ALICE: AFTERNOON OF JUNE 3RD, 366

Alice Sandoval stood in the centre of the ballroom, clad in an elegant blue sleeveless gown that ran down to her ankles but did not restrict movement, blond hair carefully plaited and decorated with a floral ornament. The capital's nobles stood at a safe distance; far enough away that they couldn't be accused of association, but close enough to ensure they would have no difficulty hearing what was to come. Before her stood Raymond Slandhaile, the crown prince of the kingdom of Slandhaile and, unfortunately, her fiance. Wearing a face of thunder, he seemed to be the only one in the room who wasn't infected by the air of anticipation.

"Alice Sandoval. For many years I have tolerated your jealousy towards Emily, and your pathetic attempts at bullying. But to think you would actually send an assassin against her!"

The girl in question, Emily Crawford, stood closely behind the prince, a vindictive smile on her face. Alice glanced at her, keeping her expression carefully neutral.

"I have done no such thing, nor have I ever engaged in bullying. What would I stand to gain from such behaviour? For what reason would I be jealous? You know as well as I that our engagement was decided by our families, and not of our own will. If you are to be taken from me by another, I would be only thankful, not jealous."

There were some muted gasps from the spectators, surprised not at the accusations or denials, but only at the obvious insult towards royalty. Alice couldn't care less; everything she had said was true. Raymond frowned even further, to an extent that Alice was concerned his forehead would tear.

"Whatever your opinion of me, you are still aiming for the position of queen. All of your tutors remark how diligently you study. Isn't it natural for someone like you to want to do away with the competition? In any case, your guilt is not in question here. I am simply declaring your punishment in front of these witnesses."

The ball was being held by Raymond in the royal castle, and all the nobles residing in the capital had been invited. An invitation from royalty is not easily declined, so the ball was well attended, but being the summer, many nobles were dwelling in their own territories. Alice was in the capital to attend the royal academy, but no other members of her family were present. The large number of nobles present to witness these events, none of which were close acquaintances of Alice, was likely planned for precisely this moment. Alice found that amusing, although she made very sure to keep any expression off her face. Organising a ball out of season, just to gather nobles to watch her be humiliated. How very Raymond of him.

"I have never desired the position of queen. However, since it was to be forced upon me, of course I took my education seriously. My honour as the first daughter of House Sandoval demands that I exceed any expectations held of me. Furthermore, you dare to declare my guilt without even a trial? Is the crown prince so ignorant of the law of his own country?"

There was some murmuring from the surrounding nobles. The disrespect for royalty continued, but Prince Raymond was not exactly coming off well in this exchange. It was certainly true that Alice had a right to a trial and that Prince Raymond had no rights to unilaterally inflict a punishment.

"How dare you. A would-be murderer like you demands rights? But no matter. This decree does not come from me, but from King Edward himself."

That got the largest collection of gasps yet, which only doubled when Raymond held up a sheet of parchment, clearly bearing the king's seal. Alice grabbed it from him and read in silence. Raymond smirked.

"As you can see, you are hereby banished from the kingdom of Slandhaile, for the remainder of your worldly life. You are to be out of the capital by dawn tomorrow. You should be thankful for the leniency of my father; if it were up to me, I would have your head for the crimes you have committed. But I will have to take my comfort in knowing that you will probably end up spending the rest of your life in some whorehouse, while Emily takes your place as queen."

The room was stunned into silence. Alice was the first daughter of Duke Denis, one of the highest ranking nobles of the kingdom, and possessed both beauty and talent in abundance. Emily was only the third daughter of a lower noble, and while beautiful, did poorly in her studies. Combined with the lack of relevant training she had received, it was obvious who was the better choice for queen. Even if Alice had tried to have her assassinated, this situation was strange. The royal family should have preferred to sweep the incident under the rug, perhaps secretly holding Alice under house arrest with the excuse of illness or something. To not only openly declare it in such a grandiose manner, but to banish Alice from the kingdom without even holding a trial was... odd. Furthermore, to be blunt about it, had Alice wanted Emily dead, Emily would be dead. Despite her youth, Alice was not known for failure.

"Very well. I continue to declare my innocence, and I swear an oath here and now before these noble witnesses that I made no attempt on Emily's life. But I will not deny the will of the king."

So Alice turned and left the room. The murmuring picked back up, a range of expressions from shock and worry to amusement and outright gloating visible on the faces of the assembled audience. And distracted as they were, nobody saw the faint smile that played on Alice's lips.

ALICE: AFTERNOON OF APRIL 17TH, 356

"Nat, why do I have to dress up today? I hate these stuffy clothes."

"Because today you will be meeting your fiance. You need to look your best."

A six-year-old Alice cutely tilted her head at her maid.

"What's a fiance?"

"The person who you will marry when you're grown up."

"But how do we know who I'll marry when I grow up if I'm not grown up yet? Do we have magic that can see the future?"

Natalie blinked as she struggled to come up with an answer to that one. Questions from small children were often a bit... blunt. On top of which, being a commoner herself, her own situation would be very different from that of Alice. She certainly had no-one telling her who she must marry when she was only six. She was in fact looking forward to drinks with William the gardener in the evening. Her hope that today would finally be the day he took the hint was faint at best, but that wasn't going to stop her from trying.

"Because the person you will marry is decided ahead of time by your parents. Now that they've decided on someone, you need to introduce yourself."

Alice considered this. If that was where husbands came from, then she couldn't really object. It did raise some more questions though.

"But what if I don't like him?"

Natalie paused again. Another question that could be stated in a few words, but needed an essay to answer or no answer at all. Natalie chickened out and went for the second option.

"I'm sure the two of you will get on fine. Your parents know you well, after all. They wouldn't pick someone who was not a good match."

"But I hardly ever see my parents. I do see you all the time, though, so I think you know me far better than my parents do. I think you should be the one to pick my husband."

Natalie didn't even try with that one, surrendering before Alice had even finished her sentence.

"Come on, you're all ready now. Lets get you downstairs."

Alice pouted, but plodded out in front of Natalie regardless. Her parents, Denis and Lucy Sandoval, stood in front of the grand staircase, her older brother Charles to their right. Alice was glad to see that he was equally dressed up. Suffering should be shared! She stepped carefully down the staircase and took up her position to the left of her parents. Her etiquette teacher had drilled in to her the correct position and posture for receiving guests, but had never adequately explained why. What difference did it make where she stood? But it didn't do any harm, unlike these stupid clothes that made it so hard to walk, so she was happy to oblige.

