gotta be brave.

Ben Florian, king of Auradon but taking a (I think) well deserved vacation. Very tired sixteen year old.

[king-florian]

 thefervcur:

the girl had second thoughts about ben’s offer to dance. dancing wasn’t her scene, per se. she doesn’t recall dancing ever in her life. but then again, according to him, she had forgotten essentially everything that had happened in her life. it was still hard to believe but mal knew something was up– and that made some sense, at least. the girl somehow could look anywhere but ben’s eyes, but as he spoke, she managed to look right back at him. she had never been this close to anyone before; not that she could remember. mal pursed her lips, trying to think hard on it. did it? she didn’t know. she was too busy trying not blush– as embarrassing as that was. “i-i don’t remember anything…” she stammered, shaking her head slightly, then clearing her throat and diverting her gaze somewhere else. for a brief second, she felt some sense of familiarity with her hand on his, “your hand feels familiar,” she mused, her head tilting a little as she looked at their hands clasped together as they swayed to the music.

it was a start. her asking him to the gala was promising, he’d like to think. even her calling him over in the gift shop had been a good omen. if something in her still liked something in him, then maybe they could make it work and figure out how to restore her memories. hopefully he could help her remember and trust evie, too -- he was just her boyfriend, and even loving her as much as he did, he knew that there was no replacement for a best friend. he ducked his head down, smiling shyly, before lifting it again to look at her. “it does?” his grip on her hand tightening ever-so-slightly, but he kept his arm around her waist slightly loose. since she, in her mind, hardly knew him, he didn’t want to make her feel caged in against him. “after cotillion...” he trailed off, not wanting to overwhelm her with a description of that particular event. “i thought true love’s kiss could fix anything. but there’s something kind of nice about not having an instant solution. i like getting to know this version of you, too.” it wasn’t as if they had kissed since he discovered she had lost her memory, but he didn’t know whether this was magic or not. it seemed...different, more powerful than spells cast on his by teenage girls. part of him was still hopeful -- he couldn’t help believing in fairytale endings.

[king-florian]

 sketchedpcems:

chad turned around to scold the idiotic moron who bumped into him, but he was surprised & highly amused to find ben struggling with three drinks. he snickered at how comical the young king looked and grabbed one of the cups to help him out. “it’s a party in a castle. there’s no way i’d miss it. i even went to your coronation and that was way worse.“ the rare friendly smile fell off his features and his brows bumped together into a scowl. the question was clearly a dig at him. he was stupid to think they were on good terms. he took a quick sip from the drink in his hand before he threw what was left of it  in ben’s face. "that’s for being a dick.”

“it’s...very nice,” he said, glancing around the room. it wasn’t much of a castle but ben wasn’t picky about things like that. but admittedly their school was much nicer than this particular location. ben laughed, because he would have to be crazy to think his coronation hadn’t been a near disaster. “it doesn’t get much worse than that. although, it was a lot more eventful.” he was expecting a straight-forward answer, so chad’s reaction threw him and all he did for a moment was blink. “i’m guessing that’s a no??” he wasn’t sure what was wrong with the question. maybe chad had asked every single person in the park to be his date and been turned down a hundred times?! ben realized he was holding two drinks and could easily dump both on chad if he was that kind of person, but. it was just water. he didn’t really take much offense. “you don’t have to react to simple questions so theatrically.” 

[king-florian]

 swordled:

       she had been making a bee line to the food table.   she was still feeling … lost, lacking in friends – but there was nothing better to bond over then food.  of course,  the plan slightly failed when she heard someone say her name whilst her mouth was partially filled with food.   ‘ oh ! ben, hi ! ‘   hand covering over her mouth to try and hide the crumbs lingering on the edges of her lips.   ‘ why – wouldn’t i remember who you are? oh no ! did someone taint the refreshments with forgetting potions ?? that’s horrible – ‘

oh, if only it were that simple. “no, nothing like that...or, i guess, something like that??” he still wasn’t an expert on the situation himself, he could only attest to the unnatural qualities of the park. “for whatever reason, some people in the park lose their memories. but i’m glad you’re okay.” ben wouldn’t say those without memories were hurt, exactly, but it must be difficult to comprehend forgetting your whole life. he wouldn’t call that exactly okay. “i know evie and chad are the same, but, um, mal doesn’t remember any of us, so.”

