Chaos in the Castle

@ Sweet.Persephone

"I'll be careful, I promise, Charles." Maisie cracked open an eye to smile up at him, giving him a little nudge. "It's kind of flattering that you're worried about me, you know. It's nice, having a friend." She murmured, closing her eyes again.

She smiled when he said it seemed cruel to leave her behind to face the wrath of their parent's alone, peering up at him. "Yet you're sending me back first to face them alone. Seems sort of mean, doesn't it?" She teased, although she reached over and gave his arm a little squeeze when he said it had been fun having her here with him. "I'm glad I haven't made things worse or bored you. I'd feel bad if I made you miserable."

@ katahdin

All Charles offered was a long hum. He didn't want her to think that he cared too much. Whether or not that was the truth was questionable but... well anyone getting any kind of idea was a bad thing. Though it was hard not to get some kind of idea when the woman was basically half naked besides him. Charles wanted out of the married but damn it wasn't like he was blind.

"Actually it is the best mercy that I can offer you." Charles argued. "If you head back first, they will be glad to see you alive and safe. Thankful that you arrived back. Of course, they will still be furious but... well arriving second, they would care less. One of the kids made it back home so why would the other not? It would be expected at that point, and therefore, they will be more willing to release all of the fury they had from us leaving in the first place. The person who goes back first should be treated better."

@ Sweet.Persephone

Maisie laughed as she heard him hum, sitting up to punch his arm. "Jackass." She teased, scooting over toward the edge of the water to scoop some water in her hands to drink, knowing fresh spring water was always the best.

She looked back over at him after a minute, smiling as she scooted back over. "Only one way to see if you're right or not." She smiled, nudging him a bit. "When you get back I'll either have to thank you or kick you for whatever happens. I do hope you're right, though."

@ katahdin

It had been a week since they arrived back from the castle after hiding in the forest. Their parents had not been overly kind to either of them when they arrived back, both having been furious that they ran away and horribly worried that something had happened to their children. Even so, Charles had to admit that they weren't as harsh on their punishment as he thought that they would be. Perhaps it was because they knew they had run off because of their harshness before... or perhaps they were much too happy to see their children back home. It was hard to say.

Though now was a new day and Charles was heading towards the front entrance to the castle. They had gotten permission to go down to the city to spend a day. His parents thought it would be a good opportunity to see the country that he would one day be allied to. Charles was sure that the other reason was for him to have a nice day with his 'future wife'.

@ Sweet.Persephone

Maisie had been given quite the scolding for running off when she'd returned a week ago, but her parents had obviously been worried about her, and had recognized that they'd been a bit unreasonable with how they had handled things. But they were still firm on carrying through the wedding, as were Charles' parents, so things were still tense at dinners, and she and Charles still had to bicker with one another whenever they could. Away from their parents though they'd gotten to know each other better, and she would say that they'd become decent friends, although it was still an odd situation to be in overall.

Luckily though, their parents had agreed to let them go out into the city today, which was fortunate for Maisie, since she'd made her appointment at the hospital today so that she wouldn't have to tell her parents about how she'd been skipping them up until that point. She was waiting for Charles at the front entrance of the castle, dressed for their day out in the city. She was grateful that he'd agreed to come with her to her appointment, and she'd promised him that she'd bring him to all of the good touristy sights and would pay for dinner at her favorite restaurant. She smiled when she spotted Charles coming down the hall, waving a little at the prince. "Ready for the day?"

@ katahdin

As he headed down the hall, his eyes dropped to Maisie and a bit of a smile came over his face. Despite the consistent act that they put up in front of their parents, the two of them had been getting along quite well... Perhaps too well at times. Over the last week, Charles couldn't completely deny that some feelings had been rising in him. Though they certainly weren't nothing that he could not handle and it definitely changed nothing about their current situation. If anything, it meant that perhaps they would be friends when all of this was over but nothing more.

"I certainly am, are you?" Charles asked her, an eyebrow raising as he did so. The man knew that this could potentially be a difficult day for Maisie. After all, they were going to an appointment for her that she has been skipping for years. The man was really hoping that she would hear some good news as he wasn't quite sure how he would be able to handle her breaking down. Once he was by her side, the man tugged on the bottom of his shirt. "It'll be a fun day, I am sure of it."

