Chapter 7

Princess Genevieve

"The wedding is about to begin," Kathleen whispered excitedly. Prince Levi entered the room flanked by servants and guards and walked onto the dais where he stood by the altar. He was very handsome, Genevieve thought.

He bowed before each of them politely, and as he rose, his eyes lingered on Fallon, who turned slightly red in response it was so light you could barely see it. Suddenly, the doors to the grand hall opened, and light flooded in as King Randolph, and Princess Courtney made their descent down the aisle.

Genevieve worked to keep a straight face as Fallon's eyebrows frowned and the triplets giggled silently; Courtney was as beautiful as the sunrise; her white gown and train trailed behind her. The lavender bouquet she clutched in her hands perfectly contrasted the white and ivory. Her hair, usually tied up in a bun, was down and hanging in curls around her shoulders. Encircled around her throat was a necklace with the crest of King Laurent.

Though her smile was shy at first, as she neared her husband-to-be, her grin became fuller and lit up the room. Genevieve had never seen her sister so happy before, and her spirits soared.

Princess Courtney and King Randolph walked up the dais; when they arrived, Courtney stood on the other side of the altar, facing Prince Levi. King Randolph took his place beside Derek as the bride and groom clutched one another's hands, and the royal cleric began the traditional marriage vows.

He asked them if they'd care for one another constantly, be loyal to one another's families they'd, sustain one another with everything they had, and more.

Courtney and Prince Levi agreed to these terms and kissed before the entire hall. Everyone burst into thunderous applause. Everyone except Fallon, she seemed to have a worried face. She tried to hide it, but she could see clearly that her sister was concerned; that's when she started wondering what happened last night?

Why, instead of Fallon being happy and overjoyed, was she worried? She was always a sucker for romance and love; she even remembers how she would tease her about Derek before they were married. What was her sister not telling her?

Princess Courtney

'I'm married,' she thought. 'I'm married to the love of my life.' Well, she wasn't married yet. They had just exchanged the vows, and now she needed to sign the documents, but she was as good as married.

Her wedding day was everything she had imagined and more. Her sisters beamed at her, and her father cried; although he always had cried more than her mother, she had a feeling her mother would be crying too. Then there was her new husband, the man of her dreams.

He looked simply pristine. Even though the vows had already been exchanged, he refused to let go of her hands. This was the type of wedding she read about after all her sisters had already gone off to bed.

"And now for the royal feast!" King Randolph said loudly, clapping his hands. Prince Levi wrapped his arm around hers, and they stepped down the dais and headed for the great doors. As the bride and groom, they were expected to go first.

After they went, the King, Derek and Genevieve, the rest of her sisters, the royal cleric, and the rest of the hall. Courtney couldn't stop the tears that fell freely down her cheeks. Prince Levi merely gave her an encouraging smile.

When they entered the dining hall, Courtney gasped when she saw it was also decorated for the wedding. At the front was a large table with two decorated chairs in the center for her and her husband.

"It's like I'm a queen," she whispered to Prince Levi.

"You are my love. You're my queen now," he said and kissed her.

They sat down in their vast chairs. Then the rest of the family followed, and the guests found their places. The chefs walked in carrying large platters of roasted duck and gravy. It was laid at the end of each table. Courtney and Prince Levi were served especially. When they finished their meal, the chefs would bring the cake in.

"And now, my lords, ladies, and friends," King Randolph said. "We invite you to eat and to enjoy. You are all our guests today." He said and clapped his hands together, and noise filled the air as the people began passing around plates and dishing themselves up.

He sat down. Courtney couldn't stop smiling. Prince Levi took her plate and began cutting up the meat on it.

"Open wide," he breathed. She giggled and did as she was told, and he placed the fork in her mouth. She'd never tasted anything so delicious. Everyone ate their food happily and enjoyed one another's company.

They were becoming full even though Courtney felt the strings on her dress strain against her stomach, and she still had to make room for the cake.

