Royals: Raithbourne, Chapter One
"The palace renovations look great, Mom!" Prince Robert said as they stood outside their newly renovted home. It had been time, Queen Elizabeth had decided, to update the medieval castle to be more modern-day.
Despite the upheavel that had crashed through their lives, Elizabeth tried to maintain as normal a childhood as she could for her children. She especially enjoyed dancing with Frederick out in the yard. Robert, as a teen soon to go off to college, was far too old for childish games like that.
As queen, Elizabeth knew it was her duty to meet and be friends (or at least be nice to) her subjects. She met Abbess Willow, and Lord George Norton, the brother of the Duke of Gramsby.
Elizabeth and Lord Norton talked for hours about everything from the theatre:
....to astrology.
Once it was time for Lord Norton to leave, Elizabeth surprised herself by pulling George into a hug. She hadn't been that close to a man since the death of her husband, Tobias, some years before.
Outside, the two princes were having fun. Robert may have been too big for his mother to dance with, but that didn't mean he couldn't play with his younger brother. Frederick squealed with laughter as Robert swung him around and around.
Am I ready for a new relationship? Elizabeth pondered in her private study. I'm happy as I am with my sons and daughter. But maybe it's time to open my heart to a new love, as well? She giggled softly to herself. He is handsome, after all.
Elizabeth swallowed her nerves and invited Lord Norton over again to spend more time with him. This time, there was no mistaking the butterflies in her stomach. She took a deep breath and pulled him close for a kiss.
I definitely have feelings for him, she said to herself as they gazed at each other.
Before any time at all, George had become a fixture at the palace. There was no question that the Queen and the lord were very happy with each other.
......very happy indeed.
As the relationship between the two grew, so did relationships in other parts of the palace. Princess Alexandra and her younger brother Frederick enjoyed a rousing game of cops and robbers.
One morning during breakfast, George took a nervous breath in. "Elizabeth? I've loved you from the moment I laid eyes on you. Will you do me the honor of being my wife?" Fredei
"Of course!" Elizabeth smiled as she pulled the ring from the box.
Elizabeth stared at the ring. I never thought I'd open my heart again, she mused. But here I am, about to get married for the second time!
Not long after, Queen Elizabeth and Lord Norton--soon to be Prince of Oscania--got married in the palace's ballroom. Elizabeth also granted George the title of Duke of Penshaw.
Alexandra in the background discussing the merits of traveling while Frederick wonders where her green dress is.
I, Elizabeth, take thee, David, to be my lawfully wedded husband...
Queen Elizabeth and Prince George become officially man and wife. Frederick and Alexandra clap while Robert remains stoic. Does George really love his mother? Or is it a plan to make himself royal?
After the wedding, it was time to cut the cake!
Prince Frederick remains suspicious of George's motives and stares him down from across the table while the rest of the gamily enjoys wedding cake.
"And that's when a ship came with medicine and helped save the kingdom!" Robert tells his younger siblings.
After the sickness, fertility was rumored to have dropped among the men and women of the kingdom.
"We were told that it would be harder for people to get pregnant, so odds are we might not," Elizabeth said to George.
So imagine her surprise (And mine--to combat too fast population growth, I made it a rule to roll (a) to see if someone was able to have children or not and (b) how low/high their fertility was on a scale from 1 to 10, 10 being the highest. David was originally infertile, and Elizabeth a 10. So I put her on birth control to reflect "David can't get her pregnant. They had "safe woohoo" and she got pregnant anyway!) when she realized that she was pregnant. David was thrilled he was going to be a dad and pulled his wife into an embrace.
Life continued on at the palace. On a quiet summer night, Queen Elizabeth and Prince George danced out in their front yard under the stars.
Prince David wanted to be a good dad for his stepkids, getting to know both Frederick....
...and Alexandra.
There was also always time to spend time with his pregnant wife.
Soon enough, Queen Elizabeth went into labor and delivered a baby girl they named Eleanor.
Life was indeed very happy for the royal family.
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