genre: fluff, angst, royalty au, weather boy au
A tale of a princess, and her servant boy, who could control the sky and blossoms by the change of his emotions.
Remember when we were younger? The times where the flowers lifted off their stems, and danced flourishingly across azure skies every time he laughed.
You remembered hearing his enchanting laugh, as the young boy bounced happily after the footsteps of his own mother. She is scurrying to serve you, and your family, an outside lunch. With a beautiful smile on her face, and loving eyes casting down to her son behind her. She was teaching him to carry the fine dishes, as she passed him the used plates off the table. This made you sure her next objective was to teach her energetic little flower how to wash them properly.
You were the little princess. A young girl with a cascading pink gown, every hair tucked in its perfect place. You swung your feet in your chair, and munched on one of the sandwiches she had laid in front of you. She smiled as you ate. You heard your parents, the king and queen, laughing sweetly amongst each other as the birds chirped in this beautiful garden.
You saw the boy approach you. He smiled sweetly, and you felt blinded by the radiant sun cascading upon you. You lifted a hand to shield your eyes from the glare of the sun, and smiled back at him. He reached to take your empty plate.
“This sandwich is really good.” You said enthusiastically, eyes closed in bliss as you tried to express the fondness you had for your little bread delight.
His smile heightened substantially. “Really? My mother and I made them!”
The sun’s glare became even more apparent.
“Yeah! Maybe next time I can make you a sandwich too.” You say happily in response.
He nodded, and took the rest of your plates. “Okay.”
His mother soon walked behind him, and laced her fingers through his dark hair. “Alright Ten, let’s get these dishes back into the kitchen.” She spoke softly.
His head followed her touch, and he nodded before he turned to follow her back into the castle.
But times weren’t as simple anymore.
Now you are soon to be queen. A life that was hectic, a hectic blur amongst your royal stature. It had been so long since you had a nice day like that with your family. It seems your family had an increasing amount of tension as your time to rule drew near.
“Your Highness.” You heard a maid call from behind your bedroom door. “Breakfast is ready.”
You pushed your hair behind your ear before answering. “I will be there in a few minutes.” You responded softly.
You gazed out the window at the sky full of clouds. It was overcast, and it had been a while since you felt sunlight fall between the openings in your curtains.
The sky seemed so dreary for so long.
You made your way through the long halls of your castle. Polished, delicate halls that you had somehow found home in.
You entered the dining room. Your father and mother’s gaze landing on you.
“Good morning mother, Good morning father.” You say sweetly, curtseying slightly.
“Good morning dear.” The queen responds fondly.
“Good morning Y/N.” The king responds.
You make your way to your seat, and you watch as maids rush from the kitchen doors to set the table before you.
One in particular catches your eye.
Ten was the son of one of your father’s most trusted servants. It was only him and his mother, they did not have much except what was provided for them in the maid’s quarters. Ten became a servant as well. He seemed to only be close with his mother, and some of the other maids. And he only really talked to them. He was a very bright and luminous soul, until his mother fell ill. Ten now had to pick up where his mother left off, and handle both their shares of work.
You watched as he hurriedly laid the dishes before you, not making eye contact.
Ten was very handsome. His skin was fair, and it complimented the dark hair that cascaded across his forehead. His eyes were deep, and comforting. The dark chocolate of his eyes made you feel like you could fall asleep, warmly, under their soft glare.
He had a very toned structure from all the work he did around the castle, and beautiful silver earrings along his ears.
He retracted from the table, and walked back to the kitchen.
“How did you sleep, Y/N?” Your father asks before taking a bite of his breakfast.
“I slept well, Father.” You respond.
“It is about time.” He began. “We discuss who it is you are to be married to before your coronation.”
“Oh, is it really?” You stutter.
Marriage was not a topic you ever wanted to talk about. Especially not this kind. The arranged kind of marriage to other royals in neighboring kingdoms to help join nations, and help each other economically.
Ten walked through the kitchen doors again, carrying a glass pitcher of some sort of red juice. He paced around the table, filling the glasses.
“I have a few suitors in mind. There is one in particular I want you to-”
The king’s words were cut short by the maid scrambling to your father’s side.
“Your Majesty.” She said breathlessly.
