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“Give it a few months; eventually, everyone will relax. Right now, the whole palace is trying to be on their very best behavior for our sakes. Once everyone gets used to us and how we want to do things, we might get the normal Wolfgang back,” he explained, leading me to the door.
“I guess you’re right.”
“What was that?” He leaned over for me to repeat it.
“Aren’t you still brooding?”
“No, you’ve made me feel much better, thank you.” He winked.
Rolling my eyes, I turned toward the door and knocked. When I did, I heard “Their Royal Majesties, King Galahad and Queen Odette.”
They really were going to keep that up all month.
Smiling, we walked in the throne room, to where all of the royal family, with the exception of Gale’s father and the inclusion of my mother plus the photographers, were waiting, also dressed in their regal attire, bowing.
Gale and I walked forward until we reached the fine red throne chairs under a curtain canopy with the family seal in the center. We turned to face the cameras.
“Shall we sit first, or shall we stand?” Gale asked them.
“Standing, sir,” the cameraman said as all his team scrambled to set up their light in the correct position.
“Let’s do a test…one…two…three.”
I smiled.
Queen Elspeth moved to the computer to see the photo.
“How is it, Mother?” Gale questioned. “Are we not stunning? Gifts from on high?”
“The queen looks beautiful, graceful, and elegant. Sadly, I must say, the king’s smile is a bit too dazzling,” she replied.
“Dazzling?” I repeated.
“Sadly? Isn’t that a good thing?” he asked her.
“Your Majesty, a king should not dazzle,” Queen Arabella proclaimed from her chair, holding her cane with gloves that disappeared into her oriental blouse covered in pins and jewels. “Instead, it is best to project stability.”
“Grandmama, how does one project stability in a photo?” Gale asked her, amused.
“By not smiling,” she answered. “The queen may smile. She is the mother of the country. We like mothers who smile. But no teeth. The king’s face should be serious, but not too serious, and his stare should be pointed. Like he is not only speaking to the nation, but to any other leader in the world.”
My eyebrow rose. Huh? He asked how, and she made the answer even more difficult to understand.
“Okay, let’s try this once more to accomplish all she just said,” Gale replied, looking again as though he were hoping we could get this done as quickly as possible. Every second we focused, I remembered the crown on my head and wanted to make sure it stayed perfect.
I had chosen the same one I had used for my wedding crown and the same infamous crown that had fallen during that state dinner because…well, I wanted to rewrite my history with it. I didn’t want to avoid wearing it again. I wanted everyone to know it may have fallen, but I picked it up and wore it once more, and it never fell again.
“That’s better, but it’s still not good enough,” Queen Arabella said, now up from her chair and behind the computer.
Why did I have a bad feeling about this?
Two hours.
It took us two hours to finish a photoshoot that should have taken thirty minutes! For the love of God, what was perfection to Queen Arabella? I didn’t know. But I was sure no one had ever met it. She nitpicked our photos, her own photos, and the whole family’s photos. I was grateful she came in last for the wedding photos, or else we would have never left for the reception.
“Still holding up there?” my mother asked, taking a seat across from me as I waited on Gale to pick the final drafts of his signature along with other coinage.
Luckily, Queen Elspeth had asked Gale if everyone could stop for a light brunch, and he quickly accepted so he could be free of his Grandmama. So it was now only Gale and my mother, along with a few people from the treasury, in the room.
