The usually quiet palace grounds came alive with bustling activity that afternoon, buzzing with the loud voices of people singing and chanting, all while dancing to the tune of beating drums. The sounds were so loud, they could be heard from miles away but the people didn't care. It was a period for celebration, a time for joy and their joy knew no bound.
Valora gazed down at the festivities from her chambers on the highest level of the castle, pressing her face between the thick steel bars on her bedroom window. The windows were so high up that she had to stand on top of a stool while craning her neck to get a better look at the activities going on below. She was enraptured by the swaps of colorful silks floating in the breeze, the music and the way her people moved and danced like they had no care in the world.
Every year, the people of Kova throw a three day long festival to celebrate their liberation from the oppressive rule of the fae almost a hundred years ago, a regime in which they were treated no better than animals. Each year a parade is organized on the third day of the festival, a massive event of over a thousand gathered people, dressed in different colors of layered clothing.
There were pops of color everywhere, on the children's painted faces, on the kingdom's flag that flapped in the breeze at the very front of the procession. The color was a symbol of their freedom, a sign of hope in a time when there was none.
The parade usually started at the heart of the capital then slowly progressed until they reached the palace.
Valora was just as fascinated with this year's event as she was with last year's and the other years before. She had inherited her love for the celebration from her parents and it never failed to take her breath away.
" Your majesty, please get down. It isn't safe." Olga, one of her lady's maids, said.
Valora heard the worry in Olga's voice and turned back to face her. A giddy smile stretched her lips.
" Wouldn't it be fun to join the parade this year?" She asked. Valora asked this same question each year and she received the same answer for the last six years.
Olga wrung her hands. " I don't think the Prince consort would approve."
Valora's smile fell. She should have been used to the familiar sting of rejection by now but she wasn't. She hated how the palace servants treated her, like a child that needed coddling. But despite the way she felt about the treatment, she still tried to justify their actions. It was for her wellbeing after all. They only behaved that way because of her sickness.
Valora turned back to peer out the window once more. She saw a few of the gathered people glancing up at the tall stone structures as though searching for something. Someone.
Her.
The queen they haven't seen in the past five years, the one who seemingly disappeared from the public eye, slowly fading away into obscurity. Right then she felt like a prisoner, encased behind steel bars as she stared down at the mass of gyrating bodies. Watching, always watching but never allowed to join.
Valora flinched at the sound of someone knocking on her bedroom door. It had been happening more frequently lately, the way her limps jerked at every loud noise followed by the uncontrollable tremors. They were just one out of the many symptoms of her sickness. A sickness that no one truly understood.
Her husband, Levi, pushed through the door a second later. Her bedroom was supposed to be locked at all times but being the prince consort gave him access to every room in the palace.
He paused when he saw the sight in front of him.
" Get down from there, Valora. You might hurt yourself." Levi said. He tried to sound gentle but Valora could still hear the bite of irritation in his tone as he spoke. She had been hearing it more often from him lately with each day that passed.
He stepped forward, holding out his hand to help her down and Valora placed her hand in his without complaint. He didn't let go even after her feet safely touched the floor.
Olga let out a sigh of relief.
" You should be in bed resting." Levi said as he led her back to the four poster bed in the center of the room where she spent a huge chunk of her days and nights.
" Can I join the festival?" Valora asked as she sat on the edge of the bed, looking up at him.
She was the queen, she should have had the power to do as she pleased. But the sickness wasn't just physically debilitating, it had also taken a toll on her mind as well, forcing her husband into the role of her legal guardian.
The symptoms had become more aggressive the past few months, forcing her to remain confined within her bed chambers and in her absence, Levi had stepped in as king regent to take over all the royal duties that she could no longer handle.
Valora was grateful to have him by her side but at times, the weight of his attention was stifling.
She immediately chastised herself for having such thoughts. They grew up together and have been married for ten years and in those ten years, he has done nothing but love and care for her. She should have been grateful, instead of quietly resenting the way he made her feel like she didn't have a mind of her own.
She watched his face tighten and she knew what his answer would be before he even spoke. She knew it because that was the same answer he gave her each year.
" We have discussed this already. Today is a day of joy and celebration, we can't let the people see you like this or it might bring down their spirits."
By that, he meant he didn't want their people seeing how badly the sickness had ravished the body of their queen. He didn't want people to see how sunken her eyes and cheeks had become, how thin and frail she had become, the sallow pallor of her skin.
Levi was right. The sight of her like this would only distress her people, especially when she still had no heir to continue her legacy.
Levi caressed her face as though the action would soften the blow of his words. He turned and gestured for Olga to leave.
Olga did as she was told, bowing deeply before exiting, the door clicking shut behind her.
" Have you taken your medicine this afternoon?" Levi asked when they were finally alone.
He smiled when Valora shook her head.
She watched him walk towards the far table that held different vials of health tonics and jars of herbs. He picked up one of the vials and swirled its contents before pouring a measured portion of it into a tiny glass cup. He turned away, using his broad shoulders to shield what he did next.
Valora stood up on silent feet and craned her neck to see what he was doing. She saw him crush something into the tonic in the glass cup. She had caught him doing this a few times before. When she asked him about it, he told her it was to make the taste a bit more bearable for her. She loved and trusted him too much to question it.
She had already returned to the bed by the time Levi turned back to face her. He handed her the glass with a smile and she took it.
" I don't think the tonics are helping." She said, staring down at the dark liquid. At this point, she had been on every form of medication recommended by the royal physician and none of them had made any improvement on her health. Valora was losing hope of ever recovering with every failed treatment plan.
" Just give it some time." Levi said. " I have a good feeling about this one."
With a tired sigh, Valora drank the tonic. It was bitter and hard to swallow so she forced it down and prayed she didn't have to puke it back out.
The dizziness came within seconds of swallowing the tonic. She swayed slightly and Levi rushed to her side. He helped her lay back down on the bed, all while murmuring calming words to her. This was one of the reasons she hated the tonic, it made her drowsy and lightheaded.
" I'll be right here when you wake up." Levi said, softly tracing a finger down her cheek. He leaned forward and pressed a kiss to her forehead.
As her lids grew heavier and her eyes fluttered shut, she thought she saw a look of wicked satisfaction dancing on Levi's face and before she could examine it closer, she was already being pulled into dark nothingness. Perhaps it was just her mind playing tricks on her.