[king-florian]

cataclysmiquc:

There’s an inquisitive look that he shoots the other, a tilt of his head as he considers this. “I, uh, I don’t really know. Sorry? I wouldn’t really know much about what tampered food would look like. But I mean…no one seems to have reacted poorly to it yet, so maybe it’s alright.” He’s now feeling a bit paranoid (and he was hoping to relax for a bit). “I was just trying to see if there were any sweets that were decent enough.”

“I don’t think it’s poisoned or anything like that.” Ben had never even worried about an attempt on his life in a place where he held the most power possible. It’s not like the castle had royal taste-testers. “I’m just wondering if everything has been cooked properly. And stored safely, for that matter. The punch was...tampered with, so you never know.” Honestly, Ben had drank more punch than necessary because he was nervous and at least if he wasn’t openly drinking alcohol he could pretend not to have noticed. “I think the desserts are the only thing I wholeheartedly trust. I only wish they had éclairs.”

[amythegloriouspond]

(requested by anonymous)

[king-florian]

he was attempting to balance three drinks in his arms and thought he was doing a rather successful job until he stopped just short of bumping into someday. “ah! i’m--oh, hello chad. i’m glad you could make it.” he wasn’t sure what he meant by that, but truthfully he thought that chad might refuse to come simply to push the park owner’s limits. they weren’t the best of friends, but ben didn’t want something bad to happen to him. “do you have a date?” // @sketchedpcems

[king-florian]

a week ago it would have gone without saying that ben would attend the gala with mal, but he was perhaps most surprised of all when she actually expressed interest in going with him. he tried not to get too ahead of himself -- after all, they had to go, so they may as well talk while they were there. a slow song had come on and ben insisted they dance. to him, slow dancing was much more comfortable and familiar than anything else. ben had one arm wrapped around her waist, the other holding her hand. after a brief silence, he looked into her eyes and asked, “does this feel familiar to you? at all?” // @thefervcur

[king-florian]

ben was having a good (if stressful) time with mal, and evie was helping him keep it together, but besides the two of them and chad, he wasn’t expecting any other familiar faces from home. at first, he didn’t believe he had actually seen lonnie enter the room. then he was walking towards her and he knew he hadn’t just been imagining things. “lonnie?! it’s so--wait...you remember who i am, right?” // @swordled

[king-florian]

ben wasn’t a picky eater, but he was acutely aware that this was, in fact, a theme park and if they were trying to provide guest with fancy food at this impromptu gala, where exactly was it coming from?? he looked over the offered food, empty plate in hand. someone came up next to him and for a moment they both just looked. “do you...i don’t mean to be paranoid, but--do you trust any of this food? being forced into attending doesn’t exactly instill goodwill. i’m already missing the usual elephant ears and hot dogs.” // @cataclysmiquc

[king-florian]

 thefervcur:

the moment he turned and started walking towards her, internal panicking ensued. what was she going to say to him? “hey, i think you’re cute and i called your attention to say just that”?? stupid. real stupid. his smile looked ridiculous, too; so ridiculous that it made her stomach do a cartwheel. what was going on with her?? what is it with this guy?? – that wasn’t the worst part yet. apparently, he knew who she was. well, her name, at least. for a good few seconds, she was too dumbfounded to say something in reply, trying to process everything he’d just said. he regarded her as if they were friends or something. “wh- why would i tell you?” she asked, her face etched with confusion. sure, she could have made a few impressions around the point, but she didn’t think that she would be known enough for a guy like him to take notice. trying to shake off the weirdness, mal let out an awkward chuckle, then following it with, “–i’m sorry, do we know each other from somewhere? ‘cause i’m sure i would remember a guy like you.”

