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samsspambox · 7 months ago

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hewwo

so i've been having this fucken daydream at work for a while abt my oc and this really cathartic revalation that happens onstage as she acts out a play and she finally lets go of her feelings for artem (for the moment, i've just gotten really into 'a likes b and is upfront abt it, b likes c, a realizes they never had a chance and start to move on, b realizes they have come to like a and now return their affections and start to try to woo them) and well. i'm not there narratively in the series but also i just had to write this so. here. enjoy! :D

She knew missing Neil and Giann’s whole welcome back party at the office would probably lead to more questions, especially with her avoiding Artem as of late. But aside from wanting to distance herself from Artem — from everyone, really — she had a legitimate excuse: the closing night of Kingdom of Regret. The cast and crew were nothing but amazing the entire time. Especially her understudy. With how many times the NXX had dragged her away to god knows where, she was surprised they didn’t end up ditching her for the understudy.

She couldn’t believe it was finally coming to an end and she still hadn’t managed to cry properly on set. It wasn’t that she couldn’t, it was that they were the wrong tears. Apparently. They were good enough to land her the part, but the casting director told her that her tears were more of grief than of desperation and heartache. Maybe after everything that's happened she’d finally be able to get it right.

—

Artem still couldn’t believe that this was happening. Neil was here, in the Themis offices, alive and well. Giann and the rest of the NXX were present, happily chatting with each other as the rest of the office staff were all in their little cliques. He felt content. He finally had his teacher — no, his father — back. But…something was off.

Neil sat next to him on one of the couches they had moved from his office. Luke was on his other side, his cane at the edge of the couch. He was laughing which was good, after his stay at the hospital he wasn’t really sure if the ex-NSB agent was doing well. Retirement suited him.

“Nah, I could've gotten out of there,” Neil jokes, their entire circle bursting out in chuckles at his words.

“I sincerely doubt it, my friend. Your last escape attempt involved you just asking.” Giann responds from across them, sitting on an office chair while Marius leaned onto the chair he was sitting in.

“You never know until you ask.”

His heart was warm. The smell of Neil’s special blend around the office, his colleagues, no, friends, all around happy and safe… It was nice. The nagging feeling would not leave him, though. Something was missing, but he was too drunk on the familiarity and the newness of having all the people he cared about together to really care.

Giann scoffs, patting Marius’ head which had migrated to be on top of his. “Yeah, and you were seconds away from being shot in the face because you were being annoying and asking too much.”

“It was worth a shot. If it wasn’t for your little friend Astrid just stumbling in with the boss, I don’t think I would’ve made it to another ‘Pretty please’.”

“Where is she, anyway?” Giann asks, looking around. “I don’t see her around. I know you guys said she’s a recent addition but a damn good one she is.”

They all turn to Vyn, her defcato caretaker. She’d been living with him for the past couple of months, surely he’d know. But he also looked at a loss. He blinked, staying still for a moment before regaining composure.

“She most likely had to go to her play to perform. I believed it was called Kingdom of Regret.”

Rosa swallowed the cookie she was chewing, “Hey, isn’t that the play Kanon is producing? I think he even wrote it.”

“What’s he doing producing a play? I thought his whole thing was acting and singing. I could see a musical, but a play?” Marius asks, his chin making his head bob as he refused to move his head from the top of Giann’s.

Luke shrugs, already on his phone and scrolling. “I don’t know how she had time to be in one. Or that she never told us she got a part. Reviews are pretty good, though.”

“Who cares, let’s just go! I haven’t been to a play in ages. Marius, check if there are any tickets left and buy everyone one. Oh! And buy her flowers!” Giann smacks Marius’ face as he talks, his brother making a displeased noise as he smacks him back. He grabs his own phone and grumbles all the while.

“Why do I have to do it? You know how to use a phone.”

“Because I’m 90% sure my bank accounts are frozen, so you do it.”

“It says the last show is today…” Luke interrupts, looking up from his phone to the group. “And that the show starts in 15 minutes.”

Giann pushes Marius off of him and then claps his hands. “Alright, everyone pile in the limo!”

—

“What do you mean Johnny isn’t here?” Astrid asks as Mary puts on her corset. Curse Kanon for making this play in the regency era. “The understudy doesn’t know about the whole ‘Don’t actually kiss the maid because she’s never had her first kiss’ thing! W-Where is the understudy anyway?!”

