~1x1 with baby blue~

[baby blue]

─── [♕] ─── 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚛𝚕𝚘𝚝𝚝𝚎
────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
♢ princess ♢ twenty ♢ location: caspian's office ♢

lottie hummed lightly. she hadn't realized that the wedding between the royals of avalon and austra was occurring so soon after theirs. "at least it cuts the honeymoon period short," she murmured to herself. she picked at the skin around her nails, going so far as to cause some bleeding around the bed of her ring finger. julie is going to kill me. she thought of her handmaiden. julie was a big supporter of her upcoming wedding despite charlotte's vocal displeasure. having a scab on the finger where her wedding band would be placed will bring a lot of grief from the handmaiden.

she looked back at caspian when he asked of any friends or relatives. before she could answer, his next comment sparked her temper with him. "obviously they love you, you have so much in common, what with you all being stuck-up and ornery. your thick skulls don't allow for you to think past much but the luxuries of your positions, much less about the people inhabiting the countries you all are ruling." she rose quickly from her chair, watching as he signed the documents she had approved.

"if you need anything else for me your highness," she snarked, "i'll be somewhere you won't." she turned on her heel and walked as quickly from the office as her dress and heels would allow. she couldn't believe the nerve of him. to think they almost had their first full civil conversation and he had to go and ruin it. lottie briefly considered heading back to the library, or even her quarters, but knew it would be the first places he checked if he chose to follow. instead, she walked out to the courtyard, following its path to the garden. it was a place she liked to come to infrequently, preferring the cozy indoor rooms for reading, but it was a place of peace from her soon-to-be husband.

─── [⚔︎] ─── 𝚔𝚒𝚎𝚛𝚊𝚗
────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
♢ knight ♢ twenty-three ♢ location: rosalina's room then cliffside ♢

as the night drew on, kieran was relieved of duty so that he could have time to sleep before the start of the day tomorrow. as his first official day on duty as personal guard to princess rosalina, he would need his sleep. before he went to sleep, he wanted to go and visit the mare in the stables again. he had a feeling that he might not get enough time spent with her and wanted to try and start a routine of spending possibly fifteen minutes with the mare. as he walked down the path, he glanced up at the princess's window. the lights were off, which meant she was probably asleep, but what gave him pause was the open window.

he squinted at it, head tilted in thought. swiveling on his heel, he raced back to her quarters. opening her door quickly, he called out "princess?" he wasn't expecting much of an answer if she was asleep, but walking closer to her bed, he noticed her covers were mussed and seemingly without the princess. he mumbled some curses before turning around and walking back outside. he wasn't entirely sure where she had gone, but losing the princess in the first few hours of his job did not look good to him.

there wasn't even a path left that he could follow. he wasn't sure if the princess had left on her own or if someone managed to sneak in and grab her so quietly that neither him nor the other guard had heard, but he didn't want to alert anyone else until he figured out anything. he followed the path towards the castle wall, examining it for any foot or handholds that someone could use to climb over. if she had managed to slip out on her own, he wouldn't be able to help but be as impressed as he would be mad. finally, after walking a small length of wall, he found an area that might have been climbable. hauling himself up, and thanking every ounce of training he had in upper body strength, he swung himself over the wall and down to the ground.

small footprints in the grass greeted him. a smirk tugged at his lips when he noticed a distinct lack of secondary tracks to indicate a kidnapper. he followed them silently until he caught a glimpse of her. her hair was held up in a hair tie and she wore clothes resembling those of the girls in the town nearby. "what are you doing?" he demanded as he stopped behind her. he couldn't let on that he was impressed despite being so. "this is a massive safety violation princess. how am i supposed to protect you if you go sneaking off at night? what will the king think?" he didn't want to have to threaten her with going to the king, but he wasn't sure of anything else to say in the midst of his anger.