The grand staircase was positioned directly opposite the front door, a luxurious red carpet the width of the staircase running the intervening length. The house staff were lined up on either side of the carpet, all impeccably dressed in their respective uniforms. Alice did not have to wait long before a pair of butlers pulled open the double doors in perfect synchronisation, and a third announced clearly.

"Her Majesty, Queen Isabelle Slandhaile. His Royal Highness, Prince Raymond Slandhaile"

A lady entered wearing a dress so wide that Alice was glad they'd opened both doors. She wouldn't have fit through just one! She suddenly felt a little better about her own marginally less impractical clothing. She was followed closely by a small boy of about the same age as Alice. Behind them were several large knights in shiny armour, swords sheathed in their belts. Alice assumed they were there to try to roll the lady back upright in case she fell over. And apparently this was the queen, one of the most important people of the country! Alice glanced at Natalie in her highly practical uniform, who had taken up position alongside the carpet. She considered that all the house staff were commoners. Taking in her own clothes, and what she'd seen other nobles of various ranks wearing, and now the queen in front of her, realisation dawned. It was so obvious! The stupidity of clothing was directly proportional to social rank! Alice was glad she wasn't a princess, or heaven forbid, the queen. She wouldn't know how to cope.

Alice carefully trod the tightrope of etiquette, getting her greetings spot on, and keeping her movements graceful and controlled. She felt quite proud of not making a single mistake. Something to brag about at her next lesson. The group moved to a reception room, where servants served refreshments, and her parents started discussing things with the queen, too quietly for her to hear. Alice inspected the small child, Prince Raymond. Presumably this was to be her fiance? It can't be any of the knights, right? That wouldn't make any sense. But if she married a prince, wouldn't she become a princess? And a minute ago she had been praising the fact that she wasn't one! Was this the thing that Nat called karma? At this point, Queen Isabelle looked towards Alice, obviously finished with whatever discussion the grown-ups were having.

"So it is decided then. We will have Alice betrothed to Raymond, and will announce Raymond as the crown prince. I'm sure Alice will make a suitable queen."

Alice blinked. 'What?'

Raymond looked incredulous.

"Why do I have to marry someone like her? I don't like her one bit!"

Alice blinked again. 'Don't like me? But we've never met before.'

Lucy looked down at him, wearing her silly talking-to-a-child smile that Alice disliked. At least it was directed at someone else this time.

"Don't be like that. I'm sure if you two go and play together for a bit, you'll get along just fine."

She motioned to a butler, but before he had even taken a step, Raymond doubled down.

"No. She's ugly and I hate her!"

He yelled out as he ran out of the room. One of the knights followed him. Alice just stood there, stupefied. 'That thing is supposed to be my husband? And I have to be queen? I have to deal with that stupid boy, and even stupider clothes?' She wanted to tell her father that he'd definitely picked wrong, and should try again, but saying that while the queen was here would be a great etiquette faux pas. So she kept her mouth shut and put on her listening-to-adults smile that she hoped didn't look as fake as her mother's, while her parents and the queen discussed teas and flowers and next year's harvest festival. None of them mentioned the prince's outburst even once.

NATALIE: LATE EVENING OF JUNE 3RD, 366

To Natalie

I'm so sorry for running away without telling you. King Edward has ordered my banishment from the kingdom, and I must flee for my life. I know that if I'd told you in advance, you would have insisted on following me, but you and William love each other very much and there's no way I could do that to you both. I know this is a hopeless request but I will make it anyway: Do not worry over me. I was prepared for this, and will be able to live on without difficulty. I thank you for your many years of exemplary service. May you live in happiness.

Alice

Natalie stared at the letter, unable to process what she was reading. Alice was... what... banished? Why? What had she done? She had attended the royal palace, invited to a ball. That was odd, with it not being the usual social season, but Alice hadn't questioned it. Then she'd returned home early, claimed to feel ill, and requested to rest and to be woken for the evening meal. Natalie had come to wake her as requested, only to find her missing, with this letter addressed to her that explained almost nothing.

Natalie slumped onto the bed, her hand clutching at a small pouch of gold. A second note assured her that it was only a small part of Alice's savings, and that she had more than enough to start a new life, but to not let Lord Sandoval know about it or he would doubtless confiscate it. The separate note was in case the lord demanded to read her letter. He probably would refuse to let her keep the money if he found out about it; there was several years worth of her salary in there. Being given that much money hurt. It was true that the Sandoval house would very likely dismiss her after this, her mistress having fled the kingdom, but right now Alice needed the money far more than she did. The letter claimed the opposite, that Alice had plenty, but... Natalie felt betrayed by kindness. Why would the king banish such a selfless young lady?

There was another letter left behind, addressed to Lord Sandoval. With the Lord and Lady residing in their territory, along with Charles, who had already graduated from the academy and married, Alice was the only one currently using the capital residence. As such, the most senior staff had accompanied the Lord back to his territory. While there was a head maid, that was only for organisational reasons and when it came to family matters, she had very little authority. Natalie was effectively the highest ranking servant present. That meant that she needed to decide how to deal with this.

First thing, she should try to find out more information about what happened. She was acquainted with some of the maids who worked at the palace. Something like this would certainly have sent waves crashing through the palace servants, so they would be certain to have heard all about the afternoon's events by now. Informing the staff that Alice would not be taking dinner, she set off to the first of her friends.

A couple of hours later, she was on a horse heading straight for the provincial mansion. Attempted murder of Emily? She would never!

ALICE: EARLY EVENING OF JUNE 3RD, 366

Alice grabbed a large backpack from a wardrobe and started to fill it with prepared equipment and clothing. She would have liked to have packed it beforehand, but it was too big to hide, and would have raised questions that she wouldn't have been able to answer had it ever been discovered. She lifted a large bag of gold and silver coins from its hiding place under the floor; it had been a long time since she had spent the entirety of her allowance, saving up the excess in preparation for today. She drafted letters to her father and to Natalie, slipping in a few pieces of gold for Nat. If Alice had one regret, it was what she was about to do to Natalie, the one person in the world who didn't stick to her for status or influence, or in the hopes of gaining something, but simply because she was her friend. Admittedly, it was also her job, but there was no rule against liking your job. Lying like this to the poor girl almost physically hurt. Alice just hoped that she kept the gold, instead of turning it over to father, who had far too much of the stuff as it was.

She also wrote out some letters to some merchant acquaintances, unsigned and written left-handed to disguise her handwriting. Merchants loved their gossip; being behind on the news was bad for business, after all, and Alice wouldn't be surprised if they had heard of her banishment already. But it wouldn't hurt to give them certain... extra details. These she took with her; there were plenty of orphans and beggars on the street who would gladly deliver them for a few coppers. Not the most reliable delivery service in the city, but it was anonymous, and it didn't matter if a few failed to reach their destinations.

