Chapter Text
"I'm not certain why Prince Simeon is needed. You and I can work things out king to king and the prince can get some rest since you are so insistent on leaving tomorrow." Princess Asmo's father, King Bael was perched in his overly ornate chair at the head of the table in the council room.
"I do have a kingdom to attend to, I'm sure you understand that, king to king , and I did offer to return within the month to negotiate a dowry and the relations between our three kingdoms. It is you who are insistent on doing this right now, mere hours after my proposal. One would presume Prince Simeon should be included in negotiations that involve his kingdom, no?" It was late, Solomon was tired, and his patience was wearing thin with this king and his increasingly annoying displays of greed and disregard for anyone he deemed beneath him.
"Shall we call my child in as well? Prince Simeon is being whisked away to your kingdom just like the princess. One would presume that someone who will actually take part in governing his country be included, no? And since no such person is available, as a king and his future husband, then it seems reasonable that this meeting be between you and I."
Simeon watched Solomon carefully from his seat beside him. He was unbothered by King Bael's attitude and was much more interested and apprehensive about how Solomon would handle the situation. Though he couldn't help being just a bit entertained by the way Solomon stared at the King now. A wide and pleasant smile on his face, but his silver eyes shone like daggers, amused and eager. Like a cat who had discovered a new game and was waiting patiently to pounce.
Solomon continued staring in silence. Long enough for the scribe present to feel awkward and busy himself fidgeting with his quill. Long enough for King Bael to swallow nervously and develop a light sheen of sweat across his brow. Only when the king cleared his throat and began to backpedal did Solomon speak. Not to the king, however.
Turning, Solomon addressed Simeon with the same smile and a much more pleasant tone. "Prince Simeon, doesn't your kingdom supply these lands with all their sugar and textiles?"
"Why yes, King Solomon. In exchange for wheat, which we are very grateful for as we sorely need it considering how difficult it is to grow in our climate. Though our neighbors to the west have access to many freshwater springs and a large river, it is quite the boon to their agricultural practices. They have always been eager to trade their grain with us. My father had hoped to continue good relations with all the kingdoms on this continent, but now that I have secured a rather permanent alliance with you... well, perhaps we can look into reconfiguring our trading network." Simeon had to school his features into a polite smile matching Solomon's so he wouldn't make a fool of himself grinning like a smitten teenager.
Solomon stared at Simeon now, with the same expression he had while proposing to him and the princess on the balcony earlier in the evening. The pair were so focused on each other another span of silence passed before the now visibly sweating king spoke up again.
This time it was Simeon who interrupted. "King Solomon, what do you think Princess Asmodeus would have to say about the competence level their father seems to believe princesses hold? I'm also curious what you think about both of your newly betrothed partners being insulted in such a way."
"Now, now, I'm certain there has simply been a misunderstanding. The king would never be foolish enough to make an enemy of two powerful kingdoms that his people depend on for safety and economic stability. Isn't that right, King Bael?"
Negotiations went smoothly after that. Though expected, it was still impressive to the prince to witness King Solomon maneuver the conversation with such fluid ease. Many hours later King Bael left the council room pleased and under the impression that he was benefitting a great deal more than anyone else, despite everything landing at a perfectly equitable solution. All by Solomon's design, of course.
Princess Asmodeus had changed out of their formal attire and into their sleeping gown but couldn't settle. Not when they would be leaving behind everything and everyone they knew so soon. Not being able to resist any longer they threw on a coat and snuck their way down to the barracks of the royal guard.
"Princess, it is late. You should be in your room, resting. You have a long journey ahead of you." A burly, older man standing nightwatch glared disapprovingly down at Asmo.
"I know, but how can I rest without saying goodbye to all of you?"
The guard let out a resigned sigh at the princess pouting up at him. "Fine. Please make it quick."
"I will!" Asmo threw their arms around the guard that had been a constant presence in Their life for as long as they could remember. "I'll miss you, Berith. Thank you for everything."
