[IC] The Betrothed

[Hashih]

Pain medications were humanity’s response to the alarm raised by the human body. Where pain was present, there was bound to be something wrong. Like the farmer girl’s twisted ankle, for instance. That her stubborn brain continuously insisted that she was fine even though she was not, was telling a lot about the lengths at which she would go to defy his wishes. The pain was there for a reason, and try as she might, she could not cover her limp up with gait.

While her green eyes feasted on the scenery that Luke woke up to every morning, the city viewed from a distance, her fiancé secured a glass of water. He took a mental note to review the floor plan of the suite to understand which areas within the suite would risk of going beyond their ten-meter radius. He carried the glass of water with him to the bedroom, following Rhiane as she was talking about him being a lizard and possibly taking him up on his sarcasm. He did not put it beyond her to really lie on the floor just to spite him. Their less than twenty-four-hour relationship was defined by each other’s competitive efforts to bring out the worst from the other person. Though perhaps it was not intentional.

Two adjacent sides of Luke’s bedroom were made of glass, the other two were solid wall that divided the space of the suite and defined his sleeping quarters. The design was also minimalist, consisting of only a couple of furniture and fixtures. On the right side of the room was a raised platform where a very spacious bed that could easily fit five people was stationed. On both its sides were floating bedside tables. Near the floor-to-ceiling glass wall, on the left side of the bed, was a desk scattered with papers where Luke’s tablet computer was on stand-by, supported by its kickstand. He crossed the room ahead of her and placed the glass of water and the pain medications on the desk before waking the computer up through the finger print scanner.

“Not just any lizard, Godzilla,” he smirked absently remembering a movie he saw as a child that made him interested in nuclear power generators. There was little chance that Rhiane have heard of the giant radioactive lizard that terrorized Japan, whose popularity traveled across the world to the United States. He would be impressed if she even had the slightest idea of what he was talking about.

Leaning with his weight resting on his hands against the edge of the desk, his attention was caught by a follow-up for his feedback on the draft submitted by the Ministry of Agriculture. That day was his self-imposed deadline and he meant to finish it after he had dealt with Ms. Black. Without lifting his head from the monitor, he told her, “I used to have a dog. His name was Seamus. He dislikes sleeping on the floor, so he used to sleep with me on the bed, near my feet.” Luke tore his attention from the monitor long enough to show her a lopsided grin. “If you insist on the pet --”

Luke’s words were caught in his throat as she faltered on her next step. Without letting his thoughts paralyze him, the crown prince crossed the room in quick strides and caught her arm before she planted her face on the floor. If her make-up artists skipped concealers beneath her eyes, he guessed it would have shown dark circles signaling fatigue. Her eyes were tired when he pulled her up against his chest and put his arm around her to steady them. It must be the combination of the discomfort on her ankle, the fatigue that had come from the rigorous testing weeks earlier, the lack of sleep, and her refusal to eat the food he ordered, that had finally taken a toll on her.

“Unbelievable. Your pride might be the only force keeping you on your feet right now. If you had eaten lunch, you might have had more kick in you. The pizza was decent.” He gathered her in his arms like he did at the restaurant. She was so light he didn’t have any trouble lifting her up and walking a significant distance at the restaurant. He brought her to the bed and carefully laid her down instead his original plan to just drop her above the mattress. The woman could barely keep her eyes open, but she was fighting against it. “Silly girl, just go to sleep and allow me to have some peace.” Luke was about to head back to his desk, but he seemed to remember something that made him sit on the bed beside her. “What was it that you have against the food that I ordered? Was it not something Edwin would have ordered for you?” Without thorough knowledge about either her past and her family, he assumed that the name she whispered in her sleep was a name of a former, or perhaps present, lover. It was highly likely so, seeing that she was dreaming of him.

[Syrenrei]

As expected Luke's bedroom was just as absurdly luxurious as the rest of his dedicated floor. Rhiane had a passing thought she had never seen a bed quite so massive, not even in vacation brochures, and had no notion why bigger was always better. Unless the crown prince was entertaining several women at a time- something that would not escape the tabloids- it was too wasteful to be impressive. Her gaze slipped over the space as she noted his minimalism and wondered idly if it was a reflection of who he truly was. Interviews and magazines did not give an accurate portrait of the royal. Given that he did not drift around the engagement ball for long and had a distaste for idle chatter she suspected at least socially he was a person who believed only in fostering relationships that proved themselves necessary. People that had no use earned his disdain as surely as furniture that had no function.

In response to her jesting Luke made a reference to a lizard she had never heard of, Godzilla, and then began to casually prattle on about a dog. The farmer was slightly intrigued that someone so emotionally distant had a pet. To keep one required care of a beast that possessed little objective value, yet that was unlike the condescending man who had been so insistent he did not need a commoner wife. It was hard not to be insulted by the implications the bearer of his progeny was less tolerable than a canine.

Her annoyance was short-lived. As he turned to grin at her Rhiane felt her good leg, the one not supported by a brace, crumple under the strain of her weight. Expecting to meet the cold, hard floor she was surprised to find that Luke had crossed the distance and instinctively grabbed her arm. The room was now spinning as she made a feeble effort to gather the offending limbs under her in hopes of steadying herself. It was the supporting arm of the prince that kept her upright as she leaned against him heavily. This moment was the culminations of weeks of trials that taxed her mentally and physically, a restless night of sleep, of a sore joint, of inadequate meals. The doctor had ordered her to her bedchambers to recover but had underestimated how uncomfortable she'd feel with the silicone sleeve, how unaccustomed she was to being up past sunset, how worried she was about the news coverage that she could no longer effect.

Swept up into Luke's arms she very nearly succumbed to slumber. Her eyelids drooped as both her breathing and pulse slowed to embrace the state of repose. The princess elect was too numb and drowsy to appreciate the tender way in which she was deposited onto the bedding rather than dropped. Even his chiding was softened. Being called a silly girl was not an insult, not for someone as sharp-tongued as Luke, and perhaps later she would realize he was not without compassion even for a peasant. Cally was neither naive or blindly placing her brother on a pedestal when she asserted he 'wasn't that bad.' There was still hope that the charade wouldn't be a mangled show of disappointment.

A tiny sigh escaped Rhiane's lips at his question. Caught between the waking world and the world of dreams as she was there were no inhibitions. She had been truthful when she stated she would not lie to Luke, that she would be sincere, but she was unable to deceptive even if so inclined at present. There was not the presence of mind to be anything more than forthright. "The pizza," she murmured, "It's hard to eat when I'm upset and... the marinara. They warned me to be careful eating too many things I don't normally, that it could give me indigestion, and that would have made us both miserable. At home we usually just had pizza with oil, keeps longer, easier to make..." The farmer would have balked at knowing she had just admitted that part of her decision making had anything to do with his benefit. Her outward projection was seeking ways to find Luke miserable rather than deftly avoiding them when it was minimally convenient.

Her eyes, which had glazed over, finally fluttered closed as she let out a soft exhale. Rhiane's features took on a more tortured, melancholy expression as she rolled on her side, not avoiding his latter inquiry but rather thinking of the subject before speaking. "Edwin," she breathed with yearning, "it should have been me, not Edwin. He was the best of us, should have inherited everything, would have... have made Dad proud. He always knew what to do," she confessed as her words began to slur together, "but he's gone." There was a finality with which she spoke that mad it clear that 'gone' did not mean he had moved, or run away, or traveled to a distant country with wanderlust. Edwin was clearly a sibling she idolized and had died, years ago from the furtive distance in her words, and whom she thought had been more worthy of being among the living.

Rhiane had joined the contest knowing the end result. In all the psychological tests and assessments they had brought up Edwin, her mother, her childhood, and everything else that conventional wisdom told them would have shaped her as a person. Not once had she given voice to the belief that the wrong child of the Black family had perished. She had known what conclusion they would inevitably arrive at: that she had extremely unhealthy views of her own mortality. It was her biggest secret and one she had just alluded to while drunk on the need for sleep. Oblivious, and still vulnerable to the inquiring mind sitting beside her on the bed, she started to ease into a light doze.

[Hashih]

It was past three in the afternoon. Although the sun had sailed across the horizon and was hanging behind the crown prince like a single eyeball staring into the suite, it was not at all hot. The sunrays did penetrate the glass, but a special shutter filtered the heat and diffused the light so that it was neither dark nor too bright. It was a comfortable brightness for Luke, very conducive for work.

More than an hour had passed since the princess elect had fallen into the clutches of sleep rather unwillingly. If she had the chance, he thought, she would take an energy drink just so she could stay on her feet and count the possible ways she could make him mad. Therefore, it surprised him when she admitted that she was holding back her appetite to save them both from the misery of her having indigestion. It surprised him not because she had the self-control to hold back on a delicacy that she confessed was rarely available in the place where she grew up, but because despite her outward efforts to go against his will, she did consider him in her decision-making process. Maybe she thought that a miserable Luke was a more unbearably arrogant Luke, and she sought to save herself from that monster.

