December 15, 777, Nozark - Capital.
She had never felt so clean. After settling into her room, she had a parade of maids storm in and start cleaning her body. She fell asleep in the bathtub provided for her, however was pulled out and massaged until she was forced into a dress and sent to dinner with the butler. The dress was a simple white one however it was comfortable in every way, as if it were made for her. She felt like she could cartwheel in it and asked if she could tour the garden outside her room before going to dinner. Her butler nodded and she walked away from him and walked to a large tree that sat in the centre of the garden. It all seemed very familiar, as if she had been here before. She touched the tree and breathed in, she felt her body relax when suddenly an arm wrapped around her waist and spun her around.
Her fighting instincts were about to kick in when she heard the familiar voice of Duke Lucius, she saw that he was bowed down, kissing her hand, she also noted that there was no one around and pulled it from his lips, forcing her blush down again. His touch had made her knees weak for a second, however she would never let it show. He began crowding her personal space until her back was against the tree, for some reason she knew that she could never win in a fight against this man, physical or verbal. "How can I help you?" She barely whispered as his face leaned in close to her, his frame was much larger than hers which was surprising because she was quite tall. She stood at 175 cm but he towered over her frame in a way that was dominating beyond belief. Her chin was tilted up more than it had ever been as she stared at his emerald eyes, what did he want from her.
His breath hit her ears as he leaned into them and whispered, "I was hoping to gain a taste of this girl I met in a bar, Ginny's her name, have you seen her?" She felt herself whimper slightly, her strength shaking as she clawed the tree to stay up.
"You can't have a taste of her, not now, not ever." She growled as she tried to push him off her, he didn't even budge. His head leaned down and he inhaled deeply, making her stiff and hold her breath as his fingers held her waist, as he exhaled, deeply and slowly, his thumbs felt the inner curve of her waist, making her feel butterflies through her stomach and fire through her body. She hated the weakness he had made her feel since their first meeting and practically sprinted when he finally let her go after muttering a quick "I have to go eat dinner". He laughed at her sprinting silhouette and laughed as he trailed behind her.
She found the butler stationed at the same spot and smiled at him whilst saying "I was worried I would be late!" he smiled and let her calm down before leading her down the hallway. "Sorry for making you wait." She mumbled as she stared at the calm face of the butler.
"Madam, you are a Princess of our nation, I have to wait forever." She didn't like that.
"Sir, I think you are more worthy than any fool in this Palace to run our kingdom, so please don't give me so much credit. Next time, don't wait, go do what you must and return to me and make me wait. Keep me grounded." She heard him chuckle and grinned at him. "Although, the Emperor does have a better hairline." She laughed as he touched his bald head.
"Ma'am, didn't you notice it was a wig?" She feigned shock and laughed with him. Neither of them noticed the dark figure behind them, holding in his own laughter.
"Okay, Madam, I leave you here. Good luck in there with the vultures." His knowing look made her gulp and she stepped into the final hallway, one door in front of her, waiting to be opened, and the door behind her closing lightly.
"I can't believe the Emperor wears a wig." Lucius whispered into her ear, making her jump, but he turned her around and held her to his waist with his arm. "This will be a fun dinner, Princess, I'm glad they put you in a flowing white dress," his other hand pushed her lower back and snuck lower, "because it has the most openings."
"Stop harassing me." She groaned, feeling embarrassed by his touches. She missed her cloak, it hid every curve in her body and kept the hands of men off her. She only took it off in her home or at the bar because when she didn't, she found herself assaulting a lot of men. Unfortunately, she knew that she couldn't hurt this man even if she tried, and she truly didn't want to. Perhaps her celibacy had made her want to experiment or she was just growing up, but she felt an attraction to the handsome man in front of her more than any man she had seen before. It was like feeling fireworks in her stomach and she wanted more. But she had to stop herself because she knew that being with this man would be like breathing for the first time, he would become second nature to her.
He pulled away before staring at her blushing face. He leaned in and she felt his lips on hers and was stunned, what made him so audacious? Even in the outskirts where she lived, everyone had heard of his reputation as an introvert, someone who lived for work and served the Royals like a dog. Not a single woman had even come close to him in years and yet, here he was, kissing her.
He felt her lips and the fireworks he felt from touching her skin, breathing her scent, staring at her pink eyes multiplied tenfold. He hungered the taste of her lips like it was the tastiest dish in the world and when she opened her mouth slightly and kissed him back he felt like the luckiest man alive for the first time in his life. Her hand settled in his hair and she ever so slightly bit his lip as his hand pulled her legs onto his waist before pushing her against the wall. From the moment he met her, his heart started to race and now, well he was scared he was having a heart attack. Nothing had ever felt so right, so meant to be before he met her, but her wit, her eyes, her care and compassion, they made him nervous like a schoolboy. She moaned so slightly and he felt himself tighten as his tongue slid down her throat. When they finally pulled away, he looked and felt like a mess. She pulled him down and fixed his hair, he swiped her makeup slightly, cleaning it up around her lips, and left the hallway after whispering "I'll enter in three minutes." she nodded and watched him leave in a daze.
'Inhale and exhale, Ginny' she told herself as she did it, she pushed the door open and entered a dining room lacking food. She was still a few minutes early, which was why she had walked in the garden, and sat on the opposite side of the table from the rest of the family. She greeted them all and smiled at them and received a hug from the Emperor. She wondered how such a kind looking and acting man could have committed such crimes but kept her opinions to herself. Her gaze swept over the rest of her new family, all white haired with crimson eyes save for the Queen's husband, King in name only, who had brown eyes.
She wondered how it was possible they all had white hair, it was a recessive gene so the kids made sense but how did the Queen find a King who also had white hair. She started to notice similarities in how they looked and wondered if they were related somehow. While incest was deeply frowned upon, the Royals didn't carry DNA like most people. Their blood wasn't red, it was clear with a rainbow glaze, so it meant that Royals could get married to their cousins and it was okay. She personally thought it was disgusting but chose not to judge them too harshly because it was the norm for the pales.
"You have such a unique skin colour, Genevieve, or was it Ginny? Does that happen when you're a commoner?" Her cousin piped up, her smile made her face seem more punchable than usual. Ginny flashed her whites at her cousin and exhaled.
"Yes, it is actually. It's proof we work hard and earn what we have rather than just receive, but you wouldn't know a day of work, would you? Hard work truly builds character, is that something you also want, dear cousin?" Ginny cocked her head to the side, innocently, her pale dress making her seem like a delicate flower. She saw her cousin fume and was about to retort when the doors opened and the Duke walked in. He greeted everyone before sitting next to Ginny, his palm naturally falling into her thigh. It was so smoothly executed she didn't even notice it, it just felt natural.
"I can't wait for the food," he whispered to her, she raised her brows and he continued, "Royals only eat the best." She grinned at him and felt a scorching gaze on her once again. Her cousin was fuming more than before. She realised that her eyes were on both of them and wondered if she had a crush on the Duke, he also noticed her eyeline and his gaze turned cold when it landed on the young Princess. He was most likely the only man in the country who could talk to Royals the way he did, Lady Price would be the only other person. "Is there an issue, Princess?" She blushed and shook her head. He turned back to Ginny and gaze melted like snow in Spring. "Have you had a tour of all the Palaces yet?" He asked, she shook her head and he grinned. "I'd be happy to take you around, if the Emperor permits?"
"Of course, take her around. I'd rather you than the promiscuous men who would try to take her." The Emperor said with a jolly laugh. She thought, the most dangerous of those men is next to me, Emperor, how could you not see it? But kept quiet and smiled instead.