Even though she knew that it wasn't her real love standing there, her mind couldn't seem to process that it was J.R. she was seeing and not Gumball. They were practically twins! His face was shaven, his hair was cut and styled…J.R. looked confused.
"Gumball? Who's that?" Her father had gone rigid beside her and Isis wanted to kick herself. To be honest, she hadn't thought about Gumball in ages, too busy with keeping up her act to think much of anything else. Her father had no idea who Gumball was, and J.R. seemed to have forgotten, but the fact still remained that she had shouted some unknown male name in the middle of her wedding ceremony.
"N-No one! No one important!" She saw Luke frowning in the front row. Isis hoped Luke didn't remember who Gumball was. It would make things so much easier. The silence was deafening as she looked up at J.R., her eyes pleading for him to believe her. He stared at her for a long moment but he eventually just shrugged and signaled for the priest to get on with ceremony.
"U-Uh..you may kiss the bride!" He repeated, giving Isis one last strange look before gesturing for them to seal their marriage with a kiss. It was brief and emotionless, a simple deed being done because there was no choice, and just like that the wedding was over. It was over for Isis anyway. She planned on slipping away during the reception to go find Gumball. She had to apologize to him for being so scarce these last couple weeks and to tell him what had happened at her wedding! Unfortunately, she had been unable to slip away and was forced to stay the entire time. The next thing Isis knew her and her new husband were left alone in their new room. She didn't even know how they had ended up there. The entire ceremony had been a blur. Many faces swam before her eyes as she put a hand to her head. She felt a bit dizzy as she looked over at J.R. It was then that she comprehended how bad it was that they were alone. In a room. On their wedding night. Isis took a step back as J.R. rushed forward. He grabbed her arms roughly and stared her down.
"Who is Gumball?" He demanded harshly and Isis glared up at him, wrenching one of her arms away before starting to work on the other one.
"Does it matter? Let me go!"
"Of course it matters! The new Queen of the Candy Kingdom hinted at her own wedding that she was seeing another man! Do you know all the implications that will raise? You ruined all of our hard work!" Isis finally wrenched her arm away and rubbed the sore spot where he had gripped her so hard. She was certain that she would bruise, but that didn't matter. She needed to stall as much as possible to try and prevent the inevitable.
"Seeing another man? Really? That's the conclusion you jump to? Have you ever considered that Gumball might be a childhood friend?"
"The expression on your face when you said his name would prove otherwise." He countered with a grim look on his face. Isis stared. It was not news that he didn't care about her, but he did care about her reputation. And why wouldn't he? The reputation of his Queen would reflect his own. In a way, she understood his concern.
"But only you would know that. To anyone else who asks, just say that you have an uncanny resemblance to a childhood friend. Which, on the surface, is entirely true. Even my father could vouch for that. He might not know the name of our stable boy—"
"Stable boy? You mean the one you brought with you?" Isis winced and wished she could take that back. She hadn't been thinking and had revealed something crucial to him. That was two slip ups in a matter of hours! What was wrong with her?
J.R. ran a hand over his face and glared at her. "Please tell me you had some common sense and didn't meet him at odd times in the night." Isis scoffed, indignant at such an accusation.
"Of course not! I'm not stupid!"
"Good." That was all the warning she got. Catching her off guard, J.R. rushed forward and pushed her onto the bed. He fell along with her and they landed in a tangle of limbs. The new Candy King grinned maliciously down at her as he pinned both of Isis's arms to her sides so she couldn't move. Since her arms were pinned, Isis didn't have the leverage to buck him off. She kicked and squirmed and tried to get J.R. off, her panic rising with each passing minute. The wedding gown she wore seemed to disintegrate beneath his hands and before she knew it, Isis was left in just her undergarments. Things were getting out of hand very fast. She opened her mouth to scream but he silenced her with a punch to her jaw.
