╰┈➤ paul atreides x oc
❝ do you always try to murder your suitors? ❞
❝ maybe. ❞
☄. *. ⋆ in which octavia blackthorn's peace is relatively interrupted by the brink of holy war.
---- completed on ; ???
---- published on ; 25/03/24
empire - featuring;...
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"do you need company?"
as the upcoming nuptials drew nearer, octavia had withdrawn from the estate, spending her days in the grounds, meandering through the trees and rocks like a forest fairy. she was typically more productive, what with breaking into the dungeons to visit prisoners, or having unpleasant reveries of her parents when her brain decided that analepsis was more forthgiving than rational thought.
she'd been feeding a field mouse a strawberry she'd nicked from the kitchens, when she'd heard the crisp padding of boots over the fresh stalks of grass that had been flattened for more efficient navigation.
her brows pinched. peace was a mere afterthought on this planet, apparently. she glanced behind her as she straightened, leaving the strawberry with the small brown rodent as she surveyed the young man.
a subtle trace of penitence had threaded through the detached apathy that had come to define his tone. his hands, ever disciplined, were clasped behind his back, the restless noon light blessing the crests of his cheekbones.
bloody regal, unfortunately.
"your company? not particularly." she replied, taking a few steps to her left, casually placing more distance between them, and a hedge of weeds. "must you always look like you are about to reprimand me?"
the space between their bodies grew, not merely physical, but symbolic, a chasm of antipathy yawning between them; not particularly befitting of a future husband and wife.
"not always," he retorted, his voice flat as usual, "only when you behave in ways that warrant it." his gaze slid over her, taking in her prickly demeanor and the casual ease with which she would navigate the estate. "that i do so frequently," he began, "might be indicative of your habitual misconduct. and you have been behaving like a petulant child, of late."
"how flattering." a snort left her nose. she had not been childish, per se, in her books; she was being the bigger person. she could have buried him in a hill, for one.
"let me remind you that it was not me who decided to use weird bene gessirt witchy powers to force my hand into complying with your political whims." all this, because she had simply visited irulan in the dungeons without permission.
"you are still harping on about that?" much to her bemusement, he took a few more steps towards her, closing the distance by a margin. the supple grass bowing beneath his boots rippled, and the wind rustled the dark strands of his hair.
"do not attempt to twist the facts to suit yourself," he replied, a barely contained edge in his voice. "i merely sought to ensure you adhered to a basic level of decorum. you were being deliberately obstinate and uncooperative. i warned you of the consequences. you defied them. i had to take steps to impress the gravity of the matter upon you. especially if you are to be so pressed over my lack of an apology."
"suck a dick." she sighed, crossing her arms behind her back to mirror his stance.
it was wholly uncomfortable to have her back that straight, so it had no other purpose than to be an insolent mimicry. "yet still, i do not see how your pride can be so expansive that you cannot fathom an 'i'm sorry.'"
"my pride has nothing to do with it," he replied evenly, taking another step forward, now a mere arm's length away. she could kick him in the shin, if she so pleased. "my duty to my house and my future empire has everything to do with it. we must present a unified front, you and i."
"you've been revising this little speech, have you? because that's sure as hell not what you said last time." she noted.
his audacity astounded her. he had admitted his ego was what withheld such a proclamation, yet now he was pretending to be political about it.
"last time, i spoke my mind," he retorted, a hint of irritation flaring in his voice. "this time, i speak what must be said. but do not mistake my concession for weakness, my lady."
"oh yes, what must be said. duty. pride. they are all the same."
the mouse had scampered off with the strawberry. what a shame, it had been good company.
"paul, if you are here to talk of a marriage without desire, your imperium politics, or my aunt's complaints about me soiling my boots, do see yourself back to your room." octavia gestured vaguely down the makeshift path.
his voice was surprisingly even, the bastard. she had hoped to have an excuse to throw her muddy boot at his perfect head. "i am here to speak of our marriage," was his reply, his gaze not leaving hers, "since it would be foolish to not discuss the impending nuptials with my betrothed. but if you insist on behaving like this, i will gladly return to my quarters."
yet he did not go. he stayed, a slight wrinkle to the bridge of his nose, a muscle pulsing in his jaw.
her lips parted to retort, but then shut her mouth again. arguing really was pointless, because both of them seemed capable of continuing this cycle for the next millennia. "would you like to walk, then?"
he seemed to ponder upon this for a moment, his gaze sliding over her form unnecessarily, as if that would have any influence on his judgment. finally, he responded, his voice slightly less taut, "fine. we walk."
perhaps the occasion was worth discussing. maybe she could get a say on what color of tablecloth was being selected, as uncomforting as that was. if it was orange, she might drown herself in the nearest basin.
and perhaps she could get to know who the hell she was marrying.
"yes, much to discuss."
*ੈ✩‧₊˚
╰┈➤ authors note ; HELLOOOOOOOOOOO,, just updating this because i felt like it :>> anyways look!! they're communicating!! kind of. and ignore the song choice, i had no other ideas. they have no bed chem.
