A/N: Just a reminder, all of these are single serving stories. A few of you have asked if I plan to continue the last one. Well, you never know. Both Dig and Snapshots originated from The Twilight Twenty-Five Round 8.
The Twilight Twenty-Five
thetwilight25 dot com
Prompt: 23 - Tryst
Main Character: Aro
Rating: M
Word Count: 500
A/N: Wtf is this. I can't even. Uh. Slight Aro/Carlisle *ducks*
Aro's life as a Greek prince was orderly. He took lessons in the subjects and skills he would need to be a king. He'd been betrothed at babyhood to a princess named Sulpicia. He was taught to be genteel, and he was taught how to fight.
Life was good.
As he was expected to lead his father's armies in battle some day, at seventeen, Aro was too busy serving in the military to marry, so it was his younger sister Didyme who wed first.
It was there, at her wedding, that Aro met him. In the grand scheme of things, he was no more than a tryst, but from first sight, Aro knew-this man was important somehow.
He was an outsider. It was obvious. His skin was several shades paler, and his hair. His hair was the color of spun gold. He wasn't Greek, but then, many of the guests weren't.
His eyes were the color of the ocean when it was calm. The blond looked up, catching Aro's stare. Emboldened, Aro held his gaze. The man ducked, but Aro could see his smile from across the room.
When they broke for the feast, Aro sought him out.
His name was Carlisle. The word felt strange and delicious on his tongue. When they stole out to the beach to share kisses, Aro found he tasted just as good.
He was, like Aro, a prince who would someday be a king.
On the second day of the wedding festivities, Aro lured Carlisle out for a sword fight, looking to impress him. Instead, he ended up the one on his ass, the blond man proving his sword was as well practiced as his educated tongue. And since they were already covered in sweat, neither thought much of it.
In the quiet between heated moments, Aro lay in Carlisle's arms and whispered his plans and ambitions. His kingdom, he told Carlisle, would be much grander than anything his father had dared to imagine.
It took him minutes to realize Carlisle was quiet. When prodded, he would only say, "It occurs to me that we are so similar and yet so very different."
The boys parted and grew to men. They married the princesses they were destined to and had strong sons and pretty daughters. Their kingdoms flourished, though for different reasons.
They met again on the eve of the battle, and stared at each other with sadness and righteousness in their eyes.
"That day, when you told me of your plans for your kingdom, I couldn't tell you mine," Carlisle said. "I couldn't tell you because my plan was simple-to live peaceably." He took a breath, his normally soft eyes hardening. "And to defeat anyone who threatened my people's peace and prosperity."
Aro studied the other man, seeing with certainty that he couldn't have what he wanted without a fight. Tomorrow they would stand on the battlefield with their sons at their side. He nodded at Carlisle, his throat tight.
"So be it."
A/N: So that was... that. Thanks to barburella and jessypt!