The crown prince paused from the text that he was reading. His eyes lifted from the screen and wandered on the figure in denim jacket lying on his bed. He deliberately left her to sleep on the sheets, without taking an effort to throw a blanket over her shoulder in case she was feeling cold. It was a gesture that could be misinterpreted by the farmer girl, and he would not have it. Their relationship was purely political. The prince was a little glad that she was not the princess elect he had been imagining, that her purpose was not to win his love, but to secure a fortune for her family. The fortune he could grant her, but his heart he could never give. After everything was said and done, Rhiane Black was a peasant girl who would sooner than later disappear from his life through an ‘accident’ much like what happened to his father. Whether he liked it or not, that was how his world operated. It would be easier if he did not have to be entangled with anybody outside his social class, because the reality was that to the people in power, those beneath them were dispensable.

Something she said as she was falling asleep bothered him. That it should have been her and not Edwin. It was then made clear that Edwin was a lost brother and not a lover. Pity that he too lost his blackmail material. Anyway, he wondered if her joining the contest and ultimately winning the title had something to do with a death wish due to a loss that until that moment she could not bring herself to accept. “He will never come back no matter how hard you torture yourself,” he had whispered to her with certainty as she was falling asleep and before he left the bed. It was the same with his father. The pain was present until that day. It never went away, he just learned to live with it.

Luke rested his head on his left palm, massaging his left temple. The review of the draft was finished, but he missed a meeting with the committee secretly formed by the queen to oversee the rebellion problem. There was an email containing the minutes, but he felt like he was going around in circles in his mind. He kept on trying to form a straight thought, but a part of his brain would circle back to the events that happened that morning and how he ended up with a farmer girl on his bed. Her presence was an unanticipated distraction for him that afternoon.

But perhaps what he needed was to relax a little, clear his mind, and get away from the capital. He knew of such a place, or places, where he would usually go alone when the royal life was getting the best of him and just be himself. The cool breeze of the coming winter would be welcome to touch his face and ruffle his hair. He could already hear the waves and taste the salt in the air. Luke turned the keyboard projected on the desk off and put the computer on stand-by again. While the queen was mad at him and his freedom was limited, he would have to bear with bringing somebody along with him to his special place. Normally, he wouldn’t even consider doing so, but there was no other option. Thus, he got to his feet and found his way to the bed.

Luke sat on the bed behind her and touched his hand on her shoulder. Sleeping time was over. “Ms. Black,” he said, gently shaking her. “Wake up we’re going somewhere.”

[Syrenrei]

"You should have listened to him and taken the medicine," Edwin stated. In the world of dreams they were sitting on the wooden steps of the front porch. The pair of siblings sat comfortably with their shoulders pressed against each other though Edwin was half a foot taller. A winding gravel driveway meandered from the right side of the house and to a worn road in the distance. To their left was a flower garden that had been tended to by their mother while she lived, thriving under her green thumb, with one bloom or another always in season. Though they were poor and nothing in their life was luxurious there was still beauty. Rhiane found tranquility in knowing that the flowers would die by be reborn the same time next year and that the no matter what crops were in the fields, no matter how battered the land was by storms, there would be a reliable path leading them to the safety of town. The female farmer inhaled the fresh air of the countryside that was nothing but a conjured illusion of her subconscious.

"You know how I feel about it," Rhiane retorted as she leaned her head on her brother's shoulder affectionately. This was how she always remembered him. A pillar of strength that could endure anything without flinching. Only when the disease ravaged him had he seemed compromised, but the illness had not robbed him of his dignity even then. Rationally she knew that no one as as perfect as she made him to be in these projections but it was her place of respite. Here should be supported instead of supportive.

"I know how I feel about it because I am you," Edwin sighed. "Before you hated them because of what happened to all of us, because there weren't enough supplies and so they demanded payment for treatment, because you blame them for letting us die." With a tender smile he turned and took Rhiane's hands in his own. She tried to jerk away but found herself unable. As she was controlling both sides of the conversation, both halves of the dream, she could both attempt an escape and prevent it simultaneously. "But now you have a chance to live without those worries. You can just focus on being healthy instead of forcing yourself to walk each row of soy checking for signs of blight."

"I can't trust him," she grumbled, referring to none other than Luke. Edwin-self laughed and patted her hands with amusement.

"What's his angle? How does he possibly benefit in helping to alleviate your pain?" The male farmer stood and put his hands on his hips as he surveyed the plowed and seeded soil that stretched out of sight in front of them. Verdant buds had just begun to emerge from the ground in perfectly symmetrical lines. This had been a classic pose of the real counterpart of her psyche's remembrance. When he knew he had won an argument he would always proudly look away, as if disinterested, as he savored not only the victory but the frustration of the conquered as the realization dawned on them.

"I don't like him," she protested of her fiance. Even with his back to her Rhiane could sense his quiet yet firm disbelief. In the glimpses of compassion she had faltered and, while she was not even moderately infatuated, she did not hate him quite as fervently as she did before.

The scene was dispelled, vanishing instantly, as a handle gently shook her awake. Her abrupt departure from the mirage startled her and she jerked slightly under Luke's touch before relaxing. A hand absently rubbed at her eyes as she sluggishly started to process what the crown prince had said. Because she didn't remember falling asleep she was disoriented at the sight of the minimalist bedroom with the hypnotizing view. Slumber had been a godsend. It would take a few minutes to get her bearings but she was refreshed and her ankle's throbbing had subsided. The tremors of her good leg, which had been overtaxed bearing all her weight for twenty minutes consecutively, had disappeared entirely.

"Call me Rhiane," she insisted as she pushed herself upright, "Lowly peasant such as myself doesn't deserve to be called Ms. anything by someone such as yourself," she chided half-heartedly. It was more important he take on the habit of utilizing her first name so that their charade was not discovered for the ruse it was. No fiance called his dearest by such polite honorifics. "Did you get your work done? Is it time for my interview?" Rhiane continued, not getting the gist of his decision that they were going somewhere that was not on their formal agenda.

[Hashih]

Luke got to his feet and turned his back as soon as she stirred. The glass of water and the pain killers were still sitting quietly on his desk, patiently waiting to be picked-up and be useful. An hour or so of rest might have helped ease fatigue, but it was not enough to heal the damage done to her ankle. It was accurate to say that the pain would only get worse as she would definitely continue to put strain on the foot because he would be dragging her along with him somewhere where a wheelchair would be more of a liability than help. Besides, Luke was not planning to carry her for the rest of the day. Therefore, if he had to, the crown prince would force Rhiane to take the medication with any means possible.

The once cold glass of water had acclimatized with the room temperature leaving droplets of precipitate to form a ring on the smooth surface of the desk. He dispensed a pill from its container on one hand and held the glass of water on his other hand before facing the princess elect.

She was sitting on the bed still looking a bit sleepy. Perhaps if he did not wake her up, she would sleep until it was time for her to prepare for her interview. Her last question confirmed as much that the princess did not expect to be roused from sleep until it was time for her to face the press. Luke just shook his head. If he was at all remorseful of his decision to cut her rest time short, it did not show on his face. Maybe he didn’t even realize that, didn’t even consider that she could use more time to heal and be refreshed, because while they were linked together, her time and his were one and the same. Where he goes, she needed to be. And he needed that afternoon, for the sake of his sanity, to be away from the pressure of fulfilling expectations and public scrutiny.

So after she asked if it was time for her interview, he shook his head frowning. “It’s none of your business,” he articulated referring to the work that she was supposedly keeping him from. “And no, it’s too early in the afternoon for your interview, but it’s time for you to take your medicine, because you’re coming with me someplace nice and relaxing.” Or more appropriately, he cannot possibly leave the floor without her. He could attempt to call his mother and request to suspend the link for a few hours, but the queen would certainly not allow her son to fly into an island, though reportedly unmanned, away from the safety of the capital, and without his security detail. There was just one way to do it, and it was to bring Rhiane along with him.

Luke placed the water on the bedside table, then grabbed her hand, opened her fingers and deposited the pill into her palm. “Do yourself a favor, Rhiane, and be a good girl. This is meant to help you, not harm you.” He patted her cheek before turning to the direction of the walk-in closet, consciously using her first name as per her request. But he noted that the way she phrased her request to call her by her given name was self-derogatory and against his advice during lunch that she should stop belittling herself. Luke just couldn’t resist. He held on his tongue long enough to pick a black pea coat. When he emerged from the closet, the coat was slung over one shoulder. His stare was quietly inquiring about the pain meds.

“Oh and by the way,” the prince started. “You may continue to call me ‘your royal highness’ because a lowly peasant such as yourself doesn’t deserve to address your future king with less. That is just inappropriate, wouldn’t you think?” He cocked his head to the side. “Now, did you take the pill? Because we need to get going if we want to be back before the interview.”

