One Shot

Pariah sighed at the image in the mirror. The huge white parade of a dress swallowed her, but her father approved and her maidens gushed about how beautiful she looked. She stood there silently as the seamstresses altered the dress for hours to hug her perfectly, occasionally looking in the mirror at the guard by the door who always met her gaze but never spoke.

Finally, the dress was tailored perfectly. It would probably take ten minutes and three maidens just to help Pariah get into the dress, but it was finished. When her father entered to look at the final result, he stood in shock as he looked at his daughter.

“What is it?” Pariah finally snapped.

“It’s nothing,” he said, clearing his throat. “Persephone, I think you look beautiful in that dress.”

“I think I look like a small ballroom,” she muttered.

“It doesn’t matter what you think you look like, it matters only if Prince Oliver approves. Which he will.” The king then left the room, exchanging a nod with Andrew.

Sighing again, Pariah attempted to sit down at her vanity stool, but she only fumbled and therefore got frustrated. “Damn this dress! It must be what Satan uses to torture those who murder their husbands!”

“I think you look beautiful,” Andrew said from behind her.

She and her maidens turned to look at him, the servants all exchanging looks of confusion. With a wave, Pariah bid, “Leave me alone for a moment. I’d like to come to terms with my fate in solitude.”

Immediately, the maidens and seamstresses stood and left, giving Andrew looks of “well, come on.” One even gave him a flirtatious glance, which almost made Pariah’s blood boil until she noticed Andrew’s eyes on her, not even giving the servants his peripheral sight. When he didn’t move, the maids left the door open a crack but departed.

“Andrew, please leave me,” Pariah mumbled. “I don’t want you seeing me in this.”

Glancing at the doorway, Andrew took a few steps forward until he was just behind her. When she turned, he leaned in and pressed a light, silent kiss to her cheek. “As you wish, your highness,” he replied, tilting his head back to the door. Then he departed as well.

Pariah immediately tried to sit again in frustration, but when the giant hoop contraption holding her dress stiff stopped her she stomped her feet and flopped onto her bed. The firm whale bone that the hoops were made of dug into her legs, but she couldn’t care less. She stared at the ceiling, fighting back tears.

Every day, Pariah’s anxiety grew as much as her love for Andrew. He’d spent every night with her in her chambers, some nights just to hold her until she fell asleep. They hadn’t done anything like what they had the first night, but they still weren’t completely innocent. They spoke about their interests and life in the castle, the rumors and whatnot, and they talked about fictional futures where they could pick what happened and stop the awful one from becoming true. She knew he was as in love with her as she was with him, and the knowledge pained her heart enough that it manifested physically and made her chest seize and ache.

Once she was married to Oliver tomorrow, she’d have to leave with him to his castle on the complete opposite side of the country. She’d tried to hint at taking Andrew with them, since he was her personal guard, but Oliver immediately shut it down, saying he had plenty of guards to protect her at his castle. She knew Oliver didn’t like Andrew, particularly after that night in her hallway.

A few silent tears fell from Pariah’s eyes as her reality sunk in. She’d have to leave Andrew, the only man she’d ever loved, tomorrow to marry some pretentious wanker! She’d almost rather die.

She was reminded of the play “Romeo and Juliet” and Andrew and her’s discussion of it. Never in a million years would she consider doing something so foolish as what Juliet had done, but it did seem more appealing than it had before.

A few light knocks came from the door. “Madame, we must dress you for supper,” a maiden said through the door.

Pariah stood and let them in, and as they removed the monster of a dress from her body she steeled her nerves and stood silent. Tonight she’d have to say goodbye to Andrew, and the thought made her wish she knew a Friar Laurence of her own.



That night, Pariah eagerly awaited her secret lover’s knock, but he didn’t come. Instead, when she opened the door a different guard informed her that Andrew was busy with another matter, but that he sent his regards. For the rest of the night, the princess cried into her pillow, not knowing if she’d ever see him again.



Standing in front of the mirror, Pariah’s maiden clipped her veil into her hair. Seeing herself made Pariah sick. The fact that she was getting married in an hour made her heart heavy and shut her brain off just so she didn’t have to think about it. After spending the night alone, there wasn’t any room in her heart for optimism; she only feared the worst of her soon-to-be-husband.