“What’s the matter?” He asks, eyes wide.
“It’s the Head Maid, she has stopped breathing.”
The clashing of the glass pitcher to the table echoed through your ears, as you watched the red liquid stain the white table cloth. The sound of booming thunder ripped through the room, and probably the entirety of the kingdom. The type of the thunder that could have resembled the screaming of a God. A furious God.
Ten backed away from the table, and hurriedly dashed through the room, running full force through the kitchen doors.
The king stumbled to his feet. “Go get the nurses, now.” He informed the maid, and began dashing through the kitchen doors himself.
Your mother’s hand stilled in front of her mouth in shock.
You felt your tears fall down your cheeks, and a terrifying sadness rip through your chest.
Other maids came from the kitchen slowly, carefully picking up the glass from the shattered pitcher, and soaking the red juice out of the table cloth.
The heavy sound of raindrops echoed through this silent castle. The erratic sound of rain hitting the roofs, and stained glass windows was like the sky was pained.
As is if a God were sobbing, and mourning this loss.
Somehow, you felt like you had lost the sky.
The sky you had once known was buried by grey clouds. A heavy storm had taken over your kingdom, and it has not lifted. Some days were worse than others. Sometimes the storm raged, thunder and lighting pouring from it endlessly, like it was screaming to be heard. Other days, it was a light drizzle. But no matter how it acted, the sky never changed from it’s grey clouded color. The sun hadn’t been back since the storm began.
This storm had started the day the Head Maid died. The rest of the castle acted as if it never happened, continuing their work.
The sky’s disappearance behind angry clouds was a constant reminder that we had lost a beautiful soul.
You had not seen Ten since. He had stopped preparing your meals.
You wondered how he was doing. It had been a week since he lost his mother, you hoped he was doing better at dealing with this tragedy than the sky was.
You were staring through your bedroom window, as one of your maids was lacing the back of your corset.
“Is this tight enough, Your Majesty?” She asked nicely, fastening your garment.
“Yes. Thank you.” You said, eyes still glued to the sky.
The maid then proceeded to help you into your gown, raising it above your head.
Once you were dressed, the maid walked back to your door.
“Is there anything else you might need, Your Highness?”
You remained silent for a bit, then you spoke. “Actually..”
The maid raised her eyebrows questionably. “Y-Yes?”
“Could you tell me.. how Ten is doing?” You say, still glaring out the window.
The maid blinks questionably. “Ten?”
“Yes, where is he now?” You ask.
“Well, when the Head Maid passed away, we were given new jobs. Ten became the gardener, and he is usually outside in the greenhouse.”
You nodded as you heard the information she was relaying to you.
“And is he happy?” You ask, breaking the silence.
The maid shuffled, obviously boggled by your questions about her fellow staff.
“Not really, Your Majesty.”
Of course he wouldn’t be. His only family left is gone.
You let yourself fall into deep thought, until your mind is brought back by the maid’s words.
“Is that all, Your Highness?”
You smile at her. “Actually, one more thing please? If you would, could you bring me my umbrella?”
What are you even doing out here?
You began treading through the wet courtyard, with an umbrella over your head.
You examine the flowers as you walk, admiring how beautiful and strong they look despite this treacherous weather.
You smile at how well Ten is doing his job already.
You approach the greenhouse. You take a deep breath in. You lift your hand to knock, but hesitate, unsure how to approach this situation.
You finally muster up the courage to raise your knuckles, and knock softly on the greenhouse door.
It is silent for a moment, then you hear a gentle voice. “Who is it?”
You jump a bit, beginning to think he wasn’t here.
“Uh, Hello, It’s Y/N.” You stutter nervously through the door.
There’s another silence. “Right away, Your Majesty.”
The door opens, and you see Ten face-to-face, looking at you expectantly. His eyes are red, and a little puffy. He had been crying.
He seems just as shocked as to why you’re here as you are.
After a moment of staring at each other, Ten jumps. “Oh I’m so sorry for letting you stand in the rain, please come in. Forgive me Your Highness.”
“Please, don’t worry.” You say softly.
Ten takes off his gloves that are covered in dirt.
“So, is there something you needed of me, Your Majesty?”
You pretend to look around the greenhouse to avoid his eyes.”No, not really.”
