DIFFERENT WORLDS part 1
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Tamaki Amajiki x Princess Reader
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Stable-boy Tamaki Amajiki 𓃗⋆˚｡ Princess Reader
Part 1 of 6
Summary: As the sheltered princess of Fauna Kingdom, Y/N is used to people treating her title before they treat her like a person. Tamaki Amajiki is used to avoiding attention altogether. Neither expects a chance encounter in the castle stables to change the course of their days.
Word count: 2,123
꧁ ༺ ⚜ ༻ ꧂
Life inside Fauna Castle was quiet in a way that felt too loud.
You had learned that at a young age.
The afternoon lessons ended earlier than expected.
Your tutor had barely finished assigning tomorrow’s reading before dismissing you with a stiff nod and a reminder not to leave the castle grounds unattended, as though you’d somehow forgotten after hearing it every day for the last seventeen years.
You wandered the halls as you always did, skirts gathered loosely in your hands as you slid down the bannister of the western staircase, boots skidding softly at the bottom. The servants in the hall gasped exactly the way you expected them to.
“Your Highness!”
You hopped off at the bottom with a grin. “Sorry.” You weren’t actually sorry.
The castle had been especially dull lately. Your father had spent the last week locked in meetings with nobles from neighboring kingdoms, which meant the halls were crowded with people too important to smile and too busy to acknowledge you beyond a polite bow.
Everything felt stiff. Quiet in the wrong way.
Even the library had failed to entertain you today. You’d tried reading for a while sprawled across one of the window seats, but after twenty minutes of staring at the same paragraph about trade routes, you’d given up and wandered outside instead.
The gardens were prettier this time of year, at least. White flowers curled around the stone archways, and bees drifted lazily between hedges trimmed into elaborate shapes that probably took some poor gardener hours to maintain.
You crouched beside a patch of mushrooms near the fountain and watched a ladybug crawl over your knuckle for a few minutes before deciding this wasn’t particularly interesting either.
With a sigh, you stood and brushed dirt from your skirts. That was when you noticed the stable doors standing open across the courtyard. You paused.
Normally the royal horses were already put away by this hour. The stablehands tended to avoid the main grounds once the nobility started roaming around for dinner. Curious, you headed toward the building.
The smell reached you first: hay, leather, and the earthy warmth of horses. The inside of the stable was dimmer than the courtyard, sunlight slipping through the wooden slats in thin golden lines. A few saddles rested along the wall beside scattered grooming brushes someone had forgotten to put away.
And near the back stalls stood a boy hauling a hay bale nearly the size of his torso. You slowed.
He looked around your age, maybe a little older. Dark indigo hair brushed against the back of his neck, sleeves rolled to his elbows despite the heat inside the stable. Dirt streaked across his linen shirt and forearms as he carried the hay into one of the stalls with quiet efficiency.
You didn’t recognize him. Which was strange. Your father rarely hired new staff without making an entire spectacle of “maintaining standards.” Most servants had worked in the castle for years.
The boy dropped the hay bale with a tired exhale before reaching for a rake nearby. You realized then that he was alone when usually a meriod of stable hands were scattered around.
“Why are you by yourself?”
The rake nearly clattered out of his hands. He whipped around so fast it startled one of the horses nearby. Wide eyes locked onto yours immediately, panic washing over his expression before he quickly lowered his head.
“Y-Your Highness,” he said.
You blinked. He sounded terrified. You were almost amused if you weren’t so off put by it.
“I didn’t mean to scare you,” you said, stepping further inside.
The boy moved back instinctively, fingers tightening around the rake handle. “You—you didn’t— I just wasn’t expecting anyone.”
“You’re jumpy.”
“Sorry.”
“I assume you apologize a lot too.”
His face warmed slightly at that, though he still wouldn’t fully look at you. Up close, you noticed how exhausted he looked. Not weak, exactly. Just worn down. His clothes were clean but old, sleeves fraying slightly near the wrists.
And when he ducked his head again, his hair shifted just enough for you to catch sight of something pointed beneath the dark strands. Your eyes widened slightly.
