst the serving staff so I hoped that he could arm me with some insight on the cause behind Father's mood.

"I'm afraid you're just as flustered as I am, Miss," said Samuel with a furrowed brow. I must have visibly deflated then because he offered me a sympathetic smile next. "Whatever it is, I'm sure that it's nothing for you to fret over too much. Chances are it's something to do with that brother of yours." He placed a few long stemmed roses in my basket, peach in color. My favorite. "Besides, you know how your father loves a good, dramatic build up."

"Thank you." For the flowers and the comfort. I accepted my basket with a curtsy, which caused our beloved groundskeeper to blush but there was no other way I could possibly thank him on short notice. "I will be back soon. When I do, I'll be sure to make a centerpiece special for your wife."

"I'm looking forward to it, Miss."

Had I known then that that was a promise that I would not be able to keep, I would have bade Samuel a proper goodbye.

Instead I picked up my skirts (careful not to track mud in and make more trouble for those who had to clean up after me), waved in his direction, and quickly made my way to Father's study. Since he had requested my presence to begin with, I did not bother knocking at the door.

"Make sure you close the door behind you."

He stood facing towards a window, his fingers tapping anxiously at the surface of his desk. I did as he asked and the air grew thicker somehow because of it. I had rather hoped that now that we were in private that his countenance might lighten up a bit but that seemed not to be the case today. He appeared to be in a world entirely of his own and I had to clear my throat several times before he finally turned to face me with that awful, serious look wearing deep into his features.

"Take a spin, child. I would like a proper look at you."

I furrowed my brows at being called 'child' but obliged, wondering where he could possibly going with all of this.

"Slower," he commanded, already sounding weary with me. "Before you make us both dizzy."

An apology left my lips as I made a conscious effort to slow my steps and appear little more graceful. Something about his stare, nervous as it made me, prompted me to lift my head on straight as well. Somehow I got the feeling that it would not do to slouch at a time such as this.

"Good, good," he said, finally leaving his spot by the window to circle around me slowly. "You have become rather pretty over the years, haven't you?"

"Father?"

He went on as if he hadn't heard me. "Don't stop now, Violette. I have not finished with you. Let's see...good figure, although the posture could stand to see some improvement. Bright eyes, smile for me now-straight teeth. Clear complexion, though it has seen more sun than what is preferable. Most gentlemen prefer their women to have a porcelain complexion nowadays."

"Father!"

"It can't be helped now. Besides your darkness gives an exotic look to you and that can be used to our advantage." I frowned at that, dearly wishing this assessment were over. He took a step closer to me, lifting a piece of stray twig that had somehow found its way into my curls. "And very pretty hair. When it isn't flying about, making you resemble some sort of wild woman that is. Overall though, I must say that I am quite pleased with the young lady that stands before me today."

'Overall quite pleased with the lady that stood before him.' I could no longer contain myself. "Father, what on earth are you talking about?" I laughed. "All this talk about my teeth and my hair. Exotic, am I? You're making me feel as though I'm some sort of potted plant or a show horse that is about to be auctioned away. You see me nearly every day. There is no need for all of this."

"My daughter, there is quite a difference between seeing someone and looking at them. Today I want some rather important people to look at you." It was then that he procured a large set of packages from underneath his desk. "You see, today is a rather important day to me. To you, I mean. Well...to the Renaud family, really."

He handed the first package to me, which was beautifully wrapped in black and brown damask paper, stamped with some sort of floral emblem that I did not recognize. "Go on then, open it. I think that it will be to your liking."

No further prompting was needed. I tore open at the package and the contents that were inside made me gasp: a brand new day dress, turquoise striped silk taffeta by the looks of it, the square neckline and three-quarter length sleeves were trimmed with a pretty gold lace. I couldn't help putting it against my body, unable to keep the smile from splitting across my face as I further inspected some of the smaller details that I had missed at first glance.

"Thank you!" I said, earning the first approving chuckle from father that I had heard that day. "Truly. I have no words. I-I wonder where I might wear this!"

Yes, I admit that I am no more distracted by a lovely new garment than a magpie is by a shiny trinket found in the grass. I have my failings and vanity, occasionally, is among them.

"At the palace," replied Father, handing me a matching set of gold gloves from the other package. "Today."

"Today?"

"Is there any echo in this room that I'm unaware of?" Most of the laughter and good humor had returned to his bright blue eyes, making him look several years younger. "Goodness, you really do have your head in the clouds don't you?"

"Or perhaps," I said, curiosity overriding any annoyance I might have felt towards the last comment he made, "you haven't been home nearly enough, so I have no way at guessing what the occasion that you speak of might be at all."

"I suppose you're right, Violette," he conceded. "I haven't been home nearly as often as I ought to, have I?" He let out a sigh now, which was a foreboding sign if I ever did see one. "You are aware that the King is ill, aren't you?"

I swallowed at this. "I...might have heard some rumors of this, yes."

"The truth of the matter is that His Majesty is fading fast and it is only a matter of time..." He did not need to finish that sentence, nor did I think that he had the strength to do so. Although he had retired from his position many, many years ago, Father still considered the King a dear friend of his. He was his advisor, after all. I could only imagine how heavily this impending loss must have weighed at his mind.

I set the gown and all of the other trinkets aside for now so that I could place my hand over his own. No wonder Father constantly came home so late nowadays.