Bag packed, Alice removed her makeup and changed into second hand clothing, sporting a few scuffs and patches. She took a knife to her hair, as close to the scalp as she could manage. Alice carefully caught the trimmings, packing them securely in her pack. They would be disposed of elsewhere; they must not be found here. Finally she lifted a black wig from below the floorboards, even longer than her original hair, a little dirty but not excessively so. Her plans would be spoilt if anyone knew she had this, but she had been careful and was confident that her secret was safe. Donning the wig, she took one last look in the mirror. The face that stared back belonged to a commoner, not well off but not destitute either. Perfect. All the clothing in her pack was cleaner and a little higher class, but she wouldn't switch to it until she'd arrived at the next city. It also wouldn't be good for a poor commoner to be seen around the noble district, so she wrapped herself in a cloak that she would discard once she left the district. She tossed her pack out of the window, climbed down after it, avoided the guards and stepped out into the streets.

She hadn't made it out of the capital yet, but Alice was already grinning to herself. Her freedom was just a carriage ride away. Freedom from a father who thought of her as a resource instead of a daughter, from a mother who was more interested in socialising than her family. From a fiance who hated her, for reasons she'd never fully understood but suspected to be jealousy of her talent. A peaceful commoner's life for her, and for those who had tried to keep her caged... Well, the fallout from Raymond's idiocy wouldn't all land for days. Alice regretted she couldn't stick around to watch the resulting explosion, but hopefully the result would be intensive enough that the rumours would reach the neighbouring kingdoms.

Still smiling, she paid a carriage driver the few silver needed to travel on the overnight carriage to the next city north, and hopped on.

ISABELLE: MORNING OF JUNE 4TH, 366

Queen Isabelle strutted into the dining hall where the king was breakfasting, took her seat at the table, and ordered the attendants to leave. Watching them file out, she turned to her husband. "So. Care to explain what the hell happened yesterday?"

Edward frowned. "That was a mess indeed. Who would have thought that Alice would target the life of our Robert, after all we have done for her. I had no choice but to immediately get rid of her before she could enact her plans."

Isabelle stared. Robert was the second prince, three years younger than Raymond, and Isabelle hadn't heard he was connected to this incident at all. "What? Would you care to explain that assertion? I had heard that you had banished Alice for an attempt on the life of that bitch Emily that Raymond keeps fawning over."

Isabelle had spent the previous week at the family estate, her mother having fallen deathly ill and not being expected to survive more than a few days. Fortunately, she had pulled through, although doctors were still working diligently to diagnose what had happened, if only to judge the chance of a relapse. Arriving back late the previous night, she had discovered that she had missed an impressive set of events. Edward recounted the story.

"Four days ago, an assassin broke in to the Crawford estate. He ran into a patrol and was captured alive. He had on him a map, with Emily's room marked, along with guard posts and patrol routes. Fortunately, the patrol that caught him was missing from the map, else he may never had been caught. On interrogation, he claimed to have been hired by someone who gave the name of 'Alice', who had also provided the map. He told the investigator he had dealt with her personally the previous day, gave us the time and place and an accurate description of Alice Sandoval. He also mentioned that Alice had told him she had a second job lined up for him once he was done with Emily, someone by the name of Robert, although she hadn't given him more details."

"And I assume you didn't take his word for it. He could have been lying through his teeth. So what evidence did you dig up?"

"Of course. First off, some soldiers investigated the tavern in question, and found several patrons who had been there for the meeting. They corroborated the story of the assassin, and filled in the details of the conversation between the two. Alice had expressed concerns about Raymond's incompetence, and felt that the nobility was likely to push someone else to take the throne. She hadn't explicitly mentioned Robert in relation to that, but the implication is clear. As well as the obvious motive of Emily stealing the affections of her husband. Given the... interesting nature of the conversation they'd overheard, one enterprising patron decided to tail Alice, and was able to lead a group of soldiers to an inn room, where they found copies of floor plans for the Crawford estate and for the palace, among personal effects confirmed to belong to Alice, and documents confirmed to be in her handwriting."

Isabelle peered. "You are aware of Alice's opinions of Raymond, and of royalty. The motive makes no sense. If she thought that we would agree to switch Raymond's betrothal to Emily, she would jump at the chance. Also, assuming this was true, Alice is not so stupid as to state the fact that she wishes to commit high treason out loud in the middle of a crowded tavern."

Isabelle tapped her fingers on the table. The evidence was there, but it made no sense. And her foolish husband had responded to it without giving Alice a chance to defend herself. She chose another point to pick at. "So, this missing patrol route. Was there anything special about it? Was it new?"

Edward looked confused. "Why does that matter?"

Isabelle sighed. She could see the point of the nobility who thought Robert should take the throne. For better or for worse, Raymond definitely inherited his brain matter, or lack thereof, from his father. But Edward cared deeply for his family, was aware of his weaknesses and was fully prepared to take her advice as needed when it came to running the country. "Because it's suspicious that someone had such extensive plans that missed out a single patrol. Let me put this clearly for you. I suspect that the patrol was left off deliberately, and that assassin was supposed to get caught. That Emily was never meant to die. That the whole intrusion was just the first step in a play to frame Alice. Likewise, do you really think that a single assassin could sneak into the palace and kill Robert, even if he knew every guard station and patrol route? Did these floor plans of the palace that were found include patrol routes? For that matter, you said they found documents containing Alice's handwriting, but was any of that handwriting on the floor plans, or anything else incriminating?"

"How should I know? I'm not the investigator. He told me that the evidence was extensive. I didn't memorise every single detail."

Isabelle sighed once more. She hadn't added that another point of suspicion was that this happened immediately after she left capital for a time, leaving Edward to his own devices: Attacking Edward's ego would be counterproductive. She knew Raymond would push for anything that got him out of his engagement, and Edward would be far more receptive to his persuasion than she would have been. Humiliating Alice in such a public manner would have been Raymond's idea, too. "I would strongly advise you secure Alice in another city while this matter is investigated further. She only left yesterday, so it shouldn't be hard to catch up. Don't let her leave the kingdom. With her abilities, that would be a great loss."

ISABELLE: AFTERNOON OF JUNE 4TH, 366

Raymond stood before his mother, face beet red and veins bulging. "That woman tried to have Emily killed, and now you want to reverse her banishment? Do you have any care for the face of the royal family?"

Isabelle rolled her eyes. "Must I explain again the reasons why the charges are suspicious? The investigator has confirmed that there was no overlap between items that are provably Alice's and items that were incriminating."

