Tia stared at him. Head down, curly blonde bangs covering his blushing face, he said those words so confidently. And without thinking once about the consequences of throwing around words he was soon to regret.
She placed the cat off her lap and onto the grass, movements precise and careful, before standing up to his eye level, or above that, and smiling softly, "Prince Leander, please do not say things you will not mean."
Hearing her words, his head rose, bright green eyes meeting hers. "I mean it, truly."
"With respect, Your Highness, two meetings hardly justify calling it attraction."
"But-... Isn't this... love at first sight?"
At that particular phrase, Tia laughed politely. "Perhaps so. Yet such fancies are quick to fade... and forgive me, but I'd look ridiculous escorting a man who doesn't quite reach my shoulder."
Tia laughed to herself, while Lee blushed and dropped his head in embarrassment.
"W-well.. T-that can be fixed! I can grow taller, I'm still young!"
"Oh, really? How long would that take, by estimate?"
"W-would... would you marry me if I've grown taller than you the next time we meet?"
Tia chuckled, taking his words lightly, "As you wish, your Highness. Who am I to deny an order from the First Prince?"
Leander's head perked up, and he beamed, "Alright, deal! You better be prepared to have to look up every time you see me."
As he earned another smile from Tia, the Empress' voice could be heard somewhere nearby, calling his name.
"Ah... that's my cue," he shyly held out his hand, "I-if I may, Lady Montclair?"
Tia smiled, and gave him her hand out of courtesy. He pecked her knuckles and quickly let go, red.
As he withdrew his hand, there was a rustle near the bushes of the entrance and Florence emerged. "Tia-" she stopped in her tracks and her eyes widened at the sight.
So did Leander's, but there was a hint of familiarity in his emerald greens. As if he'd seen the redhead somewhere before.
He inclined his head as Tia made the introductions. "The third Lady of the House of Ashthorne, Lady Florence."
Florence curtseyed immediately, "Your Highness, First Prince Leander."
He nods, then turns back to Tia, "Thank-... you. For your time today. I shall be taking my leave now. Goodbye, Lady Montclair."
Tia nods in acknowledgement as the young prince walks out happily.
As he exits the garden fully and is out of earshot, she clicks her tongue, "Florence, how many times must I tell you, it's impolite to eavesdrop?."
The innocent expression on the redhead's face was replaced with a mischievous one, and she strolled casually to the bench in the center, "Oh, Tia, I couldn't help it. Who wouldn't want to listen to what the future Crown Prince has to say to the Lady of Montclair?"
Tia sighed, taking a seat beside her childhood friend, "Curiosity kills the cat,"
"And satisfaction brings it back." She smirked at her friend's disapproving face, plucking at the flowers that enveloped the bench.
"By the way, what will you wear to the tea party at the Marchioness' Estate next week?"
. . .
"Your Majesty! This is my daughter, Clarissa."
Yet another young lady curtseyed, and Lee tried his best not to sigh or roll his eyes at the overly frilly skirts, revealing corsets and heavy jewels. Now he knew why everyone was severely overdressed today.
On their way back to the outdoor seating, the Empress applied some herbal ointment to Lee's rashes, which he forgot even existed after his encounter with the young Lady. Seeing her son's condition worsen, the Empress called for Thalia and announced they were taking their leave.
Just as The Empress got up, some old hag politely-but-forcefully shoved her daughter forward and introduced her. That was the cue for everyone to start with the introductions one by one.
"Empress! Meet my daughter, Lila!"
"Your Majesty-!"
The battle was tough between ugly and uglier. When Lee thought one had a bad fashion sense, another one with an even worse fashion sense came up, like he was some prized possession everyone was fighting to win over.
He got the part where everyone wanted to introduce their daughters, but why did some middle aged women seem to be eyeing him with interest?
Shameless old women. I'm younger than half their age, do they feel no embarrassment?
Somehow, the Empress managed to push them all away, which resulted in an inward "thank you, mother dearest" from Leander, and a sigh of relief from Thalia.
"He isn't even the crown prince yet!" she groaned as she climbed onto the carriage, "People these days are just crazy for power."
