i love you breathlessly, my amazing man

tatiana valentina. eighteen. russian. "and as she sat by him, she whispered. All I want is for my spirit to be heard through your pain. I sit here with you, pouring my love into you, drop by drop, hoping you'll hear me, hoping you'll lift your head to...

[joshuadarling-blog]

The tension between the blonde and her attackers was filling the air just as much as the dust was as Noah tugged his mother along. She her box of trinkets like she would a kid, tight and protectively. Dodging through the crowd, they both headed towards the shop, the sign familiar to him. It was the bakery owned by the Russian family and now the blonde out front made more sense to Noah. Her face was painted fierce with determination, ready to take the mob on in order to protect her tiny shop. He had no idea why this was so important to her, but he knew it must be the same reason his own mother loved her shop as much as she did. For both woman, leaving seemed like the last option. As some of the men advanced on the poor girl, he pulled his mother with him and made sure he was there in time to protect her. He would not stand by and let anyone be beaten over a stupid raid. Taking his place before both women, Noah stared the men down. There was no way in hell he would let them take this bakery. Not on his life.

“Get her inside, please. Mum, do as she says. Board up whatever you can.”

The older woman protested at the orders and Noah turned to give her a look to fall silent. The girl, missing no beat, took his mother in and left Noah alone to stand guard. There were at least half a dozen of them, all with at least fifty pounds on Noah. He would be royally fucked if they attacked while his partner in crime was inside. And of course, he had only been able to grab one sword from the ship before dashing into the mess around town. He really needed to think things through before playing hero for a young Russian baker. Hearing the door lock made him relax just slightly. At least his mum would be safe. Now, he just had to protect his baking warrior. He could only imagine how the two looked to the men. One, lanky and worn with hard work, the other small and most likely as frightening to them as a small puppy. It would have made him laugh if he were on the other side. But he wasn’t. For once, Noah was playing hero. For once, he was what most called a “good guy.”

The girl’s weapon of choice seemed a little heavy for her, but she held it just as tight as Noah began to reach for his sword. She was screaming at them, her tone fiercer than the voice he had heard days before when he was just a customer. Bloody hell, she really was a warrior. He felt her eyes fleet over to him, a flash of worry in their blue color as she turned back to the mob. Fuck, he didn’t know if they could do it. He wasn’t sure they could actually take on the mob. But, they had to try. He had to try. Noah Eliot would not die a coward.

“Don’t fucking talk to her that way. You stay away from her and this bakery, you hear me? She’s not your darling.”

Noah was stepping to protect her as soon as she shrieked, the sound loud against the more hushed threats that had been muttered. The sound of metal connecting with bone made him freeze, taking in the sight of his partner holding the pan above her, frozen as soon as she realized what she had done. Her cheek bleed and Noah cursed under his breath as he moved to stand and protect her from the advancing mob. Bloody fucker had drawn blood.

He only had a second to register her words when he turned to find the man she warned him about, weapon grazing Noah’s arm as he dodged it. Shit, they were gonna be bloodied and bruised by the end.

As the man raised the bayonet again, Noah smoothly drew out his sword and stood back to back with the small Russian girl. He held the deadly blade before him, his chest raising and falling with his breath as he whispered to the curly haired girl.

“On three, love. One…two…three….”

[tatianavalentinaa]

By the time Tatiana had managed to usher her partner-in-crime's mother safely inside of the bakery, she felt herself let out an immense sigh of relief. They were in no way out of the woods, of course, but at least she could be certain that the elder woman would be out of harm's way for as long as she and her son could continue to ward off the pack of looters. She and the lean blond were back to back now, and Tatiana's heart clenched at the realization that he had been struck across the face and was no bleeding. She would never forgive herself if anything worse happened to him--without owing her and her father anything at all, he had come to her rescue the moment he had realized she was in danger, and that was something that she would forever be in his debt because of. She just hoped that they made it out of this alive...Tatiana had always been optimistic, even to a fault at times, but even she wasn't quite as naive to fail to understand that two against six was a battle not designed to be won. Still--the reassuring warmth of the man's back up against her own sunk into her like a soothing balm, and the young girl found herself nodding shakily when he counted down for them to fight. They were both bloodied, bruised, and barely armed, but she was glad to see that he had pulled out a sword--perhaps he had taken it off one of the pirates on his way towards the bakery? Either way, it would give him something to fight with.

"Be safe, big man," she whispered beneath her breath as he counted down, and by the time he reached three, she had no choice but to spring into action. Looters came at them from either side, and Tatiana let out a breathy cry as she just narrowly avoided the sharp end of one of their bayonets. "Oh--Vy otvratitel'no chelovek! Kak vy smeyete, kak vy smeyete--!" Rambling furiously in Russian now, Tatiana used her small size to her advantage and ducked between the two men that had been encroaching upon her, and while doing so, she ended up causing them to strike the other as a result. Whirling around to catch sight of her fighting partner, she was relieved to see that he was still doing relatively well--he was even more torn-up than he had been before, but it wasn't too bad at all, and--"Ah!" Momentarily distracted, Tatiana had received a lash of her assailant's blade as punishment, and her back arched as she felt a shallow cut graze the small of it. Trying her best not to whimper, she spun left once more, frying pan raised high up over her head and dainty features tugged bravely into an expression of pure resilience. They needed to make it out of this alive...they needed to...

***

It seemed to take absolutely ages, but finally, the combined efforts of Tatiana and her knight in shining armor were enough to scare away the horde of looters, and no sooner had they seen the last of them was the young girl tugging the elder man inside of the bakery and boarding the door shut once more the moment they had managed to keep it shut behind them. Both of them were panting breathlessly, dewy with sweat and red in the face with exertion, and Tatiana knew that to his poor mother they must have been quite the fright--especially given how badly the two of them were bleeding. None of their wounds were too serious, little more than scratches at best, but they stung, ached, and demanded medical attention. First things first, though... "Oh, I--you are alright, aren't you? Sword man?" With concern shining in her bright blue eyes, Tatiana rounded on the man whose name she still did not know, and she gazed up at him fretfully as she gingerly took hold of his wiry arms with her small hands, hoping that his mother wouldn't mind if she got a good look at him. "They did not be getting you too badly, did they? Oh, I--I am hoping that, wherever they are coming from, they are not coming back again, and if they are, it is because they are confused due to nasty head wounds we are giving them!"

[delmar-rendon]

Delmar was angry. The tensions that had spread over the land the last few months had finally broken and the result was going to be disastrous if someone didn’t get a handle on it soon. While he knew it had to be done, he was not naive enough to think that it was his role to fill. His goal was only to find Dimitri. The captain had left the ship a few hours before Delmar, and by the time the quartermaster had gotten into town things were falling apart.

It was as if war had taken to the streets with little regard for anything. There were no rules here; there was kill or be killed, in some situations. There was fear and evasion. Many people were running around. It was the perfect opportunity for many to break into shops and steal things or take women where ever they found them. With both sickles in hand in preparation to defend himself, Delmar picked his way through the city towards the places he expected to find his captain or other members of the crew. Dimitri, he knew, could care for himself. Some of the other crew were less gifted. Regardless, they were all his responsibility.

When he’d rounded a corner, he came face to face with a small crowd of men moving towards a young woman that was armed with nothing but a frying pan. She’d be lucky to make contact before one of them got a hold of her. With the number of them compared to one of her, she was hardly in luck. Gritting his teeth, he was prepared to walk away when an annoying sense of duty clawed at his chest and had him turning.

Grip tightening on the handle in his right hand, he moved quickly towards the group. It was the one on the outside that he got to first, hand holding the handle and reaching to turn the man at the same time. Before he could react, Delmar’s other hand was raising and the sharp edge of the sickle was drawn across his neck. The man crumbled, and Delmar’s attention turned to the others. “Run or die,” Most of them moved instantly, fleeing from what they perceived to be an easy target in the young woman when faced with someone that would–and did–kill. The sickle provided a slightly more lethal weapon than a frying pan. His gaze stayed on the men for a moment longer, certain they were leaving, before he glanced to the woman. His body was still tense; ready for others to come from the woodwork as they were wont to do. “Are you okay?”