“There. Perfect,” the maiden, Esther, said. “You look absolutely wonderful, princess.”

Pariah shrugged the compliment off. “Thank you, Esther, but I cannot stand to even look at myself.” She pulled her skirt up and over her small stool so that way she could sit, a trick her seamstress had taught her.

Esther bent down to retie Pariah’s shoe. “Worry not, Pariah,” she whispered, “you won’t have to.”

Immediately, Pariah looked down to Esther. Not a soul but Andrew’s knew of her true name. With a wink, the maiden stood and left the room.

Pariah was left in absolute confusion. Had she overheard Andrew and her speaking? Did that mean that she knew of their affair? Was that wink a means of telling her she was going to tell her future husband? Or did it mean that she was keeping the secret safe?

The door suddenly opened, and in walked a decorated Andrew. Instead of his dark locks, a chainmail coif covered his head and over that the hood from his robe. He quickly shut the door behind him.

“Andrew!” Pariah whisper-shouted, not wanting anyone to hear through the walls. “What are you doing here?!”

Instead of replying verbally, he quickly strode forward and kissed her, taking her head in his hands. Pariah couldn’t help but return the impassioned kiss, but still a million questions raced through her mind.

“I’m sorry I was not with you on our final night,” he murmured, looking her in the eye. “Your father requested me to guard the castle door last night, to ensure nobody would try to enter. I’m so very sorry, dahlia.” He kissed her again. “I’m only here because one of my knights told me which room you’d be preparing in. We switched positions, but obviously I do not want your father to find out. Hence the hood.”

Pariah just shook her head with a smile. “You came to see me, and that’s all that matters, my love,” she whispered, kissing him again.

Andrew squeezed her to him tightly, holding her close as their lips parted and reunited several times. “I can’t stand the thought that these will be my last moments with you,” he murmured, his voice low to hide the pain that resided in it.

Immediately Pariah dug her head into the curve of his neck and shoulder, not caring about the impression the chainmail might leave on her cheek. “Don’t remind me,” she whispered. It only took her a moment to pull her head back and kiss him again, not wanting to wait another moment. Today her last bit of freedom would be taken from her, and she was not about to give it up without exercising it to the fullest extent.

Their lips parted simultaneously, opening to each other and letting their tongues move against one another. Pariah could feel Andrew’s grip hesitantly getting tighter, wanting to hold her but also knowing there wasn’t much he could do with the ceremony being in less than an hour.

It was when Pariah reached down and started stroking Andrew’s crotch outside of his pants that he pulled away. “Pariah, what are you doing?” he asked.

“Andrew, I’m about to be married to a man, who is worse than any person I could imagine in my mind, when I am in love with you. I am not leaving this room until I give my last remnants of freedom to you. I want you to take my maidenhead.”

His eyes widened. “Pariah,” he whispered.

“Please don’t argue with me, unless you truly just do not wish to engage in coitus with me,” she pleaded. “I love you, and I have never loved a man in my whole life! I cannot stand the thought that Prince Oliver tonight would know me in a way you have not.”

Andrew stood there, speechless. The care and desire he felt for here was so true, and she felt the same! He had been dreading this day for the last month, knowing she would be whisked away to another castle while he stayed here and protected a king who didn’t know the amazing person he was just giving away. Her words heated his blood and immediately he agreed. “Alright. But you must tell me if I’m hurting you. And we must find a way to take this dress off; I don’t want to ruin it with the fluids created with such an activity.”

Pariah rolled her eyes at the thought of him trying to maintain the dress’ perfection, but she agreed. “You’ll have to help me with that. This dress is a wasteland of traps to keep it on.” She turned around.

Carefully instructing him on how to do it, Pariah waited patiently as Andrew untied, unclasped, and unwound the layers and layers of her dress. Pariah could only imagine that dirty looks her maiden would be giving her when she tried to explain why her dress was in pieces around the room. The corset was the worst part, and once it was unwound Andrew gasped. “Why is this tightened so? There’s pink impressions on your skin!”