ben leaned against the register bench, his arms crossed as he leaned over them to look at mal more closely. her question threw him, but only a little. he knew mal valued her independence -- maybe he had been unintentionally presumptuous to think he knew everything about her, but he thought something like a day job was basic enough that it warranted mention. she easily could have gotten the job in the time since he had last seen her, though. “i’m sorry,” he apologized a bit needlessly. “i was just wondering where you’ve been lately, and this explains it.” oh, no. first he stiffened, then he stood up straight. this could not be happening to her, to them. ben had been in the park long enough to hear plenty of tales about people forgetting things. they seemed to forget a lot, almost everything, and he knew boyfriends were not among the list of essentials. he didn’t want to scare her away with the truth but to do anything else would be deceitful. maybe they were two people destined for overly-complicated starts and strange interludes. thankfully, he was willing to muddle through all of this for her. “a guy like me?” he smiled weakly. “i’m...your boyfriend,” he said, just firmly enough that she would know it wasn’t some kind of line but not so intensely that she got freaked out. “here. give me your hand.” he placed his own on the bench, palm up.

[king-florian]

 thefervcur:

there he was again– that one guy mal couldn’t help but stare at. she had no idea why, but it bothered her to her core. the girl watched the other roam around the gift shop, thinking to herself, “he’s just really cute– maybe that’s why he bothers you so much.” a part of her wanted to shrug it off; but there she was, sat behind the cashier, unknowingly taking more than a few glances than considered normal. with pursed lips and squinting eyes, the purple haired teen grunted in frustration. “excuse me–” she started, calling out to the guy– did she have anything to say? no, not really. what has gotten into her?

@king-florian

it was unforeseen and not exactly by choice that the person from home he had seen the most recently was chad. he knew there were others from auradon around -- only mal and evie for sure, but if chad was here, there could be more unexpected familiar faces roaming the park. he had looked inside a few of the various gift shops before, but not this one. ben reached out to touch a keychain when the voice of his girlfriend completely distracted him. he grinned immediately, though his smile faded slightly as he approached her because he wasn’t sure what she was doing behind the register. “mal? did you...get a job here? i guess that explains why i haven’t seen you for a few days, but why didn’t you tell me?”

[king-florian]

[king-florian]

 sketchedpcems:

“it’s not easy either when you have all the cards stacked in your favor either. there’s a lot of pressure to not ruin our parents legacy. your life may be easy peasy because you’re perfect, but not all of us are.“ chad blurted out, a hint of sadness over his features. it was uncharacteristic of him to open up, but his insecurities were filled to the brim and they spilled out before he could do anything to stop it these days. "i speak for some of the other royal kids, of course,” he added unconvincingly with a forced smile “i’m even more perfect than you.“ his brows furrowed in confusion, not completely understanding why ben would laugh at his and mia inevitable love affair (there was a lot of land to be acquired there, he would make his parents proud), but he simply shrugged it off. “isn’t your mother from france?” he asked, “you should come with me.” he said nonchalantly, eyes averting to the sky above before they peeked a look at ben’s reaction to the offer. once they step off the ride, chad is wide eyes and his face is paler than usual. he took two steps before he lost balance and reached for ben, holding on to his jacket as tight as he could “that was– it was awesome,” he stammered “i could do that all day, man.”

