#liu

"So, I say Cassidy starts, and then clockwise." Amber said, finally coming back from the kitchen, a bowl of popcorn in her hands as she sat down on the floor, next to Isabeau.

You didn't know how to read a clock. "Which way's that?"

"Towards the right." Isa said, amused.

"Which way's—"

"Me." Alysa interrupted, used to your antics.

"Fine fine, hand me the dice." You waved her off, tucking a strand of your bleached hair behind your ears.

Alysa shifted, gaze softening on you. "I feel like you need to dye your roots by now."

"Why?" You snorted, picking out the player piece you wanted. The bycicle, always the bycicle.

"They're dark again."

"Maybe I'll do red now." You grinned, giving her a glance.

"You would look hot in red." Amber said, as she threw a piece of popcorn in her mouth.

"Hey, five month girlfriend sitting right here." Alysa argued, suddenly sitting straighter. "But yes, Cassie, you would look gorgeous in red." She said, turning back to smirk at you.

"Can we please play?" Isabeau said, already exasperated.

You reached over for popcorn, throwing the dice whilst you moved.

"Six." You hummed, moving your piece, then throwing the dice again. "Two."

Just as Alysa moved to pick up the dice, she locked eyes with you, while she threw the dice.

That single look you'd shared so many game nights before crossed between you. A conversation without words itself.

Team up?

She seemed to ask.

Why not?

You'd always shoot back.

 »───────────────────────────────────────────»

"You two have got to be cheating!" Amber said, arms up in frustration as she once again lost a property to the bank, after loosing all her money.

"You don't have enough money to pay me rent." Alysa said, shrugging as she twirled the empty popcorn bowl in her hands.

"So to compromise, the bank's taking your Transilvania property, and giving it's worth in return to Alysa." You added, as if it were obvious.

"Oh yeah they're so cheating." Isabeau said, scoffing, arms crossed.

"Why would I want her to win?" You said, while simultanously, Alysa replied,

"I'd sell my organs before I let her win."

You two shared a look.

Oh really?

You seemed to ask.

Yes, maybe, wait no—

By the time Alysa had caught onto your skepticism, you'd already decided she wouldn't win.

 »───────────────────────────────────────────»

"You're giving her your get out of jail free card." Amber deadpanned.

"I am." You shrugged, handing Alysa the card as she moved out of the jail box.

"Is that even legal?" Isa groaned.

Alysa only smiled, setting the card down. "All is fair in love and war."

You smiled back. "You're quoting John Lyly."

"I am. You read it to me for some argumentative piece."

"I did." You hummed.

"They're so sweet," Isabeau whispered to Amber.

"They're a lying pair of cheaters, that's what they are." She hissed back.

"Hey, maybe she's cheating, I'm not." Alysa laughed, gesturing at you.

"I'm not cheating." You rolled your eeys.

Alysa had dared to throw you under the bus.

You'd throw her under a truck, then.

 »───────────────────────────────────────────»

But you loved game nights, you loved the stupid arguments, the thrill, the adrenaline...

So you kept on a small act.

Just enough for Alysa to keep helping you, so that she wouldn't notice how much you were winning, and how much she was loosing.

"You two have to be cheating." Isabeau said, calmer than Amber, who was now on her knees, staring at the board, her hands clasped in front of her.

"I'm telling you—" Amber spoke up, frustrated.

"How do you even cheat at Monopoly?" You snorted, rolling the dice again, getting your third six in a row.

"Oh yeah you're cheating." Alysa said, scoffing when she saw you move your piece again. The stupid, pretty, little rascal.

You laughed. "Guys, it's Monopoly! I just have good luck with throwing a dice."

"I'm not buying it." Isabeau sighed, leaning back.

You locked eyes with Alysa.

You still in?

Obvi.

She winked back.

Oh she was going down.

 »───────────────────────────────────────────»

"I quit." Amber finally relented, giving off her last property to the bank.