[cronchbottle]

𝓒𝓪𝓼𝓹𝓲𝓪𝓷 𝓑𝓮𝓵𝓵𝓮𝓶𝓸𝓾𝓷𝓽

✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩

Caspian huffed as he watched the princess turn on her heels and walk away, he wondered if she was always so obstinate. He enjoyed luxury, what was so wrong with that, she seemed to enjoy all the books in the library and those were not inexpensive. He let her leave as he was not the one to go running after a woman, they had gotten all of the papers signed anyways. He sent a quick text to his servant that read, 'Papers are done, please come collect them and deliver it to my father.' He threw the unsigned papers in the recycle incase his ignorant servant messed up and delivered the incorrect papers, it wouldn't be the first time he had messed up.

Deciding to do something better with his time than wait around for more wedding preparation papers, the prince stood up and walked into his room. He slipped into his archery uniform, determined to get some practice in before his free time was taken from him. He motioned for two servants to follow him outside, as it wasn't a prince's duty to fetch his own arrows. He headed out onto the green lawn with archery targets set out in different ranges and sizes depending on the game he was practicing hunting for. He grabbed his favorite compound bow and a set of arrows, walking down to a smaller target fit for smaller game. He drew back his bow and let loose, the arrow whistling in the wind as it hit dead center in the target.

The prince practiced for about another hour, enjoying the feeling of freedom it gave him. This and horse riding was his only escape from the dreary future he had planned for him, maybe if he was able to have chosen his own wife to be life would be different for him. He knew he would have been a better husband to be if he was just given a chance, but it seemed like neither of them could give the other a chance first.

𝓡𝓸𝓼𝓪𝓵𝓲𝓷𝓪 𝓔𝓿𝓮𝓻𝓵𝔂𝓷

✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩
Rosalina sat down with her legs dangling over the edge as she peered down at the lake below, surrounded by blooming cherry blossoms. She truly would miss this little slice of heaven that she had in this place, she closed her eyes for a few seconds, taking in the soft breeze and fresh air this place provided. Her eyes fluttered back open to take in the view once more, trying to soak in as much of this place as she could. It was the only place she felt free, and she was about to be ripped away from it.

Upon hearing footsteps and a voice behind her the princess jumped in surprise. She whipped her head around with wide eyes, frightened to see that her new knight had followed her to this place. Of course she couldn't get a break even if she so desperately needed it. "What do you think I'm doing?" She questioned as she got up, moving away from the cliffside and closer to the knight. "Does it look like I care about a massive safety violation? Or my father?" She replied, crossing her arms as she narrowed her eyes at Kieran. "It seems like you are just upset that I was able to sneak out from right under your nose," she teased, walking around the knight as if she was taunting him. "If you are so worried about me being alone, why don't you join me on my little escapades. It could be our little secret." She purred as she stopped to stand back in front of the knight.

Although she was trying to reach at least some sort of an agreement with the knight, she already had a backup plan if he was planning on trying to drag her back to the castle. She was rather nimble for a princess, and could easily make her way down the cliff to the lake, she knew she would eventually be caught if she ran, but she could at least prove that she wasn't some prissy princess.

[baby blue]

─── [♕] ─── 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚛𝚕𝚘𝚝𝚝𝚎
────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
♢ princess ♢ twenty ♢ location: garden then personal study ♢

she stayed in the garden for hours, hunkering down on a bench farthest from the entrance. while she was easy enough to spot inside the garden, she knew she was tucked away from the rest of the hustle and bustle of the castle. in the time she was left alone, not even a servant or handmaiden checking on her, lottie managed to finish the book she was reading. her heart ached in her chest, longing to experience the whirlwind of romance she read about. to have someone love her so much that she came first above all else, even duties to the crown. she knew it was selfish to think so considering the crown held so much sway over the economy and the commoners, but for once she wanted someone to sacrifice something for her. she knew she wouldn't get that from caspian. to her, he was a spoiled and entitled prince, almost an embodiment of her father except caspian never outright nitpicked every move she made. sure they argued and threw insults, but she had a smidge more freedom under his eyes than her own father's. it was the one thing she would likely enjoy in this marriage despite their lack of agreements.

