This is a songfic I wrote with my friend Lunakitty. She had Arthur and I had Alfred. It's based of the vocaloid song Witch! sung by Luka and Gakupo. Check it out, it's really pretty cool.
Alfred covered his face as he watched his former lover burning at the stake. How could all of this have gone so wrong? How could all of this, all of this wonderful love have gone so twistedly wrong? He'd just fallen in love... Why, why had the one that had captured his heart been a deceiver and a villain? A wicked witch? How had he never seen it coming? Arthur... Arthur had been so... But maybe that was why he'd never seen it coming. Maybe he had been under a spell this whole time... He thought back to the day when his love had first appeared in town. He'd been watching the sky from his castle balcony and just daydreaming about food when he'd seen the ship that would tear his life apart enter the harbor.
A blond haired, bushy eye browed man stepped off the boat and looked around, "This is a nice town" he told himself.
The harbor bustled with trade. Fresh caught fish were launched through the air; sellers shouted about their produce and what it cost. How fresh it was. The air smelled of wood burning stoves and fish and salt.
A gust of wind blew a paper out of his hands; "Freaking great..." he mumbled chasing after it.
A shop owner hurried to help him, jumping after the page.
It fell into the hands of a blond haired, blue eyed man... the prince, Alfred.
The man blinked down at the paper in his hand. Then he looked up at the two people running towards him. The shop owner squeaked and quickly bowed to him.
Arthur looked at him and bowed slightly as well.
"Hey guys... Who dropped their paper?" As he asked his eyes flickered to the stranger. Who was this? He must be newly arrived in town. Well, he was cute in any case.
"I-I did." said Arthur.
The prince nodded and stepped forward to hand him back the paper.
He grabbed the paper, "Thank you."
Alfred nodded. "Sure. What's your name?"
"I'm Arthur Kirkland"
"Alfred F. Jones." He introduced himself, offering his ring clad hand to shake.
He shook his hand, "Nice to meet you."
He smiled charmingly. "The same to you, Mr. Kirkland."
He blushed slightly. He thought Alfred was really cute...
"You're new in town." He observed. "Did you just come in on the boat?"
"Yes, I did."
"Well, then I'd like to officially welcome you to the town of Kodiac."
"Thank you."
Alfred grinned at him. "Are you staying long?"
He nodded, "I actually planned on moving here."
"That's wonderful." He smiled. "I'm the prince here."
He smiled back, "Nice to meet you."
He nodded. "I should be going now... But it was good to meet you."
"Okay, good to meet you as well." He smiled.
He turned to leave, smiling over his shoulder.
He waved to him.
The shop owner glanced at him. "Ve..."
"What?"
He shook his head, turning away.
He went back to the ship to get his belongings.
The sailors helped him unload.
He thanked them.
They nodded.
He loaded his stuff onto a carriage and rode it to a local inn.
He took a walk around town the next day.
The town was happy and cheerful, much like a story book.
He turned a corner and ran into Alfred.
Alfred blinked. "Hello, Mr. Kirkland. It's good to see you."
"Please, call me Arthur." He smiled, "It's good to see you as well."
The prince nodded. "As you wish, Arthur."
He felt his face heat up and he looked away, hoping Alfred wouldn't see his rising blush.
He prince was rather oblivious, staring around at the scenery. "It's a beautiful day for a walk. Would you care to accompany me?"
"Sure." He smiled.
Alfred smiled back and offered him his arm. "Thank you."
He took his arm gladly, "Not a problem." He smiled.
Alfred started walking.
He walked next to him.
He hummed as they walked. "So, tell me about yourself."
"Not much to tell... I'm from England, had an abusive brother, and had to get away."
"I'm sorry to hear that." He frowned slightly. "But at least you have no need to fear the abuse here. I'd never let it happen to one as fair as yourself."
He looked at him, "really?"
Alfred nodded. "Of course. I wouldn't let it happen to anyone in my kingdom."
"Thank you" he smiled.
The prince nodded again.
He walked next to him.
He fell silent, just looking around
Alfred invited the man to dinner with him at his castle. He didn't know what exactly attracted him to the man, but he knew he was.
"Oh, uh sure." He smiled, "I would love to."
