langston

i am immortal, i have inside me blood of kings, yeah, yeah. i have no rival, no man can be my equal. take me to the future of you all.

[lngstns]

rcyally​:

James merely huffed, getting ready to beat Avery once and for all as he propped himself up at the little gun, waiting for the sound to go off and shoot. This time, he managed to get it into the little clown’s mouth and yet, for whatever reason, a slight shake of his hand had him moving the stream of water away from the clown’s mouth, once again putting him behind Avery. 

“Damn this bloody thing,” the prince mumbled under his breath and raised his hands in defeat, glancing at Avery with a slight shake of his head. Though, he wasn’t all too upset, chuckling as he conceded. “Congratulations. Pick your prize and let’s find some other game where I don’t look like such an ass.”

Who knew the beam on Avery’s face could grow any wider? But when she scored another win for her tally, her beam did just that. She tried not to look to gloating as she turned to the prize wall, but maybe her reply countered that effort. “Good luck with that,” she said over her shoulder. She selected a random stuffed animal, then passed it back to the prince.

“May you always remember this game,” Avery offered graciously, hopping down from the stool. The competition had loosened her up some, and she looked forward to the next one now. She swept a hand over the booths. “Pick your poison, Prince.”

[lngstns]

rcyally​:

That hadn’t been the answer that Caroline was wanting. Some reassurance, perhaps, that they could come to some happy medium. Not brushing over the tension with harsh truths. “I know, Elijah. I know you have traditions. I don’t want to come between that.” Caroline sighed, rubbing at her temple in frustration to warn off an oncoming headache. “But something – anything – where we can make this our wedding instead of the crown’s wedding, that’s all I ask. I know what I’m signing up for but above all of that I’m signing up for us.”

Elijah felt ill seeing Caroline so disheartened. He thought she understood what she signed up, with him, with the crown. He didn’t want her to feel this way, the way he had his entire life, and it hurt knowing he’d drawn her in. “I know, and I want this for us too. It is our wedding, and it’s going to be wonderful. But there are expectations for us, people counting on us,” he tried again with a step forward. He took her hands in his and met her gaze, pleading in his. 

[lngstns]

rcyally​:

James merely rose his brows and didn’t say anything, sipping at his scotch and listening to his brother as he poked his fun. He could tell Elijah was genuinely bothered; his body language screamed as much. Clearing his throat, the prince shrugged as he swirled his drink around the glass. “Sure, our hands are tied. But I’ve always managed to break a rule or two. You should try it sometime. Gran and the tabloids may go insane, but it’s still your wedding. Perhaps there are some concessions that you can agree to. If not … well, Caroline needs to get used to this life. The fact that she’s still with you at all shocks me, to be honest with you.”

The fact that she’s still with you at all shocks me, to be honest with you. The sentiment was one with which Elijah was all too familiar. He spent so many days worrying that Caroline might slip away from him, that he would lose her to red tape and decorum and tradition. The thought hadn’t occurred to him in a long while, but suddenly he felt very, very hollow. He turned his back to James and leaned it in the counter. One hand found his temple, massing the ache there to no prevail. Quietly, he asked, “How do you do it? Don’t you worry?”

[lngstns]

rcyally​:

James couldn’t necessarily argue with the fact that he had tried to get out of the last two lessons, but this was far better. He took his position at the carnival game, his hat lower over his face to try and keep his identity concealed. The last thing he needed was people recognizing him, even if there was discrete security all around him. It would only be especially more embarrassing if he was recognized and lost.

“Ready.” James took the position, and when the water started he began shooting, a little late on his aim at the clown’s mouth. That only resulted in a slow start, and before he knew it, he was losing the round. “Dammit,” James complained, immediately fishing out another couple of pounds from his wallet. “Best two out of three.”

Avery thrived on competition. She lived life in search of goals to meet, and when that goal happened to be triumph over someone else...well, even the prince wasn’t saved from that. She eagerly lined her eye up with the gun and the target, and her finger pulled the trigger before she even heard the bell. She made no effort to hide her grin as she looked back at James.

“All right, but only because that was hardly a fair fight. I’ll enjoy my wins more knowing you knew how to play the game and still lost.”

