Chapter 1: Chapter 1
Locks of blue glinted in the sunlight as a woman made her way towards the stone structure in front of her. Her heels clicked and echoed against the cobblestone path receding the closer she got. She shivered and blew against her crimson mittens, the condensation spreading around them to only disappear. Her curious bluebell eyes peered at the castle studying every intricate detail from the moss to the almost invisible cracks in the wall and from that to the smooth slated blue roof.
"Shall we?"
The woman turned to the voice next to her and smiled at the maid before responding with a subtle nod.
The wooden door creaked open and what was once a silent courtyard became clustered with noise as a series of voices spoke.
"Welcome your highness."
"Would you like a bread roll?"
"My my, you look prettier in person!"
She smiled and waved still unsure how to properly address them in a way befitting a normal princess. When they said they were going to celebrate her moving in, she didn't expect a full on party. I mean floral decorations, food and a ball in the evening? A bit excessive much! Then again, the union between France and China is a pretty big thing.
She was broken out of her thoughts when a guard greeted her, bowing a bit too far down. He indicated for her to follow him.
As she walked down the hallway, she admired the polished wooden floorboards and the egg white walls. The windows sparkled as though they'd just been washed and the ceiling towered high above them.
She stared at the wooden doors in front of her knowing that they moment they opened, her life would be changed for better or for worse.
"Deep breaths Princess, you're about to meet your Prince Charming."
She turned to the voice next to her. The maid gave her a reassuring smile.
She returned the smile and lifted her fan to her face before the door opened wide
<><>--<><>
"Your Highness."
A thump and a groan was heard as a tousle of blonde hair connected with wood.
"Natalie! What did I tell you about sneaking up on me." he looked up, "Ugh why do I even need a canopy? It's just a bed!"
The young woman standing by the large bed turned around to give him some privacy as he crawled out of bed and made his way over to the bathroom.
"As I have said many times before, this bed will one day be your matrimonial bed and I am sure you would like some privacy when it's your wedding night and you eventually choose to have inter--"
A shout came from the bathroom accompanied by the sound of rushing water, "I get it, I get it!"
"I will be taking my leave now. I'm sure your butlers would like to get you dressed. Today is a very important day after all."
The door slammed shut.
Of course he knew what today was. He grumbled. Don't get him wrong, he didn't have anything against meeting his future wife, the thought of an arranged marriage just didn't sit well with him. Although it my sound silly, the thought of falling in love and conceiving a child in a warm home intrigued him. He was the kind of person who'd hoped from a young age that he'd meet the love of his life. His mother had always told him that the moment he met the perfect one, he would feel it.
But when he'd asked her if she felt it when she met his father, she hesitated and just smiled changing the topic.
His muscles relaxed and he rubbed his exhausted eyes. It was only then that he noticed just how much his head hurt. He groaned. Why on Earth did he let Nino coax him into drinking last night! His memories of last night were hazy but he did remember something about a black cat?
He sighed and twisted the knob on the shower turning it off before making his way out the bathroom to only jump at the sight of the butlers in his room. He scanned the room looking for a certain mop of dark brown hair.
"Looking for me?" a voice came from behind him.
He jumped..again. "Nino! How did you even get in here? Your covered in metal!"
The man smirked, "You were so busy moping in the bathroom you didn't hear us come in."
"Whatever, let's just get this over with."
Nino snickered before whipping the towel off him.
The blonde man quickly covered himself embarrassed.
"Jeez, chill Adrien! We've all got the same thing you do!"
"That doesn't make it any less embarrassing."
----
A knock came at the door as he adjusted his collar. The door opened to reveal his guard.
Adrien smiled at the dark haired knight, green meeting green. The knight gave only a curt nod before waiting outside to escort him to the throne room.
Nino brushed at a piece of dust and straightened the prince's crown. "Yup! All done!" He gave the man a slight nudge towards the door, "Now, go meet your Cinderella!"
Adrien rolled his eyes as he made his way out of his room. Nino could be so immature sometimes and yet that same immaturity was the thing that he loved the most about his best friend.
He nodded at the knight indicating that he was ready and they made their way towards the throne room.
What was his name again? Ah, yes Damian Wayne. He'd started the job around a month ago when the head guard, Bruce Wayne, recommended him to be his personal knight.
At first, his Father, the King, was quite uneasy about the whole idea but once Damian way tested and proven to have exceptional skill, he was given the position but only after he'd made an oath swearing to protect him with his life if the time ever came. The only thing Adrien really knew about him was that they were the same age and he was really hard to befriend!
"Your Highness, we have arrived."