[tatianavalentinaa]

One moment, Tatiana had been attempting to defend her father's bakery with nothing more than a heavy-bottomed frying pan and every last ounce of courage she could muster, and the next...another man was encroaching upon her. He was tall, dark-eyed, and dangerous, if the two sickles he held in his large hands were anything to go by, and she felt her eyes widen as she struggled to determine whether or not she was going to have to fight him off as well. She didn't understand how it was that he had gotten hold of such frightening weapons in the first place...as far as she knew, those were not the sort of instruments that the men of King Christian's army boasted. However, before she could so much as cry out or scream for help, the strange man was moving towards the half-circle of looters that had formed around her bakery with all the grace and agility of a seasoned fighter, and he made the group of dirty-faced men appear clumsy and disorganized in comparison. Then, without any sort of warning whatsoever, he was reaching for the looter that was the closest to him, the one with the broken bottle and the stained teeth, and Tatiana felt her last breath escape her parted lips in a shuddering rush as...in a handful of mere seconds, he was dragging one of his sickles across the swell of the looter's throat until it tore open and gaped into a deadly, bleeding gash. 

He...oh God, he had killed him. Without so much as a single thought, this man had killed him.

Tatiana wasn't even aware of the rest of the raiders leaving in a hurried rush in response to the murder of one of their own. Her pulse was pounding in her ears, and she felt shaky, dizzy, and nauseous, as well. Only once before had she seen someone die in front of her, and that had been her poor mother, gaunt and pale as she allowed her sickness to consume her entirely as she said her goodbyes to the family she loved more than anything else in the entire world. Tatiana knew that the man standing before her now had only been attempting to help her, to shield her and her bakery from the gang of looters that would have done unthinkable things if left alone, but she still couldn't tear her wide-eyed gaze away from the sight of the lanky man on the ground with his throat torn open and the last vestiges of life quickly leaving him. "He is--he is dead; oh--oh God, he is not...on ne ostanovitsya krovotecheniye; on umirayet, Bozhe..." Shakily, and without answering the stranger's query, Tatiana was falling to her knees before the dying man, and her fretful little hands sought out the jagged gash that had been dragged across his throat, only to come away bloody and useless as she realized that there was no longer anything that she could do. She had wanted him to leave her bakery, of course, and she had been willing to beat him over the head to do it, but...oh God, she hadn't wanted anyone to die today.

"We must be giving him proper burial," Tatiana managed to say in a quivering rush, and with hands that trembled just as badly, she reached out to close the fallen man's eyes, feeling her own well with tears all the while. She looked back up at the stranger that had single-handedly defended her and her bakery, and she wasn't angry or accusing at all, but rather...sad. Sad, and determined as well. She didn't know who this man was, or why he was carrying around a pair of sickles, but...he couldn't be too bad, could he, if he had taken time away from whatever he was doing to rescue a girl he didn't even know? "Please, I--I am wanting to take his body into the woods...no one should have to lay dead in street for everyone to see. You are already doing much for me, big man, but I am asking for just this one more thing and then I will be pretending as if I am not seeing you at all. Please...help me bring into woods."

[joshuadarling-blog]

Noah had raced to get his mother as soon of news of the looting had hit the Renegade, the only worry of his to get her to safety. He was more than certain that whoever the hell was creating the chaos was far from being a true pirate, as one would never be stupid enough to start a war without true preparation. He had reached her tailor shop to find a few windows broken, glass scattered around the wooden floor but otherwise the damage was nonexistent. His mother only gave little protest when he grabbed her arm and dragged her from the store. She told him she needed something, leaving her son to stand in the doorway with crossed arms and a more than annoyed look on his face. Honestly, the woman would take all of England with her if she could carry it.

“Grab what you can easily carry, Mum. Honestly you don’t need fabric right now. Just grab Dad’s portrait if you want something. Hurry up..”

As she dinked around inside, Noah watched the kingdom falling around him. Looters were going crazy right now, hitting more stores than Noah could imagine. The tavern across the way had a stool hanging halfway out the window, the glass scattered making it dangerous for the woman guiding kids along, trying to keep them safe. The sound of an accented voice screaming pulled his attention towards the building a little down the way. There stood a tiny blond, brandishing some sort of weapon at about five men twice her size. If his bloody mother would hurry herself, Noah would go and check the entire thing out. The blond looked familiar, but she was too far for Noah to truly tell. He gave a sigh of relief once his mother arrived at his side, a box filled with what she found important to her in her arms as the duo headed towards the shop being protected by the petite heroine.

“Hey, hey. What the bloody hell is happening right now?!”

He pushed his way through to stand between the girl and the danger. It was the bakery girl, the little Russian one. She had a fierce look on her face as she held her weapon tight and almost ready to hit him on the head. It was a frying pan. She was protecting her store with a bloody frying pan. The thought made Noah want to smile, but he knew he really shouldn’t. Casting his mother a look, he nodded for her to stand behind him beside the girl as he drew his weapon.

“She’s not kidding. She will beat you until you’re bloody not breathing. So, if I were you, I would head off. Or else you’ll see what an actual fighter can do.”

[tatianavalentinaa]

With each passing moment, the men that threatened to loot her bakery encroached further and further still upon her, and Tatiana, as ready to lay down her life for her mother's namesake as she was, couldn't help but grow nervous and scared. She had always been brave, of course, even to a fault at times, but taking on six men twice her size and armed with broken glass and swords was something she had never even imagined before. Still, she managed to brandish her cast-iron skillet with all the strength that she could muster, and it was just when she was about ready to use it to bash one of the looters over the head that she realized that...she was no longer fighting alone. Coming up from behind the half-circle of men that had formed in front of her bakery was a man that Tatiana had only seen once before, as well as an elder woman who could have only been his mother judging by how similar in appearance they were. Despite the fact that even he was more lithe than the burly men attacking her bakery, he rushed towards them without any fear whatsoever, pushing past the armed looters and shouting at them all the while. Oh, she--she remembered him now! He was the lovely British man from the other day, the one with the warm smile and the teasing eyes, and...he was helping to protect her bakery.

Almost immediately, he placed himself in front of her and sent his mother to stand alongside her, and Tatiana took that as her cue to escort the elder woman away from any and all impending danger. "I--I am bringing you inside, yes? There are boards if you are wanting to cover door and windows, please, just--right this way, miss, so you are not hurt!" Insistently, the young Russian girl urged her to come along, using the hand not holding up the frying pan to gently take hold of one of her fragile arms and guide her inside of the relative safety of the bakery. The older woman protested, of course, but Tatiana did her best to soothe and calm her down before shutting the door and ensuring it was locked and joining her makeshift knight-in-shining-armor once more. After all, she wasn't about to allow him to defend her bakery all by himself. Currently, however, he was doing just that, and Tatiana wondered, with no small amount of awe, how it was that a man who had seemed so even-tempered and kind had no issue standing his ground in front of a half-dozen men who seemed more than willing to take him on all at once.

"He is telling truth--both of us will beat you into ground if you are not leaving right this moment! You are having no place in Ronsanella, no place at all" Tatiana insisted heatedly, moving to stand alongside her new-found friend, heavy-bottomed skillet held in both of her small hands all the while. Anxiously, she allowed herself a moment to check and see if the Englishman had any sort of weapon on him, but she couldn't tell...hopefully he wasn't unarmed. However, despite their many threats and commands, the looters still didn't seem too convinced that they could be thwarted by two lithe blondes, only one of whom seemed to be armed. The main fellow, the one standing in the middle of the half-circle, merely snorted derisively, and his stained yellow teeth glinted dangerously as he responded with a ferocious snarl of his own.