"But they all saw Alice there. Even the inn keeper confirmed that she was the only one to enter that room."

"Did they? Her hair and eye colour are rare indeed, but hardly unique. I don't doubt that I could find someone sufficiently similar to give a matching description if I searched the capital. Indeed, that is how these things are normally confirmed, by placing the suspect in a line-up along with people of matching descriptions, and asking the witness to pick out who they saw. Which we now can't do, because you insisted on punishment before confirming it was warranted. In fact, would I not be correct in assuming that you yourself do not fully believe in Alice's guilt, and that it simply formed an excuse for you to convince your father to be rid of her?"

"How... How dare you. What are you implying?"

"I am not implying anything. I simply mean what I said." Isabelle was deeply frustrated. If there was one thing she was sure of, it was that the combination of Raymond and Emily must not be permitted to ascend the throne. The damage to the kingdom would be immense. Isabelle had to admit that even the combination of Raymond and Alice was looking like a risky choice. At the time of their engagement she justified Raymond's behaviour as that of a small child who didn't know better, and that he would eventually mature. That hadn't happened, and Robert was clearly better suited to be king. Robert's fiance Kari was inoffensive enough, but she was a princess of Ofbar, a foreign kingdom, and that sort of foreign influence on Slandhaile's politics would be unwelcome even if they were currently on friendly terms. If only she'd had Alice betrothed to Robert back then... Still, it was too late for regrets, and Robert should be capable of keeping Kari's influence in check. As long as Alice's innocence could be proven beyond doubt, she would at least be able to use that as an excuse to disinherit Raymond.

Isabelle's train of thought was interrupted by a knock on the door. Permitting entry, a soldier walked up to Isabelle and whispered in her ear, before leaving. Isabelle sighed. "Well, that confirms it then. At the time 'Alice' was conspiring with the assassin in the tavern, she was also apparently present in the academy library, witnessed by two teachers and a dozen students, all who know her personally and would not have mistaken her face. I must say that her ability to be in multiple places at once is quite extraordinary. Furthermore, she reported personal items stolen last week. The list of reported items was quite familiar." She smirked as Raymond blanched at the news.

Isabelle didn't add the extra bit of information that the soldier had shared, that no-one remembered seeing anyone matching Alice's description at any city gate or carriage stop. The servants at the Sandoval capital residence had claimed that she had fled the evening before. It was possible she was disguised, but why would she have done so? No-one was pursuing her. She may simply have not been noticed, but that was unlikely given her conspicuous appearance. There was another possibility: Was she still hiding out in the capital? From what Isabelle had heard about the ball, Alice knew well that the evidence against her was suspect. She would also obviously have known her own innocence. Was she lying low, waiting for her name to be cleared? Isabelle considered sending out town criers to get her to make contact, but what would she have them say? Publicly announcing that the king had banished a subject unjustly was not an option. But truthfully, getting Alice back now would be... inconvenient. There would be no reconciling her with Raymond after this, nor could her engagement be switched to Robert without gravely insulting a neighbouring nation, the implications of which she didn't want to contemplate. Even if she was pushed into an advisor role, after her very public banishment, her continued presence in the capital would say everything that the criers wouldn't.

No, it was unfortunate, but for the sake of not weakening the royal family, the banishment must stand. She wouldn't be able to hide the injustice from Lucy and Denis, and Lucy would certainly be upset, but Denis would keep her quiet if suitably compensated. Alice herself would be the biggest problem if she truly was still in the royal capital. She could pop up and wreak havoc at any time. Isabelle turned back to Raymond. "Congratulations, you have won. Make sure you and Emily are ready to receive a summons tomorrow morning. Until then, get out of my sight."

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

Raymond smiled in bliss as he left the room, a view Isabelle considered truly disgusting. Left on her own, she began to draft a message for the criers which Alice would understand, while sounding innocuous to anyone else. She also drafted a note to the gate guards on how to deal with Alice when she showed. While it was true that there was no avoiding Lucy discovering the unjust banishment, she must never discover this. She must always be led to think that Alice had left the kingdom, and was living a happy life elsewhere. Isabelle felt a little sorry for the girl. Such a waste of talent, through no fault of her own.

DENIS: BEFORE DAWN OF JUNE 5TH, 366

Dear Father,

I have little time available, so forgive me for being brief. I have been falsely accused of the attempted murder of Emily Crawford and sentenced to permanent banishment from the kingdom. I have sufficient currency to settle elsewhere and have appropriate plans in place. I hesitate to place them in writing, lest this message be intercepted by my enemies. Enemies whose faces I do not even know; despite the obvious motive on the part of Raymond and Emily, neither have the wit required to create enough false evidence to convince the king of my guilt. A third party is at play here. Whether they are against me personally and will stop at my banishment, or stand against our house and seek its utter destruction, I can offer no speculation. Please take care of yourself and mother, and offer my apologies to Charles for not being able to bid him goodbye in person.

Alice

Denis screwed up the letter in his fist. It had arrived in the hands of Natalie, who had been Alice's personal maid since childhood. She had arrived in the early hours of the morning, dishevelled and in tears, having made the usually three-day journey from the capital in a little under two. Her state was such that his servants had felt the need to wake him immediately for this, instead of waiting for some more sensible hour.

"Explain!"

Natalie shuddered, but managed to squeeze out a speech that she had obviously prepared during the journey. "Alice was invited by Prince Raymond to a ball at the royal palace, but she returned to our capital residence far earlier than expected. She retired to her room, claiming that she wasn't feeling well, and to wake her later for dinner. When I entered her room to call her, the window was open and she wasn't present. Two letters were placed on the bed, that one and one other addressed to me. Some of the items from her room were missing. The letter to me didn't explain anything; she just apologised for running away on her own without telling me, and said not to worry because she had plans for this situation. I immediately went to visit an acquaintance who works at the royal castle, where I learnt that Prince Raymond had publicly accused her of harassment of Emily, culminating in ordering her assassination. Alice denied everything, and convincingly argued that she had no reason to do such a thing, but the prince brought out an order of banishment bearing the king's seal. The king and queen themselves were not present at the event."

Denis was angry. This betrothal would have finally tied the house of Sandoval to the royal family, with all the status and benefits that entailed. All the stupid girl had to do was keep her head down and marry the prince, but she'd ended up getting caught in some sort of plot? Didn't all her tutors keep extolling her intelligence? Where was all that intelligence now, if she didn't even see this coming... Still, banished by the king? Edward had signed this without consulting or even informing him? Denis wondered if Isabelle knew. She and Lucy had been friends since their own childhoods, and it was that friendship that had got them this betrothal in the first place. And they hadn't been at the ball? That was very strange in itself; if it had been an event for the youths of the capital things would be different, but they certainly should have put in an appearance at an event to which all nobles were invited. But that was unimportant. What he needed to do right now was try to salvage the situation. "Show me your letter."

