Tangled Up

The princess left the dining hall as quickly as she possibly could, the heavy door slamming behind her as she closed the door on the room. Her heart was racing, her face was burning hot and her hands were shaking. Tears were beginning to burn her eyes as she just pressed her back up against the door, knowing the people in the room were still busy discussing her future. The princess had high hopes that she would at least like the man she was being forced to marry, but the prince had been nothing but cold and stern towards her throughout their dinner. He had even been the first to excuse himself from the table.

Hearing the sound of heavy footsteps down the hall, Marceline quickly brought the sleeve of her dress up to dab at her eyes, hoping her makeup wouldn't stain the pale pink color of her dress. She didn't want to be caught sobbing in the halls of a castle in a foreign kingdom by a complete stranger, but she was so upset. It felt like her heart was breaking into small pieces, crumbling with each tear she wiped off of her face. Marceline had lived her whole life knowing the truth of what her future held for her: a rich and comfortable life, but most likely an unloving marriage, but it was still hard to swallow. Especially now that it was all coming true. All she was needed for was to give the prince an heir, she kept reminding herself of that when silly thoughts of love entered her head.

Sniffling away tears and trying to straighten her posture, Marceline turned to see who was coming down the hall, surprised to see a man who looked exactly like the prince, but with a much shorter haircut. He was also dressed all in metal, a blue cloak hanging off of his left shoulder. Sweat was dripping down his forehead, but a smile was peeled across his face as other men followed him, praising him for something.

"You really showed off, four rounds?" "You killed poor Reginald!"

Marceline pulled her brows together as she eavesdropped, her hand still hanging tightly on the handle of the door. A joust, perhaps? She had seen festival flags adorning the streets of their city, perhaps the prince's brother had participated. She was still trying to process the fact that the prince had a twin brother. No one had even mentioned him and she had met both of his parents. The queen had been slurring her words through every sip of wine and the king hadn't been a man of many words, so she supposed it just hadn't really come up. The princess tried to press herself into the door, wishing she could turn invisible. All she could really do was hope the passing knights didn't notice her, or care if they did.

---

Theodore entered the tavern, hearing the wooden door shut loudly behind him. Today was a rather busy day for him, people were pulling him in all directions and he had more than a handful of obligations to attend to. He hadn't meant to be so short with the princess at their dinner, but he had unintentionally given her the cold shoulder. The young prince had no desire to charm a princess off of her feet when a beautiful maiden was awaiting him at one of the local taverns. Elizabeth was a farmer's daughter the prince had met one evening last week when he had escaped the castle. She was a fair skinned, blonde beauty that had absolutely captivated the prince in the short time they had enjoyed together. The pair had made plans to see each other again during the festival. It was the perfect time to sneak out, the court was busy tending to the princess and the city was absolutely bustling with large crowds moving through the streets. No one would even miss him among all of the thousands of things happening that day.

Except, maybe the princess, but he would try to make it up to her later.

Moving through the crowd in the tavern, the prince smoothed out his shirt as he searched the room for Elizabeth. He was almost positive that the two of them wouldn't be running out to the fairgrounds to enjoy the festivities, but rather sneaking away to someplace they could have some alone time, but first, he had to find her. Making his way towards the bar, he leaned up against the counter, causing the barkeep to almost shit himself when he looked up at the prince. "Shhh," Theodore placed a finger to his lip, flashing his hazel eyes towards the man, "I'm looking for Lyssa. Have you seen her?" The prince did his best to keep his head down when he moved throughout the city, but he wasn't too worried about being seen.

"She just ordered you two drinks, I think she said she was going to sit outside, out back." The man slapped a washrag down on the counter, nervously picking at the fabric. Theodore patted his hand against the counter, a large smile appearing on his face as he hurried out the back door of the tavern.

Elizabeth was sitting on one of the benches in the small fenced in patio area behind the tavern, a cold tankard of ale sitting next to her for him. "I'm so sorry, I'm late. Please forgive me." Even though he was apologizing, the prince found it hard to stop the smile on his face. He quickly hurried to sit next to her, grabbing the beer in his hand. "I've missed you so much."

Louis was more than content with the life that he was leading. He was a feared knight because he was fierce on the battlefield and he had a few scars to prove it. He had never been afraid of getting a bit hurt because as far as he was concerned, it was incredibly important for him to be able to inspire his men in the midst of a hard-fought battle. Without him by their sides, Louis didn't know if they would have fought quite as hard. Luckily enough, Louis had yet to lose on the battlefield and for now, he was simply able to enjoy being home and the ability it gave him to relax.

