#THAT TOO HES RELEASING ON ARMY DAY AHHHHHH

[cravingstudyvalidation]

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[one-leaf-grimoire]

"the knight who pierced the king's heart"

Chapter 3

Summary: Julius wonders if going on this date is a good idea, only for Lisa to almost immediately try and bail.

Warnings: They are both big idiots oops

Pairing: Julius x Lisa

Link to full work on AO3

“Please, Marx, just trust me-”

“Julius! I’m not going to allow you to run off and skip your meetings!” Marx balled up his fists and for a brief moment, Julius feared for his life. His advisor was already livid about his disappearance last night, which did not go unnoticed by Augustus. Julius explained it away as he was feeling sick, but another excuse wasn’t going to get him past Marx. “Not without a really, REALLY good reason, at the very least.”

“Oh, well- I have a reason-” Julius glanced nervously at the clock in his office. If I don’t get out of here soon, I’m going to miss lunch time! “Er- um…” Any good excuse was evading him, so he just blurted out something slightly stupid: the truth. “I’m going on a date.”

Marx’s jaw dropped, and Julius immediately regretted his decision. “WHAT?!” He dropped the paperwork in his hand out of shock, and it scattered all over the tile floor. “You’re kidding!!!! It’s been ages-”

“Don’t remind me-” Julius cut in, trying to reveal as little information about the date as possible. “I’m going to be late to meet her if I don’t-”

“BY ALL MEANS- go!” Marx was suddenly behind him, pushing him out the door. “This is great news! It’s about time you got married and produced an heir!”

“Heir?! Married?!” Julius had thought about it, sure, but he didn’t expect Marx of all people to start bothering him about it now. “It’s much too early to start talking about that stuff-”

“Whatever! It’s still a good sign.” Marx smiled to himself as he finally released Julius. “Go- I’ll make an excuse. But let me know about your plans ahead of time in the future so I can plan your schedule, alright?”

Julius nodded, and couldn’t help but grin to himself. “Thank you… I’ll be back by the evening.”

“You better be!”

Julius quickly ran to his room to change, glad to discard all his finery. His crown was carelessly thrown onto his bed, replaced by a wide-brimmed hat that covered most of his hair. When combined with his usual bandana, it worked as a great upgrade to his “disguise.” She’s not going to be tipsy this time, Julius thought to himself, his heart pounding as the nerves started to set in. So it’s more likely that she’ll figure me out… she did kiss my hand that day, after all. But maybe that’s for the best… I don’t want to keep tricking her or anything like that.

With that, he set off, slipping out of the castle unseen as usual for what he hoped would be a fun afternoon.

As he walked through the busy streets as fast as he could, Julius couldn’t help but let his mind wander back to what Marx mentioned.

Marriage… and an heir.

Julius really hadn’t worried much about either of those subjects before. Back before he was king, when he was still just a knight, he had dreamed about settling down after retirement and having a family with someone. But of course, plans changed; his injury, his father and uncle’s deaths, and his ascent to the throne threw him off course. The position he took over was the one that oversaw the army and foreign policy, and the kingdom was on the brink of war at the time. Now, 5 long years later, they were at peace, and Julius finally found himself without much to do.

I guess… maybe this would be a good time to figure that all out after all.

He was never a fan of the dynastic aspect of things. Julius wasn’t supposed to take the throne at all, but of course things changed and the royal line shifted. But he didn’t really feel too possessive over the future of his line. One of his cousins would take over when he died or retired, and Julius was fine with that.

But still… maybe it would be nice to have kids.

Maybe it was all a weird delusion. After all, no one could predict the future. It might be silly to imagine this whole future from just two meetings with another person, but Julius didn’t stop himself.

Anyway… what was so special about her?

Why do I even like Lisa?

The truth was, Julius had been infatuated before he even saw her face. The way she fought in that tournament let her determination shine through, and when she took off her helmet, and kissed his hand-

Julius could acutely remember how it felt last night, with her holding onto him, her cheek pressed close against his chest. It had been a long, long time since another person was so close to him. Just the memory was enough to dust his ears in red.

So… is it all physical?

No…

It must not be all physical. Because, somehow, from just those two meetings, Lisa was able to make him think about a future, and imagine her there too.

Or… maybe I’m just being silly.

Julius suddenly halted, letting a few people brush by him in the crowd.

Lisa… she’s so young. She just started her career as a knight. If we get closer… it might hurt her…

However, a moment later, he started walking again, his steps more confident.

No… that’s silly. I’m the King, I’d be able to protect her! All I know is that I like her, for whatever reason, and I’m not going to let that go!

For now, all Julius had to worry about was making a good impression and figuring out a way to let Lisa know exactly what she was getting into.

“...hello?”

Julius half expected Lisa to have forgotten about their “date,” but to his pleasant surprise she was already standing outside, dressed casually with her arm still in her cast. She blinked at the sound of his voice, turning to see him. Her eyes immediately widened, and to his relief, she smiled.

“Oh! So I didn’t dream you up!”

“Ah, yeah, no you didn’t…” Julius laughed nervously, scratching the back of his neck. “I’m glad you remembered.”

