Kingdom's Collapse
Everything was great. Our subjects loved us. I was a King. I was married to Mitchell Hughes. I ruled over the West Baccain Territory with him. But then everything came back to kick me in the ass. Before I met Mitch, my parents had arranged for me to be married to Princess Katarina Poletki of the East Baccain Territory, to unite our lands. By the time I was told about these plans, I had fallen head over heels for Mitch, and already asked him to be my boyfriend. So I did what I had never done before. I refused my parent's orders. I refused to marry Katarina. A month later, I married Mitch, and we took our positions as the rulers of our territory. And I guess I should have expected the consequences. The place I live in, 5 years ago, was a wasteland of the thriving Western Territory. We've since then restarted, but I'll never forget those who put the effort in to protect their lands. Just after the war, I had turned into a cold person. I felt no emotions for a while, until Mitch had shown me how I really felt.
-chapter 1-
Jerome sat at his desk, reading and signing documents. He looked around his silent office. It was in the high tower, opposite to Mitch's office. Anytime he wanted to, he could look up and see Mitch at his own desk, doing his own work. But it wasn't exactly the same as really seeing him. Those few hours at night that Jerome could see him were the hours he treasured the most. Of course, during conferences, Jerome saw him, but he meant personally.
The pressures of being a ruler had definitely changed Mitch. His natural free spirit that seemed to emanate from him, the one that was there when he first met Mitch, was almost nonexistent now. Mitch had grown up. Which didn't exactly surprise Jerome. Being an 18 year old King would definitely do that. But sometimes, Jerome missed the old Mitch. The one who had constant fun. This Mitch was all business. And he knew it too. He walked with importance, the burden on the kingdom heavy on his shoulders, clearly showing in the always solemn expression on his face that Jerome never liked. He'd seen Mitch before, just staring out over the kingdom from his office's window.
Jerome sighed and got up. His paperwork could wait, but he suddenly wanted to see Mitch. He hopped down the stairs, passing his guards and speed walking his way to Mitch's tower. He raced up the stairs and knocked on the door and waited. And waited. Until finally, Mitch's voice rang through the door.
"Enter." He opened the door and slid into Mitch's office.
"Hey, Mitch." He smiled. Mitch barely looked up from his paperwork, but still smiled hugely.
"Jerome, what brings you here?" He asked, scribbling something on a notepad.
"Just wanted to see you, is all." Jerome replied.
"You left your work to visit me?" He asked, looking up finally.
"I thought it could wait." Jerome shrugged.
"Hm, I've been hoping that I could find a gap in my own work so that I might visit you, but that hasn't happened. I'm glad you came." He sat back.
"Looks like you picked up a bit of formal vocabulary." Jerome commented.
"Looks like you lost your own. Spending time in the company of the castle delegates takes a toll on one's speech, no?" He asked.
"I guess.." Jerome mumbled.
"Come, sit." He patted his knee.
"I see you still like having me in your lap." Jerome commented, settling into Mitch's lap.
"Never will I stop loving you in any kind of company." Mitch was leaning in for a kiss when someone began to knock furiously on the door.
"Enter." They called in unison. A guard bursted in.
"Your highnesses, the Southern village has been attacked!"
-chapter 2-
"Attack?!" Jerome shrieked, leaping off of Mitch's lap.
"Yes, the Eastern troops came in and set fire to their village. There have been three deaths and five injuries. We have the fire under control, but I suggest you contact Queen Katarina." He bowed.
"Queen Katarina?" Mitch asked, standing up.
"Yes, Queen. She married Prince Alexander Loduct of the Northern Territories." He explained.
"Has East gotten their telephones yet? I'm afraid I've gotten a bit behind on the happenings of the other territories." Jerome walked towards the door.
"Yes, sir." The guard confirmed.
"Good, good. Have her number sent to my office immediately." The guard rushed off. Jerome was about the exit, but halfway out the door, he looked back at Mitch.