He rounded the corner in the castle, his arm wrapped around the helmet he held against his side. Louis let out a joyful laugh when the men praised him, shrugging his shoulders as he glanced behind himself. He wondered where his brother was, he wished to find him and get to know what Theodore had been up to since he had been gone. The festival had happened only a day after his latest return and Louis was eager to see his twin. Theodore was quite different from him but when they got together, they ended up usually getting a bit too boisterous for others to be able to handle.

His attention was only drawn away from the group of men that surrounded him when he noticed the presence of a woman just a few feet from where Louis was walking. His brows pulled together when he noticed the way the woman carried herself and that he also didn't recognize her at all. It wasn't hard at all for him to piece together who Louis must be looking at - he had heard about the princess his brother was supposed to marry. Knowing who she must be, Louis took it upon himself to find out why she was upset and to comfort her as well as he could. Louis turned and held his helmet out to his squire, giving a pointed nod in the direction that the hallway led. Louis held his hand up to silence any questions because he was sure the princess did not need to be questioned by them.

Louis cleared his head once they stood in the hall alone, giving Marceline a gentle smile. He raised an eyebrow, wondering if perhaps he was taking a step too far but then, Louis had never really known how to be afraid. "Tell me, m'lady. What is bothering you?" He asked, his voice gentle as he spoke. Even if Louis had not been betrothed to a woman because of his knighthood, he wasn't completely oblivious of how he was supposed to treat a lady. He was a knight, after all.

"Must I go cut down another so soon?" Louis was only teasing because he didn't think that what she would be upset over would be related to his brother.

---

Elizabeth had started to worry that Theodore wasn't going to be able to meet up with her. She knew who he was, of course, so she couldn't say she would be all that surprised. She hadn't gotten the chance to spend too much time with him but she knew that he was pulled in all different directions most of the time, especially during such an important time in their city. It was a festival so she didn't know if he'd be able to make it out of the castle. She was hopeful because she could already feel herself starting to fall for the man in more ways than she ever should have. She knew that it was an awful idea because Theodore was a prince. Never did a prince marry a peasant girl like her. Eventually, Theo would have to marry and she would have to celebrate his wedding. The thought already pained her but she was doing her best not to think too much about it.

When the back door of the tavern opened, Elizabeth looked up and she couldn't help the smile that broke out on her face. She was excited to see him and admittedly, her gaze drifted down his body. Elizabeth swallowed, wishing that they weren't in such a public place and feeling as if she was underdressed. Theodore wore an elaborate shirt and she had worn her best dress but she was sure it was nothing compared to the dresses that he was used to seeing.

"I suppose I could forgive you this one time," Elizabeth teased. She moved to stand, hesitating as she glanced toward the door. When she realized they were still alone, at least in the moment, Lyssa leaned up to press a quick kiss to his lips before she lowered back to the ground. "Just this one time tho. Don't do it again," she murmured, her fingers wrapping into the fabric of his shirt.

Once they sat again, Elizabeth pressed herself closer into his side. She smiled, wrapping her arm around his as she supposed at the smaller mug of ale she had gotten herself. "How was your day? Busy?" She asked after a moment. Lyssa wished that they could have more but she was sure these fleeting moments of happiness was all they'd probably ever get.

Marceline's blood ran cold when she heard the footsteps stop, and then a few seconds later, carry on. Her eyes were trained on the floor, and she was hoping to herself that they had all gone, but she couldn't have been so lucky when she heard one of the knight's speak. Lifting her head and then looking up at Theodore's brother, she couldn't help the blush that appeared on her face. The man had already noticed her demeanor, hopefully he chalked the reddening of her face up as just another symptom of her distress and not because she found him attractive. Of course, he was attractive, the prince was attractive and they were twins, but it had only been five seconds and already this knight had been kinder towards her than the prince had been all throughout meeting.

Still, she knew she couldn't complain about her soon to be fiance to his own brother. Her mouth dried up as she tried to think of what to say to him, "Oh, just, a little homesick... and a little overwhelmed." The princess forced a smile to her face, hoping that was enough to please the knight. She had never been a good liar, though and was used to being called on it, but it was something that could be true. Her own kingdom was somewhere far away, across the Cidarian sea on a completely different continent. Swallowing around a lump that was forming in her throat, she hid her hands behind her back, before looking the knight up and down. "I'm sorry, I wasn't aware Theodore had a brother..." Her voice still sounded so small and shaky, fighting back the tears that still threatened to fall down her face.

It was all the princess's own fault, how upset she was right now. She had been warned and knew what she had needed to prepare herself for. Her mother especially had counseled her on what she should expect when meeting the prince. Marceline remembered her words like she had just heard them moments before, You'll learn to live together. Still, some part of her had held on to the little glimmer of hope that just maybe she could love the man she was forced to marry, but already she knew that would be impossible.