Berith grunted, but slid an arm around Asmo anyway. "If either of those men disrespect you, send a messenger for me to come fetch you immediately. And kill them in their sleep before we depart."
"Berith! King Solomon is a good man. Prince Simeon seems to be as well, and I don't think the king would let him mistreat me. Plus, this is good for our people."
"Hm, perhaps. Still, you are not to tolerate any mistreatment. Do you hear me?"
"Yes, I hear." The princess' eyes welled up with tears and they squeezed Berith tighter. "I will visit as often as I can."
"Alright, go on, say your goodbyes." Berith patted the princess on the back as they leaned up to kiss his cheek before ushering them into the barracks.
The princess made their rounds among the guards, giving them teary hugs and being harangued into promising, repeatedly, to cause bodily harm to anyone who would treat them as less than the intelligent and kind princess they were. They left with all manner of trinkets gifted to them to remember each guard. Tiny carved wood figures, coins from far away lands, arrowheads, and more. Each sure to become a treasured collection of memories.
There was only one guard left to see. "He should be at the north tower." Berith said as the princess left the barracks. Their heart fluttered and ached as they climbed the steps of the watch tower. This would be the most difficult goodbye of all.
"You should not be here. What if King Solomon or that prince saw?" A tall, handsome man with long dark waves tied up at the base of his neck, and piercing amber eyes stood watch. He wore a golden medallion with King Bael's seal, indicating he had been bestowed knighthood for his exemplary service even when not in full armor and regalia.
"They are both with my father in the council room. Would you have come to see me if I hadn't come to you first?" Asmo slid their hand into the knight's outstretched fingers, allowing themselves to be pulled close against him.
"I was planning on climbing in your window as soon as my watch was over." The knight's gaze softened. He slipped off one of his gloves to trace the princess' face with his fingertips.
"Please." Asmodeus leaned into the knight's touch, closing their eyes. His lips found theirs and they held the gentle contact for a long moment. "Furcas, come with me. You can be my personal guard. King Solomon would be happy to have you, I bet."
"Perhaps he would, but your father would not allow it. Don't you think it would be bad manners to bring along the knight you've been fucking for the past several years while a king and a prince court you?" Furcas chuckled, holding Asmo in his arms.
"Obviously they don't have a problem sharing. So it would be alright. Probably." Asmo buried their face in the knight's chest. "Ugh, Fine. When I am queen I will come get you and my father won't have a choice. King Solomon is more wealthy than all the kings on this continent combined."
"Then I will eagerly await that day. Until then, behave." Furcas rested his forehead against Asmo's with a deep sigh. "I was worried that Prince Simeon would whisk you so far away I would never see you again. Thank the gods for King Solomon. I have fought with his men in the past and they all speak very highly of him. If I can't have you myself, then he is who I would have chosen for you were it up to me. You will be an amazing queen. You deserve to live and rule in a prosperous kingdom."
"You're sweet, but you will be able to join me one day, I promise. In the meantime I'm so glad I won't be terribly far away from you, too, and I can still visit everyone." The princess turned in his embrace and faced out over the palace grounds, fingers curled around his strong forearms wrapped around them.
Furcas dropped one arm and reached into a pocket. He then fastened a thin, red silk cord around the princess' neck. Hanging from it was a small diamond shaped blood red ruby encased in a gold setting.
"What is this?" Asmo lifted the pendant to have a better look. The ruby seemed to glow in the moonlight. "Oh, it's beautiful. You shouldn't have! It must have been expensive."
"Your father pays me well enough." The knight's fingers ran up the princess' throat as they leaned back into his chest, tilting their head back and angling their chin to kiss the full pink lips. "Something to remember me by until we meet again."
"Come to my room so I can give you something to remember me by." Asmo turned and stood up on tiptoe to kiss their knight properly, arms thrown around his neck in a passionate exchange with promise of what he would receive in the princess' bedchamber.
