I've been listening to too much epic the musical,,,,,,,,,,and I am thinking about prince!shoto returning from a diplomatic mission, whose eyes darken when he hears screaming from the palace, his blood running cold when he nearly slips on a puddle of red in the hall leading to the servants' chambers.
he makes a beeline for the common area, where you must've gathered the other maids when you heard the commotion. if he knew anything about you, it's that you were ready to defend others with your life at the first sign of danger. true to his assumption, there's a razor-sharp blade at his throat before he can call for you; your perfume is the only thing halting his gut instinct to disarm you. the sword drops just as quickly as it appears and he has half the wits give you a wry smile.
"i was about to behead you," you exhale, exasperated, wrapping your arms around his shoulders and pulling him close. the others hiding in the darkest corners of the room gawk, but you couldn't care less. he'd been away from you for three weeks, but every day with 108 strangers in the palace felt like an eternity.
"i'm grateful you reconsidered." shoto's voice is soft against the shell of your ear, his breathing steady and sure. "you're safe?"
"i am, but...your father has returned," you inform him, brushing the hair from his face with eyebrows drawn in concern. his expression hardens and the hands around your waist tighten. "he's hunting down your mother's suitors, one by one. i saw him when he snuck through the palace."
"did he speak to you?" his fingers find the silver pendant he'd given you before his departure, the royal crest shining against your collarbone. it was a glaring warning for any intruders who intended to give you trouble, a mark that you were favored by the prince and under his protection. though i'm sure you would give them hell if they tried, he added affectionately when he first secured the chain around your neck.
"he saw the charm and recognized it as yours," you say, dropping your voice to a lower tone. he listens to you intently and you can see the cogs turning in his brain. he had his father's strategic mind, after all. "i was told to lock the armory and weapons stores, but there was one i missed in the east wing. your enemies will be arming themselves there."
"my mother?"
"in her room, i secured the door myself," you confirm and if there wasn't so much blood being shed around his home, he'd ask you to marry him then and there. "go. your father is strong, but twenty years takes a toll."
"you believe he'll lose?" you give him a sad smile, pulling away to retrieve the spear he made you stash under your mattress while he was gone.
"i wasn't talking about the body," you say while your hands tighten the straps of his armor. "who knows what he went through in twenty years?" shoto nods, turning the spear over in his hands. a fluttering movement catches the corner of your eye, and turn to see an owl perched on the ledge of the nearest open window. you peer at it curiously, but its presence seems to instill a new spirit of confidence in the prince. he gently pulls you to him, his free hand on the side of your neck, and rests his forehead against yours.
"i will return to you." your eyes fall shut, relishing the feeling of his skin against yours.
"i'll be here," you promise. "waiting."