---

Theodore let his eyes close, reveling in the kiss that she pressed to his lips. His hands moved up to hold the small of her waist, just brushing over her curves before she stepped away, sitting back down on the bench. He licked his bottom lip, feeling completely infatuated by the girl before him. The prince cleared his throat, before he sat down, taking a sip of the ale before answering. "Incredibly busy. I'll... tell you all about it later." He did his best to hide the frown that threatened to show on his face, not wanting to give Elizabeth the bad news at the beginning of their meeting. Theodore wanted to enjoy the time they had together and he wasn't sure how Elizabeth would take the news. He knew it sounded ridiculous, after all, this was only their second time meeting, why would she be so terribly upset?

He hoped she would be upset, because he already felt like his heart was tearing itself in two just thinking about marrying the princess. Both girls were gorgeous and he was sure he could have a happy life with either, but something about Elizabeth just made his heart do somersaults in his chest. The prince moved his hand to cover Elizabeth's, giving it a soft squeeze as he leaned in and kissed her forehead. "I was thinking we could go down to the lake. It's sure to be deserted with the festival going on. Unless you wanted to go enjoy the festival, I figured it'd be nicer to have some alone time." Theodore would leave it up to Elizabeth, bringing the tankard back up to his lips to drink the rest of his ale.

Looking past Elizabeth, up at the [url=https://www.artstation.com/artwork/k12xn]castle that sat atop a hill, he wondered for just a moment how upset he possibly made the princess, but then wondered how much he was about to hurt Elizabeth. Downing the ale quickly, he let the tankard fall from his hand, back to the bench next to him. He hoped she knew that he wished there was something he could do, but there wasn't. He couldn't change the law, or what his father chose for him, but if he could, he would choose her.

@ castle.

Louis' eyes narrowed slightly at the reasoning the Marcilene gave him. He wasn't so sure that he believed her reasoning. In fact, Louis was positive that he didn't because he saw right through the way she had tried to lie to him. If it had been anyone else at all, Louis would have demanded the truth in a firm tone that left no room for argument. But this very moment in time, he got the distinct impression that whatever it was, Marcilene wasn't keen on talking about. He would leave it be for now but he was sure he would have to talk to his brother about it eventually. An upset betrothed was never a good sign. He gave her a polite nod of his head, relaxing his shoulders as he looked to her.

"It is quite alright, m'lady. Mother and Father do not care to discuss their son who deflected to become a knight," Louis muttered with a roll of his eyes. It was ridiculous to him that they seemed to hate it so much but he was happy with the choice that he had made. He had always known that ruling wasn't for him. It would have torn him in two and he wouldn't have been able to live with himself. His place was on the battlefield and he accepted that, even if he knew that his end was not necessarily going to be between his loved ones and a warm sendoff.

"Has my brother shown you through the gardens? I do not recall where you are from but our gardens are wonderful. It is a lovely walk, given the chance," Louis offered gently. He could see how distressed Marcilene was and he was desperate to help her in any way that he could. He wrote it off as simply wanting to help his brother's betrothed which was a decent explanation, he supposed.

"If you'll give me a minute. I can go dress into something a bit more appropriate and then I can escort you through the gardens. Perhaps that will help cheer you up a bit," Louis added with a light smile.

---

Elizabeth was far too infatuated with the presence of Theodore that she didn't even notice the frown that was on his face. It was gone before it even formed fully. Instead, she pressed herself against his side and breathe a small content sigh as she listened to his offer. The lake seemed like a wonderful idea. While she did want to enjoy the festival a bit, Elizabeth knew that there would be more of them. She didn't know how many days she would have with Theodore before he married. Before she married... she was more likely to marry for love but just as likely to marry to someone simply because they were able to care for her.

"The lake sounds wonderful," Elizabeth agreed gently. She pushed to her feet, her arm still looped through his as she moved to follow him down the path to the lake. She leaned her arm against his shoulder, already feeling like her heart could burst out of her chest. It killed her to think about what she couldn't have because she knew that there was no way... Elizabeth swallowed, trying not to let the pain grow too much. No, she needed to enjoy this while she could. Plus she didn't want to hurt or upset Theodore. That was the last thing she wanted.

"Father has told me that we won't sell at the market tomorrow because so many will still be nursing their headaches from the festival. So.. I have tomorrow free after about noon or so," Elizabeth said, looking up to Theodore with a bit more of a hopeful look than she should have had. "But of course, that's only if you are able to. I do not know what your schedule is like."