a brisk wind brought goosebumps to her skin. she rubbed her hands up against her arms, quickly realizing the gown she wore might not be suitable for the dropping temperatures as the day wore on. the next thing to come to mind was her empty stomach. engrossing herself in the world and minds of characters in a book tended to make her forget the actual needs of her body. standing up from the bench, brushing down any wrinkles or fold that had formed in the skirt of the dress, she made her way towards the entrance of the garden. two guards stood waiting for her and she blew out a breath. one she recognized as frankie, a personal guard assigned to her by caspian. the other was robert, a guard assigned by her father that she assumed reported back to him regarding any and all movements she made.

dipping her head to them both with a small greeting, she immediately raised a brow in question when she was beckoned to follow. a bit odd, she thought to herself. it was when she walked through the doors to her private study that she realized why. her father stood there, back facing her as he looked out the window. "stand outside the door please," she ordered the guards softly. she approached her father, who still had not acknowledged her, and stood beside him. she observed what was in front of her, noting that prince caspian was at the archery range and likely unaware of her father's unexpected visit.

"father," she greeted him. he only grunted in reply before turning to assess her. "i just wanted to drop by regarding the wedding. there will be several other members of royal families attending and i wanted to remind you to not only look like you're in love with prince caspian, but i need you to actually be in love with him. they all know this was arranged, but other royal members love a good story. if you can manage to convince them you actually love each other, it would open so many doors to treaties and trading between my country and others. it is necessary for you to do this, do you understand me?" charlotte blinked at her father in shock a bit. she knew her marriage to caspian was supposed to be advantageous for both of them, but she didn't realize her father intended to use the wedding for networking beyond just the kingdom of evergreene. as much as she wanted to oppose him, it wasn't in her nature. she was desperate for his approval, always had been since childhood, so she did what she did best: agree. "yes father, i understand," she almost whispered. apparently that was good enough for him as he wasted no time in leaving, not even to bid her farewell. once the door closed, she glanced out the window again at caspian. how was she ever going to pull this off?

─── [⚔︎] ─── 𝚔𝚒𝚎𝚛𝚊𝚗
────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
♢ knight ♢ twenty-three ♢ location: cliffside ♢

"i think you're a rule-breaker," he stated curtly, crossing his arms over his chest. while he wasn't a rule-stickler in general, he took his job seriously, and right now he was about to lose it. this job meant everything to him, being able to provide for his family, and this princess was going to ruin it. "i think that you do what you want because you can and think that just because you're royalty, rules do apply. i hate to break it to you princess, but that isn't the case. rules are there for you safety," he drawled out.

"i don't care that you don't care, i care that you seem so bent on making my job difficult on the first day." he cocked his head at her, eyes following as she walked circles around him. it was cute in a way, to see her displaying an almost villainous or predatory behavior. "i'm not sure what your issues are with your father, but i do know that we will have issues with each other if you don't let me do my job, and trust me, i am not someone you want to have a problem with."

he didn't think she would listen to him and that was pretty much proven when her suggestion about him joining her for these, what he would assume to be, nightly excursions. he considered her for a moment. part of him wishes he would make the easy decision and drag her back to the castle, kicking and screaming if he had to guess. however, he also was curious about her suggestion. what was so important that she had these little nightly escapades? there truly was only one way for him to know and that would require him joining her on them, but he wasn't so sure he should. if the two were found, he only knew what kinds of assumptions would be made and it would not only cost him his job, but he was unsure if he would be allowed to walk away without punishment from the king. after all, this is the princess. it wasn't as if she was some random girl. he scratched his neck in agitation before blowing out a breath. "okay," he breathed. "our secret, but i want to know why you come out here? what started this?"

[cronchbottle]

𝓒𝓪𝓼𝓹𝓲𝓪𝓷 𝓑𝓮𝓵𝓵𝓮𝓶𝓸𝓾𝓷𝓽

✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩
Caspian sighed as he looked up at the sky, seeing that it was beginning to darken as if a storm was on its way. To be careful he signaled to his servants to collect his arrows, but then quickly realized that the storm was going to come before they could pick them all up. He huffed as he looked at them scurrying to beat the rain, he fought between the moral dilemma of being a good person and laziness for a second before choosing to be the bigger person for once. He ran out to the targets and started grabbing what was left of the arrows, motioning for his servants to go inside. He could tell they were rather shocked, but he figured that he could do something nice for once in his life. Rain began to pour down as he grabbed the last few, leaving his jacket soaked and his hair wet, falling into his eyes. Finally he had all of his equipment put away and he hurried back inside the castle walls, not wanting to get soaked any further.