“They want me to look slimmer and bustier. Apparently that is Prince Oliver’s desired body type,” she answered, turning.

Andrew rolled his eyes and held his arms out. “Your body is by far the most perfect I’ve seen in my life. He is blind if he thinks differently. Your breasts and hips are so ample, and--”

“Enough, my love,” she said as she pushed herself against him. “I care not what that twat desires. I care that you desire me.”

“Lord, do I,” he preached as he leaned into her awaiting mouth. They met with such a fervor that Pariah moaned softly into his. When she instinctively reached up to stroke his dark locks, the coif stopped her.

“Strip, Andrew! Lest we’re caught before anything interesting happens.” She winked.

Andrew shook his head with a small smile. “Lock the door. Use a chair if you must. I want nothing to interrupt what’s about to happen-- not even armageddon brought upon us by God’s wrath!”

“I’m not sure that a chair would stop that,” Pariah teased as she walked to the door and checked for a lock. She was dismayed to find it didn’t have one, but a chair rested beside her vanity where maidens had expertly done up her hair and applied powders and rouge to make her appear sickly and also lively. Pariah thought she looked like a court jester.

Once the chair was properly arranged to keep someone from coming in, Pariah turned to her lover. Her jaw dropped as she gazed at Andrew’s slender frame as he removed his trousers. His erection bobbed upwards, and looking at it made Pariah’s mouth water. Once he kicked his trousers aside he met her gaze. Raising a brow he asked, “Do you not remember how gangly I am from our first night together?”

“No, I remember,” she murmured, stepping forward. She eyed his tattoos as she said, “That doesn’t make your physique any less piquant.” She stretched to her toes to meet his lips.

Placing his hands on her waist, Andrew murmured, “You are lust incarnate. Dying by your sin is a demise I welcome with open arms.” Gently, he pushed her back so she sat on the small bed in the corner of the room. He leaned into her lips again, and she wrapped her arms around his neck. With his hair now free, Pariah ran her fingers through it, which made him instinctively lean into her hand. She could feel the crown of his erection against her thigh, and she moved her hips and tried to scoot down.

Andrew had a small grin on his face as he pulled away. “Not yet, my love,” he murmured, placing one small kiss on her lips. He bent over as he cupped her breasts, and like a gentle flame he warmed her entire body.

While Pariah leaned into his touch and stroked his back, she couldn’t help but be restless. “Andrew, while you know I would bask in your adorations if I could, don’t you think our time could be better spent?”

He laughed and shook his head. “Pariah, you are the silliest woman I’ve ever met.” He moved in again and kissed her, gently rubbing the pad of his thumb against her nipple.

“And you are the most torturously slow-- hmph!” The princess was cut off as Andrew moved his hand in between her legs.

“While your voice could soothe a soul, shut up,” he demanded as he kneeled to the ground. As he pushed apart her legs, Pariah felt a small hesitation due to embarrassment. Sure, he had touched but he had never looked upon her.

The thought was ripped away from her the moment Andrew pressed his lips to the small bundle of nerves at the top of her core. She gasped, not having expected that. “What are you doing?” she almost shouted.

Looking up, he asked, “Has a man never administered cunnilngus on you?”

“Cunni-- what?” she asked.

Another smile parted Andrew’s lips. “Oh you’re in for it,” he said before lowering his mouth again.

Pariah’s eyes widened as she felt Andrew’s open mouth there! As his tongue reached out and lapped at her clit. Her head fell back as he began sucking and stroking the small nub. It made sense to her in hindsight that if a woman could please a man orally that a man should be able to do the same, but she wasn’t expecting it to feel this spectacular! He was lapping at the fluids she produced just by looking at him, and he was enjoying himself! Her eyes shut as she moaned out, “Andrew.”

He brought an arm up and slid it under her left leg, spreading her further. “You truly are such an exquisite dahlia,” he murmured. Bringing his other hand up, he began sucking on her clit again as he slid two fingers inside her.

Immediately, Pariah’s hips lifted. They were now out of her control. She looked back down at Andrew, who was focused solely on pleasing her. She ran a hand through his hair as his fingers moved, and she gently pulled. “Oh my God,” she whispered.