Natalie nodded and handed other a second piece of paper. Reading it, Denis saw she hadn't exaggerated. It really did contain nothing at all about what had happened at the palace. Denis considered the situation. Alice was gone, and it was unlikely that she could be brought back to the kingdom even if innocent, but if he could prove that the charges were false, that was something he could turn to his advantage. Being able to blame the loss of a child on a conspiracy involving the royal family could well bring them more benefits than the marriage, if they played their cards right. And with the relationship between Lucy and Isabelle, Denis expected that he would be able to see all the cards beforehand. With how obviously suspicious the described events were, Denis had no doubt that Alice was telling the truth about her innocence, and that he would be able to find evidence of the fact with little difficulty... His anger abated, he looked back up at Natalie. Despite his irritation, he knew that there was no benefit in shooting the messenger. In fact, given how close she was to Alice, it was possible that Alice might contact her in the future, in which case it would be best to keep her to hand.

"Rest here for today, then return to the capital mansion and have the head maid assign you new duties. Should Alice contact you in the future, you are to bring any letters to me, unopened. Dismissed"

Natalie nodded, gave her thanks, and fled.

RAYMOND: MORNING OF JUNE 5TH, 366

Raymond entered the audience chamber hand in hand with Emily. He was finally rid of that oh-so-perfect Alice. Already fed up of hearing how great she was before they'd even met, she'd proceeded to outrank him in every single school exam ever since. She just didn't seem happy unless she was superior to him in every possible way. Even swordsmanship! Why was a woman training in swordsmanship? Worse, why was she good at it? Memories of Alice soured his mood, so he glanced back at the face of Emily to calm himself. Reaching the front of the room, he greeted his parents before noticing the presence of Robert. Why was he here?

Isabelle spoke up first. "Given the conviction and banishment of Alice Sandoval, the engagement between her and Prince Raymond is annulled. Instead, we recognise Prince Raymond's pursuit of Emily Crawford, with formalities to be finalised at a later date."

Raymond and Emily beamed, but their expressions soured as Edward started to speak. "Since Raymond has shown himself easily misled and incapable of leadership, we deem him unfit for the throne. Raymond shall be stripped of his title of crown prince, which shall pass to Robert."

Robert kept a neutral expression, obviously forewarned. Emily stuttered, unable to speak. Raymond boggled. "You... You can't do that. I am the first prince. The throne is to be mine!"

Isabelle sighed. "And once again you show why you are unsuited to the throne. You have used false charges to throw away one who would have been a great asset to the kingdom, merely to satisfy your own feelings of inadequacy. Yet you are unable to comprehend what you have done wrong. A king must think first of his kingdom, and not of himself."

"What sort of reasoning is that? A king is the ruler of his kingdom. He can do whatever he likes!"

Even Edward was wearing a look of disappointment. "While I had hoped it wouldn't come to this, I have to agree with Isabelle. This incident could be badly damaging to the royal family if the fact of Alice's innocence spreads."

"So what? It's not like anyone can do anything about it."

Isabelle looked disappointed, which made Raymond even angrier. Why was everyone always looking at him like that? Always comparing him to Alice, always thinking what a disappointment he was in comparison. And now that he'd finally got rid of her, they were going to swap him out with Robert? As Raymond glared at him, Robert spoke up. "If you were in father's position, and the Sandoval house demanded your head in compensation for the loss of their daughter, how would you react."

"I would reject their demands, of course."

"And what do you think would happen next?"

"What do you mean next? I've already rejected their demand. The issue is closed."

"House Sandoval is unlikely to think so. What would happen next is that they talk to other nobles, spread the story of what happened. That a prince had their daughter unjustly banished, and the king refused them justice. Nobles would begin to think 'what if my daughter is next?' Perhaps House Sandoval takes matters into their own hands, sends assassins after you. The king would have little option but to respond to such a thing with force. But now we've lost the trust of the noble houses. Will we still be able to raise levies? Will they join the Sandovals against us? A king who acts unjustly is paving the way for civil war."

Raymond's mouth opened and shut like a goldfish. Civil war? Anyway, it was Edward who had signed the banishment order, not himself. Yes, he pushed for it, but it still wasn't his fault. This wasn't fair! But before he managed to get any further words out, Emily had started mumbling. "No, this isn't what she promised... I was meant to be queen..."

Isabelle's eyes narrowed. As quiet as Emily had been, in the silence of the chamber, everyone had heard it. "Please would you elaborate on that statement? Beginning with who 'she' is."

Emily jerked upright, obviously surprised that she'd said anything out loud. After a few seconds of panic, she managed to calm herself enough to respond. "I apologise, I misspoke. I meant 'he'. I was talking about Raymond."

Raymond stared at Emily, wondering why she was so terrified at the queen's question. Of course he had promised her she would be queen. Isabelle seemed to have something else on her mind, looking at Emily with the look of disappointment she normally reserved for Raymond. She rang a bell to call back the dismissed servants and guards. "That will be all for now. Raymond, take Emily back to your chambers. I believe the two of you will have a lot to discuss." She then started whispering to a page, too quietly for Raymond to hear.

SETH: EVENING OF JUNE 5TH, 366

Seth hunched over his beakers, some of which were gently steaming. One was bubbling furiously, a blue flame set underneath. This was a mystery, and Seth did love a good mystery. He was now certain that it hadn't been an illness. Elizabeth Fresnel, mother to Queen Isabelle, had been poisoned! But how, and what with? The symptoms did not match any of the common poisons that Seth knew about. Or any of the uncommon ones, for that matter, and Seth knew of plenty of uncommon poisons. It had also failed to kill her. He'd had a quiet word with the family already, in case someone wanted to finish the job, but the only reason to use such an obscure poison would be to try to mask the fact that the death was unnatural. Failing and making a second attempt would spoil that.

Actually, there was one other possibility; that the poison was not meant to be fatal. But what reason would there be for that? The Fresnels were remarkably divorced from politics for such high-ranking nobility, aside from their daughter. The daughter... The queen of Slandhaile, who so rarely left the capital for more than a couple of days at a time, had been here the whole week. Had someone poisoned the poor old lady as a diversion, just to lure the queen out? But why draw the queen from the capital? It was true her security was lighter while she was here, but there was no sign of foul play during the visit. At least that Seth knew of. Perhaps that sort of thing would be covered up?

