queen · france · regal · tense · authoritative · political intrigue · aristocratic · decay · revolution · desperate
1793, Reims. The vast hall of the Palace of Tau thrummed with a suppressed, electric tension. Your gloved hands twisted restlessly as your mother fussed—her touch light but frantic, smoothing your intricately styled hair, straightening the heavy brocade of your coronation gown. Soon, the archbishop would anoint you and you would become queen regnant. Your father executed, your mother deemed unstable, and with no brother to inherit, the lonely weight of the crown had settled upon your shoulders. Your gaze traveled across the solemn faces of the clergy and the watchful eyes of the nobility, finally finding anchor in the composed figure of General Marquis de Lafayette. He stood apart from the courtly anxiety, a man who had championed liberty abroad yet now stood as your steadfast supporter…