[lngstns]

rcyally​:

“And? I’ve shaken things up in this family for far too long – I wouldn’t mind passing the crown to my sister-in-law. In fact, I would be proud to.” James sipped at his drink with a little smirk, hoping that the levity would assist his brother in feeling a little better. 

Clearing his throat, he nodded thoughtfully at Caroline struggling. He couldn’t blame her; he and Elijah had grown up like this, but this was still new for her. “It sounds to me that she’s overwhelmed. I’d suggest what you could do to release some of the tension but I’d hope you weren’t daft enough that I’d have to spell it out.” James grinned, shrugging. “In all sincerity … she’ll likely never get used to it. What has she said?”

"I couldn’t imagine what you’d do with your days if you didn’t dedicate your time to being a thorn in all our family’s sides,” Elijah shot back, exaggerating as much as he was teasing. It did help, to say it all out loud to his brother and to laugh, however hollow, about it. He leaned one arm against the counter, and his fingers drummed involuntarily against its surface. He was so lost in thought that he barely noticed he did it. “She wants me to do something about it, but you know how all of it is. Our hands are tied.” 

[lngstns]

rcyally​:

“Things have been narrowed done for us but they aren’t things that we want,” Caroline rubbed at her temples in frustration, feeling a headache coming on. She knew that this was to be anticipated, joining the royal family. She wouldn’t have many choices, but she was willing to accept that to be with Elijah. Not having Elijah understand, however, was more frustrating than the wedding that was being planned for them.

Caroline gave him a rather pointed look as she observed Elijah, shaking her head silently before sighing, resigned. “It’s going to be the same in the morning. It’s going to be the same all through our marriage. I love you, but why aren’t you doing something about it? Is there nothing you can do to try and change your family’s plans?”

Elijah spent his life as a mediator. He kept the peace between everyone, from his family to his brother to the press and now to his soon-wife. Well, he tried. It wrenched his gut to see her this upset and to feel increasingly powerless in his ability to put those feelings away. How could he make her understand that this was their life now?

“It’s not that easy, Caroline. There are traditions that we have to follow, expectations of the crown,” he tried.

[lngstns]

rcyally​:

James chuckled, closing the door behind him as he immediately went for the bar area, sensing that Elijah may have needed a drink. His response toward Caroline only proved that he was right, the look on Elijah’s face making James raise a brow. “Stressful?” He poured Elijah a drink then crossed over to him, handing the glass out to take. “It’s hard for me to follow the traditions and rules and I grew up with it.” He tried to make light, though could tell Elijah was worried. “Does she want to shake things up? Because you know that I would wholeheartedly support that endeavor.”

Elijah chuckled lowly when James spoke his support for Caroline ‘shaking things up.’ “You’d like that, wouldn’t you? Get her to take some of the heat off you,” he cracked. Still, though, he smiled at James as he extended a glass in his direction, and he took it with a grateful nod.

“I’d imagine planning a wedding is stressful for anyone, royal lineage or not. There’s just a lot that she wants to be able to choose that’s already laid out for us. I don’t know how to make her feel better about it. It’s not like we can relate -- we’ve always lived like this.”

[lngstns]

rcyally​:

Since the engagement was announced Caroline had begun to ease into her royal duties, along with planning a wedding that felt entirely out of her hands. Despite all of the work, any input that she held was largely overshadowed by tradition. And she wasn’t about to complain, not of Elijah’s customs, but she couldn’t quite help but feel powerless.

“How would finishing tomorrow help any?” Caroline sighed, crossing her arms in front of her as she looked over at Elijah with slight frustration on. her face. “Tomorrow will be no different than today. Any decision that I may have will be entirely ignored or overruled.” She glanced at Elijah. “Is there really nothing that I, or you, can choose?”

Elijah felt for Caroline, he did. He’d felt her frustrations, her stuckness, all his life, but that was, of course, the difference. He was born into this and never knew just what the life he could lead without his name and title. Caroline did.

“Everything’s better with a good night’s sleep. Maybe it won’t seem so bad in the morning,” he said gently, trying to persuade her without invalidating her feelings. “We have some choices. We just have to choose between a few -- it’s like things have been narrowed down for us.”

