The night was cold and an eerie atmosphere hung low over the neighborhood. The only house that seemed to fit into the gothic scenery was a large, two-story house that grew gloomier each time lightning struck the starless sky. Leaves rustled as the wind howled forbiddingly at the lonely road. Occasionally, a car would drive by splashing the sidewalk with puddles.
Inside the house, a woman stood silently in the parlor surveying the antique furniture, which she still hadn't gotten used to after moving into her grandmother's house three months before. In a corner, a seven-foot, grand, walnut piano stood solitarily waiting for music to flow from it's keys once more. Atop the piano sat a striking porcelain music box. Crafted onto the lid was a figurine of a ballerina in an arabesque position. In the dim light, it's shadow appeared to dance on the wall, although the ballerina itself did not move. Next to the bow window, a black cat with one white paw laid majestically on top of a Roman couch with his glowing blue eyes. The couch, made of purple velvet, seemed to shimmer from the brightness of both the waxing moon and the flickering of a street lamp across the barren street. The woman knew that soon it would start to rain again and at that moment the rain commenced and splashed against the window.
Suddenly, the lights inside blinked once than gave way to darkness. She stood in the abyss for a moment and then, as if just realizing that the lights went out, made her way towards the kitchen to fetch candles. She took out two brand new, white candles and lit them, without even looking at what she was doing. Then, as she moved up the creaky stairs, she noticed how the candlelight cast dancing shadows along the wall. Her own shadow seemed vague and distant, like from someone else's dying memory. When she reached the top of the steps, the dark hallway was like a lonely nothingness that didn't welcome intruders. Portraits of her dead grandmother hung on either side of the walls, unfolding her life's story to the eyes of willing bystanders. Then the woman silently entered her room, placed the candles on the nightstand, and climbed quickly into the comfortable bed. She laid her head down on the plush pillow and wearily tucked herself in.
Slowly the woman drifted further away from consciousness, but at the same time her subconscious surfaced. In this deep slumber, she faintly heard a familiar voice. ~~~~~
"Gabrielle, Gabrielle!" All of a sudden, she snapped back into consciousness.
"Father wishes to see you in the garden. You'd better hurry. He said it was
important."
As Gabrielle proceeded to the garden, she kindly greeted all of the faces she
encountered. Gracefully entering, she found her father waiting patiently by her
rose garden admiring their beauty. "Hello, my daughter. I need to speak to you
about a matter of great importance. You have received an offer of marriage from
a Sicilian Prince. I have taken the liberty of accepting that proposal for you
already. After you've wed, Prince Lyavatsci will assume the throne in Heptembre.
This marriage will be advantageous to both Athens and Rome because then our
combined forces will be able to crush our enemies, the Babylonians. This
alliance is very important and I hope that you are happy with this arrangement.
The both of you shall wed a week from now. I just want what's best for you.
Please remember this is for your own benefit as well as Greece's."
Inside the princess was completely shocked and horrified. Her first thought was of how her father could have done such a thing to her. Accepting an offer of marriage to a total stranger without asking her permission was outrageous to her sense of self-respect. Gabrielle could feel her temper rise and she became filled with rage. Then she thought of her paramour and how she would be able to explain this to him. Suddenly, her rage was replaced with sadness at what she would be forced to impart to him. As there was nothing she could do about it at the moment, she numbly replied, "Yes father, as you wish. I'm sure that I'll be quite happy with Prince Lyavatsci." At times like these, she wished she hadn't been born of royal blood so she wouldn't have to act so proper all of the time, but the Fates were the ones who controlled peoples' lives. Silently, she waited for her father to dismiss her and when that gesture came, Gabrielle quickly walked back to her chambers in the palace.
Once in the privacy of her room, she broke down into tears. A thousand thoughts
swam in her head. What I am I going to do? How will I get out of this sham of an
engagement? Urgently, she called for the captain of the guards then laid upon
her purple velvet couch, which had arrived from Rome a couple days ago, to await
his entrance. A few minutes passed before he finally arrived looking splendidly
handsome in his bronze armor. Castor had deep, dark blue eyes that reflected the
sunlight whenever he was outdoors. His light brown hair was always flat against
his forehead and he was very masculine, though only a few inches taller than she
was.
"Good afternoon, beloved," he said as he closed the door. "What's the matter?
We don't usually meet like this."
"Something horrible has happened. My father has arranged for me to marry a
Sicilian prince in a week. What are we going to do?" Furiously, Gabrielle got up
and paced back and forth in front of the couch. "He's not thinking about what's
best for me, he's only thinking about what's best for Athens and of how he could
defeat his enemies. I can't believe father did this to me! I feel so helpless. I
don't know what to do!"
