The Princess Game: A Reimagining of Sleeping Beauty (The Four Kingdoms Book 4)

by Melanie Cellier

  Something was happening in Lanover, something bad. The signs were subtle but, in my role as Aurora, I was perfectly placed to see them. Somehow I knew that the missing supplies and the strange intruder were at the heart of the danger, but I couldn’t yet see anything clearly. How did they connect to each other?

  At times like this, I recognised the value of Aurora. I could even see the value to the kingdom that had come from my curse. But, personally, it continued to bring me nothing but despair.

  Before the curse had taken effect, I had been beloved of the whole court. I had entertained no doubt that by the time I turned eighteen, a kiss of true love would free me. But, as time passed, I realised the flaw in my plans. I had become two people. Aurora who lived in the shadows, a fighter and strategist, coldly confident and authoritative. And Celeste who lived in the open, who loved dresses and dancing, and who laughed as easily as she breathed.

  Since I was both of those people, no one truly knew me. The whole me. So how could anyone truly love me? I would be trapped forever between Celeste and Aurora.

  I don’t know when my thoughts had turned from the danger threatening my kingdom to true love. I only knew that when I fell asleep, my dreams reflected the warm glow of blue eyes rather than the shadows that usually inhabited my sleep.

  Chapter 4

  The next day my parents held a proper court reception for their new daughter-in-law. Celine and I had cornered Rafe first thing in the morning and made him and Marie tell us the whole story of their doings in Northhelm. He had written to us previously with a short version, since he had hoped the means they had used to defeat the powerful bargain-maker plaguing Northhelm might have freed me also. But, of course, in my case, the effort had met with failure.

  The full story had taken a long time and my admiration for Marie had grown significantly by the end of it. Outside forces had shaped and changed her life before she had even been born. But despite them all, she showed determination to take her position as princess seriously, to bring value to her kingdom. I felt a strong sense of kinship.

  Celine threw a cushion off the small sofa she had been lounging on. “So much excitement! Everyone else gets to have all the fun.” She moaned. “When will it be my turn to get out of this boring kingdom?”

  I looked at her significantly and then tilted my head towards Marie. Didn’t she care about making a good impression with our new sister-in-law? Celine ignored me.

  Thankfully Marie laughed. “I was feeling bored and wishing for some excitement before I met Rafe, too. But the sad truth is that the excitement isn’t much fun when it’s actually happening. I know I certainly regretted my wish soon enough.”

  Celine sighed, and I could see in her eyes that she wasn’t convinced.

  “So it’s true that Dellie isn’t coming back?” I asked Rafe.

  He nodded. “I’m awfully sorry to steal her away to Northhelm with me. I know you girls will miss her. Her fiancée is a great sort, though. You’ll like him.”

  “Cordelia insisted their wedding be here, in Lanover.” Marie seemed to be trying to appease Celine. “She’s visiting Ferdy’s estates and family at the moment, but they’ll join us here before we return to Northhelm next winter.”

  “I suppose that’s something,” admitted Celine. “I’d like to be a bride’s attendant again.” She had a faraway look, as if imagining her dress.

  Marie caught my eye, and I could see that she was trying to stifle a laugh. Unfortunately, my own giggles were always close to the surface in my Celeste persona, and I couldn’t keep one from bursting out.

  Once I’d started, Rafe and Marie couldn’t hold themselves back either. Marie had yet to be exposed to the contagious music of my laughter, and she was soon gasping for breath. Celine regarded us all with narrowed eyes and then, when we didn’t stop, she flounced out of the room muttering under her breath about insufferable older siblings.

  “Oh, dear.” I mopped my eyes. “Poor Celine. I shouldn’t have laughed at her.”

  Rafe shrugged it off. “She’ll recover and be causing mischief soon enough.”

