Happy birthday Isa! (chosetoseethebestinyou on tumblr) I'm so glad to have you as my friend. You're a gem. Anyways, I hope you enjoy this fic. :D
"Long before they had ever met, I think this destiny awaited them. They were not like ships passing in the night. It wasn't like they didn't understand each other. They understood each other better than anyone else, and each was focused solely on the other."
- Gen Urobuchi, Kanshikan Akane Tsunemori
Emma is woken up in the morning by the crowing of the neighbour's rooster. Stupid animal, she thinks to herself. The rooster always insists on crowing right in front of her bedroom window early in the morning, every single day. She'd gladly kill the animal but she also doesn't want to stir up trouble in the quiet town after she's just began to settle down.
She grabs some bread she had left of last night's meal and leaves the farmhouse on her way to her work.
She works in a tavern called "The Ugly Duckling" as a waitress. The tavern is big and popular, and even though she hates her job, she thanks her lucky stars every day for working there. She doesn't earn much, but it's enough to pay rent and take care of herself, and that's enough for her.
The tavern is buzzing with people already which is surprising, because it is still early in the morning.
"What's going on?" Emma asks the owner of the tavern, August.
"Word is the crown prince ran off again."
Emma rolls her eyes. The crown prince of Camelot has a habit of running away every once in awhile. It annoys the villagers, especially Emma, terribly much, because the royal prince has no idea what a luxurious life he has. While the entire country is fighting wars and the poor are starving to death, the prince can enjoy his perfect royal life, never has to worry about being hungry, and is served his every wish. And yet, every few weeks, he runs off and hides somewhere until the Royal Guard track him down and take him back.
"What are they planning on doing?"
"They are arranging a search party." Emma turns to face August. "And if they find him?"
He smiles at her, shakes his head and says "Beat him up probably. Then return him." and goes back to work.
The group of men looking for the prince left the Ugly Duckling soon after, and Emma secretly wishes for the prince that the group doesn't find him, because she can't imagine it ending well. The prince might be an idiot, but he doesn't deserve to be beaten up by a bunch of sorry men who spend all their money in a bar getting drunk off their asses each night because they can't take care of their wives and children with the little money they get.
The rest of the day is just the same as any other. She works shifts with Ruby, her colleague and only friend. The tavern is a bit busier than expected on a wednesday night, so both Ruby and Emma work late and help August with cleaning up after the tavern is closed.
When she finally returns home, exhausted after a long day, she immediately collapses on her bed and falls asleep.
In the middle of the night, Emma is woken by loud knocking on her door. Who the hell knocks on her door in the middle of the night? The sun hasn't even risen yet. She curses the person behind the door and decides not to open, but turns around and tries to go back to sleep.
But after what feels like forever, the person is still there, knocking on her door. She grunts, climbs out of bed and grabs a piece of firewood, preparing herself to knock out the thief or drunk man in front of her door.
She throws open the door and gets ready to swing the piece of wood in the person's face, but quickly lowers it when she sees his face.
In front of her stands a man with a beautiful face, bright blue eyes, dark ruffled hair, torn expensive looking clothes, completely covered in mud.
This is not what she expected.
"What the hell?"
He throws a glance at the weapon of choice in her hands and when she realises she's still holding the firewood, she drops it on the ground.
"I need a place to stay. For just a few nights." He's out of breath and looks a bit frightened, as if someone had just chased him in the forest.
"Why don't you go to the tavern in the town? There are a few rooms free there."
"I just need to lay low for a few days and I heard you have a spare bed. One room is all I ask. I can get my own food. Just ... Hurry up." His voice was soft, gentle.
She leans against the doorpost, thinking about what she should do, and takes in his features. She estimates him to be just a little older than her, his bright blue eyes getting darker and darker as he waits for her answer. He has soft black hair and judging by his nicely trimmed hair and fancy looking clothes, she can tell he is rich. There is something familiar about him, but she just can't put her finger on what it is.