Once he was safely inside the castle walls his servants were already waiting with a warm cup of tea and a plush towel to dry off with. He thanked them quietly as he wrapped the towel around his chest, then taking the warm cup of sweet tea with his free hands. He nodded to them once before heading to his room to change into dry clothes, shivering slightly as he walked. He could see all the handmaiden and servants looks and did his best to ignore them as he walked, deep down it bothered him that they were so shocked to see him do something nice for once.

He slipped into his room quietly, quickly changing into a pair of warm clothes and tossing the wet ones along with the towel in the laundry chute. He sighed as he sat down at his desk that overlooked the land outside, slowly sipping his tea as he watched the rain drip down the window and fall from the sky. It was rather calming, the pitter patter of the rain against the window soothed him and the tea made him feel rather warm once more.



𝓡𝓸𝓼𝓪𝓵𝓲𝓷𝓪 𝓔𝓿𝓮𝓻𝓵𝔂𝓷



✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩

"Well, I hate to tell you this dear knight, but you are wrong. I do this as it is my only sense of freedom that I have left, everything I have done in my entire life is to please my father or some royal that he has deemed as important. No one has ever cared about what I wanted to do, or wear for that matter. This is the only place where I can have some sense of peace, and I am going to be ripped from it in a months time." Rosalina said, obviously rather insulted that he thought she was doing it simply because she thought that she could. "My royalty is my boundary, not my freedom." She said, pouting slightly at the notion. "Besides the only reason my father is worried about my safety, is so he can get his precious dowry, is that all I'm good for? Money?" She replied as she tried her best to hold back the tears that were springing to her eyes.

As the tears began to fall she turned her back to him, rather ashamed that she had just met the man and was unloading all of her feelings on him. "I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking about it in the way that I was trying to make your job difficult, just my fathers. I understand that it affects you too, and I will work on working with you. I understand that you are simply following orders and just because my life isn't going the way I want doesn't mean I get to interfere with yours." The princess said after collecting her thoughts for a moment.

"I've never told anyone this before, but when I was a child my mother brought me out here a lot. It was happier times back then, she used to be happy... She would take me out here before bed and read me fairytale stories. Ones with happy endings of course, where the princess meets a prince that she truly loves. This is the only place that reminds me of those simply times and gives me hope that I might get a happy ending too." Rosalina admitted, letting a soft sigh out as she looked into the eyes of the knight. "Now that you know that embarrassing thing about me, I will accompany you back to the castle, no kicking and screaming. I promise." She said as she let her hair down to blow in the wind.

[baby blue]

─── [♕] ─── 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚛𝚕𝚘𝚝𝚝𝚎
────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
♢ princess ♢ twenty ♢ location: bedroom ♢

after her father's rather abrupt departure, charlotte made a quick dash to her bedroom. her mind was still spinning at her father's words and she wasn't entirely sure how to, or even if she should, broach the topic with caspian. he would be suspicious enough at a sudden change in personality from her, but she wasn't quite sure what else to do. the two of them had practically been at each other's throats since she moved in here to "get to know each other" as her father put it.

the pitter patter of rain on the window had her looking up from her seat on her bed. she sighed softly. rain was her favorite type of weather. the gloominess of it all made her want to stay curled up in bed all day and read a book, but at this moment it was the last thing she wanted to do. if anything, she wanted to just stand out in the rain for a few moments and let it wash away her worries for a few minutes. anything to escape the stress her life had become. she opened the door to her balcony, but hesitated. her balcony was next to caspian's and she wasn't quite sure if he was in his own bedroom, but if he was she wasn't sure what he would make of her standing in the rain. after all, it wasn't a princess-like thing to do and it would likely ruin the gown she was gifted.

she stood in the doorway indecisively before saying screw it. she had a closet-full of dresses, ruining one wasn't the end of the world. and if caspian had something to say to her? well, she was used to arguing with him at this point. what was one more? taking careful steps out onto the balcony, the cold rain hit her skin, soaking her to the bone instantly. a smile broke out on her face. something about this was almost cathartic, as if it was freeing her of all the stress and anger she was holding onto leading up to this wedding. the rain continued to soak her, hair clinging to her face and neck, dress beginning to become heavy with water, and yet she couldn't seem to care. all she knew was that once her time in the rain was finished, she would need to work towards not only gaining caspian's trust, but also learning to love him for her father's sake. if she didn't, well she didn't particularly want to think what her father would say.