"An' why should we fear ya, darlin'? Do ya plan on cookin' us to death?" he sneered, and with a roll of his eyes, he was gesturing for his men to stay back as he took another step forward. "You coulda made this a lot easier by standin' down, but I s'pose that I'll just have to teach you and pretty boy here a lesson or two before ransackin' that little bakery of yours." With that, he was storming towards them, broken bottle at the ready, and Tatiana reacted instinctively--without thinking, she was letting out a frightened shriek of a sound, and as hastily as she could, she lifted up her frying pan and brought it down hard over the looter's head. He just managed to graze one of her cheeks once with the jagged edge of his weapon before he stumbled and fell to the ground, and that was when the rest of his men began to approach, each one of them more angry than the last.

Trying her best not to panic, Tatiana held her frying pan at the ready, and she turned to face her companion just in time to see that one of the looters was coming up behind him, bayonet raised and prepared to deal out a deadly blow. Her eyes widened, and she just barely managed to cry out: 

"Oh, I--behind you, big man!"

[tatianavalentinaa]

"No no no--I am telling you, stay back! Stay BACK!" 

Tatiana hadn't been at all prepared for the incoming raid on the village, and with her father out of town on business and no one but her to protect their beloved bakery, she had taken it upon herself to snatch up the first weapon she could find--a heavy, cast-iron frying pan--before leaving the relative safety of her home to stand guard outside of the last true memory of her mama that her and her papa had to hold onto. Everything about their little bakery had been dedicated to her late mother--Sweetums was the affectionate little pet name that had been used when her parents thought that Tatiana was within hearing range, and each and every single one of the recipes had been taken from her handwritten notes. The young Russian girl would sooner give up her own life than abandon the bakery that she loved so dearly, and now, she was standing outside of it with her frying pan and her heart on her sleeve, surrounded by a half-circle of looters who seemed to want nothing more than to ransack everything of value from their little shop before burning it to the ground.

Brandishing her weapon of choice defensively, Tatiana let out a shaky breath as she glared heatedly at the numerous men who encroached upon her with their dirty hands, guns and swords strapped to their sides and broken bottles made out of jagged glass in their hands, wondering how on earth she was supposed to manage to take them on all at once. Wide-eyed and scared, she did her best not to let it show, stubbornly staring down each and every one of the men who so much as dared to take another step towards her and her bakery.

"I am meaning it--if you do not leave right this instant, I will beat you bloody until you are not breathing!"

[joshuadarling-blog]

“Big man? Oh, if I’m the biggest man you’ve seen, you are in for a treat, love. You have quite the nice smile yourself. Very contagious.”

“A candy apple sounds perfect, miss. And, thankfully, no. My mum said my dad was allergic to nuts, so luckily it was him and not me with the allergy. Otherwise, I would be missing out on everything in this lovely little bakery and ballooning up twice my size. Are you the owner? You can’t be more than sixteen, seventeen years old.”

[tatianavalentinaa]

"Well...you are being bigger than me, yes? I am not even coming up to your chin! Oh, you are much too nice. Are you saying to all girls or am I just lucky to be meeting you today for first time? Is either that or you are trying to swindling free pastries out of me."

"One candy apple with nuts coming right up! In two shakes of lamb's tail, okay? If you were to become like giant balloon, then you would really be big man...biggest man even! But you are good just way you are, I am thinking. Not too tall, not too short. And--hey! I am eighteen, thank you very much--I had birthday just few months ago! And this is my papa's bakery, but I am helping to run it while he is doing errands. Is nice, yes? We have only been here for little while now!"

[annaphia-deactivated20150713]

AnnaSophia Robb and her beautiful ass.

[joshuadarling-blog]

“If the cupcakes are half as sweet as you, they may rot my teeth! Do you have any specials today? Anything you think I ought to try before dying?”

[tatianavalentinaa]

"No no no, no teeth rotting! That would be much bad, I think...then you would not be having quite as nice smile, big man, and that would be travesty."

"Mmm...here! We are having candy apples today, if you are wanting--this one is dipped in chocolate and caramel and covered in nuts! You are not allergic, yes? Last thing I am wanting is to be giving you hives or...swelly throat and itchy tongue. Eeek!"

[joshuadarling-blog]

“So what can I get for a couple gold pieces here?”

[tatianavalentinaa]

"There is lots you can be getting for just little bit of gold! Maybe...croissant, if you are wanting classically french? Or--cupcake, if you are wanting something tiny bit sweeter? Whatever you are in mood for, I am much sure we can find it here in bakery!"

[ladynewcastle-blog]

“I’m sorry, I lost you a long time ago. What did you say?”

[tatianavalentinaa]

"I was just wondering if maybe you are wanting cupcake, miss? Or maybe bit of fresh fruit? You are just seeming so sad and lost in thoughts!"

[ameliarps]

K I S S  M E; a mix about a love story that could happen to you, to me, to anyone because everyone deserves some love //LISTEN//

i. thinking out loud — ed sheeran // ii. heart like yours — willamette stone (if i stay soundtrack) // iii. one and only — adele // iv. favorite girl — the icarus account // v. lucky ones — lana del rey // vi. wrapped around your finger — 5sos // vii. shout about it — the vamps // viii. untouchable — taylor swift // ix. just a little bit of your heart — ariana grande // x. xo — john mayer (beyoncé cover) // xi. fireproof — one direction // xii. problem — max schneider (ariana grande cover) // xiii. latch — sam smith (acoustic) // xiv. lucky — jason mraz + colbie caillat // xv. one — ed sheeran (live) // xvi. fine by me — andy grammer // xvii. halo — ane brun ft. linnea olsson (beyoncé cover) // xviii. facing west — the staves // xix. start of time — gabrielle aplin // xx. every breath you take — denmark + winter (the police now cover) // xxi. same love — kodaline (macklemore cover) // xxii. steal my girl — one direction (layered) // xxiii. wicked games — the weeknd // xxiv. every little thing she does is magic — cover //

[juniper-cormorant-blog]

"I don’t know what to think when it comes to Pirate Lords," Juniper started playing with her napkin, "They are the ones who can command other pirates and even pirate captains, but they are human.  It would be more than easy to forget that fact and just consider them monsters.  But I can’t help but believe that there can be some part of them that could be appealed to.  Some hint of mercy."

Anyone who knew Bastian half as well as Juniper did would consider him a monster.  But he was her brother and all those things that she loved about him since she was a child had not changed.  He was still protective and hard working.  He still stuck to his old ways, honoring tradition and memory.  He still loved and welcomed her every time she came home.  Juniper knew better than to condemn simply based on action alone.

"Maybe one of them will redeem themselves one day."

At the other girl’s question, Juniper watched her battle with her words, an amused hint of a smile on her face despite the other girl’s struggle to get her point across.

"He’s not on a ship.  And I’m sure he’s more than capable of taking care of himself.  I just don’t know what to say to him.  He keeps putting himself in danger and I just don’t know what to do."

When the baker’s daughter stood up, Juniper sat back in her chair and gave her a sad smile.

"I think that would be a good idea.  What do you recommend?"

[tatianavalentinaa]

Standing in front of the noblewoman as she remained seated, Tatiana listened attentively as she continued to express her worries, fears, and opinions. There was wisdom, deep and unending, within her sorrowful eyes, but something akin to vulnerability as well...she seemed so terrible sad, and Tatiana wasn't sure if a few of her sweetest pastries would be enough to remedy that. "There is little bit of good in everyone, I am thinking," she said tentatively, wringing her small hands together in her apron as she chose her words carefully in an attempt to avoid mangling them. "Doing bad things does not automatically make someone bad person...sometimes they are still good at heart too. Is--is rather confusing, no?" she questioned thoughtfully, tugging her bottom lip between her teeth and worrying upon the rosy flesh as she mulled over her words.

"Maybe tell him that you are loving him too much to see him get hurt. Tell him that...tell him that is only because you are caring so much that you want him to take care of himself and not get into trouble. He will understand, I am thinking," Tatiana continued with a firm nod, and she reached out to gently pat the woman's shoulder, offering her a reassuring smile and brightening when she asked what it was that she recommended from the bakery. "I will surprise you, yes? And it will be free of charge!"