"Please don't worry too much about this. We'll figure something out. Why don't
we just tell him of our love for each other? I'm sure he would understand and
call the whole thing off."
"No. You don't understand. He won't do anything to risk this alliance. Even if
we told him, he'll never let us be together as long as I'm his daughter and the
next heir to the throne."
"We can get through this together. We have a week to come up with a plan. Don't
worry. I'll think of something. Everything is going to be fine."
The two of them sat down on the couch wrapped in each other's arms, never
wanting to let go. But alas, Castor had to leave. Still teary eyed, Gabrielle
was left alone to wonder at what Castor would think of.
~~~~~
Leaving the princess, Castor contemplated the dire situation. He truly loved the princess, but he couldn't think of a way for them to be together. The king would surely never approve of the match. His heart became overwhelmed with feelings of anger and frustration. He resented the king for thwarting their love. As he walked down the corridor, an idea came to him that would fulfill his desire to keep Gabrielle's father from standing in the way of their happiness. Quickly, he proceeded to his room in order to plan his idea more carefully. After admitting himself, he hastily secured the heavy oak door and leaned against it sighing. He mentally went over the whole plan in his head. Then it occurred to him that he should write down some details that he would need. He reminisced for a few minutes then jotted down the king's daily schedule and other times and places that would be of some use to his endeavor. Castor worked all night writing down his plan in his journal and when the sun began to peep out over the horizon, Castor, with a melancholy expression, thought to himself, in two day's time, I will assassinate the king in order to be with my beloved Gabrielle. It's the only way. ~~~~~
The morning after the king's death, loyal subjects began to don the traditional
blue garb of those who mourn a great loss. However, there was only one who truly
felt any pain. Gabrielle had always been the daughter closest to him and
although their relationship drifted in and out of formality, they had shared
with each other a deep familial bond that was hard to break.
The more she thought about the situation, the more Gabrielle felt suspicious
about the manner of her father's death. In her mind there was no doubt that this
was a premeditated murder, but there was no way to find out for sure. This
suspicion was the hardest feeling to cope with because she couldn't conceive of
how anyone, no matter how much they've been wronged, could be driven to kill a
good leader.
All remembrance of her engagement to Prince Lyavatsci was forgotten and she felt
guilty for having angry feelings towards her father before he had died. The most
predominant memory in her mind was of how only the night before, her father
keeled ever at dinner after taking a few sips of wine. Her initial shock had
worn away to a dull throbbing in her head, but in her heart was where she felt
the most pain. She frequently found comfort in Castor's arms, who seemed to
share her grief.
One day while strolling together in the garden among violets, irises, and
dahlias, Castor brought up the subject of their marriage. "Darling, you are the
Queen now and it is time for you to choose a husband. Please marry me and make
me the happiest man in all of Greece."
"Beloved, of course I shall marry you! The engagement with Lyavatsci was dissolved as soon as my father's soul passed into the realm of Hades. I've already written to him of breaking our engagement. I would love nothing more than to be your wife." After that, they no longer talked but only took comfort in being near each other then silently, they made their way back to Castor's chamber.
Gabrielle awoke alone in the room. Turning around, she found a note where
Castor had lain. It told her that he was called to the barracks to inspect the
new recruits for the army and that he would return to her as soon as he could.
Gabrielle decided to get up and in the process of doing so, tripped over her own
feet, and would have fallen if she had not caught the edge of the desk. Stunned
by her clumsiness, Gabrielle stayed in her position for a few moments and took
notice of the objects on his desk. One of these was a small blue vial, which
looked out of place in his stark room.
Curiosity held her in its grip so she picked it up and examined it. Upon closer
scrutiny, Gabrielle discovered that the tiny bottle used to hold poison. Shocked
and full of disbelief, the princess frantically searched for other evidence to
disprove what she already knew in her heart. Then as if by fate, she lighted
upon castor's journal. Going against every strain of loyalty in her body,
Gabrielle skimmed each page looking for anything that would incriminate her
lover even further. Then she found it. Pages of details of his plot to
assassinate the King were in her hands, but she couldn't accept it. Castor had
written down every last detail about her father's schedule those two days before
he had died. Sick with disbelief and sorrow, she knew what she had to do.
Gabrielle finally found her father's killer and he was the one whom she had
placed closest to her heart.