Bright and early the next morning Simeon was waiting by the line of carriages ready to depart for Solomon's kingdom. He had convinced his envoy to head back home and inform his father that he would be visiting King Solomon's kingdom to develop relations between their lands and share the good news that he would be wed to Princess Asmodeus. He left out the part that he would be wed to King Solomon as well and be remaining with him. His envoy had insisted one of them remain with the prince, his most trusted guard, Raphael.
King Solomon soon joined the prince, leaving King Bael on the steps, overseeing their departure. "I am looking forward to napping once we get underway. That was an obnoxious meeting, but I am glad we have gotten it over with and do not need to visit that man again for quite some time." Solomon muttered under his breath as they awaited the princess.
Simeon huffed a laugh. "I am of the same mind. Though it was a pleasure seeing you in action."
"Oh? I am sure we will have much more pleasurable action in store soon." Solomon did not look over at the prince, but given the awkward chuckle, he could imagine his expression well enough.
Before the prince could respond, everyone's eyes were drawn to the entire royal guard, in full regalia, assembling at the bottom of the palace steps. They formed two lines facing each other, left arms behind their backs, right fists held over their hearts. The princess emerged from the palace and gasped when they saw the send off they were to receive. Asmo gracefully descended the stairs from the castle doors, eyes glittering with excitement, looking just as gorgeous as they had at the ball, though dressed more casually for travel.
The king and prince were both taken aback at the expression on each guard's face as the princess made their way down the line, teary eyed and smiling. The guards were smiling back at them, affection and care evident on the usually stern faces. The princess was not the only one shedding tears, however. It seemed the entire palace staff had crowded onto the front steps to see the princess off, most sniffling and dabbing at their eyes.
Even more shocking to Solomon and Simeon was the king's clear confusion as to why his guard and staff had abandoned their duties. He impatiently waved them away. "What is this nonsense? Get back to your posts." Bael grumbled at his royal guard. It seemed everyone had taken it upon themselves to say farewell to the princess without consulting their king.
King Solomon and Prince Simeon were smiling widely once the princess joined them. Asmo turned and waved to everyone, trying to hold in their crying, afraid that saying goodbye out loud would result in a full breakdown. Solomon smoothed a hand down the princess' back in comfort, happy to wait until they were ready to leave.
Asmo's two chambermaids that would be joining them in their new home hurried down the steps carrying a large, heavy basket. "Princess, this is from the staff. Your favorite foods and treats for your travels, and some other gifts."
"Oh. I-" A sob cut Asmo off. Simeon took the basket from the two young women, thanking them. They both smiled at the trio and gave the princess a quick embrace before heading off to oversee the packing of Asmo’s belongings. Solomon also slipped away to speak with his guard and footmen about their route home and any potential changes that might need to be made.
After gathering themself somewhat, the princess was able to form a proper greeting. "Good morning, Prince Simeon. Were you able to get any sleep?" Their expression fell into concern seeing the weary look on his handsome face.
"Good morning, princess. I'm afraid not, despite the lovely room you provided for me." He greeted Asmo in kind, with a bow and a kiss to the back of their hand. "Negotiations went long into the night, and by the time they had ended there was little point in getting ready for bed. Your father has quite the strong will."
"Yes, he certainly does," they laughed. "He really does care for our people, despite how he appears sometimes." Princess Asmo held on to the prince's arm as they waited for Solomon to finish and for their luggage to be secured. "Hopefully we will be able to catch up on rest during our trip. I did not sleep much either, though it was mostly due to excitement." It was true enough, despite their upcoming travel not being the only source of excitement last night.
"One would never be able to tell, you look as radiant as ever." Simeon reached his gloved hand up to brush a curl gently away from Asmo's face.
Princess Asmo looked down to hide their blush, but squeezed the prince's strong bicep and leaned into him ever so slightly. "Thank you, Prince Simeon. You look very handsome despite having worked all night." They glanced back up at him through their thick eyelashes. He was still just as dashing, even more so when he returned Asmo's shy grin with a beaming smile of his own.