Andrew bit back a smile and he sucked stronger and made little designs with his tongue. He loved the effect he had on the princess. He found some pride and strength in knowing that Pariah would never be as sexually satisfied with any other man than with him. With this thought, he started pushing her harder, pressing against the upper wall of her snatch and moving his fingers in a slower but harsher movement. “Come for me, Pariah,” he mumbled against her.

Pariah’s hand in his hair tightened. He was certainly driving her there with his attentions. “God, yes,” she whimpered. Her hips tried to grind into his hand. It only look a few short moments for Pariah to tighten around Andrew’s hand and for her voice to fill the space. She touched herself, gripping her breast as her orgasm washed over body and made her ache to be touched and held all over. He continued his ministrations until her body grew limp, and when her straightened elbows gave out he removed his mouth. Surely he hadn’t made her pass out, had he?

Once Andrew was on his feet, he asked, “Are you okay, Pariah?”

She nodded, her chest heaving. “That was a very intense orgasm,” she admitted.

With a smile, Andrew pressed his lips to hers. “Ah, you are truly a delicate dahlia,” he murmured.

Quickly finding her resolve, Pariah sat up. “Not too delicate I hope,” she retorted.

Again, Andrew found himself chuckling. “Well, dahlia’s are known to be tenacious,” he pointed out. He looked down at her body, his mouth watering at the sight of her breasts. As he looked into her eyes, a sudden wave of fear came over him. What if she would regret giving this most sacred gift to him? What would the prince do if he found out?

Pariah could sense Andrew’s hesitation and she sat up all the way. “What’s wrong?”

He shook his head and took her hands. “I’m just worried that you’ll regret our coupling in the long run. I’m not even really afraid of hurting you, because my plan is not to. But, what if your new husband can tell you aren’t virginal? What would he do to you? I couldn’t stand the thought of you being hurt.”

Pariah stood, bringing her face closer to his. His eyes darted away, trying not to face her, but it took a whisper from her for him to look at her again. “Andrew, I would die before I would let a man who doesn’t love me take something that should only be taken consensually. I do not care about Prince Oliver and what he does with me. I mean I do, and I wish this marriage were not happening, but there isn’t enough torture contraptions in the world to make me tell him it was you. I will always protect this.”

“I’m not worried about my life,” Andrew mumbled.

“Me neither.” Pariah shrugged.

Their eyes locked for a moment before Andrew let out a sigh followed by a brief chuckle. “Alright, but it’s our funeral,” he joked before pulling her in by the waist. When their skin met Pariah smiled back, and she wrapped her arms around his throat as they kissed. She lowered her body slowly so she wouldn’t hurt him as she sat on the bed, and he moved with her. Her fingers tangled in his hair as the other hand steadied her on the bed, and Andrew brought a knee onto the bed. He looked down at their bodies before returning her gaze. “You’re absolutely sure?”

“Absolutely,” she replied.

He nodded and leaned in to kiss her, holding his erection. When he pulled away he gently touched her sex, which was still soaked and totally ready. With a final look, he pressed his lips to hers as he pushed his cock inside her.

They both gasped, Pariah in slight pain and Andrew at the tightness and warmth. He looked up at her as he pushed almost all the way inside, leaving out an inch or two, and asked, “Are you okay?”

She nodded, biting her lip. She wasn’t going to lie to him. “It hurts a little, but it’s okay.”

He nodded and reached down, using his thumb to gently rub her clit. She hissed in sudden pleasure and then pain as he pulled out and pushed in again. The sensations on her clit felt good, and the way his dick was stretching her cunny felt oddly good also. While the tender tissue was stretching, it simultaneously felt like she was being completed. He was pushing against parts of her body she’d never felt before, and she loved it.

After a few tender moments with much self restraint on Andrew’s part, Pariah whispered, “I think it’s okay. Give me more.” She met his eyes and didn’t break.

He waited a moment so she was sure before pushing in a little faster. He gauged her reaction carefully, and her gasp didn’t give him much of an inclination either way. She looked up at him again and nodded, so he continued that pace.

