A king with a bad attitude must change for his subjects or else face the rebellion. He thinks power can stop it all, little does he know power can become the reason for his fall.
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Book 1 | R...
Edward concluded Jupiter was not getting tired of talking about the amount of fun he had in Rangbad any time soon. He was not complaining. It was the weight of the news Renard threw on him early morning that was bothering him.
"...and I feel like the luckiest person on our planet of Raeth."
"Yes, you have mentioned that fifty times already." He chuckled lightly at Jupiter's enthusiasm. It was endearing.
"Edward," Jupiter whined. "Stop poking fun at me.
"I am not."
"You are."
"I am not laughing at you, darling. I swear to you."
"Stilllll. Stop cackling like a fool."
Eyebrows raised, Ed glanced at him. "So I am a fool now? Then I shall not stop." Jupiter scoffed before climbing on his lap. The women's skirt he had started to wear along with his usual men's shirt rode up a few inches on his legs, showing a part of his milky long legs. Caressing his exposed skin, Ed murmured huskily under his breath – "Is this how you plan to shut me up always?"
"Maybe," Jupiter teased back.
"Mmm...it is effective."
Biting his bottom lip, Jupiter gave Ed a coy look prior to ducking down and burying his head in his man's chest. A ghost of a smile formed on his face as he heard the melodious sound of Ed's heart thumping in a rhythm.
Edward was having trouble controlling his heartbeat. He did not make it a habit to expose himself to such an extent. Being vulnerable was considered a weakness and he never wished to be weak in front of Jupiter. Not yet. Nervous, he started playing with the golden strands on Jupiter's head and murmured - "Come on, get up. We need to start our day."
Jupiter leaned back and peeked at Ed from under his eyelashes, batting them frequently. "Our day? Am I part of your day now?"
"Yes. The first three chores of my day are Jupiter-related."
A bunch of giggles slipped out of the blonde's mouth before he tried to hide them by covering his mouth. "Tell me about your 'Jupiter-related' chores."
"The first one is to open my eyes and ensure that the first person I see is you. The second is to kiss you. The last is to kick you out of my chamber so that I can finish the duties assigned to me for the day."
Jupiter's jaw dropped open while Edward guffawed. The thunderous laughter transformed into a grunt as he was smacked in the face with a pillow. Soon, a full-fledged war broke out. The bed played the role of their battleground and the pillows their weapons. Jupiter attacked and Edward defended.
In the end, Jupiter was tackled by a smirking Edward.
"Surrender!" The King pushed.
"No!" His lover replied.
"I said, surrender."
"No." Jupiter too was smirking now.
"You better listen to me, darling. Do not hold me responsible later when you face the consequences." Edward was inching closer to Jupiter. Their lips almost touched when there was a knock on the door. The King tensed. "WHO IS IT?"
"Your Majesty, the breakfast is ready. Shall we serve the food in the dining hall or bring it here?"
"I will join the others in the hall in time of half an hour."
"As you say, my king."
Edward shut his eyes and released a sigh of relief. A touch on his cheek made him open them. He stared down at Jupiter who was regarding him seriously. "What?"
"You are worried about something."
His immediate response was "I am not." He kicked himself mentally for sounding defensive.
"Do not. Do not take me for a fool. We are taught to deduce facial expressions during training in the army. It comes in handy when looking for suspicious people."
Edward released air through his nostrils. He was irritated. "People are on the streets again."
"Ugh! What is it this time? Why are they always protesting? Why so much? And...and why did I not hear this from anyone? Lord knows news spread like wildfire in the palace."
"Calm down, darling. You spend most of your free time with me now, so you don't get a chance to indulge much these days. Tirrorians diverted the path of their canal. The water that reached us from the river in their kingdom is no longer available to us. About the rest of your questions, I also would like to know the answers to them."
"But the water supply getting cut is not your fault. You did it for the farmers, to tell them that your people are your priority."
The same thing entered Edward's mind too. An order had been already given to Renard to hold a meeting with the farmers in the court. Knowing the problem was his priority. Post that, he would put all his resources into digging deeper into the matter. It was the only way to find the root cause of the problem.
"I have no idea why they are protesting again. It is not even a week since the last protest which was more of a revolt as they had resorted to threatening the royal blood. Anyway, are you joining me on this expedition?" Edward jokingly asked Jupiter, got to his feet and extended a hand towards him.
"With pleasure." Jupiter placed his hand in Edward's. "But I have a request before we go. I-I want to try something."
"Speak up, darling."
Taking a deep breath, Jupiter uttered the words hesitantly. "This is only for the time being. It is not permanent."
"I understand. Say it now."
"I want you to refer to me as she and her."
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