#sayas swan lake au

[haradasaya]

The Swan Princess (Chapter 3)

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The Swan Princess, a Redacted Audio retelling of Swan Lake CW: Fem!Lovely, Fem!ListenerCharacter

Vincent and Sam took their time to re-equip their horses before heading off into the woods, bows slung over one shoulder, and a quiver of silver tipped arrows over the other. These woods were known for being home to all kinds of creatures—mystical and common alike. There had been plenty of times the trio of friends had gone racing after an elk, or a moose, sure that they could take the beast down if they worked together. 

There were also many times that Sam had needed to practice his healing magic to stop potentially fatal wounds from killing the prince or princess after said adventures. By the time they���d all grown older, it had become much easier for the three of them to actually hunt cohesively, as more of a team than as three self-proclaimed invincible children. Those had been the days too—those long weekends spent camping underneath a blanket of stars. It was hard not to be nostalgic while hunting within the same woods. Especially since neither of them had been back since Lovely’s death.

“It seems nothing wants to risk its hide today.” Sam said, glancing around the woods once more for a sign of brown fur or bright feathers. They’d seen several small squirrels or bluebirds within the trees, but nothing larger—certainly nothing worth their arrows. 

“I know we used to hunt here often, but I didn’t think we’d run the place dry.” Vincent scoffed.

“Yeah. Been more than a year since we been back. You’d think something would be running around here by now; even a baby somethin’.”

Vincent nodded once, inhaling deep in an attempt to calm his nerves. “You don’t think there’s something else out there, do you?”

Sam chuckled. “What, like the bear we couldn’t take down on your birthday that one year?”

Vincent smiled back. “Who knows, maybe it remembered us, and is getting revenge by chasing away all the animals?”

Sam paused, sliding off the saddle of his horse. “I think if that bear wanted revenge, it wouldn’t protect the other creatures o’ the forest; it’d just come after us.”

Vincent followed suit, sliding off the saddle and gripping the reins in his hand. “Yeah, you’re probably right.”

The two walked through the brush for a short while, hoping that their weight off the horses’ backs wouldn’t make their breathing so heavy, and some animals would feel safe enough to come out. Before they knew it, they found themselves at the slope of the deep valley said to hold mystical creatures never before seen by human eyes. Neither spoke the words, but one look between them said they’d be willing to take their chances with a mystical beast should they encounter one, rather than coming up empty in the woods they’d already rode through.

The horses were skittish at first, not too keen on taking the trip down the inclined path. It wasn’t incredibly steep—for a human, anyway, but after a few unsuccessful attempts to goad the horses down the hill, the boys retraced their steps, and tied them up on a tree branch easily visible from the slope. 

Vincent went first, eager to see what kind of mythical creatures lived within the forest of fable; hoping there were things like deer with huge horns and giant hooves, or fowl the size of an ox. Sam only laughed at the wild imagination of his friend, offering instead things like fae, five-tailed foxes, or even a unicorn.

“We won’t be shootin’ a unicorn, even if we see one. Don’t get too excited.”

Vincent offered a small, fake pout. “Well fine, I don’t want to take home a kill either then.”

Sam playfully hit his friend on the shoulder, sending the boy stumbling for his footing when they heard a ruffling of feathers only a few paces away. They had found themselves close to the shore of a marvelous lake, one that shone the reflected light of the setting sun. Vincent did his best to stand back up as quietly as he could, afraid even a snapped twig would scare off the creature.

Sam stood behind him as they both peeked out from behind the large tree where they had found themselves.

“It’s a swan!” Vincent whispered, the enthusiasm clearly evident in his tone. 

“Look at how beautiful it is.” Sam commented, mesmerized by the sight. “Those feathers—they’re almost… glowing.”

The two boys looked on, before Vincent pulled an arrow from his quiver, notching it into place on the bowstring. Sam gripped his hand, stopping him from taking aim.

“Wait. Something feels wrong about this.”

Vincent scoffed at his friend. “I don’t know about you, Sammy, but I want a kill to take home to my father, so that he at least doesn’t think I’m a failure of a hunter before he chops off my head for running away again. I’m getting the damn bird.”

Sam tried to catch Vincent’s eye, but the prince was honed in on his potential prize. 

“Besides… that sun is steadily dropping. If I don’t go after it now, I’ll miss my chance entirely.”

Sam still didn’t like the idea, a strange presence washing over him as he stood there, watching the bird float quietly along the surface of the water. “Alright Vince. Just make it quick. I’m getting a feeling like we shouldn’t be here.”

Vincent drew back his bow, the metal arms creaking with the stretching of the bowstring. “Don’t worry Sammy, we’ll be outta here right—”

He steadied his aim, slowly releasing his breath from his lungs as he tightened his diaphragm, strengthening his core, and with a simple flick of his fingers, fired the arrow…

…wide. It hit the water with a hard twick! sound, scaring the poor bird from its comfortable position on the lake, before flapping feathery wings and taking off in the other direction.

“—now.”

Sam laughed at how bad the shot had been. “I thought she trained you better than that.”

Vincent only huffed again, grabbing another arrow and notching it before starting after the swan. “Not all of us can have perfect shots like her!” He called out as he raced off after it, Sam following shortly behind. The golden rays of the sun cascaded down through the trees, bathing the world in either radiant light or stark shadow. The swan ducked in and out of his sight, flying behind the trees but remaining close to the shore of the great lake before them. Vincent fired off arrow after arrow, hoping to hit it in flight, but his aim hadn’t improved in the slightest. Sam was still hesitant to fire his bow, unsure why he felt so uneasy about attacking the poor creature.

Eventually, the swan dove into a patch of cattails and sedges, evading the men’s sight.

“Damnit!” Vincent huffed, hurriedly scanning the plants for any sign of those marvelous white feathers. “Where’d the damn thing go?”

Sam huffed, trying to catch his breath from all the running they’d done. This section of the lake was cut off by an inland patch of land that seemed to wind between the plants, while the shore of the lake continued in the same direction from where they had just come. Hiding well enough in the sedges, the swan could have gone either direction completely unnoticed.

“Okay, okay wait. I can see that his little patch of land goes almost completely around this section. I’ll head this way, and you stay along the shore, see if we can’t find it. If you see anything, let me know, alright?”

Sam huffed a few more times, before sucking in a large gulp of air. “You got it, captain.”

Vincent turned away from his friend, convinced he’d be able to find the bird before the last of the sun disappeared beyond the rising valley walls above them. On this side of the lake, opposite to where the sun was setting, were the few remaining rays of sunlight. From his position, Vincent could see the slope where they’d entered the valley, and their horses were tiny specks of color against the green and brown treeline. He hadn’t expected to have gone so far away from his horse, but he was close now, and wouldn’t leave without his trophy.

He sunk low into a crouch, hoping that the lower angle would help him to see through the tall brush.

In the corner of his eye, he saw a flash of white, and then it vanished. He paced forward, crawling as silently as he could manage… until the swan came back into his sights. It had moved towards the outward edge of the plants, and was headed for the center of the lake. His arrow was already notched into his bowstring, and as silently as he was able, pulled the bow taut in his hands. He watched it move for a few silent moments, noting its odd behavior as it seemed to look around for any more signs of danger. 

What an odd thing for an animal to do, he thought. By this time, almost the entire valley was bathed in shadow, and the creature, thinking itself safe, pressed out of the grass. Vincent wouldn’t have a clearer shot than he did right now. His sights were honed into the backside of the bird, and with a single arrow, he could have his prize.

It was then that the rest of the sunlight lifted off the lake to his right, and a slow, whirring whisper filled the air. Before his very eyes, a smoke of red and black and blue whirled in the air around the swan, and he stood up from his squat as he watched this dark magic change the form of the animal right before his very eyes. He couldn’t help his mouth falling open as the figure that emerged from the mist slowly became more and more familiar.

The frill at the bottom of the dress in this purple color that Vincent knew, above that a similar set of frills in white and lilac, leading up to a cinched waist in creme and purple. He knew that dress. It was the same dress that he’d marveled at the craftsmanship of while on his love the day she was set to return to her own kingdom for the summer—the dress she had worn the day of her accident. His eyes wandered further upward, toward the long golden chain on her neck, a small glowing stone on the end; and finally upon the face of the woman who had moments ago been a magnificent swan.

The woman’s eyes remained closed for a moment while the rest of the magic faded away, but when she opened her eyes, Vincent and her gazes’ locked, and the whole world went silent.

“...Lovely?”

The girl’s eyes went wide, and she opened her mouth to speak…

…and promptly fell into the deep water beneath her.

Vincent’s brain took another second to register what had happened, but when he realized that Lovely was literally drowning in the lake, he immediately took off into the water after her. When he finally couldn’t touch the ground beneath his feet, he swam as fast as he could out to her flailing form. 

The instant his hand gripped her arm, he knew that it was her. Lovely was a lot of things, but a strong swimmer was not one of them. Wearing such a large dress wouldn’t have made it any easier, either, but Vincent still pulled her towards the shore with all his might.

