AN: Welcome to my Icecat-themed X-Men AU. My muse has been all over the place as of late when it comes to my stories, and yes I know I owe a huge fucking update on Let Me Go, but my muse just isn't there right now for various reasons. Either way, this is a side project that I've been working on that started with five words: Lana, tell me a story. This is what happens when two best friends are very bored while one of them is on a very long car drive. This story is the brainchild of me and artemislwest on Tumblr (I wrote it, but we fleshed out the idea together). Either way, It's probably going to be posted in three long chapters or something. I hope it's enjoyed, as always.
The kingdom of Mutantia, a place known to be a safe haven to people who were different, had long been a peaceful place, ruled by a king who made sure to keep all his subjects protected from those who didn't entirely understand them. King Charles was a kind man, with a loyal court. There wasn't a person in the kingdom that didn't at least have respect for the man who ruled them all, and he treated all of them with respect in return. There was only one being the king truly had to be worried about, and that was the witch who dwelled deep in the woods that surrounded the kingdom. Though his men searched hard for the elusive witch, they never found her due to her ability to control their minds and make them forget they ever saw her if they did cross her path.
There was also one more person that the king had to worry about; his eighteen year-old daughter, Katherine, who preferred, even as an adult, to go by the name Kitty. She was the only family the king had as his wife had passed away not long after giving birth to Kitty. The king loved his daughter dearly, but she had a habit of testing him. She wasn't like other young women her age, who preferred to spend all day out in the gardens and dream about the prince that they would one day marry. She liked to learn. She spent hours listening in on the political conversations that the king held with his advisors. She was easily one of the smartest women in the palace. But with her knowledge also came a certain attitude, one that was making it difficult on the king to find a prince willing to marry her. Not that Kitty truly minded.
"Kitty, I swear, you are going to get me thrown into the dungeons one day!" Kitty's best friend Clarice growled as she followed Kitty towards the doorway that led to the knight's training grounds.
"Oh, calm down, Blink," Kitty rolled her eyes at the woman who was only a few years older than her, and had been trusted to protect her. Like many people in Mutantia, both Kitty and Clarice were born with abilities that set them apart from the rest of the world. Kitty could pass through any solid object, while Clarice, or 'Blink,' as Kitty and her friends referred to her as, could create portals to transport a person from one place to another. "We're not going to get into trouble. I'm the princess, what is anyone going to do to me? Or to you, considering I dragged you here with me?"
Clarice rolled her eyes, but followed Kitty regardless. Even she couldn't say no to watching the knights train, if only for a few minutes. Together they walked out onto the grounds where the knights were all milling around talking. They must be taking a break, Kitty thought happily as she walked along the edge of the courtyard, Clarice at her side. Even better.
As the knights noticed her, they saluted her in turn, until she reached two knights in particular. They were both tall and muscular, their bodies worn with the signs of fighting, one with darker skin, hair, and eyes than the other. They both smiled at Kitty and Clarice as they stopped in front of them.
"Princess," The first one, James, also called Warpath by those close to him, said, bowing slightly, before his attention shifted to Clarice, with whom he was known to be linked. Kitty didn't mind, though. That was partially why she had persuaded Clarice to come out with her. While Clarice started talking to James, Kitty's attention shifted to the other knight.
Bobby and Kitty exchanged smiles before Kitty embraced him tightly. He was the reason that she had been so eager to come out to watch the guards. He was her best friend, all of two years older than her, and one of the best knights that the king had in his employ. If both of them were honest with each other, there was more between them than just friendship, but neither one of them talked about it in public, "How are you?" Kitty asked at last as she pulled back slightly to look Bobby over. She tilted her head as she noticed a small gash on his cheek, and her eyes widened as she turned to glare at James.
"You jerk!" She hissed, shoving James hard, though the shove had little impact as James towered over her. James gave her an amused look, a smirk appearing on his face. "You did that to him, didn't you?"
"Yep," James said with a nod. "And I'll happily do it to him again if the idiot lets his guard down for a second too long. Sorry, Princess. I know you don't like his pretty little face getting all marked up."
"You're damn right I don't," Kitty growled, her eyes narrowing dangerously until she felt Bobby's hand on her shoulder. Kitty's posture relaxed slightly as she turned to him and he arched a brow at her.
