Deleted Babble from The Disposable

I'm doing something slightly different with this month's blog - offering up a smidgeon of deleted material from The Disposable. Don't get too excited, it's nothing epic or revelatory as I'm not one of life's deleters - generally if I remove something, it's to rewrite or replace it rather than to extract it altogether so the majority of my deleted material folder is simply alternative versions of existing scenes, not totally unseen bits of writing. There are one or two exceptions however, and one is part of Dullard's first appearance in The Disposable. Writing this scene was a joy and a delight as Dullard sprang into life for me and material spewed forth but as a result, the scene was just a bit overlong and I pulled out a couple of unnecessary paragraphs to tighten it up. The below is one of those sections, often a touch more background on Dullard's place in his family, and honestly, I don't think I've looked at it since the day I pulled it as I have absolutely no memory of ever mentioning Dullard having a sister! I'm pretty sure he doesn't have one now... ;p

Deleted Scene - Dullard Muses (The Disposable)

A simple glance around told him that no one else seemed to have noticed the odd atmosphere that had pervaded the palace on this particular day. King Paragon, the former Hero of The Seed of Darkness was adjusting his newly acquired beard in a mirror, which was preferable to earlier when he’d spent around forty minutes fiddling disconcertingly with his codpiece. His wife and Queen, Eminence, was sat on her throne, honing a range of gracious facial expressions with her daughter, formerly Princess and now Countess Sweetness. Her husband, Count Bold, who happened to be a distant cousin of his on his father’s side and for whom a slightly indulgent chin had worked out a great deal more beneficially, was wandering up and down wearing his too familiar surly expression – he hadn’t been happy since his Hero days had wrapped up after The Vile Rose, and had never settled well into the cast of supporting nobles. Most of the other members of the Royal and Noble Families were simply wandering around the throne room, adjusting their bodices, strapping on their swords and gossiping. There was the familiar little fawning clique gathered around the red-headed former-Princess Vanity and her husband Duke Valiant, including, to Dullard’s continuing embarrassment, his own sister Chastity. There was no sign of his mother, Allure, however – a former Fickle Enchantress from the Mage Family, she’d never had much stock with being a background noble and after his father had died properly of old age a few Quests back, she’d mostly abandoned the Palace and gone back to the University. The last time he’d spoken to her, she was rather caught up with learning the bassoon. Dullard had never been in any doubt of the source of his enquiring mind.

He missed her presence though. At least when she was around, he had somebody to talk to. The only way to get an intelligent conversation in the Royal Palace these days was to talk to himself.

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See? Not that exciting...;)

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