“Oh.” He says, confused. “If you don’t mind me asking, why did you come?”
“I wanted to speak to you.” You say, bluntly.
“Did I do something wrong?”
You giggle. “No, you didn’t do anything wrong. You’re actually very good at what you do.
You watched as little flurries of a red flush appear across his cheeks at your compliment.
You hear the rain outside cease a bit.
“It sounds like the rain is getting lighter.” You say, relief apparent in your voice.
Ten scratches his head nervously, and tries to change the subject.
“What did you need to speak to me about, Your Highness?”
You turn away from the potted purple flowers you were smelling, and step towards him slowly.
You looked into his comforting eyes, seeing the nervousness he has.
“Are you okay?” You say finally.
“I am not ill. Thank you for your concern, Your Majes-”
“No Ten.” You say. “Are you okay?”
Ten searches your eyes with his own to find the meaning behind your words. And he does.
You see the tears well up in his eyes.
“No.” He says breathlessly, choking back the sob. The he corrects himself. “I mean no, Your Majesty.”
You walk towards him again, and wrap your arms around his neck.
He freezes, and he doesn’t return the embrace.
“Please, don’t call me ‘˜Your Majesty’ anymore. Call me Y/N. Just Y/N.” You say softly.
The sound of thunder rips through the air, this time less shattering, as Ten’s head falls on your shoulder, and he begins to sob. The rain becomes heavy again. He keeps his arms by his sides, and the rest of his body stiff.
When his tears cease, the rain reduces to a drizzle.
Ten steps away from you, and clears his throat. He then bows deeply. “Your Majesty, that was out of line of me, and I apologize.”
“Stop being so silly.” You giggle. “I hugged you first, and didn’t I tell you not to call me that?”
“I apologize.. Y-Y/N.” He stumbles out uncertain. “But why did you hug me? And how did you know my name?”
“Ever since we lost the Head Maid, all I can think about is how much you must have needed a hug.”
You see Ten’s eyes grow soft. He stands bewildered, wondering how he was deserving of your sympathy.
“And I know your name because your mom said it when we were little.” You continue.
“You remember something like that?” He says, a bit astounded.
“Well, then I’m honored that you thought about me, Princess.” He says, his mouth turning up a bit into a small grin.
“Ten?” You asked curiously. “How do you keep the flowers so perfect? We haven’t seen the sun in days, but your blooms do not falter.” You say in awe.
Ten shuffled nervously, and remained silent.
You look at him, and witness him battling something within himself.
“Actually, Ten, could you teach me how to plant a flower?” You ask curiously, stroking to soft petals of a pink blossom.
You saw an exciting spark go off in his eyes at your statement. “You really want to?” He asks.
“Yes, I really do.” You assure him.
“It can get pretty dirty, Princess.” He says sarcastically.
“That’s okay, I want to step out of my comfort zone a bit.” You tell him.
“Alright.” He says, pointing to a row of flower pots. “These flowers here all need to be repotted. Pick one, and I’ll help you.”
You turn and walk to the pretty pots of flowers. You come across one that catches your eye.
“This one.” You say, pointing to beautiful purple flowers.
“Ah, the hyacinths.” He says, impressed.
“Hyacinth.” You repeat, letting the name roll off your tongue. “That’s such a pretty name.”
“It is, isn’t it?” He giggles, while picking up the pot.
He brings the pot to an empty space on his wooden work-table, and grabs a second pot and soil.
“Alright, so water the hyacinths first, so the roots will become looser in order to take it out.” He says, bringing you a filled, water pitcher.
You take the pitcher, and slowly pour little amounts of water until you felt it was enough.
“Good.” He says happily. “Now, grab the plant, and try to take it out of the pot.”
You grab the stems on the flowers lightly, and begin shimmying it out of the pot. You didn’t notice the pot edging itself off the table slowly.
“Woah!” Ten shouted, catching the pot from where it had begun to fall under you
“I’m so sorry.” You start apologizing, your cheeks turning red.
Ten just smiles. “Don’t apologize, Princess. Just when you do it, grab the plant here, and hold the bottom of the pot like this.” He demonstrates.
“Alright, got it.” You say determined.