"You do realize that I can fight my own battles, right?" Bobby asked with a shake of his head. He tilted his head as he looked over at James, "As I'm sure the jerk would tell you, all it takes is a moment of him being distracted by a beautiful woman and…." Bobby thrust his hand out and James was hit hard with a stream of ice that flew from Bobby's palm. Kitty grinned as James spat out some ice that had gotten in his mouth, but Clarice didn't look too happy as she had also gotten hit by some of the ice that had gone flying in all directions as James shook it off.
"That's enough!" A sharp voice called out. Kitty jumped slightly and cursed internally as the co-commanders of the king's forces, Jean 'Phoenix' Grey, and Scott 'Cyclops' Summers appeared suddenly. Jean shook her head as she gave Kitty a slight bow, "Is there something I can help you with, Princess?"
Kitty shook her head as her cheeks burned slightly. She had been hoping that the two commanders weren't somewhere nearby. Each time she came to see Bobby during training and they were around, it somehow got back to her father, who didn't truly approve of how close they had gotten, "No, Jean," She said finally. "Clarice and I were just talking to the knights during their break. There's not some law against that, is there?"
Jean's eyes narrowed suspiciously as she looked from Kitty, to Bobby, and back again, "With all due respect, Princess, I think you might want to stand back. It's almost time for sparring practice. I wouldn't want you to get hurt accidentally."
Kitty inhaled slowly and pinched the bridge of her nose before she glanced at Scott, who merely shrugged and gave Kitty a somewhat sympathetic look. Jean was much stricter than he when it came to the training that the knights had to endure. They worked together to try to bring out the best of the men and women who made up the army, and Kitty liked both of them, but Jean sat at the King's right hand right alongside Scott and was one of the people who he trusted the most.
"Bobby, James, why don't you two go first?" Jean suggested as Kitty and Clarice retreated a bit, Kitty shooting Bobby a sympathetic look of her own. She knew Bobby hated sparring with James, whose strength was superhuman thanks to his ability. Part of Kitty knew that Jean was only doing it because of her, and for that she was sorry. She didn't want to stick around to watch the beatdown, though. As she and Clarice started back for the castle, she caught Bobby's eye and held up both her hands, all ten fingers extended. Bobby understood what someone else clearly did not as he nodded once before dodging a punch from James.
That night around ten o'clock, Kitty left Clarice in the library when James appeared, finally off duty. A few minutes of Clarice and James making eyes at each other was all Kitty could truly handle. She walked along the cavernous hallways of the castle which were lit by torches, and headed outside once again, this time walking to a vast garden made up of different colored rose bushes. Kitty was often told as a kid that her mother had tended to the garden on her own. When she had grown up enough, Kitty took over looking after the garden herself as a tribute to her mother's memory, but it was just about the only ladylike task that she ever did. She looked around for a bit. It was still a few minutes early, though. She sat down under an apple tree that was blooming and smelling sweet to wait.
She wasn't waiting long until Bobby appeared a single white rose in his hand. He offered Kitty the rose as he sat down beside her. Kitty could swear every muscle in her body relaxed as Bobby sat beside her, "You stole a rose from my garden to give to me?"
Bobby shook his head, "No, I took it from the regular gardens," He said, placing the rose behind her ear, sweeping her dark hair back before kissing her cheek and resting his forehead against her temple for a moment. "Trust me, I know better than to take a rose from your garden. I think anyone who's been here long enough knows that."
Kitty smiled at Bobby, leaning against his head as he leaned on her, "I'm sorry, did I get you in too much trouble earlier?" She asked, taking his hand and linking her fingers with his. She knew that Jean had most likely only done what she did because of her and Clarice coming to the training grounds. But Bobby didn't look too beat up, now that she looked at him, aside from the gash on his cheek.
"No, not really," Bobby said with a shake of his head, giving Kitty's fingers a soft squeeze. "James may be big and strong, but I'm faster than him when he starts throwing punches, and I use that to my advantage. Honestly, I would have been more worried if we didn't spar together, because we're so familiar with each other. Did Jean tell the king that you came down today?"
"If she did, he didn't say anything to me yet," Kitty said, her fingers starting to play idly with his. There were few things that were truly more relaxing to her than sitting in her garden with Bobby, "But then again, everyone's being super nice to me today aside from Jean."
"Because of tomorrow, you think?"