─── [⚔︎] ─── 𝚔𝚒𝚎𝚛𝚊𝚗
────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
♢ knight ♢ twenty-three ♢ location: cliffside ♢

my royalty is my boundary. he wasn't sure why those words made him feel like someone had slapped him, but they did. they seemed to paint a bigger picture, one that still wasn't in complete focus, but bigger nonetheless. he could relate in a way. his life of poverty was often a boundary for him, though on the opposite side of the spectrum. he supposed that the princess was referring to her life being planned out for her and part of him hated her for it, but a more rational side understood that she wanted the freedom that he had. he could make life changes as he deemed fit. she had to follow others orders, regardless of her input he would assume. it was haunting in a way, to not be in control of your life.

when she apologized to him, he bit back a grimace. he hadn't meant to be so harsh, but sometimes his mouth speaks before his mind catches up. still, he needed her to understand his situation. he didn't appreciate the sneaking around as someone who took his job seriously, well took it seriously, he thought bitterly. it seemed he was about to bend some rules for the princess and he had a feeling he would likely regret it.

"unfortunately, someone of your station has to give up some luxuries," he said softly. part of him recognized he should've said something more comforting, but he was trying to bring back some composure while keeping the relationship between them professional. to have her expose something so raw to him the second time they met, he wasn't sure what else to say. he had never been the best at emotional connections, except with that of his family. when she offered to come back to the castle, he could have smiled in relief if he still wasn't trying to process the interaction. after a moment of staring at her, he grunted and motioned for her to lead the way. "after you princess," he said rather softly. where the softness came from was a mystery to him and not something he was sure he wanted to explore.

[cronchbottle]

𝓒𝓪𝓼𝓹𝓲𝓪𝓷 𝓑𝓮𝓵𝓵𝓮𝓶𝓸𝓾𝓷𝓽

✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩
As Caspian was looking outside, pondering what his life had become, he saw a flash of color in the corner of his eye. He looked to his left to see his wife to be, standing outside in the rain and she was smiling no less. He sighed softly to himself as he looked out at her, somewhat enjoying seeing a smile on her face, she looked rather gorgeous with a smile on her face. Maybe a smile was something that he would like to see on her face some more, it was rather refreshing to see something other than a scowl on her face. A deep part of his heart was tugging to go outside and speak with her, but he didn't want to ruin the first smile she had on her face since her coming here.

He knew his father would be breathing down his back until the two of them got along or until the two got better at acting as if they liked each other. Deep down he wouldn't mind creating some sort of meaningful relationship with the princess, but at the time it didn't seem like that was in their future. However, there was no sense in bickering with the woman for the rest of their life, that would not be beneficial for either of them.

After a while of debating he figured that he should have some sort of civil conversation, and at the time he wasn't too against the idea of being kind for once. He took in a deep breath and threw a jacket over his shoulders, holding another in his hands to offer to the princess. He slid open the sliding glass door and stepped out onto the balcony. "A fan of the rain hm?" He questioned, striding over to the side of the balcony the princess was on. "I brought a jacket... If you'd like it." He offered, somewhat shyly handing the jacket over the side of the railing to her balcony. He offered her a small smile, doing his best to look as pleasant as possible instead of the cold face he usually gave her.

𝓡𝓸𝓼𝓪𝓵𝓲𝓷𝓪 𝓔𝓿𝓮𝓻𝓵𝔂𝓷

✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩
Rosalina took one last look at the valley that had brought her so much peace during the rough times, a longing look. She wanted nothing more than to run, run far away into the forest, but she couldn't. She slipped her hood over her head and walked back to the castle quietly, her head tilted down in defeat. She hated the way she was rather blatantly invalidated after opening up, it seemed as if she was now more trapped than ever.

