The Rules of Ever After (23 page)

Phillip looked back at Daniel and flashed a mischievous grin.

“Phillip?”

“Well…”

I
n her seat of honor at the right of the king’s throne,
Mitta fluttered her tiny pink wings in pride as she looked around the grand hall at the crowds packed along the two sides of the room. Of all the weddings she had attended in the past year, she was sure this was the grandest and best attended of them all. Hundreds of candles blazed in the large chandeliers, even though bright sunlight streamed through the room’s tall windows, scattering over the assembled crowd. The walls of the room were bedecked in banner after banner, embroidered with the colors of the kingdoms of Clarameer, while a rainbow of pennants in the birthday fairies’ special hues hung across the back wall. Beneath the banners were long tables loaded with trays of pastries, fruits and all the bounty of the five kingdoms. Mitta had been pleased to see that the sketcherazzi were at least four rows deep outside the castle walls and had been scratching away at a furious pace as royal after royal flooded into the castle for the ceremony. She knew this would be front page news in the
Kingdom Inquisitor
for at least a week.

Looking to her right, she saw James, using the name he had chosen to keep, standing with his chest puffed out and his hands on his hips. The leather tunic and breeches he wore showed the wear and dust of his travels among the realms of Clarameer, Glorianna and Osterling. She and the other fairies had enjoyed watching as he and his traveling companion had met adventure after adventure, and she hoped he would find his way into Obenland soon. Glanc­ing to her left, she saw James’s companion, Gwendolyn, beaming at the crowd. Though she had discovered the comfortable joy of wearing breeches and a tunic while traipsing about with James this last year, Gwen had let her father convince her that the deep gold velvet gown she wore today would be much more flattering on the pages of the
Inq
.

Gwen’s father sat in the second row to the right. Since he had surrendered his kingdom to King Robert, Edward had decided to stay on as an adviser to Queen Katerina, helping her decide which of the many rhymes Cauchemar had taught her were true and which should be cast aside. He had also taught her the same dances he had taught Gwen, just in case. Queen Katerina sat beside him, the ruffles of her Canteran red gown firmly up on her shoulders where she preferred them. The citizens of Cantera adored Queen Katerina for freeing them from the troll king’s dungeons. Her husband, King Peter, was equally beloved for having converted the dungeons into a library for all the citizens to enjoy.

Behind Peter sat King Robert, stuffing his face with a pastry he had pilfered from the tables of sweets along the sides of the room. His wife, Queen Emmaline, held her small son, Prince George, on her lap and dangled a golden chain to keep him entertained while they waited for the ceremony to begin.

Across the aisle sat the cousin queens, Marina and Bianca. The very pregnant Marina and her husband, King Andrew, sat staring into each other’s eyes, oblivious to the pomp surrounding them. Queen Bianca, having conquered and imprisoned Marina’s father and reunited the two halves of Lipponia, was respected by all the kingdom’s citizens, but Mitta knew Queen Fiona, Bianca’s recent espoused, was the true favorite of the people. Though she hardly said a word, Fiona’s hidden wisdom helped her royal wife rule their kingdom well. The two queens sat with their arms intertwined and occasionally leaned their heads together to whisper to each other and laugh.

Mitta’s attention was pulled back to the front of the room as King Henry and Queen Rhea stepped from the side of the plat­form in front of the thrones. King Henry motioned to the trumpeters on either side of the room to play a short fanfare to quiet the mur­muring crowd. Both parents beamed at the assembled crowd before King Henry nodded toward the front row. Mitta glanced over to see Princess Monique, or Lady Moon as she had decided to be called, stand up and turn to face the crowd. A quartet of lutes began playing a tune behind her as she held her head high and began to sing the opening lines of “True Love Someday Will Be.” As Mitta hummed along with the tune, the entire crowd turned to face the large oak doors at the back of the hall.

The doors opened to reveal Prince Phillip and Prince Daniel standing arm in arm. Prince Phillip wore a tunic of Bellemer blue, except the sleeves were a deep Sylvanian green. Daniel’s tunic was of a similar design, but with the colors reversed. Both men had a crest embroidered upon their chest of a seahorse with its tail wrapped around an acorn, which Mitta thought was pretty but an ecological impossibility. Both men wore gold coronets, which glittered in the bright sunlight. As the music swelled, the two men began to walk down the center aisle toward the front of the room.

Mitta looked over at her sister fairy, Fria, and grinned. Her cheeks were beginning to sting from all the smiling she had done that day, but she couldn’t stop the reaction. Fria winked at her and pointed toward the front of the room. Mitta glanced down to see Dinah, the sorceress princess, step quickly out into the aisle in front of Phillip and Daniel. Mitta held her breath as she watched the two men stop and stare at the girl, confusion clouding their faces. Dinah stood with a look of annoyance before raising her hands to cast a spell. Mitta slipped forward on her chair, ready to spring into action. Dinah laughed and thrust her hands forward. A shower of rose petals burst forth from her hands and fluttered around the two princes. They laughed and kissed the girl on either cheek before climbing the three steps to the platform. Both men hugged their parents before turning to face each other and hold hands.

Mitta’s wings fluttered in delight as she watched a look of love pass between the two young men. Their parents began to recite the words of the wedding ceremony that the royals of Clarameer had used since the days of Gingerfair and Godrick. After thousands of years and countless weddings, Mitta knew the words by heart, so she was caught by surprise when the men added two promises at the end.