Pariah didn’t know how to even comprehend the sensations clashing in her lower belly. She felt so full and stretched, and at the same time there was all this emotion and love and care starting to build in her sternum and up into her chest. She was so in love with Andrew. Prince Oliver be damned.

“Andrew, take me,” she murmured. “Don’t hold back. Make me feel what you feel. I can handle it, I promise.”

Andrew had settled onto one hand on the bed, so when he looked up at her their eyes were very close. “I don’t want to hurt you,” he told her.

“You won’t.” She gently scratched his back.

He stayed still for a moment before leaning into her neck and moving his hips back. His pace quickened, and he felt his chest tightening and the pleasure it brought. He worried for a moment how pained his love must be, but was surprised when she heard a moan. Glancing up at her, he noticed her eyes were shut in pleasure and her eyebrows were furrowed. “Andrew,” she gasped, panting.

He dragged his hips back and forth, the sensations of her hot snatch heating his blood. He could hardly believe he was making love to the woman beneath him and felt such pleasure in doing so. No other woman had held his heart so tightly. As he groaned above her, he rested his forehead against hers and met her eyes. “I love you,” he murmured.

Pariah’s eyes shut as the sensations coming from her cunt overwhelmed her for a moment. His words made her swoon. “I love you too,” she replied, opening her eyes back up to his. She stretched her neck and kissed him.

He eagerly kissed her back, pushing against her harder. When she moaned he knew that the pain would be over now, and he moved a bit more freely. Her hand on his back was digging into his flesh, but it only made him more aroused. He could feel the way she was tightening around him, almost milking him. He knew he couldn’t come inside her, in fear of putting a baby there, but his heart lightened at the thought that maybe one day they could. He wouldn’t think of the more likely outcome.

Pariah cried out above her. She was being pushed to her limits and he was going to exceed them. She’d never known the touch of a man could feel so good. Knowing he was the one to take her this way, with both of them in love with another, made all of these feelings intensify, and she could feel another orgasm building inside her. She had no reservations as she let her lover give her another one, hoping she could give him one as well.

Feeling Pariah squeeze around his phallus and moan out made Andrew shiver. He could feel himself coming close too, but he was in a dilemma. What would he do with his seed? He would have to figure it out soon, as he could tell his end was nigh.

Pariah fell back to lay flat on the bed once her orgasm began to fade. This gave Andrew a bit of a better vantage point, being able to place both his hands on the bed. As he rocked back and forth, Pariah could almost swear he was in her stomach. He was certainly well-endowed!

Panicking, Andrew looked at his girl to figure out what to do. He was maybe five or six more strokes away, and yet he had no clue where to spend himself!

The minute his eyes flickered to hers, Pariah understood what was about to happen. She sat up, and when Andrew’s shoulders tensed she moved back and quickly took him in her hand. He began coming almost instantly, his moans filling the room and almost making her smile. She would’ve, if her mouth weren’t already full with his spunk to keep things clean.

After his orgasm finished, Pariah rose to her knees. She wiped at her mouth as Andrew pulled her closer, and in a manner of joking she opened her mouth to him to show she’d swallowed it all. With a tired grin he cooed “Good girl” at her before kissing her. He wrapped his arms around her waist as Pariah cupped his face in her hands. She was euphoric! She’d just had her virginity taken by the man she loved, and now--

Abruptly, her mood was ruined. Now she would have to put Satan’s fabric incarnation back on her body and walk down an aisle to marry a man who almost cared about her less than she cared about him.

Pariah tore away from Andrew, sitting back on her heels and hiding her face in her hands. “How am I supposed to leave you now?!” she cried.

Immediately Andrew sat beside her and pulled her into her chest, resting his chin on her head. “Shh, my love. Please don’t cry. I fear you’ll make me react likewise.”

She shook her head. “It isn’t fair! The one good thing in my life is being torn away from me! And what did I do to deserve it?! Am I truly an evil thing that gets this punishment because I killed my mother?”

