Title: Milantis
Rating: T
Disclaimer: I am not associated or affiliated with Disney. I do not aim to make profit from this work.
A/N: Thank you to all who have read and reviewed the prologue, I hope you enjoy the first chapter.
Chapter 1: Ties to the Past
The young princess skipped to the top of the slowly sloping hill. A light breeze rustled the grass and gently flowed through her hair, making the little girl feel like she was walking through clouds. She stopped when she reached the peak and gazed down at the fields of wildflowers. The bright sun illuminated the vibrant multitudes of color from the meadow and focused the princess's stare on the figure collecting flowers.
"Princess, please slow down!" Huffed her loyal servant and nanny, Roxie.
The girl glanced back at the exhausted woman stumbling up the hill, and then raced down the front side of the slope towards the flowers and the tall woman standing among them.
"Hello darling, how is my baby girl?" Queen Susan greeted her exuberant daughter. She kneeled down to embrace her growing girl and enveloped the princess in a warm hug.
"I missed you mother," replied Princess Miley as she clung to the queen.
"I'm sorry for leaving you my dear, but your father and I had to travel throughout the kingdom. You know how your father likes to entertain the people, he insisted on holding court at the school at Seaview to inspire the young students there," Susan replied. She rose from the ground and walked with her child hand-in-hand through the fields of flowers.
"Mother, promise you'll never leave," the naïve princess stared up at her regal mother with hope.
"My beautiful girl, no matter what happens, I'll always be with you. I promise my darling, you will never be alone," the queen brushed her hand through her daughter's chestnut locks with care.
"Okay mother, as long as you promise," Miley smiled at her loving mother before breaking into a grin and scampered away into the wildflowers.
She kept giggling as she heard her mother chase after her with cheerful cries of, "I'm going to get you! My silly girl you can't hide from your mother!"
She let out a yelp of surprise when she was scooped up by her robust father who had returned from an afternoon of fishing with Jackseth.
"Hey there Bud, what are you and your mother up to?" King Robbeth asked his tiny daughter as he swung her around in his arms. Jackseth proudly showed off the trout he caught to his mother.
"Eww, it smells like Uncle Earl!" Miley screamed when Jackseth dangled the fresh fish in his sister's face.
"Jackseth…" Robbeth warned his son though he had a slight grin on his face.
"What? I wanted her to meet her dinner before it was served on a silver platter. Hey Miley, looks at his eyes, they remind me of yours," Jackseth teased his sister, who retaliated by sticking her tongue out.
Robbeth placed Miley up on his shoulders and started walking back to their summer palace. Prince Jackseth sprinted ahead to hand his catch over to the cooks for dinner. Queen Susan stopped by the water's edge to gather some lilies to add to her wildflower bouquet. Catching up to the father-daughter pair she exchanged the armful of flowers with her husband for her daughter. She took the young princess in hers arms as Robbeth adjusted the overflowing bundle of sweet flowers in his grip.
"My favorite!" Miley exclaimed as her mother handed her a lily.
"A lily for my little Miley," Queen Susan replied softly, and kissed the top of her daughter's head.
Miley's eyes shot open, the sixteen year old sat up in bed and soaked in the sight of her quiet bedchamber. She stretched and yawned, reaching up to rub her eyes she was not surprised in the slightest when she found a damp trail of tears.
The duchess tossed back the bedcovers and slipped out of bed. Her sky blue silk nightgown slid down her body and skimmed her knees as she stumbled over to her vanity.
She stared into the massive mirror and let out a groan seeing the tangled web of hair that lay upon her hair. Miley loved her long chestnut locks that she inherited from her mother, but she wished they wouldn't be so hard to tame.
Pounding on her door startled her, Jackseth shouted from the hallway, "First day of high school Miley! No more sitting at home with the tutors, now you have to actually talk to people! Hurry up, father is yelling that breakfast is ready. Please don't forget to brush your teeth, you don't want to scare people off with your skunk breath!"
"Don't forget your mask, you don't want to scare people off with your skunk face!" Miley shouted back at her snickering brother.
"Good morning m'lady."
"How are you feeling today Duchess Miley?"
"Fine I suppose, a little nervous though," Miley replied to her pair of handmaidens who had entered her room. Corina and Wendy were her loyal servants. The twin sisters had been assigned to the young duchess years ago, after the death of Queen Susan. The sisters were already twenty years of age but still enjoyed caring for Miley. They felt reluctant to let their dearest friend leave the protection of the palace to venture into the harsh world.
"Your hair! It will always be as wild and untamable as you, my dear!" Corina laughed as Wendy handed her a boar's hair brush.
"Wild?" Miley replied, amused.
"You are not one for rules and regulations, I'm surprised you took so long to decide to leave for formal school rather than to continue your tutoring here at the castle," Corina answered.
"Indeed! You're like a bird, you are not meant to be caged; rather you prefer your freedom," Wendy chorused from the bathroom where she had drawn a bath for her lady.
"You two know me so well, better than I do myself sometimes," Miley commented with appreciation for her dedicated Corina and Wendy.
"And now it's time for the world to get to know you," Corina replied and closed the door so Miley could bathe in private.
Miley undressed and leaned down to open the metal grate of the air vent built into the wall. She quietly slipped into her warm bath and strained her ears, waiting to hear the duo voices of her gossiping handmaidens.
"– and naturally Prince Jaketh will be there. He is handsome, rich, and popular, he would make a wonderful match."
"I doubt his family would settle, they think themselves the most powerful of the Milantis rulers since their lands are so coveted. Pompous fools…"
"There's the Baron of Okenland, Sir Oliver."
"That fumbling fool? He's made out to be more of a jester than a true ruler."
"Well he's a nice boy, how about the Duke Rico VI? I hear he skipped four school years due to his great intellect. Plus he is rich, powerful –"
"Short, greedy, mean, and too young to be married to our duchess."
Miley shot upright in the bathtub. Marriage?! She wasn't even seventeen years old and there was already talk of her marriage between her closest confidants. She scrubbed her head, washing out the shampoo and contemplated the aforementioned matches, of all Prince Jaketh sounded appropriate.
"My lady, are you decent?"
"Just getting out of the bathtub Wendy, I'll be out in a moment or so."
Miley breathed out a deep sigh and dunked herself in the water, immersing herself in the suds. A few seconds later and she arose from the water. She wiped the droplets from her face and whispered to herself, "I'm ready."
"Good luck, you'll need it," Jackseth smirked at his visibly nervous sister.
"What do you mean?" Miley whipped her head towards her brother who was delighting in his brazen sister's sudden uncertainty.
"Let's just say, school is nothing like the palace. And here, you're just part of the food chain; since you're new you're immediately at the bottom. Have fun little sister," Jackseth patted the trembling girl on her back and shuffled through the double doors of the Seaview School of Malibu.
The duchess took a deep breath, stood up straight and pushed through the doors.
All noise stopped, people pointed, and everyone's eyes focused in on the arrival. Fresh meat.
A/N: As always, reviews are greatly appreciated.