When one lives one's whole life under the rule that royalty is so far out of one's reach that one mustn't even touch them more then necessary then it's hard to change. Fortunately, Hisui loves to help.
Disclaimer: Fairy Tail and all it's characters belong to Hiro Mashima, I merely like to borrow said characters from time to time. No profit is made with this oneshot, apart from your (and my) enjoyment. ;)
"Are you done yet?"
Under normal circumstances this question – the fourth of it's kind – would have annoyed him but today it made a smile flicker over his face like the fading light of a candle. Arcadios could practically feel princess Hisui's gaze piercing the back of his head, but he didn't stop in the tracks of his writing. It was the usual situation; noon had long passed and the sun peaked lazily through the windows coloring his bookshelves a flaming red and like so often at this time of the day the princess had visited him in his chambers, to chat or to simply enjoy each other's presence – although for today it had mostly amounted to the latter, for his work kept him awfully busy lately. And under normal circumstances this wouldn't have bothered him in the slightest; now it made his brows furrow in annoyance, however, for every minute spent with it was one minute less spent with her highness.
He suddenly realized that he had not yet answered and did so now, although probably more than ten seconds too late: "Almost."
The little sigh came immediately, as if she had anticipated such an answer. Arcadios heard the rustle of clothing behind him, accompanied by the faint sound of a book being placed on his table, but it wasn't enough to tear his gaze away from the sheet of paper he just filled with words.
The light touch on his wrist, however, managed; the knight looked up to meet a pair of deep green eyes with such a severity that his movements came to a halt immediately.
"Stop this. Now."
The smile that played around Hisui's lips was gentle, amused almost, and took the sternness from her eyes but her fingers remained on his wrist.
He had already opened his mouth to protest, but she silenced him with a mere gaze and rose to speak instead.
"You have been working on this for four hours now, Arcadios", she said and he could see the incredulity on her face – a hint of it only, however, she knew how determined he was to finish an assignment once he started it, after all. Hearing her words startled him, however and his gaze fell upon the clock on his desk and quickly calculated the time that had passed since she had arrived in his quarters.
"Actually it's only been three and a half...", he started but let the sentence trail off when he saw her face that now showed an expression that seemed to say "You're honestly arguing about this?".
A chuckle slipped through his lips.
"You are aware that General Raskhar will give me hell if he doesn't get this report by tomorrow."
Arcadios stated the words as a fact; of course she knew, she hardly ever missed one of the strategic meetings held by military command and was thus better informed about it's machinations than many others.
"I am aware", she responded, but nonetheless drew the pen out of his hand and placed it onto the desk just out of his reach, gently shoved his hand from the desk and used the opportunity to sit down on his lap,
"But the general will have to wait for just a few more hours."
A little laugh slipped through her lips. Arcadios found himself staring up at her as thoughts consumed him once again; he often wondered how she managed it, this tightrope-walk between the dovelike young woman beloved by both the citizens and the palace's servants and the brisk queen-to-be that each and every soldier would follow into hell itself without a question – he himself was no exception, on the contrary. If it came to going to hell for her and this kingdom he would be the one leading.
But even now, after she had so brazenly made him stop – and he often prided himself with the fact that he wouldn't let anything get between him and his work – the princess sat on his lap, a light flush tinging her cheeks, wearing a smile that seemed somewhat shy...maybe with a trace of embarrassment but without even the slightest note of regret.
The knight felt his lips curl into a smile – the one he so often wore but with a little more honesty behind it and without the need to hide his thoughts; he didn't need to, here. He never did. Not with her. They both played with open cards when they were together like this, forgetting the facades the courtly life often forced upon them.
„Would that not be improper?", he inquired, straightening on his chair as much as possible with a princess on his lap and let his fingers faintly brush the pale skin of her upper arm as he put his hand on the desk again, effectively trapping her on his lap; it was a habit he still could not shake off, that lingering hesitation to touch her.
A foolish habit he was fully aware, after all she had given him permission more than once already – but some traits were just hard to erase, it seemed; and if Arcadios was entirely honest with himself, he was still attached to the strict set of rules and regulations he had spent most of his life learning and living...and yet it took only a few glimpses, some light touches and the lingering feeling of a kiss on his lips to sweep them all away in face of the desire to just break every single one of them, if it were just with her by his side.
A melodic laugh drew his attention back to the present.
"Perhaps?", she mused with a smile so innocent it made him laugh quietly. Leaning towards her he wrapped his arms around her waist and meekly pulled her closer; she followed the movement until her shoulder leaned against his chest – it was subtle gestures like these that always reminded him of just how good she felt against his skin...and how thankful he was that he was permitted to feel it. His hands now rested in the crook of her waist right beneath her elbow – his fingers slightly grazed it with a touch light as a feather but remained still otherwise.
One of her hands snaked up to his cheek and turned him to face her, tips of her fingers playing with his beard; another thing he would seldom let pass under normal circumstances, but now it only made him smile thinly as he felt the light tug on his chin.
"Must you always be the one to remind us of the rules?", Hisui said, her tone playfully scolding as she tapped on his jade necklace once before affectionately running her fingers through his beard again. Before she could draw her hand back to her body however his hand shot up and caught hers in midair, startling them both.
For a split second his heartbeat seemed to stop; his body had reacted by himself and inwardly the knight scolded himself. He knew that she wouldn't protest – and she did not – but the hesitation he so often felt when touching her had returned with all might now...and despite it Arcadios hesitated to let her hand go.
Her skin felt cold against his', as he brushed his thumb over her delicate fingers, pensive gaze following his own movements.
"One of us has to", he finally whispered, belying these very same words as he brought her hand to his lips.
The kiss lasted long, a small eternity in which neither of them dared to move a muscle with only their breathing and their heartbeats being proof to the passing of time.
When he finally let go it was with a rueful smile, for an instant he felt a sting of guilt for startling her and having touched her for longer than it was appropriate – he scolded himself for that thought as well, did she not sit on his very lap?!
Hisui, however, didn't draw her hand away. Instead she intertwined her fingers with his' and leaned in until their foreheads nearly touched, her smile sweeping away any apology that may have formed on his lips and before he knew it he had spoken nonetheless:
"But for now...", he said, voice lowered to an affectionate whisper, pulling her even closer, pushing the scolding thoughts deep inside a dark corner of his head,
"To hell with the rules?"
The knight gave her a smile that was tender and mischievous in equal shares and she giggled; she knew of this little conflict he still held onto like a fool but didn't comment on it.
Instead the princess brushed his cheek with her free hand, the blush on her very own deepening into the same flaming red that painted his bookshelves behind them, but with a laugh all too visible on her features.
"To hell with the rules", she agreed – like the first time they had met like this.
And like the first time his heart seemed to explode in his chest when their lips met.