The Sovereign

We are trudging through a twisted hazel wood when we see something pinned to a nearby tree. It is a parchment — some royal decree, tattered and withered with age. The turquoise seal depicts a tower clad in climbing roses.

The decree’s curling hand declares the Elder Wood to be rightful property of ‘the Queen’. Its meaning is clear, though we all of us know that no monarch claims these lands. All the same, we read the pledge below, printed for the queen’s subjects to duly repeat: “I do swear that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty the Queen, her heirs and successors, according to law. So help me God.”