The man is getting impatient, tapping his foot nervously. He licks his lips, tilts his head. "Please, love."
Emma shifts her weight from one leg to the other. She knows she shouldn't trust a man with so many things he is obviously hiding, but her gut tells her it's okay to let him in.
But she's been betrayed by her gut before, and she's not taking any chances.
"What's your name?" Emma breaks the silence.
The question takes him by surprise. He pauses for a minute, ruffles through his hair.
"Flynn Rider." He takes a step forward, sticks out his hand for her to shake. She ignores it. "Emma." She introduces herself.
"What brings you here, Flynn Rider?" emphasising the fake name.
He raises an eyebrow at her, hands her a small bag that just about fits in her palm and gestures for her to open it.
In it, are several golden coins, enough to pay her rent for months.
"You'll get the rest after I leave."
Okay, he's definitely rich.
It couldn't hurt to let him stay for a few days, she figures. With this money she'll finally be able to fix that leak in the ceiling, and pay off her debt with the landlord.
"C'mon love, you know you can let me in." He grins at her.
She rolls her eyes at him, but opens up the door for him. She points him to the little room in the back that contains a small bed, a table and a shelf.
He looks around the small room and then turns around to face her. "Is this it?"
"Yep." she says, "Better get used to it, Prince Charming."
He raises an eyebrow at the nickname, but doesn't say anything about it. He gives her a small smirk, and blows out the candle she set up and climbs in his bed.
The following morning, Emma is woken up, not by the rooster as usual, but by trumpets in the center of town.
Emma quickly gets out of her bed and when she enters the living room, 'Flynn' is already there. His hair is messy and he looks tired. Only now in daylight does she notice how torn and dirty his clothes really are. She gives him some of the clothes she had lying around.
He makes her breakfast - a piece of bread and an egg she suspects he stole from the neighbours. It tastes good, she has to admit. Emma is not a great cook herself, she usually just sticks to bread and milk. The last time she tried to actually cook something, she nearly burned her house down, so it's better that she doesn't.
Both put on cloaks and pull the hood over their heads before taking off to town to see what the fuss is all about.
It's about a five minute walk to the town and they spend it in silence. Emma has a lot of burning questions about 'Flynn Rider', whatever his real name is, but something tells her she shouldn't ask them. Not yet anyway.
When they arrive in the town, a crowd has already gathered in the plaza. A couple of riders with what she recognises to be palace horses, stand before the crowd.
The crowd is mingling, talking about the palace horses and guards wondering what they're doing here. These usually don't come to a small town like this. It doesn't take Emma long to find Ruby and August in the crowd, both with their arms crossed, frowning about the whole thing.
"What's going on?" Emma asks them.
"No idea."
Ruby notices Rider, and smirks at Emma. "Who is your companion?" she says, wiggling with her eyebrows.
"Oh he's just a guest. Ehm.. Flynn, these are Ruby and August. Two friends of mine. Ruby, August. This is Flynn. He's renting a room."
"Oh is that what you call it now?" Ruby teases her. Emma rolls her eyes but before she can reply, the two guards blow their trumpets to get the attention of the crowd. Next, someone of the Royal Guard steps forward and onto a small platform that is usually used for comedies and plays. He informs the crowd that the crown prince Killian of Camelot has disappeared and they managed to track him down to this area. He's been missing for a week already, which is a new record.
"In the upcoming weeks, you can expect guards searching houses and questioning people. If you know where the crown prince might be hiding himself, we highly encourage you to step forward, you will be rewarded for your efforts."
"You mean with a rope around your neck." August whispers.
"I don't like any of this." Ruby states, arms crossed. "These things never end well. The last time, after the Royal Guard found the prince hiding in a poor farmer's barn. When they found him, they burned the barn to the ground. I heard the man was kicked out a few weeks later because he was unable to pay the rent that was overdue."