[Syrenrei]

After her unusual dream in which a part herself, disguised as her dead brother Edwin, suggested her more conscious self ought to take the medicine, she had been persuaded to do so. It was Luke's response to her innocent question about his work that chilled any desire she had to be agreeable. Even as princess elect she realized that the crown prince would have tasks that were not her business, something she accepted even before she won the contest and gained her status formally, but there was not a need to rudely respond to a vague query. It was frustrating that she was trying to be polite and yet he lacked decency. The former farmer pinched the cartilage of her upper nose between her eyebrows and tried not to let her emotions get the best of her. That he was able to converse with dignitaries of any nation without falling to petty insults spoke to how deeply the issue Luke had was with her on a personal level. Some of the candidates for her position would have counted themselves lucky to be such a unique focus of his contempt. Rhiane would have preferred to not be special at all.

That Luke had defaulted back to his aggravating attitude was not a surprise. What was unexpected was that he wanted to go somewhere 'nice and relaxing.' The princess elect knew the only reason that she was invited along to any location in his presence was the implant that had effectively made her into baggage he was forced to cart around. Why he had this sudden inclination was the true mystery. Luke had been insistent about the need to get work done and, seeing as she had done nothing more than sleep while he did, she could not be blamed for being a distraction. Idly she wondered if the court of public opinion was suddenly weighing more heavily on him than he might admit. Whatever the cause for his need to leave she doubted he would divulge it her willingly if at all.

Already struggling with the issue of the capsule she was enraged when he opened her hand, told her to be a good girl, and patted her cheek condescendingly. She watched as he turned and walked into a closet and was sorely tempted to crawl in the opposite direction. Not much could get through to Luke but the pain of the nanotechnology certainly could. Not many would respond to belittling with physical agony, especially if it imparted to themselves the same torment, but on this Rhiane had the slight upper hand. Not only could she brace herself for impact, and did she have a slight edge due to her gender's tolerance on an evolutionary level, she had learned to endure out of necessity for years. Luke might have had a stint in the military but she doubted that he had fear, neglect, or poverty that coerced him into labor no matter how sick or injured.

Fortunately for them both she was able to cool her temper. The princess elect put down the pill with a slightly shaking hand as she tried hard not to dwell on her memories. They had never gotten so far as to have the information on how both her mother and brother could have been cured. Even after they passed she did not know if an injection, or tablet, or set of transfusions would have saved their lives. By her own admission it was an irrelevant detail to fixate on but she could not help but imagine that this dose could have been the beginning of a regimen. Considering this particular pain medication had come from the royal doctor the price might have been comparable to that of rescuing peasants from the brink of death. Rhiane shuddered slightly and squeeze her eyes shut for a moment to chase away her morbid focus.

"Oh, of course your highness," she drawled as she opened her eyes and turned away from the pill and glass of water that waited on the bedside table. "I will make it a point in my interview to make certain everyone is aware that you have requested I continue to refer to you exclusively as your royal highness. I wouldn't want anyone to get the wrong idea. Don't you think your mother will be pleased to know that I still know my place in our arrangement?" The princess elect knew what she was proposing would do anything but appease the queen. To use honorifics on broadcast would all but declare that their romance was a farce. No true boyfriend or fiance would make such a formal demand. Not only would it expose their charade, Rhiane knew that it would also give the masses the cold truth, leaving little doubt in their minds as to whether or not their crown prince thought himself too elevated to even hold hands with the best of what their stature had to offer.

"Didn't you tell me yourself how I ought not to trust anyone? Taking this medication, or following you obediently, that smells of trust. I can't stop you from carrying me wherever you intend to go but if we're not going to have the pretense of civility I can make it as unpleasant for you as it is for me." She folded her arms and waited for what she was certain would be more derogatory remarks while evading any explanation.

[Hashih]

“You are very much welcome to try. I’m sure her majesty will be most pleased, princess,” Luke shot back with a mischievous gleam in his blue eyes and that lopsided smile, daring her to make true her threat. “And I’m certain that after your interview, you will be enjoying more of my company and less of your privacy. Not that I can say the same for myself.”

If there was anything that infuriated Luke more than waiting, it would be finding out that his direct order was absolutely and expressly ignored. Had she just been a good girl like he asked her to be, he could have backed down, explained his sarcasm, and perhaps even gently remind her of his advice not to belittle herself. But as Rhiane was telling him how she would reveal to the whole kingdom his request for her to call him by his title, his eyes found the untouched glass of water and the red and white capsule lying on the bedside table.

Luke’s eyes darted to her face. As if she read what was on his mind, she explained about how taking the medicine or obeying him was against his advice not to trust anybody in the castle. It was applaudable that she actually listened, except that she was using his words against him. Not many people had the courage to do so, especially not to his face. It both amused and irritated him that a low-born farmer, whose good fortune was thanks to the generosity of the crown, would be so foolhardy to test his patience and deny him his will to leave the suite.

“I didn’t ask you to trust me, only that you listen to the voice of reason,” he ground out. The prince found the edge of his desk. He leaned against it with his back to the sky. The brightness of the afternoon cast shadows on his features, making it sharper, his eyes bluer. He let the coat drape on the desk as he watched the future mother of his children declaring mutiny for the second time that day. “You are in pain, and it is a pain caused by me,” he admitted, not in a tone that was even near apologetic, but just a matter of fact. “I ought to at least make sure that you don’t suffer from it, thus the wheelchair and the pain medication. But if you insist, then be my guest.” Luke shrugged. “I’m sure you’re proud because you are used to pain and suffering from where you came from and you can’t wait to rub it off my face. So, let’s begin, shall we?”

He was about to push himself off the table when he felt it, a sharp jab of pain that shot from his left temple then followed by a consistent throbbing. There it was. Lack of sleep, constant stress, and the unusually frustrating woman sitting on his bed must have triggered the migraine. The telltale signs had been lingering for a while since they got back from the restaurant and he should have taken his own advice and took the precautionary medicine prescribed by the doctor. But it was the only pretense that he freely allowed himself to do – to pretend that he was fine – because the nobility did not take weakness too kindly. A simple case of migraine, no matter how infrequent, can be used to dramatize any shortcomings.

These things he would not be able to hide from Rhiane, he thought. With the implant in place, she would know more than the sanctuaries that hid the crown prince whenever the kingdom and his duties had beaten him up enough. If he was not careful, she would know his weaknesses and struggles. Therefore, with a slight frown on his face, he finally pushed himself off the edge of the table and walked to the side of the bed. “Let’s go. You have made it unpleasant enough for me as it is. If you want me to pretend in public that we are civil, then fine I will give you that. But you can’t ask of me, or even want me, to lie to you when we are in the privacy of my suite. I was not raised by my father to play with a woman’s emotions.” It was half-truth at best. The public was aware of his reputation as a heartthrob. The fingers in one’s hands would not be enough to count the number of hearts that Prince Alessandro broke since he was twelve years of age. But perhaps because of pity for the grim future that was waiting for Rhiane, or for something else he would not acknowledge entirely, he had decided that she was not among the ladies he would pass the time flirting with. He shook his head. “Not a woman like you.”

[Syrenrei]

Luke was annoyed with her- again- but this development was not new. Because she had been frustrated she had turned his words against him as if she were secretly a masochist seeking out her own punishment in his sharp words. Nothing beneficial could truly come out of antagonizing him into a more foul mood than he already was. Regardless of either of their feelings on the matter they were now bound together for at least a decade while she was paraded around the kingdom and made to bear him heirs. Rationally she knew it would be easier to live a partially conjoined life if the impression she had on him was positive rather than negative. Her quality of life could be improved or made miserable by his whims once he was crowned and she was less visible to the public eye. Once they had offspring she would also need to consider that any resentment he had towards her could be imputed to a son or daughter. If they were to too closely resemble the manifestation of all his disdain then they would be damned on her actions rather their own. Mentally Rhiane chastised herself as she gently bit her tongue in a reminder that fighting Luke at every pass was doing her no favor.

"Yes, I am used to pain and suffering, but that is not the reason for my reluctance," she sighed. That he expressed even stoic concern for her person utterly defeated her even if she did not voice as much. Turning towards the table she took the glass in one hand and the capsule in the other. The crown prince had not been apologetic, and his sincerity about not wanting her to continue to feel any physical torment might have been a farce, but she would feel guilt in the unlikely event her pride smothered this glimpse of compassion from him. Gerald had always told her she was much more soft emotionally than she would ever admit and he was not wrong. Their family had a theory that the stronger the barriers a person built around them the greater chances they were protecting a vulnerable heart inside. Such an opinion wasn't extended to the nobility and royalty but Rhiane had to admit it wasn't outside the realm of possibility that Luke had empathy.

The princess elect's hand trembled slightly as she popped the pill in her mouth and gulped down the water after it. Both with the doctor and earlier that morning she had taken medication without so much as a flinch, but both time had been in front of an audience. With the medical staff she was required to be complacent, obedient, and without reproach in her composure or else she would jeopardize her standing. With the attendants earlier the summoning of a tablet was an excuse to delay their departure and had been in another high pressure scenario where she could not dwell upon historical parallels. Rhiane had pledged Luke honesty in private and she had not meant that to be with words alone; her actions would be just as truthful in the event her words were insufficient.

