[Status(P)quo(d)]

A book sits on the dresser of the Duchess and Duke-Consort's bedroom.

It begins like so;

"Once Upon A Time..."                                  .          

"Once Upon A Time..."

"Once Upon A Time..."

.                                "Once Upon A Time..."

Once upon a time, there was a Beautiful Queen that ruled over the lands of Gleann na Gaoithe Àrd. Her gossamer tresses fell past her waist like rivers of molten gold, and her wings glittered with a light that rivaled the most brilliant diamond of the Daystar. Every morning, her seamstress would weave a gown made from the stars plucked from the night sky, and the Queen would roam across her daybound kingdom with these constellations stitched into her dress. The stars would marvel at the sights of the world they had been too scared to see for themselves, and in return for such beauteous sights as the lands of Gleann na Gaoithe Àrd, they would whisper secrets that only the Queen could hear.

Once the sun would begin to set, the Queen would take the hand of the King of the Weald at the edge of Gleann na Gaoithe Àrd and dance. In the noble Weald King's arms, she would twirl and spin and scatter those stars back into the encroaching night sky, twinkling brightly with all the sights and sounds of her majestic kingdom, scattering dreams to the sleepy folk of Gleann na Gaoithe Àrd.

Her handmaids and servants watched the Queen, awestruck and inspired by her beauty and her grace, and would follow her home as the dance reached its end. She held these little ones' hands as they fluttered and buzzed around her, bombarding her with questions about the secrets the Stars gave her. But the Wise and Beautiful Queen would smile and shake her head, telling them all that the secrets are hardly worth sharing.

Once the Queen had been escorted back to her chambers to sleep until the next morning came, four of these little Fae - the most peculiar and curious of all - would meet to ponder about the secrets of the stars.

"I bet they're about Love!" Said Peaseblossom, the oldest of the four. She wore flowers in her hair and dressed in maidenly white. Wherever she flew, rose petals scattered in her wake, and her voice was as sweet as hummingbird nectar. "Who is in love with the Queen, who the Queen loves, who is courting who- That kind of stuff!" But the other three Fae were hardly in agreement.

 "I bet they're about the Weald!" Said Moth, the most clever of the four. She kept her dark hair tied up in ribbons, and her knees were scuffed with dirt. Her bright gold eyes could be seen in the dark from any distance, and her voice was like the hum of a bumble bee. "The Weald King must have plenty of stories in his home, and the Queen wants to know them!" But that did not sit well with the other three.

I bet they spy on Gleann na Gaoithe Àrd." Said Cobweb, the most logical of the four. He covered his face in a thick blue scarf, and wore dark glasses over his eyes. The robes he wore shimmered like glitterwing bugs, and his voice rasped like a ghost's whisper. "They watch us all the time at night, and SURELY there must be folks who are plotting while the Queen is asleep." That did not fill the other three with confidence.

"?" Said Mustardseed, the smallest of the four. She was plain, and wore plain dresses, and kept her hair tied up in a ponytail with a rope that would never break. "...!" She continued, and the other three simply nodded in agreement.

"Sure I guess!"
"That sounds boring."
"I mean maybe."

And even though the other three saw sense in their littlest friend's words, the curiosity of what those Stars whispered to the Queen ate away at them, night after night, day after day.

.

Until one day...

.


... To be continued?