These Threads That Spin

A soft sigh escaped Blaze's lips, disintegrating into the world around her as she finally spotted her fiancé. She had been searching the palace for him for close to an hour now and had all but given up when she'd decided to stop by the library.

She'd needed to pick up a couple of tomes to brush up on traditional Sol customs for her upcoming nuptials, but instead, she'd accidentally happened upon Silver.

The white hedgehog was sat by a large arched window that overlooked the garden, leaning back precariously on his chair as he flipped the page of the book in his hand. Blaze approached him slowly, squinting to read the title engraved in the spine with gold foiling.

'Fairy Tales from Around the World'

She bit her bottom lip in thought. For as long as she had known him, Silver had been fond of stories. He was never fussy about what he read. So long as there was a tale to spin, he was there to read it.

It did surprise her that he was currently sat reading a book of children's stories though. She would have thought at least that would be something that would bore him eventually, but Silver seemed quite content as he leafed through the pages.

"Silver the Hedgehog," Blaze called out with mock anger once she was near enough, reminding herself that she was in a library after all. "Why are you up here reading stories when you have an entire life of your own to live, not to mention a wedding to plan?"

Silver turned to where she stood, hands on her hips. "Ugh," he groaned in annoyance. Blaze's eyes widened in surprise. He'd never had that response to seeing her before.

The hedgehog shifted, all four of the chair's legs clanging to the floor. "I was wondering when you'd find me and force me to go back," Silver continued, and Blaze got the feeling she was missing something.

"What?"

Silver blinked, taking in her blank expression. "Oh," he said softly, coming to some sort of realisation. "I'm sorry. I thought you were here because I ran away from my tux fitting."

"You ran away from your tux fitting?" Blaze responded in alarm.

"Heh, relax," Silver said rubbing the back of his neck bashfully as he held the hand up, palm out. "I was going to go back, I swear, but I … got kinda distracted." He pointed to the book he'd placed on the window ledge.

With a flash of teal, a nearby chair lifted and floated over, dropping directly in front of Silver. He gestured to it with a kind smile.

"Are you only offering me a seat, so I'll join you and keep you from having to go back and get your suit fitted properly?"

"Blaze, I would never," he said dramatically. "Besides, spending time with you is much more fun than getting stuck with needles every two seconds."

"And so is reading fairy tales?" she asked, raising her eyebrows at his choice of reading material.

"Definitely," he replied, brushing off her disregard. "Here, I'll read you one if you like," he said, picking up the book and flicking to a page close to the middle. "My favourite is this 'Beauty and the Beast' one set in Spagonia. It's so great, I think there's a lot to take away from it."

Blaze blinked in confusion. "They're just children's stories Silver. I don't see how spinning tales can help anyone with anything."

"They're not just children's stories Blaze. There's so much to learn from them. But I guess it's easy to dismiss the power and pull of stories when your entire life is a fairy tale."

Blaze blinked again, hard, a small frown forming on her brow. "How so?" To her, fairy tales were easy. Everything ended in nice neat little bows, which seemed a far cry from her reality right now. Sure, she was doing her best and the kingdom was thriving, but a fairy tale was the last thing she would liken her life to.

"How is it a fairy tale?" he asked.

She nodded, genuine intrigued by her fiancé's outlook on her life.

"Well," Silver said, closing the book as he took a minute to think. "You're clearly the main character. You're inherently 'good' and you're always striving to make yourself better just like those in fairy tales."

Blaze pressed her lips together in a thin line. There wasn't really much she could say to that, so she let Silver continue on with his analysis.

"And you even have a nemesis in Nega, who is the quite obvious 'evil' in this situation. I mean, that moustache alone is a crime against the citizens of Sol."

Blaze couldn't help the smile that threatened to lift the edges of her mouth, but she tamped it down regardless. "That's all good and well, but it's less a fairy tale a more a struggle of power in the world," she reasoned.

Silver pursed his lips in thought. "Okay, fine. There's almost always royalty involved in some fashion." He leaned forward and bumped her nose with his. "Case and point. Not to mention that the Princesses are usually the da-"

"If you're about to call me a damsel Silver, I would think twice before finishing that sentence."