"I.... don't, yet, but my point of you cheating still stands." Isabeau said, rolling the dice.

"You're rich." Alysa suddenly noticed, looking over at your properties and your money.

"No I'm not." You said, laughing, trying to subtly cover the more than a couple 500's you had.

"You've so been swiping the bank." Amber said, gasping rather dramatically.

"No I haven't." You groaned.

"Let me be bank then! I'm not playing anymore." She said, grinning like a child with a lollipop.

"That seems fair." Alysa nodded.

"I'm in." Isabeau agreed, as she opened a pack of chocolate chip cookies.

You only sighed. "Fine by me."

But Alysa had thrown your partnership out the window.

You'd throw her out the building.

 »───────────────────────────────────────────»

"I'm broke." Isabeau groaned, leaning her head against the wall, closing her eyes like a Victorian actress.

"Isa, you're fine, take a loan." Amber waved it off, trying to get anyone to win except you.

"I can lend—" Alysa began.

"You owe the bank 40 and you have 15, and Isa owes 65." You deadpanned.

"So... we're all broke and in debt...." Isa said, eyes flickering open. "Except...."

All three of them turned to look back at you happily eating a chocolate chip cookie.

"Didn't we agree winner chooses the movie?" Amber whispered, voice lower.

"We did." Isa said.

"And I won." You smiled, dusting off your fingers.

"We're watching mean girls again." Alysa groaned.

Amber shook her head. "No surely she'll pick something else for once—"

"Please no not again—" Isabeau interrupted.

But you'd already gotten up, and picked up the remote. "I know right? She's a life ruiner, she ruins people's lives." You quoted, smiling.

"Please tell me that's another movie." Isa said, hopeful.

"No. That's Mean Girls." Alysa shook her head, softly. Because as annoyed as she was at having to see mean girls, again, she was happy. Her girlfriend was smiling. And seeing that was better than any movie anyone on the world could've ever chosen.

 »───────────────────────────────────────────»

You'd only gotten up for a minute, just to get water from the kitchen.

But Alysa had already trailed behind, arms around your waist. "Cassidy." She said, her voice low, a whisper into your ear.

"Yeah?"

"You made me lose, that was on purpose."

"It was."

"We're watching mean girls again because you made me lose."

"We are."

"I didn't charge you rent."

"You didn't— what?" You suddenly turned around, leaving the glass of water forgotten.

"You look so pretty when you're excited." She teased, smiling.

Your cheeks flushed. "Shut up Lysa, you let me win?"

"Eh, maybe." She shrugged.

"Why?"

"Maybe I knew I'd still get my payment?" She said, hands dropping to your hips with a suggestive smile.

"Payment." You repeated, cheeks still pink.

"The clean kind, pretty girl, relax." She laughed, pressing a soft peck to your cheek.

"What do you want?"

"I want my gorgeous, possibly redhead in the future, smart as fuck, pretty girlfriend to kiss me." Alysa said, her voice clear, no stutter, despite her words.

"Mhm, I think I could maybe splurge on that." You said, tilting your head in return.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, maybe." You teased, arms around her neck now.

Alysa ducked her head, meeting your lips with a soft whisper, her handa soft on your waist as well.

"Kiss me like I let you win monopoly."

✶ You see her from across the room, but her eyes don’t lock with yours- they can’t lock with yours. You know what could happen if someone even suspects you together. Quickly, you draw your attention back to the small radius around you. 

Your husband stands nearby, engaging in conversation with a duke, you primmley hold onto his arm, trying your best to look interested, smiling graciously at the man’s wife. She smiles grimly back, doing a terrible job at hiding her distaste. She doesn’t come from a very allied kingdom, so it’s hard for some wives to find common ground with others. Women like her are what make it hard for you to pretend.