You do as he instructed, and work the plant carefully to make sure you’re gentle with the roots.
Ten examines you as you concentrate. He had never seen the crown princess like this. Dirt all over the front of her royal gown, and giggling like an idiot. Her face blushing under his gaze. He smiled a bit.
“Got it.” You said, holding the contents of the pot. “Now what do I do?”
Ten snaps out of his entrancement of you. “Right, hold on.”He says.
He walks beside you and fills the second pot with a little bit of soil.
“Position the plant in the middle, and bury the roots under the soil.” He says, as he pushes the second pot over to you.
You eye the pot questionably.
You hover the plant over the pot, trying to decipher where was the best place to put it. You look to Ten.
He smiles. “Here, like this.”
He comes behind you, his chest touching your back. His arms ghost over your own until his hands are over yours. You can feel your heartbeat go erratic at the closeness of him.
He guides your hands over the pot, and lowers them gently into the middle. His hands take yours, as he guides them to cover the roots delicately.
It remains silent, neither of you moving. “What’s next?” You finally say.
Ten doesn’t move from his position, he only guides your hands to the bag of soil. “Fill the rest of the pot with more soil.”He says softly.
You both begin piling soil into the pot, Tens arms still wrapped around your figure as you work.
His embrace was so strong, and it smelled like sweet flowers. You wanted to fall back into his touch, he seemed so addicting. His words brought you back from your fantasy.
“Princess, do you know the story behind these flowers?”
You shake your head slightly. “They have a story?”
He laughs a little. “A lot of flowers do, would you like to hear it?”
“In Greek Myths, there was the God Apollo, he was the god of music, light and truth. He a had follower by the name of Hyacinthus. Hyacinthus loved the god Apollo. One day, they were throwing a discus for fun, and Hyacinthus was so in love with Apollo, he wanted to catch the disc to impress him. The disc then struck Hyacinthus, causing him an accidental death. The truth was, there was another God, by the name of Zephyrus who loved Hyacinthus, and was jealous that Hyacinthus preferred Apollo over him. It turns out Zephyrus was the one who caused the disc to strike Hyacinthus, blowing it off course when Apollo threw it. The blood of Hyacinthus was turned into a flower, and the stains on the petals represent Apollo’s tears. He named the flower a Hyacinth.”
“That’s so sad.” You say. “Why would Zephyrus kill Hyacinthus just because he couldn’t have him?”
Ten stayed silent. “Because he loved him.”
You look back at Ten, as he looked at you. You begin falling into his comforting eyes once more, wishing you could lean in, and take all the warmth and comfort he emitted.
“Your Highness? Are you in there? It’s time for lunch, and look! The rain stopped!”
The voice of your maid made both you and Ten jump out of each other’s embrace.
“May I come in, Ten?” The maid asks.
“I mean I guess so.” Ten says bitterly, as he goes to open the door. You giggle at his frustration.
“Your Majesty, It stopped raining, look!” The maid said, pointing to the sky. You stepped outside to see no more rain, not even a drizzle. The clouds were still overcast. The storm had stilled.
You turned to Ten. “Isn’t this wonderful?” You asked him, smiling.
He turned away from you, cheeks pink. He clears his throat. “Isn’t it time for your lunch, Your Majesty?”
“Oh yeah, let’s go, Your Highness.” Your maid calls to you.
“Come with me.” You said, grabbing Ten’s hand. His body tenses as you grab his hand, goosebumps forming on his arms.
“You know I can’t.” He says.
“Why not, you can be my lunch guest-”
“Servants aren’t allowed to dine at the royal table. I will eat at the maid’s quarters later.”
You drop his hand, and then walk toward the greenhouse door. You turn around before you walk out, a smile on your face. “Do you promise?”
“Promise what, Your Highness?” He asks, clearly confused.
“Will promise me that you’ll eat?”
“Take care of yourself, so I can return later and plant more flowers with you. Okay?”
He smiled. “Okay, and by the way Your Majesty, the dirt on your gown is quite beautiful.” He chuckles.
“That’s what every girl wants to here.” You roll your eyes, and turn to leave.
“You’re right.” He says. “I meant to say you’re beautiful.”
Your heart stills in your chest. Did he just call me beautiful?