"You are correct, I do not want nor expect you to lie when we're alone," she acknowledged. While she wanted to be civil she didn't want pretenses. It was this battle of wills she already found tiring. Were she always to have the worst expected of her she knew eventually she would stop trying to disprove the belief. Rhiane was strong in both body and mind but not enough to be her own champion for respect eternally without respite. That neither of them had privacy exacerbated matters. What fortitude she had to fight his misconceptions would not hold fast for a decade with an implant keeping them within 10 meters of one another; she'd be lucky if she didn't bitterly lash out after a few months of insults.

"And besides, you don't have to worry about playing with my emotions," she said as she stood up. Tentatively she placed weight on both legs, shifting it back and forth, as she made certain the overexerted leg had recovered and that the injured ankle could bear the strain with no adverse effects. Whatever drug she had been fed was not instantaneous but she hoped it would not just alleviate her pain but reduce swelling around the joint in question. "My mother and father loved each other deeply until the day she died and my brother found that one in a million in the middle of nowhere. I'm sure you sailed through all your accelerated statistics classes with comparable ease to me, but even I know my odds are slim to none. The only thing that could play with my emotions is a cat- we had one that wandered around the farm and was a tempestuous beast," she jested lightly.

[Hashih]

There was satisfaction in watching her turn to the table, take the glass, and pop the pill into her mouth. Luke would not deny the feeling of fulfilment in winning a round of their battle of wills that afternoon. If she looked close enough, she would notice a subtle shift in the intensity of his stare, in the set of his jaw, and even in the stiffness of his posture, which could only be credited to relief. After all that was said, their little tug-of-war was over. Granting that she conceded, he was glad that Rhiane finally listened to the voice of reason – which was obviously his voice.

The victory was not enough to ease the discomfort brought by the throbbing pain on his head, but it did make him realize that Rhiane was not uncapable of seeing things his way. It took more than a request to get her to take a pill that promised to ease the pain and swelling of her ankle, but to Luke, the important thing was that she got out of her default go-against-the-prince mode. Ultimately, the first part of the mission for that afternoon was a success.

He gathered the coat and folded it on one arm as Rhiane was testing her weight against her feet. The medication would not take effect immediately, but she would gradually feel the effect. Taking it would not be her worst decision for the day. As she was making sure that her legs would not fail her for the second time, she talked about her mother and father and how they “loved each other deeply until the day she died”. There were other words that completed the sentence, but she lost him at that. His father loved his mother deeply until the day he died. The same could not be said about his mother, who remarried too soon. Prince Alessandro was said to look a lot like the late prince consort. He had his father’s height, build, cold eyes, and most of his facial features, that when he looked at the mirror he would often remember the man whose arms carried him when he was too tired to walk, whose voice that chased away his fears when he was afraid of the dark, whose discipline he carried all the way to that day. When he looked at the mirror he often wondered what kind of man he would have turned out to be if his father was still alive. Could he had been more like his father, a person capable of love, or would he still be the same person who would marry out of duty like his mother?

“A cat?” Luke pushed his thoughts aside as he phrased the question rather absently. There was no point in dwelling on thoughts of what could have been. All the power, wealth, and authority the royal family possessed would not be enough to bring back the dead.

He reached for her hand and put it on his arm before he started walking. “Tell me when it hurts so we can stop and rest.”

It didn’t take long for them to be back into the road in a much newer hovercraft, but not Luke’s. Instead of taking his own, the crown prince chose at random from the standard air crafts used by the escorts of the royal family. It was easier to gain clearance that way, also easier to lose any tails. The notifications of his communication band were switched on in case there was any move from the palace to go after him. Fortunately, there was none.

It would take a clear head to be able to maneuver the craft. His migraine would have made it difficult for him to do so. Good thing he was able to excuse himself from Rhiane on the way out of the suite. The pain medication prescribed by the doctor especially for him was in one of the drawers of the bathroom. His migraine was perhaps the most pressing issue when it came to his health. It had rendered him useless for a day in the past when the attack was not tended properly and the medication, though readily available, was neglected by him. Only select people knew about it, and it was honestly not a serious ailment. A vast number of population had it, but then again, any form of weakness was bad.

“You will be the first person that I’ll be bringing to the island with me. You’re not supposed to share it with anybody. Have you been to the sea?” he said as they glided through the sky. Luke was in a better mood, he could feel the pressure in his head easing away the same with the blurriness on his vision. “There’s this place where we can have an unobstructed view of the sunset. If you’re somehow a little daredevil, there’s a cliff where you can dive from. The waves shouldn’t be as strong this time of the year. It’s relatively safe to do cliff diving.”

[Syrenrei]

"A cat," Rhiane confirmed. Luke wasn't truly engaged in conversation but she seized the opportunity to converse on something that wasn't controversial. They already had enough arguments to last the rest of the week and this was a docile enough subject that she felt confident in continuing without raising ire. Sooner or later the princess elect hoped she could find common ground with her fiance. While it was true that neither of them could affect the inevitability of their marriage after the public announcement, they could at least make their arrangement easier if neither found the other's presence grating. The first step towards that was an air of congeniality fostered by discussion on more mundane topics- although that was increasingly hard to find given their dispositions.

"We couldn't afford a pet but there has always been a feral cat colony in the area. One of them still comes by the house. Always liked animals," she remarked somewhat absently, "because of how honest they are. The feral that swings by the farm would crawl in my lap one day and sneer at me the next for no apparent reason. I can't trust Dad or Gerald to keep a water bowl for it filled, so I hope Sebby remembers once he moves in. He was always dependable." Despite calling the cat tempestuous and criticizing its hot and cold reactions to her, there was an undeniable fondness in her voice for the feline.

Despite her apparent inclination to have a pet, which she compared herself to much to the crown prince's chagrin, she did not ask for one. The princess elect had noticeably not asked for anything tangible that could be given to her. It was true one of her major motivations for entering and winning the contest was the sizeable stipend for her family, but she had no discernible desire for wealth herself. There had been multiple junctures where another might have requested if not demanded material possessions: gowns for her wardrobe, luxurious soaps for her bath, expensive jewelry to compliment her attire, artwork for her bedchambers, or even specific food at their lunch. The most interest she had shown was selecting certain garments from the already composed closet to wear. All that Rhiane had were things given to her and to date the one that she had expressed the most excitement over was the thoughtful gift of cannolis in the restaurant. Silly though it might be to Luke she valued not the price but the sentiment behind the offering. She had expected nothing of the fellow patron yet he knew her, remembered her interview, and had sent her a trifle without desire of reciprocation.

Rhiane was curious as to why Luke excused himself on the way out of the suite but elected not to interrogate him. Instead of barraging him with questions she kept toying with shifting her weight such that when he emerged, leading her to a hovercraft, she had struck a balance that left her only minimally leaning on the man for support. Though the pain was subsiding with the medication she was still happy to be seated.

"I think it would be odd if I wasn't a daredevil given the circumstances," she replied casually as she stared out a window. The princess elect was not trying to be impolite but rather was perpetually mystified by the sights allowed by the palace and air travel. Her eyes traversed over the landscape in open wonder and a few times she lifted out of her seat just slightly to watch the ground whirl by in a flash. "I'd take you up on the offer of cliff diving but..." Rhiane hesitated and sighed, falling back against the upholstered support. There would be ridicule following her next admission she was certain.

"I've never seen the sea. A farmer's idea of a vacation is sitting in the house during winter when there isn't anything to plow, seed, or harvest until spring. Never had the funds for travel even a couple hours away much less anything more. Only trips I ever took were to suppliers- no sightseeing." Looking away and swallowing hard she continued to the tantalizing morsel for mockery. "I don't know how to swim. Didn't have the time, like most things, and the people with river access aren't friendly, not that the current is really conducive to swimming. Can't say I'd be much fun to cliff dive with." Rhiane was embarrassed. While she would welcome swim lessons she could not imagine it would be encouraged when her schedule would be full of either appearances, interviews, charitable events, or learning how she ought to properly perform at her role of princess. Were she even able to find the time a teacher would be more challenging. Her first favor from the queen would not be the hiring of a swim instructor.

[Hashih]

“Then I hope that you will enjoy the view as much as I do,” Luke boasted, glancing sideways at his passenger who seemed to find every bit of the capital amusing. It might be a new perspective that she was viewing New Florence from above like a mythological goddess, instead of a mortal craning her neck up at the skyscrapers yearning to reach the heavens. Everything was small and seemingly insignificant from a distance. As if the capital had found its equilibrium, a balance that allowed an invisible hand to guide the perfectly efficient mechanisms that made markets move. It was why he loved flying, even on a limited altitude that a hovercraft was allowed.

“But we will not go cliff diving today,” he continued. “For one, we don’t have any change of clothes. Second, I don’t think you have it in you to jump off that cliff.” It was at least twenty meters drop from the edge of the cliff to the water, then fifteen meters more to the sea bed. Rhiane didn’t seem the type who had a fear of heights, given that she kept looking out the window and to the city below them. She even bravely stared out the city view from his suite. However, the fear of the sea and its depth was a different issue all together. It was one thing to hear about the vast stretch of blue water, but another to experience its seemingly limitless reach. And for his passenger, it would be her first encounter with the gigantic body of water, therefore a crucial moment when she would decide whether she would fear it or not. “Maybe another time, when your ankle is healed, and when we find that you will not panic when your feet cannot touch the ground, we can make the jump, but not today.”