With that being said, Tatiana was scampering off into the kitchens, and it was after a handful of moments that she returned with a tray filled to the brim with strawberries that had been double-dipped in melted chocolate before being rolled in chopped nuts and bits of hardened caramel. Served along side them was a glass of fresh and ice-cold milk, as well as a buttery croissant with a bit of jam and clotted cream to accompany it. Beaming, she set the tray before the elder woman, and she clasped her hands together excitedly and urged her to dig in.

"There!" she chirped. "Is good, yes? You will feel better in no time at all, miss pretty lady, and I will give you extras to bring home for your brother, too."

[tatianavalentinaa]

Tatiana + Christian!

big spoon/little spoon: Tatiana is definitely the little spoon! She makes herself a little nest in Christian’s arms and is very spoiled in the sense that she can’t fall asleep unless they’re tangled up together.

favorite non-sexual activity: Baking! Tatiana more than likely took it upon herself to teach him how to cook, even though it probably still ends up sexual more often than not. Especially when Tatiana ‘licks the spoon’ or asks Christian to ‘help clean her up’.

who uses all the hot water: Both of them, during their excessively long showers together.

most trivial thing they fight over: Tatiana’s inability to keep her hands off of him in the middle of his royal meetings, though Christian doesn’t mind too much at all. 

who does most of the cleaning: They take turns, and they always do the dishes together and without complaint.

who steals the blankets: Tatiana, and Christian lets her.

who leaves their stuff around: Tatiana, especially at the beginning of their relationship when she would purposely leave things in the castle so that she could have an excuse to seek him out later on.

who remembers to buy the milk: Christian, because he’s easily the most responsible out of the two.

who remembers anniversaries: They both have them memorized—that’s something neither one of them would ever forget, whether it’s the day the first met, the day of their wedding, or the anniversary of the birth of their first child.

[juniper-cormorant-blog]

"People do terrible things all the time, I’m afraid.  Pirates, even more so."

The blonde girl was looking back at Juniper with concern, and mermaid could do nothing more than look down at her tea sadly.  How could she tell her everything?  How could she make her understand the conflict of straddling to worlds; being loyal to the sea and the land?  It just wasn’t possible.

"The knights can only do so much.  With the sea the way it is now, thanks to the merpeople, it might be easier to capture pirates, but," Juniper waved her hand, "it won’t be enough to catch the pirate lords."

She’d heard stories.  Stories of ships sinking in odd circumstances.  Sightings of sharks and sea serpents.  She had to see Bastian.  Talk to him.  

"I should see my brother.  But it will be hard, talking to him.  Do you have advice, miss?"

[tatianavalentinaa]

The graceful brunette sitting before her seemed so terribly distraught, and...more than anything, Tatiana wished that there was something that she could do to take her pain away. She could only assume that she was somehow involved in the dispute between the mermaids and the pirates...after all, she seemed to be every bit of one of the many noblewomen that frequented the court, and so perhaps her husband was on of the men that had been sent out to sea to fight for Ronsanella? That would have been enough to torment nearly anyone, but as Tatiana chanced a quick look down at one of the elegant woman's slender hands, she didn't see a wedding ring or anything of the sort.

"Pirate lords...they are being worst of worst, yes?" Tatiana questioned tentatively, and it was then that she was giving the back of the woman's hand a gentle little pat, hoping that she was offering her some measure of comfort. She didn't like seeing anyone so upset, especially when she felt as if there was nothing that she could do to aid them in feeling better. 

"You are not able to be seeing your brother?" she continued softly, knowing that she was more than likely pressing a very delicate subject. "Is he being...off at sea, then? Fighting in ship? Only advice I am able to offer is...keep weather eye on horizon, and be hopeful. Everything will turn out okay in end--my papa is saying that darkest hour is always right before dawn, and that is right now, yes? Things are always having to get worse before they are getting better."

Squeezing her hand gently once more, Tatiana gave the noblewoman a hesitant smile before moving to stand, tightening the little apron she wore around her waist whenever she worked at her father's bakery.

"Now--I wlll bring you something to eat, hmm? Maybe something sweet to bring smile to such pretty face?"

[tatianavalentinaa]

afternoon delight | christian and tatiana

[tatianavalentinaa]

Truthfully, Tatiana was enjoying herself beyond measure. This was the first time she had ever been given the pleasure of meeting Ronsanella’s King, and already he was living up to every single one of her hopes and expectations. He was kind, sweet, and generous…he didn’t carry himself with the pompous sort of air that a man of his stature could have done with ease, nor did he demand that Tatiana fall to her knees before him and bow at his feet to pay worship to her ruler. No…even in all of his regal finery, King Bennet presented himself as the sort of man that could be sought out in the direst of times without any fear of being reprimanded for it; he seemed so noble, trustworthy, and endlessly loyal, and…Tatiana couldn’t help but be grateful that, after all they had lost and suffered through in Russia, her and her father had found a new home that was led by a King who was truly worthy of his title. Despite all of the torment and turmoil that came with the threat of Ronsanella’s pirates and the kidnapping of the Mer Princess, Tatiana still felt safe and out of harm’s way, and…it was all thanks to King Bennet.

She watched, pleased and giddy, as Christian expressed clear enjoyment over the food that she had so painstakingly prepared for him. That was good, then…he was her royal King, and he deserved nothing but the very best. “Russia is much wonderful, yes, but I am happy to be here too,” Tatiana told him in a soft and wistful little voice, offering him a warm smile before beginning to eagerly lap at the whipped cream on her cupcake once more. As much as she adored her former home, she didn’t really want to talk about it at great length…today had already been a mournful one in terms of missing her late mother, and the absolute last thing that she wanted to do was cause her King to feel as if he had upset her for any possible reason. Besides, he probably spent the vast majority of all of his days listening to the problems of his townspeople, and Tatiana didn’t want to be just another issue for him to deal with. If she was being honest with herself, she…she wanted to be his friend. It was foolish and naïve of her, of course, to think that Ronsanella’s very busy King would ever want to waste his time on a friendship with an eighteen year old commoner, but…well, she could still hope, at the very least. Couldn’t she?

Tatiana offered the elder man a bright, gushing sort of smile when he reassured her that she wasn’t keeping him from anything important; the young girl felt herself grow warm and flushed from the tips of her dainty toes to the top of her curly blonde head, radiant and glowing with the pleasure he had instilled upon her. She didn’t know why, but she was just so…so ridiculously responsive when it came to King Bennet. She lit up like a firefly in response to everything that he said, her entire expression brightening due to the slightest hint of praise or complimentary series of words he had to offer her—it was absurd, really, but Tatiana could only assume that it was due to the fact that he was her King, and…she was one of his many, many subjects. It would have been impossibly hard for anyone not to feel star-struck in his presence. “Yes yes, my king—you are much deserving of break! Stay for as long as you are liking, okay?” Tatiana urged him with an earnest nod and a bright grin, setting down her cupcake after she had decided that all she had really wanted were the toppings and reaching for a chocolate covered strawberry instead. She slid the tip of the ripe and juicy fruit between her plush lips, suckling on it contentedly like a lollipop.

Hoping to ask King Bennet just a few more questions in regards to how his day was going, but the sound of his sudden bout of laughter, rich and booming, caught young Tatiana completely by surprise. With a startled little laugh of her own, she watched as his royal majesty managed to smear a bit of sweet cream all over his nose…he reminded her a bit of a puppy then and there, endearing and utterly adorable, and with a tiny giggle, Tatiana stood up just a bit and leaned over the table, her bright blue eyes twinkling warmly as she used the pad of her thumb—instead of a napkin—to take care of the frosting on his nose. Still giggling, and without sitting back in her seat, she slid her thumb into her rosebud mouth and suckled on it as she had done just moments ago with her strawberry. “Mmm…is better now, yes?” she giggled once more, and she gave his cheek a gentle pat with her free hand before sitting back down in her seat. “King Bennet is not needing to clean himself up all on his own—that is what good follower Tatiana Valentina is for!”

