#lesson is if you can't find motivation you can absolutely use pettiness

[omarfor-orchestra]

Well

[toloveawarlord]

♥ Pairing: Butler!Edgar x Princess!Alice

♥ Summary: It isn't easy being the beloved princess of Cradle on a day that is for confessing love.

♥ wc: 900

♥ a.n: Still one of my favorite boys. Edgar is just the sweetest. I decided to show off his bodyguard status in this fic. Since in this universe, Edgar is both her butler and trained bodyguard. He can truly do it all

Metal clanged against metal. Sweat dripped from his brown locks. Jade irises narrowing at every scrawny noble scurrying in the above walkway, off to see the princess with bouquets of flowers and boxes upon boxes of sweets. Edgar swung his sword down, striking at Luka with precision. He was glad that his fellow swordsman, and guard, was skilled enough to take each blow.

"I haven't seen you this motivated in some time," Luka said, completely on the defensive. Clearly, his friend wanted to release some stress. Luka was simply glad that he hadn't blown off training today. Even the most seasoned warriors had to continuously hone their body and weapon.

It was a rare day indeed when the gentle demon showed his true emotions so clearly on his features, if only for a brief moment when his watchful eyes caught sight of another man entering the castle in search of Princess Alice.

"I can be quite formidable when I want to be."

"So, you are imagining killing each one of them as they enter?"

Edgar turned his attention fully on his friend for the first time since they started sparring. He lowered his weapon, curiously admiring him. "My dear Luka, did you just make a joke?" Ah, it did lift his spirit to have his best of friends soothing his aching heart.

Sheathing his own sword, Luka shrugged. "It was the glare you gave them. If you're so concerned about her, then why aren't you with her?" Having two duties gave the man amble time and excuses to always be at her side.

"She dismissed me."

The very words made him dejected. Hence why Edgar had opted for immersing himself in swordplay with Luka. But it only gave him a view of slimy nobles vying for her attention.

"And you listened to her?" Luka hadn't known Edgar to be the one to do as he was told. Sure, Alice could say what she wanted, but the persistence of the Jack of Hearts always won out. "It wouldn't be unreasonable to check in. It's been some hours."

Edgar appreciated the absolution. It mattered not how long he was apart from her. The thrill of seeing her alighted excitement within himself. However, he was never prepared for the fluttering of butterflies when he spotted her. She ignited a part of him that no one else could.

His steps were silent. Finding her alone was difficult. Her duties required her to take lessons, have meetings. And today, she had to entertain the nobles seeking her attention, as per orders of her parents. It was a part of being princess.

With quick movements, he had stolen her away behind one of the large pillars, out of sight should anyone come this way. "Now, what if I were someone with ill intentions?" He teased as easily as he breathed. Jade irises sparkled with amusement.

"Aren't you? Sneaking up on a girl like that," Alice replied, attempting to quell her rapidly beating heart. It was from the sudden relocation, but she could admit that simply his presence brought about palpitations.

"You wound me, princess."

Alice giggled, shaking her head. "And what exactly are you doing here? I vividly remember telling you to take the day off." She'd only escaped Jonah's clutches for a few seconds, and here was Edgar, whisking her away with perfect timing.

"I can't recall. Strange."

"Edgar-"

Her chastisement cut off with a precisely timed kiss.

Arguing with him never produced a victor. Honestly, it rarely had an ending with words. His tendency to use his charms to resolve their petty bickering only increased with time. Not that Alice would complain.

Especially when he looked so good in this uniform.

"Did you come back because you were jealous?" Alice squeezed in between heated kisses. She wasn't ignorant. His displeasure of this day well known. She received an influx of lavish gifts and entertained many noblemen. All a part of her duty as princess.

Edgar rested his arm above her head, caressing her cheek with his gloved thumb. "Perhaps a smidge. I counted at least thirty." He liked to hide his true feelings behind a carefully placed mask, but when she giggled in response, Edgar's expression fell. His cheeks burned.

"I suppose it was that many. Honestly, Jonah dealt with them more than I did. I am grateful for his assistance, although I would have preferred to have you with me." Alice couldn't bring herself to subject him to that. Having to stand in a room, watching these other men flirt with her, tease her.