"It is getting ridiculous," Emma huffs, "That royal piece of ass should know how lucky he is living the life he has. While the poor are starving to death because of the lack of food, he can enjoy meals with 7 courses and while the people worry about paying taxes, he sits in his massive palace, not having to worry about anything. They're all scum if you ask me."
August and Ruby nod in agreement.
Flynn Rider stays strangely quiet in the background.
Emma and Flynn return to her place and spend the next few days in quiet. They sometimes bicker about what they should have for dinner, but other than that both of them keep quiet.
It is Emma who eventually breaks the silence. All the questions she wants answers to are burning in the back of her mind and one morning she decides she's had enough.
"So, Flynn Rider, who are you exactly?"
He throws her a questioning look. "What is that supposed to mean?"
"Well, you've been here several days and yet I still know nothing about you. About why you were banging on my door in the middle of the night, for example."
"I was looking for a place to sleep." He answers simply, then continues with his breakfast.
"But you were running from something. Or someone. Why? Who was after you?"
He glances up from his meal and meets her eyes.
"Can I just finish my breakfast?"
"No."
He sighs, then puts down the knife he was cutting the bread with. "Fine. What do you want to know?"
"What's your real name?"
"What?" His eyes widen in surprise.
She smirks. Knew it. "You heard me."
He hesitates. "Flynn Rider."
"No, it is not."
He sighs. "Fine. You bested me. My name is not Flynn Rider."
"Then what is it?"
"I can't tell you."
She raises an eyebrow at that. "Why won't you tell me?"
He can't stop the smile from spreading on his face. "Why won't you tell me to who these clothes belong?"
"What clothes?" she asks, pretending she has no idea what he's talking about.
"You have a chest full with some man's clothes and this cabin is way too big for just one person. Besides, you have the same look in your eyes as the children who beg for bread at the corner of the street."
"What look is that?"
"The look of someone who has been abandoned."
Emma is taken by surprise by that. She knows it is obvious the clothes don't belong to her, but she hadn't expected him to figure out that the person had abandoned her.
She takes a deep breath. "Okay. Let's trade. You tell me your name and I'll tell you who the clothes belonged to."
"Who do these clothes belong to?"
She sighs. She secretly wishes he would forget about it, but of course he didn't. "They belonged to Walsh."
"And who is this Walsh?" He licks his lips, leans in closer.
She shakes her head. "That wasn't part of the deal. What's your name?"
"I'm not telling you."
"What? You said we had a deal!"
He cackles. "No, I didn't." She throws him an angry look. "That's not fair."
"Never said it was."
She rolls her eyes at him.
He grins that shit-eating grin of his that she's grown to hate over the last week.
Emma looks at him. The messy flop of dark hair nearly covering his eyes, his tired but always as blue eyes stare right back at her. She can feel the warmth of his body, his hand on her thigh, their noses almost touching. She grabs him by the collar of his vest, pulls him close, and kisses him.
It takes him by surprise, but he doesn't hesitate to kiss her back. His lips are soft and hard at the same time and he tastes like fresh ocean water and warm bread and smells like the sea and burning wood and for a moment she gets lost in him and he gets lost in her, but then Emma breaks away, both gasping.
"That was.."
"A one time thing."
She walks away.
The rest of the day is spent in silence. This time however, it is Flynn who breaks the silence.
"So what is it with the prince anyways?"
Emma is surprised by his question. "You don't know?"
He takes a bite from his chicken wing and licks his lips. "Know what?"
"The crown prince runs off every few weeks -" "Why?" Flynn interrupts. "I don't know. But I know he doesn't care about others. He's no different than his parents. There plenty of stories of villages being burned to the ground, people being murdered and small children becoming orphans, simply because the prince feels like throwing a tantrum every once in a while."
Flynn looks at her with a pained look.
"You really didn't know about any of this?"
He shakes his head. "I travelled from far."
"His royal ass should know all the devastation he creates by running away time and time again. After the announcement that the prince is somewhere in the area, it caused a lot of panic. Some people have already left town. Lots of others will be leaving soon as well. Just because they don't want to risk getting murdered because the prince stayed in their town."
