Fourteen-year-old Wren Rhonwen was on her way out to the orchard at her brother’s command. King Landis had just paid them a visit. The queen was pregnant with her third child and had recently been craving the sweet red apples the Rhonwen family grew. Owain was speaking with the king and Lord Nicholas Risteska, who was to marry the king’s sister, Princess Breeya within the year.

Wren had been picking apples for a few minutes when she heard someone else approaching.

“Good day, Niall,” she said as she recognized the young man. It was Niall Flannen, the younger son of the wealthy merchant, Charlie Flannen. Wren had been very good friends with Niall once, but that was before he’d gotten bitter over his brother’s arranged marriage to a nobleman’s daughter. Indeed, the young man was jealous over a great deal of things involving his brother, Adair. Adair had inherited the tavern, had married one of the most beautiful women in the kingdom, and was their father’s favorite.

Niall had ended up going into service for the King’s brother, Tyrone, and Wren had seen less and less of him.

“What are you doing here?” she asked casually as he drew closer. She was startled when Niall came up to her and laid his hands heavily on her shoulders.

“Came to get some fruit,” he slurred and Wren could smell the alcohol on his breath. She started to pull away.

“You…you’ll have to speak with my brother. Owain sells the fruit.” She yelped as he pulled her closer.

Wren began panicking as Niall’s mouth began kissing her face and his hands started groping her. She pushed at him, but he was too big and strong. When she tried to scream and call for help, he put his mouth over hers and smothered her cries with a drunken kiss.

Then she found herself being forced to the ground.

By the time Owain came looking for her, Niall was gone and Wren was curled up on the ground weeping. It wasn’t much later when she began to feel ill.

King Landis was not the only one to have trouble and heartbreak. The Rhonwens had their fair share of grief as well. King Fergus’s faithful servant, Leal Rhonwen, died at the age of 80. His wife, Mairi, and Leal’s 4 children saw him buried near the apple orchards he had tended so lovingly since he had left the castle.

Leal’s family had no time to grieve however. The farm was busy and Aris had her own husband to care for now.

Aris’s marriage to Andrz did not start out well. The matchmaker had chosen the aged weaver to be her husband and she did not love him. She did not even want the man to touch her.

Although he was gruff and unkempt after years of living alone, Andrz was also a patient man. He remembered what it was like to be young and to want love. He did care for the girl, though he wouldn’t say that he truely loved her. Love was meant for the young, not an old man like him. He did hoped that Aris would grow to love him, so that she could be happy.

Aris was out in the garden one hot summer day, not long after the death of her father. There had not been much rain and Aris had taken to drawing water from their little well in order to keep the garden plants from drying out. No harvest would mean a lean winter. Besides Andrz’s weavings had not been selling well in the market because the cost of wool had been so high in the spring. Aris was hoping that her garden would thrive enough for her to be able to sell excess in the market.

She stopped her work as a wave of dizziness swept over her. “That’s odd,” she thought as she staggered over to her water bucket. The bucket was empty and she took the long walk to the well to refill it for a drink. “I must be thirsty,” Aris muttered as she strained to draw the water from the well. It felt so heavy. So heavy…

Andrz came home around twilight and was shocked to see that the house was dark and Aris was no where to be found. A frantic search soon revealed the girl, passed out by the well. She was hot to the touch and muttered fitfully when Andrz spoke to her. Andrz assumed she was suffering from heat stroke.

Gathering her up in his arms, Andrz hurried his unconsious wife into the house and put her in the bed. Rushing back down to the well, he drew out the water Aris had struggled to pull up and ran back to the house. He spent a sleepless night sitting beside his wife, bathing her face with cool water and trying to get her to drink.

Morning arrived and there was little change in Aris. Feeling completely at a loss, Andrz hurried down to Mairi Rhonwen’s home and prayed that Aris’s mother would know what to do.

It would be several weeks before Aris would be well enough to be out of bed. Aris was one of the first to contract a terrible fever that killed many that summer. For days she stayed in bed, hot with fever. Through her illness, she saw a tenderness and care in Andrz that she’d never seen before. He kept her fed, tended the garden, and still managed to get to the market for the day. He hired a young girl to help tend the house and Aris when he was gone during the day. When he came home, he would sit with her for a bit before working on his weavings.

When Aris became stronger, she sent the hired help home. They were not able to afford to keep the girl around much longer. She still wasn’t as strong as she was before the fever, and several times Andrz came home to find her asleep on one of the benches.

