A/N: So, this was going to be a one shot for my AU series but then it kind of took on a life of it's own. I kind of wanted to do something where Jackson "preyed" on April. Lol. It's fun to write something a little different. This one was also slightly inspired by Game of Thrones.
Enjoy! :)
Disclaimer: I do not own these characters but I own some of this idea.
"We are not sending our daughter east!" Karen Kepner bellowed.
"But she could be Queen one day!" Her husband, Joseph, argued.
"I don't care! I won't do it!"
April sat outside of her parents' bedroom and listened to them fight for what felt like the hundredth consecutive night. They had been arguing about the same issue night after night, sometimes they screamed at each other until dawn. Her older sister, Elizabeth, had come of age three years ago and was still not married. The heir to throne had come of age just recently and was requesting her hand in marriage. Her father, the high lord and ruler north of the river, did not like the royal family or their allies, but he was willing to agree to the marriage under a certain set of circumstances. Those terms included that all lands north of the river remain independent, he would rule over them without answering to the King, like his father had done; he would continue to maintain and train his own army in order to defend the vast territory, and he would still supply the throne and the people of the capital city with plenty of food from their crops and waters. April didn't fully understand the politics of the world that she lived in but she knew that there was a lot of tension between the royal family and her family.
And this impending betrothal was obviously contributing to increased tension. King Mark Sloan wanted to show his kingdom that the people north and south of the river were united and this marriage was the perfect way to do it. She understood her parents' reservations though. Prince Edward was incredibly handsome but he had a vile reputation. She had heard that he was incredibly disrespectful and impulsive, and had already gotten into the habit of frequenting whore houses.
But what other choice did her parents have? They couldn't say no to the King.
"Edward Sloan is a brat, I agree with you there," her father responded. "But us refusing to agree to this marriage may lead to war."
Her mother laughed, "You've been itching to go to war with the throne since we were married."
April's breath hitched at those words and she slowly stood up. War? Her father had a lot of men, a lot of good men, but so did the King. The King's army was full of noble knights but they hadn't trained together and fought alongside each other many times before like her father's men had. But the Sword of the King, the King's most trusted solider and the leader of his army, was legendary. He was from as far south of the river as you could get, a lord from a noble house with a certain reputation for seeking gold and glory. She had never seen him but she felt as if she had been hearing stories about him her entire life. It was said that he could beat a man in a fight with one hand tied behind his back. It was said that he didn't wear armour because he knew that he would never need it. It was said that he could slice half a dozen men in half with one swing of his sword.
How were you supposed to win a war with a man like that fighting against you?
"A war would secure our independence," she heard her father mutter.
April ran as fast as she could towards her older sister's room and didn't even bother to knock on the door. "Libby, I think we're going to war," she revealed breathlessly.
Her sister stared at her in surprise and it was the man in the room that April hadn't noticed that spoke. "What?"
April furrowed her brow in confusion as she looked at one of her father's most prized soldiers. One of her father's most prized soldiers that was in her sister's private chambers at a very inappropriate hour, wearing his bed clothes. "Owen Hunt? What are you doing here?"
The man that was only a few years older than her blushed and stuttered a response. "I-I...uh...I...was just checking on Lady Elizabeth, my lady."
"At this hour?" April asked suspiciously.
Libby jumped in before Owen could offer another awkward answer. "What did you say when you first came in?"
"Mother and father aren't going to let you marry the Prince. We're going to war."
"What?" Owen asked again in shock.
Libby cleared her throat and looked at him meaningfully. "Owen, can you leave my sister and I?"
He crossed an arm over his chest and bowed obediently. "Yes, my lady. I bid you good night." The strapping young man with stern features and red hair left the room and Libby turned to her younger sister with a smile. "You were saying?"
April narrowed her eyes. "What did I just walk in on?"
Libby waved her hand dismissively as she sat on the edge of her bed. "Nothing. What is all this talk of war?" She asked with an awkward laugh. April remained quiet and she sighed in annoyance. "Come and sit next to me, Blossom."
April caved in at the use of her childhood nickname and sat down next to her sister. After a purposeful pause, she told Libby everything that she had heard their mother and father discussing.
Two days later it was official: the Kepners were in open rebellion. They were at war with the King and all those who were loyal to the throne. Alice was still a little young, the mere age of ten, but the other three Kepner daughters were fully aware of what war meant and so they all breathed a sigh of relief when the thousands of men of the river marched to Kepner caste to swear their loyalty to their father.
April knew that she had no reason to be surprised. Her father was an honourable man, a kind man, and he treated the people in his service very well. There was no better man in all the land to serve.
She watched from her bedroom window as Owen trained boys in the yard. They were younger than her...the boys holding the swords and hanging on Owen's every word. What were the chances of those boys surviving in war? Their swords probably weighed more than they did. And what if they came upon the Sword of the King? They would surely be dead then.
She felt waves of guilt and pity rush over her before she was seized with fear. More fear than she had ever felt in her life. This war could be the end of her family. The Kepner family line was already in danger of ending too early. Her father did not have any brothers and he had fathered no sons. He claimed that his four daughters were a blessing but she knew that not having a son was a burden for her father. It was one more thing that he had to worry about while he was fighting this war. The next lord of Kepner castle and ruler north of the river would be Libby's husband, if she ever married that is. Maybe her husband would be one of the lords that had rallied at her father's side, a distinguished man who knew how to lead.
April looked down into the yard and caught sight of her sister standing on the fringes of the circle of boys. She was watching Owen Hunt as intently as they were and April wasn't so naive that she believed her sister's dismissive responses about the solider. Her older sister was in love...with a commoner. Owen was brave and kind, loyal and true, but he was still low born. They would never be allowed to be married.