The Empress sat down heavily and sighed in agreement, "That's just how the world is, love. Are you better, Lee?"
After a moment of silence, Thalia had to nudge Leander to bring him back to earth.
"BROTHER LEE!"
He jumped, looking around. "Sorry, you were saying?"
Empress Celestia raised a brow at him, "What on Earth has gotten into you today?"
He smiled to himself, and shook his head. "Nothing."
The carriage rode back to the palace in silence.
More or less, half an hour later, when the palace was just around the corner, Leander broke the news,
"I'm... I'll accept being crowned the heir on my next birthday."
. . .
Why in the Lord's name did I say that to MOTHER, of all people?
In less than a day, the whole empire was bustling with excitement.
"Did you hear...?"
"The First Prince...!"
"He turns thirteen in a few months...!"
"Oh my..."
Servants, commoners, nobility, slaves, members of the Imperial Court, all were dying to give their congratulations to the Imperial Family. And show them potential marriage partners.
To answer all of their questions, the Empress held a tea party in her palace not long after the Montclairs departed.
Invitations were being spread like the plague. Everyone wanted to get their hands on one. But the Empress very wisely chose only her close circle, and those people who would have the whole Empire know what was being talked about at the gathering in less than an hour.
But for Leander? Another noisy day.
"Nanny..." He groaned into his pillow, "it's a day off!"
Lady Sabrina Crispin threw open the curtains, and blinding sunlight filled the room. "It's time to rise and-"
"Sleeping is a drug that eventually kills, I freaking know!" He was seriously considering kicking everyone out of his room. Servants flooded after the Countess when she came to wake him, and they all started cleaning up after him like he was a kid. Which he was, but that's not the point.
He buried his face in a pillow and tried his best to go back to sleep, but the Countess barking orders to the servants was too loud for his mental peace. A solid fifteen minutes passed like that, when he completely lost it and yelled.
"GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE."
The servants, and even the Countess jumped. Some of the maids near the huge oak doors scurried out in fear, and the rest, who were cleaning out his closet, looked nervously between the young, furious prince and sober, poker-faced countess, as if trying to decide who had more authority.
Fair enough, he never screamed carelessly like this before. But he has had enough.
Sabrina sighed, and gestured for the servants to leave.
As though they had stirred a beehive, the maids scattered in panicked haste. The Countess crossed her arms in front of her chest, and fixed Lee with a serious look as the doors shut with a heavy thud.
"Lee, you know it's-"
"Get. Out. Did you not hear me the first time?"
"Leander Halycra. You may have the authority to disperse the servants, but you do not have the authority to dismiss me. Not now, not ever. I am higher than you, both in rank, status and age. Remember that." The Countess was starting to get angry too.
Leander, unbothered by her simmering rage, propped his upper body on one arm, and threw a pillow at her with the other. "Just. Get. Out!"
The Countess froze, staring at the pillow where it thumped against her skirts. Slowly, she bent, plucked it up, and walked to the bed to place it back as though she were tidying after a child.
"You're still the same boy who thought throwing cushions would win an argument," she said, her voice clipped but steady. "I may have raised you, Leander, but I am not your plaything. Try that again, and I'll march straight to your mother."
He flinched. She knew how to poke him where it hurt.
Groaning, he put another pillow on his head and gave in, "What do you want?"
She yanked the pillow out of his grip, making his eyes victim to the bright sunlight, and crossed her arms. "Up. Now."
Begrudgingly, he sat up in his bed and stared angrily at his nanny, not daring to try anything.
She pointed toward the closet the maids were sorting out, "Your clothes for today are in there. Change up. Quickly."
"By myself? I can't change by my-"
"You have four minutes and forty three seconds." She pulled a stopwatch out of her pocket.
Lee huffed, but quickly dragged himself out of bed. He knew his nanny was never light with warnings.
"You dismiss the servants, you deal with it." She put the watch back in, and turned. After the clicking of her heels against marble was the sound of the heavy oak door shutting loudly, leaving Leander and the mess he didn't allow to be cleaned up.