Quickly after you got married, your father had died, leaving you and your husband the first in line for the throne. Being queen has come with its perks, as well as its duties. Specifically, baby duties. Ah, the long-overdue present the kingdom had been expecting for years now, but it’s something you’d been holding off on. Yes, you performed the proper marital ceremonies with your husband as often as he pleased, but it was certainly not enjoyable for you, and you’d gone through all measures to prevent any sort of offspring resulting from these duties. For one reason only.

Again, her eyes catch yours from across the crowd, but you can see the walls she puts up between you. Pretending is the only thing you can do to protect yourselves. It’s been years since you’d last seen Princess Alysa in public without having to act like she doesn’t know you deeper than anyone.

Your most recent conversation in front of people had been at the opening of an orphanage in town. The two of you had been seated next to each other on a podium, mere inches apart as you adequately engaged in a conversation like you hadn’t been under her skirts the night before.

It had been incredibly hard to hide your relationship. No one knew, not even your ladies-in-waiting had the slightest idea of any goings on between the castles. 

✶ “Are you sure no one saw?” You giggle, whispering with your back pressed tightly against the huge wooden doors of the Princesses’ chambers.

She’s shorter than you, but still, her chest is heaving against your own, your faces inches apart with matching grins. “I don’t think,”

You can practically taste her already from the proximity, her scent engulfing you as she wraps her hands around your neck, her fingers falling into the little whisps of hair at the nape.

“You looked so pretty last night,” She breathes, her gaze moving from your eyes to your mouth and back up again.

A groan spills up as you recall her dress from the previous night. God, it was revealing. Her breasts looked so fucking amazing, all pushed up and out from the corset, with her cheeks tinted pink in the low lighting of your ballroom. “I beg to differ, you should’ve seen yourself,”

“It was really hard not being able to talk to you, like harder than most nights,”

“It was super hard not to stare at your boobs.”

A blush creeps onto her cheeks as she buries her face into your neck. “Shut up,”

With your hands on her shoulders, you pull her away, your eyes meeting now. Finally. “Well, you look pretty now, too.”

She brings her hand up to cup your cheek. “You look gorgeous,”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Have you ever thought about running away?” Bare, you lie sprawled out on her bed together, your chests heaving as you gaze at the ceiling. 

“Together?” You glance to the side at her. You had thought about it, just not seriously.

“Yeah, like leaving our husbands,”

Snorting, you just shake your head. “The king would kill me,”

“We would probably be wanted,” She shrugs. “But it would just be us.”

“And we wouldn’t have to hide,”

Turning your heads, your eyes meet, looking deep into the other. “Alysa,”

“Yeah?”

“Are you serious?”

“I mean, I’ve thought about it.” Again, she shrugs, pretending to act nonchalant, but her racing heart says otherwise.

✶ “This feels like the first night meeting!” You giggle, your arms wrapped tightly around her torso as she urges the horse on, forcing it faster and faster until the trees are blurring past you.

“This feels illegal,”

Everything is funny right now, so again, you giggle, happy to have the freedom to giggle with her. “Well, it is,”

You made the plan weeks ago, tonight you executed it, and so far, so good. With your bags packed and slung across your back, you race through the trees on horseback, escaping the confinement.

Really, the only plans you made were to leave; the rest is to figure out, and that you plan to do. You know it won’t be as comfortable and lavish as your life at the castle was, but it’s together, and that’s honestly all that matters.

Eventually, you make it to a small clearing, days away from the castle, with small breaks to sleep. It’s bright with flowers and hedges surrounding the clearing, blocking it from view of any passersby. It’s perfect. Dropping off the horse, you center yourself in the middle, looking up to the sky, the trees parting just enough. It’s beautiful.

Throughout the next few weeks, the two of you will conceive a small cottage. Poorly built, yes, but home. It’s amazing how quick you went through with it, spending nights in a small tent and camp set up next to the small wooden structure.

✶ The years passed by long and plentiful, berries were harvested and meat collected, and slowly a garden bloomed to the right of your small kitchen window (with no glass lol). And of course, the cottage grew steadily, becoming far from the fragile structure you started with.