He never complained though. If the housework wasn’t done or dinner wasn’t made, Andrz would simply help where he could. As the summer went on, Aris and Andrz both began to notice a difference in their relationship. It was almost like love.

It was a sad day in the Kingdom of Silvetia.

Prince Landis woke to the cries and screams of his mother, Queen Azhar. Leaping from bed, he raced through the upper floor of the castle until he came to his father’s bedchamber. His mother was kneeling by King Fergus’s bed, weeping uncontrolably. The king was not moving.

The somber news was spread through the kingdom. His Royal Highness, King Fergus Gynfor, First King and Founder of Silvetia, had passed away at the age of 77.

Within days, Prince Landis was crowned the new king of Silvetia and his wife, Mihai, became the new queen as well.

It was a hard time for Landis. His father had seemed so healthy and Landis had not expected the full weight of the kingdom to fall on him so suddenly. Things were not very easy for the new king. His wife became pregnant with their second child, his mother was greaving terribly over the death of his father, and he had his own grief to deal with.

Within the year, Azhar Gynfor, the first queen of Silvetia died. There were many who said that the Queen Mother had died of a broken heart. She had been just weeks shy of her 69th birthday.

For King Landis, it felt as if the only bright point of that time came with the birth of his second daughter, Princess Heather.

The Gynfor family valiently pressed forward and Landis proved to be just as wize, kind, and just as his father. He ruled the kingdom well and spent much time with his children, the princesses Bethalia and Heather. Those were precious times to King Landis.

He did not know that those days would soon become even darker.

“No! Why? Why? How could he! He promised me! He promised!” Saraid Aile ran sobbing through the castle of Tyrone Gynfor, the younger son of King Fergus. She couldn’t believe what had just happened. She couldn’t bear what she had just seen.

Ever since she was a young girl, Saraid had dreamed of marrying Prince Tyrone. Oh, she knew that it was practically impossible. A peasant girl simply did not marry a prince, even if he wasn’t heir to the kingdom. However, Tyrone had told her differently.

She always used to slip away from her father and his toymaking business. She’d meet Tyrone under the shady foliage of the trees beside the castle. It was there that she’d fallen in love with the prince and where he had promised to marry her when he was older.

Saraid had sunk to near-despair when her love had to go to the university to receive the rest of his education. What if he found another woman, a prettier and smarter woman, while he was away. This was her constant fear. Her fear of losing Tyrone was the reason she allowed him to have her body during one of his visits home.

Baby Fern was born nine months later, to the delight of Saraid, but to the dismay of Saraid’s brother, Tanner. Surely this would bind Tyrone to her forever!

Saraid had to wait a full month after Tyrone’s return to Silvetia before he came in search of her. He had seemed surprised, but not very pleased to see his daughter. He asked her to come stay at his new little castle for now, as a servant.

Servant? That had not been what Saraid had been expecting, but maybe her love had a plan. Of course, it must be a hard thing to get the others in the royal and noble families to accept a peasant as one of them. Perhaps this was the first step in some great plan Tyrone had.

Then came this night. Saraid had been out to the market that day. Tyrone had been out since early morning. When Saraid returned that evening, she didn’t see him anywhere in the castle. So she continued with her duties, until some strange noises caught her attention. She thought it was Fern at first, but the little one was sleeping contentedly. She went looking throughout the castle, until the only place she hadn’t checked was Tyrone’s bedchamber.

The kingdom was abuzz with excitement. Crown Prince Landis was soon to be wed to Princess Mihai. The entire kingdom was, of course, invited.

Everyone agreed that the wedding was wonderful and it was evident that Landis and Mihai were very much in love.

Life continued on after the wedding.  The kingdom had to be run, and King Fergus had to be sure that his son was fully capable of taking over his kingdom when the time came.

The kingdom (not to mention the King and Queen) soon saw another occasion to celebrate.  News went out that Lady Mihai was expecting her first royal child.

The king and queen were delighted at the birth of their first grandchild, Princess Bethalia.

Princess Heather soon followed Princess Bethalia and Landis felt that he couldn’t have been happier, but that was soon to change…

Here’s some more outakes for your viewing pleasure.

This amused me somewhat. A townie (Alvin, I think) was visiting Micha Kristoger, when he went to the fridge and started randomly opening and closing the fridge doors really fast. I wasn’t quick enough to get a picture of him swinging on them though…

Oh, look! A bee!

So that’s what Nicholas will do if I leave him alone without any customers at his business…

This is one of the NPCs who comes to assess the businesses. I guess she didn’t want to get her clipboard wet…

Here’s some of the ‘natural’ movement that I get from Maeve’s hairstyle sometimes. Calypso has the same style, so hers often does similar things, too.