[kingchristianbennet-blog]

"Well if there’s anything else I can do to make your stay here in Ronsanella even better, please do not hesitate to ask, okay, mademoiselle?" Christian urged; he was entirely sincere in everything he was saying. This was more than just an impromptu meeting with one of his subjects; Tatiana Valentina was a wonderfully polite, kind, and generous young woman…Christian wanted to make sure that she stayed that way. That she wasn’t muddled by war and politics and everything that seemed to come with the territory of his country as of late (as bitter and sorrowful as Christian was to admit as much). She seemed…pure, in a sense; it was a strange thing to say about someone he’d just met, but the longer he spent in young Tatiana’s company, the more cheerful and hopeful  Christian became. With her, it was almost as though he could lift the weight of the world off his shoulders, if even for a second. Everyone else he spoke to, they all wanted something from him. Diplomatic immunity, forgiveness, his knights, gifts, favors, questions, advice…the list was seemingly endless. Everyone wanted something, and everyone turned to the King for answers. But not Tatiana. She came bearing food and drinks and a sort of urgency to make him feel comfortable and at home in such a public setting.

She was different than most of the people he’d been meeting with in (and outside of) his court. And for that, Christian was endlessly grateful. Lovely as his subjects were, they tended to forget that the man behind the crown was, in fact, still just a man. Tatiana didn’t seem to miss a beat of that.

She lit up like a candle when he explained to her that he wasn’t keeping her from anything, a gesture that warmed Christian right down to the tips of his toes. She seemed so eager and excited about having him in the bakery, and if her insistence that he needed to sit back and rest for a while was anything to go by, then the young monarch hadn’t been at all off in his assumption that she was treating him with more kindness and respect as a human rather than a King. Which, admittedly, most everyone else in Ronsanella neglected to see…including some of the members of his royal council. He knew that it was irresponsible and improper to tuck himself away in a little bakery and spend his afternoon savoring the sweets available when he could have been convening with Prince Wren or any of the merfolk in relation to the nature of the captured mermaid princess, but given that Christian had spent what felt like the past decade planning and plotting and strategizing every single aspect of his life and all of Ronsanella, the young King couldn’t find it in him to care how impractical this meeting was. So what if he took an hour or two to himself? So what if he spent some time talking for pleasure rather than for duty? If he lived a life of just kingly duties and nothing else, he’d surely go mad.

"I appreciate you letting me hang out here nevertheless; I promise you’ll be well compensated for keeping the place shut down for me. I wouldn’t want you or your father to lose prospective business just because you were showing me the feast of a lifetime!"  Christian exclaimed, licking his lips (as well as a bit of eclair cream off the tip of his thumb). When it came to removing the bit of cream he’d managed to get on his nose, the King had completely forgotten about the napkin that little Tatiana Valentina had spread across his lap. So when Tatiana stood and reached over with her hand rather than a napkin to wipe off the frosting he’d managed to spill onto himself, Christian was a bit astonished. At first. Soon, he became entranced as the dainty young woman wiped the bit of cream off his nose and plopped it straight into her mouth without a care in the world. There was something almost…innocently suggestive about the act, and Christian swallowed neavily and diverted his attention back down to his nearly-consumed pastry instead. By the time he’d finished what remained of his eclair, Tatiana was proudly declaring that she would clean up after him like the good little follower she was, Christian couldn’t help himself: he burst out into another fit of laugher, shaking his head and grinning ear-to-ear. She was a cheeky little thing, wasn’t she?

"Well thank you sincerely for your help, Mademoiselle Valentina," Christian said kindly, reaching over for one of the chocolate-covered strawberries he’d noticed earlier. He bit the tip off, humming appreciatively as a burst and medley of flavors erupted in his mouth. "Good God, even these are delicious. Do you and your father grow your own produce as well, perhaps?”

[tatianavalentinaa]

Oh, Tatiana hoped that King Bennet was enjoying himself at least half as much as she was. She hadn’t been at all prepared for his admittedly sudden arrival, but she had tried her very best to ensure that he was treated and doted upon like the royal leader he was. Each moment that she spent with him was an absolute dream…not only did he not seem to mind the fact that she was the very definition of a commoner, but he also didn’t seem to be bothered by the fact that she was at least ten years younger than him as well. He spoke to her as if she were genuinely his equal, as if there wasn’t nearly a decade of differences between them, and Tatiana couldn’t help but find herself a little bit…smitten. She hung on to his every word like an overly-eager child, beaming and flushing with pleasure whenever he so much as spoke to her, and she felt as if she were truly in the presence of a hero—Ronsanella was so lucky to have him as their king, and she hoped that she wasn’t the only one who realized that about him. Poor Christian…Tatiana could only imagine the sheer amount of stress he was under with everything that was going on in terms of the mermaid princess and the pirates that had kidnapped her, and she sorely doubted that he was ever given enough time to relax and take care of himself. He had an entire kingdom to watch over, and as far as his list of priorities went, it was extraordinarily clear that he put himself last and the rest of the world first.

And that was why she was trying so hard to make him feel at ease and content…because after all that he was forced to do on a daily basis, he deserved to be treated like the king he was every now and then.

Tatiana was still giggling by the time she squirmed back down into her seat, grinning cheekily at Christian from across the table as she reached for yet another chocolate-covered strawberry. She hadn’t meant to behave so informally with her ruler, but…she was playful by nature, and he had seemed all too tempting with a bit of whipped cream on his nose that was in need of being wiped off. She nodded sweetly when Christian thanked her, chirping out a bright, “You are most welcome, your highness!” in response and watching eagerly as he reached for a chocolate-covered strawberry of his own. She was glad that he seemed to have just as much of a sweet tooth as she did…from now on out, she would always be certain to have an entire array of desserts ready for whenever he so happened to drop by next, and oh, she hoped that it was sooner rather than later. He made for excellent company, unsurprisingly, and while Tatiana knew and understood that she had no right to expect the King of her country to make time for her and her little bakery… she couldn’t help but be hopeful nevertheless. She wanted to be…she wanted to be something to him, she realized. A friend, or a companion, or…anything at all, really.

Tatiana beamed yet again when Christian complimented the chocolate-covered strawberry he had bit into. She had been sure to bring him nothing but the finest from her vast array of sweets, and she was glad that he found them to his liking. She blinked once when he spoke again, just taking a moment to translate his words to Russian in her head, and then she nodded eagerly, setting down her bit of fruit to answer him properly. “Yes yes, we are having little garden out back! Is where we are growing all of our fruits and all of our veggies…one day I am hoping to have little chicken coop too, so we can have our own eggs! Would be nice, yes? I have always loved growing plants…is something my mama taught me when I was young girl,” she explained with a wistful little smile, looking down briefly as she remembered her mother fondly. “If you are liking, maybe I can be show you one day? If—if you are not too busy, I mean!”

[tatianavalentinaa]

afternoon delight | christian and tatiana

[kingchristianbennet-blog]

Pleasant company, some peace and quiet, excellent food, and a bit of time away from being constantly guarded and under tight surveillance (well…relatively; having guards stationed outside of the eatery wasn’t ideal, but Christian had to learn to pick and choose his battles carefully). All-in-all, Ronsanella’s newest King couldn’t quite believe the wonderful sort of afternoon he was having; he nearly felt guilty about it, considering all of the turbulence in the rest of the kingdom, but realized that he was as entitled to an afternoon of relative peace and calm as the rest of his subjects. He knew that there was so much to worry about and so much to fret over, and Christian also knew that the minute he left this little bakery and its adorable owner behind, his mind would immediately slip back into a state of panic and anxiety, but for now…for now, he’d just focus on how good it felt to have someone to spend some time with. Someone who wasn’t pressing him for answers about the treaty, or who wanted to know things about the impending war among pirates and the now-unified humans and Mer Kingdom that he couldn’t respectably answer. It was just…nice to talk to someone who didn’t seem to have a specific angle or ulterior motive when offering him a smile and kind words.

So, in many more ways than he could possibly express, Tatiana Valentina was a breath of fresh air.