“Me too!” Lisa stepped a little closer, and despite her smile, Julius could pick up on a distinct apprehension in her stance. She’s nervous too… probably more nervous than I am. For good reason, too; it was quite risky to meet up with a mysterious man, even for a lunch date. “I woke up this morning and all I could think of was I have a date today! I’m glad you’re just as handsome as I dreamed~”

AHHHHHH

Julius gulped, his heart jolting around every which way in his chest. She’s still just as bold as ever- “Thank you… you’re just as lovely. So-” He averted his eyes and looked around under the brim of his hat, which he was surprised didn’t hinder her opinion of him today. “Where would you like to go?” It had been a while since he had been on a date, but he assumed it was the gentlemanly thing to do to let her take the lead.

“Hmm… I was thinking that we should just get something from the market then go somewhere quiet.”

Somewhere quiet? Alright… Julius nodded, then turned to lead her off. “Sounds like a plan… this way, right?”

“Yeah!”

Julius didn’t want to overstep boundaries, but it turned out he didn’t have to; Lisa immediately slipped her right hand into his left. Ah! Ok, that must be a good sign… He glanced down at her as they walked, seeing her staring ahead, still looking as happy as could be. So far so good… now I just have to figure out how to go about the rest of this.

Before he knew it, they had finished up their trip to the market, and Lisa was dragging him towards the outskirts of town. Julius didn’t object, following with ease as he carried both of their lunches in his free hand. “This way!” she said, glancing back at him. “There’s a hill on the edge of town… it has a great view!”

Sure enough, she let go of his hand to race up the hill, lively despite her one useless arm. Once at the top, Lisa turned to look down at Julius, her grin faltering when she saw him still at the bottom. “Come on! I can’t wait up here forever.”

“... oh, right.” Julius quickly snapped out of it and climbed after her. I started staring… I have to be careful about that.

But how could he not stare at her? She demanded the attention of all those around her with every movement she made. Julius didn’t understand her yet, but he could see that she was the type of person who breathed life into everyone she crossed paths with.

Even him.

“You’re right, the view is great up here.” Julius finally sat down, letting out a sigh as his back came to rest against the trunk of a tree.

“I know right?” Lisa quickly sat next to him, reaching towards the lunch bag. “I bring dates up here all the time.”

“All the time?” Julius repeated, his heart sinking again. I mean… I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. She’s pretty, I’m sure she has a lot of admirers. I’m probably nothing more than a fun way to pass the time-

“No. I lied.” Lisa laughed nervously, awkwardly digging through her bag. “I don’t really get asked on dates much… not even this time! I asked you didn’t I?” She licked her lips as she pulled the sandwich out. “I do still come up here a lot, though… just by myself.”

Something changed in her voice. Julius stared at her, not exactly sure what to say.

Oh… so… I guess she’s also…

Lisa stared at her sandwich in her hand for a moment. Then, with a soft breath, she let it drop back down into the bag.

“Last night… I feel like I embarrassed both of us. I don’t know why you were there, or why I recognized you, I don’t even know your name now!” She let out a sigh, and to Julius’s dismay, she stood up. “I guess the reason I wanted to meet you today was to apologize. Sorry about all that… but you don’t have to worry about me anymore.”

Finally, she turned to look down at him, a sad smile on her face.

“Thank you… goodbye.”

Without another word, Lisa turned back around and started to walk off down the hill.

For a moment, Julius didn’t move. He wasn’t sure he was even processing what happened. His eyes were glued on the back of her head, as her hair bounced around her with every step. Maybe that image was what made him snap out of it and finally jump back to his feet.

“Wait!”

Lisa paused, glancing over her shoulder at the man behind her. Julius gulped, his arm halfway outstretched dramatically. He didn’t really know what to say; he just started talking.

“My name… my name is Julius.”

No change could be seen in her expression. Julius started to sweat. Should I say my last name too? I thought she would have put two and two together…

“...I saw you at the jousting tournament.”

His hand dropped back to his side as he continued to speak. He only had one goal in his mind, one desperate goal to keep her here just a little longer. The realization that she was about to leave, possibly forever, was finally dawning on him, and the emotion pounding from his heart had just one name:

Fear.

“You broke your arm, yet you kept pushing forward. I-I couldn’t help but admire that… and then…”

Here he was again, spewing out the dumbest thing he could: the truth. Yet, for the second time today, it was working. Lisa’s eyes finally widened a little, her body turning back to face him fully. Julius sucked in a breath through his nose before continuing.

“Then… you took off your helmet, and I saw that you aren’t just brave and strong… you’re beautiful too.”

Lisa blinked, shock starting to register on her face with each passing word. Julius couldn’t tell if she was pleased or not, and his next words caught in his throat. He stood there for a moment, his mouth open, unsure if he should continue.

“... I should be the one apologizing. It was weird and selfish of me, but I ended up at a party where I didn’t belong, because I wanted to see you again-” For some reason, Julius felt himself laugh weakly at the thought. “So… I’m sorry. But, if you have the time… I’d still like to have lunch with you.”

For a long, long time, Lisa just stared up at him, a light blush on her cheeks from the unexpected confession. Julius held his breath, feeling a bit dizzy. But somehow, he was still smiling.

And then, miraculously, she smiled back, closing her eyes for a brief minute.

“Why didn’t you say so earlier?”

She opened her eyes again, and Julius swore that they were sparkling. “I finally get my hilltop date, with an admirer, no less! How could I refuse?”

Julius let out a sigh of relief, his nervousness shifting into a more pensive kind.

She’s staying… just a little longer… that’s all I need!

“My name is Lisa… but you probably already knew that.”

“Yeah, I did…”