Nevertheless, Luke would not want her first impression of the sea to be unpleasant, else the princess elect might forever reject his request to come with him to the beach. The crown prince wouldn’t be able to bear with it. “As for swimming, it’s a necessary skill for survival. I might be able to find time to teach you, but,” His smile was lopsided, and he kept his eyes averted from her. “But I cannot assure you that I have the capability to be a patient instructor.” Luke remembered when he volunteered to teach Calista to swim and made her cry several times, almost pushed her to the brink of hating the water. She was just an adorably curious five-year-old then, and he was a know-it-all teen.

The craft followed a pre-programmed path. Slowly, the landscape changed from the city of skyscrapers and a few trees to a land of lush greenery and rolling hills. Probably the landscape that she was familiar with. There were residential buildings, low-rise commercial buildings and such that jutted out from the face of the earth, but nothing compared to the sprawling metropolis of New Florence. The presence of flying cars significantly diminished, traded by the rural dwellers for conventional four-wheeled vehicles, the much slower cousins of hovercrafts. The advantage for a lone flying vehicle was that he could accelerate without caring about either aerial traffic regulations or colliding with another hovercraft.

With its optimized speed, they reached the end of the main land in about forty-five minutes. Sooner than later, there were no more land beneath them. In its place was the calm blue sea off the coast of the kingdom. Not too far away from the main land was a spattering of green like freckles on the blue water, which was among the crown prince’s favorite places in the kingdom. It was his retreat, his sanctuary, where he would not be found by life’s stressors.

“There,” he pointed towards an island which looked like a donut, because it seemed to have a hole in the middle.

They landed on the beach far enough in the island so that the waves would not reach the hovercraft. The sand was pristine white and fine that it was a shame if he would not take off his boots and let his toes sink on its powdery texture. He did free himself from his boots before exiting the craft. The chill of the coming winter was already in the air, especially that afternoon. He grabbed his coat from where it rested on the backrest of the driver’s seat then draped it over his shoulder. After which, he walked to Rhiane’s side, unlatching her door, then offered, “Take-off your shoes.”

[Syrenrei]

"Careful, Godzilla, you're starting to sound more like Prince Charming than lizard," she warned without the typical biting criticism behind her voice. Rhiane was teasing the heir to the throne for expressing even a passing desire for her to enjoy the promised sunset since they spent the better part of the day either inadvertently or purposefully irritating one another. Her words were hyperbolic but not insincere. Luke was charismatic when he had a mind to be and it easy to imagine why he was the royal heartthrob. People on a whole were willing to look past personality defects if the person in question was highly attractive. The few times that his highness lowered himself, albeit briefly, to anything approaching casual congeniality was made all that more magnetic because he was handsome. It was shallow but the former farmer had long ago accepted that humanity had done little to evolve beyond looking at the exterior and judging a person according to their symmetry or body proportions.

"Change of clothes on an island with no one else around- how unexpectedly modest of you, your highness," she remarked with a raised brow. Swimsuits were practical and she had nothing against their use, not that she ever had one, but she was also not opposed to nudity on a whole. Most of the rural lands harbored pervasively conservative views that made them more misogynistic than the cities. It was this adherence to traditions of centuries past that had made her struggle more than she ought to to establish herself as a female farmer with two male relative employees. Rhiane had never felt bound to those societal expectations and had been naked before several men that she had no inclination to see after their night of passion had concluded. The media had assumed that the princess elect, despite her sultry appearance, had been a product of her environment without the streak of rebellion she possessed.

"I assure you I could jump off that cliff, though, without panicking. Unless you have a doctor lying in wait at the bottom of the water there isn't anything that I fear out there," she asserted. What she was dancing around delicately was that no one with a well-developed survival instinct would have ever entered the contest. Even the optimistic candidates had to admit the chances of their death being delayed more than a decade in the future were woefully slim. Not every fellow peer had been a daredevil but they had been on a whole a brave lot. No matter how firmly their eyes were on the prize, each woman that aimed for the crown had to accept and be prepared for their eventual murder, and they had to pass enough psychological assessments that even the queen and judges were confident they would not become psychologically unraveled as their time drew near. Mental fortitude had been just as important a quality as physical endurance.

The princess elect wasn't sure how to respond to the offering of teaching her how to swim. While she didn't want to reject him as a swim instructor she couldn't imagine it would be remotely pleasant for him to teach a lowly commoner such as herself. Then again, Luke did not strike her as someone who made generous proposals flippantly. Either he truly believed it to be necessary for survival (a statement she found ludicrous for both farmer and future princess) or was motivated by unknown reasons to make certain she went into the water. Not even the image manager would care that she was unable to swim. If anything she suspected such a deficiency would be spun into another facet of the Cinderella narrative, proof of how her poverty made her one of the masses, and that no amount of wealth would transform her completely beyond those roots.

Despite her nap earlier Rhiane had begun to doze off again in the comfort of the hovercraft as they passed over the more familiar landscape of rolling hills, plowed fields, and grazing livestock. It was her fiance's words that jolted her out of her drowsy half-sleep and made her sit upright to get a better view. Rhiane had read how vast the ocean was but seeing the seemingly endless stretch of blue towards the horizon was more breathtaking than she had thought it could be. Her seat belt protested as she lifted off the plush cushions to crane her neck and gawk at the expanse. Luke had tossed out the words 'island' and 'sea' and she had known what he meant but not in the same way she did now. Her breath caught in her throat as she spotted cresting waves and the movement of tides beneath them.

"This is where you go every time you need to relax?" she asked incredulously as they began their descent towards the donut. Everything, from the guest quarters of the palace, to the breakfast options that were longer to her arm, to the private pool in Luke's suite, had seemed so absurdly luxurious it was divorced from the reality of her former life. These did not compare to an uninhabited oasis only frequented by the crown prince that allegedly had a cliff suited for driving and unobstructed view of dusk. Rhiane's head spun as she realized how vast the differences were between herself and the aristocracy. They were not of different worlds but of different galaxies.

They landed, Luke yanked off his boots, and came to her side of the hovercraft presumably to help her out. Bewildered by his almost kind disposition she slipped off her flats and exited the vehicle with wonder at the soft feel of sand beneath her feet. The closest she had come to a similar texture before this moment was standing in the dirt of a barren patch of land close to the road but still within the borders of her property. The foreign sensation wasn't unpleasant but it was strange how different it was to the firm footing of land. "Why wouldn't you bring someone here?" she asked, staring down at the granules between her toes and the remnants of broken shells that had been washed ashore some time ago. "There has to have been someone in your life you wanted to share this amazing place with," she breathed as she reached down to feel the sand with her fingers. It was clear she would be content to stay in that very spot rather than exploring what else the island had to offer as she was hypnotized by the newness of this small trip.

[Hashih]

“This is one of the places I go every time I need to relax,” he corrected, watching her face as one foot touched the ground then the other. Was she amazed, disappointed, or perhaps the experience was not entirely new to her? The princess elect’s reaction was not the reaction he envisioned, but there was nothing new to that. In their less than twenty-four hours of being acquainted, he had learned that Ms. Black was prone to reactions that was opposite of his expectations. Instead of exclamations and wide-eyed excitement, she was staring quietly at her feet asking questions. To which, his default answer would have been ‘It is none of your business,’ but instead the prince just shrugged. He did not want to spoil his afternoon by picking a fight with Rhiane, which he knew based on experience, was something she would not back down from.

“My sister nearly convinced me to tell her where I am disappearing to whenever they couldn’t find me,” he admitted, watching her sink her fingers into the white powdery sand. “I could have brought her here, except that I didn’t because then somebody would know where I go whenever I don’t want to be found. And if you knew Cally, you’ll know what I mean. I love that girl, but she is not good at keeping secrets from mother.” She would keep their secrets from everyone else, but not from the queen. The queen confirmed that the rumor about her son and Sophia Keller was true because of the princess. He clearly remembered opening his suite’s door to a crying Calista the night that she admitted that it was her who told the queen. Then again, it didn’t stop him from sharing most of his secrets to his sister. She was the only person in court that he could really trust. “Besides,” he added, turning his attention to the waves gently reaching up to the beach. Just its sound was enough to calm his head. “If even just one person spoke about this place to another person, even in confidence, there is a high probability that the news will reach the media. And if people knew where I fly off to during my free time, it will be an instant tourist destination, then I will have to look for another spot where I can brood in peace.”

Luke offered his arm to her. “Come on, let’s have a walk. Forget Godzilla. I’ll be your Prince Charming this afternoon, princess.” She might that it was a little more difficult to walk on sand than on solid ground, and her ankle might take more strain than it should. The doctor would certainly not approve, and Luke was definitely being selfish by asking too much of her given her condition. It might be the reason he was being nice to the farmer girl. “How did you know about Godzilla?”

