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Help[Games] Re: Squint's Royal Congrats -- Round 10 -- FINAL ROUND
in reply to a message by Nyx
kbellwether
King: Hadrian Augustus Magnus (56), Retired, now High Duke of Belmonte
--Queen: Rowena Amelia Gloriana (deceased)
----Crown Prince: Gabriel Sebastian Magnus (35)
------DW: Tarah Cassia Junia Sabina, Princess of Trilona (40)
--------Prince: Rowen Cassius Magnus (13)
--------Princess: Augusta Gabriella Dantay (11)
--------Prince: Hadrian Aemilio Navarre (8)
----DS: Dominic Julian Alexander, Count of Belandres (32)
------DW: Beatrice Caroline McCord, Bookkeeper at the local Wine Shop, Countess of Belandres (35)
--------DD: Carolinia Emelia (11)
--------DS: Griffin Juliander (7)
----Princess: Jessamine Ophelia Polyhymnia (30)
------DH: Hector Peregrine Donato, Prince of Corrano (29)
--------(Number from die rolled: 1) DD: Morgause Lyonesse Allelulia, Princess of Corrano
--Queen: Millesainte Angharad Aribeth (51), Retired, now High Duchess of Belmonte
----Prince: Dante Macsen Ferdinand (deceased)
----Princess: Seneca Augusta Hyacinth (25)
------DH: Arthur Oberon Clement Hugh X, High King of Halcyon (33)
--------Crown Prince/Princess: Arthur Phoenix Hugo Pax & Aeryn Juniper Titania Isobel (6)
----Princess: Cleopatra Aoife Lavender (25)
------DH: Alessandro Aurelius Caspian, Prince of Dunlin (26)
--------Princess/Princess: Rillian Claire Sennett & Aribeth Eliza Cordelia (4)
----Prince: Reynaud Nikolai Prospero, Margrave of Umbra (18)
------DW: Rosamund Allegra Sofya, Margravine of Umbra (19)
Royal House: Virago
Kingdom: Belhollow
____________________
Prince Reynaud has been kidnapped by his fiancee the Margravine of Umbra. Rosamund is apparently a quite accomplished sorceress & has sent a magical message to King Hadrian. “Prince Reynaud will not be harmed as long as the ransom is met.” Queen Millesainte has taken to her bed again, moaning and wailing. King Hadrian is at a bit of a loss. Rosamund always seemed such a nice young girl and this is quite unexpected. Also, she forgot to mention what the ransom is! Does she want jewels or gold? Ships and soldiers? The Kingdom of Belhollow itself? As Crown Prince Gabriel begins marshalling the troops and calling in the Royal Armada, Rosamund sends another message. King Hadrian begs to speak with his son, and tries to prompt her to declare her demands. She lets Reynaud speak briefy, “Father, don’t worry, I’m sure Rosie and I can resolve this....” He’s cut off by the Margarvine. “Yes, yes, I’m sure we can all come to a mutually beneficial agreement here. Reynaud knows what the ransom is and as long as he provides it, in a timely fashion, everything will be fine.” I’ll speak to you again tomorrow. The Royal family is quite baffled by this behavior and Crown Prince Gabriel sets sail for Umbra with a thousand of the Kingdom’s finest troops. “I’ll bring Reynaud home. Never fear. I’ll teach this vile, grasping witch not to tangle with the Royal House of Virago!” Three weeks later, Crown Prince Gabriel and his thousand troops arrive at Castle Umbra, and Reynaud and Rosamund greet them from across the alligator-infested moat. “Hail dear brother Gabriel, you must wish us joy! We were married just this morning!” They embrace and wave to the troops, all serenity and love. Crown Prince Gabriel leaves the troops standing on the road, crosses the drawbridge over the moat, storms up to the couple and demands, “What is the meaning of this? Were you not holding Prince Reynaud hostage? How is it that you are now recomciled?” Reynaud hung his head, “Well, brother, I paid the ransom, as she demanded, and she was quite within her rights to demand it. I can see that now. You see I really was a great fool...” He trailed off, seeing his brother’s brow furrow, his eyes glaring at them both. “You mean this was just a lover quarrel? I’ve brought troops across the sea in order to rescue you from certain death, only to find this was all a tiff?!” He paused, closing his eyes. Reynaud thought he could see his lips moving slightly “Eight...Nine...Ten” He took a deep breath and began again. “What exactly did you pay this woman? How much did you promise our father would pay for your freedom? And why would you bind yourself to this...sorceress? Or has she bewitched you, planting false love in your heart? Why would you stay with her?” “Well you see brother, I do love her dearly. But she has this colony of, well of guinea pigs. They live in a huge mound in the gardens, and some might think it rather unsightly and a somewhat eccentric quirk of character. Most royalty prefers their horses and dogs or the occasional cat, but rodents are really quite extraordinary. You see dear Rosie, here showed me her dear pets and the book of their genealogy that she keeps. And, well, I quite shamefully laughed. Guffawed actually. Didn’t stop for fifteen minutes. That was how long it took her guard to reach us, and she had me carted off to the dungeon.” Dumbfounded, Gabriel just nodded and motioned for him to continue, but Reynaud was so ashamed he couldn’t go on with the tale. “Well”, said Rosamund, “He was quite