This fic was written as part of the SD Secret Santa Fic. Now that the reveals are done I can post this here. I must say this prompt was very different from what I am used to writing, which if you take a look at my other works is mystery/thriller/horror in general. I had to think a lot and almost didn't make it to the final deadline but i somehow pulled through with encouragement from fellow writer friends. But i must say i am more inclined to write Fluff now if nothing else then as a challenge to my muse.
I hope you enjoy!
My prompt was :
Royalty AU. Draco is king and needs to be engaged to marry by Christmas Eve. December has approached and no one has caught his fancy until a princess shows up days before the deadline. "Oh sweet princess, would you care to be mine?"
Draco Malfoy was an adult. No really, he was! He was an adult. He was also sitting cross-legged on his mother's outfit for the day, with a big pout on his face, and refusing to dress up. Draco Malfoy was indeed a very adult man.
Most of them knew him as this suave refined and confident young man, who was also the direct heir to the throne of Eleaphadour, but if you were to look at him now you would call him a petulant whiny bitch or a man-child.
The reason for our prince's bad mood though was that there was a party going to be held in his honour in the next thirty minutes. To be precise, his twenty-first birthday party. Now Draco Malfoy is someone who would normally love this kind of attention, would preen over it even, but today was not to be that day.
Today he was to be showcased like a cattle for sale, and in turn, had to look at other cattle and decide which one was perfect for breeding.
Sounds romantic yes?
Well, you see the kingdom of Eleaphadour had a custom, no prince, regardless of his breeding and calibre, could be crowned king without having a queen at his side. And that rule my friend had become the bane of Draco's existence.
You see like any young man of twenty-one, he just wanted to be free, free to party, to have fun, to travel, to meet people and none of that involved being married and asked to look after his kingdom. But that was exactly what he would be getting and Draco did not approve.
Alas, his approval was of no consequence to the Queen, his mother was herself quite excited about choosing a girl for his son! She would choose someone who was perfect in every way. Perfect manners, perfect dressing sense, perfect attitude! She had to suit her perfect son in every way. That is why she had decided to call on all the princesses from neighbouring kingdoms. Well, she would if she could get dressed… in the dress, her son had decided to use as a sitting place.
"Dragon, why won't you listen to me? We have already discussed this, and honestly, that is Dior! What you are doing to it is almost illegal! Do get up, your friends will be here soon and you are still in your pyjamas, is that how you want your future wife to see you?" Narcissa ended her tirade with a hand on her hip and her face set in a scowl.
Draco mirrored her scowl perfectly as he said, "But mother! Why don't you understand that I don't want to get married, especially to some stranger that I will be meeting only this once", Draco finished with an exaggerated pout and a firmer wriggle of his ass on the dress.
Narcissa had had enough, holding his ear she twisted it hard and pulled it up dragging her son with it even as he screamed bloody murder until he finally scrambled off of the bed and her dress.
"Now you will go and get ready in the clothes I have set out for you, and I want to here not a single word of complaint from you, is that clear?"
OxOxOxOxOx
Draco stood on the bottom of the steps of the grand ballroom. He wished to be anywhere but here, but he knew he'd never hear the end of it from his mother so the prince of Eleaphadour waited as patiently as he could.
A slight commotion got his attention. He craned his neck to see who decided to arrive fifteen minutes early. The doors opened and a silhouette was seen, a slim figure swayed in her rather large skirts. From where he stood, Draco assessed that she was wearing a huge orange ball gown that looked like a giant pumpkin. He narrowed his eyes to get a better glimpse of the woman who looked like she was even taller than he. The woman stopped and waited on him, to his dismay. Sighing, he walked up to meet and escort her to the solarium.
As he approached, he noticed more things about her - she was taller than him, with broad shoulders and a muscled built. Wait a minute - that's not a girl!
"Zabini, what in fuc-" Draco could only stutter his question before falling silent as Blaise puckered his lips.
"Why your royal highness do you like my dress? Do you like the way I have displayed myself to you?" He held onto the fake-orange-breasts suggestively, winked and then continued, "Marry me, my prince, and I shall forever be yours and yours only!" At this, he tried to press himself into Draco but that seemed to pull Draco from his shock and he jumped away from him and started sniggering into his hand.
"Zabini, you crazy idiot! Wait till mother sees you like this!" Draco said in between laughs.
"Your mother will not be the one looking at me my sweet love!" Blaise said before he burst into guffaws. Shortly after, he threw the oranges away and tore his skirt to reveal a rather sleek pair of black slacks. He motioned to a nearby servant who then brought him his black shirt and overcoat. "So do you plan to greet all your lady guests on the floor?"
"Maybe if they all see me like this they may just marry you instead and save me the trouble", Draco said with a wink as he got up off the floor and dusted his clothes.
"Oh hell no!", Blaise yelled appalled. "Draco how dare you even suggest such a cruel fate to me? When you know that I am nothing but a free bird twittering from nest to nest!"