"Awesome!" He grinned. "Then I'll expect you at seven. Should I send a carriage for you?"
"That would be lovely." he grinned.
Alfred gave him a slight bow and kissed his hand. "Until seven."
He blushed a pinkish color, "I'll be waiting." He said quietly.
The prince gave him another charming smile and turned to leave. Yes, he thought, yes there was something about that boy... He couldn't place his finger on it but it was special indeed...
He smiled shyly back and left back to the inn to get ready.
The manager at the inn glanced at him as he entered, though he said nothing.
He got prepared for his dinner with the prince.
The carriage arrived at six thirty sharp to pick him up.
He got in the carriage.
The driver started off to the castle on the hill.
He slightly blushed, wondering why in the world the prince would invite him to dinner...
Alfred was waiting to greet his guest in the entrance hall, dressed in rich blues and golds. He wore quite a bit of jewelry as befitted his status as prince and his signature smile on his face. He'd left his crown off for the moment.
He stepped out of the carriage. The castle was much bigger in person.
The driver took the carriage away.
He walked up to the doors.
Alfred greeted him with a warm handshake.
"Hello." He smiled.
"Hello, Mr. Kirkland. I mean, Arthur." He bowed slightly to his guest.
He bowed as well, remembering he was the prince.
Alfred smiled. "Are you hungry, or should we go sit down?"
"It doesn't matter to me." he smiled.
The prince nodded. "Alright, then. Let's go eat."
He smiled and followed him to the dining room.
The dining room was exquisitely set for two, silver glinting in the candlelight.
He was amazed how beautiful it looked.
Alfred took a seat.
He sat down at the other seat.
"So how are you enjoying your time here so far?"
"This town is beautiful, I love it" he smiled, "i mean yesterday, that shopkeeper tried to help me get my paper... No one in England would help me."
Alfred cocked his head. "Why wouldn't they help you?"
He shrugged, "everyone there just minds their own business..."
"Well, here we help everyone. We all come from places that weren't as nice as they are here. We share what we have." He smiled. "I make sure of it."
He smiled back
A few servants brought food in on platters and set it down in front of them.
He thanked them.
They bowed themselves out.
"This food smells delicious" he smiled
"Yeah, I got the best cooks in the world here." Alfred nodded sagely.
He began to eat.
Al helped himself to the food as well.
After the dinner he looked up at him, "Thank you, the dinner was Delicious"
"Sure thing, Arthur. I'm glad I could have you over."
"I'm happy as well" he smiled
The blond grinned. "We should do it again."
"I'd be glad to"
"Awesome."
He smiled at him
He stood up. "Is there anything you require?"
"Hm?"
"For your living arrangements in town." He explained.
"I'm fine with staying at the inn until i find my own place"
Alfred nodded. "Alright. You'll let me know if you change your mind, though, right?"
"Well actually, i saw this cottage in town and i like it..." he looked away, "but that's asking too much for all you've done for me"
"You need funds?"
He nodded, "i was only able to bring a few gold coins with me..."
"I'll see about getting you some money."
"Thank you so much"
"Of course. But I have one condition."
"What is it?"
"You have to promise to see me on a regular basis."
"Of course" he smiled
He grinned. "That's wonderful!"
He smiled back
Alfred offered him his arm. "Let's take a walk."
He took it, "I'd love to"
He led him out to the castle gardens.
"These gardens are beautiful"
"Yeah, my gardeners are awesome."
He smiled at him
"The two guys seem to have a knack for growin' stuff."
He laughed softly.
He leaned down and plucked a rose.
He looked over at him
He placed it in Arthur's button hole. "I'd put it in your ear, but it's kinda thorny."
he blushed slightly and smiled
"What's your favorite flower?"
"A lily"
"Lilies... My favorites are roses..."
"They are beautiful flowers" he smiled
"Yeah. I like 'em."
He put his head on his shoulder, then pulled away, "sorry"
Al shrugged. "I don't mind."
He hesitantly placed his head back on his shoulder.
He put an arm around his waist.
He blushed slightly
He didn't seem to notice his blush.
He hummed
He continued walking along the garden path. This felt so... Right. Being here with Arthur, as the sun set, in summer, in the gardens, with rose perfume in the air. It was really wonderful...