His thoughts were distracted when the contents of one beaker turned a bright blue. "Ah-ha! Got you!" Shamelessly talking aloud to his own equipment, he started scribbling into a notebook, grabbing a new batch of glassware, dripping reagents and samples into each. He hooked one in to a large apparatus, that looked as though someone had practised nautical knot tying with glass tubes, watching intently as vapours of many colours started to flow through. Eventually a drip of red fell from a nozzle. Seth immediately started scribbling once more, pausing on occasion to flip through thick tomes filled with inscrutable symbols, poking his pen at some of the pages.

So, it was azdner extract, contained in a bottle of perfume and absorbed through the skin. Exposure caused a slowed heart rate, lowered body temperature and an intense dizziness or coma. But it was actually relatively safe; there was a wide gap between a dosage that would trigger some very alarming symptoms and one that was actually dangerous. Combined with the delivery mechanism, which would have delivered a carefully controlled dose, it was obvious that the intent of this poisoning was indeed not to kill. It wasn't Seth's job to speculate as to why, so he simply wrote up his findings to deliver back to the Fresnel house, not mentioning his theory about the queen. It wasn't as if anyone else reading his report wouldn't immediately reach the same conclusion.

ISABELLE: AFTERNOON OF JUNE 6TH, 366

Queen Isabelle reviewed the documents spread out before her. This was turning out to be a nightmare. Emily had indeed turned out to be complicit, correspondence discovered in her room covering the planned 'assassination' extensively. The floor plans and details of guard patrols had come from Emily herself. Servants had stated that she was actually out of the house the night in question; a sleep-over with a schoolmate arranged at short notice. In case the guards failed to catch the assassin, she had said, panicking and admitting everything once confronted about it.

Furthermore, news had arrived of her mother's poisoning. They were still trying to trace the source of the perfume that bore the poison, but it was already obvious that Isabelle had been lured away purely so that the hot headed Raymond and eager-to-please Edward would be left to deal with the situation. The whole thing was planned meticulously, and the disturbing thing was that Isabelle had no idea by whom. Emily was an idiot. She had been used in this plot, but only as a disposable pawn, and was in no way the mastermind. She was supposed to have been caught. Emily didn't know who she was conspiring with, communicating only through writing. The correspondence revealed nothing other than that the conspirator was female. Although even that could easily be a lie... Raymond hadn't been involved at all, thank goodness, and was legitimately surprised to find Emily complicit. He hadn't even picked up on her slip in the audience chamber, dull as he was. Although he still tried to defend her when she was arrested. Isabelle really didn't know what he saw in her, but there was no way they were getting together now. Emily would remain under house arrest for now, but was likely to soon develop a sudden attack of religion, church service being a common disposal method for nobility who had caused too much embarrassment. It might be unavoidable for Raymond to withdraw from society due to 'illness' too, if he didn't start seeing sense over Emily in the next few days.

There were also the Sandovals to be concerned about. Not only had Alice still not turned up, but given the travel time to their territories, Denis and Lucy could arrive as soon as tomorrow. How much would she need to tell them? Trying to cover up facts only to have them discovered later would be disastrous, but on the other hand sharing some of the more embarrassing information would also be problematic if it turned out to not actually be needed. And who knew how much Alice was able to find out over the last few days; if she was still in the capital and made contact with her own family before Isabelle, then they could potentially turn up already knowing everything.

Isabelle cursed at her ignorant son and incautious husband. She was going to have to be open with Denis and Lucy. To do otherwise was too great a risk. This was going to cost the royal family badly... Or... Isabelle frowned as another thought occurred to her. Given the utterly meticulous planning, why was the framing of Alice so flimsy? Someone capable of coming up with all this should be equally capable of planting evidence that took more than one day to dispel. Given the layers of deception, what was one more? Perhaps Alice was not the primary target of this conspiracy, but rather the royal family themselves?

Who would gain most from these events? Her finger tapped on the transcript of an interview with one of Alice's tutors. Alice's disdain for Raymond was no secret, but she had on occasion claimed that she would not be permitted to be queen. That was an interesting terminology, implying that while she was prepared to go through with it, it was the other side that was the problem. Given Raymond's deteriorating behaviour, Isabelle had to admit he may have said something in private to give Alice that impression. Had the engagement been broken legitimately, it would be embarrassing for Alice, and the Sandovals would lose their valuable connection to royalty. But now? The engagement had been broken unjustly, and she was already thinking of the concessions she would need to offer to buy Denis' silence. She knew the man held no love for his daughter; she was a tool to him to further the designs of his house. A tool that would have been rendered useless by Raymond. This whole situation avoided that, and let him get something out of Alice after all. Lucy would not condone such a thing, but Denis... Was it possible that he was the mastermind behind all this?

ALICE: AFTERNOON OF SEPTEMBER 20TH, 362

A twelve-year-old Alice gracefully crossed the study, books balanced on top of her head. The watching tutor nodded in unsurprised satisfaction. "Perfect as always. Well then, let us move on to dance. As mentioned last week, today we shall practise the Ofbarian waltz. I shall take the male part."

Alice joined in silently, quickly picking up the unfamiliar steps. But at this the tutor did show some surprise. "It is unusual for you to not already have familiarised yourself with the dance before the start of our lesson. Did you not get a chance to look over the steps since last week?"

"I simply prioritised studies which will be more useful to me in the future. Is my dance performance not satisfactory?"

The tutor was somewhat taken aback. "Yes, you're picking it up quickly enough that I do not doubt you will have mastered it before the end of today's lesson, but please understand that as queen you will be involved in foreign affairs, and I can assure you that understanding the culture of visiting diplomats will be of high importance."

Alice kept a neutral expression, as if what she was saying was obvious. "That would be true if I were queen. I will not be permitted to be so, however. I must therefore prioritise preparation for my inevitable abandonment by Raymond."

The tutor looked aghast. "Prince Raymond has no say in this matter. The marriage partners of nobility are decided by the head of the house, as you well know. It is not the place of the children to gainsay."

"I did not say he would break the engagement, merely that I will not be queen. For me to be queen, Raymond would have to be king. Raymond being king would imply him to be the head of his household. I can assure you that were Raymond to be crowned king, I would be the first person he would dispose of."

"I... I know he is not fond of you, but that's... You should not say such things."

"So I should just quietly accept my fate?"

"No. I mean... I... I'm sure you're worrying over nothing."

Alice sighed. Why the adults insisted on treating children as if they had no minds of their own was baffling. She knew what both sets of parents were hoping to gain from this setup, but it was obvious that it was never going to work long term, however much they tried to force it. If she wanted to get out of this alive and well, she was going to have to take matters into her own hands.