“I promise I will be here each morning, to keep a valiant watch over your heart and your soul.”

“I promise I will be here each night, to send you to sleep with the kiss of eternal love.”

Mitta, old girl
,
you done good.
Mitta stretched her toes out in front of her and looked at the amethysts that sparkled there.
Once this ceremony is over, you can have a well-deserved nap. Then it’s time to figure out this whole heir-to-the-throne thing. That’s going to be a doozy
.

Mitta giggled quietly and scanned the crowd. One face caught her eye.
Luna is going to clip my wings for interfering, but it only seems fair
. Discreetly pulling her wand from her side, she held it up and nipped the tiniest of breaths into the silver ring. A minuscule pink bubble floated away from her wand and out over the crowd toward its intended recipient. It bobbed and bounced along the breezes in the room and over the heads of the royals in the first few rows. When it reached the third row, it made a quick turn, landed on Peter’s head and silently burst. Peter shook his head and reached up to scratch where the bubble had landed. As his hand passed his ear, it brushed the pencil tucked away there. Peter grinned. Pulling the pencil out from behind his ear and his pad from his tunic pocket, he began to write.

“Once upon a time, but about six months before that…”

The End

Getting the chance to write and publish this book
has
been like a fairy tale come true for me. Therefore, I need to thank all the many fairies, wizards and unicorns that helped to make it possible.

First and foremost, I have to thank the entire IP team for this amazing opportunity. Thanks to Annie, CL and Lex for believing in this story and giving me the chance to get it out of my head finally after twenty years. May the birthday fairies bless you twice this year!

Thanks especially to Annie for making me realize that this story could be more than just “something fun.” Also, I thank you for calming my fears when I was scared to let it be more than that. Sneaky feminism forever!

Thanks to Liz and Nicki for helping me iron out the wrinkles, tidy up the grammar and realize that things have to make sense on paper not just in my head.

Thanks to Becky for taking my vague ideas and even vaguer descrip­tions and turning them into the artwork for the book. How did you create things that are exactly as I envisioned them? Are you sure you’re not psychic or do you have a magic wand you’re not sharing?

Thanks to Eric Nelson for reading a muddled version of this tale years ago and encouraging me to continue with it after I had grown up enough to tell it. Your teachings and advice have stayed with me long after the classes ended.

Thanks to Knits, Mimsy and Heidi for being willing to listen when I wrote myself into a corner, wanted to humblebrag or just felt like being silly. You are the beautiful birds over my flying basket.

Thanks to Scott R. and Scott H. for the constant friendship, encour­agement and occasional art project. Love you, My Lous!

Thanks to Carrie for being my loudest cheerleader, constant reader and swiftest kick in the backside. This book would not exist without your initial push and continued encouragement. Brewbaggery shenanigans forever!

Thanks to my parents for giving me an early love of imagination, reading and storytelling. Your love, understanding and support have made me who I am today. You have always been my greatest listeners. Brewer family motto: The joy you take in telling a story increases the joy others will take in hearing it.

Thanks to Fab for understanding when I disappeared into this other kingdom for days at a time and for waiting on me with open arms when I returned. My greatest joy in life is knowing I get to share the road with you.

Finally, thank you to the many LGBTQ people who have come before me and fought the hard fight for the freedoms I enjoy today. I stand on the shoulders of many far braver than I.

K
illian B. Brewer grew up in a family where the
best way to be heard was to tell a good story, therefore he developed an early love of storytelling, puns and wordplay. He began writing poetry and short fiction at fifteen and continued in college where he earned a BA in English. He does not use this degree in his job in the banking industry. He currently lives in Georgia with his partner of ten years and their dog. Growing up in the South gave him a funny accent and a love of grits.
The Rules of Ever After
is his first novel.

1.
The Rules of Ever After
takes several traditional fairy tale themes and turns them on their collective ear. What are some of these themes, and how are they used differently in
The Rules
than in their
original form?

2. Monique explains that her Happily Ever After wasn’t ruined by her unexpected turn of events, but that it gave her a chance at a new beginning. How did the characters in
The Rules of Ever After
redefine “Happily
Ever After”?

3. What established rules are imposed on the characters, and how do they find a way to navigate
around them?

4. How does losing status cause a chain of events that leads char­acters from
The Rules of Ever After
to discover some­thing new about themselves? Does being free of expectations open new doors
for them?

5. What is the difference between a rule that is meant to protect the kingdom versus a rule that is designed to maintain an established order? Are they the same thing, or different? Are there examples of these in
The Rules?

6. How does
The Rules of Ever After
illustrate the power of friendship? How can friendship show you a new path that you might not have seen
by yourself?

7. The author has said that
The Rules of Ever After
is a book he wished had been available to read when he was young, because fairy tales did not include gay characters. Does the inclusion of a gay character change the essence of a fairy tale?

8. The villain Cauchemar says that she is just trying to get her Happily Ever After, too. Can anyone have a Happily Ever After, even if they deny it to
someone else?

9. Fairies use magic to interfere with the lives of other char­acters in
The Rules.
By granting both blessings and curses, are the fairies striking a balance? What is the role of the adversity that
they create?

10. With lives dictated by curses and blessings and rules, how are the characters lives changed when they take an active role in reshaping their lives and
their world?