He walked beside her slowly, patiently. The wind blew his hair away from his face, its smell was of salt and sea that he loved. Once he was ready to retire, he thought, he would build his home on that island. It would have the best view of the sunset and the kingdom he served all his life. He would sit on the beach and watch the sun on its final descent turning the sky into hues of yellow and orange, then slowly merging into purples and dark blue and gray, until finally the day would succumb to the night and stars would light the sky. Stars were more numerous in number away from the bright city lights. He looked forward to the day when he would once again be able to camp for a night away from the capital.

The sand was wet beneath their feet. Some of the granules clung to their toes. Luke led them on until the cold water touched their toes. It sent a jolt of awareness to his brain, a sensation he relished for a moment. “Was it modest of me to suggest that we should not go swimming naked?” He asked remembering her earlier comment when he recounted the reasons why they could not go cliff diving that afternoon. “You’d like that, won’t you?” Smirking, the crown prince turned to her face as the water retreated into the sea. “Don’t worry your pretty head, you will have the chance. That is one of the non-negotiables in this arrangement. But I’m in the mood for a swim if you are.”

[Syrenrei]

She was still transfixed by the sand as the crown prince answered her questions. Silently she took note that Princess Callista, though warm and friendly on the night of the ball, was not someone she should ever entrust her secrets to. There was little that was kept from the queen and Rhiane had no illusions that her deceptions would fool the monarch as effectively as it did others. Still, she wouldn't make it easier to separate fact from fiction. That she had survived the contest without anyone discovering how to manipulate her was a testament to her convictions. The former farmer wasn't going to to let all her hard work be jeopardized no matter how desperately she yearned for a friendship inside the castle to keep her sane. Her brother and father offered no solace. She knew that if she wrote to them with apologies for actions she did not regret taking that, even if they forgave her, they would be more critical than compassionate of her struggles. The princess elect was more alone since winning the contest than she had ever been in her entire life.

"I wouldn't say that I know the reference of Godzilla, just that I actually paid attention when you said you weren't just any lizard," confessed. Luke's promise of being her Prince Charming was dubious at best but she didn't want to snub this golden opportunity. She took the offered arm and used it to stabilize herself on the uneven ground that was so soft and perplexing. Only once she felt properly balanced did she lift her eyes to the beach that spread out in front of them. Crystalline water sparkled under the late afternoon light as rays danced off its surface. Waves lapping at the shore made a peculiar sound she was certain she had never heard before. Everything seemed so strangely beautiful, so enchantingly exotic, it felt as if walking any closer might somehow ruin the imagery. Irrationally Rhiane worried that she was caught in the dream and one wrong step would puncture the fabric of the tapestry, jolting her back into the waking world.

"You must be really desperate to relax to accompany this not-quite-princess," she teased gently as she stumbled along. For once it was not her injured ankle that was causing her problems but how inexperienced she was with the loose sand underfoot. More than once she jostled against her escort as she started to adapt to how much more flexing of the toes was required and how easily the ground gave way underneath the ball of her foot. Rhiane chewed gently on her inner cheek as she tried not to become distracted by the scenery and focused on the task at hand. If they were going to be coming here in the future she couldn't rely on Luke indefinitely like a baby chick. The princess elect was a proud, confident woman, and she would not be conquered by anything as absurd as foreign terrain.

When they reached the edge of the water and stopped she lifted her eyes from the ground to the rolling white foam that washed over their toes. A smile spread over her features as she let the reality of this miniature vacation sink in. As far as the eye could see was the peaceful expanse of deep blue as the sun hung low in the sky. More than the sights she drank in the sounds of the island. The gentle crash of the tide on the shore and their conversation was all that she could hear; even the hovercraft had been powered down to silence. Luke's desire to keep this sanctuary a secret was selfish but completely understandable. The moment anyone knew of it was the moment it lost its tranquil allure.

"I'm just saying you have a reputation, your highness, and the people don't believe you spend all your time with female companions in such modesty," she explained with a touch of amusement. "Granted, I know I'm nothing like those women, but I just didn't envision you caring about whether we had swimsuits on a deserted island." As he so aptly noticed nudity was, in their arrangement, non-negotiable. The queen would have very limited patience about procuring an heir to throne after the wedding ceremony and any squeamishness they had about one another wouldn't be tolerated. Fortunately Rhiane was just was confident with her body as she appeared on broadcast. The shriveled walking corpses they called models might be thinner than she was but they suffered in other proportions that were required for her sultry figure.

"If you're sure you want to take on teaching me how to swim," she said with a little trepidation. His forewarning about his abilities as an instructor had not been forgotten in their short journey to the water's edge. Luke seemed particularly invested, however, in her happiness during this trip. She wasn't sure if it was because he legitimately wanted to share, because he was lonely, because he wanted someone else to see what he wanted to see, or if he was trying his damnedest to make sure she didn't rat out his retreat to his mother, but he was being nice and thoughtful.

[Hashih]

History recorded a planet that was more pleasantly inhabitable before humanity’s greed overtook rational thinking and nations sought to destroy each other in a war that brought mighty civilizations to their knees. There used to be seven continents with its unique flora and fauna, vast lands and tall mountains, seas and oceans that harbored life, and islands like the one they were on. Fueled with the ever present hunger for power and dominance over its neighbors, nations rose against nations in a destructive display of supremacy through their advanced weaponry and military technologies. Unknowingly punishing the planet that was their home.

A century after it had ended, when the war was just words in recorded history, Luke would like to believe that Earth had somehow recovered from the undeserved punishment. It was meant to be a survivor like its human inhabitants. The island they were on, an unnamed patch of land sitting on the Tyrrhenian Sea, which he fondly called the donut, was a testimony that Earth was fighting for survival.

And so did Rhiane Black, who had stumbled more than once, pulling Luke down with her, only to struggle back to her feet and test the sand again. “You have no idea,” the prince muttered when she teased about him being desperate enough to have her as his companion for the afternoon. If he was either of the twins, he would have already followed that statement up with reasons why he wanted to fly away from the capital even for just a few hours. The pressure to perform under tight scrutiny of people within the royal court, his peers, his critics, and the world, who were waiting for the next big slip of New Rome’s heir. He was aware of how the kingdom had become during the reign of his mother. Not that Luke thought himself a better leader, or that he cared that the poverty rate had increased in the last two decades, but that it was the expectations that he would undo policies that slowed down the economy, build strategic relationships, bring investors back into the kingdom to open-up new job opportunities, suppress the rebellion, and above all, as Ms. Viscomi articulated much to his annoyance, be a relatable persona to the masses. His future wife was supposed to help with that through propagation of lies, he imagined.

The water lapped his toes, then his ankles, soaking his pants. It made him shiver a little, like his feet was being pierced by a thousand needles, and yet he thought it would be such a waste not to swim in the turquoise water. “I do have that reputation, don’t I?” He mused, looking proud rather than worried about the image he was projecting to the public. The queen would not approve, but she could do nothing about it. She should not expect her son to not have an outlet of sorts.

He craned his neck to the rock formation behind them. It was a semi-circle formation around a deeper body of water that made up the donut hole. He suspected that there were underground caves that connected the circular interior with the sea. A few trees lined the top of the cliff, but it was mostly rock. There was a way to climb without the aid of technology, but it might make the princess elect’s ankle worse. Inside was a hidden beach of sorts – deep enough for cliff diving on the side closest to the cliff and shallow on the other end. He said that they would not attempt cliff diving that afternoon, but well he changed his mind.

“Let’s see if you’re as brave as you say you are.” Luke tugged at her hand. He was leading them back to the hovercraft, which he planned to land on top of the cliff where he would dare her to jump. “We’ll take a ride up that rock formation.” He pointed at the not so distant plateau. “Then make the jump. You’ll find a hidden beach behind the semi-circle formation. I’ll climb back up after we’re done to pick up our transport and you wait at the other side of the island.” Luke stood at the driver’s door with one hand on the latch with a cheeky grin on his face. “It’s not too late to back out now princess. Just say, ‘Luke is the most awesome person I have ever met’ and we won’t need to mention to anybody that you chickened out.”

[Syrenrei]

The cold water sent a shiver up her spine as it washed over her feet. Generally she favored the heat, simply because she was much more acclimated to working fields in sweltering weather, but Rhiane had no regrets for wading into the ocean until it covered her ankles. The silicone brace on her injured joint was chilled and the twisted muscle soothed by the refreshing liquid. It was not nearly as effective as an ice pack but it provided minor relief all the same. When the doctor and nurses had given her options for pain management she was certain they had not considered being whisked to an island just off the coast with winter approaching. The princess elect thought to bring to Luke's attention how unintentionally considerate he was being to her trivial impairment but ultimately decided against it. His ego was large enough without praising him over the beneficial byproducts of his selfish desires. Perhaps once he was actually Prince Charming- assuming that was even a possibility- she'd admit what personality traits or actions she admired.

