Keep your face always toward the sunshine-

and shadows will fall behind you.

- Walt Whitman

Be the Sun.

The thought swirled in my head as I walked down the halls numbly, following the Queen in green.

I couldn't think as to how that could apply to the situation though.

If I was being honest, I had no idea what was going on.

I'm looking for a Fayette? The dainty voice rang in my head.

What does she want with me?

Don't you two girls know how to address your Queen?

I couldn't even remember her name.

When I was small- when the world was right- I remember looking at pictures of the Queen with mother. She was an elegant lady, exotic looking with tan skin and dark hair and bright eyes. I remember her name- Queen Isadora.

She died before I was born when the prince was still an infant. I remember mother saying it was a sad day. The people of the land wore the Queen's color green to honor her. The king's howl of sorrow could be heard across all packs.

What happened? I remember asking mother, touching the picture of the beautiful woman.

At the time I didn't know it, but looking back, it was clear to see mother's hesitation of if she should tell me the truth or not.

Looking at the picture, mother touched my hair and said, "Some bad men came to take the prince away, and the queen became a mother."

I didn't understand what mother had said. I just nodded and continued looking at the beautiful woman in my hands. I adored Queen Isadora when I was little and was horrified to find out that the King had already married another woman. Queen Cora.

I heard the news- even as an omega - when Queen Cora was banished from the land for her adulterous acts.

And now four years after that incident, the new Queen was in place.

I studied the back of her while we walked down the halls- going to an unknown destination. I could vaguely remember her name, but being an omega I didn't keep up with the royals and happenings of politics. When I did go to school, I would always be in the labs. I never worked with history.

She's young, I thought. But looks could be deceiving. This Queen looked as if she was still in her 20's, whereas the King rightly should be in his 50's.

What is her name? I thought, frustrated with myself. Even if I'm just an omega, I should still be able to know the royal family's name.

But everyone just referred to them as, The Queen or The King and The Prince, with no real name included. It made me wonder if that was their name.

The Queen glanced at me and smiled, motioning for me to come along. When I kept my same pace behind her, her smile never faltered but she let out sing-song, "F-a-st-er!"

I quickly moved my feet so that I would be positioned, still slightly behind her, but further than I was before.

"Here we are!" The Queen said again in her little sing-song voice.

I tried to keep a calm face as I entered the room behind her. I still had no idea what was going on.

Without my voluntary consent, a small gasp escaped from my mouth.

A satisfied look came across the Queens' face. She raised her arms and motioned towards the rows and rows of dresses and clothes that laid before me.

"I'm going to need you to choose one for tomorrows ceremony."

I felt like my eyes were bulging out of their sockets. Me? A dress?

I stared numbly at the Queen, with her staring back before she let out a loud sigh and said-

"I said choose, so choose."

I still didn't move from my position. I had to take a few measured breathes and swallow a few times to make sure my throat wouldn't close up before I spoke, "What?" Was all I managed to choke out.

The Queen gave an impatient sigh. I was starting to understand her personality a little better.

"This is apparently a tradition that Queen Isadora started," The Queen gave a quick huff at the name before moving on, "During each Blue Moon Ceremony, the Queen is to ask the overseer who contributed the most in their service to the King and Queen." The Queen walked a few steps towards a rack of silver gowns, touching them and testing the material with her thumb before speaking again.

"Mr. Joseph said your name. So as a reward you are to attend the ceremony. However, he did voice a concern for your attire." The Queen turned to me then and motioned again to the materials hanging. "So choose."

"But...um...Queen?" I stated nervously. Her eyes narrowed at me. I could tell she was hard wire to be doing other things, rushing around being busy and was not used to being held up.

"I'm in charge of the light show, so I can't really be AT the ceremony because I need to be IN it."

I snapped my fingers. A nervous habit.

The Queen made an impatient sigh and said, "Just go for as long as you can, eat for as long as you must, dance for however much your allowed, and don't mess up whatever part you have." She looked at me and then to my hand that I was snapping.

"Stop that," she said.

I immediately stopped.

"I'll give you a blue tooth ear clip so you can talk while at the ceremony. I'm sure you have an assistant of sorts who is able to program also?" The Queen gave me a hesitant look before saying, "You were chosen by Mr. Joseph for a reason, and the King and Queen greatly honor your hard work, Fayette. Tomorrow night I will try to make as magical for you as possible."

I stared numbly back at the Queen.

The hard expression returned in her eyes, and she walked forward to the dress rack.

"This is all leftover clothes that once belong to the Queens or High Lady's," The Queen curled her lips in disgust at the last words. "But we should find something for you."

............

We found nothing.

The Queen had called in five of her maids to come help in the search, but the dresses were either too big, too small, the color was not right, the bust was not good, (no way are you going out in that piece of cloth! The Queen shouted once).

We finally were down to two dresses.

And both of them I did not like.

Neither did the Queen.

She frowned at the results of our two-hour search.

"This is it?" She asked, look back and forth to her maids. They all shuffled their feet and nodded, looking down.

"It's too late to order something dear so choose from the two," the Queen told me.

Throughout the two hours, I had somehow gotten to know the Queen more than I had thought I would. She in the process had developed a nickname of calling me dear. At first, it startled both her and me. But after a while, the name rolled off her tongue and sounded natural.

One of the dresses was green, so I knew instantly I could not choose it.

The other was an ugly pasty orange, that I could never understand why anyone would choose to make a dress out of.

"Wait!" One maid called out.

We all turned out heads to the glimmer of hope that one word brought us.

In her hands were two dresses. Both were gorgeous. But only one caught my eye.

"I'd choose the pink one dear," the Queen said, eyeing the light pink.

"No," I breathed. I stepped forward and grabbed the other dress from the maid.

"What?" The Queen sputtered, at a lost for the first time I had seen her.

"You want that yellow one?" she said.

I looked down at the yellow dress. It was beautiful, with no straps, and an intricate embroidery design along the top half and down the middle, leaving flowing light yellow material to surround it.

Be the sun.

"It's perfect," I breathed.

"Try it on and let us see first dear," the Queen said, doubt lacing her voice.

I quickly stripped- use to it now after doing it so many times in front of the women- and allowed the maid who helped find the dress assist me in zipping it.

The women stepped back and looked.

I heard some gasps as I turned in a slow circle for them.

"Yes," the Queen said nodding, with the maids giving thumbs up behind her back.

"Yes dear, It's perfect."

The Blue Moon Ceremony is Tomorrow! What!? Fayette will be there? The Prince has come back? What is going to happen?

Will these two meet?

Will Pride get in the way?

Or will love turn to ashes?

/////WORLD_JOY_/////