Day 6-Freidei, Augusta 14...My twentieth birthday extravaganza

Well, the waiting was finally over. My birthday was here at last. I woke up early this morning to get ready...no nightmares. Throughout history, twentieth birthday celebrations in the Royal Family have been anchored by tradition and are also the source of many tales and legends. One of my favorites involved my Great-Great Grandfather and his amazing display of strength. As the story goes he apparently lifted a two wheeled pony cart with two attractive ladies on board over his head. He did so to prove his love to a peasant girl and prove to his own father (my Great-Great-Great Grandfather) that loving a peasant wouldn't make him weak. It must have worked because he was allowed to marry her. Definitely my favorite story. I wonder if he really lifted that cart? My party was great, nothing noteworthy happened but it was still an incredible time.

The weather was beautiful, I guess it paid to be selfish this time. Yay me! My mother had people come in and fix up my hair, it turned out amazing. My mom commented how much she loved the way my black hair complimented my beautiful dress. She said I was the most beautiful woman she'd ever seen (with a tear in her eye). For my mother that is an amazing compliment she just doesn't show emotion too often. It surprised me a little.

The Grand Hall was decorated with such vibrantly colored banners and way to many candles to count. The flickering from the flames made the walls look they were in constant motion. It was the perfect atmosphere for my big day. People arrived one huge group after another until the Grand Hall was filled to the limit. I was watching the guests arrive from a secluded balcony...I had to wait to be announced. It was all part of the declaration ceremony. Once everybody was situated in the hall the festivities would begin. I was able to locate Antonia and her father they had a table near mine, she looked great! It will be great to celebrate with my friend. I was feeling quite nervous leading up to the ceremony, there were so many people. Crowds aren't necessarily my thing. The waiting killed me! I felt much better once the whole thing was underway. I was introduced, then I entered the Grand Hall in style. The ceremony itself was over before I knew it. It was a whirlwind of activity accompanied by a lot of coming of age jargon. I was officially the next ruler of Distress.

Let the party begin...I found Antonia and we went over our plans for the evening. We danced, ate, drank a little wine (Antonia drank a little more) and had an unbelievable time. We had such a great time and completely lost ourselves as well as track of time. We weren't able to get any of our investigating done, so it will have to wait until tomorrow. I loved everything about today and it left me absolutely exhausted. No legends were made, I don't think, but a very memorable time was had by all.