"Yeah alright mate whatever you say but I know you have been twittering near a certain redheads nest for the past few months."
"Yeah so? It's good to have a bit of stability in your life!" Blaise said eloquently as he started to peel his orange.
"Draco, are you ready? Oh, Blaise, here to keep my dragon company?" Narcissa said as she started down the stairs, "the first carriages are arriving, although I just received a message, one of the princesses will be a few days late in coming here something about finishing exams! Honestly, I have nothing against girls wanting a further education but to turn down a Malfoy? For a few exams? Either this girl is a gem or extremely foolish. Anyway," here she took a much-needed breath."Stand in line, Draco! We must be ready to greet them!"
Soon the doors opened again and the herald announced, "Princess Eloise Midgen of Thessalonica!"
A rather short girl with dark limp hair framing her face and a nervous smile stood near the top of the stairs Narcissa gave the girl a beaming smile as Eloise started down the stairs, her eyes firmly on the floor in case she fell. Draco stared up at her with boredom and wished her to hurry up.
After he had waited for aeons, she finally made it down the stairs. She looked up at Narcissa and gave her a timid smile. She then swept her gaze over to the two men and stared in confusion as both continued to stare at her blankly. Narcissa's elbow met quickly with the blond-haired man's ribs and he leapt forward and bowed over her hand, planting an air kiss on the back of her hand.
"My lady, I hope you had a pleasant journey", Draco said with as much politeness as he could muster while smarting over his bruised ribs.
Eloise was then escorted by Narcissa to a sitting room and offered a few refreshments even as the next princess was announced.
Soon, the next princess was introduced, "Princess Su Li of Mide Islands!"
A medium-built woman with the straightest hair he had ever seen entered the room, coloured in bright pink. He stared at her in awe as she certainly didn't look like the same girl he went to school with - didn't she have curly hair back then? There was someone else with very curly bushy hair too, but he preferred to not dwell on their bushy-haired classmate.
"Ah, my dear Miss Li! You have such lovely hair!"
"Princess, how very wonderful to make your acquaintance," Draco said with a deep bow as he kissed her hand with a wink. She giggled softly and he noticed her eyes matched the turquoise dress she had on. "Allow me to escort you to the waiting room"
"There are other princesses you are interested in?" she asked looking as though a toddler would if they were refused play time.
"I do have to choose from the neighbouring kingdoms you see,' Draco said, trying to do damage control because he really thought her to be the better option. "But between you and me, there really is no competition for you!"
Upon hearing that, the princess beamed and smiled sweetly at him as he left her with the other ladies.
More guests arrived throughout the day, some from countries he'd never even heard of. By dusk, Draco could've sworn he couldn't feel his legs anymore and judging by the frown on Blaise's face, he could tell his friend was just as tired. Finally, they were told that there were no more guests coming. Draco and Blaise sighed in relief, only to grimace when Narcissa announced that dinner will be served at the Queen's ballroom in fifteen minutes.
Draco retired to his own room two hours later and collapsed on his bed. What a horrible day this has been - thank Merlin Blaise had been there to support him. Draco sighed. He still was not keen on the idea of getting married, but some of the princesses looked tolerable enough for his taste. He hoped to share some of them for a night of debauchery because heaven forbids he marry someone utterly prim and proper. With another yawn, our prince fell asleep and if he was slightly disappointed that there wasn't a curly haired, bossy princess somewhere in the castle, well you wouldn't hear about it from him. Maybe, just maybe, that classmate of theirs had already gotten married was the last thing he had thought of before he drifted off to dreamland.
OxOxOxOxOx
This all was a ruse! That's right this was a ruse to make sure he didn't have any prospects for marriage left by the time Christmas Eve rolled around and the deadline was reached. It was two weeks til Christmas and Draco was relishing in some alone time because all the princesses had taken to spend time in the warmth of the castle and his mother was busy inside persuading the people of the court to go easy on her boy. While he did feel sorry for her, he was not going to really take his demands back and the kingdom would just have to deal with an unmarried prince!
"There you are Draco! Come inside please I have an important matter to discuss with you", his mother called from one of the windows and he sighed one last time before moving inside.
Handing his overcoat and mittens to a nearby servant he made his way to his mother. She was sitting near a fireplace lost in thought as he approached.
"Yes, mother? What did those old codgers have to say about my marriage, you know a personal ceremony that is supposed to be the happiest day of my life?" Draco asked with a put-upon sigh as he gave his mother his best puppy dog stare.
"Well, the council and I have come to a decision. We will be hosting a week-long festival of sorts and observing all the princesses as they interact with you, me, the people of Eleaphadour, the Palace itself etcetera. Then the council will choose a princess that they think will be the best for the welfare of this kingdom and you will be engaged to her on Christmas eve so that the tradition is still upheld." Narcissa finished with a flourish of her hands even as Draco continued to gape at her as if she had just spoken pig latin.