Kitty shrugged and rolled her eyes, "It's just a birthday, and just a stupid ball that's being thrown in my honor. You know as well as I do that if I had a choice, I'd be spending my birthday right here in my garden with you, Clarice, and James having a picnic or something. But instead, I get to be surrounded by people that I don't even know, with my father hoping that someone will actually take an interest in me and propose an alliance in exchange for my hand in marriage." Kitty inhaled slowly, not wanting to start on a rant, but once she got started, it was hard to stop.
"I'm going to be nineteen tomorrow," She went on, releasing Bobby's hand as she got to her feet and started to pace. "I don't want to get married at nineteen! Hell, I probably won't want to get married until I'm in my twenties, if I even want to get married at all. But no, it's my duty as a princess to get married and secure an alliance with another kingdom for my father. Who cares what I think or what I want in the end?"
"I do," Bobby said as he got to his feet and stopped Kitty's pacing by putting his hands on her shoulders. "Kitty, you know I do, and so do Clarice and James. We all hope that one day the only kingdom that you'll be ruling is this one. You'd make an amazing queen for all of us. Sure, you're a little different and funny looking—"
"Gee thanks."
"But you're the best option for future queen," Bobby went on as though Kitty hadn't spoken. "The king doesn't have another heir. What's going to happen when he does, eventually, pass away?"
"Beats me," Kitty shrugged and sighed softly, relaxing as Bobby continued to hold onto her shoulders. She had gotten all worked up as she'd gone on her rant and now she was feeling horrible. "I really don't know, Bobby, but he's determined to get me noticed by as many unmarried princes, and a few kings even, as possible. I can't stand him for doing this to me. I'm not a piece of property that he can just give away. I'm his daughter!" Her voice cracked on the last word and in the moonlight Bobby could see the tears forming in Kitty's eyes. His heart instantly sank. Kitty was one of the strongest women that he knew. He'd rarely seen her cry, and he had been her best friend for as long as he could remember, even as kids.
"Kitty," Bobby sighed softly, reaching up and brushing the first tears away as they started down her cheeks. "Kitty, it's okay." He pulled her to him and held her close as her body started to tremble with the sobs that she was fighting. As he stood there with her, the sound of wings flapping suddenly caught his attention. He looked up and saw a small purple dragon fly over to sit on one of the lower branches of the apple tree.
"Lockheed," Bobby said, causing Kitty to look up as well. Lockheed blew a stream of fire that stopped just short of Bobby and Kitty glared back up at the dragon. Bobby hadn't flinched, though. He knew that the dragon didn't like him, but Lockheed had bonded with Kitty as they were somehow able to communicate with one another.
"What is it, Lockheed?" Kitty asked at last, clearly not amused by the way that Lockheed had almost burned Bobby. The dragon had a habit of antagonizing Bobby as he was very protective over her as well, but sometimes the fact that he had a habit of trying to burn any guy who got too close to her drove her crazy. "And lay off. You know Bobby's off limits."
Ororo is coming, Lockheed's voice sounded in her head, the dragon able to communicate with her telepathically. Kitty tilted her head slightly as she listened to the small dragon's warning. She's looking for you. The two of you might not want to look so cozy when she gets here.
"Thanks, Lockheed," Kitty said with a shake of her head before she looked back up at Bobby, "Ororo is coming," She said, tucking her hair behind her ears as she rubbed at her eyes. She held Bobby's gaze for a moment longer than she probably should have, but she didn't care. She couldn't really ever hide anything from Ororo 'Storm' Munroe, the castle's high priestess. She seemed to just have a way of knowing things, even if nobody told her. If anything, Kitty was pretty sure that she was the only one aside from Clarice and James who knew just how close she and Bobby truly were.
The sound of soft footsteps reached Kitty's ears and Lockheed made a soft noise from his spot up in the tree. Bobby shifted slightly as though he were going to pull away from her, but Kitty's grip on his arms tightened, holding him there. He gave her a look, but she merely shook her head in response as Ororo stood before them.
"Princess," Ororo said, bowing at Kitty before turning her attention to Bobby and offering him a bow as well, "Knight Drake. What are you two doing? Your father's already not happy with you, Princess. He's just heard about you going down to the training grounds earlier today. You know he doesn't approve…."
Kitty rolled her eyes and scoffed, "Yeah, well I don't approve of being used as a bargaining chip to secure an alliance with another kingdom that I don't care about. The only kingdom I should be concerned with is this one right here. I'm not going to let him just sign my life away to some man I don't even know or care about."