"I assure you, mademoiselle, I couldn’t possibly eat all of this by myself!" Christian exclaimed, nudging the food at her as he finished up the cracker in his hand. Truthfully, it would have felt a little uncomfortable to him if she just watched him eat in silence and didn’t take any of the food she’d painstakingly made and put together herself. Besides, it wasn’t as if Christian was some poor beggar who went without; while the food at Sweetums was beyond delicious, he also had a full staff ready to serve him food whenever he desired back within the castle. There was really no need for Tatiana, as thoughtful and caring as she appeared to be, to give him all the food and take none for herself. So when she at last plucked up one of the cupcakes and began fiddling with it and nibbling on it, the young man could feel himself relax a bit easier. Now, at least, he felt like he really had some company to keep. He almost felt…well, normal, holed up in this little bakery with her like this. It was nice. Calm. Distracting. When she stated that she couldn’t tell him the recipe because it was a family secret, Christian held his hands up a  joking manner of surrender. “No worries here, Miss Valentine; I won’t steal any of your secret recipes, I promise! I might just have to move you into the castle permanently, though, if you keep making food as delicious as these sandwiches.” He said this last bit with a wink, grinning before eyeing one of the eclairs appreciatively. He pinched it between two fingers, lifting the pastry up and licking at some of the cream that had spilled out over one of the sides. 

Good Lord, everything was delicious here. And made from scratch, from the taste of it.

When Tatiana stated that she and her father had ventured over to Ronsanella from a land called Russia (a place Christian had only heard of but had never visited), the young monarch leaned forward and rested an elbow on the table, leaning his chin against his hand and taking a tenative bite of the sweet, rich eclair as he listened to Tatiana, so fascinated and mesmerized by the remembrance of her old home, talk to Christian about what her life in Russia had been like. He couldn’t help but wonder what had caused her and her father to up and move out of nowhere, and if they had old roots in Ronsanella that were calling out to them. It wasn’t very typical for families to integrate themselves back into the magically-guarded community once their lineage had placed its roots into a new country, so the arrival of Tatiana and her father was…interesting, to say the least. But for however curious he might have been and for however authority and right to knowledge he might have had as her ruler, Christian kept his burning questions to himself. Leader of Ronsanella or not, he still believed the poor girl was entitled to her right of privacy…something he was certain she’d feel was breached if he began to hound her with questions about what her life had once been like. Some people moved to escape the rest of the world; others escaped to forget their past. Christian had no idea where Tatiana fell on that spectrum, but he didn’t want to poke and prod her for more answers in order to appease his own burning curiosity. It wouldn’t be right; wouldn’t be moral. So finally, he just settled on:

"Russia sounds like a wonderful place, mademoiselle. I hope you get the chance to visit it again one day, though I must say, I’m thrilled you’ve chosen Ronsanella as your permanent residence."

Taking another bite out of his eclair (which was so sinful that it should have been considered illegal, really), Christian pondered over Tatiana’s next words before deigning to offer her an honest, yet kind, response.

"For a King, days are never dull or idle," he began, watching with fascination as she lapped at the frosting on her cupcake like a kitten in desperate search for cream. "However…even Kings need a break every now and again, as my mother would always say, and I couldn’t think of any place I’d rather be than right here. You’re keeping me from nothing, Miss Valentina, don’t think such things." Then, smiling warmly, he took another bite of his pastry, causing a bit of cream to smear across the tip of his nose. Laughing, he set the food down and licked his lips. "You wouldn’t happen to have a napkin for me to use, would you? Seems that I’m making much more of a mess than I’m worth."

[tatianavalentinaa]

Truthfully, Tatiana was enjoying herself beyond measure. This was the first time she had ever been given the pleasure of meeting Ronsanella’s King, and already he was living up to every single one of her hopes and expectations. He was kind, sweet, and generous…he didn’t carry himself with the pompous sort of air that a man of his stature could have done with ease, nor did he demand that Tatiana fall to her knees before him and bow at his feet to pay worship to her ruler. No…even in all of his regal finery, King Bennet presented himself as the sort of man that could be sought out in the direst of times without any fear of being reprimanded for it; he seemed so noble, trustworthy, and endlessly loyal, and…Tatiana couldn’t help but be grateful that, after all they had lost and suffered through in Russia, her and her father had found a new home that was led by a King who was truly worthy of his title. Despite all of the torment and turmoil that came with the threat of Ronsanella’s pirates and the kidnapping of the Mer Princess, Tatiana still felt safe and out of harm’s way, and…it was all thanks to King Bennet.

She watched, pleased and giddy, as Christian expressed clear enjoyment over the food that she had so painstakingly prepared for him. That was good, then…he was her royal King, and he deserved nothing but the very best. “Russia is much wonderful, yes, but I am happy to be here too,” Tatiana told him in a soft and wistful little voice, offering him a warm smile before beginning to eagerly lap at the whipped cream on her cupcake once more. As much as she adored her former home, she didn’t really want to talk about it at great length…today had already been a mournful one in terms of missing her late mother, and the absolute last thing that she wanted to do was cause her King to feel as if he had upset her for any possible reason. Besides, he probably spent the vast majority of all of his days listening to the problems of his townspeople, and Tatiana didn’t want to be just another issue for him to deal with. If she was being honest with herself, she…she wanted to be his friend. It was foolish and naïve of her, of course, to think that Ronsanella’s very busy King would ever want to waste his time on a friendship with an eighteen year old commoner, but…well, she could still hope, at the very least. Couldn’t she?

Tatiana offered the elder man a bright, gushing sort of smile when he reassured her that she wasn’t keeping him from anything important; the young girl felt herself grow warm and flushed from the tips of her dainty toes to the top of her curly blonde head, radiant and glowing with the pleasure he had instilled upon her. She didn’t know why, but she was just so…so ridiculously responsive when it came to King Bennet. She lit up like a firefly in response to everything that he said, her entire expression brightening due to the slightest hint of praise or complimentary series of words he had to offer her—it was absurd, really, but Tatiana could only assume that it was due to the fact that he was her King, and…she was one of his many, many subjects. It would have been impossibly hard for anyone not to feel star-struck in his presence. “Yes yes, my king—you are much deserving of break! Stay for as long as you are liking, okay?” Tatiana urged him with an earnest nod and a bright grin, setting down her cupcake after she had decided that all she had really wanted were the toppings and reaching for a chocolate covered strawberry instead. She slid the tip of the ripe and juicy fruit between her plush lips, suckling on it contentedly like a lollipop.

Hoping to ask King Bennet just a few more questions in regards to how his day was going, but the sound of his sudden bout of laughter, rich and booming, caught young Tatiana completely by surprise. With a startled little laugh of her own, she watched as his royal majesty managed to smear a bit of sweet cream all over his nose…he reminded her a bit of a puppy then and there, endearing and utterly adorable, and with a tiny giggle, Tatiana stood up just a bit and leaned over the table, her bright blue eyes twinkling warmly as she used the pad of her thumb—instead of a napkin—to take care of the frosting on his nose. Still giggling, and without sitting back in her seat, she slid her thumb into her rosebud mouth and suckled on it as she had done just moments ago with her strawberry. “Mmm…is better now, yes?” she giggled once more, and she gave his cheek a gentle pat with her free hand before sitting back down in her seat. “King Bennet is not needing to clean himself up all on his own—that is what good follower Tatiana Valentina is for!”

[tatianavalentinaa]

afternoon delight | christian and tatiana

[kingchristianbennet-blog]

Christian’s resolution to get to know the people of Ronsanella on a more intimate and friendly level was a lot easier said than done. For starters, most of his subjects seemed wary or uncertain of how to act around him in the first place; Christian was sure that if he was in their shoes, he would have felt the same way…it must have been extremely intimidating, talking face-to-face with a leader you’d only ever heard of and seen from afar in the past. But while his father had been too concerned with diplomatic duties to make as much of an effort into going into town frequently, Christian wanted to make sure that his people knew that they had a ruler they could rely on; someone who cared about their best interests as well as the best interests of the country as a whole. And in such a time of unease, with the treaty and the recent capture of the mermaid princess, Christian felt the need to make himself better acquainted with his subjects than ever before. It was just…getting them to lok at him as someone to love rather than fear that was proving to be the difficult bit of it all. Tatiana seemed just as unwilling to treat him as a commoner as everyone else did.