Eventually, he was able to touch ground again, and he gave a final, mighty pull towards himself, where he was finally able to see the face of the girl that he loved before him; hair plastered to her face, devoid of any of her traditional makeup, but still beautiful all the same.

“Lovely, is that really you?” He asked as he pulled her into his chest, still walking backwards towards the shore as he did so.

The girl couldn’t look him in the face, instead pressing her forehead to her fists, pressed against his chest, heaving with every step that he took. Was she alright? Why couldn’t she look at him? Vincent hadn’t been wrong, could he? This was his Lovely? He had seen her face and dress so clearly, it had to be her.

So why was she hiding her face? Vincent finally sloshed his way into a shallow yet somewhat flat area, where he was able to set Lovely down, hoping that he’d be able to get a good look at her face. She continued to hide her face from him, turning and facing back out towards the water the first moment that she was able.

Vincent stood speechless, arms outstretched in question and shock. “Lovely?”

The girl let her hands slowly fall to her sides, still facing away. She took a few deep breaths, seeming to calm her heart as she turned, slowly, towards Vincent, who was only a few paces away.

Her hand was gripping the amulet that he’d gifted her—the one that had glowed when she’d… transformed. Everything was still so confusing, so alarming. How was she here? How was he here? The words wouldn’t come, not for the longest time.

“Hello, Vincent.”

Those two words were all that he needed to hear before the world came crashing down around him. It was her, she was here, she was ALIVE! Before he knew it, tears had overflowed from his eyes, and he began to sob, body wracked with all of the emotions he hadn’t let himself feel for a year—and then on top of it all, that none of it had been true at all! She was alive!

When he finally gained enough breath to speak, his words were still wet and mumbled but he managed to ask, “How is this possible? Is it–is it really you?”

Lovely smiled, that beautiful smile that he loved so much. “It’s me, I’m… I’m here.”

He hiccuped again, still in complete disbelief, before opening his arms and closing the distance between them, her meeting him in the middle. 

Well, almost the middle. Lovely came at the poor boy with so much force that she ended up knocking him backward into the water below, her arms wrapped snugly around his neck to keep them pressed chest to chest against the other. When Vincent sat up, and after he’d shaken the water from his hair and his eyes, his gaze met her loving one, and passion and habit overtook his limbs. He pulled her into his arms quicker than she could take in a breath, laughing at the tightness and the suddenness and the simpleness of it all around them.

Vincent breathed in the scent of her skin just above her neckline, right in the crook of her neck where he’d liked to lay his head all that time ago. Lovely pressed her face into the space between his chin and his jaw, places that she’d peppered kisses all those times in the small moments when they’d snuck away for time alone. She was still his flower, duty before passion, as they’d both said all those times.

Now felt so far away and yet so close to those moments. It was so incredibly intimate that neither wanted to let go. Vincent couldn’t stop his tears. Lovely couldn’t contain her joy.

“I thought I’d never see you again.” He whispered against her skin, pressing a soft kiss to the freckle over he shoulder, the one he’d kissed so many times before. “I thought I’d lost you.”

Lovely finally pulled back, enough to see his face, to hold his cheeks beneath her hands and whisper her reply. “I never gave up hope that you’d come find me.”

Vincent smiled through his tears, taking a hold of the back of her head and pulling her in, pressing his lips firmly against hers. This was his validation of reality. This worked better than a pinch to his ribs, better than a whack to the back of his head to prove this was happening. He kissed her with the passion of a dying man, one given the chance at a second life inside the embrace of his love. He withdrew for a breath, but returned instantly, missing her for even the half a second he’d spent apart. He chuckled at the sensation of her breath against his nose, feeling how soft it was, even after all this time—just as he remembered. Oh how he’d missed the feeling of her lips against his, missed the passion that danced between them when their bodies were pressed together like this. Oh how he’d missed Lovely. His best friend. His Queen.

When the two finally pulled away, Lovely couldn’t stop smiling. Vincent, the love-stuck fool that he was, couldn’t either. He stood, offering his hand to get her out of the chilling water. By now, the sun had set even over the distant mountains beyond this valley, and though the air was warm from the hot summer day, being completely drenched did nothing to help the chill that rolled over their skin as they exited the water.

“Lovely, I still can’t believe that it’s you. You–you must tell me everything,” He demanded, gripping her hands in his own, “how did you end up here? How did you do that thing with the magic and the smoke and the… turning into a swan? Why have you–”

Lovely pressed a finger over his lips to silence him. “In due time, my love. I will answer all of your questions.” Her face fell dark, the smile slipping slowly from her lips. “But there is a danger here. I must ensure that tonight is not a night that he will appear. He’ll kill you if he sees you here with me–”

Vincent blinked many times in a row, trying to comprehend all that she was saying. “Wait, if who appears? Lovely, what are you talking about?”

The princess quickly scanned the surrounding area, eyes darting quickly between trees and over the lake and even beyond that into the distance as much as could be seen. Vincent still didn’t understand what she meant, but it slowly became clearer the longer she went about scanning her surroundings. “Lovely, who did this to you?”

She looked into his eyes, pleading with him to simply obey her wish. “Please, we must make sure it’s safe first.”

When he tried to protest, she shook her head, stopping his words. “Soon, my love. I promise, soon.”

Vincent wasn’t happy to agree, but he did, taking her outstretched hand and following her through the treeline just past the end of the beach, until they were at a place on the complete opposite side of the lake from where he’d entered from—if he remembered right, anyway. She took him to the little hovel carved into the hill and a tree trunk that she’d come to call home for the past year. It wasn’t much, and to be honest she was ashamed to show him the dismal place she’d been forced to stay, but she also wouldn’t hide anything from him. And besides, things were going to get better. Her prince had come for her—he’d come to save her, just like princes always did. She was going to be okay.

She sat him down, cross-legged on the ground within the safety of her hovel, and took his hands in hers, studying his face after so long apart. She vowed to never forget a single detail from today onward. “So, my love. What do you want to know first?”

[haradasaya]

The Swan Princess > Chapter 4

Sorry for the long break between chapters, I moved apartments! Now that I'm in and settled, hopefully I'll be able to get the rest of the chapters up before the holidays! <3 CW: Fem!Lovely, Fem!ListenerCharacter, talk of previous abuse, magical exploitation, depictions of magical violence, abandonment, Adam Redacted who deserves his own warning lol

“So, my love. What do you want to know first?” 

Vincent laughed, as if the answer to that question wasn’t obvious. “Let’s start with, what the hell happened? How are you here?”

The princess played with the hem of her dress. “Well, it’s all a little hazy, even in my memory. But I remember seeing you off that day, and wishing we didn’t have to part for the summer…”

“Do I really have to go? I’ll be back again at the end of summer for the masque, why can’t I just stay until then?”

Vincent smiled, kissing along her cheek, over her neck and finally to her lips. “My love, you may be my queen, but you do have your own kingdom to rule. You know that you must attend to your duties first.”

Lovely pouted, pressing her bottom lip out as far as she could. “I know.”

Vincent smiled again, taking her cheeks between his hands. “We’ll be back together before you know it. You’ll have my necklace, and I promise I’ll write you letters every single day, and I’ll send all my love in them so that you never have to feel apart from me.”

Lovely’s lips curled in the corners, pleased with that answer. “I love you.”

“I love you too.” Always his immediate answer.

“I remember complimenting your dress.” Vincent said, recalling the events of a day he’d told himself to never remember. “You said you’d made it yourself.”

Lovely nodded. “I indeed had. Fat lot of good it’s done for me now.”

Vincent chuckled. She looked so beautiful in the moonlight. Oh how he’d missed her. “Go on, please, tell me what happened next.”

Lovely nodded. “I got into my carriage and we set off for the border…”

“Coach?” Lovely called to the driver. “Is there any way that we can slow down just a bit when we reach the crest of the mountain? I’d like to take one final look over the valley once we’re up high enough.”

The coachman, a rather plump man with a white mustache and a kind face, nodded his head gracefully. “Of course, madame. I will let you know once we’ve arrived.”

Lovely sat back against the cushion of the carriage. It was going to be a long ride back to her castle, and without anyone to keep her company—besides the coach and the army of soldiers on either end of her wagon—she was going to become dreadfully bored. Vincent had sent her with a parcel of his creation, full of snacks and treats, a pair of fantasy books he’d stolen from the castle library, and the miniature painting he’d done on a small cut of paper that practically mirrored her real portrait. Vincent was an excellent painter, an excellent pianist and violinist, and an even greater strategist. They were opposites in many ways, as Lovely had always been the better hunter, the better shot, and the one with the cleanest kills. But incidentally, those opposites were also compliments, and where one lacked, the other excelled. In every way, the pair was perfect for each other.

It wasn’t much longer after that that the coachman slowed the horses to a halt, and Lovely was escorted out of her carriage. The knights escorting her stood at attention, watching her make her way to the edge of the cliff, pressing her hands to the wooden railing in place as she stood on her tiptoes to take in the truly magnificent view.