"Courtney," King Randolph said. "You'll need to sign the official marriage document. They will bring it now." Her father said as she nodded.

Then a man came up to the table, clutching a scroll; he bowed low and handed the scroll to Prince Levi, who unwrapped it. The marriage document was nothing special, just something for the record books.

It already had the royal stamp from King Randolph and the late King Laurent in the corner. A quill was given to Levi, who proceeded to sign his name.

"Your turn, love," he said and handed it to Courtney.

She dipped the quill and began writing her name. When suddenly some loud coughing erupted, Courtney dropped the quill and bumped the ink bottle, which poured out over the ground. Prince Levi grabbed hold of her. The coughing got louder and louder.

"Papa!" Genevieve screamed. "Papa!" Everyone gasped and cried out. Her sisters leaped to their feet. King Randolph dropped the bread he was eating, and his coughing worsened.

He grabbed his throat, and tears ran down his cheeks. Derek began pounding on his back, and the King continued hacking. He choked and sputtered.

"Papa!" Courtney screamed out like Genevieve.

"He's choking! Someone get a doctor!" cried Edaline as one of the guardians did as they were told and went to fetch one.

"It was the cooks!" Someone cried out.

"It was the cup bearer!" Another accused. Courtney thought she was going to be sick. Her father was choking, and chaos started to occur; people began arguing and blaming people.

Even Little Lacey had already lost it and vomited all over the floor; just then, a piece of bread flew out of the King's mouth, and the coughing stopped. He was slowly breathing again.

"Papa! Is he alright?" Scream Genevieve.

"He's alright for now; best to take him to his room to be examined to make sure he will be alright." Said Derek as he and Genevieve carried the King to his room to wait for the doctor.

The place was in chaos; everyone threw their glasses down in fear of their own cups being poisoned. The glass shattered, and their drinks seeped everywhere, the same as their pieces of bread.

In all the commotion, no one noticed when a large group of men came in and started attacking.

"Everybody run!" Edaline screamed. The men were covered in armor and held swords. They sliced the tables in two and grabbed hold of the people. Ladies screamed, and their husbands struggled, and they were met with punches. The people's shoes didn't protect them from the shattered glass on the ground. People tried making a run for it, but they were stopped before they could get very far.

"Courtney!" Prince Levi yelled and pulled her to her feet.

"My sisters!" Courtney cried as he ignored her, He grabbed the document and stuffed it into his pocket, and then he took her by the arm, and they ran off.

No one tried stopping them as they were leaving; Glidonia's knights had rushed in and were countering the band of men. Courtney had no idea who they were or how they'd gotten into the castle.

The last thing she saw was Genevieve running back to help Lacey and the rest of her sisters being escorted away by the knights. Then suddenly, one of the men grabbed Kathleen and shoved a potato sack over her head.

"Kathleen! They've got Kathleen!" Courtney screamed.

But it was too late, they couldn't stop the man smacked Kathleen in the head, and she fell into his arms. He lifted her up, and Courtney watched as her little sister was carried off. The fight continued, and Courtney was dragged away by her husband.

Princess Genevieve

"Kathleen, no!" Genevieve wanted to run to save her sister since Edaline and Fallon took the rest of the sisters to safety and went with their father.

But when she was ready to rescue her, they were going to hit her with the sword until she heard a noise, it sounded like two swords clan, just then she saw Derek and was grateful that he showed up on time when she needed him.

Derek fought bravely and won.

One of the guards that took Kathleen said, "We came what we wanted, let's get out of here," and they left.

Derek rushed to Genevieve and hugged her. "Are you all right, Genevieve?" he asked.

"Yes, I am, thanks to you. Thank you, Derek." She said and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"Anytime, now let's go check on your father." With that, they both rushed to go check on the King.

"Derek, they took Kathleen; we need to find her!" she exclaimed as they got closer to her father's door.

"We will find her; I promise you I won't rest until we find her." He said as he embraced and tried to calm her down before going in with the rest of the family.