"Shut it, Princess," he sneered at her, hitting her again for good measure. "You're mine now. Just be lucky that I was kind enough to wait this long to take what's mine." He hooked a finger around the band of her underwear and yanked, leaving her exposed and vulnerable beneath him. Her body shook with revulsion and disgust as he pawed at her breasts roughly, clearly enjoying himself. Again, she was powerless against her fate. Was this really happening? She, the Princess of the Ice Kingdom and the new Queen of the Candy Kingdom, was reduced to this? "You're going to pay for all the trouble you caused." She could feel how eagerly he wanted to punish her for her misdeeds. Disgusted, Isis spat in his face and renewed her struggle against him. He didn't budge as he calmly wiped her spit off his face. When he finally looked down at her Isis found herself shrinking away from the fury in his eyes. "Not to mention how you treat me. Now is that how you're supposed to treat your new husband?" He waved his hand and her arms moved like they had a mind of their own. They pulled him down close enough for J.R. to kiss her. Another shudder of revulsion pulsed through her as he pulled away, her arms falling back to her sides, pinned down by an unseen force. He grinned.
"Now that's better." Isis's mind was reeling. He could use magic? When did he—she froze when he started to remove his pants. Her eyes widened and she started to struggle again. Though she didn't know why his actions surprised her. There was only one way this night was going to end. She sent a silent plea to the Goddess that this was a nightmare, that she would wake up soon. Her prayers were not answered. Disgusted at his bare form, she looked away, but he grasped her chin and forced her to look at him. "You will watch, my Princess, and enjoy it." He waved his hand again but Isis felt no different. With a haughty laugh she moved to turn her head but found that she couldn't. J.R. laughed before taking her roughly.
For awhile, pain was all Isis could think about, but soon her body went numb and Isis just closed her eyes and imagined she was someplace else.
xxXXxx
She woke up sore. Every time she moved it was painful. J.R. was nowhere to be found, no doubt frolicking with the maids. He was King now after all. Normal rules like being faithful to your wife didn't apply to him anymore. Not like she cared.
Isis heard a knock at the door and tried to cover herself to maintain some sort of modesty. "C-Come in…" She croaked, surprised that such a weak sound came from her own mouth. Pepper poked her head inside and had a smile on her face.
"Good morning, Your Majesty! I came to serve you—" One look at Isis and her friend rushed over. She took all of it in: Isis's hollowed look, the sodden sheets, the blood, and her face held only sorrow. "…I'll go get you new sheets, Your Majesty." Pepper had reverted back to her role as a simple maid, unsure how else to respond. It was the safe route, a route that had kept her out of trouble for many years. Though the minute the words left Pepper's mouth, she regretted them. The look of pain and betrayal on Isis's face made her scurry to the door to do her duties, to ignore the suffering of her friend, her Queen.
When Pepper was gone, Isis slumped against the headboard, letting the sheet fall away. Everywhere she looked there was blood. She just put her head in her hands and wept.
Isis soon crawled out of her bed and hobbled over to the shower to clean herself up, though she knew that no matter how hard she scrubbed she would never feel clean again. When she exited the shower, she saw that some clothes had been laid out for her. Mechanically, Isis put them on before leaving the bathroom where a newly made bed mocked her. It was as if nothing had happened, the whole event erased from memory. No one would remember it, or pretend not to, but she would. It was a memory that would stay with her for the rest of her days. But…she placed a hand on her stomach. There was one thing that she could prevent.
The new Queen scurried off to find a maid. She quickly found one and asked her to send a letter to the Ice Kingdom requesting a book of spells.
For the next few weeks, Isis could only wait anxiously for her book to arrive. The sooner the better, for the possibility of carrying that monster's child filled her with dread. There was enough trouble in the world with one J.R. roaming about. There was no way she was going to let him create another one.
Pepper, of all maids, brought her the book she had requested. Her friend refused to look her in the eye the entire time, finding an excuse to scurry away like the coward she was as soon as possible. Isis gripped the book tightly to her chest. She had thought Pepper had been her friend, but she had forgotten a rule her father had drilled into her head years ago: servants can never be your friends. They'll betray you before they'll stand up for you. Servants were only meant to be disposable pawns and nothing more. Isis stared after Pepper. She had learned her lesson. It was another thing she wouldn't forget anytime soon.