  Later, though, as I prepared for the official reception, my mind returned to Celine. It couldn’t be easy growing up as the baby at court. And somehow, she had known Rafe was going to arrive the night before, when even I hadn’t heard about it. Maybe it really was time to introduce Celine to Aurora.

  I hesitated for two reasons. Her safety and mine. Information gathering was not without risks, and Celine was still young. I would feel terrible if any harm befell her. And, as my sister, she knew me better than almost anyone. Would she see through my disguise? Would some small mannerism or quirk give me away?

  I was still pondering the question when the herald announced my arrival to the court.

  Several of the young men rushed to surround me, as they always did. But, after my dream the night before, I couldn’t help searching out William with my eyes. I told myself it was only because he represented a new challenge at an otherwise boring event.

  If I had hoped he would approach me quickly, I was soon disappointed. He certainly had no need to seek me out. A gaggle of court girls surrounded him all evening. I could hardly blame them. He was novel and handsome and would one day be a king.

  I ignored the group around him and smiled at my own companions. I laughed often and wondered in my head how my inane conversation didn’t drive everyone away. It had become a little tiresome to be so valued for nothing but my beauty.

  The whole time, out of the corner of my eye, I watched the Northhelmian prince. He made no obvious move to acknowledge my presence. But his eyes betrayed him. They followed me wherever I went, his expression too difficult to read at this distance. A couple of times my cheeks grew warm, and I chided myself for my foolishness.

  Celine, dressed much more sombrely than the night before, convinced my parents to allow some dancing. As she took the instructions to the musicians, William’s eyes met mine across the room. This time neither of us looked away, and a charming grin spread across his face. Without a word he abandoned the group at his side and strode across the floor to me. Somehow he found his way through the crowd surrounding me, and when the first strains of the music began, it was his hand that reached for mine.

  I looked up at him mischievously and let him lead me away from my protesting admirers.

  “That was smoothly done, Your Highness,” I murmured.

  He laughed down at me, holding me close for the dance. “I’ve been waiting for my chance all evening.”

  “Have you indeed? Despite your admiring flock?”

  “Ah, but none of them compare to you.”

  “Careful, Prince, you’ll make me blush.” I looked up at him. “And then all of my admirers will wonder what you’ve said to me. They might challenge you to a duel.”

  “I would welcome a good match.” He spun me around. “I’ve spent too long on horseback or stuffed into a carriage lately.”

  I couldn’t help admiring his confidence. For an insane moment, I opened my mouth to tell him I would be happy to have a practice match with him. As long as I got to choose the weapon. But the barest tickle in the back of my throat stopped the words before they began. What was it about this man that made me forget the part I had to play?

  The memory of our meeting the night before surged, and my resentment flared. The prince was overconfident if he thought he could win me over by admiring my beauty while he mocked my limitations.

  “You complimented me last night, too, Your Highness. I think you might be a flatterer. I should probably ignore everything you say.”

  “Then I will simply have to keep saying it until you believe me.”

  He didn’t seem in the least dismayed by my ingenuous rejection, and I wanted to grind my teeth together in frustration. If I hadn’t been hedged in by the curse, I could have quickly put him in his place.

  Then I reminded myself that the curse just made it more of a challenge. The prince would be here for months, so I could take all the ti
me I needed.

  I smiled up at him. “You’re far too kind, Prince. I shall look forward to seeing you fight for my favour.”

  He looked a little startled, and I congratulated myself on catching him off guard. He looked down at me with the barest hint of suspicion, so I increased the innocence in my expression and batted my eyelashes at him.

  “If that is your desire, Princess, it will be my honour to fight. And, please, call me William.”

  I regarded him for a moment. “Well, your sister is married to my brother, which makes us family of a sort, so I suppose that would be perfectly appropriate, William.”

  “Family!” He actually faltered for a moment in the dance, and I congratulated myself on a small victory. I would enjoy catching out this confident prince.

  But he recovered in seconds and smiled down at me. “My name sounds charmingly on your tongue, Princess.”