"I am every bit as brave as I've said," Rhiane boasted, slightly irked by his doubt. Her gaze followed his finger towards the cliff as she very reluctantly let herself be led away from the shore. With her feet damp, but no longer submerged, it felt as if every granule of sand stuck to them. Rationally she knew that the hem of her pants had not become objectively colder yet the soaked edge of her clothing felt positively frigid as it rubbed against her skin. The beach had its appeal but was unforgiving to those that sought to depart its embrace. If they didn't have servants back at the castle she knew would be tasked with cleaning up every speak of the intrusive sand she imagined they would learn to hate the invasive substance. Once she had spilled salt in the kitchen. Days after she had swept the floors she could still feel its grit underfoot as if it had a persistent will of its own to wedge itself in the cracks and never leave.

"I promised you that I wouldn't lie to you," she stated as they arrived at the hovercraft. In the last few minutes her balance had improved though she still found it incredibly awkward to be on such an uneven surface with a brace tight on her limb. "You have to work a bit harder to become the most 'awesome' person I ever met, your highness- that doesn't come with just having a crown. Besides, I wouldn't dare to say your first name without your explicit permission so I couldn't repeat that sentence even if I wished to," she reminded him cheekily. That he was keeping her at arm's length regarding their given names had not been ignored even if his better spirits had made him slightly more congenial.

"I accept your challenge," Rhiane asserted as she opened the door and slid into her seat with steeled determination. She didn't rise to absolutely every dare that was laid in front of her but she had a hard time resisting most. It was a weakness she suspected that sometimes Luke himself shared in.

Truthfully she was worried. She did not think the crown prince would let her drown, at least not until the queen allowed him to be rid of her in a decade, but there was inherent danger regardless. The princess elect was putting her life in his hands. Once they hit the water they would be deep enough that she would, without knowing how to swim, probably sink if she could not manage to struggle to the surface. Luke would be responsible for hauling her back to safety no matter how desperately he wanted to be rid of her. Wryly she wondered what happened if he failed and she died to their foolishness. No one had briefed them on whether or not the implant would remain active if one of them was a corpse. There was a cavalier morbid joke on the tip of her tongue but she elected not to give voice to it. Once Luke inevitably slipped back into a sour mood she'd let loose her disconcerting sense of humor; there was an atmosphere at present she did not want to chase away, but if he was back to being the dictionary's descriptor of an arrogant ass there would be nothing to lose.

[Hashih]

“You may of course call me by my given name – Luke, Alessandro, Lucius.” He shrugged, then raked his hand through his hair to keep it off his eyes while the sea breeze reminded the two visitors of the island that winter was approaching. The sun hung low on the horizon as shades of orange and red started to break the peaceful blue hue reflected by the sea. The crown prince stood on his side of the hovercraft, a half smirk on his lips, while the farmer girl took her position on the passenger side. Her hair and her cheeks were not spared from the relentless caress of the breeze, but the determination in those green eyes was unmistakable. “Godzilla,” he added, as if an afterthought, to the list of names he was giving her consent to regard him with. “The latter to be used only in private. Strictly in private. There are enough people addressing me using ‘your highness’ or ‘sire’ or ‘my prince’ to drive me crazy. I was being sarcastic earlier. You were demeaning yourself. I don't enjoy listening to people who does that.” It was his job to belittle people, he wanted to tell her, but it would surely spark another argument that may shatter the fragile sense of civility that they were nursing between them.

Luke slipped into the pilot’s seat after his fiancée, where he took a deep breath before turning to her. Was she really the thrill seeker she was projecting herself to be, or did she just over commit with her words and ended up with more than what she could chew. Rhiane admitted that she could not swim, that it was the first time she had seen the sea, and yet she stood up to his challenge. He wondered if it was bravery or stupidity, or maybe both. Nevertheless, he was going to take her up on her word and make her experience the kick that only an adrenaline rush could give. “Remember that I gave you the option to back out,” he said before pushing the button and taking off vertically. He maneuvered the craft so that it balanced itself on a clearing atop the formation. It was a twenty-meter drop, he recalled. They had to do it together or the pain would most likely hinder his brain’s ability to recall how to swim. Too bad, he was planning on jumping before her so that she could have the moment to herself while he watched whether she would really make the leap of faith or not.

“There’s only one problem.” He frowned, chewing the inside of his cheek while the craft gained elevation. Remembering that he could not be more than ten meters away from his fiancée, he realized that she had to climb back up the rock formation with him. It was not a difficult trek, and it would not take them an hour to reach the hovercraft. He would just need to assist her as best as he could. He could only imagine how angry his mother would be if he brought back an injured princess elect to the castle before her interview.

The hovercraft landed smoothly. Their position atop the formation gave way to a different point of view. They could see the island in its entirety – from the trees and shrubs that seemed to have been sprinkled at the inner part of the island to the stretch of the white sand beach and the turquoise water beyond. Luke eagerly stepped out of their transport fully expecting the roughness of the rock beneath his bare feet. He stretched his arms over his head and breathed in the cold fresh air before shrugging off his coat and pulling his shirt over his head. Both were tossed carelessly inside the hovercraft.

The cold greeted his bare skin, made him want to crawl back into the hovercraft and turn the thermostat to high. It was the logical thing to do, but against common sense, his royal highness welcomed the cold with open arms. It made him feel alive and awake and free. “Let’s go, Ms. Black,” he called behind him, deliberately using her last name. “Take off your jacket, but keep your shirt on.” Because it would be weird for her, and him, if she would be trekking topless.

However, without waiting for Rhiane, Luke walked to the edge of the formation that was facing the inner part of the island. He peeked at the edge where a dark blue pool was waiting for them. Since it was surrounded by land, the water was calm, safer to swim, but at the same time deeper. He did not doubt his own skills, but he was surprised that she did not too. For a self-professed non-swimmer, she was putting much faith in him. Her life was in his hands. And she too knew that the royal family had a reputation of being ruthless. Luke, if he so chose, could let her drown and claim that it was an accident and that he tried to save her, but couldn’t.

“It was easier to admit that I am the most awesome person alive,” he remarked without looking at her when she finally found her place by his side. “Whenever you’re ready, princess.”

[Syrenrei]

"I'll tell you a secret," Rhiane leaned over once they were both seated inside the hovercraft comfortably. "It's similar to laughing at yourself so that it's easier to tolerate when others laugh at you. I suppose you haven't had that happen to you quite as often as most. Because I demean myself I steal that opportunity from others, or at least rob them of the pleasure of making me uncomfortable with their commentary," she shrugged. Perhaps it was conduct unbecoming a princess but it was, at least for now, her best line of defense in dealing with what would be alienation and whispered insults of the court. That Luke was put off by her self-depreciation was sincerely surprising. The former farmer had been relatively certain he had no respect for either her nor her ego and, if anything, would be an eager participant in all the games that had ladies and gentleman competing over who could make the most scathing criticism at her expense. Even before they had been formally introduced she had wagered no prince would be content with a peasant for a wife. Aristocracy did not even visit their village because they saw the poor as unworthy of even fleeting attention. As heir to the throne Luke's contempt was all but guaranteed. No matter what romantic fantasies other princess candidates harbored about princes, royal weddings, and rising to riches, Rhiane knew the simple fact she had been borne to the wrong mother and father, that she had never lived a life of luxury, would condemn her in the eyes of nobility.

It was this self-awareness of her position that had led her down a path of self-mockery and morbid humor. When managing her family farm she had been assertive, authoritative, and unflinching, though she always possessed a good sense of humor and could take a joke in good taste. Joining the contest changed her. No amount of bravado would make the social atmosphere more hospitable and so she had morphed into someone that suited her bleak future. Though she had not lost all her strength, she had abandoned her sense of self-preservation, embracing death with a reckless cavalier approach that had unnerved her brother and father and led to their estrangement. Her wit was used to make bitter remarks to shield hear from the attacks that would have otherwise caused emotional damage.

"I'll remember you gave me the option to back out, if you remember you were the one foolhardy enough to challenge me," she remarked as she glanced out the window to watch the landscape. One aspect of her personality had not been diminished in the last few months: her courage. It took true bravery to know the cruelty of the crown, to know there was no love waiting in your marriage, to know you would be despised, that you would be killed before your children were grown, and to accept that fate. Idly she wondered if the roles were reversed if Luke would be quite so daring as she had been. Military men and women went into war with the knowledge and understanding that they might be killed in action. She had certainty that she would. There was a saying among veterans that a man could prepare for their end but they were never actually ready for it. Rhiane begged to differ.

The hovercraft was parked atop the rock formation. Once the crown prince exited the vehicle she did the same although, instead of undressing, she did one complete rotation to take in the view. The princess elect had never been at such a high altitude outside of her hovercraft travels during the trials and recently. She drank in the view of pristine beaches, endless blue ocean, and the shady silhouette of flora as the sun descended closer to the horizon. Back at home she had watched the sunrise and occasionally the sunset, but they had not been as surreal an experience as this. More and more their exotic location made her feel as if she were having a vivid dream that would be interrupted when she was roused from her slumber.