"Are you ready to go, princess? Any more farewells to bid? You may take as long as you wish.” King Solomon rejoined them at the line of carriages. Solomon's, which the trio would be traveling in, followed by the prince's, which would now be carrying the princess' hand maids, as well as Simeon's lone remaining guard, and the final, full of the prince and princess' belongings.
"I'm ready! Father and I already said our goodbyes." The princess took King Solomon's outstretched hand and climbed into the spacious carriage, followed by their two fiancés and settled in while the coachmen made their final checks over the horses and equipment.
Two cushioned benches lined the front and rear of the interior, and a very wide cushioned area down one side that could be used for sleeping upon which the princess was currently sitting in the center. The king wasted no time getting comfortable, shedding his cloak, crown, and form fitting jacket until he was just in his loose fitting tunic, albeit one made of fine silk with intricate embroidery.
Curtains loosed and closed over the windows that lined each wall, Solomon began folding his cloak to use as a makeshift pillow, but the princess had other ideas. Laying a hand atop his work, they interrupted, "You can use my lap to rest your head if you like."
"I would like that," the king lifted Asmo's hand to leave a kiss on their knuckles. "Thank you." With a deep sigh, Solomon laid back with his head on one of the princess' plush thighs, his long legs sprawled across half the carriage. When Asmo looked down and caught his gaze, he winked. The soft flush across their cheeks was just lovely.
"You can lean on me as well, Prince Simeon." Asmo offered, glancing away from the king before he could fluster them further.
"Thank you, princess, but I'm afraid if I recline I may start to feel ill. I'm not yet accustomed to riding in a carriage. I am content and comfortable enough to doze just as I am." Seeing the confusion on their face, he explained, "Carriages don't do well in sandy regions, so we travel via horse or camel where I am from."
"Oh! I've never seen a camel in person before. Are they friendly?"
"They can be. They vary in temperament as much as horses do, and have a very good memory, but if treated well, yes, most are rather friendly. I would love to bring you and the king both to visit my kingdom someday soon."
Given everyone's lack of sleep, the carriage was soon quiet save for the rhythmic beat of hooves along the dirt road and creaking of wood. Simeon fell asleep first. The princess' fingers running through Solomon's hair had his eyelids drooping. They were tired as well, but still too wound up to sleep, so they sat staring down at their king and soon to be husband, marveling over how soft his silver hair was and how handsome he was. They counted themselves lucky to have won the attention of King Solomon, with his vast resources, powerful army, and valiant and generous reputation. But now to also have beautiful and charming Prince Simeon? It was like a dream. If neither had shown up, the princess would have chosen who would benefit their kingdom the most, as a good princess ought to do, but they had been so scared of winding up with a cruel man.
Though there was still the fear of that once both men found out that the princess would never be able to provide them with an heir. The surge of anxiety pushed Asmo over from wound up into escapism via daydreams, and soon they were asleep as well.
Simeon awoke with a start as the carriage bounced through a divot in the road. He took a few deep breaths to settle his stomach. It seemed he was getting used to riding in this mode of transportation, thankfully. He gazed over at his king and princess as they slept, admiring how beautiful they both were in the golden light of the setting sun that filtered in through the gaps in the curtain opposite them. The prince slid over next to Asmo, laying his arm behind them to support their head against his shoulder and hopefully prevent any soreness from the awkward angle their neck had been bent into.
What started as peaceful contemplation of his new partners devolved into worries over how his family would react to this arrangement. How would he react once everything had sunk in? These were two complete strangers to him and his sanity should be questioned for agreeing to marry King Solomon and move to his kingdom. He was reluctant to take the throne in his own kingdom and yet now he was doing so in a foreign land with another king. How would Solomon's people react to two kings? What would be his role? Would he just be treated as an ornament and only called on for his input when it involved dealings with his own people? How had this even happened? How had Solomon eroded his better sense so quickly and effortlessly? The further they traveled from Princess Asmo's kingdom, the more this felt like an extremely foolish mistake.