Perhaps the next ruler north of the river would be her husband.
If her parents ever thought that her marriage should be a priority...
She decided that she needed some fresh air so she spun around and made her way towards her bedroom door. She opened the door and was startled to come face to face with her father.
"Blossom," he smiled broadly. "Where are you off to?"
"I was going to go for a walk."
"Maybe not right now, darling," he advised.
April sighed loudly. She knew that her father would think it wasn't safe but she had hoped to be able to sneak out of the castle. "Will I ever be able to go for a walk again?"
Her father frowned and guided her back into her room with a hand on her shoulder. "Of course you will," he said confidently. "This war will be over in due time. I promise."
April continued to frown, her father could promise her a lot of things and she would believe him, but she didn't believe him this time. Who knew how long this war would last? Who knew if they would even win the war? And if she could never take a walk around the grounds, or go for a horseback ride along the countryside then she would certainly die of boredom. She loved going to the nearby towns to attend the markets, it gave her a much needed break from being a lady of the castle. She always felt as if this life didn't truly suit her. Libby had been groomed to rule; she had just been taught to look pretty and act proper.
Sometimes she wished that she was someone else. She looked beyond the walls of the castle to the rolling green hills that surrounded them. But this is all that she had ever known. She had never been south of the river.
Her father mistook the uncomfortable expression on her face for worry. "The walls of this castle can withstand an attack from ten thousand men."
"I know," she answered. She had been hearing that since she was five.
"And we won't let them get this close anyway," her father continued. He leaned down and placed a kiss on the top of her head. "Don't fret about the war, Blossom. It's not your concern." He told her before he departed.
She sighed loudly when she could no longer hear her father's footsteps. That was the problem. She wanted this war to be her concern. She wanted to do something to help.
The first few months of the war moved incredibly fast and agonizingly slow. The Kepners were able to defend the river but the throne's men won all of the battles when the men pressed south of the river. April had grown restless quickly. She hadn't been outside the stronghold of Kepner castle in what felt like a lifetime. Libby helped their mother rule the castle and Kimberly looked after Alice; there was nothing for her to do and she hated feeling as if she wasn't useful.
Eventually, she convinced her mother that she would be safe helping out in some of the smaller villages closer to the river. After all, there was an army between her and the King's men. They trusted their defences and thought that their second eldest daughter would be safe. Joseph Kepner and his advisers certainly had not anticipated small, organized raids. They figured that the King would want to attack in one large strike. But the King's army had decided to follow up a string of small battle victories by raiding villages north of the river, hoping to break opposition morale.
One of those villages happened to be the one that April had moved to where she had been helping with the harvest and tending to mild wounds.
The King's men barrelled through on their horses without warning. They killed the men mercilessly, gathered all of the food and supplies that they could find, and set torches to the homes. She had anticipated being killed on the spot, especially after seeing what they had done to everyone else in the village. But for some unknown, unexplained reason, a man in royal blue armour yanked her by the hair and laid her at the feet of the battlefield captain. They clearly did not know who she was so why were they letting her live?
"That's a pretty one," the man commented. "Bring her to the Queen and if she doesn't have any use for her then I'm sure someone's earned her."
April knew exactly what those words meant and it caused her to feel sick to her stomach. She almost wished that they had just killed her like so many others.
The King's army had set up camp less than one hundred leagues from the river. The number of tents took her breath away. It was a sea of blue and white, the royal colours, for as far as the eye could see. Many lords and their men had rallied behind the King. She had kept her mouth shut for the entire ride to camp, knowing that revealing her name would surely mean death or worse, and she stood just as silent when she was brought before the Queen, along with three other girls who were too young, too scared, and too stupid to realize that she was a Kepner.
She had only seen the Queen a handful of times in her young life and she couldn't get over how beautiful she was. Her red hair was a few shades darker than her own and her features were so striking. She had heard that the Queen was quite kind as well but April did not know yet whether or not she agreed.
The Queen did have the four of them bathed and dressed by her handmaidens. April was put in a silk gown and a green dress. The Queen didn't press either of them for information, April had still managed to keep her identity a secret, but she did speak the words that caused her to close her eyes in defeat.
"Bring the three of them to my husband's guard," she stated as she looked at the other three girls. She paused before she turned to April and gazed at her with thoughtful eyes. "Bring her to the Sword of the King. I think he'll like her."
April opened her mouth to argue, but she knew better. Maybe this is what she had to do to stay alive, and she knew that she wouldn't be harmed by others if she belonged to a lord that was so important to the King.
She was given a plate of chess, bread, and grapes and was promptly escorted to a nearby tent by a young guard. The solider led her inside and announced his presence. "For you, my lord."
April raised her head and her breath caught in her throat as she gazed at the man lying in the bed. She had heard many things about Lord Avery, the Sword of the King, and many of them concerned his looks, but she was still entirely unprepared for his beauty, and for his youth. She had always imagined him much older, perhaps because he had been the talk of the kingdom since he was fourteen. But he was young. He had a youthful smile and beautiful olive skin that covered large, taut muscles. He was tall with long limbs. His strong jaw was littered with a day's worth of stubble but he obviously shaved the hair on the top of his head. She could just imagine the feeling of running her palm over his scalp. And his eyes. His eyes were so clear and bright that she could see the flecks of blue in them from her place at the mouth of the tent.
Those eyes widened in curiosity as he looked over her. "From?"
"The Queen, my lord."
He nodded slowly, the Queen had always known what he liked. "You may leave now."
The solider left obediently and April could feel the heat of Lord Avery's piercing green-eyed gaze fixed solely on her.
A/N: The next chapter picks up here! Please leave a review! :)