“Your Highness?” the maid says.
“I’m coming.” You answer her.
You gaze up into the clouded sky, to see specs of sunlight fall through the cracks.
It seems like the storm returned at night.
A God screaming in agony, terrified of being alone. Allowing thunder and lighting to shake the Earth, along with strong winds and rain.
The storm kept you from sleep.
You tossed and turned in your bed, wondering how the sky could be so angry.
“Your Highness.” You hear softly at your door.
“Come in.” You answer, groggily.
Your maid steps in, worry apparent in her features, even in the poor light of your room.
“Your Highness, I know it’s late. But Ten is-”
You spring forward from your pillow. “He’s what?”
“It’s happening again.” She said.
“What is happening?” You say desperately.
“Wait, you don’t know?” She asks confused. “He seems so comfortable with you, I thought you’d know.”
“Know what?” You say, clearly aggravated.
“I think he should be the one to tell you, but I need you to come calm him down. In the greenhouse, he seemed so calm with you. He hasn’t been that calm since his mother died. Only she could make him that happy.”
You didn’t quite understand what was happening. But you did know Ten needed you, and that was enough to spring you onto your feet.
“Please, take me to him.”
Your maid guided you to the Maid Quarters. You had never been here before. It was behind the kitchen, rows of bunk beds and dressers piled into a very large room. You found most of the staff awake, looking over at the same spot with worried eyes. You follow their gaze, and see Ten.
The staff sees you, and they all seemed shocked at your appearance here, beginning to bow.
“Ten.” You say breathless, and pained.
He looks up, he is sitting on a bed with his knees to his chest. His face is bloodshot.
“Ten, hey.” You say, touching his face, your touch guiding down his arms until you grab his hands. Making sure he was safe. Making sure that all of him was there and uninjured. He grips your hands tight, and hides his face from you again.
“What’s wrong? What’s going on?” You say, grabbing his face gently to look at you. When he does you see tears streaming down his face, his eyes red from irritation.
You bring his face into your chest, and he latches on to your body, holding you close as he sobs heavily into your chest.
You stroke his hair, and rub his back. You continue shushing him, trying to calm his screams.
“What happened here?” You ask your maid, gently.
“He has night terrors, and when he has them he screams, and cries. He couldn’t stop, I didn’t know what else to do. He kept making it storm.” The maid said.
The last part caught your attention. “Making it storm?” You ask.
The maid seem to make a face the read. “I’ve said too much.” So you directed your attention back to Ten. You continued rubbing his back, and running your fingers through his hair. His warm embrace latching on to you. Somehow this is only the second time you’ve ever truly been this close to Ten, but it wasn’t odd. His touch was like home.
You looked around to see the other maids looking at you, completely bewildered as to why you, the crown princess, were holding her servant so close.
Everyone in the room knew how much trouble Ten could get in if anyone were to find out about this.
His sobbing turns to sniffles, as his face is still buried in the silk of your nightgown.
“Ten?” You say softly. “Are you okay?”
He picks up his head weakly, and looks at you. “Yes, thank you, Your Majesty.”
“I told you not to call me that!” You whine. He realizes what he said, and giggles. “I’m sorry.”
“What time is it?” You asked sweetly to your maid.
“It’s very late, almost morning.” She says.
“You should go back to your room, Y/N.” Ten says, removing himself from the cage you had him in with your arms.
“Actually, can I sleep here, with you?” You ask, shyly.
Tens face is now astonishingly red. You hear some of the maids giggle.
“I’m sure your bed is more comfortable-” He says.
“I can’t sleep alone with the storm, it’s too loud.”
He looks down at the ground. “That’s my fault. I’m sorry.”
He ignores your question, and wraps his arms around you, you both falling on to the bed.
Ten drags the covers up to your chin, and puts his arms back around your figure, your head against his bare chest.
He brings a hand up, and strokes it through your hair. You can feel yourself falling into slumber.
“Thank you for coming, Princess.” He whispers.
You smile sleepily, and reach for his hand.
You’re close to falling asleep, so you don’t notice the adoring smile he gives you as you hold his hand.
You also fail to notice how calm the night turns.
The next morning comes, welcoming you with sunlight pouring into your face from the windows.