rude & really did deserve a night in the dungeon for it. Of course, the next day he was moved to a quite comfortable tower room. Still under lock & key of course. I told him he had to pay a ransom, or I’d never speak to him again, and the marriage would be off. Well, he didn’t quite get my meaning, and I was so embarrassed really by the whole thing. I had to get in touch with King Hadrian, to let him know not to expect Reynaud home, but I couldn’t let him know what had happened! I have a reputation to uphold as the 15th Margravine of Umbra. We are supposed to be a stern and lofty sort of rulers, don’t you know, and if the whole g.p. thing got out, it would ruin our negotiations with East Pith. They’d invade in a second if they thought I had a soft spot for anything. So it took a little while for Reynaud to pay the ransom, but once he did, we realized it was silly to wait for some big family wedding to make it official, so we got the pastor up at dawn to perform the ceremony.” Rosamund and Reynaud just nodded and smiled, having explained it all. But Gabriel, finally finding his tongue, said in a low, precise voice, “But what was the ransom?” “Oh, didn’t we say? I thought it was obvious,” said Reynaud. “I apologized.” “And promised to never do it again!” Rosamund declared, bouncing a little, a huge grin on her face. “Dear little Matilda George just had babies again, and we’ve named them Millesainte and Hadrian in honor of the King and Queen. Do please invite them to visit us whenever they’re able.” Gabriel just turned his back and marched his troops back to their ships and sailed home. Several weeks later, after King Hadrian retired and Crown Prince Gabriel became King Gabriel, the happy couple received a bill for the aborted military operaton. Which they gladly and easily paid; the Margrave and Margravine of Umbra are remarkably wealthy, so it was no hardship at all. It was one of the things they always laughed about, even when they were old and gray. Such a fabulous joke. However, King Gabriel never forgave them for being so silly. He maintained distant diplomatic relations with Umbra, but refused to share a table or roof with either of them, ever again.
King: Hadrian Augustus Magnus (56), Retired, now High Duke of Belmonte
--Queen: Rowena Amelia Gloriana (deceased)
----Crown Prince: Gabriel Sebastian Magnus (35)
------DW: Tarah Cassia Junia Sabina, Princess of Trilona (40)
--------Prince: Rowen Cassius Magnus (13)
--------Princess: Augusta Gabriella Dantay (11)
--------Prince: Hadrian Aemilio Navarre (8)
----DS: Dominic Julian Alexander, Count of Belandres (32)
------DW: Beatrice Caroline McCord, Bookkeeper at the local Wine Shop, Countess of Belandres (35)
--------DD: Carolinia Emelia (11)
--------DS: Griffin Juliander (7)
----Princess: Jessamine Ophelia Polyhymnia (30)
------DH: Hector Peregrine Donato, Prince of Corrano (29)
--------(Number from die rolled: 1) DD: Morgause Lyonesse Allelulia, Princess of Corrano
--Queen: Millesainte Angharad Aribeth (51), Retired, now High Duchess of Belmonte
----Prince: Dante Macsen Ferdinand (deceased)
----Princess: Seneca Augusta Hyacinth (25)
------DH: Arthur Oberon Clement Hugh X, High King of Halcyon (33)
--------Crown Prince/Princess: Arthur Phoenix Hugo Pax & Aeryn Juniper Titania Isobel (6)
----Princess: Cleopatra Aoife Lavender (25)
------DH: Alessandro Aurelius Caspian, Prince of Dunlin (26)
--------Princess/Princess: Rillian Claire Sennett & Aribeth Eliza Cordelia (4)
----Prince: Reynaud Nikolai Prospero, Margrave of Umbra (18)
------DW: Rosamund Allegra Sofya, Margravine of Umbra (19)
Royal House: Virago
Kingdom: Belhollow
____________________
Prince Reynaud has been kidnapped by his fiancee the Margravine of Umbra. Rosamund is apparently a quite accomplished sorceress & has sent a magical message to King Hadrian. “Prince Reynaud will not be harmed as long as the ransom is met.” Queen Millesainte has taken to her bed again, moaning and wailing. King Hadrian is at a bit of a loss. Rosamund always seemed such a nice young girl and this is quite unexpected. Also, she forgot to mention what the ransom is! Does she want jewels or gold? Ships and soldiers? The Kingdom of Belhollow itself? As Crown Prince Gabriel begins marshalling the troops and calling in the Royal Armada, Rosamund sends another message. King Hadrian begs to speak with his son, and tries to prompt her to declare her demands. She lets Reynaud speak briefy, “Father, don’t worry, I’m sure Rosie and I can resolve this....” He’s cut off by the Margarvine. “Yes, yes, I’m sure we can all come to a mutually beneficial agreement here. Reynaud knows what the ransom is and as long as he provides it, in a timely fashion, everything will be fine.” I’ll speak to you again tomorrow. The Royal family is quite baffled by this behavior and Crown Prince Gabriel sets sail for Umbra with a thousand of the Kingdom’s finest troops. “I’ll bring Reynaud home. Never fear. I’ll teach this vile, grasping witch not to tangle with the Royal House of Virago!” Three weeks later, Crown Prince Gabriel and his thousand troops arrive at Castle Umbra, and Reynaud and Rosamund