Chapter 146

146 Queen

Zavian stopped a few meters from the Princesses, and Kitana smiled as she tasted the victory that was soon to come.

Officially, and finally!

When Zavian raised his hand, however, it was directed toward Princess Jasmine. Kitana’s eyes flew wide, and shock rendered her paralyzed on the spot. What was happening?

“I, King Zavian, choose Princess Jasmine of Selesee, to be my bride.”

The hall went insane at once. People’s palms thundered with claps, and Jasmine stepped forward to Zavian and slipped her hand into his, a wide smile stretching her beautiful lips.

The sight of it made Kitana snap back to reality and boil with rage.

“Your Majesty!” Kitana screamed. Zavian and Jasmine only spared her a glance as they stepped up to the thrones like Kitana was nothing but a whiny child. Kitana, furious, heartbroken and betrayed all at once, made to approach them, but Azriel was at her front at once.

“Do not cause a scene, Princess,” he warned.

“He was about to choose me last week! Just last week! What did the wench do?” Kitana’s eyes were filled with venom at Jasmine. “Did she hike up her skirt for him? Huhn? I deserve to be Queen more than anyone in this room!”

.....

“Careful”, Zelda spoke next to her, her voice calm. Kitana looked at her. “You might end up a bitter single demon if you don’t keep to your manners.”

Kitana was shocked, either by the stares of the dignitaries in the front row or at Zelda’s first-ever harsh comment, but it worked to keep her tucked in her place and fuming in silence for the rest of the event.

Zavian and Jasmine knelt before the presider, who blessed them, blessed their future offspring, and blessed the crowns before he placed one on Zavian’s head. As custom demanded, Zavian took the Queen’s crown and held it, and he found his eyes going over to Neera once more.

Neera had kept her emotions at bay, and had even rejoiced when the rest of the hall did, but she couldn’t curb the sudden urge to cry. It was harder than she thought, watching him marry another, and she wanted to leave as soon as the ceremony was over.

Neera gave Zavian a watery smile, and Zavian, realizing he was being swept up by her, faced the duty at hand. He saw that Jasmine had been looking at them both, her eyes unreadable, and the whispers from the crowd carried over jumbled noise to his ears.

“I hope for it to be a fruitful reign with you by my side”, Zavian lowered the crown unto Jasmine’s head, a flashback taking him to when he was once lowering it on Delilah’s head centuries ago.

“Queen Jasmine.”

The claps thundered again, and when all was over, people milled around in celebration. Neera clapped too, but when she looked to where Pen was standing earlier, she saw someone in a black cloak, face covered with a black mask, and fiery red eyes staring directly at her.

A shiver ran down Neera’s spine, and as Pen came into her view, Neera looked over her best friend’s shoulder, and the person was gone. Vanished.

No, Neera thought, she had only imagined it.

“Come, it’s over.”, Penelope’s voice was drowned by the applause. “Let’s get out of here.”

And Neera wanted nothing more than that.

...

“Centuries. I spent centuries training you to be on your best of manners, and yet you make a mockery out of my entire kingdom with your desperation”, the Duke of Grenao huffed in annoyance as the carriage rode out. Kitana ignored her father and stared out towards the castle. It should have been hers, all of it, and yet it had been snatched under her nose by the sneaky fingers of that maid and the cunning Princess Jasmine.

“You had weeks to make him yours, and you failed. Let’s just hope the King doesn’t punish you for that ridiculous outburst,” her father went on. “A complete waste of time and effort.”

Kitana sighed. One tragedy at a time. Her father could shove his anger down his bad stomach and choose to expel it as vomit or poo, whichever one would plague him as it occasionally did, but not as words, not at this time.

“Well, the Commander General is still single, and I can have one of your brothers arrange for him to come over to Grenao if possible, and you can do whatever needs to be done to have him marry you,” there was hope in her father’s tone.

Kitana could hear the underlying message. I will invite the Commander General over while you seduce him in every way possible, get him to bed you, and rope him into marriage with pregnancy. But Kitana didn’t want that. She could have had the General a long time ago, but she didn’t settle for second best, only the best.

Who was she to still make choices? Zavian was gone and gone for good.

As her father continued yapping on his monologue till they exited the castle, Jasmine took up the duties of Queen immediately. She had ensured everything was in order- thanked dignitaries for coming while a few stayed over at the castle to journey the next day and saw to waving farewell when the guests tumbled out of the castle.

When all was over and finally done, she turned her attention to her husband. A very fine man, with hair, sleeked back like threads of gold, and a hypnotizing face that had not yet spared her a loving smile.

“We should retire, my King,” she smiled at him. “I believe you must want some rest.”

“I am perfectly fine, Princess... my Queen,” Zavian answered.

“Or perhaps we should take a walk in the garden? Have a talk? Familiarize with ourselves? I heard from the maids that you love mutton, and I do as well. That’s about it,” she encouraged him.

“I don’t love mutton”, Zavian replied. He noticed the smile on Jasmine’s face fall.

Zavian closed his eyes and rubbed a hand over his face. What was he doing? This was his wife, his Queen, yet his mind and heart wandered off to Neera and where she might have gone.

“I am sorry, my Queen,” Zavian said.

Jasmine’s lips lifted again, but they didn’t quite reach her eyes. “It’s okay.”

“No, it is not,” Zavian said. “I would love to go out to the gardens with you, but I have something I have to sort out tonight. I will have the guards escort you to my... our chambers, where you can have a bath and go to sleep.”