A little of everything

❤️Two: An agreement made❤️

~the prince~

Prince Enzo sat in the study reviewing the books that had kept him busy all day. He was the second son of king Edward and the only son of his mother who happened to be the first wife of the king

King Edward and Queen Anne had had trouble conceiving Enzo in the first 6 years of their royal marriage. King Edward had loved his wife dearly but her inability to conceive an heir was a very grievous threat to his line of succession. They had sort medical help and yet the impossiblity became a sheer reality with each day that passed. The previous kings before him had several wives simply to secure their line of succession but he, being in love with his wife had blatantly refused to marry anymore wives but as their inability to conceive progressed over the years he finally gave into the pressure of the royal court and married queen Elizabeth who bore his son, Prince Luca

A few years later, Enzo came along the way. The two boys grew up in harmony and love. They were practically best friends who found comfort in each other... Although with different personalities

Luca was kind, compassionate, strict when he needed to be, portraying the qualities of a good king, while Enzo was ruthless, aggressive and ruled with an iron fist. He had no room for emotions and the word Mercy was not found in his dictionary.

After Luca's marriage to Princess Eleanor, the king and queen sort for a wife for prince Enzo. He was the only son out of all his brothers that was still unmarried. His other brothers all had wives as it was a tradition in Basthood for all the princes of the royal to be married at the same time to ensure that the succession would be secured. Brothers! Yes! King Edward had married more wives who bore him other sons, Aldo, Dario and Kyle  and two daughters: Charlotte and Eloise.

The line of succession was an important detail in the royal family of Basthood and it had to be protected at all cost

As Enzo studied in his study... He was frustrated. His parents had informed him of his "fixed marriage"  to a princess he had never met. And worse so they had arranged a meeting with the royal family just to talk about the details of the marriage

He hated it

He knew from the day he assumed his royal duties that marriage wasn't for him

He didn't want to be tied down to the sheer excuse "bondage" as he thought of marriage, of being committed to one person for the rest of his life. It was times like this he wished he could run away from his royal duties

It was dark in the midnight when he sneaked into the royal stable and grabbed his horse "sapphire" and rode away into the night.. Even though he was getting married he needed all the freedom in the world.

The king had heard of his disappearance.

"It appears he does not want to be in attendance for tomorrow's meeting" Luca informed his father

This was the night before the royal meeting

"He does not have a choice! His wedding has been fixed" king Edward stamped his table with his hands

Luca shook his head ... He knew his brother was rebellious but how come the thought of marriage scared him so much? Enzo was the most ruthless person he knew. He would kill a man by taking out his intestine without blinking an eye so what frightened him about marriage?

"Find him and keep him in his quarters!" The king ordered interrupting Luca's thoughts

"Yes father" Luca bowed before leaving

******* ********** ************ ************ *******

The day of the wedding

Amelia looked absolutely gorgeous in her traditional wedding gown. It was a turquoise blue gown that had been decorated with pearls from her neck line to her waist region. Her hair was packed in a pony tail with the edges dripping loosely in her face. She was a beautiful sight to behold. As expected Enzo did not show up.. leaving poor Amelia to perform the traditional rites all by herself. This was not the kind of wedding she had dreamed about as a girl. She did not feel butterflies or happiness. King Edward had assured her that Enzo was more than excited to have her as his wife buh she doubted that.

If he was excited, why had he not bothered to show up on his own wedding day? How could her parents blindly agree to such charade? There was something fishy going on! As king Edward said the vows in place of Enzo, her eyes rested in her sisters. They all looked beautiful from where they stood! Ariel in her beautiful royal attire, Ara and Audrey in matching lilac colored gowns. Audrey gave her a small smile when their eyes met

She didn't want to leave her sisters.. she wasn't sure she'd survive without them. What was life like in Basthood? She asked herself! She had never been outside her kingdom so everything was like a tap rushing full of emotions

"Do you accept the vows your highness?" The royal priest repeated the second time after she failed to answer the first time

She was dumbfounded
"Um... Y... Yes" she answered unsure of what she was getting into

"Then it is settled! By the power invested in me by the royal seal! Princess Amelia! Daughter of King George the II, Princess of the seven walls and Prince Enzo, son of King Edward the IV, the second in command of the royal land, Basthood, are now joined as one" he announced and the royal band played the drums

The congregation present stood up and bowed to the princess seven times as it was a tradition

It was done
Sealed!
Concluded

She was now his wife! He was her husband!
A man she never met

Some hours later.. the royal carriage was filled with her luggages, ready to return to Basthood as a new bride, a wife, to a man she did not know. Her family had walked with her to escort her good bye before she left to begin her new life.

She hugged her mother tightly... She would miss this .. this warmth, the comfort, the love

"Write to us every day" her mother whispered

Then she moved to hug Ariel

"It is quite unfair that we could not get to battle to see who is stronger" Ariel joked as they hugged

"I'll miss you the most" Amelia sobbed before letting her go

Ara pulled her into a hug

"Oh sister!! I will miss you!!" Ara cried and she laughed, Ara was the effortlessly funny one.

Finally, her baby sister, the most fragile of them all

"I shall write you every day.. mother has agreed for my sciences to be advanced... I will tell you tales every single day" Audrey smiled innocently, even tho Audrey was naive... She loved Amelia dearly. Amelia was the sister she was closest to, Ariel was never around and Ara was just too loud for her.. so she found solace in Amelia. Amelia hugged tightly before letting her go

She hopped into the carriage with the help of the foot man, she was fighting the tears that threatened to fall off.. with a lot of courage, she waved at them.. the footman whipped the horses as the began their journey. King Edward and his wife had already left to prepare her royal welcome

As the rode through the rocky ground. Amelia cried silently.. she was about to experience a different dimension of life that she wasn't ready for.