“On his way, but he has a bit of time before he comes on anyway. The kids go on first, remember? Please tell me you remember how the play goes.”

“Of course I remember,” She huffs, smoothing out her apron. Her dreams of kissing Artem had died the day she found Artem drunk hugging Rosa and begging her to stay when they all did karaoke. But… a part of her still hoped. Still yearned for the chance that Artem Wing would be her first kiss. Guess the universe just wanted to smother that chance.

“B-But what about your first kiss?” Mary asks, turning her around to place the white headpiece on her.

“It doesn’t matter anymore. I have to be a big girl and grow up. I’ll just… follow their lead.”

The lights dim, startling the both of them. She didn’t have to go on until later, but the lights dimming always put a sense of urgency in everyone.

“Shit, let’s go.”

—

Follow Alaric's journey from poverty to the throne, where he becomes entangled in a dangerous web of ambition and deceit. As the kingdom crumbles under his reign, alliances shift, hearts break, and a dramatic rebellion threatens everything he holds dear. Can redemption be found, or will cruelty and ambition prevail? Don't miss this captivating story of hidden desires and the ultimate cost of power.

“I know it’s not Sci-Fi,” Neil says from beside him as he reads the rest of the playbill in search of Astrid’s name, “But it certainly sounds interesting.”

Artem nods, though he’s not exactly interested. He’s mostly gotten over his grudge against Kanon. Mostly being the key word. He’s still a little peeved about Rosa asking for his autograph and all that but it’s all in the past now.

“I still can’t believe you got center orchestra seats to this sold out show.” Luke mumbles, stretching over Rosa to take the playbill from Artem. He’d lost his own the second they sat down.[1]

Rosa nods, pressing her shoulders against Luke as he reads the stolen playbill to also read it. “It’s not normally sold out. Apparently Kanon was coming to give an interview and the lead called out at the last second so now he’s playing the lead.”

He feels a flicker of annoyance. Why was the universe trying to punish him with his (one sided) enemy?

—

The story begins with two children playing, their mothers talking as they did the palace laundry. One of the children was the bastard child of the king, sired after a night of love and betrayal. The mother of the girl admonishes the other maid for her laps of judgment. The mother of the boy shakes her head, not being able to regret having her son. They soon talk about the declining health of the crowned prince and the death of the queen at the birth of their child. The possibility of the bastard child becoming king looms in the air, unspoken and heavy.

They walk off stage, the set remaining quiet as two teenagers clad in black walk onto stage. The girl, Evangeline, laments the death of the king and how it was so soon after the death of the crown prince. The people say the king died of a broken heart, and she agrees. The boy, Alaric, looks weary. They’ve both grown up knowing of his origins. Of the possible fate that would befall on him in the case of a situation like this happening.

The acting between the two teens is magnetic, of being friends with a hint of something more, not yet daring to take that final step. Evangeline takes his hands, bringing them to her lips and smiling at him. An air of hope lingers between them. Evangeline promises to stay at his side no matter what, but begs him not to let power go to his head. Alaric grins, pulling his hands away and turning her back on her. He laughs and says that he will be a great king. One that will be remembered for his actions. He will be kind, giving to the less fortunate. To his own people as that is how he was raised. He walks off stage, claiming he has work to do. Evangeline chases after him, smiling softly as she warns him not to get in over his head.

The curtain closes, a single person walking in front of them as they speak.

“Behold these two, pure souls standing on the precipice of innocence. Unscathed by the world's harsh shadows, they walk hand in hand, a silent yearning for something grander woven between their fingers. As they tread their destined path, fate, the enigmatic weaver, steps forth. Is she a ruthless mistress, reshaping the eternal bond of friendship with her touch? Or does she wear a gentler face, unveiling the true essence of hearts as she dangles their deepest desires before them? In this dance of destiny, let us remember: we must hold fast to who we are and the roots from which we spring, for it is in this remembrance that our souls find their anchor amidst the storm.”

—

The play goes on as the curtains rise. She walks on stage in her outfit, acting her part of the maid perfectly. She acted distraught as her friend, her king, married Seraphina. He fell utterly in love with her the second she saw her in an expedition outside the kingdom. She was the daughter of the neighboring king, beautiful in every aspect except one: her greed. Seraphina wanted her own kingdom and she couldn’t have it due to the limitations on the monarchy. Second born and a girl? The only way for her to become queen was if she married a king and her husband were to die.