Marceline hesitated, wondering if it would be okay for her to disappear with the princes' brother. The men still sitting in the dining hall didn't seem to mind when she excused herself, so she decided to take the knight up on his offer. "He hasn't," her tone was disappointed, almost scornful, hinting slightly at what she was upset over. Wringing her hands together, she glanced down the hall, before looking back up towards the knight.

"Alright, that sounds lovely. I shall wait here for you." Trying her best to speak without letting her voice tremble was proving too hard for the princess. The knights smile was much warmer than his brothers, much more welcoming and she knew it was very inappropriate to think in that manner, but she couldn't help it. The prince had barely even looked at her for longer than a few seconds and already his brother had shown her much more attention.

She watched him walk away, how he seemed to have a little excitement in his step. The princess sunk down to one of the marble benches in the hall, waiting patiently for him to return. There was a bit of a sinking feeling she was doing her best to ignore, a little voice in the back of her head suggesting this wasn't the best idea. What if she fell for the princes' brother? Did she want to find herself in a mess like that? For a second, she thought to get up and be on her
way to her own room and forget about the knight, but instead, she sat planted on the bench, waiting for him to come back.

---

Theodore stopped at the edge of the lake, watching as a few geese moved along the water, squawking at one another. "After noon..." He spoke, still seeming to be lost in his own thoughts. He bent down to pick up a few rocks, tossing them one at a time and watching them skip across the water. "I will see what I can do." Theodore licked his bottom lip as he looked towards Elizabeth, gifting her another loving a smile. The prince couldn't look at her and not smile, otherwise feeling like his heart might burst in his chest.

Once he was out of rocks, the prince sat down in the grass, motioning for Elizabeth to join him. This was the first time the two had been completely alone and he wanted to enjoy it for as long as he could before he had to talk seriously with her. He hoped he could convince her to continue seeing him, even though he would also have to entertain a princess. He knew that would be a lot to ask of her, but he already felt like he couldn't lose her.

Pulling her into his arms, practically onto his lap, he wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her passionately. "I should've bought some seed from the inn, for the ducks," he pointed out to where they floated lazily along the water. Where they sat, Theodore could still hear the upbeat music playing somewhere in the streets, celebrating the beginning of summer. He leaned his forehead against hers, kissing her again sweetly. Still, in the back of his mind he couldn't help feel sleazy, knowing a girl was waiting for him back in the castle.

@ castle.

Louis' brows rose as he tilted his head to the side, unable to ignore the way that Marceline's voice had dipped when he asked about the garden. His nose scrunched as he thought about it, wondering if his dear brother had anything to do with Marceline's foul mood. He couldn't say that he would even be all that surprised because he knew his brother. Theodore could be a stubborn man when he wanted to be. Scoffing at the thought, Louis shook his head. He could already feel the anger building inside of him and the argument that would brew between him and Theodore if that was the truth. While he loved his brother like no tomorrow, he never had been afraid to tell the man just how stupid he was being. Something that Theodore had never really appreciated.

"I will be right back, princess. I assure you," Louis said, offering the princess a bright smile before he bowed in front of her. Despite his doubts about his brother, that didn't mean he was going to treat Marcilene badly because of it. He cleared his throat as he turned, making his way down to the hallway where he turned toward his room.

It wasn't more than ten or so minutes before Louis returned wearing a pair of pants and a rather plain undershirt because as far as he was concerned, he need not impress anyone at the moment. Now that he had managed to return home, Louis would enjoy the simple things in life. Not being strapped into armor, not having to sleep on the ground, not having to relieve himself outside. So many simple things that didn't matter untilt hey were taken from you.

Louis again bowed before Marcilene, giving her a goofy little grin as he straightened before offering her his arm. "Shall we, princess?"

---

Elizabeth could tell something was wrong with Theodore. She wasn't sure what it was but she felt like she had known him all of her life and there was no denying that he was upset about something. She thought about asking him what was bothering him but she thought better of it. he had been so kind and gentle with her the entire time they'd been together which had only really consisted of a few short hours. But he was still a prince and she was nothing more than a farmer's daughter. Some were lucky enough to move up in society but to move from a peasant to royalty was completely unheard of. She longed for more but she bit her lip and instead was happy that she had managed to stay quiet.

When she sat beside Theodore, Elizabeth couldn't help but squeal as he pulled her into his lap. She giggled, burying her face into his neck for a moment. She all but melted into the kiss when she pulled away from his neck, reaching up to cup his cheek. She brushed her thumb against his skin, humming to herself when Theodore eventually pulled away from her.