The valley of the Kingdom of Solaire was gorgeous. Mountains loomed in the distance around the kingdom, with majestic waterfalls and meandering rivers weaving towards the coast below. The castle sat directly between the mountains where they’d stopped and the ocean beyond the city, city surrounding the castle in every direction, farmland on the North and East sides stretching up onto the curve of the mountain, and in some places in terraces up the gentle incline. Between the city and the mountain path lay a great forest that Lovely was very familiar with. She glanced back up at the castle, noting its design. The stonework was a beautiful shade of beige, the crest of the Solaire Kingdom printed into every flag atop every spire, and in various places etched within the stone walls. Lovely looked with pride over the city, taking it all in for one final time before having to return home. This was going to be her kingdom someday, her crown to wear with her love by her side. And she was happy.

“When I got back into my carriage, I had no idea things were about to go terribly wrong.” She spoke, her voice sullen. “Almost immediately after we started moving again, the coach stopped once more, and I could hear horses whinnying, and the knights yelling. I tried to ask the coach what was happening, but he didn’t say anything.”

“Coachman! What’s happening? Are you alright? Please sir, what’s going on–”

Lovely screamed as the coach rocked: not enough to topple it, but enough to lift one side clean off the ground. Lovely threw herself towards the toppling side in an attempt to balance the weight, but it was pointless. She realized, as the carriage rocked again, further this time than before, that this wasn’t just an earthquake or strong winds, but another force acting with intention to send her and her carriage toppling off the cliff. She still attempted to climb out of the cab, throwing the door open, but simultaneously that same force pushed back into the carriage for a final time, sending the carriage toppling into its side. Lovely fell against the inside of the wall of the coach, and only a second passed before she realized that the carriage was still moving, now tipping upside down as it began its tumble over the edge of the cliff. She tried to cling to the walls, the benches, anything that would stop her fall.  But nothing helped her, and she collided with wall after wall as she fell.

“This is where things start to get hazy. I remember falling, hitting my head and body on every possible surface as I rolled inside the carriage. And then I think I remember seeing someone…? I’m not sure, but I remember feeling held, like someone had placed a protective bubble around me—and though I was barely lucid, I remember when the cart stopped rolling. We ended up near a home—I remember that because I could see it through a crack in the paneling.”

Vincent was honed into the story, eyes locked on her as she spoke. “And then what happened?”

Lovely looked out towards the lake, gaze far away. “I can’t remember all the details, but eventually I passed out. It felt like I was being carried away at some point, but I was in too much pain to open my eyes to see who it was that was holding me.” She turned back to face him. “When I woke up, I was here, at the shore of this lake.”

Lovely woke to the sound of waves, feeling instantly the gritty sand beneath her hands and cheek. Her eyes slowly cracked open, and she tried to sit up, taking in the unfamiliar forest around her. It was nearing sunset, the land around her basked in golden light and soft, tilted shadows. She looked down at herself, seeing the dark bruises and small abrasions on her skin, and then grabbed her head in her hands when hot pain streaked through it: a concussion, surely. This wasn’t happening. Surely she was just asleep in the carriage, and all this had been a bad dream, right?

Lovely tried to calm her heart. “Okay, walk yourself through this,” she thought to herself, “Surely there’s an explanation for all of this.”

She recalled the events of the day, leaving Vincent at the castle, beginning the trek back to her homeland, and then…

…her carriage had been pushed down a cliff. Oh Goddess, how had that even happened? Surely no one man could have done that? There were hundreds of guards with her caravan, they would have captured a single perpetrator. But then… it had been entirely too quiet for a group, so what could have caused her carriage to tip like that?

She remembered the way that the coachman hadn’t responded to her questions. Had he… died? What happened to all the guards?

That hot pain flashed through her head again, and she rested her face in her hands, knees pressed to her chest. She had to stay calm. She needed to get back to familiar territory. She couldn’t open her eyes right this moment, but as soon as she could, she’d collect herself, and then she’d figure out a plan. She was a good hunter, she knew how to read the forest. She’d be able to make it out of here. If only this pain in her head would stop—

“My my, you certainly look worse for wear. Are you alright, madam?”

Lovely’s eyes shot open, shocked and surprised and scared to see someone standing before her. Had he been there all along? That hot pain flashed through her head again, and she closed her eyes once more, returning her head to her knees to remove the light from in front of her eyelids. She didn’t like feeling like that, didn’t like not being able to see him and assess him for danger, but the throbbing in her head was unbearable with her eyes open, so she’d have to take her chances.

“I’ve had worse.” She said, an obvious lie. She was in bad shape. If she couldn’t find her way out of here, she’d die.

She could hear the man before her take a few steps closer. “If I may miss, I know a bit of healing magic. I could tend to your wounds, if you’d like.”

Something didn’t feel right about all of this. She hated that she couldn’t manage to keep her eyes open to watch him as he spoke. She felt like she’d be able to get a better read on him if she were able to see him as he talked. Perhaps it wasn’t a great idea, but she didn’t feel like she had much choice. If he could help her head, at least, she’d feel a lot better, and a lot more aware of her surroundings.

“So I agreed. I decided to take my chances, and thanked him for offering to help me.” Lovely scoffed then. “What a fool I’d been to trust him.”

“Trust who? Who was the man?”

Her entire demeanor shifted then, both defensive and angry and somehow still more sorrowful than cross.

“Give me your hand, madam. I’ll help you to stand.” He said suavely, in that tone that stirred the uncanny feeling in your heart of a hidden danger. Each second, Lovely was becoming more and more frightened, afraid that this stranger had ill intentions with her, everything about his behavior and demeanor darkening.

The princess hesitantly gave him her hand, and she managed to force her eyes open by the time they were standing face to face. He seemed incredibly familiar, though where she recognized him from was a mystery. His dark hair covered most of his face, flowing in eerie strands over his shoulders and back that resembled tendrils of shadows. His clothes were mostly black, tiny hints of gold on little accent pieces of what was clearly a mage’s uniform. The smile on his face was barely human, and she realized too late that his eyes were pitch black.

“Hello, Princess.”

Before she could stop him, his magic poured from his hands, encircling her, filling her throat and nose and eyes, red and black and blue stealing the last bit of clarity from her mind. The magic lifted her off the ground, its sheer power overwhelming any other force keeping her there. Through the whirring fog, she could hear the man laughing, and when she caught sight of him, she knew exactly who he was. She knew who had done this to her, and how.

“Adam. Ex-Mage Magistus turned dark sorcerer.”

“Adam!?” Vincent exclaimed so loudly, creatures of all kinds went scampering away into the dark woods. Lovely had to remind him that he needed to keep his voice down or they ran the risk of being found. He apologized, brain clearly working through a million different thoughts.

“I just don’t understand; what was Adam doing there that day? What did he want with you?”

“That’s the next part, let me explain.” She said, and Vincent settled in to let her continue. “As I hung there, helpless against his power, I heard his incantation.”

“Rage of Telmnaresh, heed my call—turn this woman into my doll!”

The magic surrounding Lovely flared, the bright lights blinding her yet again—except this time, it was not simply the blues and reds of Adam’s magic. This time, a yellow white light radiated outward, dispelling some of the smoke that swirled around her. Lovely looked down towards the source of the light, head splitting at the sight, realizing that it was the necklace that Vincent had given her that was dispelling the dark magic. She hadn’t known that the stone within the pendant contained magical qualities, let alone enough power to dispel magic from such a powerful mage! Lovely’s hope bloomed within her chest, and the light flared brighter around her. All seemed hopeful for those few seconds.

“How are you doing that!?” Adam roared, his expression a hard line of fury as he poured more magic into the spell. She didn’t know, but she hoped that it would be enough to—

“Alright Princess, I concede.”

Adam’s hands fell, and with it so did the magic. Lovely dropped to the ground, feet caving out and falling to her knees. Adam sauntered up to her, pacing around her as she tried to catch her breath. She looked up at his twisted expression, annoyance plastered all over the front of it.

“Of course you have a magical amulet, because of course you do. What in Hell’s fury am I supposed to do with you now?”

Lovely was finally able to inhale fully, noting that the pain in her head had gone away a fraction now. Had her amulet done that? “What do you want with me? Why were you trying to ‘make me your puppet’?”

Adam turned away, no intention of answering her question. 

“If my country has wronged you somehow, allow me the opportunity to make it right. There is no need for confrontation–”

Adam rounded on her. “This is not about you! Oh all you princesses thinking the whole damn world revolves around them. Shut up! I can’t think with your incessant blathering.”

Lovely’s jaw dropped. Had he just told her to shut up? “Excuse me, you just made an attempt on my life. You will answer me when I speak to you.”

“I didn’t make an attempt on your life, you nitwit. You would have lived even if my spell had been successful.”

“Oh wonderful. A slave puppet to an evil sorcerer, even better!”

Adam turned away from her, muttering to himself. Lovely wasn’t exactly sure what to do now. Did she try to run away? She couldn’t stay there, she didn’t know what the crazed mage would do. She had no idea if her amulet would be able to stop any other spells. It didn’t matter though, because before she had even taken a single step, he faced her yet again.

“Alright! Fine, I’ll admit it: my plan to trap you has failed. But don’t think I’m letting you get away princess. Since I can’t have you as my marionette, I’ll make you an offer instead. All that I wanted from you was your kingdom. If you give it to me, surrendering your crown and your right to rule it, I will let you live. Seems like a fair deal, no?”