As they reached the castle she climbed back up into her window, shutting it rather quickly after saying a brief goodnight to Kieran. She drew the curtains closed before slipping into her silky pajamas. She shuffled into the bathroom to clean off any dirt she had on her body, as she was certain that her handmaiden would pester her with questions about it in the morning. She huffed to herself as she slid under the covers of her bed and drifted off into a restless sleep.

[baby blue]

─── [♕] ─── 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚛𝚕𝚘𝚝𝚝𝚎
────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
♢ princess ♢ twenty ♢ location: balcony♢

she jumped slightly when she heard caspian's voice. with her face tilted towards the sky, she hadn't been paying attention to his balcony. she was a bit worried about what he thought about her out in the rain, but her worries eased slightly when he extended a jacket of his towards her. she hesitantly reached out, gripping the fabric gingerly. it was the first moment between them where an act of kindness was initiated and she had to remind herself not to ruin it. baby steps lottie, baby steps. she reminded herself.

"thank you," she said softly, not quite meeting his eyes. her eyes dropped to the smile teasing his lips. she wasn't sure if this was a dream or reality in the moment. it was hard to believe prince caspian, the man she had no less than three arguments with daily, was extending such kindness towards her. had their relationship been so tainted? she didn't immediately wrap the jacket around her shoulders, rather clutching it to her chest as she studied him. he seemed different in the moment, but so did she. a moment of peace between the two settled over her and she returned his smile, ducking her chin to her chest.

"i needed a moment to collect myself," she murmured to him. "i think everything just hit me at once and the rain, well, it's cathartic in a way, like it just washes the worries away for a moment." it was perhaps the most gentle emotion she had bared to the prince since the announcement of her engagement. all she could hope was that he didn't choose to use it against her.

─── [⚔︎] ─── 𝚔𝚒𝚎𝚛𝚊𝚗
────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
♢ knight ♢ twenty-three ♢ location: castle ♢

kieran watched the princess as he trailed behind her. she had her head hunched low, as if she was trying to avoid him. he couldn't blame her really. he hadn't acknowledged anything she had opened up to him about, but he wasn't sure what to say. he had truly only met her a few hours beforehand, and while he was going to be her personal guard and it may be something he hears more frequently in the future, he just didn't think he was prepared for the situation. as the made it back onto castle grounds, his eyes scanned for other guards, ensuring that they weren't seen. again, all he could imagine was someone finding the two of them together and making assumptions that would cost him his role.

the princess climbed back through her window and he grimaced. he supposed he should have helped her, but he couldn't help but be impressed. she clearly had been doing this for quite some time to have the strength to do so with ease. "goodnight princess," he whispered, though unsure she would hear him. it was likely his way of apologizing, though he figured she wouldn't see it that way. if anything, his mind was still reeling from what the princess had told him earlier that day. he couldn't help but feel that that small conversation had altered something in him, though he couldn't place what.

he made his way back to his own room, sliding under the covers. he tucked his hands behind his head as he stared at the ceiling, he had a feeling he wouldn't get to sleep for another couple of hours. the princess was an enigma, a stark contrast to him, yet one and the same. he never thought there would be a day that he would relate so viscerally to a royal, but here he was, and it was rubbing him wrong. a heavy weight sat on his chest as he replayed the conversation several times over, yet he still didn't know what to make of it. with a long sigh, he did his best to push it out of his mind. tomorrow would be a new day and maybe he could throw himself into the job and forget about the night he just had.

[cronchbottle]

𝓒𝓪𝓼𝓹𝓲𝓪𝓷 𝓑𝓮𝓵𝓵𝓮𝓶𝓸𝓾𝓷𝓽

✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩
"I understand, it can't be easy to be so quickly ripped from your home to live in such a new place. I haven't been making it easy for you either, and," Caspian said, faltering for a bit before deciding to finish his sentence. "And I apologize." He finished, letting out a deep breath afterwards. He couldn't remember the last time he had apologized to someone, but a part of him wanted this relationship to work out, whether it was the good for the kingdom or the good for both of them. "Well, don't stay out here too long, I wouldn't want you catching a cold before our wedding. Besides, it would be a pleasure if you joined me for dinner." He said gingerly, offering the princess another small smile before retreating back into his private chambers.