This all happened in the space of a few minutes. I think young Adair Flannen’s grandparents didn’t like him much.

Tanner gets a little surprise from Grandpa Lerouz as he chats with his future bride.

I’ve got these beds that sit on the floor that I downloaded from somewhere. Unfortunately, they’re a little glitchy. They like to pull this blue trick every so often. The beds don’t usually have a headboard, but obviously, they were created from a bed with a headboard. Graphics are a little wacky, too. Notice that the kid isn’t actually sitting on the bed. Once he lays down, he’ll actually drop down into his proper place, but when he’s getting in or out, he’s sitting like it’s a normal bed.

Life had been good for the Rhonwens since they moved out of the castle. Mairi had born a pair of twins, whom they named Vaughn and Wren.

Owain, the eldest son, took over Aris’s job of helping Leal with the farm. The two men spent many happy hours tending the plants in the garden. The family’s survival depended on it.

Aris helped her mother tend to the house, and helped with the twins.

Life was busy and good and time passed quickly. Almost too quickly. Before Aris knew it, she found herself talking about husbands with her mother.

Wren and Vaughn played in the background as Mairi and Aris talked. Aris had never paid much mind to boys. There had always been so much work to do at the farm. She was needed too much here.

“Aris, there are plenty of hands to help with the work now. Wren and Vaughn help so much with the housework. Your father had Owain and it really is time for you to consider being married.”

“I don’t know,” Aris replied. “There’s still so much I could help you with.”

“By the time I was your age, I was married and had already had you and Owain was on the way.”

“But I don’t know anyone, Ma. I don’t know of any men who would want to marry me.”

Mairi laughed. “Well, that’s what the matchmaker is for, sweety. The merchant’s daughter got a fine husband from the matchmaker. I don’t see why we can’t do the same.”

Aris shrugged, and Mairi sighed. “Well, think about it anyway. You’ve heard the priests at the other weddings. ‘It’s not good for a man to be alone.’ I would think it would be the same for a woman as well.”

Aris had determined that she wouldn’t think of it any longer after that day, but the thought kept creeping back into the forfront of her mind.  Her brother would mention is interest in one of the merchant’s daughter.

Then her mother’s half-brother Tanner got married, while her mother’s half-sister Saraid had given birth to a baby girl (with much speculation over who the father was).

Finally Aris could stand it no more.  She told her parents to summon the matchmaker.  She was ready to be a wife.

The matchmaker arrived, and Aris tried to quell the butterflies in her stomach.  She’d recently seen Innes Flannen’s soon-to-be husband.  He was handsome and loved Innes from the moment he saw her.

Aris wondered what her future husband would look like.  Would he have dark hair like her?  What color would his eyes be?  Oh, she hoped that he would love her, and think her pretty!

Mairi and Aris met the matchmaker.  Aris was shocked when the matchmaker demanded a fee for her services, but Mairi handed over somemoney without batting an eye.  Aris guessed that her mother had known about that.

“I know just the man for you, dearie!  He needs a good wife, someone to feed him, and keep his clothes clean.  You need a husband, one strong enough to provide for you.  I’ll send him over tomorrow to meet you.”

Mairi told the matchmaker to send him over at dinnertime the next day.  They would get to know him over a good meal.

Aris was so excited.  She didn’t realize until late that night that she never even asked for his name.

The next day, Aris insisted on cooking the entire meal herself.  She wanted to impress her new husband.  What would he be like?

The time arrived and Aris nearly screamed when she heard her father talking to someone outside.  She couldn’t tell much from the voice.

The door opened and a man came in and sat down at the table.  Aris felt her heart drop and she turned away.

Adair Flannen was busy. His father’s tavern had become very popular within the last year and Charlie Flannen needed both of his boys to help run the place.

Adair had gotten very good at serving food to the customers. He’d dropped a few plates in the beginning, but his hand was steady now. As he hustled out of the kitchen, he looked for his brother. All he saw were lots of patrons and many dirty dishes. He spotted his little sister, Almarina. She sat quietly at an empty table, playing with a wooden puzzle that Charlie had bought from the toymaker recently.

“Alma? Do you know where Niall is?” Adair asked as he passed her table.

“He went home.”

Adair ground his teeth together. He gave the patron her food, then hurried back to his sister, picking up a few dirty plates as he went. “Can you go get him for me, Alma? Tell him that I’ll tell Da if he doesn’t get back here and get these dishes washed.”