Maybe this was all for nothing, then. Maybe Christian was doing nothing but making a constant ass out of himself by trying to acquaint himself with the people around him on such an intimate level. Maybe this was all for nothing, then, trying to pretend to be something he wasn’t and ignoring who he really was. Maybe he just needed to quit while he was ahead.

Or maybe…maybe crossing that street was the best damn decision he’d made all week. And judging by how fidgety, excited, and attentive young Tatiana Valentina was, he’d say his hunch was correct.

"I’m glad you’re liking Ronsanella so much already, mademoiselle," Christian answered kindly, offering her a smile as warm and inviting as the glimmer in his eyes. He hesitated for a minute, allowing his fingers to dust against the edge of the table, before he cleard his throat and voiced the question that had been lingering on his lips ever since she first spoke. "May I be so bold as to ask where you’re from, exactly, mademoiselle? Your accent is so…unique. But I can’t seem to pinpoint an origin of it for the life of me." He paused in his speech to grin ear-to-ear when she stated that he was the best King in the world…if it hadn’t been clear from her earlier statement that she hadn’t been around to meet his father, then it was clear by now. To Christian, his father was still the best King of Ronsanella; always would be, no matter how ardently Christian tried to fiill his impossibly large shoes.

"Your kindness knows no bounds, mademoiselle; I assure you I’m anything but the greatest…your flattery has my heart swelling, Miss Valentine." They were true enough words; even as he spoke, Christian could feel his heart ache with gratitude as he stared into the wide, impressionable eyes of the eager Tatiana Valentina. He’d never seen anyone filled with such excitement and warmth before; it filled Christian up with a strange flurry of emotions that he couldn’t even begin to understand or explain. “And there’s no need to have any sort of banquet prepared for me, I assure you. Just prepare whatever you think is your restaurant’s personal best, and I’m sure I’ll love it as much as everyone else in my kingdom has.”

Poor Tatiana stilled seemed so fretful and out of place, no matter what Christian said in an effort to calm her down. So finally, when she explained that she would be unable to call him Christian because of what it would mean and feel like to her, he nodded slowly. Perhaps another time, then…perhaps if he got to know her a little better, she’d feel less weird about being so informal with her ruler. After all, his mother would tell him it was a good sign that so few people were willing to disrespect their King’s title quite so quickly; she would tell him that it was a sign of respect and an understanding of their government’s existing hierarchy. For Christian, it was just another symbol that separated him from everyone else; yet another thing that tore a wedge between him and his people and made him feel so…terribly alone. He gave his consent for her to rush off to the kitchens and provide them with a bit of a variety to choose from, thanking her softly when she gave Christian a cool mug of what appeared to be lemonade. He sipped on the sweet drink while Tatiana was in the back, noting that the lemonade had to have been freshly squeezed (and pleasantly surprised by this fact). And by the time Tatiana had returned with an assortment of food, Christian was more than ready to sample the feast.

My God, she’d prepared a banquet for him nevertheless, hadn’t she?

"This is all…this is so much, Miss Valentina, please tell me you plan on finishing some of this with me!" He stated with a laugh, reaching forward for one of the delicately-composed finger sandwiches. Christian eyeballed the small triangle of food for a few moments before popping it into his mouth and humming in appreciation. A burst of flavor exploded in his mouth, overwhelming his tastebuds as he savored his first sample of Sweetums Bakery. "This is delicious, mademoiselle…what’s the secret to these? Is that fresh dill I detect, perhaps?” He reached for some crackers and cheese next, gesturing for her to eat her fill as well.

Christian had a feeling he would be frequenting Sweetums Bakery a lot from now on.

[tatianavalentinaa]

Dining with the King...never in all of Tatiana's eighteen years would she have ever imagined such a feat, and even now when the ruler of Ronsanella was sitting right across from her in all of his royal glory, the young Russian girl still felt as if she was dreaming and in need of a good pinch. After all, she wasn't even remotely close to any of the beautiful and sophisticated noblewomen that King Bennet undoubtedly spent the majority of his time with--she was young and small, and she had absolutely nothing in common with any of the ladies at court aside from, perhaps, her love and devotion for their king. But with that being said, she still knew for certain that she couldn't have possibly been the sort of company that Christian was used to, and so she hoped that he didn't mind that he was spending time with a commoner for the afternoon. That was one of the many reasons she was trying so hard to please him--that, as well as the fact that she knew how hard her King worked to ensure the safety of his kingdom, and he deserved the best care she could possibly provide him with. She would make sure that, by the time he left her bakery and returned to the castle, he would be stuffed full of warm and delicious food that would hopefully prove to be a comfort for him. After all, that was what love was for young Tatiana Valentina...knowing when someone was hungry, and feeding them when they were. It was what her mother had always done, after all, and now, it was what her daughter did as well. 

With an eager and excited little smile completely taking over Tatiana's small face, she nervously wrung her hands together in her lap as she watched Christian take in the sight of the feast she had prepared for him. Thank goodness he seemed to like what he saw...she would have been utterly devastated if that hadn't been the case. "You are big man, your highness--food is for you! Eat as much as you are wanting, and whatever you are not able to finish, I pack up and give for you to bring home, yes? Eat, eat!" she encouraged him with a bright and sunny grin, gesturing for him to tuck into whatever it was on the tray before him that tempted him the most. She watched, both nervous and excited, as he plucked one of the sandwich quarters first, trying not to fret too much by the time he finally bit into it, and when he expressed a great deal of satisfaction over the bit of bread, cucumber, greek yogurt, and fresh dill, Tatiana couldn't help but beam. 

"I am so glad is to your taste, your majesty...but I cannot be telling you secret! Is old family recipe, you see," she teased playfully, resting one slim elbow on the table and tucking her chin into the palm of one delicate hand. Truthfully, she was more than happy to sit and watch as Christian ate and enjoyed himself, but his question from earlier reminded her that she had yet to answer it. "And--oh! I am from Russia, your grace. My papa and I moved from there just few months ago...is where I spent my entire life until now," she confessed with a wistful little smile, because while she absolutely loved Ronsanella and all of its inhabitants, she would always miss her home a great deal...it was where she grew up, after all, and it was where her memories of her mother resided as well. "Is much different from Ronsanella, but I am liking it here too. There is certainly more food to be going around, that is for sure!" She could still remember the cold Russian winters, where food was scarce and hard to come by, and her mama would somehow be able to make an entire meal out of the last of a bag of rice and half a head of cabbage. 

Her stomach rumbled at the thought, and it was then that she reached forward and daintily took one of the dozen or so cupcakes she had prepared for her king. She held it in both hands like a small child, and slowly began to nibble at the maraschino cherries, savoring it like the treat it was. She had always had a rather ridiculous sweet tooth, but she did her best to take her time when it came to enjoying her food--after all, she still wasn't used to having it in such abundance. "Are you having much busy day, my king?" she asked between bites of her cupcake, happy little hums and mews escaping her every now and then as she began to lick and lap at the sweetened and and freshly-whipped cream. Her father would always tease her about the way she ate--like an eager kitten, apparently, who could never quite get enough. First came the toppings, then the frosting, and finally the cake...that was the only way, in Tatiana's opinion, to properly enjoy a cupcake. "I am not keeping you from things, am I?"