He was broken out of his thoughts by the knight's deep voice.
Adrien cleared his throat before opening the door and making his way down the red carpet stopping when he reached the steps and greeting his father with a bow.
Gabriel nodded at his son, his face in what seemed to be a permanent frown.
The prince made his way up the steps and sat next to his father. He looked at the empty throne on the other side; his Mother's. She'd died a couple of years ago. No one knew whether it was an assassination, suicide or perhaps some sort of disease, but they did know that when a maid had discovered her body lying on her bed lifeless, she'd looked undeniably peaceful.
The knight, Sir Wayne as everyone else called him, stood by the Prince, his eyes scanning the area carefully and his body prepped for an attack.
The clock ticked as time went by, faint voices echoing through the halls as the staff prepped for the evening ball.
The silence was unbearable. Adrien thanked whatever high authority was up there when a butler entered announcing the Princess' arrival.
He took a deep breath in and slowly exhaled. It was now or never.
The doors slowly opened to reveal a young woman in red clothing. What was it called again? Oh yeah, a Hanfu.
She was adorned with beautiful bright jewelry and in her hair was a cute little pin. Half her face was covered with a decorated fan and by the crease of her eyes, he could tell she was smiling.
She took a few steps forward before stopping at the steps and bowing, her maid following her.
"You may rise.", The King's voice echoed and bounced off the walls where troops of knights, maids and butlers were stood. "Welcome to France, Princess."
The princess nodded before turning to Adrien and bowing.
His eyebrows furrowed, "Oh, you don't have to--"
"As I'm sure you are aware," his father's voice cutting thorough, "you will be staying with us for the next few months to get accustomed to life in the Palace before wedding my son."
She nodded again. Was she mute?
<><>--<><>
Marinette took another peek at the Prince. He was cute all right. Although his hair was a bit too perfect; not a strand out of place, what she likes the most were his eyes. She could tell just by one glance that those emerald orbs held curiosity just like her blue ones.
At first, the idea of marrying a total stranger seemed uncomfortable, however, she could tell that he would at least be somewhat fun.
She shivered slightly as she felt another pair of eyes on her. She looked to the left of the Prince and was met with the cold gaze of the knight next to him. He seemed to be taking her in and calculating her every move as though she were a threat. Rude!
She quickly broke the gaze and placed her eyes once more on the King. His frown seemed to darken as he took in her attire. Jeez, was everyone here this rude?
The silence was broken when he spoke. "I will assign one of my maids to escort you to your chambers where you will be changed into a more...suitable attire for the ball tonight."
She nodded again.
You may be wondering why she was nodding so much and hadn't said a word. You see, when she was younger, her parents had told her that when she first met her father-in-law, it was rude to speak. According to Chinese Etiquette, she could only begin speaking to him during the second meeting.
As if in queue, the door opened to reveal a maid, her milk chocolate hair braided into a bun. She bowed before making her way down the carpet stopping next to the princess.
"Your Highness, if you would please follow me."
----
Marinette nodded at the knight at the door. Sir Lahiffe he'd introduced himself as.
He'd told her that he'd been assigned as her personal guard.
He was quite the charmer and she knew her appointed maid would definitely agree; she'd caught her taking one too many glances at him before they entered the room. They seemed to be well acquainted with each other. Friends perhaps? Or maybe more?
----
Marinette stared at herself in the mirror. She was stunning! She gave a little twirl and smiled at the maid behind her. The chocolate-haired maid had introduced herself as Alya. She'd said that despite her being assigned as her personal maid, her maid could still stay with her and had also mentioned that once she arrived from the ball, her luggage would be sitting in her room.
She eyed the tiara on her head. It was. A lovely silver and she could tell it had been specially picked out for her, the dark blue jem in the middle identical to the colour of her eyes.
She took this moment to relax. She was going to get married in a few months; that was a pretty big thing for girls her age. Being 24 didn't necessarily make her any less prone to the idea of arranged marriages.
She shut her eyes. Her mother had always told her as a child that when she'd found her true love, she would feel it. When her curious younger self had asked her if she'd felt it with her father, her eyes had glowed and she'd responded with a bright smile and a nod.
The thing is though that when she'd entered the throne room, she had felt it! At first it felt giddy and then it felt like her heart was on fire, but the only problem was that with a room surrounded by people, she hadn't had the chance to figure out just who it was her heart was reacting to so violently.
She sighed.
"Are you ready Princess?"
She nodded. The ball would be starting soon and she would prefer to get to know some of the staff she'd be living with for the next few months. The prince could wait.
First stop? The kitchen of course!
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