"I wish that we could stay here forever. That we could just... enjoy each other. Now have to worry about.. being a prince or a peasant," Elizabeth grumbled in a low voice, even as he spoke about seeds. She wrapped her fingers into his shirt and clung like she couldn't dream of letting go of him. "Tell me, my prince," she teased, pressing a soft kiss to the underside of his jaw. "If you could do anything in the world, for the rest of your life. What would it be?"

Marceline had looked up when she heard footsteps, rising to her feet when she saw the knight returning. He looked much more comfortable now, dressed in a pair of dark trousers and a loose cotton shirt. The thin material of his top draped over his chest, making it much easier to see just how large and muscular he was. The metal armor he had been wearing had done a good job of hiding just how broad his shoulders were and how thick his arms were.

The princess felt her face heat up, a blush no doubt finding it's way across her face as she linked arms with the knight, following his lead towards the gardens. "So, what is your name?" The princess gave the knight a smile smile, tilting her head up to glance at him, before introducing herself, "I'm Marceline, or Marcy, whichever." She wasn't very for one or the other, so it didn't much matter to her what he chose to call her. Marceline was still trying to wrap her mind around why his parents, or someone, hadn't at least mentioned the princes' brother. And then she started to wonder why he laid down his claim to the throne for knighthood. Her mind continued on from one thought to the next, then wondering how different today might've gone if he was still prince and perhaps the one she was marrying.

---

Theodore enjoyed the way Elizabeth seemed to tuck herself away in his arms, hiding her face against his neck. His strong arms wrapped around her small body, keeping her pressed tightly up against his chest. When she spoke of wanting to stay here forever he almost believed her to be reading his mind. This was such a perfect moment, the cool breeze from the lake, the sound of running water and the girl he was sure he loved nestled gently in his arms.

Without even needing to think, the prince spoke, "If I could do anything? For the rest of forever? I'd leave the castle and take up a simple life, all so I could be with you, forever." He shivered, feeling the soft kiss she placed on his jaw. Theodore looked down at her and ran his hand up through the back of her hair, loosely tangling his fingers in the strands before leaning his head down to kiss her again.

The prince had found himself dreaming often of leaving the castle behind, laying down his crown as his brother had done but that was no longer an option. He was the last soon his father had to take the throne. Theodore loved his brother but sometimes he grew awfully jealous, especially when he thought about how Louis just left to become a knight. It upset him to think if his brother would've just stayed, perhaps Theodore could've stepped back and then... Then perhaps him and Elizabeth could've really been something.

@ castle.

"I'm Louis, or Louie, whichever," Louis spoke, unable to contain his teasing tone as he led the way down and into the gardens. He held himself, proud with his head raised and his shoulders squared as they moved through the castle. With each servant that they passed, Louis gave them a broad smile and a nod of his head. He looked over to Marcilene, briefly allowing his eyes to roam over her features Marcilene was gorgeous, there was no denying that but he was a knight.

There was no getting away from the knowledge that he could not marry. Louis would never own land, nor would he own a title. He was pledged to the crown, his desires were no longer of importance. Of course, he still partook in physical pleasures but that would be nothing compared to what Theodore would do one day. And he was perfectly okay with that. Even now, with Marcilene on his arm, Louis hadn't considered much of anything.

"Tell me. How is my kingdom treating you?" Louis asked softly, his voice lowered once they had stepped into the gardens, figuring there was no point in hiding behind anything. Now that they were in the gardens which were somewhat abandoned at this time of day, Louis figured they were as safe as they were going to be. "You seemed troubled when I came upon you earlier, in the hallway," he clarified, having long since learned that you sometimes had to get someone right where you wanted them, if you wanted a proper answer.

---

Elizabeth both loved and hated the way that she felt so at home in Theodore's arms. There was no mistaking just how comfortable she felt with him and truth be told, she wished that she didn't because she knew that this couldn't possibly last forever. Even if she was desperate for it to. But she was doing her best to ignore the looming heartbreak because she thought if she didn't acknowledge it, that it would stay as far away as it could.

She settled her head on Theodore's shoulder, her eyes fluttering shut. Elizabeth smiled to herself. "Perhaps in another life, we will be able to have each other. I wish that.." she trailed off, shrugging her shoulders. Elizabeth didn't think it needed to be said. They both knew that this could never work. She reached up, playing with the baby hairs on the back of his neck. She let out a small giggle. "You know, before I met you. I would have never thought you could even look at a girl like me. I'm nothing special and you're... well, you," she laughed. She lifted her hand so she could run her fingers through his hair.

"S'one of my favourite things. You're just so... I feel like I belong," Elizabeth admitted, a light blush covering her cheeks. "Right here. Nowhere else in the world has ever made me feel like this. I swear it."