"It's time that you become a true King. Protect your kingdom and it's subjects." Jerome stated, slipping out the door.
He paced quickly to his office, and as promised, right on the center of his desk, was a piece of paper with Katarina's phone number on it. He sat down and picked up the phone, dialing the number quickly. It rang three times before a woman picked up.
"King Jerome Aceti of the Western Territories seeking Queen Katarina Poletki of the Eastern Territories." He stated firmly.
"Ah, Jerome. So nice of my former fiancé to call. How is your kingdom running?" Her voice was venomous.
"Not so smoothly, I'm afraid. Your troops attacked my Southern village today." He replied.
"Oh did they? My bad." She giggled.
"Why, Katarina?" Jerome demanded.
"Well, I thought that if I couldn't unite with your lands, I'd simply destroy them. After all, I was shoved aside by your little human friend there. Mitchell was it? Why shouldn't I be angry?" She asked.
"So you're declaring war?" Jerome asked bluntly.
"I suppose I am." She replied. Jerome slammed the phone down. He felt eyes watching him, and he looked up to see Mitch looking at Jerome through his window. He waved Mitch over, and a few moments later, Mitch arrived at his door. He sat down in the chair on the other side of Jerome's desk.
"We're at war." Jerome stated gravely, putting his head in his hands.
"I thought as much. Shall I send word to the villages of those who can't immediately attend a meeting?" offered Mitch. Jerome nodded. Mitch got up and began to leave, but turned around, giving Jerome a kiss.
"Remember, I'm with you every step of the way." He whispered before leaving.
Jerome got up and walked over to the window. In the very distance, the faint outline of smoke drifted just over the horizon. He looked down at the outlying central village around him. Everyone was on edge after hearing the news about the Southern village. It was a bit unnerving to see them walk the streets in fear. He sat down again, staring off into space until a guard came to collect him for a meeting. A dull headache throbbed, but he pushed it aside.
He met Mitch at the entrance to the balcony, and they walked out and stood before the massive crowd of citizens. They stood silently, awaiting their Kings' words.
"Citizens of the Central Village, we regret to announce that we are, in fact, at war with the East Baccain Territory." Jerome called out. The crowd audibly gasped.
"Queen Katarina Poletki has attacked the Southern Village, as you may have noticed." Mitch continued.
"The Castle guards will be making their rounds and recruiting those of you who are fit to be a member of the army." Jerome informed them.
Mitch reached over to rub Jerome's arm. "The guards will be coming to see you all tomorrow, be prepared."
Jerome turned and walked back into the castle, Mitch following.
"Please fetch some aspirin for me?" Jerome asked a guard. "Mitch, I think it's time.." Jerome looked over at him. Mitch glanced at Jerome.
"What for?" He asked.
"Traditionally, the rulers stayed behind at the castle to not only stay safe, but to command from afar. I think I'll be joining our army in this battle." Jerome's eyes were dark, his expression grim. Mitch's face fell.
"If you are going, then I will go with you Jerome."
"Mitch, it's my fault we're even going to war!" Jerome protested. "I don't want you to risk your own life for something I did." Mitch clenched his fists in annoyance.
"Stop blaming all of this on yourself Jerome!" He shouted. Jerome shrunk back from Mitch's yelling.
"I-I'm sorry." He muttered, beginning the short walk to his office. Mitch loosened his clench and ran his hands through his hair.
"Jerome, wait" he began.
"What?" Jerome snapped through the tears burning his eyes. The look Jerome cast shot at Mitch inside.
"I'm sorry for shouting. It's just, the stress of this whole situation," he sat down. "It's really been getting to me lately" he murmured.
"I've noticed." Jerome sighed. He looked around. Why did this hall have only one chair? He finally perched himself on Mitch's knee. "Just as you promised me, I'll be with you every step of the way." He smiled, despite the dark tone of the conversation.