"Of course not," he corrected, voice tinged with a hint of fear.

"Good, because I am a Queen and I'm perfectly capable of saving myself."

"Don't I know it," he said softly. "You've saved my ass multiple times."

"Likewise. Is that all you have?" she asked, curious as to how else the boy would justify his earlier comments.

"Magic! You have powers."

"That one doesn't count," she countered. "You have powers too, and so do many of the people we've met." She rolled her eyes at Silver's answering pout, but she had to admit, he was starting to win her over. "I am curious about you though. Where do you fit into this fairy tale life of mine?"

Perhaps stories didn't draw her in the way they did him, but Silver sure had that effect on her. He was the one story she would never get bored of reading.

"I … well I g-guess I …" Silver stuttered, failing to come up with an answer for her. Blaze bit back a smile. It was just like Silver to come up with an entire theory and completely forget about including himself in it.

"I guess I can be the object that helps you. An object can be a person, right?" He asked nervously.

"I don't think it works like that," she said apologetically, reaching to place a hand on his bouncing knee. "But you are missing a key role in those stories."

"I am?"

"Prince Charming."

Silver sputtered something incoherent and almost fell completely off his chair as her words registered in his mind. If it hadn't been for Blaze's hand on his knee, he likely would have ended up faceplanting the ground.

"Are you okay?" she asked worriedly.

"I'm fine, I'm fine," he assured her, sitting up a little straighter. "Sorry, where were we again."

"I said that you'd be the Prince Charming in my fairy tale."

"Right," Silver replied, a dazed look in his amber eyes.

"I mean, you're not quite a Prince but you've definitely got the 'charming' down." Blaze wasn't quite sure what to make of the way Silver's cheeks reddened instantly.

"I-I mean, I d-don't really know ab-bout that," he said, his eyes suddenly absorbed in the graining of the tiled ground.

Blaze prodded his arm gently, unsure of what to do or say and opting for just stating the obvious. "You asked me to be your wife with all the suave befitting of a prince, and yet being called charming reduces you to a stuttering mess?"

Silver risked a glance up before changing his mind and redirecting his gaze to the window instead. He took a deep breath before speaking. "Do you know why I like stories so much?"

Blaze shook her head before realising he wasn't watching her. "No. But I'd like to."

"Because each story is different, and each one teaches you something you didn't know before. A lesson, a feeling, a skill." A sadness seemed to overcome him and the cat knew he was remembering a time when he was alone. When he had no one but books as his friends and family.

Blaze squeezed his knee gently and Silver finally let his gaze drift back to hers, something vulnerable flickering within them. "You know, I keep trying to find one that will teach me how to be normal around you but …" he shook his head ruefully. "I'm hopeless when it comes to you Blaze."

"There's that charm," she said quietly, and Silver's lips quirked into a small smile.

"I don't want to go, but I probably shouldn't keep the tailor waiting much longer," he said suddenly before pausing as if suddenly remembering something. "Wait. If you weren't looking for me to drag me back to my fitting earlier, why were you looking for me?"

"Oh," Blaze said. She'd gotten so lost in Silver's talk of stories she'd almost forgotten the true reason she had been searching for him. "I wanted to see if you'd go to the kitchens with me to test out cake flavours for the reception. Cook's made every flavour but can't decide which one he should choose."

"Wait, we can go and spend the afternoon eating a ton of cake? Why are we still sitting here again?" Silver asked, getting up from his chair instantly. "Let's go, he said, offering her a hand to help her up."

Blaze took it, but instead of lifting herself up, she pulled him back into his chair. "We will … right after your fitting."

Silver visibly deflated, slumping into his chair.

"But first," she continued softly, letting her fingers interlock with his. "Will you read to me Silver?"

His answering grin was bright enough to outshine the sun.

"Always."

And scene. I am running so behind but I'll catch up soon, I promise. I hope you guys enjoyed this one, I'll admit I did struggle with it a lot but I'm pretty happy with how it came out in the end.

Thanks so much for reading, drop me your thoughts if you can and I'll see you guys in the MARRIAGE prompt (omg!). Chao :)