Fanfic -- Musing Queen
Character: Queen Brahne from Final Fantasy IX
Rating: G
Comments: I don't know why this occurred to me when it did, but just a little study in some aspects of Queen Brahne. No proof-reading or editting. I'm just writing it down to get it out of my head.
As she settled on the settee, the furniture groaned beneath her burgeoning weight. A servant delivered the writing table and another the quill pen and paper. A third servant brought refreshments and unlike the others, waited before he was dismissed. Once situated, the queen reached for her wine glass blindly, sipped, and replaced it. She lifted her quill and wrote an entire paragraph before the lingering servant announced his presence with a shuffle of hard-soled shoes. "Go," she ordered impatiently, darting a brief glance to make sure he got the message.
Alone, she resumed her writing. What sort of legacy would she pass on to her beloved daughter? The question followed her through the entire day. An incomplete empire on a world of limited land? Some legacy. The quill of her pen nicked into the fine paper and she laid it down for a moment in favor of a snack.
Cordial cherries; a gift from Mister King. She rolled the confection between her plump fingers, savoring the shining exterior. When she popped it into her mouth, it snapped like all fine chocolates. The liquid center was sharp and almost effervescent. And the fruit inside... oh, a delight! He found these in Treno, he said, and sent them to her straight away as a gift. What a thoughtful young man he was. What a welcome visitor to her court!
Men used to send her gifts once upon a time. She used to visit Treno as well. During those times she and Stella would play together, laughing and chasing one another through the halls. They were both beautiful, then. Young, slight things like her daughter. Youth is wasted, she thought bitterly as she popped another chocolate into her mouth.
As she picked up her quill, she mused over the matter of her empire. She would not touch Treno yet. They would be no opposition. Stella was always a coward and the balance there was so precarious that she would present her belly if Alexandria so much as wrote an angry letter. Poor Stella, Brahne thought to herself with a wicked smile. She had her chance to marry, but she only wanted to marry for love. How foolish! She didn't marry for love. She married as a duty to her kingdom.
These lies she told herself to soften the loss of her late husband.
Her Brother-in-law, Cid Fabool, now he would present a resistance, she thought. Lindblum has defended itself against Alexandria in past generations. No, they would be ready for her. She would need something to trump them. The rats, then? Burmecia. Their persistence is in their ability to reproduce-- vermin! The Queen knew if she could strike quickly and ruthlessly, she could destroy them all. Yes, Burmecia would fall.
Another cherry.
She turned her attention back to Lindblum. Her sister in law, Lady Hilda, would also provide troublesome fore-warning. The witch was in touch with the spirits that could foretell the future. But how to remove her from the picture...?
Another cherry.
Beautiful Hilda. Clever Hilda. Lindblum would have been hers. Cid would have succumb to the assassin's poison if not for Hilda's powerful magic. So, Brahne was left married to a foreign man who sat beside her and ruled as King.
The silver platter of cherries clattered to the floor. Brahne held up her hands, taking deep breaths. Control yourself, her physician had told her. Control, he said as he was being dragged away to a cell. She would show him control, but never to his face. She patted her hands down as if physically lowering her temper. There, she could think clearly again.
"Prrt?" A cat padded in from the royal bedroom, startled awake by the clatter. It stretched and yawned before investigating the upset candies. One sniff is all it spared before it hissed and ran off into the shadows. Brahne frowned at the cat. What did a creature who ate rats know of fine chocolates?
Hmm, rats...
Rating: G
Comments: I don't know why this occurred to me when it did, but just a little study in some aspects of Queen Brahne. No proof-reading or editting. I'm just writing it down to get it out of my head.
As she settled on the settee, the furniture groaned beneath her burgeoning weight. A servant delivered the writing table and another the quill pen and paper. A third servant brought refreshments and unlike the others, waited before he was dismissed. Once situated, the queen reached for her wine glass blindly, sipped, and replaced it. She lifted her quill and wrote an entire paragraph before the lingering servant announced his presence with a shuffle of hard-soled shoes. "Go," she ordered impatiently, darting a brief glance to make sure he got the message.
Alone, she resumed her writing. What sort of legacy would she pass on to her beloved daughter? The question followed her through the entire day. An incomplete empire on a world of limited land? Some legacy. The quill of her pen nicked into the fine paper and she laid it down for a moment in favor of a snack.
Cordial cherries; a gift from Mister King. She rolled the confection between her plump fingers, savoring the shining exterior. When she popped it into her mouth, it snapped like all fine chocolates. The liquid center was sharp and almost effervescent. And the fruit inside... oh, a delight! He found these in Treno, he said, and sent them to her straight away as a gift. What a thoughtful young man he was. What a welcome visitor to her court!
Men used to send her gifts once upon a time. She used to visit Treno as well. During those times she and Stella would play together, laughing and chasing one another through the halls. They were both beautiful, then. Young, slight things like her daughter. Youth is wasted, she thought bitterly as she popped another chocolate into her mouth.
As she picked up her quill, she mused over the matter of her empire. She would not touch Treno yet. They would be no opposition. Stella was always a coward and the balance there was so precarious that she would present her belly if Alexandria so much as wrote an angry letter. Poor Stella, Brahne thought to herself with a wicked smile. She had her chance to marry, but she only wanted to marry for love. How foolish! She didn't marry for love. She married as a duty to her kingdom.
These lies she told herself to soften the loss of her late husband.
Her Brother-in-law, Cid Fabool, now he would present a resistance, she thought. Lindblum has defended itself against Alexandria in past generations. No, they would be ready for her. She would need something to trump them. The rats, then? Burmecia. Their persistence is in their ability to reproduce-- vermin! The Queen knew if she could strike quickly and ruthlessly, she could destroy them all. Yes, Burmecia would fall.
Another cherry.
She turned her attention back to Lindblum. Her sister in law, Lady Hilda, would also provide troublesome fore-warning. The witch was in touch with the spirits that could foretell the future. But how to remove her from the picture...?
Another cherry.
Beautiful Hilda. Clever Hilda. Lindblum would have been hers. Cid would have succumb to the assassin's poison if not for Hilda's powerful magic. So, Brahne was left married to a foreign man who sat beside her and ruled as King.
The silver platter of cherries clattered to the floor. Brahne held up her hands, taking deep breaths. Control yourself, her physician had told her. Control, he said as he was being dragged away to a cell. She would show him control, but never to his face. She patted her hands down as if physically lowering her temper. There, she could think clearly again.
"Prrt?" A cat padded in from the royal bedroom, startled awake by the clatter. It stretched and yawned before investigating the upset candies. One sniff is all it spared before it hissed and ran off into the shadows. Brahne frowned at the cat. What did a creature who ate rats know of fine chocolates?
Hmm, rats...