Alma nodded and put her puzzle in a pocket of her dress. She at least understood all the trouble that went into running the tavern. Scampering out the door, she ran down the path to her family’s home. Almarina had to search every room before she finally found Niall in her parent’s room.

“Whadaya want, short stuff?” He asked irritably.

“Adair says he’s gonna tell Daddy if you don’t get back to the tavern and help out.”

Niall snorted and flexed his muscles, “Adair can handle just fine without me. Get out, I’m busy.”

Alma stomped her foot. “You get back right now, or I’ll get Daddy and Mommy right now!”

“Fine.” Niall threw his hands up into the air and followed her out.

——————————————————————–

When the tavern got quiet, Niall and Flannen were allowed a break to eat their dinner.

Adair tried to convince his brother that he needed help at the tavern. Adair never got a chance to rest or goof off, because his brother always left him with his share of the work. It really wasn’t fair.

Just then, Lord Tarun Kristoger walked in and looked around. Charlie Flannen bustled over to greet him. Adair couldn’t help but notice the measuring look that Lord Kristoger gave him.

“My Lord Kristoger! What honor you bring me! How can I be of service to you today.”

Tarun looked over the tavern. It was clean. The furnature was of good quality. “I came to discuss an important matter with you. You seem to be a successful man.”

“Well, I’ve worked hard.”

“It’s well known that you added to your house two summers ago. Do you live very comfortably?”

“Um, well, yes, my lord. I suppose that I do. My family has never had lack of anything.”

“Good. Good.” Tarun murmured. His eyes rested on Adair again. “I assume that your eldest there will inherite all this?”

“Yes, of course.”

Tarun nodded half to himself. “Have you made any marriage arrangements for your eldest?”

The question took Charlie by surprise. “Well, my cousin, Sigmund, across the way was going to have his daughter marry Adair, but since he doesn’t have any sons, Innes will inherit his land and business. Having to heirs with two different businesses would complicate things for them, I think.”

“I agree. So, you don’t have anyone in mind for Adair?”

“No sir. Unless the boy finds a girl he takes a fancy to, I suppose.”

“Hmm. Never liked leaving those sort of things up to chance. I’m going to have to do that with my boy, Caspian. I’ll be sending him to the university when he’s eighteen and hope he’ll find a foreign noblewoman there. I don’t dare do that with Calypso. I’d rather see her marry someone in Silvetia. Someone like a rich merchant’s eldest son.”

Adair had been half listening to the conversation. He suddenly choked on his food as he realized exactly who Lord Tarun was speaking of. Him, Adair Flannen, the son of a merchant… marry Calypso Kristoger, the only daughter of the kingdom’s only noble family!

Not only was Calypso of noble birth, but she was also considered the most beautiful young woman in Silvetia. Lord Tarun wanted HIM to marry her!

Adair suddenly realized that Lord Tarun had actually spoken to him. “Pardon, sir?” he gasped out as he stood up.

Tarun smiled, “I asked what your thoughts were on the arrangement. Would you be a good husband to my daughter?”

Adair’s mouth had gone dry. He could see his father standing behind Lord Kristoger, vigerously nodding his head. He would want a match like this. It would bring much prestige to his family. Adair considered Lord Tarun’s offer for a moment. He’d never seriously thought that he would even have a chance of getting to know Calypso, much less marrying her.

“Sir, I promise I will do my very best to love and care for her,” he managed to say.

Tarun laughed and clapped him on the shoulder. “Good lad! That’s the best I could ask for. Now sit, before your legs give way. I’d like to discuss a few details here and now.”

Charlie shooed Niall out of his chair, telling him to clear off the table and take care of any patrons all in the same breath. Lord Tarun took Niall’s abandoned seat and Charlie pulled up another chair.

Adair was only half listening as Lord Tarun and his father sat discussing things like dowries and universities. He was going to marry Calypso…

King Fergus and Queen Azhar Gynfor sat in their throne room, listening to the messenger read the latest letter from their son. Landis Gynfor, the prince and heir to the throne, was many miles away, studying at a university.

As the messanger finished, the king motioned for the letter to be given to him so he could look over it himself. Queen Azhar sighed happily. “What a wonderful piece of news. If Landis has found an eligible woman at the university, then that will be one marriage we don’t have to worry about. “

“Do not get too excited, my dear,” King Fergus replied. “I will need to send a message to King Guldbrandsen of Moatif. He must agree first before Landis can marry Princess Mihai.”

“Mihai. Elegant name.”

