This is my Secret Santa for @Kiriponan! I hope you enjoy this!! ❤️❤️
Prompt: Past!Lucette x Fritz? Fritz reflects on his feelings when he sees Lucette acting so distant to everyone? But general past!Lucette x Fritz would be nice too if you can’t do that
He had be born to be her shadow
Fritz had known this fact all of his life. His sole duty was to protect the princess, to keep her safe and secure, to make sure that the kingdom would not lose its heir and future queen. His entire education had been based on that fact, his training, his demeanor.
He had kept his distance in the beginning. His view of her tainted by rumours and half-truths.
She was the witch's daughter, the evil offspring.
Her soul was made of ice.
She had no soul at all, that‘s the reason she never smiles.
She might not even be the king‘s daughter. The princess was the spawn of the devil himself!
Lucette had even surpassed his low expectations. She was disrespectful and cruel. She didn‘t care about those around her and she didn‘t care about the lives she ruined with the decisions she made. He found her cruel and careless. She was nothing more then her mother‘s mirror image.
And yet he had sworn an oath, he had promised his king to protect his daughter to the best of his abilities. He would remain by her side until that duty had been fulfilled.
Fritz could never had imagined that a single moment would upend his entire life.
He had never seen Lucette like that. Her smile was wide as she danced around the empty courtyard with one of her puppets in hand. The twinkling stars of the night sky the only witness Lucette seemed to allow to her little gathering. Her sweet laugh filled the air around her and something inside of Fritz twisted as he watched her almost childish glee. he pressed himself against a tree, his breath hitching as he listened to Lucette. The veil was being lifted right in front of is eyes. The ice melting and shattering and that destruction left a small and vulnerable girl behind. Her pain, her suffering, her longing, her hopes and dreams were laid before him.
He had been wrong. They all had been wrong.
She was not cruel but in pain.
She was not careless but scared.
Her barrier was made of ice because she could not bare to be left behind again.
There was no explanation for the tingle that spread across his very being. Every perception he had exploded into a million stars leaving nothing behind but the sweet sound of her joyous laugh. She left him behind as he tried to grasp what had occured right now.
He watched Lucette much more closely now. How could he not have seen the signs she tried to hide so desperately. How could he have been so blind?
Now he saw every interaction the princess had in a new light. He could sense her insecurities and her fear of rejection. He wanted to scream and riot whenever somebody dared to speak ill about his princess. He wanted to hold her tight, to kidnap her and show her that life was nothing to fear but to celebrate.
He changed his entire demeanor around her. Gone was the grumpy knight who was forced to protect the royal princess. Fritz showed Lucette his happy self, tried to show her that there was kindness to be found if she just let herself believe.
Lucette seemed confused in the beginning. Was he really the first person in her life that showed her any kind of positive feedback? His heart bled for the young princess and his motivation to be her friend only grew by leaps and bounds.
He laughed and made jokes.
He defended her against the evil rumours circulating inside of the palace.
He tried to get her to come outside with him, to experience the life behind the walls of ice she had built around herself and beyond the palace walls. She refused him time and time again, but he would not give up.
And from time to time he could see between the cracks. Could see a genuine smile when he brought her a pastry, when he saw how she interacted with her dolls.
Every smile was like a dart through his heart and the knight didn‘t even notice that the princess wormed her way right into his heart. He started to crave those smiles, the little sassy remark she made whenever they interacted with each other.
His heart fluttered whenever they eyes met.
His mouth went dry when she accidentally brushed against his arm.
His palms got sweaty whenever he had to touch her.
And at night he dreamt about a kiss that might never happen. Of sweet lips that were thought to be cold as ice but filled his veins with eternal fire.
And so he fell, slowly but surely for a princess who had crafted an armor of ice to protect the fierce heart she hid in her chest. His duty turned into devotion and loyalty.
He was her shadow now and forevermore.