She'd no doubt in his ability to maintain his composure, but it would have been much too cruel.

"I would have if only-"

Alice lifted her hand, pressing a finger against his lips. "I know. You're always doing uncomfortable things for me, and for once, I could spare you from it. End of discussion, okay? Jonah will certainly come seeking me any moment and I'd rather spend these few precious moments doing other things." Her work was far from complete for the day.

He could hardly argue. "Yes, you're quite right." It was Edgar's duty to protect her as her guard and butler, but also protect her heart as a man who cared so deeply for her. Having her confess that she, too, wanted to protect his heart...

That filled him with a gentle fire.

"Shall I steal you away for a late-night rendezvous when you're finished?"

"Yes. I would like that very much. Spending at least some time with you on this day of love is all my heart truly wants."

Their lips met in a tender kiss, hidden from view behind the large, granite pillar. A princess falling for her bodyguard? How utterly cliche. But it's the cliches that everyone swoons for. After all, a fairy tale is the greatest love story of all.

[the-darklings]

I don't want to sound rude at all or like I'm telling you how to write your story, I'm just spilling my thoughts! :)

You write Santi so well, but how you truly like making him suffer in all of this angst is so ironic and I can't even explain it 🥺 Do you think him and V deserve a good ending with each other or V will let herself freely fall for grumpy? During the last few chapters, her emotions and feeling became clear and clear, especially with the gallery scene and after Santino got shot. How she hugged their joined hands to her chest always gets me emotional. (A normally non-emotional + Slytherin person speaking here) 🥲 She balances Santino in an excellent way and she is never afraid of giving him a piece of her mind.

I write as well and I can see the conflict and the hardships V going through. In my heart, I want her to rest and live her life a little bit after what happened with Tarasov and John. She is so so strong that it makes me with all the good things in the world for her.

If you think he’s suffering now, just you wait : )

But, I will say this: everyone in COA deserves to be free and happy, especially the main three. They all had their own arcs of struggles/suffering through their private obstacles, usually at hands of someone else. Obviously Santino’s story is just my interpretation of his past/motives in what was an attempt to give him a compelling arc overall.

I also think it goes without saying that Santino & V are very compatible - that’s been shown time and time again in multiple ways. However, I feel like people fail to realise that there are multiple and very good reasons why they hadn’t gotten together until now. It’s both their fault. V has very deep running traumas (outside of actual and quite severe ptsd) and she’s dealt with loss, trust issues, undervaluing herself and pretty sizeable abandonment issues pretty much her whole life. Now we also have identity crisis absolutely crushing what little sense of value she has managed to build in herself. Santino… well, Santino is Santino. I don’t think anyone can blame V for not trusting him with her heart. With him being known for backstabbing people, not valuing them and discarding them after using them. And yes, argument could be made that he’s different with her but in a real life situation… no one smart would trust Santino with his rep and those are just facts. Santino had to go through a challenging and very sour arc of his own to learn his lessons (price for pride, overreaching etc) and revalue his life. That was the whole point of me NOT leaving that bullet in his head. There’s more work to be done. So yes, while Santino may have loved V for years he was also not right for her for years. Compatible? Yes. Devoted? Absolutely. But not right. Still too selfish, too impulsive, too narrow minded and petty.

V without a doubt changes his worldview, challenges his values. She elevates him. Inspires him. Brings out the best in him. But he needed to become the kind of man who could elevate her. That’s why they hadn’t gotten together though they���ve known each other for so long. And yes, ch13 rocked both their worlds. Made them realise the value of the other in context of I came so close to never seeing you again. I think it’s very clear in subtle things in these last few chapters that the way V views Santino has shifted—that it’s gone past “I like him” to something she can no longer ignore. That being said, V is also in favour of always putting more paramount thing before herself (once again falling back onto her habit of seeing herself as nothing more than a pawn, expandable) so feelings, emotions, for anyone is on the back burner fo her right now. Also, y’know, the fact that she’s actively dying is also a pretty big damper on things. Even if she said something to Santino she doesn’t know how long she has left (if she doesn’t find an antidote) so telling him now would be cruel.