The prince's spiraling was interrupted by gentle, calloused fingers wrapping around his own, stopping their fidgeting with the shoulder fabric of the princess' dress. Simeon looked down to find Solomon looking up at him with a concerned look.
Before Simeon could stop him, the king sat up and gathered the still snoozing princess into his lap. He scooted closer to the prince, settling Asmodeus to sit between his thighs on the bed-like cushion. Despite his anxieties, Simeon couldn't help but smile as they curled up against the king's broad chest, wrapping their arms around his torso and slipping into a deeper sleep.
"Would you like to talk about what is troubling you?" Solomon whispered as he collected Simeon's hand again, thumb rubbing slowly over the backs of his fingers.
The prince was quiet a long moment as he looked into the king's gray eyes. "I am not sure this has all sunk in yet. It feels a bit surreal still. I am also not sure how my family will react and it is a bit unnerving not knowing what to expect when we arrive in your kingdom nor what role I will play." Simeon sighed and smiled apologetically.
"Those are all reasonable worries to have. I hope I can put your mind at ease for at least one. I know this arrangement is unconventional at best, but I believe we can make it work out advantageously for everyone. As for your role, you will be king and as such, you will be my equal in all things regarding our kingdom, as will Queen Asmodeus." Solomon paused to take a breath of the rose gold curls resting just beneath his chin. "I realize I must seem impulsive and perhaps childish or greedy, but I have no need for collecting trophies or breaking tradition just for the sake of it. The three of us will accomplish great things, not just for our own lands, but the entire continent. I know it."
"Well, you certainly have had great influence on nearly all the peoples of this continent already. Are you always so confident in your decisions?"
"Now, yes. I wasn't always, of course, but doubting myself has rarely ended well. The statistics for following my intuition are much better."
"Yes, I suppose there is little benefit to constant self doubt, but it is sometimes difficult to silence them. Particularly when my actions affect my entire kingdom, not just myself." Simeon's brow furrowed as he looked back out the window of the carriage.
"Simeon," Solomon's voice was soft and genuine. "If you find yourself unhappy or decide that marrying me is not the right decision for you, then I will harbor no ill will if you choose to leave. Truthfully, I will be disappointed, but still more than willing to continue to develop relations between our kingdoms and be close allies. I would ask that you give me and my people a couple weeks, perhaps a month, to gain a proper impression before deciding. Also so that we can get to know each other better."
Hearing his name sans title coming from the king's mouth in such a tone felt far more intimate than the brief kiss they had shared the prior evening. That, combined with Solomon combating the worry that he was being collected solely for alliance with his kingdom, eased most of the prince's worries considerably. For now, at least. King Solomon radiated such absolute confidence and assurance in every word he spoke that it was difficult to not trust him.
"A month. I can do that. Thank you, King Solomon, for your reassurance."
"You do not need to use my title when we are alone. Though I won't begrudge you if you do. I know that must be a difficult habit to overcome."
Simeon chuckled along with the king. "Yes, I imagine that may take me more than a month to adopt. I appreciate your kindness, though."
The prince relaxed as Solomon closed his eyes and pulled the princess closer. In the following quiet, he became acutely aware that the king was still holding his hand. It had been comforting, but now that his nerves had settled a bit it seemed odd. They had known each other barely more than twelve hours. This level of familiarity was bizarre. Though they would soon be living in Solomon's home, he imagined that Solomon would only behave increasingly more casual with them. Heat pooled in his cheeks as he thought about the likelihood of being intimate with Solomon and the princess very soon. He didn't believe the king would pressure him to do anything he was uncomfortable with, but what if his ingrained formality and courting customs put Solomon off and he was the one who decided that they should not wed after all? The princess was one thing, he knew how to behave with them, but how does a prince go about courting a king? Was he supposed to act like the princess? No, Solomon would surely scold him for acting as anything other than himself. But here he was questioning himself over simply holding hands. With a sigh, Simeon leaned his head back against the carriage wall. So much for settled nerves.