"Your majesty," a guard said, bowing to the male on the throne.

The blonde in question was giving a blank look in the distance, uncaring of most anything that approached him. His emotions were all in disarray and he didn't know what to feel at that given time. In fact, when he tried to figure it out and disentangle the mess of his mind, he found himself feeling dizzy and sick. It made many servants worry, especially since he was the king of their nation.

"Excellency," an assistant said quietly, attracting the blonde's vague attention, "Guard Avington is here to escort you to your private lunch."

"I'm not in the mood," the blonde grumbled.

"Excellency, you must take care of your health. It is of the utmost importance that you remain strong despite your grief. Is there anything that could encourage you to eat?"

The younger male shook his head, a disgruntled expression on his uncaring face. He wasn't entirely too keen on enjoying a meal without (Y/n). Sure, not everything in his life was about the (h/c) haired girl. In fact, he had to put her off to rule the nation, but his mind was always on her. If it wasn't that she was able to be spoiled and esteemed due to his position, he likely wouldn't have been interested in being king. In fact, if he wasn't, he would have had more than enough time to spend with her.

As the blonde thought about it, he found that it was almost insulting the amount of time he spent with her. He should have been able to spend at least four hours with her when he was awake. No, at least six. The number just kept increasing in his mind, the male unsettled by the amount of time he left her alone. It wasn't right, but...did it make it his fault? Should he have done more for her? How would he have done it? Rei kept thinking about it, his mind in la-la land.

He should have demanded more free time or brought her to meetings and encouraged her to have a position at court other than being his lover. If he would have done that, maybe he would have seen her more often. At the same time, he never wanted to push responsibility onto her. He wanted her to have a life in which she didn't have to do a thing, just enjoy the luxury he provided her. What was the right choice?

(Y/n) loved him, she did. There couldn't have been any alternative, she loved him as much as he loved her. They were perfect together, protected one another when they were scared, comforted the other when they encountered a nightmare. She would have more nightmares than he would. Rei would squeeze her so tightly when he felt her shake in his arms. He never wanted her to suffer. She, of all people, didn't deserve it, but everyone else did. Making her so scared and prompting her to suffer due to their mistakes; it made him sick.

Sure, the blonde was incredibly terrified of not having her beside him, but it was because he needed to be there to protect her. Without him, she would have died, but with him, she was calm and happy. He remembered her clinging to him desperately, weeping while he pet her hair comfortingly. The only way she would go back to sleep is if he tucked her in and kissed her before singing her his special song. Even then, it didn't always work.

"The world goes black," the male hummed, tears pricking at his eyes, "my heart goes numb, the way the eyes peer down. The water goes still...t-the heartbeat stops, the pain of lies goes on."

She would fall asleep so calmly in his arms, clutching hopelessly at his loose pajama shirt. And always would one single tear fall from her crystal clear (e/c) pupils, one the blonde would be swift to clear away and kiss it gently. He couldn't count the number of nightmares she'd had or the number of times when he would wake up to her crying and calling his name, burying herself in his chest and holding his hand to her cheek. Further still, she'd been nothing like that when he brought her to the castle. Her experience was one of bliss, the opposite of her blatant suffering.

Several months ago, he could picture it clearly, the curious expression on her face while she ducked into one corridor or the next all while he walked calmly behind her with a supportive smile. Despite everything, she had fallen in love with the blonde, seeing the similarities between them and the need to protect one another from the cruel world. The (h/c) haired girl tended to still be incredibly stubborn, but it wasn't as if he was holding her against her will. Well, he would have if she wanted to leave, but that was a different story.

"Rei!" the younger girl called, prompting the male to give an acknowledging hum in response, "Hurry up and find me!"

The blonde went still and he peeked around the corner of the hallway, finding no sign of the younger girl. Immediately, his mind was set to panic mode, and he began scouring in every door he could open. He shouted for the girl to come out and that he'd had his fill of her little game, but still, she was unfound. It was just before he was about to get the guards that he felt arms around his neck, being dragged down before he was met with a familiar pair of soft lips. His eyes softened and he indulged in the kiss before pulling away.

"Please be more careful, cupcake," he sighed, leaning down to kiss her forehead, "You know how worked up I get."

"I can't have a little bit of fun?" the younger girl pouted, the expression prompting the older male to give a small laugh, "This is my home now, isn't it? Isn't it safe?"

The blonde's eyes glossed over with an unreadable emotion and he swept the (h/c) haired girl off her feet, holding her close to his chest, holding her protectively, holding her like a princess. The sound of his shoes echoed through the hallways aside from the scampering of servants and guards on their daily rounds. Every time someone got close, the male became cold and glared, waiting for an excuse to tell them off or punish them for being too close to his beloved.

