TO ALL RESIDING AT CAMDEN PALACE

This is to announce that the Yuletide opening ceremony will commence today, Wednesday 19th December 1456 SA, at half past five in the evening in the Great Hall. To allow staff to prepare for this event, we ask that all courtiers and visitors avoid the ground floor of the palace until this evening, unless they are attending rehearsals in the Great Hall.

There will be no tea or dinner served in the dining room today. Instead, there will be high tea in the Great Hall at six o'clock in the evening, to be followed by a late supper before retiring. Light refreshments may be obtained from upper housemaids during the course of the afternoon for those who wish them.

No special costume or formal attire is required for the ceremony, but many people like to dress in appropriate colours for Yuletide. Please bring a smile, a sense of fun, and a willingness to meet and mingle with everyone at the palace.

All at Camden Palace are invited, and staff are welcome to attend as their schedules permit. We look forward to seeing you there!

Sincerely yours,

Lady Gaia Culpeper-Vance
SENESCHAL TO CAMDEN PALACE

Eden read this announcement, which had been delivered to them by Nalini, along with fragile china cups filled with amber tea and thin, crisp slices of lightly buttered toast.

"Thank you very much, Nalini," Lucy had said, taking charge of the tray. "Will you be going to the Great Hall this evening?"

"Yes Miss Lucy," Nalini had smiled. "None of the staff would miss it for worlds. I'll try to see your part in it, then pop in again after high tea."

"What's your part in it?" Eden asked, when Nalini had gone.

"Oh it's hardly anything," Lucy said, reaching for a slice of toast. "It's traditional for the youngest person at the palace to open the ceremonies, so that's me. It only takes a minute, but it's quite symbolic."

Eden could see Lucy wasn't going to say any more about it, so she instead asked, "And what are appropriate colours to wear for Yuletide?"

"Sun colours," Lucy explained. "White, gold, yellow, orange, pink, red ... but lots of people wear green for evergreens, or silver for the moon. Yuletide only ends after the Full Moon, you see."

"What are you wearing?"

"A red dress I got in Everwick," Lucy replied. "It's not really bright and sunny though – it's more like an autumn leaf colour."

Once they'd finished their tea and toast, Eden started looking through her clothes to see if she had anything suitable. Lucy helped her pick out a burnt orange linen dress, just below the knees, with a square neckline and three-quarter sleeves.

"Are you sure this will be warm enough?" Eden asked dubiously.

"Oh, yes. It's hot and crowded in the hall," Lucy assured her.

The two girls were soon dressed, Lucy looking taller in her dark red gown, which had been made long in anticipation of a future increase in her height. Eden began tying her hair back, but Lucy stopped her.

"You're meant to wear your hair loose during Yuletide," Lucy said.

"Why's that?" Eden asked curiously.

"Just superstition," Lucy shrugged. "Something to do with being free and unbound, I think. A few people won't even wear belts or shoelaces during Yuletide."

Eden combed her long black hair until it was silky and straight, flowing down her back like a shining river. Lucy's light brown curls fell naturally into long ringlets which were the bane of her life, as they so easily tangled. Eden tried to help her as best she could, but she did not have the knack of Dorothea's elegant ladies' maid, Severine, and kept pulling Lucy's hair, be she ever so gentle.

After making poor Lucy cry out in pain for the third time, Eden decided her talents did not lie in hairdressing, and left Lucy to it. She began looking through her box of Yule gifts again to see all were safe, but suddenly gave a start when she realised Lucy was watching. She had just been about to open the kit for Lucy's bead necklace.

"Sorry, you made me jump," she said, hastily putting everything back. "I was just checking nothing got damaged in the box when I sat on the bed."

"We can put our Yule shopping in the schoolroom if you want," Lucy said, giving her hair a final twirl. "There's lockers to keep belongings private, and it's a good place to work if you're making any of your own gifts."

"Yes, there's one or two things I think I'll make myself," Eden said, picking up the box.