@ Sweet.Persephone

Maisie offered Charles a polite smile as he approached, linking her arm with his once he was close enough before heading out of the castle with him. Luckily for them their parents were in meetings for most of today, so there was no chance of them getting caught acting nice toward one another. "I'm as ready as I can be, given the circumstances.. You don't have to come with me to the appointment, you know. I can tell you some good places to visit and agree on a meeting spot for once I'm done. I know going to the hospital with me isn't something you probably want to do on your one day of freedom." She said, looking up at him with a little smile. She'd asked him to come with her, yes, but she also didn't want him to feel like he had to.

Once they were off the castle grounds it was a bit of a walk to the city, but luckily she wasn't recognizable as the princess because of how guarded her parents had kept her, and Charles was from a different country so he wasn't recognizable either. "There's a bit of time before my appointment, is there anywhere you want to see first? I sent you that list of places yesterday, although I'm not sure how much you got to look over."

@ katahdin

When Maisie started to link her arm with his, Charles shifted his arm so that she could do so. He then happily followed her out of the castle as they started to make their way down to the city. "You don't want to be alone, do you?" Charles asked her as she brought up the hospital. He didn't want to leave her by herself but if Maisie did not want him there, then the prince would be sure to give her the space. "I am more than willing to go to your appointment with you as long as you want me there."

As she mentioned the list that Maisie sent, Charles gave her a bit of a sheepish smile. "I did take a glance at it..." He mumbled before looking off into the distance. In truth, Charles barely looked at it. Having only scrolled through the names before closing it. He had just assumed that they would go to where Maisie wanted to. "Perhaps we should go get some coffee first?" Charles told her.

@ Sweet.Persephone

Maisie hesitated a moment when she asked if she wanted to be alone, considering lying to him before shaking her head. "No, I don't want to be alone.. Thank you for agreeing to be there with me, I can't tell you how much I appreciate it." She admitted softly, giving his arm a little squeeze. It was an incredibly kind thing for him to do, something that had surprised her initially when he offered, especially given that they weren't supposed to be friends. But she liked Charles, and hoped that after this was all over they'd be able to stay in touch with one another.

She returned his smile with one of her own as he admitted to having only glanced at the list she'd sent him, laughing a bit. "It's ok if you didn't, I just thought you might want to have an idea of what there was to do. But coffee sounds nice. I'm not supposed to eat anything this close to my appointment, but I'd be happy to sit with you while you had something. And there's a good coffee shop not too far from the hospital, and it's near a small park we could go walk around too."

@ katahdin

Although it was a little selfish to eat and drink in front of Miaise would she couldn't partake, Charles could not help but want to do that. He actually barely ate during breakfast as much of his focus had been on bickering with Maisie to get their parents to break this arrangement. Or, in the least, to drive them a little bit as crazy and they were making them. "That sounds good to me. Lets go to the coffee shop then. I'll get something to drink, maybe a little to eat and then we can walk around until your appointment."

With that settled, Charles continued to follow the woman down into the town. They were actually a bit further away than he had been expecting but nonetheless, it was a nice walk and at least the weather was nice. "I am excited to not get swarmed by paparazzi," Charles whispered to her once they got to one of the streets. He definitely was not known well enough in this country for that to happen. Perhaps a few wandering eyes but hopefully not too bad.

@ Sweet.Persephone

"That sounds good to me. I think you'll like this place, they have some of the best pastries in the city, although there's a much older bakery near the main square that I prefer personally, but it's still all very good." Maisie said with a little smile as she led him through the streets. She'd only had a bit of water and banana this morning for breakfast since she knew she wasn't supposed to eat much, and bickering with Charles usually took most of her attention at meals, so much so that she usually had to sneak leftovers back to her room with her so she could eat a full meal.

