Hello.
The title is self-explanatory. I'll be putting all my random one-shots and snippets into this story. It's a habit that shows mainly in Discord, but at someone else's suggestion, I may as well put it out here for public viewing instead of hiding it away.
Anywho, I was originally intending for this to be a one-shot altogether. It takes place in the same scene and whatnot, however, I got lazy partway through and posted them in separate chunks. Apologies if it ruins things somewhat.
Hope you enjoy o/
Of Sun, Stars, and the Kingdom Below.
As the midnight oil continued to burn, the sole occupant of the library made use of the meager glow it offered to write. Surroundings bathed in rich amber, he worked tirelessly to drag a quill across parchment for the umpteenth time, "Not even halfway yet..." Though it wasn't long until he looked across the table, at the numerous other documents awaiting his attention, before leaning back with a sigh.
"Damn idiots..." Needless to say, Subaru was beyond exhausted by this point.
Nay, rather than just limit it to 'this point' or even recently, he had been stressed out ever since the nobles saw it wise to increase taxes for several territories - all major regions of trade - without bringing it to his attention beforehand.
What a genius plan that was, and even better execution.
So genius, in fact, that the resultant decision ended in the turning of multiple heads, none too pleased for the matter.
By the end of the day, and come morrow morning, a sea of foreign dignitaries had seemingly manifested outside his castle grounds. From their expressions, and whatever else he could glean below the walls, they were just about ready to storm inside. Most likely to demand an explanation for the uncouth acts of exploitation employed by the Lugnican government.
Subaru snorted derisively at the thought.
What irony...
To an extent though, he could not blame them, nor was he able to publicly chastise any one messenger. More so than out of fear, it was because the reasons behind their woes were perfectly justifiable; enough to groan with second-hand embarrassment at the levels of incompetency the nobles of his own kingdom could show.
Somehow... these men and women all educated from birth held no prior knowledge of the fact that multiple companies from other kingdoms had settled in specific areas near their respective borders. The affected regions had possessed vastly lower tax rates, something he'd personally set in place as part of trade agreements brokered between Gusteko and Kararagi.
But now those trade agreements were no more, made worthless, and set alight all in the span of one, horrible evening... thus, bringing him here.
Driven to exhaustion, Subaru was forced to pen new agreements—none in Lugnica's favor—while attaching copious amounts of 'I'm sorry, now fuck off' money in order to prevent the situation from spiraling further.
On the bright side, the reparations came straight from the coffers of those very nobles who created this dilemma in the first place, so at least there was that...
Something, something, random filler stuff here...
The Queen's eyes lay upon him for a moment, almost studying in the way that they narrowed. The light from a nearby lamp set her naturally sharp countenance ablaze while bringing the small scowl she wore into deeper focus, "..." though a quick glance towards the desk and back led her to somewhat softening that look.
Priscilla let slip a sigh, even as her stare refused to part from the dark bags lining his eyes.
"You've been ignoring me." Spoken out of the blue, the remark struck him as more of a statement rather than a question, "I..." and hesitating to answer, Subaru looked away before quickly turning back upon remembering that his wife disdained people who averted their gaze.
Seconds trickled by with none offering comfort before he managed to ground something out.
"I've... been busy."
"..."
A pregnant pause passed between them.
"...So it would seem."
Tense silence lingered afterward, only broken by the occasional tapping of his wife's barefoot against the marble floor—another question for later. Though, at a certain point, she seemed to make up her mind on whatever troubled it, considering how a pleasant hum suddenly rang out while her features grew warm.
"Priscilla... " In the meantime, Subaru took notice of an odd detail, "What is that?"
"Mm~? Oh, this?" Feigning ignorance to what he meant, she gestured to the white linen around her, enrobed at such a length that it trailed against the floor in thick swathes.
"Yes...? That's what I-..."
Subaru froze.
—Wait.
He narrowed his eyes.
—Why does it look familiar...
"This, my dear King," Priscilla spoke, putting an end to his thoughts, "...Was intended to be your punishment. For ignoring both your lovely daughter and lonely Queen thus far. Neither I, nor Helena, have been able to get more than a glimpse of your face in the briefest of moments over the last few weeks. Quite the offense, would you not agree?"
"..."
He had no response to offer, not when any of them would simply earn him a moody glare in return.
"However, now that I am here..." Putting emphasis onto the pause, Priscilla strode forward with a frown that slowly morphed into a strange smile—one that sent alarm bells ringing through his head, "...I have reconsidered my judgment, and believe you to be punished enough, seeing how tirelessly you've worked for the good of our Kingdom." Gradually, Subaru came to realize why the smile alarmed him so.
It was familiar, shown only on nights right before things quickly became... heated.
A predatory grin.
—Oh...
The pieces finally clicked in place.
"I..." Subaru began to panic, this was not the right place for any of that. "W-wait," his eyes skittered wildly around the room, "Hold on a second...!" rising from his chair, Subaru quickly realized he had nowhere else to go before falling back.
"...I believe I've waited enough~"
By the time he looked up, Priscilla was almost upon him, nearly pressing her still-enshrouded body flush against his own. "And to better answer your question, my dearest husband..."
"This is your reward~" She let her voice trail with a purr.
As if responding to those words, the blanket snagged from their bedroom finally fell free. Silk traveled across all manner of curves and crevices before spreading across the floor in open invitation, but more than that, Subaru, at last, bore witness to what his wife had refused to show until now.
It was a sight that drew his breath away. Clad in only her birthday suit, Priscilla glowed with an aura bordering on divine, and whether or not it was a trick of his sleep-deprived eyes, it silenced his thoughts all the same.
Exuding dominance, the blatant hunger in her half-lidded eyes made clear the reasons behind her journey; what she desired from him—both a King, but most importantly, the husband for one Sun Princess in particular.
A 'princess' who'd grown to feel snubbed over the last few days and now desired reparations in return.
...Taxes. Why is it always taxes?
Subaru swallowed dryly.
—Fuck.
The thought was aptly put.
"Priscilla! WAIT-!"
"No more..." Having grown impatient, Priscilla practically growled before dragging her husband down to join her.
Fuck indeed.
Hello again.
Erhm... I've got nothing to say.
Goodbye.