greet them from across the alligator-infested moat. “Hail dear brother Gabriel, you must wish us joy! We were married just this morning!” They embrace and wave to the troops, all serenity and love. Crown Prince Gabriel leaves the troops standing on the road, crosses the drawbridge over the moat, storms up to the couple and demands, “What is the meaning of this? Were you not holding Prince Reynaud hostage? How is it that you are now recomciled?” Reynaud hung his head, “Well, brother, I paid the ransom, as she demanded, and she was quite within her rights to demand it. I can see that now. You see I really was a great fool...” He trailed off, seeing his brother’s brow furrow, his eyes glaring at them both. “You mean this was just a lover quarrel? I’ve brought troops across the sea in order to rescue you from certain death, only to find this was all a tiff?!” He paused, closing his eyes. Reynaud thought he could see his lips moving slightly “Eight...Nine...Ten” He took a deep breath and began again. “What exactly did you pay this woman? How much did you promise our father would pay for your freedom? And why would you bind yourself to this...sorceress? Or has she bewitched you, planting false love in your heart? Why would you stay with her?” “Well you see brother, I do love her dearly. But she has this colony of, well of guinea pigs. They live in a huge mound in the gardens, and some might think it rather unsightly and a somewhat eccentric quirk of character. Most royalty prefers their horses and dogs or the occasional cat, but rodents are really quite extraordinary. You see dear Rosie, here showed me her dear pets and the book of their genealogy that she keeps. And, well, I quite shamefully laughed. Guffawed actually. Didn’t stop for fifteen minutes. That was how long it took her guard to reach us, and she had me carted off to the dungeon.” Dumbfounded, Gabriel just nodded and motioned for him to continue, but Reynaud was so ashamed he couldn’t go on with the tale. “Well”, said Rosamund, “He was quite rude & really did deserve a night in the dungeon for it. Of course, the next day he was moved to a quite comfortable tower room. Still under lock & key of course. I told him he had to pay a ransom, or I’d never speak to him again, and the marriage would be off. Well, he didn’t quite get my meaning, and I was so embarrassed really by the whole thing. I had to get in touch with King Hadrian, to let him know not to expect Reynaud home, but I couldn’t let him know what had happened! I have a reputation to uphold as the 15th Margravine of Umbra. We are supposed to be a stern and lofty sort of rulers, don’t you know, and if the whole g.p. thing got out, it would ruin our negotiations with East Pith. They’d invade in a second if they thought I had a soft spot for anything. So it took a little while for Reynaud to pay the ransom, but once he did, we realized it was silly to wait for some big family wedding to make it official, so we got the pastor up at dawn to perform the ceremony.” Rosamund and Reynaud just nodded and smiled, having explained it all. But Gabriel, finally finding his tongue, said in a low, precise voice, “But what was the ransom?” “Oh, didn’t we say? I thought it was obvious,” said Reynaud. “I apologized.” “And promised to never do it again!” Rosamund declared, bouncing a little, a huge grin on her face. “Dear little Matilda George just had babies again, and we’ve named them Millesainte and Hadrian in honor of the King and Queen. Do please invite them to visit us whenever they’re able.” Gabriel just turned his back and marched his troops back to their ships and sailed home. Several weeks later, after King Hadrian retired and Crown Prince Gabriel became King Gabriel, the happy couple received a bill for the aborted military operaton. Which they gladly and easily paid; the Margrave and Margravine of Umbra are remarkably wealthy, so it was no hardship at all. It was one of the things they always laughed about, even when they were old and gray. Such a fabulous joke. However, King Gabriel never forgave them for being so silly. He maintained distant diplomatic relations with Umbra, but refused to share a table or roof with either of them, ever again.
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I LOVED your story!!
I wondered how people would go about leaving what I essentially left at mid-plot, and you've wrapped it up so wonderfully (and funny too!).
I wondered how people would go about leaving what I essentially left at mid-plot, and you've wrapped it up so wonderfully (and funny too!).
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Thanks! I'd kind of envisioned the fiancee as this slightly creepy, shadowy girl when I named her (and her land), but when your writing prompt gave her a chance to turn out truly evil, she just went all Hello Kitty on me. I think those G-Force movie posters are haunting my subconscious. (The guinea pig mound is straight from the Lansing, Michigan Zoo, by the way. Not sure if it's still there or not.) :) It was a lot of fun to write. Glad you enjoyed it.
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