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 Posted: Sat Sep 10, 2011 2:49 pm
Prompt Once upon a time, there was a beautiful princess. This princess was greatly desired throughout the land; she had many a suitor, but she dismissed them all. Until one day, when the dashing prince from a neighboring country returned from committing brave and knightly deeds and swept her off their feet. The two were married in the most romantic wedding of the age and then lived happily ever after.This is not that story. In fact, this isn't even close to that story... except for the whole princess/prince thing. Both of you are stuck in this arranged marriage, whether you like it or not - and both of you are sort of going with the "not" part. Except what exactly are you supposed to do when you're "supposed" to be madly in love? Maybe you are and you're just hiding it. Or maybe you really do just dislike each other. So when it comes time to put on a show for the kingdom, do you bicker and squabble with each other? Refuse to acknowledge the other's existence? Or do you overdo it, batting your eyes and gushing madly over each other just to be obnoxious to the other?
Portraying Rasler :: Orpheus Solon
Portraying Ashe :: Gabriel Night
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Posted: Sat Sep 10, 2011 2:56 pm
Today the young couple had to step into the political world arranged for them. Ashelia found herself packing the last of her husband’s undergarments. She bit her lower lip as she placed her paw down packing the last article of clothing into a traveling bag. She walked over to a mirror and smiled. Though the smile looked convincing her eyes told a different story. In them you could see sorrow, regret, and shame. “This is not your life, you weren’t suppose to be married, you were suppose to be restoring order, not folding clothes for your husband going out to war” she said in a small cry to the mirror. She looked into it some more, she smiled but this time forcing her eyes to look cherry. Image is everything, at least that’s what she was told.
In another section of the castle home that the pair were making together was the soldier prince named Rasler who was starring out over the rest of his men, those that he would be marching to war with, and he couldn't help it as his ears twitched a bit. He was a touch envious, not that he'd admit to such a thing, as his men spoke with their mates, with their children, one last goodbye and one last show of affection before they headed out to meet the enemy head on. Rasler meant to lead his men to victory, meant to keep their home safe from those that would threaten it, for all of those who had loving relationships like the ones that he currently found himself watching. Sure, he had Ashelia, but that didn't really count did it? The emotions between them weren't exactly what these people had, in fact it was something that was forced upon the two of them by parents and politics, neither of which he was terribly happy with at the moment. Regardless he should likely check in on her before he headed out, shouldn't he?
Ears twitching he turned around and started in that direction, he might as well do this now, while they were alone. After all it wasn't as though they could really speak their minds to one another in front of their family or public. Tail lashing he made his way to the bedroom. He found his belongings packed and was wife staring into mirror looking rather cheerful. He stood and watched her for a moment. "Eager to see me off?" Rasler asked as he approached. The soldier wondered what Ashie’s true feelings of him leaving were.
“How long have you been watching me” she turned around looking rather upset. She placed her head looking down “How could you say something like that, no I’m not eager to see you off, I know the dangers of this war. I fear for you like a wife should” her reaction raveled hidden desires not even Ashe wasn’t comfortable with. How could she live with herself knowing she didn’t truly want him to come back? So she tucked those feelings down in the deepest parts of her heart.
She looked her husband in the eyes and smiled “You look charming in your armor” she meant that. He is a good looking after all. “I think I packed everything you will need, you should double check. To see if I missed anything, I will prepare myself to leave” she quietly walked out. Once far enough away from him she took a deep breath in trying not to show any emotion. She felt like she was about to crumble. ‘Just go and get your purse and fan, don’t make this into a situation’ she told herself. Once she gathered her items she waited for Rasler at the door.
Rasler's tail twitched before he started forward, deciding that it wasn't his fault that the woman hadn't realized that he was standing here. It wasn't as though he had been trying to mask his presence he thought to himself before he moved over toward his back. A bit of a chuckle escaped from him as he was told by his wife that she feared for him as any wife should. It was a statement that he couldn't quite believe given the rift between them. He came to sit down in front of her, glancing over toward the bag, his gray eyes staring at it, before his attention then returned to her, "I will look it over and see if everything I need is present." While he wanted to trust that a task as easy as packing was something she could cover he still wanted to make sure, call it the soldier in him that wanted to take such important things in his own paws.
Shifting forward he made a quick scan of what was in the bag, pleased to find everything in order before he tossed the pack over his bag, turned on his heel, and started for the door, his armor clinking all the while, "Time to put on a smile." He murmured to her, knowing that now that they were together it was time to fall back into the roles that they had been playing for some time now. While there was that nagging voice in the back of his head that said that they very well could be a real couple he shoved that aside for now, he'd worry about that sort of thing when he got home. For now there were more important things to worry about then romance, the first and foremost being the battles ahead.
Once they stepped outside together, Ashe would officially be titled ‘The wife of a battling solider’ all the ground she tried to cover restoring her family’s name will come crashing down. She would just be another royal name with no power or significant. She looked at Rasler and tried to smile “Don’t be a hero, I want to see you come home” she placed her left paw over his right so that there rings touched. A part of her meant that, she didn’t really want him to die; she just didn’t want this life. “I guess it’s time to face the music” she tried to smile before walking out with her husband.
Rasler's attitude and even his stance seemed to change as they moved out to where everyone could see them, wanting to appear as though they were the happiest of couples. He spoke to a few people here and there, most his Generals, as they moved toward where a makeshift parade was set up. There would be well wishers, people tossing flowers, waving the kingdom's banners, and they would do their best to look strong, walk tall, and appear in a manner that would be nothing but reassuring to the people. If the soldiers wavered after all then the people would, something that Rasler wouldn't allow. Their safety was in his paws and he would do anything for them, even exchange his own fluffy hide for any of them. That was what it meant to be a soldier in his mind.