"Ms. Black respectfully declines to keep her shirt on. You can be as prudish as you desire, but Ms. Black doesn't want any more wet clothes than necessary," she announced with a smirk and roll of her eyes. Without waiting for his objection she wiggled out of her pants, pulled off her jacket, and slid out of her blouse. She was not naked as she had offered previously- Rhiane still wore both undergarments which were only slightly more scandalous than swimwear might be depending on the design. Goosebumps rose on her bare arms and legs as she joined her fiance at the precipice that he consistently warned might invoke fear.

"Easier for you, maybe. If you let me drown, you'll have to do that interview alone, and then your mother will be so disappointed you'll end up with a one meter lease with the next girl," she teased. "I hope you're up to it, Lucius!" Rhiane took his right hand with her left and, with a crazed laugh like someone who had a wanton disregard for anything resembling caution, leapt off the cliff with her good leg bearing her weight for the jump. Prior to this moment she had not been a thrill-seeker. There were not enough hours in the day nor enough money in the bank to afford such a hobby. The rush of adrenaline as she fell into the pool below, however, was intoxicating.

[Hashih]

The most terrifying part of cliff jumping was standing at the edge of the rock face then looking down into the pool that waited below. It always looked farther than it actually was. Luke wondered if stood there with her long enough, would fear slowly creep into her consciousness, would her knees give out from under her, or would she tremble not because of the cold wind but because of fear? Any of it would have been the reaction of every highborn woman he knew of, the only kind of woman he was acquainted with. Therefore, when the princess elect wrapped her hand around his for whatever reason, Luke felt a fleeting unwelcomed emotion he dared not name. Was it admiration? Was it respect? Was it bliss?

His hand tightened around hers as they ran the short distance and leapt off the edge like crazed teenagers. The sound of her laughter bounced off the surface of the rocks, filling the secret beach and his senses with contagious ecstasy. For a split second, gravity had no hold on them. They were flying like a pair of seagulls gliding in the wind, watching the blue water sparkle under the sun. If standing on the edge was the most terrifying part of cliff diving, Luke believed the best part was precisely the moment his foot left solid ground, when even for a fraction of a second he had defied gravity. But then, it didn’t last long. Reality kicked in. The couple ceased to be free, they were yanked off the sky and plunged into the cold blue pool below.

Luke let go of Rhiane’s hand before they splashed into the water. He let the momentum of the fall push him further down into the depth of the pool. The water was cold, even colder than the tide that teased his toes on the beach. It awakened his senses like a shock of lightning. He would stay suspended in that moment if he could, swim deeper and hold his breath until his lungs burned, but the prince was not alone that afternoon. Worse, his companion would drown if he did not do something.

Opening his eyes to darkness was not comforting, but he only had to crane his neck upwards to find the light. Luke found her silhouette thrashing above, fighting the water, fighting for her life. Might she have thought that he abandoned her to drown? That would teach her not to be too brave, he hoped. The crown prince exerted himself upward, grabbed her by the waist and hauled her to the surface.

His first gasp of air was accompanied by laughter he was holding back underwater. The sound was carefree and rather melodious. He was behind Rhiane, holding her with one arm around her waist. “Ms. Black, you ought to learn to swim,” Luke gasped, his lips almost touching her ear. “I can’t be bothered to save you from drowning every single time. Lie against me, I’ll bring us to the shallow part.”

He waited for her to calm down and do as she was told before he brought them both to a shallow portion of the pool, where white sand met crystal clear water. With the adrenaline gone, he felt the coldness of the afternoon on the exposed skin of his face and occasionally on his arm. He was going to regret bringing up the challenge later when they both had to trek back up the craft with nothing to protect them from the sea breeze. It was fun, nonetheless. In that brief moment they were allies facing the danger of the fall instead of rivals testing each other’s willpower. She felt no different from him despite her being a commoner.

“The water is only up to your shoulders here.” Luke let her go. He encouraged her to stand on her own, though his left hand grasped her right firmly in case she slipped. The cold forced him to crouch a little so that only his head was above the water and they seemed to be of same height. “See, I can’t let you drown however lovely the idea sounds in my head. It’s not because I was worried about what the queen might do next, but I figured that not being able to save a single woman from drowning is an insult to my skills.” The little vacation did wonders to his mood and his overall disposition that day. He felt somehow refreshed and ready to tackle the issues he left at the palace again. Surprisingly, he did not regret bringing a companion along. If anything, the distraction of her presence might have helped. She was not the buzzkill he initially thought she would be, and he appreciated that the farmer girl had the guts to possibly humor his occasional pursuit for adrenaline rush.

“How did you find your first dive?” he asked out of curiosity.

[Syrenrei]

In film people could jump from impossible heights into water and not suffer a single injury. On camera, which everyone knew was sensationalized, the liquid was a forgiving cushion that would save heroes and heroines from a deadly fall- and in some cases even shield them from bullets if they were lucky. Rhiane knew about movie magic but had not known how wretchedly inaccurate it had made this particular scenario to the less educated. The princess elect was genuinely surprised when she struck the surface of the water and found, even with Luke beside her breaking the tension with his own body as he descended slightly quicker, it was not as gentle as imagined. What thrill there had been in leaping off the cliff, with the sensation nothing but air around her, and feeling more free than she thought possible, had ended in the slap of her ungraceful collision with the pool. It was not enough to make her regret but it did make her consider that she ought to have paid more attention to how people dove on broadcast or even how the crown prince angled his limbs. She had been so lost in excitement she had not spared a single thought about physics.

Frigid water embraced her before sucking her downwards. The shock of its temperature as it enveloped her, the unexpected force of hitting the surface, and the conscious knowledge she was sinking when she could not swim made her reflexively gasp. There was no air that filled her mouth but instead a taste of the cold ocean. Rhiane had thought all her instincts for self-preservation had been callously murdered when she entered the contest. Much to her chagrin they came alive as she flailed and struggled towards the light above her. She made absolutely no progress in this effort and, despite realizing Luke was probably nearby, she had a hard time discerning anything in the depths beneath her. For a split second she considered that he was not there, that he had seized his opportunity no matter how disadvantageous, and that she would be joining Edwin and her mother in whatever afterlife might exist.

A strong arm wrapped around her waist and hauled her upwards. As they broke above she coughed up the water that had been breathed into her lungs and willed herself to relax in his hold. Although she was loathe to admit it he was, in that moment, a Prince Charming. It was true that there was little romance in a literal leap of faith- and the landing had been slightly terrifying- but the short flight and his rescue made it worth it. She would not soon forget how wild, how happy, how unburdened they had been when they let their childish bravery and desires alone drive them off the edge. The memory was burned already into her mind of how she had flown. Luke had benefited himself from his proposal but he had also taken a risk in being her savior even if he believed it a small task. People were not generally inclined to be even minimal protectors of the former farmer. That he was, ulterior motives or not, made him all that more attractive than when he had been chastising her for thinking too highly of herself.

"Ms. Black had someone offer to teach her to swim, but he hasn't followed through yet," she croaked before clearing her through of the last of the water. "And if you keep calling her Ms. Black she's going to stop responding to it altogether since I have it on good authority not even her employees call her that." There was the slightest twinge of annoyance in her voice that she hoped conceal the reddened tint of her ears and faint blush on her face as she was pulled to the shore. The last thing she wanted was Luke to know she was slightly smitten with his consideration, their shared enjoyment of the adrenaline rush, or the musculature that she could feel behind her back as she was smoothly carted towards the beach.

When he indicated it was shallow enough to stand she somewhat reluctantly moved her legs underneath to do so. Rhiane could not quite determine if she found the breeze or the water itself more chilling but she was freezing regardless. Stripping out of her shirt and pants had seemed wise before she took the plunge but now seemed folly. She could only imagine what they looked like. What little make-up she wore had been stripped off and by the time they climbed back to the hovercraft they would be covered in sand and salt and thoroughly disheveled. The princess elect was glad she was not nude. It would have created an image that she was not ready for anyone, much less the discerning crown prince, to see.

"It would mar your Prince Charming reputation to not save a damsel in distress," she agreed as she hugged herself and started to walk up the shore and out of the water. It was definitely colder outside of the pool but she would not find any warmth by staying where she was. Shivers traveled down her spine as she wrung out her long hair and tried to keep her teeth from chattering at the initial blast of the breeze on wet skin. Once the season shifted she might have to ask for another visit to the island so as to appreciate it in all its glory. There was something lost with the advent of winter approaching. Their journey would be even more refreshing if it had offered reprieve from oppressive heat than challenged their ability to maintain functioning core body temperature.

"Except for the part where I could have drowned, I rather liked it," Rhiane admitted aloud. "But I'm not sure if the jump was quite as nice as proving to you that I could do it without becoming a shrinking violet, which ironically was the name of my equally brave mother. Can we head back to the hovercraft? If my feet start to go numb we're fucked no matter how dashing you are," she said, gesturing to the rocky outcropping which had their vehicle perched atop it. "Unless, of course, you have a smoldering glance that will melt the stone to give us some better handholds and footholds."