"I'll get mine too," Lucy said, smoothing her dress down. "Do I look alright?"

"Very, very nice," said Eden primly, not quite meeting Lucy's eyes. "That's a lovely colour."

"Your hair looks pretty," Lucy offered in return. "You're lucky it's so nice and easy to comb flat."

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The schoolroom was on the only corridor of the royal private apartments that Eden hadn't seen yet, the one most easily reached from the bottom of the tower stairs. Eden was already getting used to the guards, and joined Lucy in greeting them as they passed – it was Ruggles and Beale, this shift.

When Lucy pushed open the door, it was to reveal a large square room painted cream, with high arched windows to let in as much light as possible. There were bookshelves ranged around the walls, as well as a blackboard, maps, pictures, and a great globe of the world.

There was a girl around the same age as them in a bright yellow dress, sitting bent over a book at one of the tables. She looked up when she heard them enter, and immediately rose, bowing her head a little so that she had to push her spectacles quickly to the bridge of her nose lest they fall down.

She had a clever yet expressionless face, and was tall and thin, with long, straight brown hair. Eden was strongly reminded of the portrait of Queen Eleanor the Erudite, and wondered if the girl might be a distant descendant.

"Oh Eden, this is Lady Penelope Hetherington, who does lessons with me," Lucy said. Eden noticed that she hadn't called Penelope her friend, and wondered at it. Lucy seemed to think that something more was required, for she added, "Penelope is the granddaughter of the Prime Minister."

"Good afternoon," Eden said, slightly awkwardly.

"Penelope, this is Crown Princess Eden of Westmoreland," Lucy continued. "She's spending Yuletide with us."

Penelope swept into a deep curtsy, saying "Welcome to Camden, Your Royal Highness. I do hope you enjoy your visit." She had a dry, flat little voice, with each word clipped and precise.

"Oh, please call me Eden," Eden said at once. "We're all girls together, and it will be Yuletide soon."

"You honour me," said Penelope, inclining her head slightly once more.

It was clear that she was going to keep standing until dismissed, so Lucy said, "Please sit down as you were, Penelope. I'm sorry we disturbed you."

Penelope returned to her seat, saying, "It is your schoolroom, and my privilege to be allowed to share it with you." 

Her head was soon back over her book, one finger quietly tapping the page in front of her as if to keep her place.

Lucy showed Eden the row of polished wooden cabinets where personal items could be stored between lessons. There was a tiny golden key to lock the one she was given, which Eden slipped onto the chain of her watch, and dropped it back in her pocket.

Eden had barely begun filling her locker, when the door opened, and a good-looking boy about a year older than her put his head around the door. She could already guess who he was, because he looked like the painting of Lucy's sister, Clarissa, with the same fair hair and large blue eyes.

"There you are, Lu. Come on, we've got rehearsal," he said. Then he noticed his sister wasn't alone, and said to Eden, "I say, forgive me for barging in like this. You must think me a complete oaf."

"Not at all," Eden said politely.

"Roddy, this is Crown Princess Eden of Westmoreland," Lucy said, coming forward. "Eden, may I present my brother, Sir Roderick FitzPeters, the Duke of Watford?"

Roderick gave very elegant bow, bending from the waist in a swift, supple movement. "Your servant, Your Royal Highness."

"Glad to meet you, Sir Roderick," Eden said, holding out her hand, "and please call me Eden."

"Thank you Eden, and please just call me Roderick, or Roddy if you'd like," Roderick said with a smile, as he shook her hand. "All this stops in about an hour, anyway."

"We'd better get to rehearsal, Roddy," Lucy said. She turned to Eden, and said, "Sorry I have to dash off like this. It's so silly, rehearsing the same thing we do every year, but they insist. Do you mind staying here for a bit?"

"No, that's alright," Eden said. "I've got some things to do."

"My apologies for taking Lucy away, Eden," Roderick said with a smile. "We'll see you in the Great Hall very soon. Bye, Penelope!" 

