Once Upon A Time II - A Midnight Occurence
Part 1
Once upon a time, in a land far far away, the king and queen were blessed with a beautiful daughter.
"My lord, the Queen is asking for you" the maid said hesitantly. "What is it?" the king growled, throwing the goblet of wine aside. "My lord, the Queen is in labour. The child will be born any moment now" the maid told him, keeping her head bowed and her eyes averted. The king stopped and looked at her.
"Where is she?" he asked. "In her chambers my lord. The midwife is attending to her as we speak" she told him. "Lead me to her" he ordered, putting on his robe. He took measured steps towards his wife's chambers. A second child. Finally an heir to the throne.
The king found the midwife waiting for him outside the chambers. She curtsied and the king raised an eyebrow. "Wait outside" he told the guards and followed the midwife into his queen's chambers. The entire room was a mess, with water on the floor and towels and linen strewn around the bedpost. The queen herself had fallen unconscious. The baby lay on a cradle next to the bed.
"She's still alive Your Majesty" the midwife informed him, fear colouring her tone. "She shouldn't be rather happy about it" the king growled, looking at the baby.
A daughter.
A liability in terms of dowry.
Not a son. Not an heir to the throne.
"How many people know of her birth?" the king asked the midwife. "No one except the maid and I. The queen herself didn't stay conscious long enough" the midwife replied. "A price of a hundred gold coins will be delivered to both of your houses by nightfall tomorrow. This child died during its birth and you tried to save it, for which you earned the king's gratefulness" he told the other two. The women looked at each other before nodding. "Dispose of the body" the king told them.
"There is bad news. The child died within hours of its birth. Announce the sad news to the kingdom" the king told one of his guards who left immediately to fulfill the command. "I will return to talk to the Queen tomorrow when she regains consciousness" he told the maid before leaving.
"What do we do with the child? We can't kill it!" the midwife protested, closing the door behind her. "There is a woman on the island to the east of the shore. She's the king's mistress and she is raising his illegitimate son. Take the coin and travel to her with the baby. She's the only one who will accept this child" the maid told her in hushed tones. "But what if she refuses the baby?" the midwife asked. "She won't. She courts the queen's favour because she was almost killed but the queen intervened and sent her away instead of killing her. She will accept the child" the maid assured her.
"The child is rather beautiful. She would have made a lovely princess" the midwife said, looking at the baby. Now that she had been cleaned, they could see that was as fair as the Queen herself and her golden eyes sparkled. The midwife knew she must protect the child at all costs.
Part 3
Once upon a time, in a land far far away, the king and queen were blessed with a beautiful daughter.
"My lord, the Queen is asking for you" the maid said hesitantly. "What is it?" the king growled, throwing the goblet of wine aside. "My lord, the Queen is in labour. The child will be born any moment now" the maid told him, keeping her head bowed and her eyes averted. The king stopped and looked at her.
"Where is she?" he asked. "In her chambers my lord. The midwife is attending to her as we speak" she told him. "Lead me to her" he ordered, putting on his robe. He took measured steps towards his wife's chambers. A second child. Finally an heir to the throne.
The king found the midwife waiting for him outside the chambers. She curtsied and the king raised an eyebrow. "Wait outside" he told the guards and followed the midwife into his queen's chambers. The entire room was a mess, with water on the floor and towels and linen strewn around the bedpost. The queen herself had fallen unconscious. The baby lay on a cradle next to the bed.
"She's still alive Your Majesty" the midwife informed him, fear colouring her tone. "She shouldn't be rather happy about it" the king growled, looking at the baby.
A daughter.
A liability in terms of dowry.
Not a son. Not an heir to the throne.
"How many people know of her birth?" the king asked the midwife. "No one except the maid and I. The queen herself didn't stay conscious long enough" the midwife replied. "A price of a hundred gold coins will be delivered to both of your houses by nightfall tomorrow. This child died during its birth and you tried to save it, for which you earned the king's gratefulness" he told the other two. The women looked at each other before nodding. "Dispose of the body" the king told them.
"There is bad news. The child died within hours of its birth. Announce the sad news to the kingdom" the king told one of his guards who left immediately to fulfill the command. "I will return to talk to the Queen tomorrow when she regains consciousness" he told the maid before leaving.
"What do we do with the child? We can't kill it!" the midwife protested, closing the door behind her. "There is a woman on the island to the east of the shore. She's the king's mistress and she is raising his illegitimate son. Take the coin and travel to her with the baby. She's the only one who will accept this child" the maid told her in hushed tones. "But what if she refuses the baby?" the midwife asked. "She won't. She courts the queen's favour because she was almost killed but the queen intervened and sent her away instead of killing her. She will accept the child" the maid assured her.
"The child is rather beautiful. She would have made a lovely princess" the midwife said, looking at the baby. Now that she had been cleaned, they could see that was as fair as the Queen herself and her golden eyes sparkled. The midwife knew she must protect the child at all costs.
Part 3