Of all the things that Adam could have asked for, she hadn’t expected an answer that incredulous. Her kingdom? Like hell she’d give that up, least of all to Adam.

“What did you tell him?” Vincent asked smugly, as if he knew that she’d said something creative in reply.

She had. “I told him exactly what I thought about that idea.”

“Princess, what a foul mouth you have. Surely you don’t rule your kingdom with such crude vernacular.”

“You can’t hurt me, Adam. My amulet will protect me from your dark magic. Now if you don’t excuse me, I have a kingdom to return to.” It was a risky bluff, as she didn’t truly know if her amulet would protect her, but she had no other choice. She had to try to get away, while she still had the chance to do so.

Adam stepped in front of her, hand raised at the ready to use more magic if necessary. “I’m afraid you’ll not get away from me that easily. You’re not leaving this forest until I get what I want.”

Lovely scoffed. “You’ll never get my kingdom from me. Something that ludacris will only happen when pigs fly.”

Adam’s black eyes lit up for a moment, like a horrifying idea came into his mind. “When pigs fly—my, what a lovely idea.” 

Lovely scrunched her eyebrows, suddenly worried at what he was going to say. 

“If I can’t make you into my puppet, I’ll simply have to force you into accepting my deal.”

Lovely stepped back, ready to make a run for it when Adam’s magic shot from his hands and grasped her around the waist. “I’ll make you fly my dear, just watch!”

The smoke filled her lungs once more, and within moments, she lost all feeling in her toes, up to her legs and hips, then up her torso and arms, until the swirling magic tingled within her whole being. She could feel her body changing slowly, and she watched in horror as her feet shrunk and became webbed, her body growing feathers and her arms becoming wings, and finally, her neck elongating and her mouth becoming a bill. Within moments, the magic fell away, and she was a simple swan floating on the lake. 

She tried to scream, but all that came from her new mouth were the squawks of the fowl she found herself trapped inside of. Adam stared at her, pleased smirk twisting his lips. “Excellent. Now with that out of the way, I’ll be taking this—”

He reached for the pendant still around Lovely’s neck, having shrunk to match the neck of the animal wearing it, but when he got close, his hand began to singe just from reaching towards it. It appeared to reject his very being from coming close, he couldn’t even touch the chain of it without flinching away. Lovely was relieved that her one method of protection from him wouldn't be taken so easily, though she still didn’t know how to react to the spell he’d placed on her.

“Damn it! Even after all this, I still can’t take the damn thing off you!”

It was almost satisfying to watch him throw a tantrum, but it would have been more satisfying if she wasn’t floating on a lake right now, trapped inside the body of a bird.

“Come on little princess, it’s not like you can stay like that forever. You’ll want to return to your human form eventually, right? You’ll die a swan if you don’t comply with my demands.”

To that, Lovely simply kicked her feet and turned her entire body around, floating away from him and further into the lake. “Hey! Get back here you— you spoiled princess!”

It was then that the final rays of sunlight faded over the edge of the valley, plunging the whole valley into shadow, and stealing the light over the water where Lovely floated. As it vanished, the stone in her amulet began to glow yet again, and before she knew it, the same magic that had twisted her body into a swan had transformed her into a human yet again.

“Son of a–” Was all Lovely heard before falling underneath the water, having been far enough into the water that she could not touch when she fell in, no longer the small, buoyant animal she had been a moment ago. When she was finally able to drag herself and her soggy gown onto land, Adam stood there, his eyebrows and lips twisted in frustration. He turned toward her then, but not directly at her—rather at her amulet. He was muttering to himself, something about her necklace, and she guessed that it truly was the one thing that was keeping her alive right now.

“So, since your stupid magic trick failed, can I leave now? This has truly gone on for far too long, Adam.”

He sneered up at her. “Of course you can’t leave! I’m not done with you, princess. Did you really think the curse was that simple to break?”

Lovely inhaled. “Curse?”

“Oh yes,” he crooned, “Did you really think this was nothing but a simple spell meant to transform you once as my method of convincing? No, little one, that was a curse, and one of my most powerful to date.”

Lovely’s expression turned horrified as she realized what he was saying. 

“Your magic stone may have saved you from being a swan now, but it won't be that way forever. When the sun rises in the morning, you will be a swan once more, I can assure you.”

Lovely scoffed. “You’re not serious? You truly expect me to believe that? After all that I’ve managed to stop you from doing so far, do you really think that I believe that I won’t be able to get away this time?”

Adam raised an eyebrow. “I suppose you could go, see what happens to you when my curse catches up to you.” His tone goes darker as he says his next words. “See how soon you die when you’re not here, on this lake, to make sure that transformation doesn’t kill you.”

Lovely turned to him, ready to give him another snide remark, but he cut her off. “But by all means, try and leave this valley. The easiest way out is right over there.”

Lovely looked to where he was pointing, and it did look like the simplest way out of the valley. But her curiosity and terror peaked at his words. Would she really die if she wasn’t at the lake when the sun rose?

“Oh, so you’re not leaving then? Shame, that was likely your only chance at escape.” Adam turned quickly, and began to walk away. “I suppose I’ll see you in the morning then, princess. We’ll see who’s right then, hm?”

“It turns out he was right,” Lovely said slowly, tracing the lines of Vincent’s hands, “I stayed through the night to see if his theory was correct, and it turns out that if I don’t stand in the water when the transformation happens, I literally start to suffocate. That morning, I had desperately hoped that he was wrong, and that nothing would happen. But then I started to—what felt like at least—literally die. And I haven’t dared leave the valley since.”

“How do you know that it wasn’t Adam’s magic harming you during that time? What if he was just tricking you into thinking that it was the curse rather than him?”

Lovely gave him a look. “I’d seen Adam’s magic in action enough times before to know what it looked like. This was different, this was his curse, I know it.”

Vincent tried to think through it, but Lovely had already thought through all the possibilities. “I wasn’t going to test it again, even another night when I was sure he wasn’t around. I wasn’t willing to die after all that I had been through to a damn swan curse.”

Vincent chuckled. “Of course you weren’t. You’re too strong to go out like that.”

Lovely smiled, proud of his confidence in her. “And I never gave up hope that you’d come to find me. I prayed every day that somehow, some way, you’d find your way here, and take me home from this nightmare.”

Vincent’s smile turned sad for a moment. “I will, Lovely. I will find a way to get you out of his grasp. But we can’t do it tonight, okay? Too much time has passed since the moon has risen, and if you believe that you must be here when day breaks, then I will not force you to leave. I can return tomorrow, right as the sun goes down, and then I can steal you away—”

Lovely shook her head. “Adam might be here tomorrow. You’ll have to wait for a signal of some kind to show that it’s safe for you to enter the valley.”

Vincent huffed. “And what if he doesn’t show? What if he takes too much time? What if—”

“Vincent, my darling, it will be alright. We just need to make a plan, okay?”

The prince huffed, pouting. “You’re right. So then, what should we do?”

Lovely thought for a moment. “I’m not sure that I know of a way to stop the curse. The only way that I know would work is if Adam were somehow to die. He’s mentioned once before that only death is powerful enough to stop his dark magic.”

Vincent smiled for a moment. “Are you sure that true love’s kiss wont work? It works in fairytales…”

He reached in for his Lovely, pulling her face into his so that he could plant a kiss on her lips. When she squirmed out of his grip, teasing him, he simply peppered kisses all over her face and hands as he could reach.

“Vincent!” She whisper yelled at him, “stop it, please!” But she was smiling all the while, having missed his little kisses and games.

After the moment had ended, the two went back to pondering their plan to get Lovely free. “We must find a way to slay him—but how? When he is here, in the Enchanted Valley, his power is strong. He is able to use nature and the magic of the valley to strengthen his spells. I think that’s why my curse is tied to the water of the lake and why I must be on it when I transform.” “So we need to get him out of the valley, got it. But how do we lure him out of the valley with enough time to ensure that we can break the curse from you?”

She twisted her lips in thought. “My best guess would be that he’d chase me if he found out that I was gone. He wants to use me to control our two kingdoms, so if he doesn’t have me then I’m guessing he’d try and take me back before I could get away.”

Vincent nodded, formulating a plan already in his mind. It all seemed to click into place when his eyes lit up with realization. “I’ve got it! We’ll use the ball as our excuse!”

“The ball?” She asked, unaware of what he was talking about.

“My father is hosting a ball in two days' time. He told me that I had to choose a bride from the guests invited, but now I don’t have to! Because we’re going to get you home by then.”

Lovely tilted her head, unsure of how this fit into their plan. Vincent continued quickly. “We’ll use the ball as our excuse to draw Adam out of the Enchanted Valley. The ball always lasts through the night, so that way we can come get you once you’ve turned back into a human. Then we’ll bring you back to the castle, where Adam will follow, and we can make our move then.”

Lovely listened intently to his plan, thinking through each step and seeing if it worked.

“I can’t think of a single reason Adam wouldn’t follow me to the castle if he knew I had been taken there. He might try to cause a scene to take me back if he knows, especially if he thinks he has time to whisk me back here before the sun rises.”