"I'd like to tell you it was," the blonde sighed, "I want nothing more than for you to be safe with me, but, sadly, I can't control the will of others to their very posture. Not without supervising you at all times."

The younger girl smiled at the thought, but the characteristically cold and sadistic male looked away with blush dusting his cheeks. It wasn't unusual at that point for her to be able to make the male go red at any given point. In fact, it was more or less expected for him to be soft around her. That being said, it didn't turn the blonde away from his cruelty, he just chose to limit his actions in the presence of the (h/c) haired girl. It was reduced drastically from torture and killings to occasional snaps at people he found incompetent or too close to his beloved. Of course, being close to (Y/n) was a death sentence in and of itself, but he chose to be lenient most of the time.

"Rei," the younger girl called, prompting the blonde in question to turn his head to her, his violet eyes entrancing her, making her feel supernatural, "Rei."

"I'm listening, pumpkin," he chuckled, placing his beloved on the edge of his literal king-sized bed, "Anything out of your lips is precious. I wouldn't ever ignore it, so don't hide your alluring voice from me."

"Oh?" (Y/n) chuckled, a mischievous smirk on her lips as she crawled to the pillows, laying down so her (h/c) locks were sprawled against them and the bedsheets. Rei would be lying if he said the sight wasn't utterly tempting to him, especially when she bit down slightly on her lip, "Then what if I told you I was in love with one of the guards? Would that be precious?"

The blonde let out a sadistic chuckle, his eyes glossing over again, but not nearly in the same manner. He stood up straight, his posture one akin to a prince, perfect and elegant with more grace than a swan. The male then stalked intimidatingly towards the younger girl, her smile still mischievous and playful. And when he quickly made his way onto the bed and positioned himself over her in a dominant manner, her cheeks flushed, but it wasn't anything out of the ordinary. He loved teasing, sexual or otherwise.

"Hm?" he hummed, his eyes focused and curious all the same, "And what's this...guard's name, honey?"

"A lady never tells," the younger girl giggled, tracing the blonde's lips with her finger, morbidly intrigued with them.

It was bound to attract his attention, feeling the tender way she treated such a vulnerable part of him. Against her fingers, he smirked, her cheeks heating up even further when he took hold of her hand subtly, his fingers caressing her skin before he abruptly stopped her in her tracks and tilted his head towards her hand. He then revealed his teeth, a grin visible before he directed her attention to her fingers, one of his canines threatening to bite her. Of course, he didn't prefer to hurt her, and only licked her as an apology for the thought, giving a gentle kiss before continuing their fictional conversation.

"No?" he asked, giving one small amused chuckle before closing their proximity to one another, continuing his intimate kisses on her fingers, "If I buy you that necklace you were staring at earlier, would you tell me?"

"I don't care for such trivial things," the younger girl sighed dramatically before giggling, "Besides, you make it sound as if I'm easily bought."

"Of course not," he paused, his smirk only widening, "A prize such as you would need the world in exchange for one single look, isn't that right?"

"The world? I've given you plenty of looks, and I'm sad to say, I still don't have it."

"Believe me," Rei chuckled darkly, assessing the glistening color in the younger girl's eyes as well as her playful smile, "You'll have it if it's the last thing I do...but frankly, I don't think it deserves to be owned by you. I'd slaughter every last filthy human that dared steal a glance at you. "

"But I own you, don't I?" (Y/n) snickered, lifting the male's chin almost sensually, "What makes you deserve it? Besides, one guard is hardly a concern to such a perfect specimen like you. Why should you be concerned about him?"

"Aha, I'm perfect, am I? So you finally admit it, cupcake. Now, do tell. What is it about me that's so perfect?"

The blonde took the girl's hand gently and placed a chaste kiss on the back of her hand before guiding it to his hair then down to his eyes, his cheeks, his lips, then further and further. He guided her along every inch of his body, watching as she flushed at touching his chest and still going lower. It was an addicting sight for a sadist. Just because he didn't want to hurt her didn't mean he couldn't sufficiently humiliate and embarrass her. Such a face was intoxicating, prompting him to smirk wider and wider the entire time, especially as the younger girl pulled her hand away bashfully before he reached lower than his v-line.

"What?" he purred, teasing seductively in her ear, "Are we shy, cupcake?"

"H-Hah!" she replied, beginning to become flustered, "I don't need to feel down there to know you're smaller than my darling guard."

"Oh?" he chuckled darkly, twirling a strand of her (h/c) hair in his fingers, "Is this some kind of foreplay of yours, cupcake? You're trying to make me get all hot and horny because you want me to cut up that guard of yours. Trust me, the sight of blood would turn me on, but not more than this talking you're doing."

