Fantasy To Love a Prince

[vada]

Once certain that the royal family wasn’t keeping any daughters hidden away from him, King Fredrik moved on to move interesting topics, namely, his thoughts on a few key policies of his own kingdom that he felt were important for his new in-laws to implement. He was in the middle of explaining that sparing the rod would spoil the child, and perhaps the king and queen needed to have a heavier hand when it came to their children - speaking both biologically and figuratively - the people of their kingdom.

“I have found it works wonders if you keep them reeled in from the get-go. You wouldn’t want a rebellion on your hands, would you?”

Approaching alongside Theo, Helena blanched slightly as she recalled just how far Fredrik went to keep his constituents in line. The idea of similar actions being taken here made her go green around the edges, and her hand tightened subconsciously around Theo’s.

“Mother, Father,” she started, once Theo had said his hellos, capturing their attention. “I’d like to introduce you to my fiance, Prince Theo.”

It was a strange situation, the fact that none of them had had much to do with each other before the engagement. In truth, since it had been possible to correspond by mail, Fredrik had never seen any point in meeting his future in-laws before now. There was no need to vet them or even test the waters to see if the couple would be a good fit. He would be ridding himself of his nuisance of a daughter and gaining a formidable ally in the same stroke, so it was a win-win. Feelings and compatibility had no relevance in his opinion.

“It’s good to meet you, my boy, at long last,” Fredrik said with his boastful grin. Obviously, looking at them now, he had decided he’d made the right decision. Theo and Helena were a striking couple. If he could manage to keep her in line, they might even bear children; an heir that would unite the two kingdoms even more than their marriage. In his less-than-proper way, he said this aloud, looking between the two of them before addressing Theo again. “But I regret having to inform you might have your hands full with this one. She’s a runner.”

Whatever was left of the colour in Helena’s face drained away entirely, leaving her as white as a ghost as she gaped at her father wordlessly, tears of shock and hurt filling her eyes.

Even Aimeri was stunned into silence, remaining in his protective sentinel position at Theo and Helena’s backs. This was even worse than dealing with the parliament. He couldn’t exactly whisk the prince and princess off now, not when they were with their parents. He looked around for something, anything, to cause a distraction, but came up with nothing, and was left mentally fumbling as the silence filled the air around them, Fredrik clearly waiting for some kind of response, perhaps agreement on Theo’s part.

 

[Pink Venom]

If the stories hadn’t been sufficient in telling Theo what to expect when meeting his future in-laws, botb the looks on his parents faces and the tightened grip of Helena’s hand as they approached was more than enough. Theo allowed Helena to do the introduction, remaining as respectful as he could possibly manage. It was obvious by their expressions, that his parents were far beyond wanting to continue whatever conversation they’d been having.

Even as the king went on, spluttering something about them having children, Theo kept his features neutral, allowing the man to voice his thoughts. Unfortunately, it soon became very clear that this had been a mistake. For a few long seconds, there was nothing but silence between the group as they stood in the wake of the king’s unwarranted statement. He didn’t miss the way the color drained from Helena’s face, tears threatening to spill. Quietly, he let go of her hand, protectively sliding his arm around her waist to bring her closer instead.

“Well, I can certainly see why she would be.” His gaze left Helena’s in exchange for her father’s, brows knitting together in irritation. He could see his parents giving a warning look out of his peripherals, which he promptly ignored. “Quite frankly, your majesty, if I was forced to live with someone like yourself I would run for the hills too.” His voice was light, laced with a light chuckle, but the look in his eyes as he stared down the king with every ounce of defiance within him made it very clear that he meant every word he said.

“I’ve found it works wonders when you treat others with basic human decency-“

“Theo…”

“I realize this may be above your level of intellect, but I assure you, I’m not worried-“

“Theodore, enough.” His father’s voice was quiet, but stern. Theo’s eyes flickered to the man, a look of disappointment settling in his features. He didn’t see how they could expect him to keep quiet, when they’d been the ones to raise him to be bold and speak up. He supposed that was only acceptable when addressing those that wouldn’t bring in profits.

“Forgive me, father. I must have forgotten I can only be honest when it’s beneficial to us.”

The silence fell over the group once again, and Theo took it as their cue to get Helena away from there.

“If you’ll excuse us, we have somewhere to be.” He said dryly as he gently guided Helena away from the group. Troy watched after them for a moment, silently gesturing for Aimeri to follow. He would have to catch up later, after defusing the fire Theo had left behind.

 

[vada]

Helena could hardly believe her ears. From her father’s inappropriate ramblings, to Theo’s protective defence of her, her head had been left spinning. Quietly, she allowed Theo to lead her away from the group, knowing their loyal defender wasn’t too far behind them. Aimeri was loyal and faithful, and she was quickly realising he and Theo shared those traits. The man that was to be her husband was good-hearted and kind, and willing to stand up for those he cared about. He would make a fine king someday, she thought to herself as they made their way to the dance floor.