“So then we’ll have until then to make our move. And if he never shows, at worst we can simply return here before dawn so that you may live to see another day—be it a swan if necessary.”

Lovely smiled softly, but there was a pain there. She didn’t want that for herself. She wanted to be freed from this curse; she wanted to go home, to be with her Prince once more. Vincent wanted that too, only being able to be here with her, hidden away in a hollowed tree by an enchanted lake in the middle of the forest wasn't the life he’d imagined for them when he asked her to be his. He wanted her to be home, safe, with him.

“Wait, I almost forgot!”

Vincent stood, offering Lovely his hand as he did. “I have something for you.”

Lovely smiled then, a real smile, the one that she always gave him when she was catching on to his antics. “What?” She said in a low tone, full of curiosity but still playful hesitation.

“Just follow me, you’ll like it, I promise.”

“I can’t leave the forest for long, the sun will come up soon.”

Vincent brought her hand up to his lips, and kissed the back of it, keeping eye contact. “We aren’t leaving the forest, don’t worry. It’s something I have in the satchel of my horse.”

“Wait, you brought Valor too? Where? I want to see him! I’ve missed him.”

Vincent laughed then, leading her through the woods and to the slope where his horse was tied up. “He’s not the only one I brought. Sam’s here too, though I have no idea where he is.”

“Sam’s here too? Why didn’t you tell me?”

Vincent turned to look at her. “I was a little distracted, if you didn’t remember.”

“Well, where is he?” She scoffed. “I missed him too.”

Vincent looked up the valley to where they were headed. “I’m not sure. I don’t know if I’m mistaken or not, but it appears that his horse is gone too.”

Lovely looked up to where Vincent’s gaze was, and indeed could only see one horse: Vincent’s horse, Valor, who he had named as a child and was teased about by Lovely and Sam every day since. 

“Perhaps he lost you and returned to the city?” She offered, hiking up her skirts to make the trek up the incline.

“It’s possible,” he said, helping her over a boulder protruding from the hill, “but I didn’t think he’d just leave if he returned here and saw my horse here and not me. I thought he’d wait here. I would have loved to bring you back to him had he been here.”

Lovely shrugged, panting from the trek. “There is still time, my love.”

Those six words flooded Vincent’s heart with hope, and love. “Yes, there is.”

When the two finally reached his horse, Vincent and Lovely gathered their breath for a moment, before he reached into his pouch and pulled out something wrapped in cloth.

“What is it?” Lovely asked eagerly, hoping it was food, something sweet from the bakery. At this point, she’d take any kind of food, as she had grown tired of eating small fish and whatever berries or nuts she could find in the woods. There was an apple tree deep within the woods, almost near the edge of the valley, but after a year of only apples, she craved the taste of something else, the tartness of a strawberry, or the citrus of an orange.

“This was supposed to be a bribe to get Sam to leave his apothecary, but I ended up not needing it. Now it’s yours.”

Vincent unwrapped the sweet bread he’d brought, and Lovely couldn’t stop her mouth from watering instantly. The bread was the perfect golden color, with the small flower design baked into the crust. It had gotten a little smashed from being inside Vincent’s bag for so long, but at that moment, Lovely could not have cared less. It was food—real human food—and it was her favorite.

“Wait, I have the glaze here too.”

He reached back into his bag and pulled out a small jar of gold liquid, popping off the lid and scooping some of the glaze onto the bread. Lovely could have cried in that moment. “Vincent Solaire, Prince of the Kingdom of Solaire, I love you so much.”

Vincent let out a hearty chuckle. “I love you too, my Lovely princess. Now here, eat. I can see the hunger in your eyes.”

He tore a piece off for her, and she dug in, happier than he’d seen her since he discovered her tonight. Vincent had a few small bites, but he wanted Lovely to partake in the sweet that she’d missed out on for a year.

When she was finished, the two sat on the edge of the cliff for a while content to simply be held by the other. Lovely had missed Vincent’s laugh, and he had missed her kisses, and her smile. Eventually, the first rays of the sun began to lighten up the sky, and they knew that they must depart.

Vincent offered to escort her back down the cliff, and she accepted, glad to have just a few more minutes with him before returning to her cursed form. They made it back to the edge of the water just as light peeked over the edge and into the valley. They only had a few remaining minutes before she would change. He kissed her as many times as he could, before she pushed him away with a smile to step into the water. She urged him to leave before she changed, claiming it was embarrassing and that she didn’t want him to see. So he set off back up the hill toward his horse, but was unable to keep his eyes off her as the sunlight finally hit the water, and the magic that he’d seen transform her the first time take over her form again—and this time, instead of becoming the woman he loved, she became the beautiful swan that he’d hunted the day before.

He watched her float off into the lake for a long moment, marveling at all that had happened, before setting off towards his castle. He would need to tell Sam everything as soon as possible—if only he knew where he’d gone…

[haradasaya]

TOMORROW

leave a comment if you would like to be tagged when chapter 1 drops :)

[haradasaya]

The Swan Princess

Thank you to everyone who has supported me in the journey of this story, it means so much to me!! Specifically thank you to @marcethegeek @halscafe @palilious and @sri-rachaa for being besties with me while writing this!! Love y'all &lt;3

CW: Fem Listener character/Fem Lovely (There will be a gender neutral version once this has been released in it's entirety)

Chapter 1

Vincent pushed open the doors to the war council room, his monarch seated at the head of a long wooden table—the seat reserved for the king of the kingdom of Solaire—glasses set low on his nose, chin set lazily in his hand as he spoke with another noble of their court. Vincent slowed his stride into long, soft steps as he rounded the table towards his king, who ushered away the man he had been speaking to upon seeing his son approaching. Vincent stood at attention before his father, hand pressed in a fist over his heart to salute him. 

“Father, you called for me?”

The king rose from his seat to stand eye to eye with his son, gesturing for him to take the seat to his right. “Ah, my boy. Yes, I did. Would you please join me at our table?”

Vincent moved towards the chair by his father and sat down beside him, hesitant about what his monarch wanted him for with such urgency. “What can I do for you?”

William took off his glasses slowly, setting them down in such a way that conveyed the importance of whatever he was about to say. He exhaled slowly before beginning. “How have you been lately? Keeping up with your duties I presume?”

Vincent forced a smile, unsure of how or if that question would relate to whatever his king had summoned him for. “I have been well, father. Attending to many of the royal inquiries and training with the knights has certainly taken up much of my time and attention.”

“Good, good;” Was all William said, his hand coming to his chin in thought.

“Does something trouble you, my lord?” Vincent asked, desiring to ease the burden of his monarch if it was in his power to do so. 

“No no, nothing troubles me. I simply… well. I believe there is something that we need to speak about.”

Vincent sat forward, leaning his arms against the table. “Go on.”

William sighed. “Well my son, as you already know, I am growing old in years. I knew that a time would come when I would need to pass the crown onto you, but… in light of our past situation, I had simply hoped that there would be more time. Alas, time does not cease, even for those who would wish it so. I believe now is the time that I must begin preparing you to take on the role to which you have been born—and as such, there are things of you which I require.”

Vincent instantly sat up straight, spine completely vertical as he had been taught in his youth—because despite the casual tone with which William spoke, Vincent knew this conversation was not from father to son: but from King to Prince. 

“Given the circumstances of your past, I feel as though we have been more than patient in grieving with you after your loss: but enough time has now passed that I believe you are ready to take the next step toward receiving your crown.”

Vincent inhaled deeply, processing his father’s words. “Please William, speak plainly with me.”

The monarch sighed again, righting himself in his chair and bringing his soft gaze to meet his son’s. “In four days time, the Solaire kingdom will host a ball here in our castle. Of the eligible ladies invited, you are to choose a bride to take the crown with you at your coronation in one week.”

Vincent’s eyes shot wide, his mouth moving to his defense, but William raised a hand to stop him, knowing his son all too well. “This is her family’s will as much as it is my own. Vincent, I know that you loved her dearly, but it is time to let her go. All this grieving has done nothing but drive you away—from me, from your people; and most of all, from your duty. You are still the crown prince of the Solaire Kingdom, and you still have a duty to fulfill.”

“Well, I—” he stuttered, still completely unable to form a thought in reply. Was he really being asked to move on from what had happened like it was nothing? Like he could recover from the loss of his one true love in a measly year? “What if I refuse?” 

“You will not,” was William’s reply. “You will be king, and you will have a queen by your side when you are crowned.”

“Then I do not want the crown!” Vincent said angrily, rising from his chair. “Father, how can you ask such a thing of me?”

His father shook his head, not quite out of disappointment but something close to it. “My son, it does not please me to ask this of you—not when the wounds of your loss are still so deep. When I lost your mother…”

Vincent bit his tongue so hard it bled, the metallic taste in his mouth only adding to the bitterness that he felt. William knew that speaking of his wife and the mother of their child was the quickest way to silencing his son, as Vincent had loved her so dearly. When she fell ill, it was as if the whole world had come crumbling down around them both, losing the little light and warmth that was already so easily lost in the life of a royal. And now, though Vincent would never speak the words aloud, a small part of him despised his father for using her to make his point.