He took in a deep breath as he stood back inside of his room, was that truly the first civil conversation they had had since she had arrived here. It certainly was, and it wasn't as hard as he thought it would be, something inside him was slowly changing and he had a notion it was something to do with the princess. He shook his head at himself and his newfound strange actions as he realized the dry clothes he had just changed into, were now soaked as well. He cursed his foolishness as he tossed this pair down the laundry chute and chose to slip into another dry pair of clothes.

After he cleaned himself back up, making sure he kept the royal appearance that was expected of him he made his way down to the dining room where a fresh meal was waiting for him. He motioned for the servants to make one for Charlotte, just incase she decided to join him after all. He sipped a glass of elderberry wine as he waited for a few moments to see if the princess would accept his offer of eating a meal together.


𝓡𝓸𝓼𝓪𝓵𝓲𝓷𝓪 𝓔𝓿𝓮𝓻𝓵𝔂𝓷




✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩
Rosalina was again woken up by her handmaiden rushing her out of bed to get ready for her day. Usually she would be bright and talkative, but this morning was different, she was gloomy and rather quiet, only saying a few words when needed. She let her handmaiden prepare her for the day as usual, doing her hair, makeup, and dressing her in a purple regal dress with matching amethyst jewelry.

After her appearance was deemed acceptable, she was accompanied down to the dining hall, her usual bright smile replaced with a blank cold expression on her face. After the night she had last night, she wasn't in the mood to try and keep up her usual joyful appearance that the staff knew and loved about her. She took a seat at a table, alone as usual as her mother and father ate much earlier, and her brothers much later. Of course her brothers didn't need to keep up a timely schedule, as it was a woman's job not a man's. She sighed, doing her best to shake those thoughts out of her head as she ate, doing her best to will herself into a better mood than the one that she was in right now.

[baby blue]

─── [♕] ─── 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚛𝚕𝚘𝚝𝚝𝚎
────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
♢ princess ♢ twenty ♢ location: balcony then dining room ♢

a ripple of shock ran through her body at his apology and she tried hard to keep it off her face, though she wasn’t entirely sure she did. she didn’t think she would see a day when caspian apologized to anybody, much less her. still, she gave him a quiet thanks before he left his balcony. a smile tugged at her lips and she felt something well up in her chest, though she couldn’t discern what. if he keeps up the niceties, it won’t be hard to befriend him, she thought to herself. she couldn’t bring herself to consider him in a romantic way, at least not now. there was a lot to be reconciled between the two of them, and that’s saying their tempers never got the best of them.

staring out into the night, she sighed before turning towards her doors. caspian had extended her an invite to dinner, and though she was hesitant, she was determined to make that step. to be alone with him for an extended period of time would be new to her. usually, she makes their meetings as quick as possible to avoid him, but now her curiousity was sparked and she couldn’t help but think maybe the prince wasn’t what he seemed. then again, neither was she, she supposed.

she made quick work of a shower, braiding her wet hair down her back. it would provide some nice waves for the morning and lessen the time her handmaidens would be needed. she slipped into another gown, this one lighter in weight and a pale blue color. it brushed the floor softly, reminding her she would need shoes to prevent her from tripping over the skirt. she slid on some wedged heels and made her way to the dining table. caspian sat at the head of the table as she expected, though she was surprised to see her meal placed at the chair to his right. she had half expected it to be on the other end of the table, but she was seeming to forget that this was a moment of peace between the two.

she took a seat next to him, mindful of her appearance. she smoothed out the skirt of her dress nervously before picking up her own glass of wine. she didn’t quite know what to say to him after the raw moment on the balcony. she cleared her throat. “so, um…did you have a good day?” she cringed slightly. not exactly the best thing to say considering their earlier arguments, she thought. she could only hope he had a better topic for the two of them.

