The Prince and the Pea (BxB Story) ON HOLD

Chapter 1

Aaron

    The happy cries of a child could be heard in the nursery as a young prince tossed a ball a short distance, only for a small dog to fetch it and bring it back to the awaiting child.

     Prince Aaron Lakeson squealed in delight when the friendly dog trotted up to him and dropped the small ball at his feet. As it slobbered a kiss onto his cheek Aaron giggled uncontrollably until his nanny ruined the fun and shooed the dog away. It slinked away, sad to have lost its playmate and Aaron pouted up at the older, fun ruining woman.

     "Now now, young prince. We can't have you getting all dirty right before supper. You've just washed up after all." The nanny fussed over the child and rubbed the dog slobber off his face with a handkerchief.

Looking down ashamed, Aaron put down the ball and slumped. He felt as though he was always disappointing someone with what he did.

     Suddenly the dog came bounding back towards Aaron and jumped onto the small figure, accidentally knocking him over. With a cry of pain the small prince fell on his arm, bending it at an unnatural angle with a snapping sound.

     The nanny rushed to bend down and picked the up the crying boy, shooing away the confused dog and running to the infirmary.

     Prince Aaron never remembered seeing the dog again after that accident.

*****

     "RED LIGHT!" A young girl quickly turned around as all of the other children frozen in their movements. Prince Aaron smiled to himself when he saw the girl next to him shake and start to fall, reaching out her arm to catch herself.

     One less opponent for me. Aaron thought as the girl in front turned back around yelling green light. Sprinting as fast as he could, the now twelve year old prince crossed the finish line successfully.

     Turning around to check if anyone else had crossed, Aaron saw he was the first. Jumping with excitement, he exclamied, "Yayy! I won! Did you see that, nanny?!"

     All of the other kids clustered around him as his childhood nanny nodded with a small smile. All of the young girls were giggling among themselves and congratulated Aaron on winning. He, however, just mumbled thanks, walking away when one of the other children pushed him over.

     The child hadn't meant to, but as Aaron fell he saw he was lying the on the road. Right as a carriage was coming straight towards him.

     Luckily his nanny scooped him up and ran him to the safety of the bench before he was hit, but Aaron was scared and in silent shock, shaking and sweating.

     Many of the the children formed a loose circle around him and asked the unanimous question, was he okay? As they each took turns saying sorry, Aaron just nodded, occasionally smiling at one of the boys.

     For a while now Aaron had realized that he felt happier when boys noticed him and found them much more attractive than any of the girls he knew or saw. In just the past week Aaron had one of the most important realizations of his life, that he was unquestionably gay.

     Scared of how he felt, he kept it hidden and never told his parents or nanny about it. Until the day he had no way around it unless he wanted to forever be alone, since his parents had kept him inside the castle at all times, always alone except his nanny. Never was he allowed to play with the other children or have a pet. Lonely and closeted, Prince Aaron awaited the day he could finally come out and find his special someone.

*****

     Just breathe... You're twenty one now, you're an adult who can handle themselves. Everything will be fine, they will still love you no matter what.

     Aaron sweated nervously as he delayed entering the dining room where his parents were seated, waiting for him. It was the most stressful moment of his life.  Explaining to his royal parents how the heir of their kingdom was, in fact, quite gay.

     Taking a deep breathe Aaron pushed open the great, dark wood double doors and stepped into the room. Looking at his father square in the face Aaron said, "Mother, Father, I need to tell you that I have no interest in women and never have. I'm gay, plain and simple."

     There was a moment of silence and Aaron could practically feel his words sinking in. As his royal father, King Cameron, opened his mouth to speak Aaron flinched, waiting for the hateful words that were sure to follow.

     "We know, son... And we are so happy that you have finally come to terms with it and gathered up the courage to tell us. That fact alone really means the world to both your mother and I, as it shows the utmost trust you have in us."

     Prince Aaron stood speechless, shocked at the reaction his parents had. He had never imagined it would go so well, not to mention that they already knew.

     Grinning suddenly he ran to his mother and practically jumped onto her in a giant bear hug. Pulling back and stepping a step away, Aaron caught his breath and spoke once again.

     "I would also like to inform you that I have interest in finding a boyfriend or possible future husband. At your discretion, of course." He hurriedly added the last bit when he saw his parents look at each other.

     "Well, of course, son." Aaron jumped for joy in his head while keeping a calm face on the outside as he heard his mother's words. "But... For them to be worthy of you they must pass a few tests."

     First, the challenger must be able to answer a handful of riddles and common sense questions. Next they would be tested on their reading and writing abilities. And finally, the ultimate test was his mother's, Queen Fiora, own invention. They must be able to notice there was a dried pea under twenty soft mattresses and twenty of the softest down filled quilts she could find. Only then would they truly by the perfect match for Prince Aaron.

*****

     At first Aaron was opposed to all of the seemingly ridiculous tests his mother had set up, but soon realized the reasoning behind them. After walking around the palace courtyard where he saw many young men and women, he decided that the man he wanted had to be perfect. None of the lower commoners satisfied his taste, and so Aaron allowed the tests to be held.

Wanting to see for himself how the tests would go, Prince Aaron decided to try to pass them all.

     The first riddles were easy, and he only had slight problems with the final questions, but soon finished. Next he flew through the reading and writing with flying colors and moved onto the final and most difficult challenge. The mattresses and quilts.

     As Aaron laid down atop the mountain of bedding, he immediately felt a slight discomfort. It was as if something was poking his back and no matter how he tried, Aaron couldn't get it to go away. After twenty minutes of discomfort, he decided that the tests were passable and reasonable.

     Smiling to himself, he carefully lowered himself down the ladder and back into the ground. Take that you evilly soft bed. HAH! I beat your little test, didn't I? Aaron was quite please with himself for being able to pass each of the Queen's tests without fault.

     As Aaron patted himself on the back as he walked down the halls he suddenly felt a pang of loneliness. Oh how he wanted someone to be able to confide and rely on. He couldn't wait to see the challengers once the ordeal was announced, and hoped with all his heart that his special someone would appear soon. Aaron wasn't sure he could live with the loneliness for much longer.

A/N:
Oh goodness, a second story... I'm going to try to make this one longer and more detailed. This, naturally, will make the whole writing process longer so please bear with me. Thank you for reading and I would love it if you could vote and leave a comment on how you think I'm doing!