“Well, as I stated before; time goes on. Duties to your kingdom must be fulfilled and order must still be maintained.”

Vincent gawked. “I do not want to do this—”

“It is no longer about what you want, my son. This is about the kingdom’s needs. As much as I would wish it, I will not be alive forever, and I must ensure that your coronation goes smoothly. Your life, this kingdom, and the wellbeing of all whom you serve depends on it.”

William approached his son, placing a hand on his shoulder. It was firm, grounding him to the floor in a way that William hoped would help him see reality, though Vincent truly felt like all William was doing was keeping him from fleeing. “This is no longer a request from father to son, but an order from your monarch.”

Vincent’s heart raced in his chest, his breathing coming too rapidly for him to calm himself, as his mother had taught him to do when he was younger. He didn’t know what to do, what to think. He needed to get himself out of there before he exploded.

“As… as you wish, William.”

The king tried to understand what his son was going through, but the reality was that he could never do so, as his life had been so different from his sons. The love that he’d come to know with his bride had been just as special as the one that Vincent had come to know with his love—and yet despite both their stories ending in tragedy, William knew that getting to spend most of their lives together before losing his wife was nowhere near what his son was dealing with now. He wanted to understand, but the pain of one heartbreak does not rival the pain of two. “This is for the best, my boy. You may not understand that now, but you will. I swear it.”

Vincent simply bowed, ducking below and out of his father’s reach. “As you wish.” He simply repeated. He stood at attention, saluting his monarch once more. “By your leave, your majesty.”

The prince did not wait for a reply from his king, before turning and striding from the war council room, practically running in his hasty retreat from the king’s presence. The guard attending the entrance to the throne room barely had time to swing open the massive wooden doors before the prince forced his way out, his heart deafeningly loud in his chest.

Vincent pressed his palms into the cool stone of the railing that led the way to the war council room, forcing his breath into his lungs as he looked out over the rolling hills and eventual beachy waves and endless ocean that could be seen from the castle. The warm summer wind wrapped smoothly around his face, whipping his hair in every direction, blowing the tassels of his shirt from his chest as they sought to follow the pull of the wind.

How could they ask such a thing of him? Have none of them any compassion? It had only been a year, how could anyone expect him to have simply let go of her? Of all the times they had? Of the love that they’d had? He’d watched his father lose his mother all those years ago, and to this day he still wasn’t the same. Vincent knew, with every fiber of his being, that he’d have been lost forever after the death of his mother if it wasn’t for his love. She’d been the only one to pull him out of the darkness that had begun to fill up his heart. He never thought he’d have to go through that pain even once in his life, let alone twice. 

And the court thought they could ask that of him? Her family had as well implored him to move on from the love he’d had with their only child? What misery! Sorrow so deeply felt is not so easily forgot.

Vincent tasted the blood in his mouth, and reached for his tongue with his finger. His finger returned coated in that crimson liquid, and set off immediately to find a physician to remedy at least this ailment.

.

.

.

.

.

The final golden rays of the sun dipped below the horizon, casting the whole of the magical valley into shadow. The sound of magic whirred through their air, before swirling around a swan floating near the edge of the lake. The dark red and black mist bent and twisted the shape of the animal until it dispersed, leaving in the water a woman, shoes soaked and ankles wet. She lifted her skirts, stepping out of her slippers and sloshing up the beach. A full year as a swan had taken a toll on her heart, but nothing was worse than wearing wet clothes and shoes for the whole night. At least it was summer again, and the nights would be warmer than they had been all winter.

Lovely set her things on the log she’d been using as a makeshift table, having spent some of her lonely nights creating things for herself that reminded her of home. She couldn’t recall the amount of times that she’d written her love’s name in the sand at her feet at the very table she sat at now, praying silently for the day that he’d come rescue her.

A year had passed though, and he’d never come. And despite the glimmer of hope in her heart, she had also accepted her fate, should she spend the rest of her days trapped within this enchantment. It hadn’t been easy at first, and now that a year had passed with no progress, her curse had evolved from simply transforming her into a swan each day to her body beginning to fall ill with each change. It seemed that being cursed to take the form of a swan in the light of the sun, and to never venture too far from the lake that she must return to when she transforms wasn’t punishment enough for whatever unspoken wickedness from her past had gotten her here: now she must spend her few human hours preventing a coughing fit from sending her to an early grave! Just the other night, in the midst of a coughing fit, she had hacked up crimson liquid upon her sleeve, the infection slowly worsening with time. Oh how Lovely wished she had fought back harder against the sorcerer that had done this to her while she still had strength in her bones. Why, even now if he dared show himself, she’d—

“Oh little swan princess?” Came a voice from just beyond the treeline. 

Lovely whipped around to see the approaching form of the one who had cursed her. She hated to admit it, but after all this time alone, with only his voice to quell the ringing silence within and around her, she was just a little bit glad to have someone to talk to, even just for a small moment. Even if he was only here to petition her for something that she was not willing to give. She hated herself for thinking it.

“What do you want, Adam?”

The sorcerer clicked his teeth together. “Now now, there is no need for such hostility. I’ve simply come to check on my darling swan. Yet another night with no sign of your brave prince. Have you finally given up hope that he’s coming to rescue you?”

She balled her fists so tightly she feared her nails would pierce the skin of her palms, but did everything in her power not to show him how deeply his words struck. “I do not need to be rescued.”

“Yes, well. That much is true, lovely.”

Lovely hated that he called her that. Only her prince had called her lovely—hearing the word from Adam’s mouth only poisoned it with each uttering. “I know you do not wish to dally with me in trivial conversation. Have you come to bother me once again with your meaningless pesterings?”

Adam lifted his head and turned it, angling his body away from her as he did so. “My, you are such a feisty one. Always so hasty to send me away despite being your only company. What a terrible princess you must have made.”

Lovely forced a grin. “You know nothing of my being a princess. We had the displeasure of meeting but once, and for whatever Godforsaken reason, you decided that was enough to attempt to steal my kingdom from me.”

“Yes, and quite lucky you are that your charming prince had gifted you that magical amulet that protects you from the brunt of my power. Otherwise, you’d have been my dainty marionette long ago.”

“Such benign tricks seem beneath a grand sorcerer such as yourself, Adam. Are you truly weak enough that a simple gemstone over my heart is enough to prevent you from taking what you want? Oh wait, don’t answer that, I suppose I already know my answer.”

Adam huffed, turning to face the seated princess yet again. “Riling me up will do nothing for your current predicament. You don’t want to see me cross again—unless you’re enjoying the new modification to your curse that I made? I’ve heard that illness of the lungs is untreatable these days.”

Lovely had nothing to say in return, praying that he hadn’t heard her tireless coughing fits by night—or if he had, that he would not speak of them.

“This all could be over tonight if you would but give me what I want, you know. My offer is ever extended, your majesty.”

Lovely turned herself in her chair, facing away from Adam. “And my answer remains the same, or have you forgotten?”

In a moment, his back was pressed to hers, her chin held between his blackened fingers. “I grow tired of your games, little swan. You may have bested me once, but I swear that I will find my way around this little gem of yours,” Adam reached towards her necklace, his blackened fingers burning even just at trying to grab a hold of the pendant, “and I will finish what I started a year ago. Mark my words.”

He released her from his grip, striding away without saying another word. Lovely wiped at her chin, a desperate attempt to get the feeling of his fingers off her… but to no avail. His touch was like venom that creeped into her heart. He wasn’t able to use magic to control her, instead cursing her into changing forms when the sun rose and set. Adam was relentless in his scheme to use her for her kingdom, to use her to invade and seize control of the Kingdom of Solaire, where her prince was.

She would protect him, even if it meant sacrificing her own life. And if that meant she would live the rest of her days as a swan and the rest of her nights alone in the dark forest, then she would do so for him. He deserved to live a happy life. She just wished that she was there to see it too.

And so, when Lovely curled herself into a ball on the makeshift bed she’d crafted for herself, she dreamed of the day when Vincent Solaire would come and save her from this nightmare she’d found herself in.

[haradasaya]

The Swan Princess <Chapter 2>

CHAPTER 2 of the Swan Lake AU CW: Fem!Lovely, Fem!ListenerCharacter

Vincent slung his bag over his shoulder, preparing to attach it to the saddle of his horse. The guards keeping watch were some of Vincent's favorites, as he knew both of them to be tattle-tales. Vincent would “tip them off” about his intended location, that way in the event that his little bribe to them wasn’t enough incentive to keep quiet, he still wouldn’t be found. Not that anyone who knew Vincent didn’t know where he snuck off to when he didn’t want to be alone.

“I hear there is to be a ball in three days time, is that true sire?” One of the stablehands asked him as she attended to another horse in the stable, brushing its mane as she spoke. Vincent was very familiar with her—as he came down to the stable often; and though he did not know her name, she was one of his favorite stablehands.

Vincent tightened the billet and cinch before he answered, readying himself to get onto his horse as quickly as possible should his father or any one of his servants come looking for him. “Yes, that is true. Where did you hear that from?”

