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theo bennet may be a well known stage actor in new york , but he harbors a secret he hopes will never be discovered. his real name is actually maxwell ravenswood , & he is the lost prince of ardenia that presumably died during a raid of his home years ago. if word were to ever get out of him being alive , it could mean terrible things for his mother & siblings who still live in the kingdom , which is currently being ruled by his uncle. for now , theo must continue on living his life as many of the ardenian citizens continue to speculate if he is dead or not , getting closer & closer to proving that he's alive each & ever day.

˗ˏˋ ᶜʰᵃᵖᵗᵉʳ ᶤ· ﹕ the deal.

in between the space where the atlantic ocean separates new york & england lies a small principality known as ardenia , a kingdom which has been ruled by the ravenswood family for over hundreds of centuries. despite the kingdom’s residents wishing for a more modernized way to rule over the kingdom , the family has denied their wishes & continued on to rule over them with strict rules & customs , which have made it harder for the citizens to respect their rulers & their children.

it is a known fact by the townsfolk that the royal ravenswood family is known for their sharp features & cold like eyes , as well as their cold hearts to match. it was tradition for the ravenswood family to rule rather strictly over their kingdom , & many of the citizens would come to hate the royal family for their less than caring ways. there have been protests & uprisings for the kingdom to become a democracy , but no one would listen to their cries & the monarchy would continue on.

the story at first must begin with casper ravenswood , a soft-spoken man whose heart was pure. he wanted nothing to do with becoming the crown prince , as he didn’t want to become like his own parents , who were cold & unfeeling towards their people. one day , while out on patrol , he met a young bookkeeper named natalia & fell deeply in love with her. he would risk going out into the middle of the night to see & spend time with her , & as their love grew , he realized all he wanted was to be with her & travel the world. at the ravenswood winter ball , he would propose to her & ask that they run away , ready to throw the crown just to be with her. she would agree & their plans would be made , unaware that someone else was just within earshot hearing all this.

lev voronov was a duke who was unhappy with his life & felt he deserved to be of higher status among his colleagues. opportunity struck when he stumbled upon the prince & his lover concocting a plan to run away together , & he knew he had to do something with this information. he would have the prince meet with him for tea for what seemed to be a friendly get together , but then he would reveal what he knew & threatened to tell his father of this plot if he did not meet his demands. casper knew if lev told his father everything , he might put natalia in jail or have her killed , so rather than risk that , he did what lev asked. he would marry his daughter matilda so that they would have a direct connection to the throne & kingdom , & they would ensure that they attain some of his riches. casper had no choice but to agree & would leave poor natalia with no real reason as to why he had to suddenly break off their engagement. after casper married matilda , natalia would die due to unknown causes. this would break the newly appointed prince’s heart , but matilda would be there to help him through his grief & the two would create a strong bond of understanding & friendship. they would try to break their marriage once news of natalia's death had reached them , but lev would still have the opportunity to tell casper’s family the truth of all this , which would only lead to public disgrace of the family. unwillingly to bring such shame , they would continue on with the marriage & allow themselves to be directed under their influence.

as part of their agreement , casper & matilda were to bear three children in order to ensure a possible & respectable heir. they would go on to have two sons & one daughter : gideon , maxwell & katherine , all beloved & cherished equally. lev & his wife , polina , would allow themselves to come into the ravenswood home often & influence their grandchildren with their own thoughts & opinions , hoping they would gain favor with one of them & perhaps have a closer influence on the throne when they become the next heir.

˗ˏˋ ᶜʰᵃᵖᵗᵉʳ ᶤᶤ· ﹕ the heir.

the prince of ardenia is meant to rule until their next heir turns twenty nine , in which case they would retire & then their son or daughter would assume the role of prince or princess , settling into the position while looking for a proper spouse , usually chosen by their parents. it’s usually custom that the first born would become the heir by default , but gideon , casper & matilda’s eldest , was deemed an improper fit due to his bursts of anger & irresponsible behavior. it was then decided that their second son , maxwell , would become the next prince , & this was officially proclaimed when he was only ten years of age.

maxwell was perhaps the most serious of the three children , always seeking approval from both his parents & his grandparents. he liked to follow the rules & always chastised his siblings for not behaving properly , though deep down he was only trying to look out for them & ensure that they were okay & safe. when not busy learning how to be the next crown prince , maxwell could always be seen in the gardens or reading a book of some sort. he enjoyed spending time alone & often envied the people in his stories who went on grand adventures , knowing he would never have the same opportunity himself.

