𝑯𝑬𝑹 𝑽𝑶𝑰𝑪𝑬 ~Kix~

𝓒𝓱𝓪𝓹𝓽𝓮𝓻 𝓣𝔀𝓮𝓷𝓽𝔂 𝓞𝓷𝓮

Princess Courtney carried the basket lined with white linens as she strolled through the castle gardens in the later hours of the afternoon. All the other princesses were attended to duties as normal but Courtney needed to find a moment where she could slip away and partake in a time honored tradition to herself, picking barries in the gardens before taking them to the kitchen and washing them herself and enjoying them as her reading snack as she dove into another book within the library walls. That same library would forever be tainted, however, after the night that she spent there with Fives. The memories brought a warm blush to her face. Never in all her life did she think she could get up to something so scandalous. She set the basket down in the grass before gathering her skirts and sitting on her knees in the grass before the berry bush. She began her quaint hobby of picking the ripe small fruits off of the bush and dropping them carefully into her basket. She began to get so lost into her process she almost didn't hear the sound of someone kneeling down next to her. "I didn't expect to see you here without a book." The voice caused her to flinch and she brought a hand to her chest, dainty fingers pressing against the exposed skin. "Fives," She said as she turned to look at the familiar clone. "You startled me." She added and the ARC trooper chuckled. "It's lovely to see you again, princess." He mused and Courtney couldn't help but blush. "Would you like some help?" He asked as he gestured to her basket. "If you don't mind," Courtney began as she grinned at him. "I wouldn't mind the company either." She added and Fives reciprocated her smile. "I trust you got back to your men alright?" Courtney asked in reference to both of their departures the morning after their affair. Fives nodded. "Oh just fine. Turns out we're staying a little longer then originally planned." He replied. "The Senator we came here with is invited to your sister's coronation. And well, if she stays so do we." The thought of Fives staying around longer then originally planned caused a smile to grace Courtney's face along with a slight dusting of a pink blush on her cheeks. "I would be honored for you to grace me with your presence a little longer than anticipated." She replied quietly. "So you aren't tired of me just yet, princess?" Fives teased and Courtney couldn't help but giggle. "Goodness no." She replied. "Not after... well... you know..." She began, being unable to finish the sentence herself without getting unintelligibly flustered. "I know, Princess, I know." Fives replied with a chuckle. He would have reached out to pull her closer to him in a warm embrace. He would have pressed a soft kiss to her forehead. He would have softly played with her hair while muttering comments to her that were sweeter then the berries she was picking. But their time of intimacy was cut short. "Princess Courtney." The pair looked up. "Prince Finnian." Courtney quickly replied as she stood to her feet, dusting off her skirt and tucking a loose strand of dark hair behind her ear. The man with silver hair and tan skin narrowed his keen eyes at her before looking over at Fives. It was obvious by the expression painted on his face he already was not fond of the clone.

"I did not expect to find a princess such as yourself stooping to the low levels of not only doing her own gardening but also mingling with the scum of society that is a clone trooper of the Republic." Finnian snarled. Courtney had to physically place a hand on Fives' shoulder to keep him from charging the prince of Agamar. Agamar was a seperatist planet, she forgot that at times, thus explaining his obvious distaste for the clone. "ARC trooper Fives is a close friend of mine." Courtney began. "He is the finest man I have ever met." She added before stealing a glance at him and holding his gaze as she finished her statements. "He makes me happy." "Courtney, my dear, I am certain he is the last man in the world who could make you happy." Finnian replied and Courtney snapped her head to turn to him. "I would like to beg your pardon, mister Finnian." Fives mustered a knowing grin. A tug at his lips knowing Finnian's confidence was no match for Courtney's pure wit. "Do you really think a clone is any match for you?" Finnian began, his words and diction burning with the arrogance that made him exceedingly toxic. "Courtney you are a princess. You are a pentacle of beauty and you chose to your days with this poor excuse of an individual man? You are like me, Courtney, the very top of society. You ought to mingle with those on the same social level as yourself rather then entertaining the scum of existence." Finnian would have continued but he was silenced against his own will. He didn't stop blabbering due to his better judgement but rather due to the surprise of the slap across his face, not from Fives, but from Princess Courtney herself. "How dare you." Courtney began. Fives only watched, knowing the princess would utterly destroy him with her own words. "How dare you compare me to the likes of you." She snarled. "Your confidence is compensating for the personality of which you severely lack. I am bewildered beyond all understanding at the utter prejudice you exempt towards those who are not even on the same tax bracket as you. How disgraceful." "So this is your opinion of me?" Finnian replied, obviously not pleased with the princess' words to him. "Thank you for explaining it so fully, perhaps any offenses could have been over looked had not your pride been hurt." "My pride?!" Courtney nearly shouted. Fives eyes widened as he looked at her, the heated young princess, and wondered if he now needed to hold her back. "And you expect me to rejoice in the inferiority of these clones?" Finnian hissed, the word "Clone" rolling off of his tongue with utter distaste. "And these are the words of a gentleman?" Courtney scoffed. "From the first moment I met you, your arrogance and selfish disdain for the feelings of others made me realize that you are the very last man in the entire galaxy that I could ever be prevailed upon to marry." There was a pause, a deadly and intense silence as the two royals stared at each other. "Well then forgive me, princess." Finnian said with a grimace, it was obvious he was not apologizing for his actions but rather something else. "For taking up so much of your precious time. I am sure you would much rather spend it with this poor excuse of a man rather then the man you are betrothed to marry." And with that, Finnian left the two in a tense silence as he strode away, nose held high in the air with pride. "So you're telling me," Fives began as he tore his gaze from the conceded prince to look back at his princess. "That is the man you're going to marry?"

"It certainly isn't ideal." Courtney began as she picked up her basket of freshly picked berries and headed back to the castle. Fives followed behind her dutifully. "Ideal?" He hissed. "He's terrible. You deserve so much better." Fives replied and Courtney rolled her eyes. "And what would 'better' be, my dear? You?" She asked with a raised brow and Fives froze. "Well... I would like to say I certainly am better than him, so yes." Courtney sighed as she entered the coolness of the castle and started down one of the long marble corridors towards the kitchen. "Fives, I fancy you alot." "I know." Courtney chuckled softly at his confidence. "Don't get cocky, my dear." "Careful with your choice in words, princess." Fives teased her with a wink and Courtney could feel a blush creep up on her cheeks. "I could give you round two right now just to prove how much better to you I am then that stuck up prince." "Fives," Courtney's voice came again in a warning, but even still a delighted warning. "Have at least a little dignity." She replied as they entered the kitchen so she could wash her produce. "We are not animals, after all." "I know, cyare, but listening to you tell him off the way you did is just so arousing to me." Fives said with a wolfish grin. For a moment, Courtney's eyes were curious as she looked at him, wondering just what Fives was thinking of doing to her. But she brushed the thoughts and curiosities aside just as quickly as they formed in her mind. "Fives that is enough of that." She finally said. "Now I am going to the library. You are welcome to join me." She informed him as she poured her now washed berries into a bowl and Fives did a double take. "Wait do you mean you are going to the library to read or-" "I mean I am going to the library." She stated again much more firmly. "And you are welcome to join me." To which he happily obliged with high hopes.