[rcyally]

@lngstns

“I can’t change this either?” Caroline asked the question in an attempt to be as polite as possible, but the subtle frustration was evident in her tone. They’d been planning this wedding for some time and still, her lack of control had left her a bit wanting. She knew there was tradition, that she needed to accommodate. Yet she had at least hoped some of it would be personal, to both her and Elijah, instead of cold and pristine. Sensing her frustration the planners stepped away momentarily, Caroline pinching the bridge of her nose as she took a deep breath, turning toward Elijah next to her. “Is there really nothing that I can do? I feel as if I’ve been making all and yet none of the decisions at the same time.”

[lngstns]

elijah could hear the exasperation in caroline’s tone, as could everyone else apparently. he moved to sweep her into the hallway, but their planning team beat him to the punch and melted into the next room to give them space. he’d always lived like this. someone to anticipate his every need. but he knew it was a double-edged sword, one that caroline still had to adjust to.

he reached out for her, the pressure of his hands on her shoulders gentle. “i’m sorry. i know it takes a lot to get used to. would it help if we finished this tomorrow?” an unfortunate many of his solutions were to put things off.

[lngstns]

rcyally​:

James knew that it was more so a matter of when he was noticed, as always. It was an inevitability that Avery had yet to experience, but something that he regretfully was used living his entire life in the public’s eye. For now, however, he was content focusing on the corndog as he took another bite, following Avery toward the condiments as he enjoyed the fried treat. “I think I’m fine as is, but I may need another before the afternoon’s up.” He smiled slightly, looking around from under his cap as he thought about what to do next. “Alright, you’re going to have to lead the way – do you want to play one of those games? An attraction?” He grinned slightly. “I’m entirely in your hands; you’re the expert.”

“if only you had this attitude when it’s time for fencing lessons.” teasing was natural to avery, so the words slipped from her lips before she could catch them. she was a little nervous to look james in the eye then, but she did anyway, hoping it seemed natural. it was hard to know how to speak with royalty sometimes.

“maybe the games next. i don’t particularly want to find out if you get motion sickness.” one brow quirked at him before she led him to the aisle of flashing lights and carnival tunes. it was an oasis of childhood nostalgia for avery, one that sparked both comfort and nostalgia in her. she wondered what james saw. “anything stand out to you?”

[lngstns]

rcyally​:

A knock on his door and the familiar voice of his brother had peeled James off of his couch, having been enjoying a rather dull evening scrolling through Netflix and drinking expensive liquor; simple, but relaxing for a guy like him. “If it isn’t Eli,” he announced as he opened the door, an easy grin crossing his face as he stepped. to the side, allowing room for Elijah to enter. “I would have forgotten what you’d look like if it wasn’t for your ugly mug in the news every day.” It felt like ages since he’d seen him thanks to the wedding planning. “How’s Caroline?”

the insults made elijah laughed. if there was one person in the world that made him feel normal it was james. he was grateful for him, though they hardly said it. elijah’s face fell slightly when james asked about caroline. “she’s fine. as much as she can be,” he started, trying to keep her picture rosy in his brother’s mind. “the wedding planning’s been stressful for her – for both of us,” he was quick to add. “i think it’s just hard for her to have to follow all these traditions and rules.”

[lngstns]

@rcyally //  was due for a much needed break. or rather, overdue. after pressing a kiss to caroline’s cheek and wishing her a good night, he slunk, shoulders hunched and expression tired, to james’s room and knocked on the door. “james, are you in there?” he called out, hoping he hadn’t snuck out to do something more interesting tonight. he really wanted to unwind with his brother.

[lngstns]

rcyally‌:

“Trust me – you don’t want to be swarmed.” It was chaos, security’s nightmare. He was risking even going out like this, knowing what could happen if he was recognized. It came with being royalty, and with being in the public eye. Sometimes, it was nice; other times, when he just wanted to be normal, it w as terrible. “I don’t think I’ve ever done any one of those things,” he commented, looking at Avery from under his baseball cap with an amused grin. “But dare I say, I think I have to start with this ‘corndog’ first. Whatever that is.”

“should we get you some sunglasses and a wig to be completely safe?” avery quipped. her voice was dry, but a hint of teasing gleamed in her eyes as she looked at the prince. the food wasn’t far from the fair’s entrance, so she easily led the way to the line by one of the booths. “i can’t believe you’ve never had a corndog. it’s no five star meal, but it’s in a league of its own.”

