This was written for one of my all time favourite people, and though it is a day late (sorry!), I hope you enjoy it, Morgan :3

The meadow was their favourite spot to lay and watch the clouds, whether it was in idle silence or quiet conversation, and today was no different. Hidden in the long grass and swaying flowers were the pair, hands behind their heads and eyes on the sky. It was peaceful, their little sanctuary, where she was not a princess and he was not the cook's helper, a place where they could giggle and joke without a care in the world. That was the beauty of childhood, they were not yet forced to shoulder the responsibilities that their families would press upon them in the years to come; they were free to play and splash in the shallow lake that ran along the outside of the premises, or free to play pretend in the courtyard. They were free.

"What are you going to be when you grow up?" She was the one who spoke first, propping herself up on one elbow so she could gaze down at him. Her raven locks were splayed across her shoulders, one strand hanging over her face.

"A sailor." He didn't even have to think to respond, a familiar smile spreading to his lips. It was the smile he got every single time they envisioned their future.

"I'm going to join the Navy, and fight all the bad guys. I'll be a Captain, and have an entire crew to boss around, and we'll travel to unknown lands and be heroes."

"You'll still come back for me though, right?" Traces of hesitation seeped into her voice, scared that her best friend would completely forget about her in the years to come.

He snickered.

"Of course, silly, and I'll bring you gifts from everywhere we travel, gifts fit for the queen - because that's what you'll be - and whenever some village woman claims her love for me I will shake my head, and I will say 'no thanks, I have to return to my best friend' and I will come sailing back to you." He poked her gently in the side, bringing the hand to shade his face from the sun afterwards.

"What if you fall in love when you're away? Will you come back for me even then, Killi?" Another trace of worry found her, and she creased her brows in such a solemn expression that Killian had to laugh again.

"No-one will ever take my focus off of you, Mhari, don't worry. We're best friends, remember? That's more important than anything, nothing can break us apart!" He reassured her gently, pulling himself up into a sitting position.

"And anyway, I don't want to fall in love. It's all gross and then you kiss each other all the time - like Liam and his lady." Killian pulled a disgusted face, putting on an overdramatic shudder. "Yuck."

"You have to have a wife someday!" Mhari giggled at him, sitting up too."You can't never fall in love, Killi, what if some lady asks you to dance with her? Or she gives you a token to remember her by?"

"Then I shall say "no can do, Miss" and I will scarper away as fast as I can." He said stubbornly, picking at some of the grass so he could plait it.

"You're silly." Mhari shook her head and looked up at the clouds again.

"I'm going to marry a prince - that's what mother and father want - and I'll be queen and I'll get to do what I want all day. And I'll have as many cats as I want, and you can visit me any time you want."

"All the princes in the neighbouring kingdom are boring and horrible." He crinkled his nose in disgust. Whenever there was a ball or event at the castle, the neighbouring royals would drag their children along too, and as one of the castle staff it gave Killian the chance to see them. They were unruly, rude creatures who turned their noses up at him, or tripped him when no-one was looking.

"Then maybe I won't marry one." Mhari thought for a moment, tapping her chin in wonder.

"Maybe we could get married, Killi!" She exclaimed suddenly, beaming brightly.

"You'd be a King! And we could play together all day, and none of those horrible princes will be able to do anything because I shall have them sent to the dungeon! Please oh please say yes!" She even batted her eyelashes at him, knowing he always struggled to say no at that.

"Fine. But no kissing stuff. It's gross."

"Deal!" The princess stuck her hand out seriously, and not a second later it was shook by Killian.

And with that, the pair of ten year olds ran back to the castle to continue with their day's work.

Years passed on, and with each one they grew up.

Killian was no longer a scrawny boy of ten with scruffy hair and pale skin. He'd grown into a strong young man, broad shouldered and tall. The babyish roundness of his face had left, replaced by a defined jaw decorated with a dark scruff, and cheekbones kissed by the sun. Years of shifting jobs within the castle walls, from the cook's assistant to a stableboy, from a cleaner to the gardener's assistant, has caused him to gain the necessary muscle mass needed to carry large sacks of soil, and so his clothes no longer remained baggy over the arms. It was safe to say that Killian Jones had developed into a handsome, charming man of twenty-one who made the ladies blush and giggle.

Mhari was no longer a small girl of ten with a quiet voice and shy attitude. She had grown into the perfect queen, outspoken and wise beyond her years, able to make the toughest of knights stop and listen to her. She was still soft at heart, nothing would ever be able to eradicate the kindness that shrouded every inch of her being, but she had mastered the art of toughness. Although she had not changed as much as Killian in terms of appearance, there were still noticeable changes. What she lacked in height, per se, she made up for in breathtaking beauty. With delicate features, rosy cheeks, and light dimples that creased whenever she smiled, it was hard not to be blown away by Queen Mhari Stuart.

