forum Royalty Romance (Closed but very much stalk-worthy)

Started February 29, 2020 by @GameMaster group

tune

Feel free to start, I’m no good at it.

I will in a bit

(Sorry about taking so long.)
Ren, a guard for about give years now has traveled many places and 2hen he does he always brings gifts back for the princess. Him and the princess have known each other since they were young, his father was a guard and close friend of the kings, so Ren came to play often. It wasn't long till his skills were recognized and he was placed as a guard. He traveled to many towns making sure they were safe. "Hey Ren!" A blonde older male ran over patting Ren on the shoulder. Right now the were in a small town called Juniper. Not many people lived here, but they were known for their wonderful crops. "What are you bringing the princess back this time?" The older male, known as Damian, winked. He always teased Ren about his relationship with the princess. But it wasn't like that, they were just really close friends. Shrugging him off, Ren rolled his eyes with a smile. "Flowers of course, and maybe some crops; Like carrots, apples, things like that." Ren always kept his word, and when he was assigned as a guard, him and the princess knew they wouldn't see much of each other. So, he promised to bring her gifts from each place he went. "We still have a week before we get back. Maybe send her a letter or something? She bound to be missing you by now." With that Damian walked away. It wasn't a bad idea. Maybe he would later.

The princess laid on her bed and stared up at the ceiling. It was midday but she The only other places she could go were the gardens and the parlor but she had exhausted those years ago. She took classes in the mornings but she suspected that they were just a ploy to keep her in the palace. She heard the door creak open and sat up. Audrey, one of her handmaidens, walked in with a tray. “Afternoon my lady. I have your dinner,” she said as she set the tray on the nightstand. “Audrey,” Sua sighed. “You don’t have to call me ‘your lady’. It’s sounds so weird.” Aubrey just smiled. “I am obligated to treat you like royalty. Have you received any letters from the guard?” Once again Sua sighed. “You mean Ren? I haven’t gotten anything in weeks.” She didn’t usually write first, but maybe she would later.

Most of the men at night went to the bar, but Ren wasn't much of a drinker, so instead he went to the inn and sat in his room. Ren placed the floors with a paper and pen in hand, he had written her before, Ren just felt they were never good enough. Sitting at his desk he decided to just write was on his mind. Dear Sua, how have you been? It's been weeks since I've been stationed in Juniper. It beautiful, wide open fields and many flowers. It small and quiet, I feel like this would be a place you would like. Would you want me to bring you one day? In the back of his mind, Ren always had they thought of just sneaking out, even for one day, just so Sua could get out. He felt bad. While he was out traveling the country, Sua was locked up. Your Dad would probably disagree though. He continued with a laugh. I hope you are taking care of yourself, don't eat to many sweets and make sure to walk every day. Miss you. Love, your best friend. He folded the paper and put it in a envelope. Taking his lamp he walked outside, the only light was his candle and a few lights from houses. As he walked, a bit of yellow caught his eye. A flower. Picking it he reopened his letter and stuffed it inside. Though it would probably be dead by the time it reached her, he hoped that the thought would count. He slipped it through the door of the post office and hoped it would reach her soon.

Days later, Sua sat with her tutor as he droned on about subjunctive adverbs and the page came rushing through the door. “My lady! A letter from the guard arrived this morning.” He handed her the envelope and ran out hurriedly. She turned in over and sure enough it was from Ren. She turned back to her tutor. “May we continue this tomorrow?” He sniffed but started gathering his things. Sua ran out to the gardens. She always read Ren’s letters in the gardens because that was the place that she felt closest to him. She tore through the parchment and quickly unfurled the letter. As she read, she tried to imagine the sprawling fields and flowers that she had never seen. The garden of course had flowers but she could point and name them since she was six. When Ren mentioned bringing her there, her heart raced. They had often talked about sneaking out for a day although but they both knew that if they left, they wouldn’t come back. With the next line, her heart sank a little. She loved her parents although they hardly talked. Leaving the palace also meant leaving them. She relished the last few lines, knowing that it would be a few days until another arrived, and even longer before he came back. She nearly missed the withered little flower at the bottom of the envelop. It was mostly dead but a few of the little yellow buds still bloomed. (I’m going to have her write a letter back but I’m kinda under a time constraint so I’ll do it later today.)

After a quick lunch, Sua grabbed some stationary and wrote her letter back: Dear Ren, thank you for the lovely flower. I hope your business in Juniper is going well. It does sound beautiful and I wish I was there with you. However, I'll just have to sit in the garden and pretend I can see all that. Sua sighed quietly. I hope one day my duties will bring me to all the places you've visited and I too will get to see the flowers and the fields. I can't promise on the sweets but I'll do my best. I await your return. Love, your best friends. She handed the letter to the page who ran off once again. Even he got to see more than she did. She sank into her bed, closing her eyes, wishing to be with Ren.

Ren was doing his round of patrolling the village. Sweat dripped down his face, Ren felt like he was constantly wiping his forehead. The heat was almost unbearable. "Ren!" A younger guard ran up waving something in his hand. It was only then that Ren forgot about the heat, a huge smile on his face. A letter. "I'm taking my break. Take over for me will ya." Patting the young boy on the shoulder, Ren took the letter and started to walk away. He went to his room and sat as his desk. The pounding of his heart was so loud that if anyone was around they would've heard it. He couldn't stop smiling while reading, though some of the things she said made her sad, he couldn't help but be happy to get a note. Behind him came a knock on his door making him jump slightly. "Ren, there's another note." Another one? It was strange to get two letters. Did the princess send two?
(I have an idea.)