"Thank you," he said. And, for the first time, I suddenly came to realize just how grey his formerly chestnut hair had become in the last several months. Maybe I really wasn't paying attention. Before I could counsel him with any further gestures of comfort, however, he stood up tall once again and resumed that businesslike manner that made me so uncomfortable just moments before. "Now, I'm not sure if you can recall but Wysteria has a rather interesting way of continuing the royal bloodline should the King fall ill before he is able to produce an heir. Do you remember anything in your lessons about the Princess System?"

It took me a few moments to sort through all of the memories of etiquette, languages, and local history before I recalled on what little my governess had told me about the Princess System. "Isn't that a very unstable way of going about things?" I remembered saying something along those lines even back then. "To just let anyone take control of the throne...that could be dangerous."

"It's the only option that we have to fall back on, it seems. The King has no other living relations, so unless we wish to render ourselves leaderless and therefore vulnerable to attack from Protea or God forbid, Stein, it is that unstable system that we are forced to work with."

There was no turning away from him as he told me all of this, speaking with such authority and finality that it was only too obvious what he wanted from me now.

And yet I couldn't keep my voice from breaking as I considered this very burden that he had suddenly thrust upon my shoulders. "You mean to tell me that I am to go to the castle to try and vy for the role of the princess, and you are only telling me today?"

"Really now, Violette. It doesn't do you well at all to get so emotional." Clearly this was not the reaction that Father had anticipated at all, or perhaps it seemed that way because he pinched the bridge of his nose. "After all of the disappointment that I had to suffer through with your brother recently, I thought that perhaps you would know better and be more cooperative."

The sudden reminder of René's absence stung and I shrunk back because of it.

"Even today you won't tell me why he left. You're always so cross with me when you ask." I did not need to look up to know how his eyes flashed at me mentioning such a sensitive subject rather than complying with him right away. "I will go if you tell me what the subject of what the argument was."

There was quiet for a few long moments. Perhaps I had gone too far, pushing him for the truth in such a blunt manner; but I deserved to know. Then, to my surprise, Father did not respond by yelling back at my sudden outburst or chiding me for my impertinence, but by laughing instead.

"Are you still on about that tired old subject?" he asked, and when I glanced back up at him, he was smiling but there was a tightness to the lines around his eyes. "Violette, I have told you once and I will tell you again that the reason behind my argument with René is neither here nor there. What matters is that I was right and he will see the error of his ways soon enough and come back."

I opened my mouth to speak again but he started before I could get a word in, "Besides, I thought that all girls wanted to be princesses."

"There is a difference between dreaming of being a princess and living out the reality as one." Having lived in such close proximity to the castle had long dispelled any romantic notions of that and not even the most fantastical of my novels could distract me from that.

"This is very true and the fact that you know the difference gives you all the more advantage over those other girls."

This did not make me feel any better. The fact remained that I did not want to be princess and I certainly did not appreciate being ordered about, especially not concerning such a potentially life changing order.

It was my lack of a response that finally made Father do away with the flattering, sugary sweet tone to his voice. "For goodness sake Violette, you really are a horrible brat sometimes. We may not share the same blood but I have always considered you a member of the Renaud family. There are certain duties that we, as nobles, and as Renauds must attend to. I have been more than lenient when it comes to the matters of the company that you keep, befriending and mingling with the serving staff. And I have turned a blind eye to your failure to secure a husband thus far. After all that I have done for you, I am not asking you for very much at all. Am I?"

At first I wasn't sure that I had heard him quite right.

There were times, yes, when I was made conscious of my status as an 'other' in this family though I, too, bore the name Renaud and was his legitimate child in the eyes of the law. The whispers that followed me in my younger years had all but disappeared, except in times when I made a spectacular fool of myself and there was little else to gossip about. That was other people though; never Mama, when she was alive, and certainly not René. Father...that sort of talk only passed his lips when I had worked his temper beyond reason.

"I don't mean to be such a disappointment to you," is what I managed to say when I did find my voice. "I know that there are certain expectations when it comes to upholding our family name but, Father, I did not know that you held my lack of a husband against me. I...I am simply not ready yet."

Before I was even aware of the tears that now tracked down my cheeks, I was suddenly wrapped up in a pair of arms. Unsure of whether to accept the comfort or not, I simply stood stiff in Father's embrace.

"Oh, my darling girl." He brushed some hair that had fallen in my eyes now. "Now, now don't cry. We need to be at the palace in less than an hour and it simply will not do for you to show up with red eyes. What are we to do with you?" Perhaps it was a bit disgraceful but I simply shrugged one shoulder above the other, unable to respond in any other way. "You are not a disappointment to me. Your father, you know he has a deplorable temper from time to time and I do apologize for making you cry but you must also know that you are unreasonably stubborn too."

"I suppose." It was the truth, so what else was there for me to say?

"And you are my favorite, obedient daughter at the end of the day," he continued, giving my arms a light squeeze. "I commend you for you at least trying to give a fighting effort-but save that for the bureaucrats when you are elected crown princess. Many of them seem good men, but many of them are selfish and have their own agenda."

While I knew that he wished to compliment me, his words left a rather hollow feeling in the pit of my stomach. The argument was over now, so now I was to collect my new dress and matching gloves and have Marie assist in making me look presentable to the judges. Though I felt that this was a lost cause, I was far too drained to do anything other than promise Father my best before making a hasty exit out of his study. Perhaps after today was over we could start over and forget that this horrible morning had ever happened in the first place.