This was said with a raised voice, and a wave in Penelope's direction, who looked up rather blankly.

"Oh yes, goodbye Penelope," Lucy said, giving a little start as if she'd forgotten the other girl was there. "Could you please show Eden the way to the Great Hall when you come down?"

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Eden settled down to beginning her embroidery for Dorothea, as she didn't fancy the idea of making Lucy's gift in front of Penelope. The two girls worked in silence, until Eden thought it was too ridiculous that they were in the same room, but not speaking to each other.

"Do you have holiday tasks, Penelope?" she said.

The other girl looked up, adjusting her spectacles as she did so. "Oh no, Your ... I mean Eden. Lucy and I will have a tutor after Yuletide, so I am reading ahead in Latin that I might be prepared."

"I started with a tutor in the autumn," Eden said, as she threaded a needle with white cotton. "I turned fourteen in June."

"I had my birthday just after you, in August," Penelope said. "I would have moved on to a tutor as well, but they held me back so I could keep pace with Lucy."

"That's rather hard lines," Eden commented.

"I don't mind," Penelope said quickly. "I'm fortunate to be sharing a royal tutor, and it was only one term. But I am looking forward to learning new subjects, such as Greek and higher mathematics."

"I do Greek," Eden said, "but I'm only on the second lexicon and the first grammar so far."

The girls didn't talk after this, but the silence felt more companionable. Now that it was quiet with no distractions, Eden found herself thinking about the boy she called The White Mouse. She was sure he was in trouble, and it seemed wrong for her to be living in a palace and looking forward to Yuletide knowing that he was cold, hungry, and in danger on the streets of Camden.

She had tried to share her worries with Lucy, but her friend was sure that telling Bernard about it meant that the problem was practically solved already. Lucy seemed to have a touching amount of faith in her eldest brother, even though he had warned them it wasn't his responsibility, and he might not be able to help.

"Let's see what Bernard discovers before we think about it any more," Lucy had said. "He's the king, and he's sure to know the right thing to do."

Eden could hardly disagree with this, despite her inner misgivings, so all she could do was stop talking about it. That didn't mean she had stopped thinking about it.

She had made a good start on her embroidery when Penelope looked at the clock on the wall and said, "Oh, Eden. I think we should go down now so that we aren't late. There's not long before it starts."

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Penelope was slow walking downstairs, until Eden felt impatient with her. She kept tapping one hand on the balustrade beside her, so that after a while Eden felt prompted to ask, "Can you see alright, Penelope?"

Penelope looked at her in surprise, saying, "Yes ... as long as I have my specs on." She pushed them further up as she said this. "Why do you ask?"

"I thought you might be using the balustrade to feel your way downstairs," Eden said.

" Oh that. That's just habit," Penelope said. "Does it bother you?"

"Not really," Eden said. "You know, sailors live by habit. I always clean and tidy my boat in the same order each time."

"That's quite sensible," Penelope said, seeming mildly interested for once. "That way you won't forget anything. I didn't know you were a sailor."

"Well, I've got a boat and I sail in her," Eden said. "I live in the Lakelands, and everyone there knows how to row, sail, and fish. Sailors can be quite superstitious. I won't take a banana in the boat with me, for example."

Penelope appeared to consider this for a moment. "You wouldn't want to throw the peel in the lake I suppose."

Eden smiled a little. "That's a good explanation, but I wouldn't do that. I'd bury it on an island, or take it home with me. There's a lot of stories about how a boat sank or caught fire, and they always seem to have a banana onboard. It's not really very logical."

Penelope nodded, appearing to accept this, and they made their down to the ground floor. The Great Hall was on the other side of the Grand Entrance, through two huge heavily carved oakwood doors. When the guards opened up, Eden felt as if hundreds of pairs of eyes turned towards them. There were crowds of people, dressed in the warm colours of the sun. The general effect was a bit overwhelming.