Arthur led them to a bench that he noticed
Alfred allowed himself to be steered, taking a seat on the bench
He sat next to him, taking advantage of the perfect spot and watching the sunset
After a few moments of silence the prince turned to face the Englishman. "..."
He looked over at him, "?"
"Do you believe in love at first sight?" Alfred hadn't thought he had, but... After tonight... It was a whole different story...
He nodded, "yes... I do"
"Good..." He gave a nervous laugh. "I thought... Maybe I was crazy..."
"Huh?"
"Crazy for believing in love at first sight..." He smiled weakly.
"Well, you're not crazy" he smiled
"I'm glad to hear that." He put an arm around Arthur.
He blushed slightly
Alfred didn't say anything else.
He laid his head on his shoulder
Alfred didn't notice the pair of jealous eyes glinting at them from a doorway. What was this about love at first sight! Alfred had never believed in this before! He couldn't start now! He just couldn't!
Arthur looked up at him and smiled
Al looked around the landscape. It was truly a wonderful night...
"I should go back to the inn" said Arthur quietly
"As you wish..." the prince replied with equal softness.
He smiled softly at him
He stood up and had the driver come around front to take Arthur home.
"Thank you again for dinner" he smiled
"It was my pleasure, Arthur."
"I'll visit you tomorrow" he smiled
"I'll count the minutes until I see you again..."
He smiled and turned to get in the carriage.
The driver took him home.
He thanked the driver and went into the inn
He nodded, shaking the shaggy blond hair out of his face and driving away.
He kept his promise and visited him again.
This time there was someone else speaking with the prince. Alfred allowed him in anyway.
He walked in
The other guest was a near twin to the prince. The only difference was his hair was slightly longer and shaggier and he had a curl that drooped off to the side of his face. The man wore black robes and a black cloak with a reverend's white patched collar at his throat. He turned to face Arthur. "Hello."
"Hello" he said
Alfred grinned. "Arthur, this is my closest friend. Matthew. He's the town priest. He does a great job at spotting witches and getting them out."
"Nice to meet you Matthew" he smiled
The man nodded, inspecting him warily. "The same to you, Mr. Kirkland."
"Please call me Arthur" he smiled
"I'd rather call you Mr. Kirkland." "Aw come on, Mattie! Don't be such a stiff!" Alfred clapped his friend on the back. "Er... Very well... Arthur..."
He smiled at the two.
Alfred grinned around. "You attend church, right Artie?"
"I tried my best to go in England, but my brother wouldn't let me leave the house..." he looked away
Matthew frowned slightly. This wasn't good.
He looked back at them, "I'm planning to go this Sunday"
"That's good. I'll see you there, then." He turned back to Alfred. "I think we've concluded our business, Al." "Yeah. Thanks for coming out." Matthew nodded.
Arthur looked at Alfred, "for a second I thought you two were twins, or are you?"
Matthew turned to leave without answering. Alfred blinked. "No. We grew up together but we're not related."
"It's just, you two look very similar" he smiled
Al nodded. "We get that a lot."
He smiled at him
He grinned back. "What did you want to do today, Arthur?"
He shrugged, "nothing really..."
He thought for a moment. "We could go for a tour of the town."
"Sure" he smiled
Al nodded and started for the stables.
He followed
Al hummed as he went.
He walked next to him
He saddled a horse; a rich golden brown mare that looked eager and happy to run.
"That's a beautiful horse" he smiled
"Yeah, she's my favorite. Always good for a gallop."
He pet the horse lightly
She whinnied and nuzzled his hand. Al chuckled. "She likes you…"
He smiled and pet her more.
Alfred put his hands on Arthur's waist and gave him a boost so that he could get on the animal.
He 'eep'ed slightly and got on the horse.
Alfred laughed and climbed up behind him.
He blushed and pouted lightly, "it's not funny..." He said looking back at him
"Well I think it is." He grinned.
He pouted again.
Alfred nudged the mare's sides and she started off.
"I've never really been on a horse before..." he said nervously
"Really?" Al cocked his head, reaching around Arthur to grip the reigns. "Well you can hold on to the saddle horn or her mane if you don't pull it.
"Okay" he said
The horse started moving, out down the castle gate. Al kept her pace at pretty slow.