  The music finished, and I swept into a deep curtsey. “Thank you for the dance, William.”

  “The pleasure, I can assure you, is all mine.”

  A member of court came forward to claim my hand for the next dance, but I continued to watch William from the corner of my eye. His gaze remained fixed on my retreating form until the next dance drove him from the floor. I smiled to myself and my dance partner sighed with pleasure. I barely refrained from rolling my eyes.

  The next day a maid was finishing putting up my hair when Celine came crashing into my chamber. “Quick! Celeste, hurry!”

  When I didn’t move, she ran forward and tried to pull me out of the chair.

  “Celine,” I said reprovingly. “Rosie is still finishing my hair.”

  “Never mind that!” My sister waved the maid away. “You have to come right now.”

  Sighing, I let her drag me out into the corridor. “What in the kingdoms is going on, Celine?”

  “It’s Prince William.” She smiled dreamily. “Cordelia wrote me that he was handsome, but I didn’t expect him to be quite so...”

  I snorted and let the curse do the work of transforming it into a giggle. “I didn’t see that letter. When did it arrive?”

  “Only a few hours before they did. She sent it via royal messenger with the rest of the official missives, but it must have gotten held up somewhere.”

  “Oh! So you already knew they were coming!” I said, as if the thought hadn’t occurred to me before.

  She nodded, still pulling me along. “I saw the messenger arriving in the rain and pumped him for information. He’d passed them on the road earlier that day.”

  “I’m still not entirely clear why the prince’s dreaminess requires me to be pulled out of my room with my hair half done.”

  Celine snorted. “It looks done to me. You look gorgeous – as you always do.”

  I ignored her since she still hadn’t answered my question and dug in my heels, pulling her to a stop. “What is going on, Celine?” And then I quickly added to satisfy the curse, “A princess should never run, it’s inelegant. She might arrive at her destination red and breathless.”

  Celine rolled her eyes but began walking at a more reasonable pace. When it came to beauty, my sisters considered me a reliable source.

  I fell into step beside her but poked her side, reminding her I still didn’t know where we were going.

  “William put out a general challenge to the young men of the court. He said he was doing it under royal orders or some such thing.” She eyed me sideways as we walked. “Something about winning a certain princess’ favour.”

  I stared at her. “Now? This morning?”

  “Apparently he’s a man of action.”

  “Celine…” I wasn’t quite sure how to phrase my point without offending her. “You remember that you’re only fourteen, right?”

  Celine grimaced. “Seriously, Lettie? Even for you that’s bad. Of course, I remember my own age.” She glared down at the stone passing beneath our feet. “And even if I didn’t, I get reminded of it often enough.”

  “I…I’m sorry.” I gripped her arm, regarding her with concern.

  She shook me off and looked up with a determinedly enthusiastic expression. “Oh, never mind. I know that the prince wouldn’t seriously look at me. But Lettie,” she dropped her voice to a whisper, “they’re fighting shirtless!”

  My laugh rang through the corridor, and I slid my arm through hers. “Well, we’d better hurry then, we wouldn’t want to miss that.” I winked at her, and she giggled and picked up the pace.

  The practice hall buzzed with sound as we stepped through the doors. A large group of young men stood around the edges, talking loudly and boastfully of their different areas of expertise. Most of them were watching a bout going on in the middle of the room.

  I briefly noted Frederic, Cassian and Rafe grouped together to one side, all of their eyes trained on the match, and then my own eyes caught on the fighters. William was matched against a young Lanoverian noble, and Celine had been right. He chest was bare.

  A part of my mind noticed his excellent form and the clean lines of his blade as it swept through the air. The rest of my focus was absorbed by the muscles in his back and shoulders and the smooth look of his pale skin.

  “Careful, Lettie,” said Celine in my ear. “Don’t start drooling.”

  I stiffened and tore my eyes away. “I don’t know what you mean.” It was a weak defence, but my mind seemed to have lost its usual sharp edges.