"R-Rei," the younger girl blushed, her heart beating quickly a nervous smile that entailed she loved every moment of his teasing, "You...You're being a pervert."

"Is that what you call it when I can't resist the stunning woman in front of me?" he chuckled, rolling over and laying down next to the younger girl, kissing her neck playfully, "Well, I've been called a pervert before, but I prefer you to just call me by my name."

The blonde was more than content staying in bed with the younger girl, playing with her hair and kissing her lazily. At the same time, he would compliment everything he spotted on her, all of it perfect to him. Even if she was entirely too embarrassed, her cheeks a bright red, and her stuttering his name making him chuckle, there was nothing more beautiful than seeing her tremble at her touch.

"Tell me you love me," he requested, staring at her lips, anticipating her unique words, "with that gorgeous voice of yours."

"You know, they say actions speak louder than words," the younger girl scoffed playfully, "but that never seems to be the case with you. I can hug and kiss you for hours, cuddle you for days, and still, you only want me to verbalize my feelings. Will you tell me why?"

"Does it matter?" he sighed, breathing in the smell of her faint floral shampoo.

"No," a pause. "But I'm curious. Can't I know what my love wants and why?"

Rei's face lit up a bright red. He was typically never so obvious when blushing, usually more of a pink than a scarlet, but he was surprised at the same time. In fact, he hadn't ever heard her say something like that. He'd been calling her all sorts of nicknames, wanting her to stand out when he spoke to her. But for her to return the favor made him tear up and hold her closer, refusing to let her see or hear him cry. She wasn't so easily fooled.

"You told me you wanted to be yourself in front of me," the younger girl cooed, stroking his hair delicately, "No masks, no hiding, remember? How can I love you if I don't get to see who you are?"

The blonde scoffed, his tears evident when he sniffled and turned away. However, the younger girl only turned his head with her gentle hands and stole a kiss from him, prompting him to turn around and wrap his arms around her. He didn't feel like hiding anymore, placing grateful kiss after kiss on her skin. She was more than happy to provide him with the recognition he so loved, that he so craved.

"I don't know how to repay you," he scoffed, still stifling his cries, "I can't buy you enough and can't give you nearly enough love to compete with what you give me. How is that fair?"

(Y/n) stole another kiss from the male, prompting him to blush just a bit brighter and hug her tighter. The only thing that ran through his mind was how she had made his life a paradise. The blonde almost killed her their first couple of times meeting. He wouldn't have been able to live with it if she slipped from his arms, and he couldn't fathom never knowing her at all. That being said, she pushed out all thoughts like that with her affectionate embrace, prompting him to cry tears of joy for her presence.

He'd been exposed to her radiant self for more than his fair share of time, and yet, he had never gotten used to the elevated feeling that came with being with her. That wasn't the only reason he wanted to spoil her constantly. The blonde had strict rules in place for maids that came into her room, strict guidelines for how to treat the younger girl, stricter if the servants or guards were of the male variety. He was well aware his cupcake was enviable by both genders, but the males posed the greatest risk, not only to her purity but to his position as her sole lover.

"Would you like to go shopping?" the blonde smiled, "There's some boutiques in the upper area of the royal city that mother absolutely adores. Fit for a queen, hm?"

"I don't need any jewelry or dresses or anything," the younger girl scoffed, "Besides, I'm no queen. I'm a foreigner that will cause political strife over your spoiling me."

"My mother married a foreigner from Athain, dummy. And my big brother had a high school sweetheart from Athain. It's not a foreign concept. Ahem, no pun intended. My point is that you're going to be my queen whether my people like it or not."

What the male neglected to mention was that neither relationships still remained. However, the younger girl rolled her eyes playfully as the blonde began to bring the girl's suitcase to the bed. Although most of her things were placed in their room by the maids, he wouldn't let them touch certain things of hers. Of said things were priceless memories of theirs, things he had gotten her on trips or things she'd bought him. The number of things they had was perhaps limited, but he had sincerely hoped that they would have far more memories together.

The blonde was visited by some of his assistants that called his attention to look at a few issues concerning his cousin. That was the entire reason he was called back to the castle, but he didn't mind showing (Y/n) the luxury he was raised and bathed in. That being said, as he was called to leave the younger girl in the company of trusted maids, he gave a frown and had guards posted up. He started to leave, but he then glared at the posted security and then entered the room again with a happy smirk.

"I'll be changing your guards constantly," the blonde chuckled, knocking on the door playfully, "Just so I don't ever see your 'darling guard', okay, cupcake?"

"You know that guard doesn't really exist, don't you?" the (h/c) haired girl giggled.

"Of course," the male's voice light at first then darkening at his next words, "but...better safe than sorry."