“No, Pariah, that’s nonsense. Please calm down.” He kissed her head. “You are not evil. Do not ever think that of yourself. You are truly a dark dahlia, one which has fought against everything thrown at it. And you will endure still, I’m sure. It’s something I adore most about you: your perseverance. It’s easy to give up your spirit when everyone tries to take it from you, and yet here you are. You are hellfire itself. And I love you.”

She looked up at him, tears spilling from her eyes. Gently, he wiped them away with his thumb. “I will love you forever,” Andrew murmured. “Not a woman in this universe could take my heart from your grasps. I know you won’t let them.”

Pariah’s mind was a thunderstorm in the summer. Her thoughts were frenzied as she tried to think of ways to profess her love to the boy in front of her and try to calm herself. This wasn’t fair! She wanted so badly to be with him, her one love, and she was about to be pulled away because of her father and this royal family.

Her anger began building. She had never done anything to her father to deserve a lifetime of punishment such as this! She had tried to respect him and treat him with the dignity he deserved as a king despite his treatment towards her. Well, no longer! If he didn’t care about her wishes, she wouldn’t care about his need for modesty!

In a flash, Pariah launched up and wiped her eyes. She heard Andrew behind her ask, “What is it?”

Pariah pulled the shift and robe from the end of the bed on as quickly as she could. “I’m speaking with my father right now. Nobility in my home be damned!”

“Pariah, don’t do something you’ll regret,” he tried, pulling his pants on quickly.

After tying her robe, she shouted back, “I’m not allowed the one thing I want; what else do I have to lose?” She quickly ran to the door and pulled the chair aside and entered the hallway. There were three maidens who immediately looked flustered, as if they’d be caught with their hand in a cookie jar. Pariah got the idea of what that meant but she just demanded, “Where is my father?”

One of them answered in the study with her betrothed, so Pariah picked the bottom of her robe up and began running, trying to avoid the main hall so as not to truly embarrass both families. She heard Andrew’s voice behind her at the door, but she barrelled on, taking the stairs two at a time. She was breathless when she reached the study, and when she opened the door the two men she loathed the most stood close, laughing over a glass of rich brown spirits. They both looked up at the sudden intrusion, and her father’s eyes widened in embarrassment. “Persephone! What in God’s name are you--”

“I’m not marrying this man!” she shouted, interrupting. She shut the door behind her as she decreed, “I’ve never been allowed one thing I truly want in my life and I am sick of it! Prince Oliver--” she sneered at him, “is a rat in a boy’s poor skin! He tried coming to my chambers in the night and to touch me before being wed, even in places like a dinner table!”

Oliver shook his head, smirking. “And you aren’t just saying this to get out of marrying me?”

The king glanced at him with a look that said “shut your mouth.” Oliver bit his tongue and took a sip of whiskey. The king continued, “Persephone, I do not care that Prince Oliver finds you desirable. He and his family have made quite the effort to--”

“Well I do! I won’t stand to be married to him. I’d rather jump out of the window beside you than marry a twat like him.” She crossed her arms.

“What a dirty mouth you have,” Oliver murmured.

“If you say one more word to me I’ll cut your tongue out in your sleep,” Pariah seethed, and he just smirked and took another sip.

“Do not talk to your betrothed this way,” the king almost shouted. “Go downstairs and get ready! I swear, Persephone, what has gotten into you? A nice young man comes and falls in love with you, and you treat him this way?”

Before Pariah can speak again there were a few knocks on the door. When they looked, Andrew, fully clothed, was standing in the door and peeking in. “I heard a commotion, and just wanted to ensure everything was okay.”

There’s a long moment of silence as Pariah looked at him, her heart beating harder than it ever had before. She could still feel the aftershocks of the moments they had just spent together, and when they locked eyes she couldn’t look away.

“I knew it!” Prince Oliver shouted. He set his drink down. “Your majesty, I believe your guard has had the eyes for my lady for some time now, and I believe that he has tried to fool her into a sense of freedom with him!”

The king raised an eyebrow at the accusation, but when he looked at Pariah he could tell it was somewhat true. “Persephone,” he mumbled.

“Oliver’s right. I’ve fallen in love,” she sighed, not being able to hold such a secret anymore. “This guard has protected me every night for the last month in preparations for this wedding, and I’ve fallen in love. But he’s--”

Andrew cut her off, “just in love with her.” When he walked in, he shut the door also and looked the king and Oliver in the eye. Pariah could scarcely believe what was happening. He was falling on the sword with her!

