Summary: Dora meets with the king of a neighboring kingdom to discuss a betrothal.
Characters: Fright Knight x Dora
Written: December 2013
Peppermint
She stared at the man before her, the dark armor he wore making her feel a bit apprehensive about this entire meeting. Her gaze drifted to the other man, the one in royal garb as he sat upon the throne, one leg crossing over the other with ankle resting on knee as he leaned his chin on one hand.
"You do not approve?" he questioned, eyebrows lifting with an expectant look in his blue eyes.
She shook her head, the rope of her blonde hair swishing behind her. "I was thinking nothing of the sort." Her eyes flicked back to the armored man, his face hidden by the helmet he wore.
"Sir Dorn, better known to the realm as the Fright Knight after his many slayings of dragons," the king hardly noticed the way Dora paled or swallowed nervously at the mention of dragons, "is a great swordsman and protector of my kingdom. He will be a great husband to you, should you accept the betrothal."
"I confess I am a bit surprised that you would choose such an important member of your army to be my betrothed," Dora said as her gaze turned to the king again. "Do you really mean to give him up? He would probably do better to stay and serve your kingdom?"
"That is true. He has done quite well protecting my kingdom." He stood up, long cape trailing behind him. "But I came to the decision that this betrothal is of benefit to both our kingdoms. It is my hope that this union will help ally our kingdoms and bring peace to our two realms." His blue eyes flicked between the knight and the princess. "Well, I shall leave the two of you to become better acquainted. There is still much to do before the Christmas feast tonight." He bowed his head to Dora, who dipped low in a curtsy as he strode past her. The door of the throne room echoed loudly in the silence after it closed behind the king, leaving the other two alone in the wide, spacious room with a tall arching ceiling.
Dora stared at the door for several long minutes before tearing her gaze away to glance back toward the knight. She bit the inside of her cheek with nervousness thrumming through her entire being. At times like this, she wished her mother was there to guide her. Her mind turned back to the many hours studying etiquette. Many might think that training in etiquette for a princess meant simply sitting around with her back perfect straight and looking pretty. Etiquette training was far tougher than that. She had to learn how to behave in various different cultures. Where in one kingdom certain gestures and sayings might be accepted, in another kingdom it might be the small thing that set a war into motion. She had to learn the names of various important figures within each kingdoms and what their titles were. She needed to know which way to bow to them. Some only required a small tilt of her head while others needed her to perform a full curtsy. And all that information was only a small portion of the training she did. She had to learn tactical strategy and military procedures and educate herself on diplomatic issues, as well as familiarize herself with domestic affairs. It was all so much to remember that her head sometimes felt like it might explode.
"It is my pleasure to meet you, Sir Dorn," Dora said, deciding to go with a partial bow. She tilted her head, lifted up one side of her dress, and bent her knees slightly. When she glanced up at the knight again, she frowned at him. "You have no need to hide your face from me."
Sir Dorn reached up and pulled the helmet from his head. For a brief moment, a split second of hesitation, he held it in front of his face before lowering it and tucking the helmet under one arm. His gaze remained lower as he stood stiffly before her. His hair was dark and closely cut to his head. His skin, pale, marred with old scars, one of which cut through the right side of his mouth. At one point, he was probably considered quite handsome, but the battle wounds likely scared away many people. It was his eyes that Dora focused on though. They showed kindness under the hard gleam of a seasoned warrior. Dora stepped toward him and reached up, tentatively touching a hand to his face. Her fingers lightly traced over a scar on his cheek as she stared into his eyes.
Her mother always claimed that the eyes were like windows into the soul, and for some dragons, they could even read into them simply by gazing into a person's eyes. It was a rare talent for their kind, but Dora sometimes thought she could get glimpses when she tried. When she stared into the knight's eyes, she could see he fought many hard battles in his time. She gave a small gasp as she backed up a step.
"Is there something wrong, my lady?" the knight questioned, concern furrowing in his brow.
"I - What's that smell?" Dora blinked, catching a hint of something sweet in the air between them that distracted her.
The knight stared, confusion in his eyes. "Oh." He reached behind him, and when he held out his hand between them, his fingers uncurled to show her three little round balls of white with red stripes sitting within his palm. "They're peppermints from a shop in town. Would you like one?"
"Thank you." Dora bowed her head to him as she accepted one of the peppermint treats. She smiled as she popped the candy into her mouth. Perhaps this betrothal wouldn't be as bad she thought, recalling what she saw when she looked into his eyes. He had fought a dragon not too long ago. It was one of her kind and reverted back into a young girl after being badly injured by the knight. Instead of killing her, the knight laid down his sword and treated her injuries. He wasn't a cold hearted killer who couldn't distinguish whether those cursed with dragon blood were good or evil. He saw a frightened, injured young woman and did what he could to help her. Yes, Dora thought as she enjoyed the peppermint candy, the betrothal to this knight was something she could accept.
Linzerj: Yay! 8D I'm glad you thought it was cute. =)
Above the Winter Moonlight: I was just waiting for a good prompt. XD