A Royal New Beginning

This is for Fandango’s Flash Fiction Challenge #72 and Tale Weaver #282– New Start.

Image from Davidoasa at Pixabay.com

Once again, she was at the palace; only this time, there would be no escape. Having sorted through all the official documents, signing and stamping them according to the protocol, she wandered along the main corridor. Past the Assembly and Banquet halls, the Council chambers and Greeting Rooms; her memories guiding her. Estella did have a few fond memories of the palace from her childhood- running after her brother to escape their tutors, frolicking about the gardens with the excuse of ‘studying nature’, daily bed-time stories narrated by her grandmother, the Dowager Queen.

But a life in the eye of the public, with its numerous restrictions and unwritten rules had been too much for the young princess. From being ‘the spare’ who’d run away before even presenting at her debutante ball, today Estella had surpassed the position of ‘the heir’ to wear the crown. She dreaded the responsibility of not just shouldering but spear-heading the development of an entire nation.

She came upon her children at the corner of the main passageway that led to the Residential Wings. Eyes wide with excitement, they played a game of tag in the wide corridor; the sunlight and shadows highlighting the features that they’d shared with her late mother and brother.

Her mother, the Queen of Velonia had had a penchant for surrounding herself with beautiful things. Most of the artwork and architecture that surrounded the current queen, including the archways and Renaissance inspired columns, had been undertaken by her. The renovations to the palace, reflecting the joining of the old era of royal legacy to that of modernity, was a credit to her far-sight. ‘It’ll be a symbol for the coming generations. One can embrace the new without forgoing or compromising the old. They just have to find the correct way to go about it.’

Smiling, Estella watched her elder daughter run behind her younger, their joyful shrieks mixing with the echo of laughter from her childhood when her elder brother used to run along these hallways. Carrying her mother’s words in her heart, Estella walked towards her boisterous children. It was time for her to shed her melancholic recollections and embrace the new reality. As the queen, she could truly bring about a new beginning, not just for herself but in the life of her subject-citizens as well.

~***~

For the following prompts as well:-

Word of the day- Excitement

#RDP– Eyes

3TC#286– Sorted, Smiling & Shoulder

#FOWC– Penchant