A smile touched her lips as she fell into step with him, in spite of the anxiety the night had already garnered. One hand came to rest on his chest, the other nestled comfortably in his hand, their palms pressed together in a way that filled her with a calming energy. “Thank you for that. It was very brave,” she murmured quietly as they began to move in time to the music. “Seeing you put him in his place like that… it’s enough to make me wish you and I had always known each other. I can only imagine the quarrels you two would have gotten into when we were kids.” Helena chuckled lightly, though there was a great amount of gratitude in her expression.

Momentarily falling quiet, she studied him with a mix of gentle curiosity and affection. “Aimeri would agree with me,” she ventured carefully as she tested the waters. “Not just with father, but those awful little parliament men too… you’ve shown a great amount of courage tonight, Theo.”

 

[Pink Venom]

For a few long minutes after they’d left the group, Theo could still feel the anger coursing through his veins. How could anyone speak about their own child that way, let alone in front of people they’d just met? He was made aware that the king was a piece of work long before they’d met, but now that he had the displeasure of seeing his less-than appropriate behavior in person, Theo liked him even less. He’d go as far as saying he could barely tolerate the man and would no doubt avoid speaking to him unless absolutely necessary.

As they fell into step on the dance floor, however, Theo could feel the anger slowly draining from his body. Now that it was just him and Helena, he felt much more at ease, without the need to keep up his guard. His lips mimicked her smile, accepting the compliment. He’d never thought of his way of thinking to be brave, but merely a natural instinct. Troy had always encouraged him to be himself and speak his mind, especially in defense of others. Over the years, his older brother had become more quiet, less willing to stand up for himself. Theo, on the other hand, had only grown less complacent. The interaction with Helena’s father just now had reminded him of why.

A quiet chuckle left him in response to Helena’s comment, his nose scrunching in amusement. “As much as I would have loved to have known you all these years, I don’t think I could have tolerated that man for this long.” He only half joked. He had intended to add another quip about how perhaps her father would have grown tired of him as well, but the mention of Aimeri’s name locked the words in his throat. The heat on his cheeks from the pastry incident threatened to return as Theo attempted to sculpt his features into a neutral mask.

“I wouldn’t call it bravery.” he admitted, shoving any thoughts of the knight aside in an effort to focus on the conversation. “No one deserves to be treated that way.” He paused for a moment, fighting the urge to confide in Helena what he was thinking. They were not in private, after all. There was still a chance someone could overhear them. He decided to keep his comments vague for now as a way to gauge Helena’s reaction. For all her praises of his bravery, Theo was rather scared of sharing certain things about himself with her.

“The parlament men have never been fond of me,” he admitted. His eyes flickered to Aimeri who stood nearby, keeping a protective eye on them. “I don’t fit their traditional ideals.” He watched Helena’s expression for a moment, his features molding into a mix of indignance and sadness. He had never been ashamed of who he was, but not everyone around him could accept that. Old traditions were deeply rooted in this nation, and Theo didn’t think he’d see a change anytime soon. This was one of the main reasons he wanted to be king someday. To offer support and protection to those that felt the same way he did. “I know there are certain things about me that they will never accept. But that does not give them the right to be disrespectful. Especially towards you.” Whatever qualms they had with Theo had nothing to do with Helena. He would make sure to make that very clear.

 

[vada]

Helena watched Theo’s expression as she casually mentioned Aimeri. She thought she saw the traces of a blush touch his cheeks, but she couldn’t be sure. It was rather warm in the ballroom, with so many lights above them and so many bodies pressed together in dance. And tensions were, as expected, a bit high, with two unpleasant interactions in one evening. Perhaps he was just flustered. She couldn’t blame him. She felt flustered herself, and truthfully, not in a very celebratory mood. In spite of this, her gaze remained warm and kind as she danced with her future husband. He was a good man, and she cared for him deeply, even if she wasn’t in love with him. Even if she didn’t see herself ever being in love with him. She cared about him and hated to think of him being treated poorly by anyone.

“Well, if you ask me, those stuffy little men need to find a hobby,” she said, giving her head a little shake. “Honestly, their behaviour toward you was atrocious. They should be thrilled to have you as their prince. Maybe you don’t fit their traditional ideals, but they should consider themselves lucky. You’re respectable and kind. You will be good to the people. That’s certainly a breath of fresh air compared to my family. I didn’t fit their traditional ideals either,” a sudden grin breaks out on her lips, bright and infectious. “I guess that makes us the perfect pair, doesn’t it?”

Her grin softened back into a smile, and she gave his hand a little squeeze of companionship. “Perhaps, that means we can work to change things… together. Maybe it’s time for new traditions, new values. And maybe, we are meant to be the ones who bring about that change.” They were bold words, especially spoken in the vicinity of so many who would see them killed before allowing any kind of change. But there was a note of defiance in her tone that said she was quite serious.