Royalty.
That's what Regina would be, as soon as the coronation was over. She'd finally be everything that her mother had ever wanted her to be, and everything that Regina had hoped never to be. All she had ever asked for had been ripped from her in the process of fulfilling her mother's dream.
"Our dream," her mother had called it.
The wedding music hummed through the organ and she forced herself to walk forward, down the flowery aisle toward the King. With every step she took, the deeper her heart sank. Thousands of people were watching, commoners and nobles alike. She could feel the steely eyes of her mother on her back, but she resisted the urge to turn around and meet them.
King Leopold looked back at her from the altar and smiled, his leathery skin crinkling around his face as she made her way towards him, causing her insides to churn. Her heartbeat quickened and she had to steady her pace before she could continue.
Any minute now, she expected to wake up. She kept telling herself that this was just a horrible nightmare and that in the morning she'd be back home, in her room, getting ready for her riding lesson with Daniel.
But the closer she got to the altar, the more she felt cemented into her impending fate. She was getting married to the king. She was being sold, traded from her family for peace, strength, and power. She was a token, nothing more than a pawn to her family and a prize to her king.
She fought every instinct to turn and run away, silently praying that someone would rush in and save her before it was too late.
But no one did, and soon she was standing beside him. She concentrated on the freckle just above his left eyebrow to keep from making eye contact with the wretched man in front of her.
As the priest began the ceremony, the organ stopped playing. She wasn't listening to a word the priest said, because all of her mental energy was focused on keeping her breakfast down and reminding herself not to wipe her sweaty hands on her priceless wedding dress.
It was ironic, how her life was ending on her wedding day. It might as well had been the funeral of her hope.
Well, maybe this wasn't the end of the world. Leopold was a kind man, a gracious king. Everyone knew this.
But everyone also knew of the rumor that he had his first wife, Eva, murdered. Everyone had heard the stories of his rare but fiery outbursts of violence, sometimes ending in the abuse of his freshly-blossomed thirteen-year-old daughter, Princess Snow. Regina hadn't been able to believe it when she first met King Leopold, until she noticed the four thin, nearly transparent white scars that lined the princess's face from her left eye to her chin.
No one was allowed to talk about it. King Leopold was the sovereign king of Misthaven. He was kind, faithful, and good. He had been given the right to rule by the almighty God Himself and anyone who questioned it would be put to death.
The wedding drawled out for what seemed like hours and Regina stood in one spot, making sure to keep her knees from locking in place.
She took a deep breath and looked into her husband's grey eyes for the first time. They were squinting down at her through his wrinkly smile. Regina glanced over to her mother, Cora, who signaled for Regina to smile back. Regina turned the corners of her lips, unsure if she can make it seem real or not. The king's smile grew wider and eyes sparkled.
Leopold grabbed Regina's hand in his heavy rough fingers and slipped on the gold ring. They both turned to the priest as he picked up a large golden crown with all of the finesse that his thick hands could handle.
They bowed their heads and the coronation played out, the priest laying the large crown on the head of the King, and he placed the small, delicately weaved circlet onto Regina's.
The organ bursted into song and the cathedral was filled with the sound of a thousand voices. Regina turned with her husband to face the wedding guests- All of them stone-faced, looking almost as miserable as Regina felt.
All of them are my people, Regina thought.
And now, I am their Queen.
. . .
The carriage ride to the castle was cold, bumpy, and silent. Leopold sat next to Regina, gripping her hand loosely. Snow sat directly across from them, smiling distantly as she watched the rain pour from out the carriage window.
When they arrived at the castle, they were bombarded with the bustle of the servants and the drunk nobles who cheered at the sight of the new, overwhelmed queen. Leopold shooed them away and (to her relief) dismissed Regina to her quarters to rest.
"The servants will deliver your ladies to your room as soon as your things arrive, Step-mother," Snow said in her youthful, musical voice, "I'll show you to your chambers if you wish?"
When Regina didn't answer, she continued. "Of course, the servants could do it, but I was hoping for the pleasure of your company."
Snow couldn't have been older than ten, but her eloquence intimidated Regina. They had been brought up differently, and it would be blaringly obvious to anyone who listened to the two of them speak.
Regina smiled curtly and nodded.
Snow guided Regina through the halls and up the stairs until they got to a smaller hall, decorated with steel knights and red wallpaper. The doors of the chambers where heavy, dark, expensive mahogany. Snow pointed to a door to the far left. "That's my room," she says, before pointing to the one just beside it. "And this is yours. The room right across the hall there will be your mother's, and your ladies in waiting will be staying in the room next to her. Father's chambers are all the way on the other side of the wing, but I'm sure you'll find that out before the night is over."
Regina blushed and threw a sideways glare in Snow's direction, but it quickly dissolved. She could tell by the innocent look in the young girl's eyes that she had meant nothing by the comment.
"I hope we'll get along," Snow says, turning to Regina and smiling. "I know we've only known each other for a day and it'll be weird to call me your step-daughter, but we'll all be used to it before you know it. I hope to help you feel welcome here. If you should ever need anything-"
"Yes, thank you," Regina said abruptly, interrupting Snow's sentiment. "I'll see you at dinner." She smiled to soften her rudeness and quickly walked into her bedroom before closing the door.