He held onto the saddle horn tightly
"You okay, Art?"
"Yea, it's just a little scary..."
"Ah. I love riding."
He looked up at him
"Do you mind if we go a little faster?" The mare seemed eager to speed up.
"U-uh, i suppose not..."
He nudged the horse's ribs with his feet and the animal picked up the pace to a fast trot.
He closed his eyes tightly
Alfred tightened his grip around him. "Don't be scared. You're perfectly safe."
He nodded and slowly opened his eyes
The horse had carried them to the forest outskirts near the castle. Alfred let her choose her path without complaint.
"Where are we going?" he asked looking up at him
"I dunno. I'm letting my faithful horse choose." He shrugged
He raised an eyebrow and said, "okay..."
Al nodded, looking around.
He laid back against Alfred
The horse eventually led them back to the stables at the castle.
"Could you help me get off the horse?" he asked shyly
Alfred nodded, getting off himself before helping Arthur.
His foot got caught and he fell on top of Alfred
Alfred caught him with only a minor stumble back.
He looked up at him, "sorry"
"Hey, as long as you're not hurt it's fine." He smiled at him.
He smiled back
He had his driver take Arthur home when they were done for the night.
He waved, "I'll see you tomorrow Alfred"
He waved back. "I'll see you then, Arthur."
He smiled at him as the driver drove away
Over the next few weeks Alfred grew closer and more attached to Arthur. He still had no idea why he was falling head over heels for him, but he knew he was. He purchased the new resident the cottage he'd asked for and visited him frequently, trying to work up the courage to tell him how he felt. He ignored his best friend and priest's advice to stop seeing him. That something was off about the man. That he'd regret this. Alfred didn't think anything could possibly be wrong with Arthur. There was just no way someone that perfect could be bad news.
One day he opened the door to find Alfred standing there, "hi Alfred" he smiled then looked at the clock, "you're kinda late today, but as long as i can see you i don't mind"
He smiled nervously. "Yeah... I'm here on behalf of Mattie today..."
"Hm?"
"Yeah... He says he hasn't seen you in church and wants to know what's up."
"I've been to church though" he frowned.
"Really?"
He nodded
Alfred frowned.
"What is it?"
"Well... I don't know why Mattie would say that..."
"Oh..." he noticed that they were still outside, "where are my manners? Please, come inside."
Alfred smiled weakly and stepped in. "Thanks..."
"Is something the matter?" he frowned slightly.
He shook his head. "No..."
"If you're sure..." He looked at him
He nodded. "Yeah."
He smiled at him
He didn't return the smile. Something Mattie had said was nagging at him...
He gently touched his cheek, "are you sure nothing is wrong?"
He nodded. "Yeah. Certain." Matt couldn't possibly be right about him...
"Oh, alright then"
He gave him a weak smile.
He smiled back
The next day Arthur went to visit Alfred.
Matthew was just leaving and stopped him as he entered. "Arthur, correct?"
"Yes?"
He nodded, looking him over. "You've been spending an awful lot of time with our prince."
"Yes i have..."
"I can't help but wonder if that's a good use of his time. Wouldn't the prince's attention be better spent on the welfare of all of his people?"
"Well, yes but... i made a promise to visit him everyday"
Matt frowned. "I suggest you ask him to reconsider. You must be busy; surely you could use a break from him."
He blinked at him.
"I'm certain he could use a break from you."
"I-I'll tell him then"
"Thank you." Matt gave him a smile.
He slightly smiled back and walked in the castle.
Matt left, continuing on his way.
"Alfred?"
Alfred was in his throne room.
"Hello Alfred" he smiled
Alfred smiled back at him. "Hey Arthur."
"Matthew talked to me on his way out, he told me to ask you if you needed a break from me visiting..."
He frowned. "No, I don't need a break from your visits. I look forward to them."
"He told me that you could probably use a break from me to focus on your peoples welfare..."
"I... Well... It might not hurt, but... I keep tabs on them. They're all happy. They're all safe." He frowned. Why was Matt talking to Art about that?
"Okay" he said quietly
"Sorry, Arthur..."
"I-it's fine"
He gave him a weak smile.
He slightly smiled back
Alfred rubbed the back of his neck. "Hey... I been meaning to ask..."
