This pretty much follows the story line of the Royals Season 1 up to episode 7, except the King dies 4 days after he is attacked, Liam and Eleanor are declared illegitimate the day he dies and Jasper does not go to prison.
Also this is a continuation (as a separate story) of my previous fic 'Behind these castle walls' which you can read the characters back story line of by clicking on my username.
At first light I think we both knew
Just what we were getting into
Now it feels just like I'm falling
When will I hit the ground
Will I be running, for you
The Princess is not taking the news of her father's attack well and has spent the past four days at his bedside, first at the hospital and today at the Palace where he has been shifted. This morning the Prince and the Princess have been told they are illegitimate, as the family doctor has gone on camera to say they are not the King's children at all.
This evening Prince Liam has convinced his sister to finally leave the bedside of the man who is not their father but is the only father they've ever known for a few hours to go out for a couple of drinks.
At 10pm the hush of a Palace acting as a makeshift hospital for a King is broken by the news that the sovereign is dead.
The Prince and Princess arrive back half an hour later. The Princess is dressed in a skimpy silver dress and heels and is in a state of semi-collapse and is being supported by her brother as they rush back to the reception room.
The Queen stands silent and upright beside the elaborate fireplace and Jasper, her new bodyguard, watches from the corner of the room, feeling like an intruder on a family's private grief. The Queen turns to him shortly after and dismisses him for the night, telling him they want to be alone.
Jasper is walking back to his quarters when he sees an unfamiliar figure trailing down the hallway towards the Royal families quarters.
Jasper doesn't recognise him as one of the Palace staff and follows him discreetly from a distance.
When the man reaches the Princesses room he stops and places his hand to the door then opens the handle. Jasper follows him silently and watches him through the crack in the door. He is searching for something, opening the draws, checking underneath her dresser. After a few moments he finds what he has been looking for and pulls out a packet of white powder. His hand moves to his pocket and he pulls out a colourless vial and unscrews it. The man's back is turned while he has the powder and vial together and then after a minute he places his the packet back under the dresser. As the man moves to exit the room, Jasper moves to press himself behind the door, his brain working fast to process what he's seen.
This man has been cutting the Princesses drugs with something. When he's moved further down the hallway Jasper steps out of the shadows and radios through to Ted to tell him to stop the man.
Jasper starts to make his way back to the Royal family to inform the Princess about the intruder. As he makes his way back his mind is ticking over what's just happened. Prince Robert's death appears accidental but Jasper thinks it is no accident, and the King's attack is deeply suspicious.
Now the Princess, second in line to the throne is at risk. If it weren't for the rash of royal deaths that preceded this evening, tampering with the Princesses drugs would be the perfect crime. Everyone knows of her party lifestyle and her habits. No one, least of all Press, would be surprised if she were to be die of a drug overdose, and the timing could easily be attributed to her grief over her father's death.
As Jasper makes his way back towards the family, Prince Liam emerges from around a hallway corner. The Princess is still barely capable of walking and is supported by Prince Liam, with Marcus in tow behind.
Jasper waits for them to pass then falls into step with Marcus.
In his earpiece, Jasper hears Ted tell him the intruder has disappeared and Jasper steps off to the side to repeat his instructions about where he was headed.
Following them down the corridor Jasper hears Ted repeat in his ear that they have lost him.
Once Prince Liam and Princess Eleanor have entered the Princesses room, Jasper follows them into the room and shuts the doors behind him.
"Your Highnesses I need to speak with you both," Jasper says, the urgency of his tone belying the formality of his address.
Eleanor and Liam are seated on the couch while Marcus stands at the far corner. Three sets of eyes turn to watch him.
It takes him only two minutes to explain that an intruder has been in the Princesses bedroom and has mixed something into her drugs.
"In my opinion," Jasper finishes. "Given that Prince Robert and now the King have been killed in suspicious circumstances, the most likely explanation is that this was an attempt to kill the Princess. And whoever is trying to kill the Princess may very well be trying to eliminate the Prince as well."
The Prince and the Princess stare back at him, wide eyed as they unconsciously shift closer together on the couch.