“you think i don’t feel the weight of my father’s crown every single day, every minute? i’m not perfect. i just know how to manage my problems -- because that’s what they are, my problems. they’re not for the people of auradon to worry about or be affected by.” ben was almost always smiling, but he wasn’t now. and despite how happy he may look, he struggled with anger when he was pushed and jealousy when he was insecure. he had inherited a lot of good traits from his parents, but the beast in his father hadn’t skipped a generation. all he could do was purse his lips. “perfection isn’t attainable.” if he had met a perfect person, he didn’t think he would like them. someone like that wasn’t real. “she is! i wish i could see where she grew up.” he laughed, but it wasn’t entirely happy. “don’t tempt me. if i could go to france, i would in a heartbeat.” ben reflexively slipped an arm around chad’s waist, using his free hand to brace the other boy’s shoulder. “i’m sure you could,” he lied politely, “but i vote for sitting down.” he led them over to a bench and took a seat. “have you eaten yet?”

[king-florian]

 sketchedpcems:

chad opened his mouth to protest, then closed it because the young king made a good point. “ it’s possible to have a loving childhood and still have a shitty life.“ he pointed out instead, hoping it wasn’t too obvious he was talking about himself. his eyebrows raised and something tugged at the pit of his stomach, a breath hitching in his throat. he wanted to be compassionate, but the fear and jealousy spoke louder when it came to the vks. ”you could have given them a chance without–” leaving us for them, he wanted to say, but he simply trailed off and shrugged. “never mind.” he muttered. they grew up together and yet in a short amount of time the vks won ben over and stole him from audrey. he didn’t get it. he would never get it. it was pointless to open that can of worms. his head tilted slightly and a smile crept up his features, he was surprised but pleased by the request. “i’m going to genovia first. queen mia totally wants some of this.” he said cockily, gesturing at his body. he was so distracted by their conversation that he didn’t notice it was their turn until they were stepping into the ride. the ride operator strapped them to it and he turned to look at ben “are you sure you don’t wan–” he was cut off by the machine turning on and spinning them. his eyes were squeezed shut and he held onto the straps for dear life, counting the seconds for it to end.

“i know. but imagine having the cards stacked against you from birth. there’s no way to be a good person on the isle -- it doesn’t allow anyone the opportunity.” and yet, mal, evie, jay and carlos were all good people with their own specific sets of skills and interests. if anything, he was impressed by how good they were. it was easy for him, he had no reason to be spiteful or mistrustful. he furrowed his eyebrows but decided not to pry further. ben wasn’t looking for a fight. if he was going to bring up audrey again, the truth was that ben was interested in mal from the moment they meant, even before they meant, and she hadn’t needed a love spell to get to him. he laughed, not thinking until he was done that maybe chad was being serious. “um...what about london? i hear it’s pretty amazing.” although carlos had never gone, he was able to relay stories his mother had told him. the gravitron looked a lot more intimidating from the outside than it felt once you were inside. ben was about to voice this thought aloud, but one look at chad’s face made him decide against it. he didn’t utter a word until the ride was over, fearing that whatever he said would make it worse. as they were leaving, he asked, “well...? that wasn’t too bad, was it? we can go get some food or look at the shops or play a game if you don’t want to ride something else right away.”

[king-florian]

 fvk-belle:

“oh I do hope so, it would be a wonderful ending.” she smiled. “I’m sure a couple minutes wouldn’t be bad.” She quickly went to grab his coffee and returned setting it down in front of him. “Do you like to read as well?” 

“Some might call it predictable, but I can’t think of a better ending, particularly if you’re reading a romance.” His immediate reaction was to say yes, and he would be telling the truth, he just hadn’t had much time to read recently with becoming king and visiting he isle. “I love it. My father inherited a large library from his parents and my mother has made sure to add even more books to his collection. I can’t imagine I’ll ever be able to read them all, but it’s nice having so many options.”

[fcdedhearts]

a picture of @king-florian and marinette dupain-cheng at 3am

[king-florian]

 fvk-belle:

“yes essentially!” she smiled. “sorry I just got carried away, I’ll bring that right away. cream and sugar?”

“do you think they’ll get married and become king and queen?” ben felt oddly like he was asking about himself, though he didn’t mean to. “oh, no need to apologize. if it won’t get you into too much trouble, you’re free to join me and tell me more about your book. yes, thank you, that would be great.”