Royal Screw-Ups: a Keefex Story [Pre-Unlocked]

Chapter 1

A/N: Hello! This story prompt was suggested to me by a kind anon on tumblr, hope you like the gays because they're everywhere in this one. Only content warning is mild swearing and some pretty gently mentioned incest at the very start. Enjoy! (oh and the next chapter should be out sometime around this week or the next, this'll probably be a decently short story but since it's my first multi-chapter fic I'm starting out small)

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 Keefe was practically falling asleep as the head of his royal guard (and his best friend) read through the next option for a wife at him.

"Six foot, long curly hair, child of Duke Timkin and Duchess Vika Heks,"

"Duke and...wait aren't the Hekses my cousins?"

"Keefe, we've been through this before. It's about keeping the royal blood 'pure' or whatever."

"That's easy for you to say! Your 'special friend' is from a totally different kingdom. I'm sorry Fitz, I'm not marrying my cousin. Even if she wasn't I wouldn't marry her, Stina is a bi-"

Suddenly a servant came running in "Prince Keefe! Prince Keefe your father called for you!"

"Ugh not again," Keefe got up from his throne. "Alright, this'll be fun. Thank you for informing me."

Yeah, no.

He would not be putting up with his complete ass of a dad today. King or not, it wasn't happening.

Instead, he took a short cut through the kitchen, out the servant door, and straight into the gardens. The hedge maze would make a fine hiding place for a few hours.

Suddenly, someone carrying a large pot of dirt ran into him head on.

"Oof!"

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry. I'm-I'm just so clumsy and-"

The boy who ran into him stopped stuttering when he looked up from collecting his dirt and saw who he practically tackled. He quickly looked down at the ground and sat on his knees as a sign of respect.

"Your majesty, I apologize sincerely. I didn't realize-"

Keefe reached down for the boys forearm and pulled him up into a handshake.

"Call me Keefe,"

"Dex,"

"Great to meet you, Dex," Keefe glanced around to check for his father. "So, I happen to be slightly on the run from someone. Would you happen to have a place for me to hide?"

~*~

"It's um...it's not much but it's home."

The small hut laid on the far end of castle grounds. All it had inside were 5 piles of fabric and fluff (presumably beds), a pit in the center for a fire, and a small collection of pots and pans.

Once they got into the hut, Keefe knew he was safe. His father would never some within 50 feet of where the servants lived. Heck, even Keefe himself had never ventured too closely into "peasant territory" as his mother called it, it always felt like an invasion of privacy.

Now that they were inside, Keefe got a better look at Dex.

He looked about Keefe's age, but just a bit shorter. Freckles were spattered like stars across his pale face framed by strawberry blonde hair. A bit of dirt was smudged across his cheek, which somehow made him look even cuter.

"I like this place," Keefe said as he moved across the room and sat on one of the piles of fluff. "It's cozy,"

"Yeah," a blush spread across Dex's face. "Nothing like the castle, I'm sure. Would you like some tea?"

"Oh, yes that sounds great, thank you."

Wordlessly the boy took out a small...something from his pocket. It was made of some type of stone and metal and roughly in the shape of a stick. With the flick of a switch on the side, a spark shot out from the end and lit the wood that sat in the fire pit.

"Woah...are you like...a wizard or something?"

Dex giggled, Keefe could listen to that sound forever.

"No, I'm a technopath. Just like how I hear the royals are empaths."

"Yeah it's just that...I don't know, I thought everyone with abilities were at least nobels. That's what my parents told me."

"Yes, but not if your mother chooses to marry a talentless."

Dex continued going about making the tea, Keefe was silent as he set the iron kettle over the fire, he didn't know what to say.

"I'm sorry,"

"What? No, no no no no no, it's not like that. No, I love my dad. It's not his fault."

"Oh, that's good." Keefe fidgeted with his tunic, not able to shake the idea that the boy in front of him deserved to be wearing a similar one. "So...your family is nice then? You love them?"

"Yes, of course." A look of concern spread across Dex's face as he glanced up from tending to the fire. "I mean, you love yours too, right? Everyone loves their family."

Just then, a set of 3 bickering kids burst into the home.

"Lex, it's my turn to pick the game."

"No it's not! You picked last time Bex."

"No, Rex picked last which makes it my turn!"

The fighting only got louder until Dex cleared his throat. They all fell quiet as they saw Keefe.

"As you gremlins can tell, we have a guest today. I'm sure you all recognize our prince." Dex said it in a way that implied they should kneel in respect. Rather they just stood for a second.

Keefe wasn't sure what he expected their next moves to be but it certainly wasn't running forward, tackling him, and yelling questions.

"What's the castle like?"

"Is it warm in there? Even in winter?"

"Do you have cake in the castle? I've only had it once but mom says you all have it every night!"

An ear splitting whistle filled the room and the kids covered their ears scurried back to the door. Dex shoved them out but quickly opened the door again and said "By the way, it's Bex's turn." Before slamming the door again and plopping straight to the floor.

"I'm sorry about them, the triplets can be a handful."

"Triplets?"

"Yeah, yet another reason why we aren't nobility."

Keefe started to say something but he was cut off by the loud chime of the clocktower, 4 bells.

"Shoot," Keefe said, springing up from his comfortable spot on the bed. "I have to go, I'm gonna miss my talent lessons." They were the only lessons that Keefe could stand, his dad used to teach him but eventually he got frustrated and got him an actual teacher. Oralie was much nicer than his dad. "Bye, I'll see you around."

"Yeah," Dex said with a beautifully crooked smile. "See you around."

A rare blush spread across Keefe's face.

Maybe he had found someone he wouldn't mind being with.