It was a well known fact among the kingdom that the ravenswood family was known for looking cold & distant , but the children of casper & matilda were defying that legend. despite their faults , they all clearly cared for the people of their kingdom , maxwell especially , as he would always take the time to listen to what the people had to say & do what he could to solve their problems. his kindness & caring attitude toward them was the one weakness that his grandparents , lev & polina , did not like. they felt he could be easily swayed into becoming more focused on the people’s needs than what they want for their kingdom , & that became all the more true when the people began calling him ❛ the people’s chosen heir. ❜

as maxwell got older , he found himself wanting to be the crown prince less & less. he wanted to help others , but he didn’t think becoming the next leader would be the way to go about things. he had other dreams he wanted to achieve & a love of theater ever since he went to his first play at the age of six. he wanted nothing more than to act & be a part of that artistic world , but he knew that would be a reality that could not come true. maxwell would go on to date people he meets in town in secret , & through those relationships & spending more time with the people of the town , his desire to please others , particularly his grandparents , dwindles every passing year.

he tells his siblings how he doesn’t want to be prince at all , & they sympathize with him & try to help him cheer up a bit. during one evening when they were talking about this , their uncle roland , who serves as their father’s advisor & is casper's brother , overhears them & he immediately goes to lev & polina with this information , which has them decide upon a plan. they enjoy their status too much to have their grandson throw it all away & felt as though his thinking may lead to him ending the throne line altogether. roland , who was supposed to be the new leader if casper had succeeded in running away , was still bitter that his dreams of ruling ardenia were dashed , so he decided to help the voronov’s with their plan , uncaring of the betrayal that will come from it.

on the eve of maxwell’s birthday , the ravenwood family would hold a private party for him , celebrating his 29th birthday & his soon to be ascension to the crown. at this point , maxwell has decided to abdicate his title & will do so at his ceremony , announcing that he will be working with his siblings to create a democracy. as they began celebrating maxwell’s birthday , they all fell silent when they heard something outside the castle. an angry mob of protesters ﹙ all instigated by roland in secret ﹚ were banging on the palace doors , desperate to get in & demand an audience with the royals so they could explains why the monarchy should end.. they end up finding their way in with little to no struggle , which leads everyone in the castle into a panic & believe the mob has intentions to kill ﹙ once again , all instigated by roland ﹚.

maxwell & his father are separated from his mother & siblings , & they were left to run & find a way out. they run into roland , who maxwell is relieved to see , but casper had suspected something of his brother when he wasn’t around for the party & pulls maxwell back before roland could kill him. roland's knife , unfortunately , finds casper’s chest instead & he slowly begins to die before maxwell’s eyes. with his dying breath , casper begs for him to flee , to make a life for himself or his grandparents & uncle will kill him. roland attempts to attack maxwell , but maxwell manages to knock him out accidentally , though he does sustain some injuries & a cut to his arm & side , which leads to a trail of blood. maxwell manages to escape & runs fearing his life , knowing now he can never go back , as he will surely be killed if he does.

˗ˏˋ ᶜʰᵃᵖᵗᵉʳ ᶤᶤᶤ· ﹕ a new beginning.

the kingdom believes maxwell to have died , despite not having found his body. they held a joint funeral for maxwell & casper , but there was outrage among the people when there was no body of the prince to be found , as well as upset for the arrest of the protestors who say they had no part in maxwell's or casper's murder. roland would assume the role of crown prince as katherine was not yet of age , & the grandparents believe that maxwell is dead , but roland isn’t too sure , though he won’t reveal that to the grandparents , as he knew his own life & his role as prince would be at stake.

maxwell somehow makes it to new york & decides to make a living for himself , starting out small with some odd jobs here & there , eventually getting his own apartment. he decides in order to blend into society , he will change his look & his name. he eventually settles on the name theo bennett ; theo for his favorite character from little women & bennett as the last name of his favorite character in pride & prejudice.

thanks to his own knowledge on how to invest & how to act , it doesn’t take long for theo to settle into a nice apartment & to make waves in the theater world. he becomes quite popular among his fellow actors & is finally living the life he feels he always wanted. he feels terrible for leaving ardenia the way he did , but it was necessary for his own survival , & he feared what may happen to him & his siblings if he were to be discovered. he eventually finds contact with katherine & gideon & lets them know that he’s okay , & while at first they were upset that he had left them , they understood why he had to leave. they keep his disappearance secret & prepare to fight their uncle & grandparents on any decisions they deem unsavory.

meanwhile , stories of theo’s disappearance begin to circle around the internet. there are many people who believe he is still alive , & refuse to think he could have died , despite the evidence that proved otherwise. ❛ the lost prince ❜ was a popular tale among the people of adronia , & many believe that one day , their prince will return & assume his position on the throne & save them from the tyranny of roland’s rule.