Sitting there in the queen's room, Odette felt so very out of place, and most of all nervous.
The queen was dipping her tea leaves into her own tea cup, using a metal scoop to take the leaves out again so they wouldn't affect the taste of the drink.
Memories of only moments ago ran quickly through Odette's head. Of the dinner and how tense and awkward it truly felt.
Odette had wanted to sit as far away from Derek as possible but was forced by her father to sit right next to the prince.
Y'know how sometimes two people who like each other would play footsie. They would tap the other's feet gently as a cute tease and game.
NOT THESE TWO!
No, instead they were slamming their heels into the other's feet. They were wincing and grinding their teeth in pain, but kept smiling forcefully to their parents, pretending they were getting along. They were anything but!
As Odette sat in the queen's room, she so desperately wanted to touch and soothe her throbbing hurting feet, but if she did, the queen would suspect something was up.
Something Odette didn't want to tell Uberta. She respected Uberta.
She did not respect Derek.
Across the castle in King William's room, a similar scenario was happening with Derek.
The prince was rubbing his feet with his hand, feeling the bruising where Odette had hit him hard with the heel of her shoe.
Derek would NEVER wear heels, but he wished now he had for dinner, for the edge of those shoes had hurt so badly… he envied the princess that he had not caused her the same amount of pain.
"So, Derek." King William said to the young teenage boy. The king pulled out a chessboard and laid it on a table. Derek gave a wisp of a nervous smile, as the prince gulped before sitting opposite the king, "You've played much before?"
"Only really with my mother…" Derek admitted weakly, with a shrug of his shoulders, "But she said it'd be better for me to play with a man,"
"Oh, come come!" King William said, surprised to hear this backward thinking from the queen, "Odette plays with me many a time, and she's brilliant at the game."
"Yeah," Derek said bitterly, "Cos' YOU'RE a man… she has to reach to your level."
King William couldn't believe what he was hearing. His daughter meant the world to him, and her being disregarded because of her gender upset him greatly.
He only looked at Derek sadly, the old man shaking his head and only mumbling, "There are two sides to every coin…"
"Uh...huh…" Derek responded, sounding confused. But the prince was sure he had got the king's message. Maybe women DID mean more or were close to equal to men. But in this time period, that was very forward-thinking.. and the prince wasn't as open to it as the king.
"So will we play…?" King William asked him gently, a soft warm smile on his mouth.
"Okay…" Derek responded and they set the board with their own pieces for the game.
~x~
"So, Odette,"
She looked up quickly when the queen had said her name. Odette had a hot cup of tea in her hands, steam still floating up and escaping into the air.
Odette greatly enjoyed tea, it was the one beverage that every royal at the time could get behind.
She, however, kept her gaze on Uberta and smiled weakly, replying to the older queen.
"Yes, Uberta?"
"How have you and Derek been getting along?"
"Well, um…" Odette replied nervously. She could see the queen's eyes were enticed to know what the situation was, as her pupils were dilated, and her smile large and intense. Odette only stirred her spoon around in her mug, "We're definitely both present, ha ha," She said back to her, forcing a small chuckle and the queen cocked an eyebrow up curiously as she continued.
"Have you two been… happy together?"
Oh, that question pierced right through Odette's heart.
She really didn't want to upset the queen so said in a forced warmness to her questions.
"Well… we've been around each other a bit… and I was happy when I bet him in cards,"
"Oh, good, good?" The queen responded confused. Though, her eyebrows now only arched up with concern and she added fast, "You're becoming more beautiful by the day, princess,"
"Oh, um…" Odette replied nervously, her cheeks powdering red from the compliment and she tried to smile and nod in return, but instead, she dashed her eyes shyly to the ground and replied to the queen in a peep, "T-thank you, Uberta.."
"Derek is so very lucky to have you," The queen finished with and Odette gulped hard at these frightening words… her soul ached in pain from them, but she could not have this be seen.
"And I'm lucky too…" She whispered out and the queen smiled warmly at her. Odette broke into a weak sad gleam to the queen, sipping her tea to calm herself. But after she had swallowed down some of the hot drink, she just tapped her timid fingertips to the cup and gave a heavy hidden sigh.
~x~
King William had been modest before when he said he was only good at chess. No, this man was AMAZING at it.
Derek tried and tried again to figure out the king's strategy but to no avail.
As the king check-mated Derek for the second time, the prince was so bitter and angry about this that he wanted to call the whole game quits.
But Derek was no quitter normally, and he'd keep at something even when he showed no signs of improving. There was an old motto he went by, 'Winners never quit, and quitters never win."
"Another round?" King William asked him then, and Derek snapped out of his thoughts, barely nodding his head.
The two picked up their chess pieces and Derek felt cold inside when he lifted up his king and queen pieces.
He looked at the king slowly, seeing how straight, strong and noble he stood.
Derek slowly placed him to his spot and then he gazed sadly at the queen.
She was also straight and strong… but noble? She would kill any other piece when given the chance, her moves were unlimited and that is what scared him.
She reminded him about Odette… how that princess was smarter than she looked and would tear him down the first chance she got.
He slammed the queen hard into her place and the king looked at Derek slowly, trying to analyze and understand this young man.