“Oh,” you said before you could stop yourself. “You’re an elf.”
The stable fell silent. The boy froze completely. Slowly, one hand lifted toward his hair, pulling it farther over his ears even though it was already too late. You watched his throat bob nervously.
Then quietly, carefully, he said, “Please don’t tell anyone.”
The fear in his voice made your stomach twist a little. Not nervousness or embarrassment. Fear. Real fear.
You frowned. “Why would I tell anyone?”
His brows knit together slightly like the answer should’ve been obvious. Because it was.
Humans ruled nearly every major kingdom on the continent, including Fauna. Humans held the wealth, titles, armies. Other species were tolerated when useful and ignored when they weren’t.
Elves especially made people uncomfortable. Too magical. Too secretive. Too different. Your father disliked them more openly than most nobles did. You’d overheard enough council meetings to know that much.
“You can never trust creatures who hide in forests and speak in riddles.”
That was one of his favorite things to say.
Looking at the boy standing in front of you now, nervously hiding his ears behind messy hair while clutching a stable rake like it might protect him, the statement suddenly felt ridiculous.
“You’re hiding it to work here?” you asked.
He hesitated before nodding once. “I — uhm,” he swallows, “I needed a job.”
“And the castle doesn’t hire elves.”
“No.”
“So you lied.”
Another pause. “…Yes.”
You tilted your head thoughtfully. “That’s kind of smart.”
His eyes lifted toward you properly for the first time. “You’re not angry?”
“No. Should I be?”
“I deceived the royal staff.”
You shrugged. “Most royal staff are unpleasant anyway.”
His expression flickered with surprise. It almost made you laugh. But it certainly made you crack a smile. He clearly didn’t know what to do with you.
“You really don’t care?” he asked cautiously.
“Nope.”
“You’re.. the princess.”
“And?”
“And…” He struggled for a moment. “Most humans don’t like elves.”
“Well, most humans are boring.”
That startled a small breath of laughter out of him before he quickly looked away like he regretted it immediately. Your smile spread into a grin.
His face warmed. “Sorry.”
“Why are you apologizing for laughing?”
“I—I don’t know.”
“That’s a little sad.”
You leaned against the nearest stall, watching him curiously. He was still tense, shoulders tight beneath his shirt, but not quite as frightened as before. You could definitely understand his nervousness, you’d probably be just as much a trembling mess if you were in his situation.
One of the horses in the stall over nudged against your sleeve, searching for treats. Absentmindedly, you patted its nose.
“What’s your name?” you asked.
“…Tamaki.”
“Just Tamaki?”
“Amajiki,” he added quietly. “Tamaki Amajiki.”
You repeated it once under your breath and his ears turned slightly pink beneath his hair. It suited him somehow.
“I’m Y/N.”
“…I know.”
“Right.” You sighed dramatically. “Princess.”
Something about that made the corners of his mouth twitch faintly before he looked away again.
Success.
You leaned farther over the stall door, resting your chin in your hands. “So why are you alone in here?”
Tamaki blinked at the sudden change in subject. “What..?”
You gestured vaguely around the stable. “Where is everybody?”
“Oh.” He adjusted his grip on the rake slightly. “Most of the others already left.”
“And they made you stay behind?”
“I volunteered.”
“Why?”
There was a small pause before he answered. “…It’s quieter.”
That made perk up slightly. You looked around the stable again. It was peaceful in here compared to the rest of the castle. No nobles talking too loudly. No servants rushing around trying not to upset anyone important. Just horses shifting in their stalls and sunlight slipping through the wooden beams overhead.
“I think I’d stay in here too,” you admitted.
Tamaki glanced at you uncertainly, like he wasn’t sure whether you were joking.
“I mean it,” you said. “The castle gets exhausting.”
“..you live in the castle.”
“Unfortunately.”
That earned another tiny almost-smile from him. You noticed he did that a lot — reacted before he remembered he was nervous.
“So what do you actually do in here all day?” you asked. “Besides dramatically hiding your identity.”
His eyes widened slightly. “I’m—I’m not dramatic.”
