September Snippets

September has come at last! Is it just me, or did August fly by way too fast? Wow!

Anywho, a new month means new snippets! Be sure to stop by Katie's blog and check out all the swell snippets! The snippets I chose for this month are all rather lengthy, but I hope you don't mind. They're all from The Twelfth Kingdom. I'm trying to plan some TK posts for this month, to let you all know some more about the story, plot, and characters as I've mainly been posting about Children of a Legend. 

As for the picture on the right, it's not necessarily the castle from TK. But it was, in a sense, inspiring with the grayness and mysteriousness surrounding the riders in the picture. And I did write a scene in TK with rain beating down on the castle, so I like to think that it might be the same one. Only, I never wrote a moat in. But it's still swell to look at. 

As they struggled down a broad street, J's eyes drifted upward to gaze at an old temple. Years ago, the building had been a grand attraction in the city of Tellorn, and people came for miles to take in its splendor. But with the reign of recent kings, the temple had been abandoned and forgotten, leaving it to stand in ruins in the middle of Tellorn. J loved looking at the building and imagining what it was like years ago, when the windows gleamed and the marble steps were neatly swept. But with caving ceilings, broken doors, and dirt in every place visible, the temple was hard to see as something other than what it was: a ruin.

J shook her head. If only King Jakken believed in Père, maybe he would fix up the temple. She sighed. None of the rich people have any time for Père. They think He's only for the poor and destitute.

On the broad, filthy steps of the temple knelt about a dozen people, all clothed in tattered rags. J could tell they were praying, each one with a reverently bowed head and closed eyes. She could hear one of them praying aloud and, as she passed, she paused to listen to his prayer.

“Oh, Père, Creator and Lord of all, come to Findenland today. Let this new princess open the eyes of our king. Let him realize that You are missing in his life.” The old man stopped to wipe away his tears. “Do not abandon us, Père, because our king has abandoned You. Bring Your majesty back to Findenland.” He coughed, clutching at his chest weakly, then added, “Soon.”

J felt tears tugging at the corners of her own eyes and she added her own voice to the old man's. Answer his prayer, Père. Let him see Your glory restored before he leaves this earth. 

Josette sat, overwhelmed and enveloped in the cushy folds of a large chair in the middle of her chambers. She had never felt so clean in her whole life. After escorting her upstairs and down numerous halls, the maid Jakken had summoned opened a door behind which was a room beautiful beyond Josette's wildest imaginings. It was as if Josette had forgotten to breathe. 
The first things she noticed was the light. Soft candlelight gave the room a soft atmosphere. Two windows, both gleaming with utter cleanliness, looked over the courtyard, and a pair of double doors opened to a small balcony. The late afternoon sun cast golden rays through the glass and added to the richness of the room. Thick curtains tied on either side of the windows were opened now to let in the light, but promised to close at night to keep away the cruel drafts.

“This is a map of the Twelve Kingdoms.” Laris smacked her finger down on a name in the middle of the parchment. “And this is Findenland, our kingdom.” She ran her finger along thick black lines forming a sort of circle around the name. “These are our borders; they're entirely made up of mountain ranges. We are completely landlocked.” 

“Landlocked?”

“Yes, we have no access to the sea and our trade can only come to us from over the mountains. Now, because we have a strong mining industry, we're economically stable. However, we have a weak military and absolutely no navy. That gives us a disadvantage when it comes to political power.” 

Josette slowly pushed the blankets off and lowered her feet over the side of the bed. She allowed Aci to get her dressed and then sat while the maid fussed over her tangled brown hair with a brush.

When Aci was convinced she had done everything she could, she gestured to the floor length mirror. Josette stepped over, and her breath caught. Yesterday, when Aci had prepared her to meet her new sisters, she had been whisked away before she had even seen what she looked like. But what Josette saw before her in the mirror was nothing like what she expected to see.

Half of her long brown hair fell gently over her shoulders, and Aci had tucked the rest up in a simple, but elegant, twist. A white dress covered her frame, the bodice tastefully decorated with silver threads and tiny embroidered blue flowers. Heeled slippers peeked out from beneath the long hem. Josette gazed at her face, recalling the time when she had prayed in the rain at Père's temple. When she had looked into that puddle, the reflection she saw there was almost opposite of what she saw now.

“I look...”

“Pretty.” Aci beamed. “You look right pretty. Now let's get you to breakfast.”

Thanks for reading! God bless!