“I’ve truly, honestly fallen in love with the princess,” Andrew admitted. “I knew better of it. I tried to mask my feelings and bury them because I knew she was to marry this prince, but I couldn’t.” He placed a hand on the small of Pariah’s back. “I didn’t want this outcome. I want nothing but her happiness always. But she has told me time and time again how much she detests the prince and his way of showing affection.” He shot a look at Oliver. “I understand this is not protocol, that it is wrong in the eyes of the church and state. However I’m in love with her, your majesty. If that means death for feeling this way I’ll embrace it with open arms. “

Pariah could feel herself tearing up as she looked at Andrew, and she only felt love in her heart and fear in her stomach. She placed a hand on his chest as she looked at her father, and Andrew gently scratched her back.

Oliver burst out in laughter. “That’s truly pathetic. A guard falling for a princess? How awful. You poor sap, you probably ju--”

With a wave of his hand, the king silence the prince. After looking at the both of them, he asked, “Is what he said true, Persephone?”

She nodded. “Every word. And I’m in love with him tenfold. I’ve never felt this before.”

There was a long pause as the king looked at the two. Oliver began, “You’re not seriously considering--” but the king waved the noise away again. After a long moment, the king bid, “Andrew, take the prince downstairs so I may have a word alone with my daughter.”

Pariah could feel Andrew swallowing his fears. “Yes, your majesty.” He bowed slightly and rubbed his thumb against her back before moving to the door and opening it, waiting for Oliver. With a small tantrum, he stomped to the door and down the stairs. Andrew didn’t dare peek back as he shut the door.

Pariah collapsed on the couch she stood in front of, her nerves and panic eating at her. She rested her face in her hands. “I know I have embarrassed you, and I’m so, so sorry.”

She felt her father walk to her and sit beside her. “Persephone, why didn’t you tell me sooner?”

She sniffled and wiped her eyes. “I was afraid you would have him killed. You’ve never shown mercy to someone who has angered you, nor have you shown any affection for me. I just thought the worst.”

He stilled and sighed, pausing a moment. “I guess I truly haven’t been fair to you. I never knew how to treat you after your mother died. I didn’t know how it would affect you, not having a mother. I thought a governess would help but you detested her. I guess instead of trying to fit you in a mold I could’ve done something better...”

Pariah held her breath as she waited for him to continue.

“A lot of clean up will have to be done. We’re going to have to apologize to his family profusely and return their gold, although they’ll probably ask for more due to cancellation,” he said, looking at his boots. “But, it’s a price I’m willing to pay.”

Her eyes widened as she stared at him. “You mean it?”

“Of course,” he answered, looking at her. “Persephone, I apologize for being such a dictator in your life. Sometimes I forget that you are a person just like I am. If you’re truly in love with this boy, then I’ll allow the wedding between you two. His father is a very honorable man, and so I presume his son is too. It will be scandalous, sure, but I will deal with that. Of course, we cannot immediately begin preparations for this new wedding, as that would raise suspicion, but--”

Pariah cut him off with a hug as tears streamed down her face. This was something neither one of them had ever done before, so it took a moment before the king wrapped his arms around his daughter. “Thank you,” she whispered.

“You’re welcome.” He kissed her head. “I just hope that with this new wedding we can try to reprimand our relationship also.” Pulling away, he added, “Please don’t do anything stupid with this boy. We must keep things quiet for now.”

She nodded, wiping her eyes. “I know, I know. Thank you.”

He gave her a nod back before standing. “If you’ll excuse me, I have to begin this ugly transition. Don’t worry, however, I’ll ensure that none of anger falls on you. Was it true what you said before about him being inappropriate?”

She silently nodded.

“Then that boy will get a verbal warning to leave my house before I have a guard skewer him,” he stated before walking to the door. He glanced back at her before exiting.

Pariah laughed through joyful tears. One day she was going to marry Andrew. She finally had something she wanted.

Notes

To Pear:

Game, set...