The girl turned away from him, but Vincent noticed the pink dusting her ears and cheeks. “One of my good friends works in the kitchens, your highness. She said she overheard when she brought breakfast to the King this morning. She couldn’t wait to come tell me the news.” She paused, then added. “She loves the balls. The regality of all of your attire, the sparkling lights of the chandeliers, the way that you all dance. It’s very romantic.”

“Well, if I didn’t know any better, I’d say you’re just as romanced by the idea.” He teased her, sliding the bridle into his horse's mouth. He was happy to keep the conversation on her, rather than being reminded of what the ball was intended for and the thing that he was being asked to do there.

“Me? No, I’m not the biggest fan of them. Too formal for my taste.”

The prince simply smiled at her, remembering all the times he overheard her talking with a certain healer whenever he came to the royal stables. It wasn’t hard to see they liked each other—Vincent would know a thing or two about casting longing glances at the one you adored.

“Tell you what: I don’t think the guards at the doors plan on keeping my escapade a secret. If you keep my father or whomever else he sends down here from finding out where I’m headed, I’ll make sure Sam doesn’t have a date to the ball. Sounds like a deal?”

The girl’s face flushed red in an instant, caught off guard by the prince’s sudden question. “Th- that won't be necessary, sire. Besides, a lowly stablehand like me would never be invited to a royal ball.”

Vincent climbed into the saddle of his horse, walking over to where the woman stood. “If he were to ask you, would you attend with him?”

She looked up, eyes wide. “I— well, I suppose if he asked, it would be rude to turn him down.”

Vincent made sure to hold her eyes as he replied. “Then I will ensure that he asks.”

She seemed to consider his words, weighing if it was worth revealing her secret to keep the prince’s word. “I will make sure that no one follows you, highness. But you really don’t have to.”

Vincent chuckled. “Nonsense. I’m the prince after all. Have to keep my people happy, don’t I?” But he didn’t let her reply before he pressed his steed forward and out of the royal stables. He had covered his royal garb with a simple cloak, wrapped tightly around his chest and heavy hood pulled loosely over his head. He’d swapped his royal equestrian boots for a pair of simpler hunting boots, caked in mud and dirt from his last hunt with Sam, the one where he’d sworn he knew where he was going, but ended up getting them both stuck in a swamp. He chuckled to himself at the memory. Yeah… he wasn’t all too proud of that one. 

The guards at the gate didn’t give Vincent a second glance when he rode past them—neither bothered by his simple clothes—and he was glad to have mastered his disguise for the times that he ran from the castle. There had been too many times that he’d attempted to leave in his dress shoes, or with his Kingdom’s insignia glittering brightly in plain sight. He’d been caught all those times from his silly slip ups in the past. Now, he sneaked past the castle walls and into the town unseen and unheard by anyone of importance.

He’d memorized the path to his friends home and shop long ago, having been forced to find it on foot and by memory one too many times. He’d been sneaking out of the castle for as long as he could remember, running into the safety of his best friend's home. He knew that the two of them didn’t have long, as once William discovered that Vincent had slipped away yet again, he would come immediately to the shop of the healer that worked in the castle part time as a practicing physician. It was where Vincent always went when he had trouble to stir up and needed a partner in crime to help him get away with it.

The bustling life of the city seemed to quell the stirring in his heart. At least the electric energy of the people and activity here was warranted, his people working hard for their wellbeing. Vincent liked to come see his people hard at work—to hear the thoughts of their hearts without the influence of their desire to please the King hidden within their praises and affirmations. After all, who was a king with no subjects? Lately Vincent had been falling behind on his royal duties, shying away from responsibility to sulk in the quiet parts of the castle. Here, he could be free of duty, and simply be another commoner. 

He passed through the town square, navigating his large steed through the moving crowd, listening in on whatever conversation struck his fancy. He gazed upon stalls of fresh bread, fruits from neighboring countries he’d yet to try, and meat roasted and braised with seasonings of new concoctions brought from the other side of the world. It wasn’t hard to rationalize that he and Sam would need a few extra servings of food for today, right?

He exchanged some of his silver and bronze coin for the food that he’d been eyeing, tucking it safely into his pouch before setting off towards Sam’s. He’d been sure to snag an extra loaf of sweet bread with honey glaze as an offering to his friend, as Sam would certainly be working right now and it wouldn’t be easy to ask him to step away for the day. Vincent relied on the hope that his best friend would understand how much he needed the time together right now, and would offer to come with him before it got to the point of sheer bribery. The bread sat heavy in his pouch though, as the memory that it was also his Lovely’s favorite sweet sunk into the back of his mind. He tried not to think about it too hard while he rode, for fear of all those emotions he’d worked on suppressing from this morning rising back to the surface and spilling out before he could stop them.

The ride to Sam’s shop wasn’t too far from the town square where he’d come from, as it was apparently good practice to set up a healer's shop nearby to where all the hustle and bustle of city life took place. In such a busy location such as that, people were always being hurt and needing care. He just hoped that the line to see him wasn’t too long today, lest he be forced to wait until he was through with patients before stealing him away.

To Vincent’s delight, the shop wasn’t overrun with injured or maladied patients, and after he tied his horse up and stepped inside, he was grateful to see that nobody was inside either. He rang the bell that hung from the doorframe, and Vincent heard quick footsteps from within the shop. He knew instantly that it wasn’t Sam, as Sam wasn’t the type to rush, even when it came to his patients. So it was either Bright or…

“Fredrick! Good to see you.”

The apprentice healer in training stopped when he made eye contact with Vincent, seeing more the Crown Prince than his master's best friend. It seemed that no matter how often Vincent came to see Sam, the poor boy would never get used to seeing the monarch-to-be standing in the doorway.

“Your majesty! Uhm, good—good to see you as well! Uh, Sam isn’t in at the moment, he said that he’d be back shortly though!”

Vincent removed the cloak he’d been wearing, and hung it on one of the hooks by the door. “It’s not a problem. Do you mind if I wait here for him then?”

Frederick nodded hastily. “Of course not! Though perhaps you don’t want to wait out here in the waiting room in case someone comes in before he returns?”

Vincent patted the boy on his shoulder. “Great idea. I’ll head back towards his office then, hm?”

Frederick stiffened at the touch of the prince, but nodded and looked away. “That’s fine.”

Vincent chuckled at the shyness of the boy, remembering the days when Sam was the exact same way. He made his way into the room Sam had designated as his office, where he looked over paperwork and reports of previous cases. Along the far wall were shelves packed with jars of medicines and herbs, some wrapped in cloth and labeled “DO NOT OPEN” with a date in Sam’s neat handwriting, while others hung from flasks from the ceiling. Sam wasn’t inclined to one form of healing over the other, as both magic and medicinal treatments seemed to cure almost all of the worst ailments brought before him. Perhaps that’s why so many people liked him.

Vincent had just finished looking over the jars, sat down in Sam’s chair and placed his boots on the edge of the desk to recline when Sam walked into the room, immediately displeased at the position Vincent was in.

“Would ya mind not dirtyin’ my desk with your swamp mud, please?”

Vincent only laughed. “Oh come on Sam, that’s no way to address your best friend after so long apart!”

Sam gave him a side eye from the shelves he had gone to after entering. “It’s barely been two weeks. It seems that I can’t be rid of ya, despite my attempts at staying busy during your time off.”

Vincent chuckled. “Well, this isn’t exactly time off this time…”

Sam finally looked completely over his shoulder at his friend, taking one of his “DO NOT OPEN” jars in hand. “Well then what are ya here for?”

He tried to force another smile, but his lip ended up quivering in the process. “I just needed to see you. I have some stuff I need to talk about and you’re… kinda the only person I can do that with.”

Both Sam and Vincent thought back to the many times that the three of them had sat together in the castle halls or the fields beyond the walls, chatting about everything they could think of together. When Vincent needed someone to talk to, he’d usually gone to her first—and when she couldn’t help, then the two of them went to Sam. The knife in their hearts twisted just a little deeper at the knowledge that their friend and closest confidant was no longer around.

“Well I can’t exactly leave this instant, I’m on an errand for a bedridden patient. But once I’m done, we can go out and… talk or whatever you need.”

Vincent smiled, both at the fact that his friend understood how much he needed this, as well as also being grateful that he didn’t have to bribe him with the bread that he’d brought. That could be saved as a surprise for later.

“Thank you, Sam. I truly appreciate it.”

The southern healer nodded, eager to get out of the mushy situation. “Yeah yeah, grab your stuff. I’ll meet you outside.”

Sam set off out the door before Vincent could say anything else. He passed by Frederick on the way out, telling him to say hello to Bright Eyes on the way out. Vincent and Sam had a bet going on how soon they’d finally admit their feelings for each other, though Vincent’s deadline was swiftly approaching and Sam would win if it didn’t happen soon. Lovely had made a wager on that bet too, more than a year ago. Right before the accident, actually…

“Hey, astrologer—”

The sound of Sam’s voice cut Vincent from his daydream, bringing him back to the reality that Sam had already untied his horse and was handing him the reins. “Sorry, just lost in thought.”

Sam only chuckled. “You’ve been doin’ that a lot lately. Are you feelin’ alright?”