[tatianavalentinaa]

afternoon delight | christian and tatiana

[kingchristianbennet-blog]

Christian Bennet wanted to live in a world where everyone he knew looked as happy and cheerful as the woman he’d spotted across the street. He wanted to wake up every morning and realize that there were people just like this young blonde, who—in spite of everything against their county currently—still had enough optimism left inside of her to enjoy the little things in life. Christian Bennet, trained to be so charismatic and well-spoken, could think of nothing to say that would accurately describe what he felt when he looked at this young woman; it was as if he was watching the planets align, or witnessing one star crash into another to create something bright and brilliant. It caused an ache to blossom in his chest, one that thudded painfully against his ribcage. The blonde he’d spotted from across the street had yet to notice his presence; in fact, it wasn’t until Christian was nearly on top of her that she seemed to acknowledge that anyone else was in the vicinity at all. Slowly, slowly, her eyes moved from his freshly-polished shoes up the length of his body before finally resting her wide, doe-like eyes on his. And when she did, Christian swore he felt a spark of electricity surge through the air.

There was just something so…so inspiring and unique about her. It was what called her to King Bennet’s attention in the first place.

So by the time the dainty young woman finally did notice someone else (and, more specifically, who else) was standing in front of her, she was quick to forget the last few licks of ice cream she had left in favor of hastily standing and bowing before her King. The entire movement was jerky and clumsy, and Christian found it so humorous and adorable that he nearly laughed right then and there. As it was, he didn’t want the young woman to get the wrong idea and feel potentially embarrassed by her blunder, so Christian kept quiet and didn’t say (or do) anything. She seemed a bit all over the place (and was clearly shocked by Christian’s presence), and began fumbling over her speech in a very rich, thick accent that his royal majesty couldn’t quite detect. It certainly wasn’t French, as so many of the inhabitants of Ronsanella tended to sound like, but the dialect was undeniably foreign, and it was clear as the woman spoke that she was either so thrown off by his presence that she’d forgotton the basic rules of the English language, or English was not her primary speaking language at all. He nodded in kind to her curtsying, and a slow smile was breaking across his face when the woman explained—in that rich, broken English of hers—that the bakery belonged to her family. Christian admittedly didn’t know much about the benefactors of Sweetums Bakery, just that it was run by a father-daughter duo, and so…the young woman he was talking to now was clearly the daughter in this scenario. He opened his mouth to say that he’d love to see the bakery, but not if it was inconvenient to her, but before the King could get the words out, the young woman was already throwing open the door and ushering them inside…but not before grabbing Christian’s hand within her much smaller one. The sensation of their palms, warm and soft, pressed against one another brought a warm sort of glow to Christian’s cheeks, and he resisted the impulse to squeeze her tiny hand just once as she led her ruler inside. And just before the door shut behind them, Christian turned around to gesture to his guards to stay outside. They would obey, but he had the feeling they’d also be stationed directly outside the door waiting for him.

Overlyprotective royal guards and all that. There was only so much he could do about them, after all.

"So this is your bakery—yours and your father’s? It’s lovely, mademoiselle." Christian stated, glancing around the establishment and taking in all the sights and smells of the tiny business. It was quaint, but well-decorated, and he’d heard enough about it through various commoners—and even members of his royal rank—to know that the family operating this place did a damn good job of making good and delectable sweets. He hesitated, only briefly, when she  gestured for him to sit. He would have been just as comfortable standing and didn’t want the poor thing to go out of her way to make him feel at home when it was clear she’d been taking some sort of break. However, the young woman seemed adamant about appeasing him to the best of her abilities, and so Christian took a seat at one of their tables, glancing around the restaurant as the young woman went about fiddling around with something. He grew still as she approached him once more, smoothing a napkin out on his lap. Stunned by their closeness, Christian held his breath and found himself unable to move.

"…It’s a pleasure to meet you, Tatiana Valentina," Christian managed, his voice low and soft. "It’s a shame I didn’t get the chance to meet your father, but I’m more than happy to receive a grand tour from you." He gestured to the vacant seat across the table, patting the tabletop with one hand. "Why don’t you sit and join me, though? Maybe whip us up your favorite personal pastry offered here, and then you can share a bit of a midday snack with me, mademoiselle?"

He hesitated for a minute, looking her up and down, before leaning forward and adding—

"You may call me Christian, by the way. So long as we are in private, there is no need for such formality."

[tatianavalentinaa]

Of all the people that Tatiana could have met today at Sweetums Bakery, she never would have expected that Ronsanella's royal King would turn out to be one of them. After all, her and her father were both still so new to the little seaside town, and so it wasn't a surprise that they had yet to meet their ruler, even if they had seem him from afar on occasion. With that being said, Tatiana had never stopped to think that the King, with all of his duties and dozens of people and things that he needed to tend to, would ever be able to find the time to visit her bakery...and yet here he was. He looked so out of place in the quaint little eatery that her and her father had built from the ground up, so much bigger and taller than the ornate chair she had placed him in and so much more regal than the warm and cozy atmosphere of Sweetums in all of its family-run glory. She liked seeing him there, though, and she couldn't have been any prouder than she was right now to have Ronsanella's King seated in her bakery, with her cloth napkin draped across his lap as he waited for her to dote on him. Oh goodness, she just wished that her father was here as well...together, both him and his daughter idolized and worshiped King Bennet, and Tatiana knew that the service their ruler would receive would have been a thousand times better if her papa had been there to wait on him as well.

She would just have to do her best, then, and hope that King Bennet didn't find it lacking in any way, shape, or form. He deserved absolute perfection.

By the time she had finally gotten him seated and had made sure that there was a cloth napkin draped over his lap to protect his royal finery, Tatiana was a flustered, fluttering mess of a young girl. She nodded eagerly when he asked her to confirm that the bakery belonged to her and her father--it was such a minuscule detail, one that he more than likely didn't have time to concern himself with, but...the fact that he had even bothered to take notice of it in the first place meant more to Tatiana than she could even begin to express. "Is our little bakery, yes--we have only been in Ronsanella for few months, but already we are liking it very much! Is helping that we have best King in entire world," Tatiana gushed warmly, clasping her dainty hands together in front of her and bouncing excitedly on the balls of her feet. "Is okay that you are not being meeting my papa today--he will just be so happy to know that you were here in first place! Oh, if we were knowing you were coming, we would have stayed up all night preparing entire banquet for you!" Fretfully, Tatiana caught her rosy bottom lip between her teeth and worried it, wringing her hands together as she anxiously tried to remember everything that her and her father had put out today...thankfully, with business booming the way that it was, they were always fully stocked these days, meaning that there would be plenty to choose from.

When King Bennet insisted not just that she join him at the table, but that she use his given name while speaking to him as well, Tatiana felt her eyes grow comically wide, like a little owl taken completely by surprise. He...oh goodness, Ronsanella's ruler was so kind and generous. The apples of her cheeks grew warm and flushed all over again, and she found herself curtsying for what had to be the nth time. She was just so overwhelmed. "It would be greatest pleasure to sit with you, my king, but--is going to be little bit hard to call you Christian, I think. Is like I am defacing royal property somehow," she expressed shyly, tucking an errant curl behind her ear and offering him a bashful smile. "I will just be few minutes in kitchen, yes? But--here! Before I go!" Rushing towards the little cooler they kept nearby, she retrieved from it a pitcher of sweet, homemade lemonade, and she quickly found a frosted mug before doling out her king a generous portion of what her father so often referred to as 'liquid sunshine'. She presented the glass to Christian and set it before him with a wide smile, and then patted him once on the shoulder before scampering off into the kitchens. Oh goodness, she needed to be quick! 

By the time she had finally emerged from the back of the bakery, Tatiana was flushed and breathless, and in her small hands she carried a tray that was much too big for her, one that was filled to the brim with all sorts of treats and confections. There were little finger sandwiches that she had painstakingly prepared with fresh cucumbers and dill that she had plucked directly from her garden out back, as well as tiny handmade sausages that her father had been setting aside for a special occasion, and cheese and crackers to accompany them. For dessert, she had put together an assortment of eclairs as well as cupcakes piled high with freshly-whipped cream and chopped maraschino cherries...nothing but the best for her king. In her fervor to join him once more at the table she had left him at, Tatiana very nearly came close to tripping over her own two feet, but finally she managed to set the tray out in front of him before sitting down in the seat across from his and beaming up at him hopefully. "There!" she chirped happily, her hands folding themselves daintily in her lap. "Now you may eat to your heart's content, my king--is all for you!"