Ororo's eyes traveled to Bobby and the arms he still had wrapped around Kitty. She watched as his cheeks flushed, but still he didn't let her go, his arms actually shifting as though he were trying to keep her safe from something. He was protective of her, that much Ororo could tell from his posture alone, but his eyes told another story entirely. Ororo inhaled slowly, pinching the bridge of her nose. In all honesty, she didn't agree with the king's determination to find a suitor for Kitty either, but it was her job to work alongside the king and support him. She stepped closer and Bobby's arms tightened around Kitty almost instinctively and Kitty leaned into him.
"You care for her so dearly, Bobby," Ororo said in a soft tone. She was truly sympathetic to both of them for the situation that they were stuck in. If they were two different people, in a different time, they would be perfect for each other, but as it were, that wasn't the case. "Can't you see what the two of you are doing is only fueling the king's determination to find her someone to marry? The king is worried that you two are going to run off and do something that will ruin her chances of ever marrying."
"That's my choice to make, not his," Kitty growled. She was tired of feeling like her opinions and feelings didn't matter. Her father's determination was pushing her further away from him, and he didn't seem to care. Truly, the only person that she was certain actually cared about her was currently standing with his arms wrapped around her. She looked up at Bobby, who was watching her intently in return. She sighed softly before looking back at Ororo, "Storm, you know you're like a mother to me, but if all you're going to do is tell me to do things like I'm still a child, I have no interest in seeing you. I know you've always watched out for me, but at the end of the day, you serve my father, and you report back to him."
Ororo sighed softly, understanding herself to be dismissed. She gave Kitty another bow before leaving the garden, leaving Kitty still standing in Bobby's arms. At last, once they were alone, Kitty wrapped her arms around his back and put her head down on his chest, "I'm sorry, Bobby," She said in a soft voice. She knew the entire situation wasn't any easier on him than it was on her. He didn't say much about it, but Bobby was like that. He didn't let many people in, sometimes not even her.
"Don't worry about it, Kitty," Bobby said with a shake of his head. He kissed her forehead, resting his forehead against hers after. "It's not like we don't hear the exact same thing every single day. You know I don't let it get to me." He felt Kitty's grip on him tighten slightly and he laughed, "Okay, well I don't let it get to me much." He rubbed Kitty's back as he held her. "There's no point, really." He sighed and pulled back from her a bit to look into her eyes, "We should get back inside, though. You have a big day tomorrow."
Kitty rolled her eyes, "You mean I can't just stay in bed all day?" She asked with a frown. She moved her fingers through her hair and looked up at Bobby. In the moonlight, his cerulean eyes seemed to glow. Her hand traveled up his arm, feeling the muscles of his biceps tense and relax under her touch. He was a far cry from the scrawny kid she had once known.
She'd known Bobby since they were both kids. He had been abandoned and saved by Jean and Scott, growing up with them and being prepared for the day where he would be old enough to train to become a knight. But Jean and Scott lived within the palace walls, which left a motherless Kitty and parentless Bobby a lot of time to play together as kids. Somehow, as they had grown older, their feelings for each other had grown deeper than just friendship. It was killing Kitty on the inside that their closeness probably wasn't ever going be accepted by her father. If only her father could see just how happy she truly was around Bobby.
Kitty's hands wound their way around his neck, pulling him closer to her. He didn't resist her movements, leaning down to her as she stood on her toes, his hands finding her hips as their lips met in a soft kiss. Bobby pulled Kitty closer to him once more as their kiss deepened and both their hearts began to race. It was pure heaven to Kitty, being able to forget everything around them for a short time. The only thing she cared about at that moment was him and just how good it felt to be pressed against him with his arms wrapped around her. As the kiss continued, a soft sound of content escaping her lips, she could feel him tense, about to pull away from her, and she pulled back first, her hands still around his neck, "Please, don't…."
"Kitty, you know we can't do anything," Bobby sighed, kissing her forehead before once again resting his against hers, continuing to hold her close. It was hardly the first time they kissed. They'd spent a good amount of time in that very garden kissing each other. But each time the kisses seemed to mean a little bit more to each of them, and they seemed to go a little further, "Your father will have me thrown into either the prison or the dungeons of the castle for the rest of my life if the two of us did anything."
"We're not going to do anything," Kitty said with a shake of her head. She gave him a small smile before looking up at him, "Just, don't pull away from me so quickly." She kissed him again as they stood there, letting the rest of the world disappear for another moment.