He rubs his face with his hands. "I had no idea."
Emma leans back in her chair. "You're lucky. This bratty prince is something that terrifies everyone here."
The next day, she is woken up by the neighbour's rooster as usual. She's the first one up this time and grabs a chunk of bread for breakfast. Flynn joins her a little while later.
The narrow street to her house is buzzing with people because this street is the last of the town to be checked in search of the prince. Many people have left, travelling to family members or friends in the neighbourhood, where they'll be safe. The ones left in town, follow the guards around, hoping they won't find what they're looking for.
They guards will come to check her house today too.
Emma and Flynn make some small talk over breakfast, and when they are done eating, they both start doing the chores. They seem to have fallen into a rhythm over the last few days. He cooks most meals and cleans the house, while she does the laundry and takes care of the small garden behind the house.
Flynn smiles. "I don't mean to upset you Emma, but I think we make quite the team."
She rolls her eyes and then continues her work.
After a while, there is a knock on the door, and Emma opens the door. In front of her stands a tall, heavy-looking man with a long beard, wearing a suit of the Royal Guard.
Emma bows to him and opens the door further to let him and two other guards in. She wants to introduce them to Flynn, but he seems to have gone to his room.
"Anyone else live here?" grumbles the man with the beard.
"I only have a g-"
At that moment, someone outside shouts "OVER HERE!" and the three armed men storm outside. Emma rushes after them. From a distance, she can see two guards running after someone else, chasing him into the forest that lies behind her house. Other guards already jump on their horses to chase the man. He seems to have appeared out of nowhere. The crowd looks terrified, many break into a run, hoping they can make it home and save the little they have. She searches the crowd for her guest.
Suddenly, it clicks. Flynn Rider.
Oh god.
He is the prince.
It all makes sense. Why he refused to tell her his real name, why he didn't go outside, why he tried to hide his face whenever he did.
Flynn Rider is Prince Killian of Camelot
And she called the prince an ass right to his face without even knowing it.
The man with the beard grabs her roughly by her arm. "Did you know about this?!" he screams in her face.
"I- I had no idea, I swear! If I did, I would've come forward." He huffs and throws her to the ground.
Suddenly Ruby is there, pulling her up and brushing off her clothes.
"I didn't know, Ruby! I swear I didn't know!"
"It's okay, Emma. I know. Everyone does. We all know how the royal family treats it's people."
The man comes towards her again and asks: "So you say you didn't know about any of this?"
"I didn't." He stares at her and she stares back. She's not afraid of him.
"How come you don't recognise your own prince?"
"I've never had the chance to see him. Or any Royal. I don't have the money to visit an event at the palace."
"LIES!" yells the man at her. "Everyone knows what the royal family looks like!"
The many angry screams in the crowd prove the soldier wrong, but he ignores them.
He punches Emma in the face and she stumbles, gasping from the pain. People are terrified now. More make the wise decision to run away, leaving only a scattered group of civilians, including Ruby and August.
He walks up to her again, and this time beats her in her stomach before she can jump away. Next thing she knows is that she is lying on the ground, the man kicking against her ribs.
She barely notices someone yelling "STOP!" and running towards her. The beating stops.
Someone lifts her up and she hastily reaches up and wraps her arms around the person's neck. It is only then she realises who she is clinging to.
She pushes the prince away, in the direction of the guards. Two of them grab him by his arms and begin to drag him towards their horses.
"Emma, I'm so sorry. If I would've known -" he is screaming, clawing at the guards, attempting to get free.
"I can't take a chance that I'm wrong about you." She tells him, just loud enough for him to hear. She watches as the Royal Guard leaves. Ruby and August come to her and pull her into a hug.
"I'm so glad you're okay." Ruby sobs.
"I am too." Emma replies.
Thanks so much for reading! If you like this, don't forget to review and maybe even share it with your friends! Once again, thank you :3