This was requested by Janae, I hope you like it!
Kenna was walking past one of the gathering rooms, she'd had word Bash was back from a trip, a longer one than usual, and she was anxious to see him. She had almost passed the entryway when she heard her name called.
"Lady Kenna," Princess Claude said, beckoning her into the room. "What a lovely surprise to see you. What are you doing?" Her voice was that faux politeness that Kenna detested.
"I was just about to go greet my husband," Kenna replied, giving a small curtsey as she approached the princess. "He's returned from a trip."
"How delightful," Claude responded, sincerity desperately lacking from her statement. Kenna's smile froze on her face as she thought of what to say.
"Yes, it is delightful. Now, if you'd excuse me," she said as she gave another curtsey and began backing her way out of the room. Even on an ordinary day, she had no wish to spend more time than necessary with a woman who hated her. Especially today, though, she just wanted to see Bash.
"Leaving so soon?" Claude questioned. Kenna's jaw tightened as she swung her gaze back up to Claude.
"I wish to greet my husband, he's been away for days," Kenna explained.
All of the princess's ladies were sitting, pretending like they weren't listening. Claude's eyes moved to them before she said, "Leave us." The ladies scurried away at once, in a loud rustle of silk and taffeta as their dresses swished around their legs.
"You have quite the reputation, you know. I hope you haven't been… entertaining yourself when my dear brother is gone," Claude said delicately, gazing up at Kenna from her seat. Kenna inhaled sharply.
"I know this is difficult for you to understand, but I love Bash. And he loves me," Kenna said, irate. "I would never do anything to hurt him."
"I hope so. It would devastate him to learn of his wife not being obedient," she said, smirking ever so slightly.
"You don't know the slightest thing about our marriage, so don't even pretend to know what you're speaking of," Kenna retorted angrily, tossing her hair as she jerked her head.
"It would do you well to remember that you don't know the slightest thing about me either," Claude said dangerously, voice lowering. "And there are secrets your husband has kept from you."
Kenna drew in a deep breath before replying, "If he is keeping secrets from me, he has good reasons for it. I ask that you keep out of my marriage. Simply because you do not wish to be married yourself does not mean you can cause trouble for mine."
Claude let out a short laugh before saying, "You're right, I do have no wish to be married. It was one of the blessings of being away from Court, no one remembers you're unwed while you're away. But, if I recall correctly, you didn't wish to be married either, I heard. You were married to my brother in the midst of tears and begging."
"At least when I left my home, it was to serve my Queen. Not because my mother couldn't stand the sight of me," Kenna said heatedly, eyes locked onto Claude's. She knew it was too far, that Claude would not be able to let that remark rest. But she couldn't resist.
Claude's eyes glinted treacherously as she leaned forward to be closer to Kenna. "I'll do you a favor. One of those secrets my brother is keeping from you? Bash and I had a relationship when we were young. A relationship… less familial and more sexual," she said, smiling brightly. "Don't worry, he's rejected my advances so far. But it's only a matter of time." Kenna froze where she was standing.
"That's ridiculous, why would Bash have slept with his sister?" she snapped after a moment of hesitation.
"As accomplished as Bash is today, he wasn't as intelligent when we were younger. He was convinced that Henry was not really his father, so he didn't think there was anything wrong with it," Claude explained smugly, enjoying how still Kenna had gone, how her breath caught in her throat.
"And I'm sure that you had nothing to do with him believing that," Kenna said, voice dripping with disbelief. Claude widened her eyes innocently and put a hand on her chest.
"I would never," she said with a smile. Kenna rolled her eyes, past caring about outright offending the princess.
"You need to stay away from my husband, or I swear," Kenna said before stopping, realizing she didn't have anything to threaten Claude with.
"You'll what? I'd love to hear a threat against a Princess of France from a mere lady," Claude said with a laugh as she picked up her glass and took a long drink of wine.
"What's going on here?" Bash's voice came from the doorway. He strode into the room to stand next to Kenna, an arm wrapping around her waist. "Claude, what are you doing?"
"Why do people always assume I start things?" she pouted as she stood and walked closer to them. Kenna stiffened in Bash's arm and he looked at her quickly before returning his attention to Claude.
"That might be because you do always start things," Bash said firmly. Claude's smile slid off her face and was replaced by an ugly glare. She sniffed arrogantly and focused on her next statement.
"I was just catching your lovely wife up on our complicated past relationship," Claude said sweetly before walking past them. "Have fun explaining that, Bash," she called over her shoulder before leaving the room.
Kenna stepped out of Bash's half embrace to clasp her hands in the folds of her dress, crumpling the soft yellow fabric as her fingers bunched it together.
"Bash, was she telling the truth?" she asked softly, finally looking up to meet Bash's eyes. "Did you have sex with your sister?"
"Kenna…" he said hesitantly, and with that one word, she knew the truth. "Let's go back to our rooms, I'll explain everything there," he promised. He tried to put a hand on the small of her back, but she jerked away from his touch, still processing. The walk to their rooms took much less time than it usually did, Kenna thought. The stone corridors were a blur to her. Kenna walked through the door first, leaving Bash to close the door. He leaned against it once it was closed before sighing. Kenna was facing the bed, away from him.
"Kenna, I didn't want you to know about that. It was a stupid mistake I made when I was younger," Bash said quickly.
"Bash, she is your sister!" Kenna cried, whirling around to face him. Her gown flowed out to form a perfect circle around her feet at the sudden movement.
"Technically, she's only my half-sister," he said.
"Bash! She is still your blood, what were you thinking?" she asked, hands throw into the air.
"We were young, Claude managed to convince me Henry wasn't my father, that we weren't actually related," Bash explained. "I'm not excusing it, but I'm asking you to look past it. I made a mistake and I'm taking the blame for it."
Kenna just shook her head and sat on the edge of their bed. She studied her gown carefully, an excuse not to meet Bash's eyes, and smoothed the fabric out slowly.
"So, you knew this whole time the true reason Claude was rude to me and you didn't say a word about it," Kenna finally said. Bash moved from the door, walking to stand near Kenna.
"I thought it would be best to let the past rest," he said as he knelt next to Kenna's feet. She ducked her head to hide the beginning of a smile that was spreading over her face. She knew she wouldn't stay upset, they couldn't change the past. Especially when she knew personally how damaging a person's history can be.
"I just hate the idea of you being with anyone else," she admitted, hands dropping to lie in her lap. Bash grasped her hands in his and looked up at her face.
"I know. And we both can't change our past, as much as we'd like to. But I can promise you, you're the only woman for me. I love you and nothing will change that," he said softly. Kenna smiled hesitantly and leaned forward to meet his kiss.
"I love you too," she whispered against his mouth. He smiled into the kiss and pulled away for a moment.
"Now, I heard you were on your way to greet your husband after his long journey. Now that Claude is out of the way, who am I to deny that welcoming?" he asked with a cheeky grin. Kenna rolled her eyes good naturedly before pulling him up onto the bed. Bash gently pushed her onto her back and covered her body with his own, kissing her neck.
"I did have a great homecoming planned," Kenna said breathlessly as she looked up at him. Bash grinned before kissing her firmly, silencing them both.
I hope you enjoyed that! I will admit, Kennash is my new OTP. I really like them and will gladly accept any prompts about them, and anyone else. Please leave a review!