You open your eyes to see a clear sky, the skies a beautiful shade of blue, the sun shining effortlessly.
The sight made your heart burst, almost as much as the sight of Ten’s sleeping figure beside you did.
You stared at his every perfection. Then you saw a smile grow on his face. “Good morning, Princess.”
You jumped. “G-Good morning, I thought you were sleeping.”
“Hello beautiful.” He said in a scratchy, sleepy voice. His voice was so nice like this, it made you melt.
He lifted his hand, brought it to your cheek. Caressing it, you let your eyes fall closed and fall into his touch.
“Your Highness.” Your maid said from beside the bed, startling you.
“The Queen is looking for you. She didn’t find you in your room, she’s going to tell the King you’re missing, I think you should hurry and go find her.”
“Oh no.” You said, getting up hurriedly. You rip yourself from Tens strong arms, and he moans at the loss of warmth.
“I’m sorry, I have to go.” You say to Ten.
“Oh hey Y/N, I’m serving breakfast today, so I’ll see you there.” Ten said.
You smiled. “Sounds good.”
“Oh hey, I almost forgot. Come here.” Ten said.
You back up to the edge of the bed. “Yes?”
Ten grabs your arm, and pulls you towards him, and he pecks a kiss to your cheek.
You freeze at the feeling of his lips on your skin, and he moves to giggle close to the shell of your ear. “Have a good day, okay?”
You nod and pull back to run your fingers through his messy hair. “I’ll come see you later.” You say, letting your hand fall from his locks to his arms, running your fingertips down them before interlocking your fingers with his own.
You let go of his hand, and scurry out of the maid’s quarters.
You make your way into dining room, the boggled expressions of your parents finding you through the doors.
“Y/N!” Your mother says. “Why weren’t you in bed this morning?”
You see Ten, in his servants uniform rush through the the kitchen doors, silverware in hand.
“I woke up early to take a walk in the courtyard. I’m sorry to have made you both worry.” You answer.
Ten smiles slightly at your lie, as he prepares the table space in front of you.
“As long as you’re safe.” Your father says. “Y/N, I think you will be happy to hear that I have finally picked your husband.”
Ten drops the silverware he was holding, causing it to cling against the table. Your parents look to him. Ten’s eyes are blown wide, looking at the king in shock.
“Forgive me, Your Majesty.” He says, before picking up the silverware, and flashing you a confused look, turning to the kitchen doors.
You clear your throat. “Who might that be, Father?”
“Prince Kim Doyoung of the kingdom to the North of ours. You will meet him tonight at dinner.” Your father tells you.
“I’m actually not that hungry, may I be excused?” You say, getting up from the table.
“But we’re not finished-”
“Thank you.” You cut them off, before jogging towards the kitchen doors.
You burst into the kitchen, and the maids flash you worried expressions.
“Where is he.” You say simply
“He went outside, probably to the greenhouse.” A chef answers.
You nod, and head to the back door.
It had began raining again, and you rushed through the angry showers to the greenhouse. You opened the door to see Ten replotting a plant, aggression evident in his movements.
You examine the greenhouse, and see all the flowers are now wilted. The beautiful Hyacinths you planted together, the only flourishing plant remaining.
His eyes never look to you. “Did you know?”
“I knew I was to be wed before I took the crown. I didn’t know I was going to be married off to a stranger.” You say, your words truthful.
“Are you mad?” You ask him.
“No, Y/N.” He says, his hands hitting the table harshly.
“But you seem mad.” You say, your voice breaking.
“I think I have been out of line recently.” He says, a heavy breath escaping his lips.
“How so?” You ask, walking towards him.
“A servant falling in love with the heir to throne. That’s not my place. I apologize, Your Highness.”
Your heart shatters at his words. “Don’t apologize to me. And don’t call me that.”
“No, Your Highness, I am going to call you by your title, and I am going to apologize to you because that’s what the working class does! We abide by you, and we respect you as an economical figure, and nothing more. Why are you here, Your Majesty? Do you need something from me?”
You couldn’t control the tears as they spilled from the corners of your eyes.
“Yes.” You say breathlessly. “Servant, tell me what I am supposed to do when I am rejected by the only man I have ever loved?”