The corner of Mitch's lips turned up slightly as the bacca sat on his knee. Mitch gently placed his head in the crook of Jerome's neck before slinking his arms around his waist.
"The same goes for me Jerome" he muttered with a sigh.
"I suppose we better rest before tomorrow's preparations." Jerome got up, grabbing Mitch's hand and pulling him towards their shared bedroom.
As they reached the bedroom, Mitch stripped down to his boxers and climbed into bed. He pulled Jerome next to him and engulfed him in a warm embrace.
"Mitch.. I'm scared." Jerome finally whispered from Mitch's arms.
Mitch's grip tightened protectively, "I won't let anybody hurt you" he murmured.
"Thank you, but that's not exactly what I'm afraid of.." Jerome curled up closer to Mitch.
"Tell me all your fears Jerome, I can help.." he urged. Jerome looked up at Mitch.
"What if.. what if we can't protect our kingdom? What if we fail?"
"We will not fail Jerome. Our kingdom as a whole has a lot more power than you think." He sighed.
"Weird how I grew up here knowing each subject personally, yet you know them better than me." Jerome groaned, his headache returning. Mitch chuckled.
"You would be surprised at the things I know."
"What do you mean?" Jerome regarded Mitch expectantly.
"Let's just say that sitting in the office all day gets a little boring. I have plenty of time to get to know everybody in this huge building." He answered.
"This castle is a little on the large side, isn't it?" Jerome mumbled. Growing up, he had often gotten lost in the numerous hallways. Mitch nodded.
"Yeah, I guess you could say that." He thought back to his first impression of the house and laughed quietly.
"When you were younger, would you ever have guessed that one day, you'd be a King, and married to me?" Jerome chuckled. "I never thought I'd fall for a human until I met you."
"Never in my wildest dreams. I never thought that I would ever see a place like this let alone live in one." Mitch responded. "As for you" he looked into Jerome's eyes, "I never would have thought that I would have found the love of my life this soon."
"I knew that eventually, my parents were going to arrange a marriage, but at the time, I never knew anybody that I even remotely liked." Jerome admitted.
"I have never had any real feelings for a person. At school, the girls would always be chasing after me but at that moment, I liked none of them, and I was still questioning my own sexuality." He sighed.
"Do you think that if you had a girlfriend at the time of our meeting, you'd still have liked me?" Jerome asked suddenly. Mitch grasped Jerome's hands in his own before moving closer to him.
"I knew that I felt something about you the minute we first made contact Jerome." His cheeks flushed a crimson red as he thought back to that moment.
"When I was showing you that gesture, and you practiced on me… I found that I liked having you that close to me. I felt something that I hadn't felt before." Jerome admitted, blushing. Mitch chuckled uneasily.
"I guess it was just fate that we met each other." He spoke with a grin.
"Yeah, I suppose it was." Jerome kissed Mitch once before snuggling closer to Jerome with a sigh, and within moments, he was asleep.
A/N:
This chapter was surprisingly easy to edit, though it's 2k+words already. This story is still under way and going strong. Judging by the way my partner and I RP this story, I can expect this story to be at the very least 15k words. And yes, we've roleplayed to make both A True Pair of Kings, and now Kingdom's Collapse. It takes a long time to edit these, and even longer to make the chapters, since she's in England and I'm in Canada, and the only time we actually talk to each other is on the weekends, because of our weekday schedules.
I've also made a decision on what to call my 'fans'. You're all known as my Coffee Cups, because I seem to have a surplus of those, and alongside coffee, you guys are my inspiration for writing.
Now for my very last question… do I have any talented Coffee Cups out there who wants to make me any of the following:
1) A twitter header
2) Fan art for any of my stories
3) Covers for any of my stories (Except for TBWTGD)
And for you extra special Coffee Cups out there who can animate:
4) A book trailer for Kingdom's Collapse
Please PM me for specifications for numbers 1, 3 and 4!
Love ya Coffee Cups!
ShipFicsRus