DENIS: EVENING OF JUNE 6TH, 366

Denis dined with Lucy at a table in a private room in a high-class inn, their last stop before arriving at the capital. Lucy was still unhappy, disbelieving that Isabelle would have harmed her family. She didn't seem to quite believe the situation was as described at all, expressing opinions that maybe the letter had been faked, the maid Natalie misled or bribed, or the whole thing some sort of horrible practical joke. Denis was more pragmatic. He'd done as much theorising as he could with the available data, and further work would need to wait until information came in, so he set the matter aside for now.

One of their maids entered, some lower ranked servant Denis didn't know the name of, and whispered to the butler. That caught his attention. The lower ranked servants should stay in their own rooms. To be here implied something important had happened. The butler nodded to the maid and stepped forward. "My lord, this servant has information on Lady Alice that she believes you will want to hear."

Lucy snapped upright immediately. Denis did not outwardly display the same eagerness, but immediately motioned for the maid to speak.

"Y... yes sir. I was out gathering supplies and overheard some of the merchants talking. Apparently Prince Raymond and King Edward conspired together to falsely accuse Lady Alice and chase her out of the country. They even poisoned some old lady as a distraction to get Queen Isabelle out of the way!"

Before Denis had a chance to respond, the butler slapped the maid across the face. "Watch your language! Do not accuse royalty so lightly. You have no doubt eavesdropped on a mere rumour, exaggerated at best, but more likely outright false."

The maid shrank back, terrified. Denis considered it, but decided it was not anything he could act on without knowing the provenance of the rumour. Although even if it was just a rumour, Lucy would be glad that it didn't claim any wrongdoing on Isabelle's part. The maid was obviously not a reliable witness, and hadn't even tried to extract further details from the merchants. He motioned to his butler. "Send out a few people to question those merchants, and to ask around about other rumours. Make sure they try to track down the source."

As the servants set about carrying out his orders, Denis continued to frown. Suspect as the rumours were, the thought that King Edward himself had deliberately framed his daughter because Raymond wanted to get out of his engagement was horrifying. If it turned out to be true, there would be hell to pay, treason or not.

ISABELLE: EVENING OF JUNE 7TH, 366

Queen Isabelle sat in a reception room. She had decided to meet Denis and Lucy alone; given that Edward was partially responsible for this mess, his presence here was deemed counterproductive. Even more bad news had arrived today; rumours percolating up from the palace staff alleging that Raymond and Edward had conspired together to rid themselves of Alice, and were responsible for a poisoning in order to get Isabelle out of the way. The rumours didn't mention who was poisoned, but they did mention what with, and there was just enough truth in the rumour for the more calculating of the capital's population to link it together with Elizabeth's illness. Just enough of a link to sprinkle a little legitimacy on the news, and get it spreading. Coupled with Raymond's outlandish behaviour, turning a ball into such a spectacle, she could no longer count on the support of the capitals nobility. They may not believe the rumours, but neither were they entirely certain that they weren't true. They would all take a wait and see attitude.

Since the rumours had started circulating before Elizabeth had been diagnosed, they had obviously been planted by the mastermind with the express purpose of damaging the royal family. They had been seeded by letters sent to a number of lower-class merchants, delivered by urchins. Merchants who would never have dared spread the rumour, except for already having heard of the incident at the ball, the fact that the queen was out of the capital, and the letters claiming to come from Alice herself. The merchants seemed sure of the sender, claiming they contained information only Alice knew, but having obtained several of them, all were unsigned and did not match her writing. One investigator had even tracked down one of the urchins who gave a description of a dirty, raven haired commoner girl that did not match anyone thus far involved in the case. Probably another intermediary.

Denis and Lucy were brought into the room and took up their seats. Isabelle still had no intention of lying; if Denis was the mastermind, then he already knew everything anyway. But it wouldn't hurt to probe his reaction to certain pieces of news, the odd omission would be advisable and she would certainly not reveal her true motivations for certain actions. "Let me start by apologising for the behaviour of my idiot husband and son and reassure you that we've been doing everything we can to find your daughter. We haven't been able to find any evidence of her leaving the capital and are hopeful that she went into hiding here to await your arrival. Has she made contact?"

Denis hid it well, but Isabelle could see that he was not happy to hear the news that Alice might still be around. Lucy, on the other hand, smiled openly. "She has not, but we haven't long arrived. It would be nice if she turns up, and we can put all this nastiness behind us and pretend it never happened."

Isabelle was impressed at Lucy's optimism, which Denis very obviously did not share. "Her fiance shamed and besmirched my daughter in public, and the king himself signed an order for her banishment. I don't think we can pretend that didn't happen. But first, please would you respond to the rumours that Raymond and Edward took an active hand in planting false evidence?"

Damn. Isabelle had hoped they hadn't heard that rumour. Particularly since it had turned out that the poisoned perfume had been a present from Raymond. Admittedly he had sourced it from Emily, who had received it from their invisible enemy, but it still didn't look good. "I believe you speak of the rumour that also claimed that Raymond orchestrated a poisoning to stop me from interfering with their plans. The victim of that poisoning was my own mother, Raymond's doting grandmother, and the rumours were started at a time before her doctor even realised that she had been poisoned. They were obviously planted by the poisoner in order to drive a... wedge... between.. us..."

Isabelle balked as her ears finally caught up with her mouth. There was planted evidence to make the Sandovals suspect the royal family, but she herself also suspected the Sandovals. On what evidence? Was it planted too? What if this misleading wasn't just a one-way thing, and they were being played against each other? Then their antagonist must be someone with a grudge against both families, or else a foreign play to weaken the kingdom. She wasn't aware of any recent suspicious movement from the kingdom's neighbours and besides, the manner in which this was carried out required too much personal knowledge of everyone involved. Was there anyone with a reason to hate both families? Her mind went back to the interview transcript, to the question Alice had asked four years previously: 'So I should just quietly accept my fate?' Was this the answer she had found?

Denis looked on with interest. "You seem to have just realised something. Would you care to share?"

Isabelle slumped. "I did. My own hypocrisy."

That answer came as a surprise to both Denis and Lucy, but Isabelle began to elaborate without prompting. "There was evidence found that pointed to your own involvement. Despite knowing how the rumour you mentioned had been planted in order to turn you against King Edward, I failed to take our own evidence against you with the suspicion it warranted. For that I apologise."

Lucy looked insulted. "I would never... Why to my own daughter?"

