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nestarThe last of the drabbles.
Pre-Series
Sonnet XVIII by William Shakespeare
Hope has only flashes of memory about her mother: the gold of the wrap she wore to fancy dinners; her smile – white teeth framed by red lips; the sent of peppermint at her neck when she snuggled Hope close.
But the most vivid memory that she attached to her mother wasn't made until after her mother died.
Every year she would go with her father to the cemetery and while she placed red and yellow flowers against the headstone he father would recite.
And Summer’s lease hath all too short a date:
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
Summertime by George Gershwin
One of these mornings
You're going to rise up singing
Then you'll spread your wings
And you'll take to the sky
The singers voice was hunted and smoky and made her want to cry – the one thing that she daren't even think of when standing in the presence of the Royal court.
But till that morning
There's a'nothing can harm you
Weakness was the worst thing one could display. She had learned that early on. She had also learned that she couldn't place her trust in any of the other courtiers.
With daddy and mamma standing by
She was sitting in a room with dozens of other people, the man she was to marry at her side, and she had never felt so alone.
Post-Series
Shelter
The first night after the casino fell was clear and warm so everyone slept out in the open, under the stars, but the sky the next morning made the need for tents a priority – right behind food and latrines.
Hope had spent that night laying next to Jack, safe and warm in his arms, but in the morning he was pulled away to answer a dozen different questions and by the time evening fell Hope still hadn't seen him.
One of the diamond girls came up to her, “We've claimed a camp space, come stay with us, Hope?”
The first night she had been sheltered by Jack's strong arms around her, but the second night she was sheltered by the love of her people.
Wildfire
She had always thought that the first crises she would have to deal with as the true Duchess of Didem would some how be related to the civil unrest that was spreading across the kingdom in the wake of the Queen's overthrow. A gang of thugs looking for food or some wild tea-head looking for just one more fix.
A wildfire had never even crossed her mind.
She was in her office reading the minutes from the last counsel meeting when a stinging scent reached her. A moment later the cry of “Fire” sent her racing down the stairs.
Hope made her way through the groups of travelers who had come to Cranton from the outlaying villages of Diadem. Earlier today she had to put on her fancy clothes and play the Duchess, but now she was wearing a simple dress and with her hair covered there was no one who could tell her from any other shepherdess.
As the sky grew dusky a hush fell over the crowds. Then the first rocket was shot off and the sky exploded with color.
The crowd began to cry out “Long live the King!” but she simply whispered “Happy birthday, Jack.”
"If a June night could talk, it would probably boast it invented romance." Bern Williams
She had seen the couples plotting to get caught under the mistletoe at Christmas, and of course she had seen the flurry of sweetheart gifts at Valentines Day – but she had preparation for those days.
This was only June.
She had woken up early and had spent the day working at the school, talking with counsel members about clean up plans for the fire and a slew of dozen other things that only she could handle.
Then finally she had come out to the back porch with a mug of tea to relax before bed and that's when she saw the couple walking by the river, holding hands and stealing kisses.
She missed Jack everyday but it wasn't until June that she cried over him.
Blue Skies" by Irving Berlin
The sky had been a stormy slate blue when she had arrived in Craton; the fall winds chasing clouds across the sky, causing shadows to role over the land just as the shadow of the Queen moved over the people.
What brief hours of light the winter sun brought showed a sky of blue so pale it faded into the snow and sent her back into the house seeking the warmth of the hearth and the new family she had collected.
Spring had brought a sky dotted with fluffy clouds that mirrored the new lambs that dotted the hilltops and a smile to townsfolk as they heard the news that peace was – slowly – returning to Wonderland.
Then this morning she had woken up to a sky that was dressed in the most vibrant bright blue; a blue she had only even seen before in Jack's eyes back in the days when he was first courting her.
The memory came swiftly: her running through the garden, Jack grabbing her hand and pulling her under the shade of a tree, a hungry kiss that ended much too quickly.
Yes, summer was here, Jack was King, and the world was full of promise.
Danny Boy by Frederic Weatherly
These last two weeks had killed her. How could he look at her, study her, and be fooled by simple clothing and scarf wrapped around her hair when all she had needed was a mere moment to confirm that, no, she wasn't dreaming, it really was Jack.
Even up to the last second – even as he sat on his horse and waved – she had been sure he would notice, would look at her out of the corner of his eye and smirk like he had so many times during a long court function.
And now he was gone and she had run to the shelter of the old willow tree behind the hall. With her arms cling to the trunk for support she sobbed out all of her anger and frustration and longing. For nine years she had loved Jack Heart and now he hadn't even recognized her.
The words to an old shepherds songs came to her, “The summer's gone, and all the flowers are dying 'Tis you, 'tis you must go and I must bide.” It was true, Jack had gone and take summer with him and she was left to bide herself with the dying flowers.