It was at that moment that Castor burst into the room with a look of love on his face, but once he saw Gabrielle's expression of horror, his smile faded like a winter's dusk. Immediately he knew what she had discovered and bowed his head in guilt and sorrow. Acting upon her first instinct Gabrielle called the guards and ordered them to arrest Castor and to prepare for a trial the next day. She was surprised that Castor had not tried to explain, but there was nothing to explain and tomorrow, he would die. ~~~~~
The day of Castor's trial dawned bright; it seemed too cheerful for the events that were to take place. News of Castor's imprisonment spread like a fire in dry brush the day before and now it seemed as if all of Athens had come. Everyone now knew that the king's most trusted captain was the one who had taken his life.
From miles around, people came to witness the trial held in the arena. It was modeled after the Coliseum in Rome and it had been previously used as a place where citizens and travelers alike could watch sports and other trials. Indeed, some people have called this type of trial barbaric and not a proper trial at all, but it was definitely an efficient method for trying prisoners; one that had been a way of life since Julius Caesar himself ruled the Roman Empire. The trial itself involved the prisoner to choose between two doors. Behind one was a pit full of hungry lions and behind the other lay a path to freedom. ~~~~~
Gabrielle stood on a platform in the audience where the ruler usually watched the sports events. The platform was about six feet off the ground with a safety barrier in front of it for protection. At the other end of the arena were the two doors. Being the queen, she knew which door led to life and which led to death. From the outside, though, there was no distinction between them. Each was a heavy wooden door crafted from oak and had neither a sign nor a symbol to give away the secret. There was only one thing on Gabrielle's mind and that was the question of why Castor would do such a thing. She would not compel herself to understand his reason and motive. The more it was thought about, the more disturbed and confused she became. ~~~~~
Castor knew he couldn't hold the truth from Gabrielle any longer. He had to tell her. She needed to know why before it was too late. He pictured her sweet face and couldn't bear to see it in pain. All he could think about was how much suffering he caused her and felt that he deserved to die. It was then that the guards came in to take him outside into the arena. As the guards led him towards the light at the end of the path, he could hear the crowd noisily gathering to watch. He blinked hard trying to adjust his eyes to the brightness of the day. First, he looked for Gabrielle. When he laid his eyes upon her, he could not tear his gaze away. His heart wrenched inside of him as he saw how cold and distant she had become. He tried to walk before the platform, past the guards, who attempted to stop him, but Gabrielle, through a sudden surge of pain within her stopped them, and allowed him to come before her. He placed a golden ring by her feet and touched her ankle gently then stepped back again and said, "I did it for us. Your father would never have let us wed and you were engaged to that prince. I couldn't bare the thought of losing you, so I committed that murder. You have every right to kill me and I will forgive you if you decide to do so because I deserve death. But listen to me now; I love you and I will always love you. Please look upon my eyes once again and forgive me. Don't let me die without letting me hear your sweet voice again. I love you." Gabrielle couldn't look at him. She stared straight ahead, frozen but she could feel his eyes on her, waiting for a response. At that moment she hated him. She hated him for making her feel so torn between loyalty for her father and king, and love for him. But, the feeling of hatred passed quickly and she all of a sudden, Gabrielle was tired of emotions. She still refused to establish eye contact because he knew if she looked into his despondent blue eyes, she would lose all composure. However, there was one thing she would do. Gabrielle lifted her arm and pointed to the door on her right. She watched as Castor moved slowly towards it. Everything else seemed to fade into nothingness and all she could do was stand there alone. Gabrielle watched his every step, for now that he faced the other direction, she could not help but stare at him. Solemnly, she whispered, "I love you." ~~~~~
Everything went blank. The woman suddenly opened her eyes and swiftly sat up in her bed. She awoke sweating and feeling drained of all her energy. That morning, the woman felt strange; it was as if her life had become emptier somehow and she couldn't concentrate on even the simplest tasks. She continued to feel uncomfortable all day, and she knew it was related to that dreamed she had. She was reluctant to tell anyone because she was unsure of how they would react. It stayed fresh in her memory and she tried to run through the whole dream in her head repeatedly, desperately struggling to keep every detail intact. But the vision that haunted her most was of the moment Castor opened the door. She had awakened before she saw what happened next and it tormented her. Nights passed after the dream, but it never returned so after a few days she began to shrug the feelings off. Weeks passed and soon she had forgotten about it altogether. One morning, as she sat reading on the Roman couch, a knock came at the door. It was peculiar because she wasn't expecting anyone. She put down her book and sighed deeply, anticipating a surprise visit from a friend, but instead, when she opened the door she nearly fainted. She began to feel lightheaded as the two of them stood staring at each other. All that she could notice was his dark blue eyes that reflected the sunlight. ~~~~~