Ten’s angry eyes turn shocked. “No..” He says apologetically.
“Ten, I can’t get married to him.” You sob. “I don’t want this crown, I don’t want any of this if I can’t have you. I’d rather die than marry him instead of you !”
Ten walked slowly towards you, then he threw himself at you, his lips colliding with your own. His lips tasted of honey, and they felt as plush as rose petals. You fell into the kiss, and just like you predicted, his lips felt like home.
You feel like you had finally made it somewhere you belonged. With him.
His tongue swiped at your bottom lip, and you invited it in. You opened your eyes slightly, then slowly pulling away from kiss at what you saw.
The flowers that had wilted were lifting their heads, and ridding themselves of the dry, dead husks and replacing them with flourishing green leaves, and bright blossoms.
You looked to Ten for confirmation that he had witness what you were seeing.
“I have a lot of explaining to do, come with me.” He said, grabbing your hand.
Ten led you to one of the flower beds outside, and he laid down, and motioned for you to as well. You laid on the plush flowers, your head resting on his stomach. You both looked up into the clear sky.
“When I was a baby, every time I cried, it would storm.” He said, breaking the silence.
“Every time I laughed, the sun would gleam. My father told my mother I wasn’t human. That I was a demon, and he kicked us out.” He said.
You tried to process what he was saying.
“Your father, the King, took us in. My mother worked hard to keep her job here at the castle, because there was nowhere else for us to go. She trained me to become helping staff too. She never told me I was a monster, she encouraged my odd powers. I felt like whenever I was sad, I was a burden to everyone else, because no one seems to like it when it storms.”
You feel a tinge of guilt for the all times you blamed the storms.
“My mother taught me that my power could be beautiful. She’s the one who taught me I could use it to make flowers grow.”
“Your rain is absolutely beautiful.”
Ten felt a spark of life in his heart he thought he had lost some time ago. He reached down to grab your hand, a symbolic thank you.
”Do the maids know?” You ask.
“Most of them. A lot of the staff treats me like family. But there are others who see me as a burden.”
You rub the top of his hand with the pad of your thumb. You’re not a burden, Ten.”
“Thank you, my princess.”
After hours of you talking under the sunny sky, you both fell asleep.
Only to be awakened by your father’s horse and loud bellow.
“Y/N!” He shouts, causing you and Ten to jump. “What is the meaning of this?”
Your father brought two guards with him, they hopped off their horse and grabbed Ten, holding him by the arms.
“You were supposed to be at dinner an hour ago to meet Prince Doyoung, but you’re here, laying with the Head Maid’s son!”
“Some of the staff has even informed me that you snuck away to lay with him last night, are you really going to tarnish our families royal blood like this? By having sleeping with our staff?”
“I didn’t sleep with him!” You yell back, your blood boiling. I rested with him because he had a night terror, I calmed him down, I didn’t sleep with him!”
“Why are you getting so comfortable with a kitchen staff anyway! You are royalty Y/N!”
Your father’s eyes widen. “You what?”
“I am in love with him. I’m sorry if that messes up your plans for my future. But I’d rather die than be with anyone besides him.”
Your father remained silent. “Let him go.” He told the guards.
The guards dropped Ten harshly, a heavy thud as he hit the ground. You scurried over to him, and he sat up to hold you.
Your father watched, emotionlessly. Before, trotting back towards the castle on his horse.
You began to cry, Ten held you close against his chest. “It’s going to be okay.” He kept assuring you, with a weak voice.
And your sobs only worsened.
You made it back to castle. Ten went to the Maid’s Quarters to freshen up after being rained on. And maybe even to pack his things. If Ten was the reason why you weren’t obeying your father’s orders, you were almost sure your Father would retire him of his duties, and cast him back onto the streets.
If that were to happen, you were running away to be with him.
You walked into the dining room, drenched in rain. Your expensive shoes making a splosh sound every step you took.
Prince Doyoung sat at the table, looking you up and down, as his parents gave you a disgusting look.
“My My, You would at least think the King would tell his daughter to clean up before meeting royals who clearly outrank her.” The Queen of the neighboring kingdom scoffed.
“Mother.” Prince Doyoung snapped.