"But we've both been declared illegitimate – we're not entitled to the throne," the Prince states after a moment, shaking his head. "It makes no sense for them to try to kill Eleanor. Or me. Why would -"
"Unless you're not illegitimate. Unless the Princess, or both of you, are the rightful children of King Simon," from across the room, the normally silent Marcus interrupts the Prince.
Marcus looks across at Jasper who is nodding in agreement. In the ten minutes he's had to ponder why someone would want to kill the Princess he's come to the same conclusion as Marcus.
There is silence now as the Prince and Princess digest that idea.
"You know what," says Prince Liam slowly. "Tonight I found out that our family doctor is on a flight to Gibralter first thing tomorrow morning," he says. "He's been posted there permanently. I thought it was strange because he's served our family for twenty years and then all of sudden he just ups and leaves with not so much as a farewell or goodbye."
"The only way we're going to know for sure if our father is our father is by getting hold of the blood test results," Liam finishes.
Jasper looks the Prince in the eye. "That could be arranged," he says mysteriously.
"Can I suggest that both the Prince and the Princess leave the Palace right now," Jasper says. "This situation poses an extreme risk to both your lives. If this attempt on the Princesses life is not successful there will most likely be another more sophisticated attempt. We need to remove you promptly to somewhere safe in complete discretion."
Marcus has anticipated this already. "Protocol twelve?" he asks.
Jasper nods. "You take the Prince, I'll take the Princess."
It goes without saying that the first and second in line to the throne must be separated if there is a risk to their lives.
Theoretically Hagrid should take the Princess but though he is built like a giant he is as thick as an ox and if Cyrus is after them, which Jasper's convinced he will be, she'll be dead within 24 hours if Hagrid is with her.
So Marcus will take Prince Liam and he will deal with the Princess. Though from previous experience dealing with her this could be easier said than done.
Jasper doesn't know who he can trust inside or outside the Palace. It should have been simple for Ted to stop the intruder before he left the Palace but the fact that he hasn't apprehended him makes him deeply suspicious that Ted may be involved.
The twins still look like they're still in shock.
"But I don't want to go with Jasper," Princess Eleanor protests.
"Lenny you have to do this for Dad," Prince Liam says, taking his sister by the shoulders.
"He saw what the monarchy was doing to his family, how dangerous this world was and he wanted out. So you do this for him, and for me, and you stay safe. Jasper will take you. You have to go now."
Liam's words break her again, and her shoulders hitch as a sob escapes her again at this fresh reminder that their father is gone forever.
She nods but she has to issue her own ultimatum to her brother, and her voice is a fierce whisper. "You promise me you'll leave too. We've lost Robert and Dad and you're not bloody dying on me Liam. Don't let Cyrus get you. You have to go, you promise me," she reaches out to grip his hand and clings to it wildly until he nods and tells her he's leaving too and her face loses its look of fevered intensity.
Liam gently releases her and Jasper steps up to support her, worried she will collapse without a firm hold.
"Take good care of her," Liam says quietly, looking Jasper in the eye over Eleanor's bent shoulder. Jasper nods and then the door slams behind Liam as he exits the room with Marcus in tow.
Tears roll down the Princesses' face, and she turns her face away from him. "Sorry," she mutters, self-conscious that she is falling apart in front of a man she can't trust.
Jasper lays a hand on her shoulder from behind and his touch burns hot on her bare skin.
"The only daughter who wouldn't cry the day her father dies is one who isn't worth having. Your father was a good man, he deserves your tears."
He comes around to face her and runs his finger down her cheeks to wipe away the tracks of her tears. It feels unexpectedly intimate but he is right. Her father loved her with all his heart, and she loved him back. He deserves her grief today.
A moment later he is pushing her away from him gently and he moves to grab a bag from her closet. "We have to leave. Get what you need."
He is already moving around the room pulling clothes and underwear from drawers and shoving them into a bag, and Eleanor dazedly follows suit, randomly stuffing things into the bag until it is full.
"Right," he says, picking up the bag with one hand and firmly grasping her by the hand with the other. "Let's get the hell out of here."