Turning to Ashelia he fixed her with a long stare as they reached the point where they would part ways and he gave her a nod, "From here on out, until I return, our kingdom, our people, I leave them in your capable paws Ashelia." He told her, giving a bow of his head to her before he turned and hurried off to join with the others.
She stood next to him and waved at all the people. The crowd cheered for the couple and soldiers marching in the parade. She looked at her husband one more time before leaving “remember what I said , Ok?” she looked back at him before they had to leave. She should have kissed him but she couldn’t. It was odd kissing him on their wedding day, so she avoided all situations that called for it. She tried to wave to him as he marched off but she couldn’t tell if he could see her.
Surrounded on all sides by his men, walking down the path that would take them out of the capital city and toward the battlefield he didn't look back, only forward. There was a part of him, only the smallest part of course, that wondered if Ashe was watching the proceedings or if she'd gone back home. Was she going to miss him? Was she serious about wanting him to come back safely? Were anything to happen to him she would she be free of a marriage that neither of them had wanted but he didn't think her the sort to truly wish him ill. He would see her again, once he got him, and perhaps then they could see about making this marriage more than just a farce.
*****
The time away from Rasler helped Ashe clear her mind, she spent the last few weeks spending time with her family and talking to political figures in the area. Her new married status started to come handy. She felt confident and like herself once more. She was resting at home making a pot of hibiscus tea when she heard a knock on her door. “Hold on, I will be right there” she pranced over to the oven and lightly turned the knob to ‘light’ so her water wouldn’t boil. She then walked over to the door. She opened it, there stood a male spica in a messengers uniform. The plane colored male nodded and floated on by. Based on his actions she assumed this note wasn’t serious. She looked at envelope ‘ Update on the war’ it read. She had wondered about her husbands’ welling being from time to time, but she was told by officials the war was going well.
She walked over to a drawer and got out a small letter opener she used her mouth to open it. She placed the letter on the floor and lightly pushed the letter open. The first word read “ I am sorry to inform you that you husband had been” then it listed two options ‘injured’ or ‘killed’. The letter was checked ‘killed’. She placed her head on the ground “Why……….?” she asked. Tears came rolling down. Guilt consumed her face.
Her life was coming together, she got use to the fact that this marriage might have been for the best. She even worked on a speech apologizing for not being a better wife to him. She was widowed, how she would face the public knowing she had wished this. She couldn’t, not yet anyways.
Ashe took over a week to show the letter to her family and Rasler’s. She asked to meet them at the court yard where she had gotten married. She bowed before them handing over the letter. The shock for both families was devastating. The city wept for days. Ashe stayed home sheltered from everyone. Her people believed it was widow syndrome but Ashelia believed it was her ill feelings that killed Rasler.
As she brought that letter to the man's family, news that none of them had really wanted to learn or accept, the men had slowly started to trickle back from the battlefield. The dead were returned to their families under the protection of those that were in better shape, the injured were brought back to the white mages of the city for healing, and the others followed soon after. Those of ranking were the last to come back, wanting to make sure that everyone, alive or dead, had made it home. Walking alongside the General, one shoulder wrapped in thick bandages, was Rasler. He was talking quietly with the man about how the battle had gone, about how their kingdom was one more safe, for now, and how his wound was well worth it.
It wasn't until he was well within the city walls that he realized that something was wrong, the way people ran to him, clinging to him, bowing, talking so rapidly as though they had never thought that they would see him again. It was then that he realized that they had thought just that, that he was mistaken as dead. Without a second thought he was raced forward, away from them and toward the castle. If the people thought him dead then that meant his wife thought him dead as well. He had to get to her and quickly, to tell her that he wasn't dead, and hope that he wouldn't be spoiling her day with such news.
As he reached her room he hesitated a little, he starred at the door. He wanted to go in, wanted to see her, when he'd been wounded all he'd thought about was her. A good number of iwhite mages worked on saving his life. What if she didn't want to see him? What if it was all in vain? He gathered his courage and stepped inside. He couldn't allow himself to be weak. He'd faced down hundreds of soldiers not long ago, he could face his wife.
His wife stood in her undergarments staring at a black dress that she was supposed to put on over six hours ago. She couldn’t look at his cold body in a casket she didn’t even want to know how he was killed. She couldn’t even cry at this point she just looked at the dress sickened. She heard the door open “Mother …. Please Im not coming…. I…. I can’t” she closed her eyes.
"Ashelia..." Rasler murmured, shifting on his three good paws before starting forward into the room toward here, ears low, tail swishing slightly, hoping against hope that she would welcome him back. What happened next was certainly not what he'd been expecting.
“RASLER” she darted over to wear the voice was coming from. She glanced at him before kissing him. For the first time she felt a fire in her body. She placed her paws on his face and kept running her hands down his cheeks. “I thought……..” she couldn’t finish “ I am so sorry, I don’t think you could ever forgive me for the wickedness I wished upon you, I do not deserve you” she looked up at him.
Rasler starred at her, his gray eyes quite wide, as the girl first kissed him and then pet his cheeks in such a manner. He could barely process what he'd heard he was so in shock before he gave a bit of a smile, tail wagging wildly behind him before he silenced her with another kiss. Nothing else matter at the moment other then the fact that he was home safe and back with her. Everything else could be worked out, all that mattered now were his next words, "I missed you, Ashe."
She looked back into his eyes with relief “I’m glad you kept you promise’ she smiled kissing him once more.
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