“Ahem.” Your father cleared his throat. “Now, about trade negotiations”
“Yes.” The fellow King agreed. “We will aid you economically, if our children wed.”
You looked to Prince Doyoung, who grimaced at the word “wed” almost as bad as you did.
“What’s so funny?” The Prince’s mother quipped.
“It’s just that, he seems just as uninterested in this marriage as I am.” You say bluntly.
Prince Doyoung giggles as well.
“I beg your pardon-” She begins.
”You know.” You cut her off, and start speaking to Prince Doyoung. “We’re the future of our kingdom. I think we should make our own decisions.”
“And what makes you say that?” The King of the neighboring kingdom asks you.
”Because I fell in love with my kitchen staff.” You say, simply.
The royals look at you in terror, and your father shuffled in his seat uncomfortably. Your mother and Prince Doyoung smile.
“Oh, he’s the gardener too.” You made sure to add.
“I fell in love with a commoner, back in my kingdom.” Doyoung admits.
“I hope you two can be together. I bet she would make a fine queen.” You say to Doyoung with a wink.
“This is absurd!” The Queen begins.
“Actually mother, it’s my kingdom once coronation day arrives.” Prince Doyoung then turns to you. “Don’t worry, Your Majesty. We will aid your kingdom, without any marriage.”
You smiled. “Thank you, Prince Doyoung. I better be invited to the wedding.”
He blushes. “As long as I’m invited to yours.”
Once the company left, you paced in the hall, waiting to hear the lecture from your parents.
Your father entered the hall, his expression unreadable.
”Excuse me.” the King called to one of the maids. “You go retrieve the servant Ten, and bring him here please.”
“Right away, Your Majesty.” She responded.
You let your head fall between your shoulders. You looked to the ground, awaiting your scolding.
“I’m so proud of you.” He said finally.
You looked up, shocked. “Huh?”
“You managed to fight for your own happiness, yet still ended up doing something good for the kingdom. You made a friendly arrangement with the Prince by your own measures, not by the ones I arranged for you.” The king said. “You’re going to be a fine Queen.”
You let your hands fall over your mouth in shock. You look past your father to see Ten with the other maid, head hung low.
He looked at the king, and went to bow. Your father put a hand on Ten’s shoulder to stop him.
Ten seemed clearly confused, until your father, The King, bowed deeply in front of Ten.
Ten’s eyes grew wide, he looked at you for some sort of explanation. You just smiled.
“You sir, will also make a fine King.” Your father said, looking up to Ten.
“No way.” He breathed. “No way.”
The smiled that crept on features was priceless, Ten ran to you and picked you up, spinning you around in his arms.
“Finally.” You said, and you kissed him.
“Is this really okay?” You asked, looking to your parents.
Your mother and father looked at each other fondly. “You’re the queen. You tell us.”
And sunlight poured into the halls through stained glass windows.
“Your Majesty.” You said mockingly, with a cute courtesy as you entered the dining room.
Ten scoffed. “Knock it off.” He said, pretending to throwing a piece of ham in your direction.
You giggled, and sat in your seat, admiring the sunny day outside.
Since you and Ten’s wedding and Coronation, there were no more storms.
Your eyes drifted from your husbands beautiful figure in front of the stained glass, to the centerpiece on the table. A vase filled with beautiful hyacinth flowers.
All the he gardens outside the castle had never been so captivating before, But you knew who to thank for that.
Ten stood from where he sat, and circled the table to stand behind your chair. He lowered himself to wrap his arms around your shoulders, and you hell into his comforting embrace. He then kissed you on the cheek.
“You look beautiful this morning.” He said softly.
“Right back at ya.” You said fondly, snaking a hand up to mess up his hair.
“Oh yeah, Ten I have something for you!” You say enthusiastically.
“Ah, yes my princess?” He answers.
“You can’t call me that anymore! I’m the queen now.” You say, sticking out your tongue.
“I don’t think so, you’ll always be my little princess.” He says, letting a hand comb through your hair. :Now, what did you have to show me?”
“A breakfast fit for a king!” You cheered, handing him a sandwich.
“Thank you honey, but what’s this for?” He asked.
“You don’t remember?” You ask with a grin.
Ten cocked his head to side curiously.
“Maybe next time I can make you a sandwich too.”