Vincent mounted his horse, shrugging after doing so. “As well as I can be. I know you remember what’s coming up.”

Sam nodded, nudging his horse forward. “I’ve been dreading looking at my calendar for the last month. I can’t believe a year has already passed since we lost her. It still feels so… surreal.”

Vincent nodded this time. “Neither I.”

The two men trotted forward in silence, neither sure whether to begin the conversation Vincent was dying to have already. Eventually, Sam dismounted his horse, and asked that Vincent wait outside for him. He didn’t need his already ill patient worrying themselves more should they somehow discover his companion was the crown prince. Vincent agreed, and he only had to wait for a short while before Sam returned, bottle empty and a grin on his face.

“It went well, I assume?”

Sam’s smile only grew. “Vince, there ain’t a thing on this planet that I can’t find a way to cure, alright? Trust me now.”

Vincent chuckled. “I believe you, Cowhand.”

Sam only chuckled and pushed at his friend, Vincent pretending to almost fall off his horse. The two men laughed at each other, before taking off through the final streets of town and eventually into the woods, racing over fallen logs and through winding burrows until they came upon the familiar grove that the three friends had all come to call their “Hideout.” It had been named when they were but children, and the name stuck well into their adulthood. It had been the place that any one of them would go when they needed to be alone, or when the only people they wanted to talk to were any of the people who knew where their place was. It was their little sanctuary hidden deep in the woods, nearby a hidden valley said to hold mystical powers if the forest deemed the visitor worthy.

Sam and Vincent took their time unbridling and unequipping their horses, letting them graze within the meadow nearby to the hollowed out tree trunk they’d called “home away from home.” It was there that Vincent was finally able to open up to Sam about everything that his father had asked of him. He told him about how he felt that even Lovely’s family had asked that he move on from their daughter when they had seen how important she was to him. All Vincent could say, and what he repeated the whole conversation, was that it wasn’t right. It wasn’t right they ask him to move on, it wasn’t right they would force him to choose another at this ball in three days, it wasn’t right that he had to do any of this while still grieving the loss of his one true love. It wasn’t fair, and it wasn’t right.

Sam listened intently to his friends' plight, to how he truly felt. Vincent knew that Sam was incredibly wise for his years, and would offer him sound advice that he could do something with moving forward. “I mean I think your father’s right.”

Vincent turned on Sam so quickly he smacked his head on the tree above him. “Ow… wait, you what?”

“Vincent, you can’t expect the whole world to halt around ya simply ‘cause you’ve lost that which you loved. You’re still the crown prince, and as your father said, you’re still responsible for the wellbein’ of the Kingdom o’ Solaire.”

The prince gave his friend an annoyed glare, partly because his head now hurt and partly because he couldn’t believe Sam was agreeing with his father. “Whose side are you even on?”

Sam shook his head, gripping Vincent on the shoulder with his closest hand. “You know that I’m on your side.”

Vincent pulled his knees to his chest, leaning back against the trunk of the tree they sat under, and pouted his chin onto his arms. “Doesn’t feel like it…”

Sam huffed, his tone turning the shade of stern it tended to when he had to chastise his younger and yet somehow more powerful best friends. “You weren’t the only one who lost her, ya know. She was my friend too, Vincent, don’t forget.”

The prince tried to hold on to his anger, but Sam was right. He had no reason to say those things to him. “Hmn, you are right. I apologize.”

The two boys sat back against the tree, shoulders touching, legs leaning against the other for support. “I know it isn’t what you want to hear, but maybe this will be a good thing, Vince. I know you don’t want to admit it, and Hell, I already know you don’t care to move on… but things are gonna be alright. You’ll see. Maybe you’ll meet someone at the ball, and you’ll have a connection with them. Maybe they won't be so bad, and you can learn to get along, learn to rule together. And who knows, maybe you’ll be able to, ya know, fall in love later on in your relationship. Your life isn’t over, my friend. It’s just begun.”

Sam stood, and faced his friend, extending a hand to help him up. “And you, my prince, offered me a hunt, and we have yet to go on a hunt!”

Vincent took his friend's hand, turning his lips up in the corners the smallest bit at his friend's enthusiasm. He still didn’t love the idea of doing this, still didn’t want to move on…but Sam did have a point. He could at least trust that his best friend was trying to help him out, and was trying to offer the best advice he could in a situation like this. It wasn’t easy to hear, but he appreciated it anyway.

If nothing else, Vincent would do this for Sam. And if Lovely’s family wanted him to move on, then he supposed, for her sake, he would do his best to be happy, despite it all.

[haradasaya]

WIP WEDNESDAY BABEY

Hello, tis I, Saya, back from hell

It's been entirely too long since I've done one of these, so I figured I'd get back into it with the literal first thing that I've written in ages lmao

DISCLAIMER:

This is a Fantasy AU with Vincent and Lovely as protags — Sam and Darlin are also in it — so is William — and Adam — It is inspired by Swan Lake, and another audio script with a similar theme written by LupinScripts, so please don't come after me if you see similarities lol it was a huge inspiration for me — THIS IS A M/F VERSION BUT I WILL HAVE A M/A VERSION WHEN I RELEASE THE WHOLE FIC ON AO3 —

——— TAG LIST ———

@epsi-l0n @sri-rachaa @halscafe @ashs-stars @palilious

Without Further Adieu, here is Saya's Swan Lake: a Tale of Vincent and Lovely

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Vincent pushed open the doors into the throne room, his monarch seated upon the gold throne of the kingdom of Solaire, his glasses perched low over his nose as he spoke with another noble of their court. Vincent’s shoes clicked in rhythm as he strode towards his king, and when William finally saw him, he ushered away the man he had been speaking to. Vincent stood at attention before his father, hand pressed in a fist over his heart to salute him. 

“William, you called for me?”

The king rose from his throne, stepping down the few stairs before the throne to stand eye to eye with his son. “Ah, my boy. Yes, I did. Would you please take a seat with me at our table?”

Vincent moved towards the chairs at the war table within the throne room, and sat across from William, hesitant about what his monarch would need him for so urgently. “What can I do for you?”

William took off his glasses slowly, setting them on the table in such a way that conveyed his emotion greater than his words. “How have you been lately? Keeping up with your duties I presume?”

Vincent forced a smile, unsure of how that question would relate to whatever his king had summoned him for. “I have been well, sire. Attending to many of the royal inquiries and training with the knights has certainly taken up much of my time and attention.”

“Good, good;” Was all William said, his hand coming to his chin in thought.

“Does something trouble you, my Lord?” Vincent asked, eager to be of help to his Master in any way that he could. 

“No no, nothing troubles me. I simply… well. I believe there is something that we need to speak about.”

Vincent sat forward in his chair. “Go on.”

William sighed. “Well you see, I am growing old in years. I knew that a time would come when I would need to pass the crown onto you, but I had hoped that there would simply be more time. Alas, time does not cease, even for those who would wish it so. I believe now is the time that I must begin preparing you to take on the role to which you have been born, and as such, there are things of you which I require.”

Vincent sat back in his chair, spine completely vertical as he had been taught—because for some reason, Vincent felt as though this conversation was less of a talk from father to son, and more from King to Prince. 

“Given the circumstances of your situation, I feel as though we have been more than patient in grieving with you after your loss: but enough time has now passed that I believe you are ready to begin taking the next steps towards receiving your crown.”

“Please William, speak plainly with me.”

The monarch sighed again, righting himself in his chair and bringing his icy gaze to meet his son’s. “In four days time, I am hosting a ball here in the castle. Of the eligible ladies invited, you are to choose a bride to take the crown with you during your coronation in one week.”

Vincent’s eyes shot wide, his mouth moving to his defense, but William raised his hand to stop him, knowing his son all too well. “This is her family’s will as much as it is my own. Vincent, I know that you loved her dearly, but it is time to let her go. All this grieving has done nothing but drive you away—from me, from your kingdom, and most of all, from your duty. You are still the crown prince of the Solaire Kingdom, and you still have a duty to fulfill.”

“Well, I—” he stuttered, still completely unable to form a thought in reply. Was he really being asked to move on from what had happened like it was nothing? Like the loss of his one true love was something that a measly year could recover? “What if I refuse?” 

“You will not,” was William’s reply, “You will be king, and you will have a queen by your side when you are crowned.”

“Then I do not want the crown!” Vincent said angrily, rising from his chair. “Father, how can you ask such a thing of me?”

His father shook his head, not out of anger but out of another emotion that Vincent couldn’t read. “My son, it does not please me to ask such a thing of you—not when the wounds of your loss are still so deep. When I lost your mother…”

Vincent bit his tongue so hard it bled, the metallic taste in his mouth only adding to the bitterness that he felt. William knew that speaking of his wife and the mother of their child was the quickest way to silencing him, as Vincent had loved her so dearly. When she fell ill, it was as if the whole world had come crumbling down around them both, losing the little light and warmth that was so easily lost in the life of a royal. And now, though Vincent would never speak the words aloud, he despised his father for seeming to use her to make his point.

“Well, as I stated before; time goes on. Duties to your kingdom must be fulfilled and order must still be maintained.”