"Is everything okay, Derek?" William asked him and Derek snapped out of himself again, quickly glancing at the old king and nodding his head forcefully.
"Of course, just thinking of a game plan,"
"The thing about chess, though, my boy," The king said back to him, laughing softly, "Is that, a lot of the times you just have to go with the flow."
"But how is a kingdom expected to win at war if it just 'goes' by the flow,"
"Ha ho ho!" The king only laughed heartily back at Derek before moving one of his pieces on the board, "That's true, but you can never predict what the other side is going to do."
Derek smirked a little bit, moving out his horse piece, making an L move and adding in return to the king.
"That's right… but it is good to try, and to be prepared,"
"Yes," The king said, suddenly knocking over Derek's horse piece with his pawn. Derek's eyes widened, not expecting such a move so quickly, "And sometimes, experience and knowledge of the game helps too."
Derek only grumbled to himself there now, and muttered under his breath, "I can see where Odette gets her 'winning talent',"
He sighed heavily and picked up another piece on the board, the tower. He moved it straight across before finally placing the piece down, and he watched in three go's, the king knocking his men out easily.
"I can see it, indeed…"
~x~
"Odette," Uberta said to the young girl and the princess nodded her head as the queen looked at her, somewhat sorrowfully and upset, "Do you like being here?"
It was like a flash instinct. The princess shouted inside her core, No!
But blurted out suddenly, "OF COURSE!"
"I know, it's hard sometimes to leave your kingdom for a few months every year.. but I hoped, and I still hope, that this place feels like home to you?"
Odette couldn't stop it from happening. Sweat began to pour down her skin, her cheeks flushed and her breath caught up a little.
BUT she HAD to keep her composure! She could not be seen as weak. She could not be seen as the bad clog in this royal life AND royal system.
A system that chose her life before she was even conceived. To be married off to a boy she hated with such great passion… no, she could not let the kind queen know her pain.
Her deep sorrow.
"Of course this place is home," Odette said sadly, tears welling in her eyes but for the opposite meaning than what the queen thought, "I respect you greatly, Highness. I truly do… it just feels like sometimes Derek and I are on different worlds… we just desire very different things,"
"Oh?" The queen finally responded back, but she was honestly at a loss for words, "That's all?"
Odette smiled uncomfortably her way, and only forced a shrug as she added with an insincere laughter, "I guess so, Your Highness,"
Uberta sat there now silently. The writing was clear on the board like it had been for many years.
BUT she did not want to accept that. She saw Odette like a daughter. She wanted Odette to be happy with life… but she knew. Uberta KNEW.
In her gut and soul, that Derek was the final answer to Odette's pain and sorrow.
He WOULD make her happy one day. And she, him.
It was just that the princess simply couldn't see this yet, because she was young and immature and short-sighted.
"Okay," She said to Odette then and silently stood up from her chair. Odette did the same as the queen walked to the balcony of her room, and the two stood there. The sky was very clear tonight. Millions of stars hung above them.
Odette looked into the heavens with amazement, as her own eyes glimmered from the beauty of the universe the two women knew nothing about.
"One day, Odette," Queen Uberta told her, holding Odette's soft hand with her own wrinkly old one, "You will find your place in this world… and you will be happy. You will be."
Odette sighed heavily, nodding her head in polite pretend agreement.
"Such a pretty girl, you are," The queen added, squeezing Odette's hand gently, "One day, you will be quite the beauty…"
Why should beauty matter? Odette only thought sadly to herself then and closed her eyes, a tear slipping down her cheek, when one has no choice… no choice.
~x~
It was much later that night that the two young royals were finally dismissed from the king and queen and bumped into each other in the hallway, both heading tiredly and sadly to their boarding rooms.
"Hey…" Derek said barely to Odette, only waving his hand the littlest and Odette barely waved her petite hand back.
"Hello…"
"How was mother?" Derek asked her, but he didn't honestly seem to care.
"Good, how was father?"
"Good." Derek said quietly and pulled open his door to leave her. Odette watched him go and she asked just before his door had closed.
"Got cold feet?"
"No," Derek replied back harshly, remembering the pain from before but it had calmed down now to just an ache, "You?"
"No…" Odette said to him in spite.
"At least you're lucky only ONE of us was wearing high heels?"
"I am lucky about that," Odette said, springing a cruel smile up her mouth and he only gave her a glare before slamming his door shut.
Odette stood there by herself now, and she slowly pulled open her own door. She came in quietly, letting the door slip closed softly behind her and that night she found herself only staring up at the ceiling.
Wishing it was stars.
And wishing she could escape it all.
She had only been visiting here for less than a week… another eight weeks to go.
The longest courtship in history, where BOTH parties wanted out.
But the queen was right about one thing, Odette really didn't have any foresight of what her future would be.
If someone told her she'd be stuck as a swan for many sad moons in her future, she might've tried harder to get to know Derek now in these present circumstances.
But she was not as wise as she thought she was.
And Derek was still just a boy.
Like she was still a girl.
The weight of the world on their shoulders… two kingdoms begging to unite.
But two children only wanting out, and to fight.
Out… but there was no escape.