She laughed a bit as he leaned down to whisper to her, giving his arm a squeeze. "Yes, one of the good things about having cancer as a child I suppose is not having to make public appearances, and therefore not having the paparazzi constantly hounding you." She teased softly, giving his arm another squeeze. "Besides, could you imagine the field day they'd have had with photos of little bald me? There's a reason no photos of me exist between the ages of 2 and 18." She said, pausing outside of the little coffee shop. "Here we are. Should I find us a table while you get your order?"

@ katahdin

The smile on Charles' face dropped a but as Maisie spoke of not having many public appearances or her country really knowing her. Although he didn't care for the mob everytime he left his home, Charles much rather deal with that than his people not being aware of who he was. After all, he was going to lead them all one day and it was important that they knew and trusted him. "I am sure that you would have been very inspirational to your people if they would have known what you were going through." Charles told her gently as he lightly rubbed her arm.

"Yes, that sounds good." As Maisie headed off to get them a table, Charles moved to stand in the line. His hands went into his pockets as he waited. Once he was at the front, he ordered himself a cup of coffee and a coffee cake. Charles headed off to the pick up area and waited patiently for his order to arrive. When it did, he grabbed his things and glanced around to find Maisie.

@ Sweet.Persephone

Maisie shrugged, leaning into him a bit as he rubbed her arm. "I'm sure you're right, but my parents didn't see it that way.. I think they were ashamed of me. I mean, why else would they have spoken to a doctor about fertility treatments to try to have another kid as I lay five feet away in a hospital bed after one of my surgeries?" She confessed softly, shaking her head after a moment as she tried to not sound bitter or hurt about the whole thing. "It's fine, though. I lived and beat the cancer and now they can marry me off to a stranger for some political alliance. Perfectly normal things to do to your child." She sighed, offering him a weak smile as he agreed to her plan to get a table while he ordered his food, heading off to find a table.

Luckily for her her favorite table was available, tucked away near the back and by a window so she could watch the people outside as as they walked along the street and boated the river. She was clearly anxious, wringing her hands together in her lap as she stared outside, trying to get her fears and worries under control before Charles returned with his food.

@ katahdin

Charles made a slight face as Maisie admitted that she thought her parents tried to replace her at some point. He didn't want to defend her parents much, especially with what both of their families were doing to them but... Well Charles felt rather sure that them wanting another kid wasn't because they wanted to replace her. It probably had more to do with them wanting to have more children, in general. Or...being worried that they wouldn't have an heir if Maisie didn't make it. Unfortunately, that was something that royals had to seriously worry about.

Though as he waited for his items, Charles tried his best to shed those thoughts from his mind. They should try to focus on better things. So when he went over to their table and sat down across from her, Charles made sure to have a smile on his face. "Hey there," He said warmly before picking up his coffee and taking a long drink from it. "What is your favorite thing about this city?"

@ Sweet.Persephone

Maisie looked up as Charles came and sat down, returning his smile with one of her own, but it was definitely a bit strained. "Hey. What did you get?" She asked curiously, shifting a bit in her seat to face him as he took a drink from it. "Is it good? I'm sure they'd be willing to give you something else if you don't care for it."

She hummed a bit in thought as he asked about her favorite thing in the city, leaning back in her seat as she thought it over. "Hm.. I think my favorite thing might be the city at night. The bridges and streets along the river are lovely, and it's nice to wander around the empty streets at night. It's also nice to go look at the stars from some of the parks, since it's dark enough there to be able to see a lot of them... I don't know, it's been a while since I've spent a lot of time out in the city."

@ katahdin

"Well even if I did not like it, I would be more likely to go and buy myself something else than to ask them to give me something new," Charles told her before letting out a small hum. Since he was royalty, and quite rich, he didn't see the point in not paying for something as simple as a pastry from a coffee shop. He then took a bite out of his coffee cake, wanting to try it out. "Besides, it is quite delicious," Charles told her with a huge smile on his lips.

As he took another sip of his tea, Charles listened when to Maisie talk about her favorite thing about the city. When he set down the cup of coffee, his eyes lifted up and he looked at her with interest. "I think that maybe you should change that. You should spend more time out in the city, getting a feel for the life and the people here." Charles told her as he glanced out the window. "I think that it would be good for you. And maybe you can have a bit more fun."

