"James, what is the meaning of this?"
James couldn't breathe yet. He'd thrown open the doors to his father's study to meet the eyes of several shocked nobles; he immediately regretted his actions.
"James!" His head snapped up to meet King Quentin's eyes. "State your peace or leave. I'm a very busy man, and you know that."
The panic set in extremely fast, which wasn't helped by the noble eyes on him. "No, it's not a big deal, I'll just go."
He was just about to leave when one of the nobles spoke up: "Oh, your Highness, it's quite alright. Say whatever you'd like."
"I promise, it's nothing to concern the nobles about. You all seem to be extremely busy." James slowly began backing out of the room. He'd started shaking, but he's the future ruler and he's standing in front of all of his future advisors; he couldn't possibly look like a mess.
"Ladies and gentlemen, may my son and I have the room please?" Dammit. The nobles nodded and one by one left the room, closing the door behind them. "James, I know what's going on." Fuck.
"You do?"
"Why of course." King Quentin clapped his son on the shoulder. "You're in love, my boy."
James sighed. "Yeah, that's it. I've found her, Dad. Well, not quite."
"What do you mean, 'not quite'?"
"I met her in a dream!" The anxiety seemed to fade as James grew more excited. "She's beautiful, Father. Her name's Ava, she's a writer, and she...she's no princess or noblewoman but it's okay, because that means she'll know the people better! Isn't that what a ruler is supposed to do?"
"James, slow down."
"She understands me too. I've told her about my piano playing and my compositions; I've written one for her now too. And once I find her, I'd like to court her and whenever she's ready, we can marry."
"James, listen to me." The king looked at his son and the glimmer in his eyes and frowned. "How do you know if this girl is even real?"
"I..." The anxiety was back. "I just know it, Father. She's too human to be fake."
"That's not any reason to assume she's real, James. She could be completely made up in your mind. Why don't you go out and find a real girl instead?"
"No! She's got to be real! She figured out I was the prince, so she's got to be in this kingdom somewhere."
"You can't just search the kingdom. You'll never find her."
James was panicking but somewhere among the panic he had an idea. "A ball."
"Pardon me?"
"We can host a ball! Send invitations to everyone in the kingdom and maybe, just maybe, I can find her."
"James..."
"Please, Father."
King Quentin looked into his son's eyes. He didn't know how, but he knew that his son was madly in love with this girl, real or fake.
"Fine." James's eyes lit up. "On one condition. If...Ava, is it?" He nodded. "If Ava is not at this ball, you've got to find yourself another girl at that ball. You're almost eighteen, son, and it's time for you to begin courting a proper future queen. There are plenty of princesses and noblewoman who would be lucky to marry someone like you. Ava or someone else at that ball. Do we have a deal?"
James quickly thought over his options. I'll find you Ava. I promise. "Deal."