She was present every time Seraphina was onstage, a testament of both having to serve her and looking out for the king. At the end, she and the rest of the audience learn about Seraphina’s plan to kill her husband. And this. This was the scene that made her character a supporting lead rather than just someone used for backstory plot.

She wrings her hands as she enters the scene. This is the first time she and a grown up Alaric had shared the stage, aside from everyone being on it for Alaric’s wedding. She was nervous, how couldn’t she be? Apparently, Johnny’s replacement was fucking Kanon. Writer and producer of the play was now the main character. And she was going to have to kiss him.

The scene was one from her audition, and the one she had been told she needed just a bit more to get it right. But now, now with the death of her mother and any chance she had to be with Artem gone, maybe she had enough of whatever she was missing to nail this scene for the final time. Maybe it was good that Johnny had called out.

“M-My king…” She speaks softly, making her voice tremble as she approaches Kanon, who’s back is facing her. “I… I must speak to you regarding Queen Seraphina.”

He turned around to face her, walking to stand right in front of her. She doesn’t bow, they are close enough that she doesn’t have to. He frowns at her.

“And your manners?”

Now it’s her turn to frown.

“Alarc, when it is just us I have never once bowed to you. Why—”

“That changes now, Evangeline. Only my wife is to address me so casually. What business pertains to my wife that you found it so important to interrupt my studies?”

She flinches at the tone of voice, taking one step back and looking down at the stage. She clutches at her chest, the costume wrinkling in between her fingers. She knows Kanon is just acting and that this isn’t real at all, but… She can’t help but relate to Evangeline more than ever. A woman who loved someone, who wasn’t shy about it, but knowing that they can never have them. Yet still wanting to make sure they were safe and happy. The time she found Artem begging Rosa not to leave as he hugged her during the karaoke outing crosses her mind for a second.

“Alaric… Your majesty. The queen, she plots for your death. Her plan is to kill you so she is able to take over your throne.”

Her voice quivers as she tells him this, but it's not because she’s afraid. It’s because she keeps remembering Artem pining over Rosa. The way his eyes light up the second he sees her. The time he shut Celestine down hard when she saw them together thinking he was interested in her. And the worst part is… The worst part is that Rosa is perfect for Artem. She is kind, noble, beautiful inside and out. How would she, a wannabe actor with a dead mafia mother who kidnapped his father figure, compare to someone like her? She couldn’t.

“Do you have any idea of what you are saying, Evangeline? You claim that my wife, the one I know loves me just as much as I love her, wants to kill me?”

Kanon steps forward, taking her face roughly into his hand, making her look up at him. She closes her eyes, turning slightly towards the audience as she feels a few tears start to roll down her cheeks. She would never measure up to Rosa. And even if she picked someone else, because she wasn't blind to the affections the rest of the NXX had for her, would it even matter? Would Artem allow himself to move on, or would he hopelessly pine for her the rest of his life? She would lose either way. If there were ever a world where Rosa does not pick Artem and by some miracle he turns his attention to her, she knows she wouldn’t make it out of Rosa’s shadow.

“I have heard her speak to her ladies in waiting. I have seen it in writing, my king. She does not love you…”

She turns back to him, opening her eyes and placing her own hands over his wrists. Suddenly, she is no longer looking at Kanon, but at Artem. His eyes, usually bright blue with so many thoughts that they are unreadable, are dark and cold. As if a wall were placed and she could no longer look deeper into him. She pushes forward into his hold, a sense of desperation coming over her.

“Like I do. And this love, as unrequited as it may be, compels me to protect you. Even if it is from your own wife. You have known me for so long, Alaric, and I have loved you for just as long. Do you think me a liar? That I would break the oath I made as your mother was on her deathbed?”

“Do not dare talk about my mother.” Artem grits out, pressing his fingers deeper into her cheeks.

“I promised to look out for you, regardless of my own feelings. Even so, I love you, the very essence of my soul belongs to you, and it could not bear the heartbreak of seeing you slain at the hand of your own beloved wife.”

Artem scoffs, sneering at her as he keeps her in his hold, “You dare speak to me about love? A lowly maid declaring her love for her king? It is almost laughable. Predictable, in fact. You wish me to lay you and sire a bastard child, is that it? Seraphina was right. I should’ve sent you to the stables the day I got married to my love.”