─── [⚔︎] ─── 𝚔𝚒𝚎𝚛𝚊𝚗
────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
♢ knight ♢ twenty-three ♢ location: castle then dining hall ♢

kieran woke early the next morning before he was to be with the princess. he still had a restless energy about him, likely regarding the night before. he slipped into some jogging shorts and a shirt, deciding a few laps around the castle should clear his head. his feet pounded harshly against the pavement, and against his wishes, he still couldn’t get the image of the princess sitting at that cliff’s edge. she had looked so serene yet anguished at the same time and he couldn’t help but understand her.

after his run, he took a brush, cold shower. slipping into his uniform, he made his way towards her quarters, only to be redirected to the dining hall. as the doors opened, he glimpsed her blonde hair quickly, though his eyes easily took notice of the lack of people. “princess,” he said with a dip of his head in greeting. “i hope you slept well.” he did his best to keep a straight expression on his face, not to show his inner turmoil.

as he studied the princess, he couldn’t help but notice her blank expression. he crouched next to her chair, not bothering with the decorum he supposed was expected. “everything okay?” he murmured quietly. he knew it was likely a complete turn around from last night, but he couldn’t help it. he felt terrible, yet responsible for her, and that included her actions and emotions. .

[cronchbottle]

𝓒𝓪𝓼𝓹𝓲𝓪𝓷 𝓑𝓮𝓵𝓵𝓮𝓶𝓸𝓾𝓷𝓽



✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩
Caspian looked up, a small smile spreading across his face as Charlotte sat down next to him. He was rather delighted that she had accepted her invitation, knowing his ego would have been bruised if she hadn't. That would have provoked another argument out of him, as he couldn't stand having a hurt ego. He may be beginning to have some development in his character, but he wouldn't bat an eye at an argument if he felt that he had been disrespected. He took a moment to admire her, she didn't look half bad after all, it was rather impressive that she cleaned up so nicely after having been standing in the rain for quite some time.

"Well, besides our little bickering in the morning, it was rather decent. I went horseback riding in the morning and then did some archery in the afternoon, that is where I find my peace." The prince said after taking a small bite out of his food, which for tonight was lambchops with two sides, green beans and mashed potatoes. "How was yours my dear princess?" He questioned, clearing his throat before he spoke as being kind with Charlotte was a stark contrast to what usually came out of his mouth when speaking to her.

The prince did his best to listen to Charlotte speak, holding back any interruptions that popped into his head. His blue eyes seemed to be glistening with joy, rather than the dull distain they usually held. He took sips of his wine and bites of his food in between a rather enjoyable conversation, doing his best not to ruin it. However, he couldn't help but feel the two still would have plenty of arguments in the future, but for now he was going to do his best to not instigate them as he usually did.


𝓡𝓸𝓼𝓪𝓵𝓲𝓷𝓪 𝓔𝓿𝓮𝓻𝓵𝔂𝓷



✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩✩Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ✩
Rosalina looked up from her breakfast of fluffy buttermilk pancakes and scrambled eggs, topped with a light layer of cheddar cheese, when she heard Kieran speaking to her. "Hmmm?" She questioned listlessly as the question hadn't registered with her quite yet. "Oh! Sorry, I slept alright. I'm still waking up I apologize Kieran," she said after the words the knight spoke had finally processed. Her eyes flickered back to her food, which at the time was barely touched as her appetite was rather low because of her lack of sleep.

"I'm alright, thank you for asking." The princess replied, mimicking his soft tone, knowing that he didn't want anyone to hear the care in his voice. She sighed softly, eating a little bit more food until she felt at least somewhat full. She took the plate herself to the kitchen, somewhat wanting to put a little space between her and the knight, not ready to have another emotional conversation with him just yet.

After she had dropped off her plate in the kitchen to be cleaned, she took her handmaiden to accompany her to the library, hoping the knight wouldn't follow but knowing he most likely would. She slipped into the library, taking in a deep breath in, enjoying the scent of leather mixed with paper that the books gave off. She wandered through the shelves, picking out a book entitled 'Doctor Sleep' a horror novel written by Stephan King. She took it and slipped into the soft leather couch that was positioned next to a large bay window so that the sunlight would stream onto her face and the book.