Alone in her own private chambers, Isis opened her book and scanned its contents, stopping when she found the spell she had wanted. She placed another tender hand on her stomach and searched her heart. Was this something she really wanted to do? What if she could raise him on her own? Without J.R.'s influence? Isis quickly shook the thought away. There was no way J.R. would let his child be reared without a father. A father was too important a role, regardless of the gender of the child. Isis felt a few tears fall before she quickly swiped at her eyes. No. She couldn't cry now. She had a job to do.
Keeping her hand on her stomach, Isis first muttered the enchantment that would freeze any eggs that happened to be fertilized inside of her. It was too early in her possible pregnancy for there even to be a fetus. To think that it was just a normal cell in her body that she was getting rid of eased some of the ache in her heart. This spell was just a precaution to ensure that any pregnancy would never begin. With the deed done, Isis wasn't surprised to find tears staining her cheeks. This was one of the hardest things she ever had to do, but it had to be done. It had to.
This was what she kept telling herself as she searched the book for her next problem. She had to stop the possibility of her becoming pregnant ever again. It wasn't long before she found a herb: benumb frost. It was a herb that could be grown in relatively any climate, but she knew none of them grew in the Gardens. She would have to plant her own. Again, Isis sent for a maid and asked for the seeds, making the maid swear that she would tell no one of what she bought. She didn't know if anyone in the Candy Kingdom was familiar with such a herb. The herb she sought had a variety of names, so she prayed that the shop keeper of the floral shop would have an idea of what she wanted.
Hours later the maid returned with the requested seeds. Isis could barely contain her sigh of relief. Now, even if J.R. did take her again, there was no possible way she could ever have his child. She splayed her fingers against her stomach, surprised at the twinge of regret that she felt. Isis had always wanted children, a family of her own, a family that she could love in a way that her father had never done for her. And what she wanted most of all was to be there for her children so they would never have to grow up wondering what it was like to have a mother. Those were the mistakes of her parents that she would make right with her own children…when she was with someone she truly loved. Her hand bunched the fabric across her stomach into a fist hard enough that her knuckles turned white. First J.R. had taken her from her home, her family, had taken her dignity, her power, and now her desire to have a family. Was there nothing this man would take from her?
Clutching the precious bag of seeds to her chest, Isis dashed to the gardens with a sense of urgency that made the servants whisper. Her movements were frantic as she tried to find some bare spot in the gardens to plant her herbs. The more she searched, the more frantic she became. She just had to find one spot! That was it! Was that too much to ask for? Why didn't the Goddess at least grant her that one little wish? Why was She so silent to her pleas? Tears rolled down her cheeks once more, making her vision swim. This was it then. She'd never find a spot for her herbs and she would be forced to do that spell every time J.R. decided to play with her. Just the thought of doing that again made Isis begin to sob. How could she be strong enough to perform that spell again and again? She couldn't even keep that man off her!
Isis felt a hand on the crook of her elbow. She flinched so badly that the gardener quickly mumbled his apologies, but he didn't move away. Her scalding gaze fell on him, her voice cold as she regarded the concerned servant. "What is it you want?" Despite her attempt to make the gardener leave her alone in her misery, Isis was unable to keep her voice from shaking. Her throat felt tight and sore from all the crying she had done on this day alone. When had she become so weak? Or had she never been that strong to begin with? The thought made her spiral down even further into her misery. Goddess, she was pathetic. All this self-pity…was this she had felt all these years? All these years she had thought she had been angry at her fate, but all this time she had just been sorry for herself?