He looked at him
"...I'd like to ask permission to court you..."
"hm?" he tilted his head lightly
"To... To officially... Spend time with you romantically... In the hopes of marrying you..."
He blushed red, "o-oh, okay, sure" he smiled
Alfred grinned happily. "Really? That's awesome!"
He smiled at him
He gave him a quick hug.
He hugged back happily
He let go. "I'm really glad you've agreed."
"I'm happy as well" he smiled
"Awesome."
"May I... uh... kiss you...?" he asked shyly
Alfred blushed. "Uh, yeah. Of course."
He leaned in and kissed him lightly
He put his arms around him and pulled him close.
He placed his arms around his neck
He pulled away after a moment.
He looked up at him
"Sorry..."
"For what?"
"I dunno..."
He giggled softly
He smiled slightly. "Heh..."
"What is it?"
"Just glad..."
He smiled at him
He hesitantly leaned in to kiss him again.
He kissed back lightly
He let himself relax into the kiss. There may have been something different about Arthur, but it couldn't have been bad.
He tilted his head to deepen the kiss
He gingerly licked the other's lips. This was his first kiss, so all he knew came from one of his friends. Francis, to be exact.
He blushed lightly and hesitantly opened his mouth.
He hesitantly explored his mouth.
He moaned softly
Alfred blushed scarlet. Had he really made the man make such a noise...? It was...
He pulled away, blushing just as red.
He looked down. "Sorry if I was a bit too forward..."
"I-it's alright" he touched Alfred's cheek lightly
He looked back at him. "Good..."
He smiled
Alfred was surprised when his friend said in a letter that he needed to speak with him. He'd only skimmed through, but he'd seen Arthur's name and the words 'evil' and 'corrupt' in the same sentence.
He wrote this, 'Arthur is an evil, corrupt witch! He hasn't been to church, he is not holy! He must be burned immediately!'
Alfred sighed. There was no way that Arthur could be a witch. He was too good. He couldn't be corrupting anything.
Arthur walked into the throne room, "Hi Alfred" he said happily
He didn't look up at first, too caught up in his day dreams.
"Alfred?" he walked up to him
He jumped. "Oh. Hey." Al forced a smile at him.
"What's that?" he asked reaching for the paper in his hand.
He pulled it away quickly. "It's nothing."
"You sure?"
He nodded shortly. "Yeah, nothing."
"Okay..." he lightly kissed his cheek
He gave a tiny smile. There was no chance...
Just then Matthew burst through the throne room doors with palace guards, "he's here!" Arthur turned around.
Alfred frowned at his friend. "Hey..."
The guards seized Arthur.
Alfred stood up quickly. "What's going on!"
"He has been accused of witchcraft" said one of the guards.
The prince stiffened. "What...?"
"He has been accused of Witchcraft, and has been sentenced to death". Arthur's eyes widened, Death...? What did he do...? Witchcraft? But... he wasn't a witch...
Alfred shook his head quickly. "No. No there must be some mistake. I didn't authorize this."
The guard held up a document, "this is your signature, is it not?"
Alfred grabbed the paper and studied it. "Well, yeah, but I didn't sign this! It's my writing but not my hand!"
The guard raised an eyebrow, "what do you mean?"
"Somebody forged my signature!"
"Until this is proven, we are holding him in the dungeons"
"If I say somebody forged my signature, somebody forged it!" He hissed. "I'm the prince and you don't argue with me!"
Arthur looked at Alfred, scared out of his wits.
Alfred growled. "Let him go. He's done nothing wrong!"
` The guards reluctantly let Arthur go.
Alfred pulled his lover close to him. "Where did you get that document?"
"From the priest" said the Guard. Arthur hid his head in Alfred's shoulder.
He hugged him tightly, frowning. "Get him in here."
The guard nodded and went to go get the priest. Arthur sobbed softly.
He rubbed his back. "Don't worry. They won't get you. I promise."
He tightened his grip on Alfred when Matthew walked in the room.
"Matt, did you forge an order to have Arthur burned for witchcraft?" He kept his voice deceptively calm.
He did but he said, "No i didn't, but he is a witch"
"Arthur's not a witch." Alfred frowned angrily. "Why would you think that?"