“Ar-Alaric, please!” She begs, moving her hands to clutch desperately at his lapels, bringing him a bit closer to her as desperation seeps into her words. Artem looked down at her in disgust and her hands burned. Burned at the reminder that he was not hers to touch, to plead or beg. “She only married you for the throne, you must listen to me!”

She knows what happens next. And she knows it's not really Artem who will kiss her. But if she can break her own heart with this, it’ll be easier to get him out of her head, to move on. And she’ll have a fun story to tell. ‘I kissed Kanon, can you say that?’ Johnny and her had a deal when she still foolishly thought she stood a chance with Artem. He would tilt her away from the audience, covering her with his body and kissing her on the cheek. She had yet to get her first kiss, a series of lucky situations and background characters not having the necessity to kiss anyone. But this was her big break. Her first supporting role. Things were bound to be different. And Kanon did not know about the deal.

He pulls her face roughly to his, tilting it a bit and making her gasp softly. He uses that opening and plants his lips onto her. She closes her eyes, timidly kissing him back as her hands migrate back to his face, cupping his cheeks. Tears roll down her face as she bids goodbye to the chance she had to make her first kiss meaningful. As she bids goodbye to her own lingering affections, to her delusion.

He pulls away, pushing her down on the floor. Her hands sting from the impact and burn from the buzz she felt while her hands touched his cheeks. She looks up at Artem, his gaze colder than she ever thought possible. He looks down at her, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand in sheer disgust of her.

“You sicken me with your pathetic devotion. Of your claims to love the very king you serve. You are nothing but a filthy maid, why would you ever think I would set my sights for someone as pathetic as you? Someone beneath my station? You disgust me, Evangeline. Consider that kiss a mercy from your king. A taste of something you will never have.”

She lets out a sob as Artem walks off stage, her vision blurring with tears as she looks out to the audience from the floor.

Artem would never love her, just as Alaric would never love Evangeline. It was just a painful fact she had to live with. Something she had to move on from. Her own heart begged, pleading for her to just hold on to the feeble hope of one day gaining his affections, but she knew it would be futile. She had to rip him out of her heart. Her connection to him, to the NXX, was over the second Neil and Giann returned. What did he think of her? Her mother was the cause of all the grief the NXX had. Did he find her disgusting? He must, considering she was nothing but a stupid little actor trying to make it big. How foolish of her to even think he would return her affections. Every lingering glance, every accidental touch… Meant nothing.

She let out another sob as she reached this conclusion. He was probably just tolerating her as a means to get Neil back. And she couldn’t fault him. Not when she was the one stupid enough to think that someone like him would ever love some nobody like her. She clutches at her chest as she brings a trembling hand to her lips. And as the curtains start to fall, she lets out a scream while curling into herself. A scream filled with heartbreak and grief. The heartbreak of knowing that the man she wanted, wanted someone else and would never look her way. And the grief of having to let go. Because at the end of the day she wanted him to be happy, no matter what it looked like. No matter who it would be with, even if it wasn’t her.

She stood up from the floor once the curtains closed, wiping away the tears with the palms of her hands. She took one last look at the closed curtain, a reminder that this scene, this part of her life, was over.

“Goodbye Artem…” She whispered, finally turning around and hastily walking backstage to get ready for the final act.

—

Vyn sat stunned at the performance Astrid had just given knowing she wasn’t acting. Most people wouldn’t have given a second thought to the slip-up of Alaric’s name. But he knew. She wasn’t acting, she was professing her love for Artem only to get rejected in the most cruel way possible. He knows that he’s not the only one fond of Rosa and he had been secretly hoping that Astrid would have enticed Artem enough for him to give up on Rosa. Hell, he even thought it was working.

Yet Astrid had decided to give up on the notion of fighting for Artem’s attention. She must’ve seen something he didn’t.

Giann nudged him, breaking him out of his reverie. He turned to look at Giann, a raised eyebrow in question.

“She’s really good, huh?” He asks, a pointed look crossing his face. Even after all that time in captivity, not much has changed. He speaks to him in undertones, hoping he catches his true question. ‘She wasn’t acting, was she?’ He turns his gaze back to the stage, “Indeed, she is.” ‘She wasn’t.’ — [1] - the order of the seating goes neil, artem, rosa, luke, vyn, giann, marius.

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