  Celine dragged me around to the far side of the room, and I noticed that she carefully placed the largest group of nobles between us and our brothers. She was clearly afraid that they might kick us out of the hall if they noticed us.

  “Are we sneaking in?” I asked in a whisper.

  “Of course not. He’s fighting for you, isn’t he? Who has a better right to watch?” But I noticed she spoke quietly and cast an uneasy glance at our brothers as she said it.

  I pulled her down onto a simple wooden bench against the wall and returned my attention to the match. Now that the first shock had passed, I focussed on the competition itself. William fought well. His opponent outweighed him slightly, but the prince seemed to have the edge in skill. After another couple of minutes, he brought the match to an end, lightly resting the tip of his blade against the other man’s neck.

  The Lanoverian lowered his weapon, and I could read his lips as he congratulated William on his victory. Several of the other nobles clamoured to fight him next, but Rafe stepped forward, and they all ceded to him.

  “You said any weapon, did you not, my friend?” Rafe’s eyes were dancing, and I knew exactly what he was going to choose.

  “Ah!” Apparently William did too. “So you’re finally willing to fight me and prove your supposed mastery, are you?”

  “I was waiting to ensure you’d made a full recovery from your adventures in Northhelm,” said Rafe. “I don’t want you to have any excuses when you lose.”

  William grinned. “We’ll see about that.”

  Both men went over to a large weapons’ rack on the wall and chose a pair of knives. I sat up straighter. I had never seen William fight with knives, of course, but I didn’t doubt the outcome for even a moment. As a child, Rafe had bemoaned receiving the useless Christening gift of grace. And then he had started weapons training. I never heard him complain about it again, after that.

  And while Rafe had mastered the sword and the bow, his real expertise lay with knives. The captain of our guard said he had never seen someone fight like Rafe. Given my brother had been my teacher, it was no surprise I favoured knives myself. Well, that and I didn’t have the strength and reach to be an effective swordfighter against men.

  I shivered in anticipation. It had been far too long since I’d seen Rafe engage in a practice bout against anyone who could hold their own. I only hoped William could achieve a decent match.

  They faced off from each other, and Frederic called a start to the bout. William darted forward, sounding Rafe out, and within moments they were exchanging slashes and
blocks at deadly speed. I held my breath, enjoying the thrust and retreat of the lethal dance. William was even better than I had hoped, although I knew Rafe was holding back. The two began to call out friendly insults to each other as they fought, and I couldn’t resist an amused smile.

  Entering into the humourous spirit, Rafe threw one of his knives, slicing a gash in the fabric covering William’s left leg. He used his remaining blade to manoeuvre William around in a wide circle and then called a challenge for William to emulate his feat.

  “You can go for my arm, if you like. It’s my least favourite shirt, I assure you.” His back was to me now, but I could easily imagine his laughing expression egging William on.

  My smile grew wider.

  And so, when William glanced up, his arm pulled back in the middle of his throw, he saw me leaning forward on my seat in breathless interest, a genuine smile lighting up my face. A jolting shock passed over his face, and I knew instantly that something was off with his throw.

  Chapter 5

  I leapt to my feet as his hand released the knife and it began to spin through the air. It missed Rafe completely and came straight towards Celine and I sitting directly behind Rafe. My mind shut down and my instincts took over. Jumping forward in front of my sister, I grabbed the knife from the air, halting its dangerous flight.

  For the briefest second I looked down at the blade in my hand, and then up into William’s eyes. Something passed between us, but before I could decide what it was, the first wave of pain hit my stomach.

  The shocked silence in the hall gave way to a sudden uproar as most of the men present rushed over to ensure we were unharmed. My mind raced, struggling to think past the crippling pain.

  I dropped back onto the seat and let the knife fall to the ground. In the circumstances, the tears came easily. Far more easily, in fact, than sitting upright and ignoring the pain in my middle.