“Indeed. There will be many details to work out in any case. We still have 2 years before Landis returns from the University, and if Princess Mihai decides to complete her instruction there, it will be 3 more years before we can have any sort of wedding.”

King Fergus re-read the letter, nodding over the reports of how his son was doing in his studies. He paused in his reading as a servant announced a woman named Maeve Risteska. “Send her in,” the king said. Risteska… he knew that name. A family devoted to his father in the old kingdom. The Risteska’s had always been the royal family’s most valient knights. However, he’d never heard of anyone named Maeve.

The red-headed woman appeared at the entrance to the throne room. Before King Fergus could speak, his queen had risen from her chair and had gone to embrace the woman.

“Oh, Maeve!” Queen Azhar exlaimed. “You were naught but a little girl last I saw you! How is it that you found your way to Silvetia?”

Maeve Risteska smiled, but her eyes were sad. “I never thought to find you a queen, Azhar. As for me, my family was forced to flee. When the old king died, there was no heir to his kingdom. The nobles all began to fight over who had control over the throne. My husband tried to stake his claim. He had almost gained the throne, when an assassin got him in the back. I was forced to flee with my sons. I didn’t know where to go, when I remembered hearing that Prince Fergus had established himself as a king in another land. It was a miracle we were able to find our way here.”

“Thank the Lord that you did. What do you plan to do now?”

Maeve looked past Azhar. She eyed the king carefully before replying. “Beg His Highness for aid. My sons and I have nothing more than the clothes on our backs.”

It was then that King Fergus spoke up. “What was your husband’s name?”

“Sir Padraig Risteska.”

King Fergus nodded to himself. Sir Padraig had been a good knight from a good family. The daughter of Fergus’ father’s sister had been Sir Padraig’s mother. The family had some royal blood in them.

“How old are your sons?”

Maeve seemed taken aback by the question. “They’re both 15, Sire. They’re twins.”

Azhar saw the glint in her husband’s eye as he questioned further. “Have you made any marriage arrangements for them?”

“FERGUS!” Azhar gasped. She knew exactly what he was thinking of, but now was not the time. “Pay him no mind,” she told Maeve. “You must be weary from your journey. Come with me. I’ll see you settled in one of the bedrooms. We can discuss what is to be done over dinner.”

King Fergus smiled as his wife ushered her childhood friend out of the throne room and down the hall.

On their way up the grand staircase, a raven-haired teenager passed them on her way down. “That was Hestia, one of my daughters.” Queen Azhar told Maeve as they reached the top of the stairs. Farther along, near the bedchamber Azhar was leading Maeve to, another girl passed them by, nodding a gracious greeting to them both.

“That was my other daughter, Breeya. She and Hestia are twins.”

Maeve suddenly understood. “You don’t have marriages arrainged for them yet, do you?”

Azhar shook her head. “Not yet, which is why my husband inquired so closely about your sons. There isn’t anyone here who they can marry. The only other nobles are my brothers, and the church is refusing to allow cousins to marry.”

Maeve smiled at the queen. “It would seem I came at a good time, then.”

———————————————————————-

Queen Azhar and King Fergus were relaxing in their private chambers a few days later, discussing between themselves what had been talked about with Maeve Risteska.

“I have plenty of land to offer Maeve and her sons.  We can consider it part of the girls’ dowry if nothing else.”  King Fergus had a rough map of Silvetia and pondered over it for a few moments before continuing.   “There’s a castle that will be fine to live in once repairs are made.  There’s also a very elegant manor near Micha’s land.  That one will need less repair and will be livable first.”

“Has it been decided who will wed who?” Queen Azhar queried.

“Yes, Nicholas will marry Breeya.  The manor will belong to him when he’s of age.  Regan will marry Hestia, and they’ll live in the castle once the repairs are made.”

“However,” the king continued, “we will have a few years to take care of that.  All four of the children will be sent to the university before they wed.  Landis has said many good things about it, and I wish for the future generation to have the skills needed to run the kingdom properly.”

Just a few random pictures that I’ve taken over the course of the challenge. Enjoy.

RUNAWAY TODDLERS!!! When Asha moved out of the castle, her daughters were left downstairs at first while she started for the taxi. I was worried the twins would get left behind, so I used move_objects on to move them outside. I was surprised when they both began crawling to the edge of the screen while their mother got into the taxi. You can see Asha in the distance of the picture.

Old Grim comes for Lyric Flannen right in the middle of Ulicia’s transition from Toddler to Child.

I was slightly disturbed by this…but okay…