i tried to get a portrait for my halls but i was too grumpy. sorry painter. #kind

Seventeen years.

That was how long Muse B had searched for a ghost. The rest of the kingdoms had long accepted the tragedy for what they believed it to be. The princess of a fallen kingdom had vanished during the attack that reduced her home to ash, presumed dead alongside her family. Ballads had been written in her honor. Memorials had been erected. Her name had become little more than a sorrowful story passed from one generation to the next. Everyone had let her go. Everyone except him.

They had been only children when their parents arranged the union between their kingdoms, but somewhere between afternoons spent chasing one another through palace gardens and sneaking pastries from the royal kitchens, the arrangement had become something neither of them questioned. She'd laughed at his terrible attempts with a wooden sword. He'd stolen ribbons from her hair simply to watch her scowl before inevitably laughing with him moments later. He remembered every detail. The color of her eyes. The sound of her laughter. The promise they'd made beneath an ancient willow tree that one day, when they were grown, they would marry because they wanted to and not because their parents had decided it for them.

Then came the night everything changed. Fire swallowed her kingdom. Steel clashed against steel. By dawn, there was nothing left but ruins. No body had ever been recovered. No answers had ever come. Only silence. Years passed, and while the boy became a prince worthy of inheriting a crown, one thing about him never changed. He never stopped looking. Every rumor, no matter how impossible, was followed. Every whisper of a mysterious young woman with no memory of her childhood became another destination. His advisors called it obsession. His father called it grief. Muse B simply called it hope. Hope that somehow…she had survived.

It was meant to be an uneventful stop. A forgotten village nestled between rolling hills, known for little more than its flower fields and modest marketplace. One of the royal horses had thrown a shoe, forcing the prince's company to rest while the blacksmith worked. Muse B wandered ahead of his men, more out of habit than expectation.

Then he saw her. She stood behind a weathered wooden stall overflowing with wildflowers, carefully tying bundles of lavender together with faded blue ribbon. Simple clothes had replaced royal gowns. Sunlight kissed skin that had once rarely seen a day's labor. There was nothing outwardly remarkable about the young woman…until she looked up.

His breath caught. The same eyes. The same smile. Even the small scar along her wrist remained, a remnant of a childhood accident neither of them had ever forgotten. For a moment, the world simply… stopped. He dismounted without realizing he'd done so. One of his knights called after him, but the prince scarcely heard the words. His boots carried him forward on their own. Closer.

Muse A noticed him staring, offering the polite smile one gave passing nobles. "Can I help you, my lord?" Not his name. Not recognition. Nothing. The words struck harder than any blade ever could. Muse B searched her face desperately for something, anything, that suggested she knew him but there was nothing there. Only confusion. "…Your name," he said quietly, his voice rough with years of restrained hope. "Tell me your name." The smile on her face remained, though confusion crept into her expression.

"N/A," she answered. "N/A"

No. That wasn't her name.

Someone else had given her that name. Someone else had lived the life that should have belonged to a princess. The prince searched her face desperately for any hint of recognition, but found none. There was no flicker in her eyes, no hesitation, nothing to suggest she knew the man standing before her had once been the boy who promised to spend the rest of his life by her side. Only a stranger. "…Have we met before?" she asked softly.

His heart broke all over again. After everything he'd endured to find her… She had forgotten him. Every last piece. His attention returned to her. "You don't remember…" he murmured, almost to himself. Muse A tilted her head ever so slightly. Confused. "Remember what?" A thousand answers crowded his mind. That she was a princess. That an entire kingdom still belonged to her. That she had another name. Another life.

Instead, silence lingered between them.

Muse B stood motionless, his gaze fixed upon her as if looking away would somehow cause her to disappear again. Seventeen years of searching had led him here. He had imagined this moment countless times, imagined every possible reunion, every tearful embrace, every whispered apology for not finding her sooner.

But never this. Never empty eyes that looked through him instead of at him. His expression slowly hardened, not with anger directed at her, but with resolve. He had already lost her once. He refused to lose her again. Behind him, one of his captains stepped forward cautiously. "Your Highness?"

Only then did Muse B tear his eyes away from Muse A. His voice, when he spoke, carried the quiet authority of a prince accustomed to being obeyed. "Take her."

The marketplace fell silent. The elderly couple who had been watching from the doorway of the nearby cottage froze, their expressions twisting from confusion into alarm.

"My lord?" the older man stammered, taking an instinctive step toward Muse A. "Surely there's been some misunderstanding—"

"There hasn't." Muse B cut him off, though there was no cruelty in his tone. Only certainty. "She comes with us."

Two royal guards moved forward at once, careful but unwavering as they approached Muse A.

"I will not." Her voice came out sharper than before, carrying a mixture of fear and defiance as she stepped back. Confusion quickly gave way to alarm, her brows furrowing as she shook her head. Before either guard could reach her, she pulled her arm away from the first hand that reached for her, retreating another step until her back nearly met the flower stall. "I don't know who you think I am, but you cannot simply take me because you say I belong to you."

Whether she remembered or not no longer mattered. Whether she hated him for it no longer mattered. He would bear her anger if he had to. He would bear her fear. He would bear the resentment that was certain to follow. Because this time…

No one was taking her away from him again.

//feel free to respond to this and send over your oc (the prince) and i'll do the same! also please let me know if you have any ideas and would like to change anything.

hello! i'm kailee, and I'm looking for a long-term RP partner (18+) to write with!

❧ about me: i'm a pretty quick replier whenever i'm free. if i'm busy with something important, i'll always let you know.

my replies are usually around 3–4+ paragraphs, i try to always match my partner.

i love using face claims, whether they're real people or artwork, depending on the setting. it's not required, but i definitely enjoy when my partner uses face claims too!

❧ genres i love:

medieval & historical

fantasy

romance

modern slice of life

drama

action

horror/dark romance i enjoy creating stories inspired by books, shows, and movies, but i also love building completely original worlds and plots together.

❧ what i'm looking for:

i already have a few plot ideas, most of which are medieval, historical, and fantasy, so feel free to message me if any of those interest you! that said, i'm always open to hearing your ideas as well.

and no matter what plot we decide on, i'd love it to include: • romance • angst • tension • lots of drama • emotional character development • nsfw themes when they naturally fit the story.

❧ pairing:  F × M, with me playing the female character.