"What? They can't do that! That's just absurd not to mention completely archaic!" Draco said, raising his voice. To say he was extremely flabbergasted with this turn of events was an understatement.
Narcissa just gave him a smug smile and said, "Well my son your demands are so high and since you refuse to budge. This had to be done. So you will just have to deal with it".
Draco looked furious but he knew he had brought this upon himself so he did what any rational mature person would do. He stormed off in a huff and refused to talk to anyone at all or leave his room for a whole week. Well, what happened after a week that changed things you ask? Well, his mother caught him sneaking out to go clubbing and that was the end of his pretences temporarily.
OxOxOxOxOx
"Prince Draco, shall I have the pleasure of your company in my walk today?"
Draco grimaced when he heard yet another one of the whiny, needy women his mother invited over make another request. For the last five days, he's done nothing else but entertain them. He's gone on more walks with them in that short span of time than he has with any of the dogs he's owned for the past ten years. He was not having it - while they were pleasing to look at, he found that they just didn't connect on any level. He politely refused and stayed in his chambers the entire day. It was the day before Christmas, and he had to choose a wife by midnight. He was doomed.
They hosted another party that evening and the prince found himself once again at the bottom of the stairs, away from prying eyes. As the evening's festivities continued Draco continued to feel more and more miserable because almost no one seemed interested in his side of things. Instead, he was labelled the 'bad and selfish prince' who just didn't want to follow traditions.
It was nine in the evening, he had to choose a wife soon. Resigned to his fate, he willed himself to go to the ballroom and make his choice. As he started to leave, he saw the door open slowly. It was rather late in the evening so he was rather surprised anyone was entering. There was first a peak of silver and then the doors were opened completely and there at the entrance stood a stunning figure in silver. He held his breath as he looked at the woman who seemed to be looking around in a sort of haze, then she seemed to nod to herself, squared her shoulders and started down the stairs.
Draco watched entranced as her glorious golden brown curls fell on her face and she reached a hand up to brush them off, revealing a diamond earring, that seemed as delicate as her fingers. As she reached the ending he reached out a hand to her.
"Greetings, beautiful princess -" he started to say, taking her hand in his to plant a kiss.
"Shut it, Malfoy!" she replied and snatched her hand away. Draco shot up in shock.
"Granger?"
"Oh, you still remember me, I see," she laughed.
"Well, well, Granger looks like you grew up!" Draco said with an appreciative chuckle as he glanced at her from head to foot. Yes, she had grown up good - she no longer had that incredibly curly hair nor was she bucktooth or chubby. She looked ethereal.
"Why thank you, Malfoy. You're looking quite dapper yourself," she replied. He led her to the garden they charmed from the snow where they sat and talked about their school days. They caught up on news about their classmates. She learned that he and Blaise spent a year traveling around the world after graduating, and he found out that she had just passed the Medical board. She listened to him talk about his advocacies and he was thrilled to find out she supported the same charities he did.
Draco watched her laugh and felt a tug on his heartstrings. He couldn't help but smile as they conversed with each other. They didn't realize the time until they heard the clock strike eleven.
"Oh my, I didn't notice the time. Excuse me, Malfoy but I have to go look for someone."
He watched her walk purposefully down the corridor, only to stop when she reached fork. "You seem pretty confident for someone who has no idea where she is going. What are you doing here anyway?"
"Oh, nothing my mother sent me because she was convinced the prince would want to marry me. I heard he's quite pompous. Have you met him?"
He cocked an eyebrow at the young lady. "And what do you think?"
"I think that if he can get over himself and give us both time to get acquainted, then that shouldn't be a problem."
Smiling for the first time in days, he offered his arm out to her. "I think the handsome prince can agree to those," he winked.
As soon as they entered the Queen's ballroom, Narcissa immediately straightened up and the room fell silent. The crowd broke into hushed whispers as the pair approached the queen.
"Mother, may I introduce you to Princess Hermione Granger."
The statuesque Queen of Eleaphadour looked graciously at the beautiful brunette who stood beside her son. "It's lovely to meet you, my dear," she said and then looked lovingly at her son, who now had a different aura about him. He was positively glowing. "And is she…"
"I haven't -"
"It's almost Christmas eve."
The handsome young prince nodded at his mother and faced the lovely young woman who had been on his mind since his mother pulled together this shenanigan. "I know this is sudden, but I promise you we'll take this slow," he knelt before her and held out the Royal Family's engagement ring. "Oh, sweet princess, would you care to be mine?"
The young princess smiled and nodded, words failing her for once in her life. The crowd cheered, and Draco could've sworn Blaise cheered the loudest. It was done. His family tradition has been upheld and he surprisingly started to look forward to married life.
But that of course will wait. He promised to get to know her and he was determined to win her heart. For now, he will savor the moment as he held her tight for the first time and dream about their future together.
End.
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