"What do you mean I'm getting married?!" Sakari yelled pacing in her new room. She absolutely hated the space now, even though it was beautiful and seemingly her style.
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"Sakari please calm down, we are sorry." Genova signed. "Francis do something!"
"Lady bug. Please just hear me out. I'm trying to do what's best for us."
"You couldn't be general without offering me up?" Francis shook his head, "Sakari, please give this a chance?"
She didn't want to. She hated the fact that she couldn't find love on her own. That no one sought her out before she was arranged to be married.
Francis left his wife and daughter alone so they could talk. "This is a lot." Sakari sighed.
"You're gonna make the best of it baby, I promise you won't feel like this if you give it a chance." Genova signed.
The mother-daughter pair had a moment before a knock was at the door. "Who is it?"
"It's Anou." Genova opened the door to reveal the teen girl. She walked in to sit close to Sakari. "I just wanted to talk to my future sister."
Genova smiled and excused herself. Sakari began examining the room and all the details. "This room didn't look like this before."
"Really?"
"Yeah, it was pretty bland. But your father and my father worked together to make it feel comfortable for you. It's really nice but it's funny that my brother will never see the inside of it."
As tradition goes, a man should never see the inside of a woman's bedroom. Sakari had no desire for Giannis to see and know anything about her. She was being forced to participate in Royal politics and she wasn't a fan. If they had met under different circumstances, she might have been willing to partake. This was her stand against.
••••
"Seems like your future wife isn't so happy brother, what shall you do?" Thanasis points. Giannis wasn't expecting Sakari to respond like that. They started off on a good note when they met.
"I do not know. I wish to speak to her, but she hasn't been out of her room in days. Well, I haven't seen her."
Thanasis and Koastas have both seen Sakari in passing since the Bakembe's have moved in. For some reason Giannis kept missing her. "Well, she should be at the snail gathering tonight.. you are assigned to sit with her."
Maybe she would speak to me.
Boy was Giannis wrong. Sakari gave a quick greeting to everyone who passed her and kept to herself as she examined the artwork in the meeting area.
"Sakari." He spoke, standing beside her. She wouldn't disrespect the Prince in public but she wanted nothing to do with him.
"Yes your highness?" She asked not turning to him. "You can call me Giannis."
"I rather not. Is there something you wish to say your highness?" She continued to view the artwork as he followed alongside her. He understood her initial disappointment of being arranged to be married, but in this state of their kingdom, they did not have time for the courting stages. Sakari would've appreciated that effort.
"I wanted to see if you were alright, I did not want things to be uncomfortable for you." Sakari scoffed, of course she was uncomfortable.
"I will be fine. Worry about running your country and I'll pretend I want to be here." As Kostas walked over to them, she walked away.
"Is everything okay?" He asked noticing the look on Giannis' face. "No, it is not. I don't think this will work. She is miserable here, and she hates the idea of marrying me."
"So what shall you do?"
"Let her go. I will tell father that, her father can keep his position but, he and mother will have to begin the search for someone else. I don't want to torture her by doing all of this."
Kostas was surprised, he knew Giannis usually stuck to the script on these things and that's why he was the leader their father wanted him to be.
Giannis needed a breather, the event barely started but the feeling of suffocation lingered over him. He hated events and talking to people for too long. He had social anxiety. Anou was the only one in the family to know that and sometimes she would run off to check on him. Usually when he returned, he would claim he had a business call or something to handle to make Galelo better.
••••
"Darling have you seen your future husband? It's been awhile" Genova quickly signed to her daughter. Being a woman of few sounds granted her the sight above all else.
Sakari had no idea where Giannis could be. She didn't know much about him to take a guess.
"Maybe you should go look?"
Sakari nodded, excusing herself and beginning her search. During her last week in the palace, she explored a bit, but not as well as she should have. There was one place she stumbled upon that she planned to use as a special place to get away.
She went there first simply because she needed her own time away from everyone.
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As she submerged herself deeper into the garden she could see the prince sitting alone. Under the moonlight, she caught a glimpse of his features. Giannis was indeed handsome to her, even noticing the freckles along his face.
"Hey, are you okay?" She asks approaching him. Giannis was a bit startled, not expecting her to find him.
"Uh, yeah. Just needed to breathe. You?"
Sakari didn't know if she should sit or not so she stood, "Yeah, I'm alright. Just came out here to umm get air too."
"Did you really? How did you find this place? Did Anou tell you?" He started to feel self conscience.
"No, I haven't spoken to her in hours actually, haven't seen her either. I found this place a few days ago while walking around. I'm sorry if I'm intruding, I'll go back inside."
Giannis grabbed her arm as she tried to walk away. There was an intense stare down before his eyes soften. "You do not have to leave Miss Bakembe."
Anou ran into the garden interrupting them, "Giannis, Sakari. Our parents are looking for you. I think they want to do introductions."
"Shall we?" He offered, hoping she would take his hand. Sakari wearily looked between the siblings. Her heart still ached at the fact that this was her future. No choice, no romance, just politics.