“You nearly died when I said you were an elf.”
“I thought you were going to tell the guards.”
“Oh.” You considered that. “Right, yeah. My father seems like he’d behead someone for that.”
He looked slightly terrified at the mention of beheading but mildly relieved at your understanding.
“I mostly clean stalls,” he explained quietly. “Feed the horses. Brush them down after rides. Sometimes help saddle them.”
“That sounds more interesting than lessons.” You grinned.
“..you don’t like your lessons?”
“I like reading,” you corrected. “I don’t like being trapped in a room for six hours learning diplomacy.”
Tamaki nodded slowly like he understood that feeling more than he wanted to admit.
“What’s your favorite horse?” you asked suddenly.
He looked caught off guard again. “Favorite?”
“Mhm. You work here every day, so you probably have one.”
For a second he hesitated, then pointed toward a dark horse a few stalls down. “Him.”
You immediately pushed away from the stall door. “Why?”
“He’s calmer than the others.”
The horse lifted its head as the two of you approached. Large and dark-coated, with intelligent eyes and a small streak of white along its nose.
You reached your hand out carefully. “He’s beautiful.”
“He bites most people.”
You looked at Tamaki accusingly. “You could’ve warned me sooner!”
“You already touched him.”
The horse nudged your palm gently and you gasped dramatically. “He likes me.”
Tamaki stared at the horse like he’d personally betrayed him. “…That’s new.”
You grinned triumphantly before turning back toward him. “You like animals more than people, don’t you?” You asked bluntly. You usually were.
He opened his mouth and closed it a couple times before responding quietly. “Usually.”
“I get that.”
“You do?”
“People in castles are strange.”
“You’re in the castle too.”
“Yes, but I’m interesting.”
That startled an actual laugh out of him this time. Not just a breath — a real laugh, short and surprised like it escaped accidentally. Your face lit up immediately.
“There!” you said, pointing at him. “You did it again!”
Tamaki looked horrified at himself. “Sorry.”
You giggle, shaking your head in disbelief. “You keep apologizing after every emotion.”
“I do not.” He whispered, ears pink from embarrassment.
“You literally just did.”
“…Oh.”
You laughed under your breath, and this time he didn’t look quite as tense hearing it. Progress—you mentally high-fived yourself. You rested your arms along the stall door again, watching him for a moment while he busied himself adjusting the straps hanging nearby. He still seemed nervous, but not in the same sharp, panicked way as before.
More like he just didn’t know what to do with you. Honestly, neither did you. Most people your age in the castle were noble children who spoke like they were reciting from books. Every conversation turned into some exhausting dance of etiquette and appearances.
Tamaki barely spoke at all unless you dragged the words out of him. It was strangely refreshing.
“So,” you said after a moment, “do you actually like working here?”
He didn’t look, enjoying the no-eye contact. “In the stable?”
“Mhm.”
There was a pause while he considered the question seriously. “I like the horses,” he answered quietly.
“As we’ve established,” you laugh.
You wandered toward the nearest stall again, peering inside curiously. “Do you ride them too?”
“Sometimes.”
“You’re allowed to?”
“If nobody important is using them.”
You turned immediately. “You should teach me.”
Tamaki looked caught completely off guard. “..what?”
“I know how to ride,” you clarified. “But only properly. Royal lessons and all that.” You gestured vaguely like that explained everything. “I want to learn the fun version.”
“There’s a fun version?”
“There has to be.”
Tamaki shook his head slightly, looking away at the saddles like he was trying to hide the fact he was smiling at all.
Outside, voices drifted faintly across the courtyard somewhere beyond the open doors. A few guards, maybe servants changing shifts.
The sound made Tamaki straighten almost immediately. It was subtle, but you noticed it.
His shoulders tightened. His attention shifted toward the entrance automatically. Like he was preparing for something bad before it even happened.
You smiled to yourself. Because now that you’d finally found someone interesting in this castle, you definitely weren’t planning on leaving him alone anytime soon.
꧁ ༺ ⚜ ༻ ꧂
