Cinder-knight (bxb) ||completed

6th rule| it

Charming felt like his whole world had collapsed, upside down.

While his limbs kept on shaking tempestuously, his fingers skimmed through the expanse of his now-dead father's hand, his mouth mumbling out incoherent words while his eyes watered.

The king had passed away, only few seconds ago.

As Henry's gaze reverted towards the paper kept neatly on top of the small cabinet by the bedside, a small shriek like sound- one that was smitten with pain left his mouth, pathetically.

On the paper, read his father's last words. 'Prince Henry shall marry princess Mary before the day of my wife's death anniversary, and then be crowned as the king of Ozoo, which I proudly bestow to him: to be ruled under his mercy.'

If that's what the former king; his father, had wanted, then so be it.

Shakily, he closed his eyes.

--------

"Good morning Callah," Eric greeted with a yawn as he bumped his shoulder past a female knight, who scoffed at the bold act before lowering her gaze down to the letter that was in the ginger's hand.

"Eric, care to tell what the hell is that?" Callah besseched, "A love letter?"

Eric rolled his eyes, "I don't think it concerns you in anyway, bitch," he uttered and looked up to make sure nobody else in the dining hall had heard the profanity. Well, nobody except Sebastian, who didn't do anything other than eat a meat stick with his frame lain over a chair.

"How rude."

Eric didn't bother to explain himself, or tell about the letter to any of his two friends. His only friends. So without another word, he walked out of the dining hall and into the main castle, not forgetting to greet everyone whom he met on the way.

The sun shone brightly with much enthusiasm than any other worker or royal. Worry spasmed through Eric's blood, a pit of perplexity coiling in his stomach as he got closer to the princess' premises.

Feeling his heart thump against his chest in a grim ecstasy, the knight puffed out a feathery breath as he stood in front of the door to the interior garden, where the princess did her daily ritual of sight-seeing.

"Hello, what can I do for you sir?" a maiden asked after seeing the knight's reluctance.

"I-I'm uh.." Eric stuttered, forcing himself to swallow the spit that filled in his mouth for no reason, "As you can see, I'm a knight from the second order. I've got a message to deliver to the princess, may I?"

The lady-in-waiting didn't hold him back or say anything else. She opened the door for him, as Eric smiled warmly at her.

"Thanks," he mouthed before ambling into the glory of the royal garden. It was definitely an exquisite sight, with blooming tulips surrounding every pulchritudinous statue like vivid halos, frosty lilies gyrating in the wind that swam in through the windows, everything making the garden look bizzilion times more dazzling.

Eric huffed frenetically. He had to focus. And being fooled by a bunch of flowers was not knight-like at all.

So with a bitter feeling, he looked around. Then he finally saw the glistening silver pavilion that thrived in the middle, surrounded by creepers which ran around every arch and dome in dual winds.

And the sound of tea cups clanking made Eric almost lose consciousness in fear.

"Your majesty?" he whispered breathlessly, as a petite girl in a pearl embedded blue dress heaved up the curtain before looking at him with an eyebrow raised. Her cherry scarlet lips drew into a thin line, her golden skin looking much more smoother than how it was by the first time Eric had seen her- which was during the ball.

It brought flashbacks into Eric's mind, as he remembered how he had dressed up in the finest suit he owned and come to the ball with a flower in hand. He was just about to give it to the prince and confess his crush of one year. Though he already knew he would get rejected, it truly stabbed when he saw the Prince looking at someone else, star-struck.

While watching the way they danced, like two people who were just meant to be, Eric hadn't even realised that the flower in his hand had fallen down and ended up getting stepped on by dozens of people who were spiralling around.

He shook his head.

This wasn't the time to be sad over past things, he needed to let go.

"Yes?" Cinderella inquired and stood up. She stepped down the small staircase and plodded up to Eric gracefully. "Did you need me for something, sir?"

"Oh gosh no- you shouldn't call me sir your highness," the knight aggressively shook his head and knelt on one leg, giving the princess the letter he had in his hands, "And this was given to me by an old lady who claimed to know you. Please feel free to burn it if you want, for it is a letter that might not have any importance to you, my princess."

"Oh, well. Thank you." the princess smiled and meekly took the letter to herself, "Please rise, I wouldn't want you hurting your knee cap staying in that position."

Eric couldn't help but feel touched, knowing if this was any other royal (like Charming) they wouldn't even care if their subjects continued to kneel on the ground for twenty-four hours straight. Yet princess Mary was different, and it was oddly refreshing.

With an over-dramatic bow, Eric stuttered away, glancing ever so often at the way various animals like squirrels, birds and even rats crowded near the princess after he had stumbled out of their vicinity. It was hard to believe how kind-hearted one could be to attract not only humans, but also animals too.

He could never compete with that.

And honestly, he didn't want to either. Now he knew for sure that Cinderella was perfect for Prince Charming, and she would definitely take care of Henry better than Eric ever could in his dreams. So, he thought it was his cue to forget about this useless crush of his and move on.

But if only he saw the way princess Mary's face contorted into an expression of horror after reading the letter Eric had given her. A letter that obviously reeked of-

Dark magic.

He could've made things more different than how it turned out.