"He hasn't been to church, and someone told me they saw him perform witchcraft" he said calmly, of course he made that up as well.
Alfred uncertainly loosened his grip on the man. Matt did have a knack for spotting witches... And he'd known him a lot longer than he had Arthur... What if his new lover really was a witch? What if he wasn't in love, but under a black magic spell?
Alfred looked down at him. "Arthur... Are you a witch...?"
"w-what? of course I'm not!" his eyes widened
He glanced at Matthew uncertainly.
"Don't believe him!" he said, "he's just trying to trick you". Arthur looked between Alfred and Matthew, he wasn't a witch! The closest thing he was to a witch was that his mother had taught him an herbal remedy before she died...
"M-Matt... Are you sure...?"
He nodded. Arthur's eyes widened as he looked at Matt, why was he doing this?
Alfred slowly moved away from Arthur. If Matt was sure...
Arthur was once again captured by the guards, "A-Alfred?" he said really scared.
He looked away from the man. He'd been lied to. He'd been lied to and hadn't even known.
He started crying as he was taken away.
Alfred turned to Matt. "I'm sorry, Matt... I should have believed you sooner..."
He smiled, "it's fine"
He held out his arms for a hug. "I messed up..."
He hugged him, smiling evilly. His plan worked!
He rested his head in the crook of Matthew's neck. "Forgive me..."
"i forgive you"
"Thanks..." He smiled weakly.
At the burning Matthew kept shouting, "Repent for all your sins!" at Arthur.
The prince couldn't force himself to look at the man tied to the stake. The villagers screamed along with their priest and threw rotten food at the witch.
Arthur couldn't see very well with the tears in his eyes
The fire was lit hastily and the wood caught ablaze.
He screamed as the fire started burning his legs.
The villagers cheered. Alfred did nothing to stop his burning.
Just then huge, white wings sprouted out of his back and tore him from the burning cross.
There was a collective scream and people fled. He really was a witch!
He landed in front of Matthew and Alfred. His eyes were a golden color, halo above his head, wings as white as snow, "Matthew Williams, Priest. You have wrongly accused this man of being a witch, he is an Angel!" said a voice that wasn't Arthur's.
Matt staggered back in shock and horror. He hadn't... No... There had to be a mistake...
"Since you are a Priest, hopefully you know the punishment for accusing something that is not true" He frowned reaching for his halo
He fell to his knees, pleading for his life.
He wasn't effected by his pleading, "you should have told the truth when you could" he threw his halo to the floor and it expanded, "now, I sentence you to HELL!"
He howled as he fell through the floor.
The halo flew to his head again. The wings and halo started to fade away. His eyes started to fade to their normal Green again as he passed out and fell to the floor.
Alfred stared for a moment before fleeing. He couldn't stay... It couldn't work... He couldn't... It... No...!
He woke up on the road a while later, "what happened?" he said rubbing his head.
No one was near him.
He tried to stand but his legs gave out and he fell again, "what the..." he looked at his singed legs, "oh, now I remember..."
There were the sounds of horses running.
He looked up.
Alfred was riding towards him, a second horse in tow behind his first one. "Arthur!"
"Alfred...?"
Alfred swung down from his horse and hurried to him. "Arthur..."
There were tears running down Arthur's cheeks.
"Arthur I'm so sorry..." He crouched down to hold his face. "I'm so sorry..."
He looked away and down at his singed legs, "Alfred... why did you believe him? Why?"
"I grew up with him... He was my closest friend... He'd never been wrong about this stuff before... He was a priest for goodness sakes..."
He was shaking slightly.
He picked him up. "Come on... We need to get you help..."
He nodded and held Alfred's shirt tightly
He helped him sit on the second horse.
He held onto the horse tightly.
Alfred started for a town. Not the one he ruled, however.
"Alfred? Where are we going?" he asked
"Somewhere we can start our lives anew. People got very angry with me for having fallen in love with you and getting our priest killed. They'd have killed me if I stayed in that place. We both had to leave, so I decided we should leave together."
"Okay" he smiled then winced slightly as his leg hit against the horse.
"You okay? We'll find a doctor when we get to the next town..."
He nodded slightly
He nodded back and began to hum as they rode off into the sunset.