Chapter 212: Chapter 212

Considering how excited Gwen was when Rebecca brought up the subject of her coronation, I honestly thought it would happen a lot sooner. Especially since that's why the Tullrohane made the trip out to the Gorath Sector in the first place. And for that matter I remembered Sarah saying something about them wanting to do it only a few days after they arrived at Deveron-8.

Once Rebecca actually agreed to it though, things happened a lot more slowly. In fact between all the preparations and details it ended up taking another twelve days before the big event. Fortunately they didn't expect the three of us to spend all that time on the cruiser.

We did have to visit twice more during the wait, so the royal dressmaker could do proper fittings for the fancy gowns we were all expected to wear. Sarah and I both thought our outfits were a little much, right up until we saw the extravagant thing Rebecca was going to have to endure.

On the other hand the delay meant that the princess would be out of her casts in time for the ceremony. She'd still have a patch over her right eye, but they were working on something better than 'that big ugly bandage' as they put it.

Other than that we spent the intervening time helping out around Ganvis Station. Sarah, Cammie, and Jenna joined forces with Jaycee and a handful of other locals to help repair or rebuild some of the structures damaged during the bandit attacks. Meanwhile I gave Doc Rogers a hand looking after the locals who were still recovering from injuries. Even Nyssa pitched in once her leg had healed enough. She stuck with me for two days as my assistant before she got bored, then spent the rest of her time at Jaycee's side.

Rebecca wanted to help as well, but between recovering from her own injuries and Gwen wanting to coach her about the big day she was mostly stuck hanging around the Demeter.

Sarah and Cammie also found some time to work on the Demeter's fighter, and between the two of them they were able to power it up enough for me to fly it the short distance back to the ship. We got it secured in its port-side docking position, but the little craft needed a lot more work to make it space-worthy again. And that was going to have to wait until our next visit to Tamsin's shipyard.

When the big day finally arrived we all crowded into our shuttle, except for Jenny of course. I was at the controls, with my sister in the copilot seat. The flight only took us an hour this time, since the Tullrohane was practically waiting for us directly over Ganvis.

The moment we were secure in one of their hangars Gwen whisked Rebecca and Sarah and I away to get us ready. Meanwhile an ensign led Cammie, Jenna, Nyssa, and Jaycee someplace else to wait for the proceedings.

"Oh wow," I mumbled when we reached our destination.

Sarah nodded slowly, "You can say that again."

The royal stateroom must have taken up as much space as the Demeter's entire main deck. The parlour area consisted of a lounge, living-room, and meeting area. There was a boardroom-style table surrounded by a dozen chairs off to the right, a big comfy sofa and chairs in front of us, and more comfy chairs and love seats to the left. The wall directly opposite us was all big windows, with a beautiful view of the planet below us.

Further to the left were a pair of doors that led to two separate bedrooms. The more luxurious one was for the princess herself, while the slightly less lavish room was for her personal attendants. And both bedrooms had their own big ensuite bathrooms attached.

Speaking of attendants, there were four young women there waiting for us. A pair of them took Rebecca's hands and guided her into the royal bedroom, while the other two led Sarah and I into the second bedroom. Then despite our protests they basically stripped the pair of us down then proceeded to give us complete make-overs.

We both had our hair washed and styled, they even did the floof on my tail. Both of us were also treated to a full manicure and pedicure. Then they did our make-up, before finally getting us dressed in our fancy gowns. And after that they added a finishing touch of jewelry, before finally leaving us alone.

The whole thing took a couple hours, and when it was over Sarah and I took a moment to stare at each other in the provided full-length mirrors.

"Wow Sarah," I commented as my tail slowly swished back and forth behind me. "You look stunning."

She smiled back at me, "You too cutie. You're beautiful."

"Never imagined I'd clean up so nicely though," she added with a self-deprecating laugh. "They even got all the engine grease out from under my fingernails."

Apart from a few details the two of us almost matched. Our outfits consisted of knee-length dresses, pale blue for her and pale green for me, under a longer translucent gown that had a silvery sheen to it. My outfit was designed to accommodate my tail, and our dresses had a neckline low enough to tantalize without being too revealing. We were both in black heels, and our jewelry was the same as well.

That consisted of diamond necklaces with matching earrings, we even had little matching tiaras on our heads. It was all made out of what looked like platinum or white-gold, and the earrings were temporary, held in place with tiny magnets.

Sarah's long blonde hair had been given a nice wave, with some tight little braids on either side that were wrapped around as if she was wearing a little blonde diadem under her tiara. My auburn locks had a similar wave to them, and a few little braided strands were shaped like flowers around the sides and back. They didn't attempt anything so fancy with my tail, but they did manage to get my fur extra floofy.

Then we heard Rebecca emerge from her room, so both Sarah and I hurried out of our room to see what they'd done for our girlfriend.

"They polished my fingernails! And my toenails!" the princess complained as soon as she spotted us. "I can ignore the hair, and I can almost ignore the make-up. But why in the galaxy would they polish my toenails? You can't even see them in these silly shoes!"

She shook her head and sighed, "And don't even get me started about the jewelry. They made me take off my necklace with Gabe's ring, then put all this other stuff on me instead!"

Neither of us responded right away, we were practically speechless as we stared wide-eyed at the drop-dead gorgeous redhead. Where Sarah and I had been pampered, Rebecca really did get the royal treatment.

Starting with her dress, which was an amazing full-length gown woven of something that looked almost like it was spun from pure silver threads. There were sparkling patterns of green and blue in the collar, cuffs, and around the seams and hem. And the dress stretched out behind her into a train that must have been almost three meters long. She even had a pair of teenage girls back there to manage the thing.

