Author : Genevievebarbie
Source : fanpop.com
Author's Summary : Prequel to Barbie in the 12 Dancing Princesses. The story of how Prince Randolph and Lady Isabella faced hardships and difficulties and later on, fell in love and got married. This is my first fanfiction so please no flames. Lastly, please read and review!
Rating : T
Category : Romance, Drama
Disclaimer : The main characters of the story are owned by Mattel. I own all the supporting characters and the plot.

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Chapter 10 : Life in Kattendelle

Kattendelle. A beautiful, bustling kingdom for anyone and everyone to enjoy. Well, perhaps not everyone.

Princess Athena sat in her room, brushing her long, black hair, as she listened to her mother, Queen Adrienne, prattle on about her upcoming wedding to Crown Prince Randolph of Avolania.

"You must be on the best of behavior!"
"Yes, mother."

"There will be a ball in your honor soon after we arrive. King Peter told me via letter that it will most likely be on the next night of our arrival. You must pick out your best ball gown."
"Yes, mother."

Adrienne was interrupted by a maid –Carlita, Athena's right-hand maid– knocking, as she needed to change the bed linens.

"Not now! Go and us some snacks instead," Adrienne demanded, "And as for that dress you ironed, it has a wrinkle on the back!"

"Yes, your highness," Carlita squeaked, and hurriedly left.

Athena rolled her eyes. Carlita didn't even need to iron her mother's dress, she had her own maid. Adrienne turned back to her.

"Not only the ball gown, you must select a dress to wear upon meeting the royal family, a dress to wear for tea time, a dress for our journey and a perfect nightgown."
"Yes, mother."

Every demand had the same answer, to satisfy her mother, as it was the only answer Adrienne liked to hear.

Carlita came back with the snacks. As soon as Athena reached out to have a biscuit, her mother slapped her hand away.

"Not one bite. We can't have you not fitting in your own wedding dress, can we?" without waiting for a reply, she continued, "And not just your wedding dress, you welcome ball gown too."
"Yes, mother."

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After a long while, Adrienne finally got up and left. Athena laid back on her bed, and stayed that way for a long time, thinking. She didn't know what to make of this marriage, or Prince Randolph. The last time she met him, he was alright. But people changed. And what if he was in love with someone else?

All her life, she had dreamed of marrying a man she loved. So far, she hadn't found that man. So far, she was stuck in a marriage for alliance between two kingdoms. Perhaps, just perhaps, she would grow to love the prince.

But what about the vows? She almost gagged thinking about those. How could she possibly kiss a stranger, that too in front of so many people? Oh, if only she could just kiss him on the cheek and be off with it.

She tried her best not to think about her marriage, bit her mother just never left her alone. Everyday, at least 2 hours were spent discussing her wedding, and her dresses, and more equally boring topics. As a child, she never thought of these topics being boring, but as she realized that she wasn't going to have a dream wedding, the excitement of getting married soon vanished.

Maybe she was exaggerating. Maybe prince Randolph wasn't so bad. A knock was heard from her door. She slowly got up, re-arranging her gown as she did so. Just as she was about to open the door, the door opened itself.

Queen Adrienne came back from her short break to who-knows-where, presumably to begin her ranting once more.

Athena sighed as she pasted a smile on her face. This was going to be a long day.

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Queen Adrienne walked through the halls of her castle, a message from King Peter clutched in her hands. Apparently, she was to arrive in Avolania a day later than originally intended. How could he possibly do this?! It was a delay in her plans, plans which involved her daughter.

She seethed as she thought of her past in a rough outline.

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Many years ago, there was a peasant couple residing in the walls of Avolania. This couple was greedy. Very, very greedy. They had a daughter, Adrienne, who was just as greedy.

Somehow, the couple once managed to sneak into Avolania's Royal Castle, under the disguise of being humble servants. They had wrecked havoc in the castle, stealing the most precious jewels, the most fine dresses, and the most expensive ornaments.

When caught, the then king had had them imprisoned, however, having mercy on their daughter, instead sent her away to live with a relative. But the girl ran away from her relatives the night before she turned 16. But then, her parents were long gone, and she wanted revenge.

Months and months, Adrienne looked for the perfect husband. To her luck, she found a young prince, who was blinded by his 'love' for her, went against his parents' wishes, and married her. Dating a royal let her know that the now king of Avolania, Peter Royals, had had a son. When she had her daughter, she immediately decided that Athena would be her route to revenge. She would make sure Athena would marry Randolph.

She had slow poisoned her husband, and by the time his parents found out, they too had been poisoned. Soon enough, Adrienne had gotten rid of them all, and got the role of a young, widowed queen, who had a baby daughter. Naturally, it meant that she needed as many resources and alliances as possible, to be able to rule properly.

King Peter and Queen Lucinda had immediately extended a hand, and Adrienne had readily agreed. A deal was struck, Athena would marry Randolph, and the two kingdoms would align, with Athena's distant cousin taking over. However, in case Kattendelle failed to get a ruler, it would merge into Avolania, as Kattendelle was the smaller of the two.

Adrienne however, wanted to make sure the kingdoms would merge, and that instead of the Royals family ruling, she wanted herself, Queen Adrienne of Kattendelle, to rule over both kingdoms.

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And now, here she was, realizing that her plans were delayed, and if delayed any further, they could get out of control.

Oh, why was life so cruel?!

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A/N : Hey guys, how did you like this chapter and the new POVs? I hope you enjoyed it. Doesn't Queen Adrienne seem a lot like Queen Ariana from Barbie as the Island Princess? Review! Laterz!