[lngstns]

rcyally‌:

Caroline smiled, lightly bumping his arm after he gave his kisses, warming. her from head-to-toe. “Of course you are,” she hummed with a gentle roll of her eyes, wiggling her way out of bed as she started moving towards the drawing room in search of food. “I have some color ideas, along with flowers. A lot of his largely pre-chosen, apparently, because it’s royalty.” Caroline knew sacrifices had to be made; but she was eager to make as many decisions as she could, within reason. “But they’re going to have to be mutual decisions. I insist.”

before she could slip away, elijah pressed a soft kiss to caroline’s shoulder. he followed with a gentle sigh to take after caroline and roll out of bed, an act of sheer willpower. he slipped into his robe before meeting her in the drawing room, plucking a croissant from the full trays and immediately stealing a large bite. he looked to her again as he chewed, a small smile forming across his lips once more. the moment might have seemed small to some, but the couple didn’t get many like this. 

[lngstns]

rcyally‌:

James didn’t pick up on any pity, which was good, considering it would have admittedly sent him running. He knew that he had missed out on plenty of things growing up behind castle walls; perhaps that was why he acted out like he did now. “I’ve heard of sadder things.” But he was grateful when Avery decided not to press on the matter, instead talking about games, and food. It made him smile some, James’s shoulders visibly relaxing as they entered the carnival, attempting to keep his head down from people noticing him as he looked toward her. “Oh? Alright then. Which game should we play and which food must I have?”

Avery noticed the way James tried to shrink himself down, avoiding the public eye. “You don’t want to be swarmed by your adoring fans?” she teased drily. Even with his reputation, Avery still knew a fair amount of common folk like herself who swooned at the mention of Prince James’s name. Amusement played vaguely over her features as she led him to the row of games and gestured over the booths as she spoke. “Balloon darts is a classic. So is that one, I don’t know what it’s called,” she pointed out a game where  you shot a stream of water to a small target. “And you’ll probably have to try the bumper cars at some point. And a corndog. They’re disgusting, but a rite of passage.” Just call her trip advisor!

[lngstns]

rcyally‌:

“You are marrying me for a reason.” Caroline nuzzled comfortably into his embrace, feeling so incredibly comfortable that it would be a marvel if she ever moved from this spot again. Sometimes, particularly in moments such as these, she couldn’t even comprehend just how lucky she actually was in life. “Oh, of course. I’ll suit up any day so long as you’re with me.” She laughed, pressing a kiss to his cheek; a few minutes later she heard the door open in the large common room, the food presumably there. But Caroline didn’t budge just yet, having already started to tick off everything they had to do. “We have to settle on the menu and the music; the color scheme and flowers. I believe that the actual seating chart is out of my hands but I don’t particularly care where anyone sits so long as you’re by my side.”

“I’ll never leave it,” Elijah promised Caroline, with a kiss against her shoulder, then one to her neck and her cheek. His hand ran idly over her side as he gazed at the ceiling, all thoughts consumed by their wedding and their future. A lightness swelled through him, as it always did when he thought of all that laid ahead for him and Caroline. At times, the wedding could weigh him down, but then he remembered it was only the beginning of their life together. “Have you got ideas in mind for all of them already? You know, I’m useless with the flowers, but I’m ready to taste test the food,” he teased.

[lngstns]

rcyally‌:

“Yes, since I was four. My mother took my brother and I – I’m sure that you can Google it, there are tons of pictures on those anglophile sites obsessed with my family.” Unscheduled events were rare, that was certain, but no matter the event there would inevitably be pictures plastered on the internet. “You would be surprised that the crown isn’t quite needed at fair grounds often.” James didn’t quite feel like getting into the annoying realities of being a royal so instead began making his way toward the fair, trying to ignore the fact that his security detail would certainly have a cow. “I’m sure you’ve been to more than I so tell me, what is a must do?”

Avery’s lips set in a straight line as James spoke, her features expressionless. Inside, though, a wave of pity rode through her. She could imagine the life of royalty was no walk in a park, but it was another thing for him to share the details. “How sad,” she mused plainly before moving to the next discussion. Suddenly, she felt the pressure to deliver a life-changing trip. “I’m a fan of the games myself. I can’t turn down a competition. I like the rides too, but I can’t say I’m much for the food. If you haven’t had it since you were four though, some tastings might be in order for you.”