The Great Hall was in the oldest part of the castle, with stone flagged floors and oak beams. Every spare inch of walls and rafters seemed to have been covered in garlands of evergreen, there were red and white candles everywhere, and the great stone fireplace held a massive log of wood, so huge it must have been almost an entire tree. A grey haired man in a crimson robe stood before it, and Lucy and Roderick were on either side of him.

Penelope ran over to some people standing at the front near the fireplace – a thin man with a moustache and spectacles, and a woman who looked like an older version of Penelope. There was a boy slightly younger than her, a girl slightly younger than the boy, and then a very small boy who was little more than a baby, and still carried by his nurse.

The family were grouped around a chair which held an elderly man too frail to stand up. He had a grizzled beard and whiskers, but still possessed an air of thoughtful command. This was obviously Penelope's grandfather, the Prime Minister. His white velvet robe was unable to conceal a large stomach on a thin frame, and this gave Eden a feeling of unease.

When she was five, her great-grandmother had developed such a distended stomach, her belly growing rounder and rounder as her face became thinner and more haggard, and her old body withered away. She had died the following winter, after months of pain that could barely be controlled by the physicians.

Eden hadn't really warmed to Penelope, and was indignant that she had abandoned her without a backward glance. However, she did pity her with all her heart, and the Prime Minister too.

The man in the crimson robe was speaking. 

"And so tonight is the first of the thirteen nights of Yuletide, as we await the approach of the returning sun. The fire we kindle in this hearth will bring light and warmth to us all, a harbinger of the sacred radiance in the sky above."

Roderick stepped forward, holding a smouldering brazen bowl of coals. 

"These coals are from last year's Yule Log, kept alight all the year so that it might burn again," he said. "The youngest person at the castle always lights at the Yule Log, and for one year that was me – until my sister Lucy was old enough to take over."

Roderick handed the coals to Lucy with a bow, and she knelt on the high stone hearth (a velvet cushion had been supplied for her). For a few minutes she struggled to get the coals to light the log, while Eden thought, "Come on, Lucy! You lit enough campfires over summer."

She heard Lucy whisper, "Roddy, can you - ?" and then a wisp of smoke rose from the log. Everyone murmured excitedly as Lucy fed the fire, with some help from Roderick and the man in the crimson robe.

At last the flames licked over the enormous log, and Lucy stood up, flushed with success and effort.

"Welcome, Yule!" she cried, her arms outstretched as if to embrace it.

"Welcome, Yule!" the crowd roared in response.

A choir standing to one side launched into song:

Welcome, Yule! Welcome!
Welcome to a bright sun shining
Welcome to a brand new morning
Welcome to a burst of singing
Welcome, Yule! Welcome!

Welcome, Yule! Welcome!
Welcome both to near and dear
Welcome all, and make good cheer
Welcome in another year
Welcome, Yule! Welcome!

· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·

LINDENSEA LORE

Sir Terence Alan Oswin Hetherington, Viscount Nettlecombe (born 23rd October 1412 SE)

Parentage
The son of Geoffrey Hetherington, 13th Earl of Foxbury (Lord Foxbury), Prime Minister of Lindensea (born 1381 SE); and his wife Edwina Hetherington (nee Lefridge, 1383-1452 SE).

Education
The King's School at Riverton. Hall College, Charcross University (1435 SE)

Position
Member of the King's High Council. Chairman of the Board of Trade.

Marriage
Married 17th May 1438 SE at the Temple of Juno in Camden to Lady Amaryllis Clare Buckland (born 15th July 1418 SE), second daughter of Sir Launcelet Buckland, 15th Earl of Swinthorpe.

Children
Lady Penelope Edwina Margaret Hetherington (born 30th August 1442 SE)

The Honourable Nigel Launcelet Terence Hetherington (born 7th August 1444 SE)

Lady Delia Clare Hetherington (born 29th July 1446 SE)

Lord Oswin Payne Alexander Hetherington, styled Lord Alexander (born 9th April 1453)

From Exactly Who is Who at Camden Court, 1456 Edition, published by Whitman & Co.