(I'm sorry to hear that. I hope you get better.)
It had been almost a week now, since Ren has been gone. He was off his duty for today, but he hated not doing anything, so he decided to help the farmers in the field. It was still blazing, which made him wish for fall to come quicker. It was about noon and most the farmers were taking a break for lunch. A young redhead girl, about his age, came over with a container of water and a basket of food. He had gotten to know her well, and parts of her reminded him of the princess. "Here, eat. I want to thank you for helping so much." Her red hair almost looked like fire under the sunlight. She was tanned and had dark freckles across her nose and cheeks. If she didn't live here he would have mistaken her for royalty. "Well, I enjoy hard work, so this is something I like to do." While out here, Ren's usual light skin turned to a nice light tan. He could tell that the girl liked him, she made it quite obvious, but he was not looking for anything like that at the moment. Just as he was about to take a bite, the young new guard ran over waving a piece of paper in his hand. Weird, I haven't written the princess back yet. Lily, the young girl eyed the paper as well. When he looked it over it had the kings seal on it and immediately he set his food down and straightened his back, almost as if the king himself was there. Dear Ren, how have you been. I hope this job hasn't been too much on you. I know you insisted on going to keep your mind off your father's death, but I have another job for you. My dear Sua will be meeting some suitors and I want you to be her personal guard while in the process. "Suitors?" It was so sudden Ren didn't know what to feel. He wasn't entirely sad, but he wasn't exactly happy to hear news about her getting married either. Did she know about this? And if so, how does she feel? If Sua was truly happy about finding someone, as her bestfriend he would be happy for her. "It seems I'm being summoned back to the castle." He stood and continued to read it as he walked back to the room he was staying in. I will be sending a carriage to pick you up. Signed the King and beloved friend. The King had always been like a second father to Ren, and he was grateful for that. Folding the paper back up he set it on the desk and began packing. About an hour later he heard a knock on the door, then slowly it started to open. There stood Lily, with a slight smile on her face. "I see you are leaving. It's actually quite sad, I was hoping we could talk more." He knew she didn't have any ill intentions, and wasn't trying to force herself on him. Waving her in they both sat on the bed. "Sorry, the King calls. I wish I could stay longer as well." Even though he said that he was excited about going home and seeing Sua. "I can always send letters." He looked over only to see a sad look in her eyes. "Right… letters. Well… I guess I'll leave you to finish. But don't forget to send those letters." They sat in silence for a few seconds. Then, Lily leaned in and kissed Ren on the cheek. "Goodbye, I hope we can meet again someday." And with that she was gone. Two days later a carriage arrived and Ren was on his way home.

Sua stormed around the room, occasionally kicking things and punching walls. Her father decided that she was ready for marriage like a fruit ripe for picking. She wasn’t sure exactly how he would choose her husband, but she doubted that she would have any say in the matter.
“My lady,” one of the maids started. “Have you considered that marriage might actually be a good thing? Your father is kind and wise and I’m sure he’d pick someone good for the kingdom.”
“That’s exactly it,” Sua replied as she sent another kick into the bed frame. “He’ll pick a man that’s good for the kingdom. He couldn’t care less if that man is any good for his own daughter. Whether she cares for him or he cares for her. Whether he really cares about anything other than the position of king.” She realized it was selfish to hold her feelings over the good of the kingdom but this marriage deal had made all her frustrations of being kept up in the palace come to a head. “He’ll be old, or ugly, or gross, or cruel and I’ll be expected to dine with him and kiss him. I’ll share a bed with him and I’ll have his children. I’ll spend the rest of my life stuck in this palace as his arm candy. God forbid I have a say in it!” Tears trailed down her cheeks but anger burned in her throat. This was the tipping point. She wouldn’t live like this no matter what she had to do.
The maids had gone silent and they began to clean up as she excused herself to the bathroom to regather herself. She sat at the edge of the tub, shuffling through notices, hoping to find something, anything, to distract her. Her eyes caught one card. It was the deployment of the guard and on the returning side: Ren. She smiled through the tears. He’d be back by the next morning by carriage. He would listen to her.

Finally, the castle came into view. Ten could barely hold his excitement back. Sua, he would see his bestfriend again. After a long few months traveling he would be able to rest and get some good sleep. When the carriage pulled up he didn't even wait for it fully stood as he jumped out. It made him lose his balance a little, but he regained it easily. Sprinting, he ran till he was at the door of Sua's room. With a light knock, he waited for her to answer, though he wasn't even sure if she was in there. He wondered how different he looked, his black hair had grown out a lot, so much the it hung in his eyes, though he did try to keep the back shorter. He was definitely more tan, and with all the hard work he has been doing he gained a bit more muscle as well.

Sua anxiously paced in her room until a soft knock came at the door. She threw the door open and there stood Ren. He looked a little different each time he came back from deployment but never bad. This time his skin was warm and ran and his dark hair had grown. She threw her arms around his waist. “I missed you.” She looked up and brushed his hair out of his face. “You need a haircut.”

"What, you mean you don't like it?" He asked, clearly joking. Of course he would have to get a hair cut, hair this long would only get in the way. "Anyway… How are you doing?" He knew she must be angry, what girl would what to be forced into marriage? Especially if she's never met the guys competing for her heart. Gently he pushed passed her and opened her glass door, which led to the balcony. "It's a nice day. How about we sit here and talk." Soon enough he wouldn't be allowed to just casually come to her room and hang out. Who knows, her future husband might have Ren's head if he did that. Sure they could still be friends, but they would never be allowed to be alone together, and the thought slightly stung. All these years and soon he wouldn't be able to casually walk the garden grounds with her.

(Sorry, I had a lot of wedding stuff going on.)