Isabelle replied. "You wouldn't. And neither would I. But you have your doubts about Edward, do you not? Just as I did about Denis. Am I mistaken?" Addressing that last comment to Denis was a risk, but right now, dispelling any lingering doubts was the highest priority.

Denis looked thoughtful, but not insulted. "It is true that the way events have played out are not entirely disadvantageous compared to some alternatives. But the risk involved in orchestrating them as such would be too great."

Lucy looked aghast. "Not entirely disadvantageous? This is our daughter you're talking about!"

"I'm sorry, but your husband is correct. Prince Raymond and King Edward have done wrong to your family, for which you have every right to demand compensation. Had the engagement been dissolved in a less extreme manner your family would have received nothing, and may even have suffered a blow to your reputation."

Lucy calmed down quickly. She may not have been as cold and calculating as some, but Isabelle knew that she was still adept at the games of political manoeuvring played by the nobility. "So, do you actually have any idea who did this, now that you aren't going to blame my husband?"

"Had I truly believed Denis was at fault, I would not be meeting you here without guards. He was merely a suspect." That was a lie: While it was true that he was just a suspect, Isabelle had no better ones, and the lack of guards was because she didn't want to tip him off. "We have captured two people who were involved, but both were mere pawns who did not know who they were working for. There is... one suspect for the leader, but I would rather not name them."

Denis furrowed his brows, looking displeased. "I'm afraid I must insist. I will not allow you to protect someone who attacked my daughter."

"I assure you that I am not protecting anyone. Toying with the royal family like this is not a crime I would ever forgive."

"Then why?"

"Because..." Isabelle floundered, regretting mentioning it in the first place. She had been too flustered by the sudden realisation and had spoken too freely. She tapped at a tiny button, well hidden in the decoration on the underside of the table. "Very well. The current prime suspect for the framing of Alice Sandoval is... Alice Sandoval."

Denis and Lucy just boggled. Denis recovered first, standing up and exclaiming "I will not stay here to be subjected to this." Pulling Lucy up, marching to and swinging open the door, he found the way beyond blocked by a couple of alerted guards.

Queen Isabelle walked up behind him. "That's fine, I won't keep you. However, your house staff will be busy aiding an active investigation all night, and will not be able to provide the service you expect. As compensation, I'll make sure you are well hosted for the night here in the palace."

Denis cursed under his breath, the implications clear.

ISABELLE: AFTERNOON OF JUNE 8TH, 366

Queen Isabelle reviewed the new batch of evidence. Now that she knew what to look for, she could see the signs everywhere. Alice's alibi had been the library. Investigations had revealed that she did visit the library often, but generally did not stay for long periods, preferring to take books back to her room to read. She also normally visited at quieter times. To visit at a busy point and stay there was not out of character for her on its own, but the coincidence that such an episode lined up perfectly with the tavern meeting was suspicious.

Next were her hobbies: The investigators had managed to extract some useful information from Natalie, before she caught on that Alice was being treated as a suspect and clammed up. Baking wasn't an uncommon hobby among noblewomen, but cooking full meals was certainly unusual. Again, not suspicious on its own but if you suspected the noblewomen in question of preparing for a life as a commoner, it took on a different note... Likewise she was known to practise a few other tasks that would normally be left to servants.

There was also time that could not be accounted for. She had never gone missing; it was just that if you added the time spent in the academy to the time spent at home, there was some left over. She could have spent a lot of time out with friends, but none at the academy had described her as particularly social. It was a similar story with her money. She had been seen spending far less than she received. That was unusual for a child. Neither would normally raise suspicion though, unless you suspected she was out hiring body doubles and saving up to flee the country.

Isabelle had to credit Alice; she had played well. Her innocence had not been officially announced, and never would be, but with Raymond stripped of his position of crown prince, Emily removed, and the circulating rumours, it made little difference. She was no doubt long gone; she probably wasn't seen leaving because she'd disguised herself, something that she would've had no reason to do had she been innocent in this whole thing. In hindsight, the correct action would have been to play along with the framing, maintain her guilt, and not punish Raymond or Emily at all. Raymond would've needed to have an 'accident' later on to keep him off the throne, but that wouldn't be hard to arrange. It was too late for that now. Neither Raymond nor Emily had officially been punished for anything yet, but both were effectively under house arrest. Releasing them and claiming Alice was the sole guilty party all along would be met with suspicion. Ironically, Isabelle was guilty of the exact same premature punishment that she had used to berate Raymond.

One option would be to pin all the blame on Raymond and Emily, spread that Raymond had deceived Edward into ordering the banishment, and hope that Alice had no further surprises in store. That would effectively be framing Raymond for treason though, for which execution was the only possible punishment. Edward would never agree. Suspicion it would have to be. If she spread around that her mother had been ill and not poisoned, and if Emily was released with no charges, the general population would be left with nothing but conflicting rumours. The nobility would know something had happened and been hushed up, but they wouldn't have anything actionable. She snorted as she realised Raymond was going to get his girl after all.

EPILOGUE ALICE: AFTERNOON OF JULY 27TH, 366

Alice sat out on the terrace of a town cafe, enjoying a cup of tea and a slice of cake. The sun was shining, a pleasant cooling breeze blowing through the air, and the couple on the table next to her were discussing how the Slandhaile kingdom's first prince had been passed over for the throne after some sort of hushed up scandal. All in all, a perfect day. Not that she'd been trying to get Raymond punished in particular; she had just wanted to cause enough of a mess that by the time anyone figured out that the whole scheme was actually just a glorified escape plan, they wouldn't realistically be able to come after her.

She wondered what Emily thought when she found out the person she was conspiring with to frame Alice was in fact Alice herself. It must have been a real shocker. Maybe no-one had ever told her, and she was living in blissful ignorance. No rumours of Emily's fate had reached this far. Alice had crossed several countries, swapping out disguises and methods of transportation as she went, to ensure no-one from her previous life could find her here. Although she had needed to stop walking or riding between cities alone, after becoming concerned that someone would be able to follow the trail of dead bandits. It was amazing how many otherwise normal travellers seemed willing to stoop to robbery when passing by a lone girl.

There were no rumours of Alice herself either, or the rest of her family. Once they worked out that she had orchestrated the whole thing herself, her family would lose any leverage they had over the king, but it was unlikely that they would be punished on her behalf either.

Her snack finished, Alice stood and returned to the bakery that had taken her on, happy with her new and simpler life. Queen Isabelle would no doubt consider it a complete waste of talent. Then again, if the queen could see people as 'people' rather than collections of skills, Alice wouldn't have needed to flee in the first place. Alice had her new life here, well away from expectations and politics, and was determined to enjoy it fully.