Most remarkable of all was the fact that they were still best friends, and they had never forgotten their promise to one another, though both were uncertain as to whether the other actually meant it. Around her neck Mhari wore a necklace containing a metal ring stolen from one of the saddles in the stable. It was no longer able to fit on her finger, but he had given it to her as a makeshift engagement ring when they were eleven. He'd even dared to kiss her cheek afterwards, but that had made them both collapse in fits of laughter.

Killian had never enrolled in the Navy, he'd never fought off any of the bad guys and sailed to unknown kingdoms. He'd stayed right there, by her side, and true to his promise he never let any girl take his attention from the most important one: Mhari.

Mhari had never married a prince. Despite her parents' constant pleas and reminders, she had never let any of them gain access to her heart the way Killian had naturally. There was something about his gaze and his grin that just made her breath catch in her throat. She would always pass it off as something else, never comfortable to admit that she had fallen in love with her best friend.

"Lost in daydreams, eh? Am I that boring?" It was Killian's voice, full to the brim of teasing and fake sadness. When her gaze found him, he had a dramatic hand over his chest as if it were really tugging at his heart.

"Oh shush." Mhari rolled her eyes, albeit fondly, and poked him ever so gently in the cheek.

"You know you could never bore me, Killian."

"Glad to hear it, love, I fear I might wail and sob if you ever found me boring." He snickered, earning himself another poke. "Look at this, the Queen is poking me! Outrageous!"

"I can do whatever I want, remember?" Mhari hummed, poking him three times in quick succession. Every single moment of contact, Killian would fall further until he was on the ground, dramatically calling out as if he had been wounded on the battlefield.

They were in their meadow again.

The grass was still tall, but they were even taller. The flowers still swayed with the breeze, the lake still ran, and they still stared at the clouds in quiet conversation. The meadow had not aged alongside them.

"Do you remember when we made that deal?" With a careful shift of her skirts, Mhari sat down gracefully, reclining until she was fully laying beside him. There was a moment of silence as Killian glanced to her, and then the sky again.

"Yes, of course." A pause. "Why?"

"I was just thinking about it the other day, that's all. My parents are still trying to find a suitor for me, even though I'm now the Queen. I don't think I want a suitor, though. It's too much like a business deal rather than a relationship." Sadly she had realised that in the world of royalty, marriage was made due to necessity rather than a need for undying love. That was a luxury most monarchs could not afford.

"I think you should find a suitor."

It was said after another long moment of absolute silence (except the birds that flitted from branch to branch in the three trees that stood nearby: they were tweeting happily, not bothered by the human conversation) and it made Mhari tense up, quickly turning to her side so she could stare at him.

"What?"

"I said you should find a suitor."

"But what about the deal?"

"Mhari, we made that when we were eleven. I was disgusted by love, you hated all the nearby princes. We're older, you should find someone to marry."

"You're saying you don't want to marry me?" That shouldn't have hurt as much as it did, it was a deal they had made as children after all, so why did she feel her heart tighten painfully?

"That's not what I'm saying. Of course I still would marry you, love, of course I would. Marrying my best friend? Sounds great, amazing. But you're the Queen, I'm a castle gardener - even if we are best friends. You need a prince, Mhari, you and I both know it." Killian turned onto his side, returning her gaze with a half-hearted smile.

"So what you're saying is that you do still want to marry me?" A playful arch of her brow and a beaming smile played onto her face.

A pause.

"Yes, I suppose so."

"Then let's, Killian! We're adults, no-one can stop us. And if they do, I will jolly well remind them that I am the queen of this kingdom and I do what is right. What could be more right than marrying my best friend?" She could tell he was thinking it over deeply. His eyes stayed focused on the grass, and his jaw continually tightened and un-tightened. It was his giveaway sign of trying to make a decision.

Killian had never came to a conclusion about the extent of his feelings for Mhari. He did not know if they were romantic, but only because he had never experienced a romantic love before and therefore couldn't base it off anything. All he knew was that her smile brightened his day, that her laugh warmed his heart, and that if he had to experience any of that gross kissing stuff then he wouldn't mind it with her. Was that love?

It had to be.

"I do suppose you're right..."

"So...?" Her fingers curled around several blades of grass in suspense. Mhari nibbled her lower lip anxiously.

"I think Prince Killian has a nice ring to it, don't you?" He broke out in a grin, and barely a second later Mhari practically leapt on him and hugged him tightly.

"Easy, easy, your crushing strength will kill me." Killian teased quietly, but hugged her back just as tightly.

"I think Prince Killian has an amazing ring to it." Mhari whispered into his chest, closing her eyes.

"Prince Killian and Queen Mhari."