"Excuse me, Your Majesty," The gardener began bravely, bowing his head deeply in respect. It was deep enough to be mocking, but Isis didn't know if she was reading too much into it. She wasn't in the right state of mind to be analyzing behavior. "But I believe I can help you with what you are searching for. Are you looking for a certain plant? I have some lovely flowers that match your beautiful eyes." Isis stared at the elderly gardener, the first kind soul to be nice to her after her horrible night. What had she done to deserve such kindness? She felt completely vulnerable under the gaze of this man, this man who had eyes that seemed to peer into her soul. It would be so easy to let him in, to confide in him. An image of Pepper flashed in her mind and Isis immediately threw her walls back up. She couldn't let anyone in, not now. Not when she was at her most vulnerable. Isis had done nothing to deserve his kindness. He was only treating her this way because she was his Queen, nothing more. He didn't care about her. She was probably standing in some very valuable grass. Without a word, she shoved the small bag of seeds she was carrying towards the man. The gardener, who was in fact a sugar cube, observed the bag before turning his eyes back to her. "Did you wish to plant these?" Isis nodded her head stiffly and the gardener smiled happily, as if she had shown him the utmost kindness. "Wonderful! Follow me, Your Majesty!" Since she couldn't do anything else, Isis followed.
"I didn't peg you for the type who did gardening, Your Majesty, you being from the Ice Kingdom and all, but I'd be happy to show you!" Isis stared at the bouncing cube, completely oblivious to her sour mood. He was so happy to teach her his trade that Isis wondered if anyone even bothered to talk to him, or if he had family. Isis, realizing where her thoughts were going, immediately shut down that train of thought. She would not show any interest towards this man. Servants were only pawns to do her bidding. That was all. However, as she watched him, it was hard for Isis to keep that mindset as they reached a small patch that had been untouched. "This little patch was for J.R. when he was younger." Isis stiffened at the mention of her husband's name, but the gardener had his back to her and didn't notice. "His mother, Queen Lollipop, had kept this for him, hoping he would take her interest in flowers. He never did though, but…" He looked over at her and Isis had to bite down her smile as his eyes twinkled at her. "You are his wife, no? And what is his is also yours! So you can plant your little flowers here!" He patted the ground next to her and Isis lowered herself to the ground. The gardener then began to show her how to plant seeds. Apparently one didn't just throw them onto the ground and leave them. Ashamed by her ignorance, Isis listened, enraptured by all the knowledge that the little sugar cube possessed.
After a long explanation, the gardener reached for the bag of seeds. Isis quickly pulled them away though and the gardener raised an eyebrow. "I'm going to see what they are sooner or later, my dear Queen." Isis lowered her eyes. She couldn't argue with that logic. Reluctantly, she gave him the bag of seeds and the gardener opened it. He examined the seeds and Isis watched him closely. She was able to see the moment he realized what they were. Obviously it had been a seed he hadn't been completely familiar with since it took him awhile to realize what he was holding. However, instead of prying and asking why she wanted to plant these in the first place, the gardener just smiled at her and continued with his explanation. In no time, all the seeds for her herbs were planted. Isis clapped her hands together by her cheek and sighed at the sight. When she was about to thank the little cube for all his help, the gardener cut her off by raising his hand.
"There's a couple things I have to tell you, Your Majesty. These herbs will provide more seeds when they have reached their full potential. However, they grow rather quickly and need constant attention, constant enough that you will not have the time to give them the proper care that they need." About to protest, Isis was about to say something but the man raised his hand again. She fell silent and let him continue. "I am willing to take care of them for you, and…keep them hidden from the other gardeners. They would not be so understanding about the herbs your are trying to create." Isis looked away, unable to deny the shame that surfaced inside of her. As Queen, it was her sole duty to produce an heir for the throne, yet with these herbs, she would be unable to perform her only role. She felt his hand on hers and Isis looked back at the gardener. His eyes held nothing but kindness. "I am not fooled by the kindness J.R. shows around his subjects. I know who he really is under those smiles. Your Majesty, your secret is safe with me. No one will know of this. In fact, act like you do not know me when you leave. It would be safer that way." Again, she was about to protest, but the little cube held a finger to her lips. "It would be safer." He repeated and Isis nodded, getting to her feet. The old little cube remained on his knees, his kind face looking up at her. Isis felt the tears rolling down her face again as she bowed deeply to this man, someone who had shown her kindness and love when she had felt so alone.
"Thank you." She said, her voice a choked whisper. He placed a gentle and comforting hand on her head. "Thank you." She repeated, her voice stronger as she straightened before walking away. She didn't look back.