Like us Rebecca was in heels, and her brilliant red hair almost radiated with vibrancy. She'd got the full make-up and jewelry treatment as well, but they'd taken everything up another couple notches for her. She had a similar necklace and earrings, but hers were decorated with emeralds and sapphires along with the diamonds. She didn't have a tiara like Sarah and I, but she did have the fanciest bejewelled eyepatch I could ever imagine.

It looked like it was made from a hundred little strands of silver all woven together, then decorated with even more diamonds emeralds and sapphires. It fit with the rest of her outfit, but at the same time it still felt over-the-top. And her make-up was better than perfect. It accentuated all her natural beauty, while subtly concealing the scars on her right cheek and forehead.

"You two look great by the way," the princess added after she finally got over her own indignities. "I see they polished your nails too."

I smiled, "You look stunning love. And yes, they did our fingernails and toenails as well."

Rebecca rolled her good eye, but that was all the time we had for commiserating about all the pampering as Gwen Magniveen returned after her own glow-up.

The royal secretary's outfit wasn't anywhere near as fancy as any of ours, but it was still very nice. She was in heels, dark grey slacks, and a silvery-grey blouse with dark blue patterns woven into the collar and cuffs. She also wore a belt with a long thin sword hanging by her left hip. It was in a dark blue scabbard, and the silver-coloured guard and pommel were engraved with markings that matched those on her blouse.

It occurred to me that the marks probably had something to do with the Magniveens being a noble family. Which meant the blue and green patterns in Rebecca's dress were likely related to Gabe's family history too.

"We've got about fifteen minutes before it's time," Gwen announced, "So why don't you all get comfortable? We can have some refreshments brought in if you like, while we go over the last-minute details."

Our princess smiled, "How about a bottle of your finest whiskey, and six shot glasses?"

"Or maybe just four?" she added when she glanced at the two younger girls who were hovering around holding the end of her ridiculous dress. "Are you two old enough to drink?"

Gwen shook her head, "They're not."

"This is Anya Magonnis," she added as she gestured to one of the teens. Then she nodded to the other, "And that is Tracey Magphalen. Their families were among the first to align with the Magniveens, to help expose the regent's treachery and restore your highness to the throne." Newest update provıded by noⅴelfire.net

Rebecca smiled at the two girls, "They told me their names earlier, but I didn't realize they were both from noble houses."

"I'm sure I don't have to remind your highness that this is a very special occasion," Gwen pointed out. "There are volunteers from almost every noble family on Vysalis-4 serving on the VDS Tullrohane in one way or another."

Our girlfriend looked like she was trying not to grimace as she replied, "I know Gwen. Don't worry, I'm not going to screw this up."

Lady Magniveen smiled, "I know. Just to be sure though, let's go over things one more time..."

We never did get that whiskey, but Gwen made sure there was a pitcher of cold water and some glasses. Mostly though the four of us spent the rest of our time reviewing protocol and procedures. Fortunately Sarah and I didn't have to do much more than stand around and look pretty. Rebecca had to memorize some lines and an oath, but that wasn't so bad either.

Gwen also reminded us that the whole thing was going to be captured on vid, to be broadcast back on Vysalis-4. Everyone on the planet would see it, along with plenty of folks on other Imperium worlds. After all, Rebecca was about to become queen of a founding world, one of the few planets with two senators in the Imperium. Even if other worlds didn't care about the monarchy, they'd still be interested in the planet's newest leader.

"So no pressure at all really," the princess tried to joke at one point.

When the time came Lady Magniveen led our little procession out of the royal stateroom then down the corridor. Sarah and I followed, with Rebecca behind us. And the two teens were behind her, managing her ridiculous dress. A pair of royal guards waiting outside the suite fell in line behind the teens, and all eight of us continued through the corridors towards our destination and our girlfriend's destiny.

We passed a few more crew along the way, and it seemed like everyone was in their finest dress uniforms for the big ceremony. They all bowed deeply as we went by, and they all smiled at our group.

Our march came to an end at a large hatch with another two royal guards on either side of it. One of them opened that up, to reveal that big meeting room we'd used on my first visit to the Tullrohane. Except it was completely redecorated this time. Now there were no chairs at all, except for the temporary throne at the front of the room.

The lack of chairs was probably necessary regardless, the place was filled to standing-room only from the look of it. To the left were dozens of officers and crew from the Tullrohane, every last one of them in their finest dress uniforms. And on the right were all the guests. I spotted our group immediately. Nyssa, Jaycee, Cammie, and Jenna were together near the front. I also noted the Persephone's crew there too, and all four of them were in dress uniforms as well. Which was a bit jarring, considering the way they usually looked. And acted. There was also a Deveronian contingent in attendance, including the interim president Ed Arun and his entourage.

Everyone was absolutely silent as our little procession moved down the narrow space between the two sides of the hall. When we reached the front of the room we sort of spread out then turned around to face the crowd. Rebecca was in the centre, standing in front of her throne. Then Sarah was a step back and to the left, while I was back and to the right. The two teenage girls were directly behind the princess, holding her dress. And the two guards moved further back, so they were behind and to either side of the throne.

Gwen took her position between us and the rest of the crowd, just off to our right. And finally, Captain Magoda and Commander Magnel stepped forward to take their places ahead and to the left of the princess.

"Greetings your highness," the Tullrohane's captain addressed Rebecca with a bow. "It is time..."