@ Sweet.Persephone

Maisie smiled a bit at his response, nudging his foot under the table with hers. "You're a good person, even if sometimes you're a jerk." She told him, knowing fully well that there were some people with his means who'd take advantage of their wealth and power and exploit it, so it was nice to see someone who was just genuinely a decent person. "I told you their pastries were good. My favorites are the cinnamon rolls, especially when they're fresh out of the oven in the morning." She hummed a bit at the thought, wishing she could have something to eat now.

She looked up at him when he suggested that she spend more time in the city, offering him a little smile. "I'd like to.. My parents keep me cooped up though, and while I could sneak out, it's not as fun to come all by myself. Everyone you pass on the street is always with friends or a spouse or partner, and most places expect you to bring at least one other person with you, so it's hard to do and see everything the city has to offer when you're alone." She explained, giving a little shrug. "I'm sure most places are like that though, even where you're from.. But you've mentioned that you have friends, so you probably don't run into that problem. What are they like? Do they know why you're here?" She asked curiously, wondering what they thought of the whole marriage situation, if they even knew about it.

@ katahdin

"Well I might need to come here sometime in the morning before I head home to get one of their cinnamon rolls then," Charles told her before he took another bite of his food. It was a nice thought but he was hoping that he wouldn't have the time to do it. The moment that this arrangement was broken, he was sure that they would head home. Actually, he would not be surprised if they ended up leaving the same day that the marriage was cancelled. "Perhaps you need to find some friends then." He told her. "They don't have to know who you are but... I mean wouldn't it be nice?"

Charles was quick to shake his head when Maisie asked if his friends knew about this situation. "Absolutely not. No no no no no no. As far as they know, I am currently on vacation with my family." He picked up his coffee and took a long drink. Just the thought of his friends knowing the truth made him feel like he needed more energy to deal with them. "They are good people but if they were to know the truth, well to be honest with you, they would show up here and 'storm the castle to free me'. Which would only cause more harm then good." He let out a small hum. "That, or they would free the princess... but that would only be because it follows a typical story or game more... which would actually be worse than them just kidnapping me because you don't know them."

@ Sweet.Persephone

"You should. Maybe I could convince the kitchen staff to order some for breakfast one day." Maisie suggested with a little smile. She knew he was hoping that he'd be able to leave as quickly as possible once their parents ended the engagement, but she hoped that maybe he'd at least say goodbye to her instead of just disappearing like she assumed he wanted to do. She shrugged a bit at the mention of her making friends, giving him a sheepish smile. "I've never been good at making friends.. I had a few in college, and they didn't know who I was, but I always felt like I had to lie to them about who I really was, and it was hard, and eventually the friendship just fell apart." She explained softly, offering him a little smile. "You're sort of my friend, right? Do you think that people would want to be my friend?"

She smiled even more when he adamantly said that his friends didn't know about her or this marriage arrangement, even laughing a bit as he said they would storm the castle to rescue him. "They sound like good people. And don't worry, I'm sure they'd much rather take you than me if they ever found out. Which they won't, at least not from me." She offered him a reassuring smile so he knew that she was being serious, that she'd never mention this arranged marriage to anyone after it was over.

@ katahdin

"I mean, you don't have to not tell them the truth. It works out sometimes. I mean, I never really had an option to lie since my face is pretty recognizable in my country. So... people always knew who I was. And it makes it difficult because you don't know what their true intentions are. But, I really do think that you could make some friends. And I think it would be okay if you kept it a secret for a bit, but yeah you would have to tell them the truth at some point." Charles smiled gently at her. "I am your friend. Well... right now I am your fiancee, enemy, and co-marriage wrecker but I am hoping that we will turn into just good friends soon."

"Well it is always hard to say what my friends are going to do so it is hard to say that for sure." Charles told her with a little chuckle. "Honestly, they really might think that kidnapping you was a better option. Or they'll make even worse decisions. It really is hard to say. But they do mean well and they would treat you well..." Charles gave her a bit of an awkward smile. "But yeah, it would be best that they didn't find out. At least not until it seemed that we didn't have any other choice because they certainly would be a nuclear option for us."