Sonnet XVIII by William Shakespeare
Hope has only flashes of memory about her mother: the gold of the wrap she wore to fancy dinners; her smile – white teeth framed by red lips; the sent of peppermint at her neck when she snuggled Hope close.
But the most vivid memory that she attached to her mother wasn't made until after her mother died.
Every year she would go with her father to the cemetery and while she placed red and yellow flowers against the headstone he father would recite.
And Summer’s lease hath all too short a date:
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
Summertime by George Gershwin
One of these mornings
You're going to rise up singing
Then you'll spread your wings
And you'll take to the sky
The singers voice was hunted and smoky and made her want to cry – the one thing that she daren't even think of when standing in the presence of the Royal court.
But till that morning
There's a'nothing can harm you
Weakness was the worst thing one could display. She had learned that early on. She had also learned that she couldn't place her trust in any of the other courtiers.
With daddy and mamma standing by
She was sitting in a room with dozens of other people, the man she was to marry at her side, and she had never felt so alone.
Post-Series
Shelter
The first night after the casino fell was clear and warm so everyone slept out in the open, under the stars, but the sky the next morning made the need for tents a priority – right behind food and latrines.
Hope had spent that night laying next to Jack, safe and warm in his arms, but in the morning he was pulled away to answer a dozen different questions and by the time evening fell Hope still hadn't seen him.
One of the diamond girls came up to her, “We've claimed a camp space, come stay with us, Hope?”
The first night she had been sheltered by Jack's strong arms around her, but the second night she was sheltered by the love of her people.
Wildfire
She had always thought that the first crises she would have to deal with as the true Duchess of Didem would some how be related to the civil unrest that was spreading across the kingdom in the wake of the Queen's overthrow. A gang of thugs looking for food or some wild tea-head looking for just one more fix.
A wildfire had never even crossed her mind.
She was in her office reading the minutes from the last counsel meeting when a stinging scent reached her. A moment later the cry of “Fire” sent her racing down the stairs.
Hope made her way through the groups of travelers who had come to Cranton from the outlaying villages of Diadem. Earlier today she had to put on her fancy clothes and play the Duchess, but now she was wearing a simple dress and with her hair covered there was no one who could tell her from any other shepherdess.
As the sky grew dusky a hush fell over the crowds. Then the first rocket was shot off and the sky exploded with color.
The crowd began to cry out “Long live the King!” but she simply whispered “Happy birthday, Jack.”
"If a June night could talk, it would probably boast it invented romance." Bern Williams
She had seen the couples plotting to get caught under the mistletoe at Christmas, and of course she had seen the flurry of sweetheart gifts at Valentines Day – but she had preparation for those days.
This was only June.
She had woken up early and had spent the day working at the school, talking with counsel members about clean up plans for the fire and a slew of dozen other things that only she could handle.
Then finally she had come out to the back porch with a mug of tea to relax before bed and that's when she saw the couple walking by the river, holding hands and stealing kisses.
She missed Jack everyday but it wasn't until June that she cried over him.
Blue Skies" by Irving Berlin
The sky had been a stormy slate blue when she had arrived in Craton; the fall winds chasing clouds across the sky, causing shadows to role over the land just as the shadow of the Queen moved over the people.
What brief hours of light the winter sun brought showed a sky of blue so pale it faded into the snow and sent her back into the house seeking the warmth of the hearth and the new family she had collected.
Spring had brought a sky dotted with fluffy clouds that mirrored the new lambs that dotted the hilltops and a smile to townsfolk as they heard the news that peace was – slowly – returning to Wonderland.
Then this morning she had woken up to a sky that was dressed in the most vibrant bright blue; a blue she had only even seen before in Jack's eyes back in the days when he was first courting her.
The memory came swiftly: her running through the garden, Jack grabbing her hand and pulling her under the shade of a tree, a hungry kiss that ended much too quickly.
Yes, summer was here, Jack was King, and the world was full of promise.
Danny Boy by Frederic Weatherly
These last two weeks had killed her. How could he look at her, study her, and be fooled by simple clothing and scarf wrapped around her hair when all she had needed was a mere moment to confirm that, no, she wasn't dreaming, it really was Jack.
Even up to the last second – even as he sat on his horse and waved – she had been sure he would notice, would look at her out of the corner of his eye and smirk like he had so many times during a long court function.
And now he was gone and she had run to the shelter of the old willow tree behind the hall. With her arms cling to the trunk for support she sobbed out all of her anger and frustration and longing. For nine years she had loved Jack Heart and now he hadn't even recognized her.
The words to an old shepherds songs came to her, “The summer's gone, and all the flowers are dying 'Tis you, 'tis you must go and I must bide.” It was true, Jack had gone and take summer with him and she was left to bide herself with the dying flowers.
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