Exception

The Switch

You sat at the edge of the surprisingly comfortable bed. You pulled gently at the golden canopy that was trapped over the post frame as your mind wandered towards your group. You were sure they must all be worried. Especially Grant. He looked like he was ready to fight all the guards just to get you out of their grasp. However, the professor wisely held him back from performing such a reckless action. If only I could talk some sense into the Prince. Try to find out what made him so drawn to me. Hopefully I can make him understand I am far from a suitable bride.A future queen for that matter. I'm in no way his kind of girl. He will just have to accept it.
. You laid your head back against the pillows and snuggled into the bedding. You began to think of how you would approach the Prince with your explanation. Making him understand would be the only way to get out of this mess without causing anymore problems. Soon, all your thoughts came to a stop as you drifted off into sleep.

The next morning, you were awoken by a soft voice.
"Good morning (y/n). It's time to get up. Master Sakima has requested you be present for breakfast."
Your eyes slowly peeled open. You did not feel like getting up. The sheets were so soft against your skin and you didn't feel completely recooperated from last night's events. Looking over to your right, you saw Ama smiling brightly.
"Come! I have prepared a bath for you!"
"Well, I guess a bath would be nice." you replied as you sat up.
"Come on then!" Ama exclaimed as she pulled out from bed by your hand.
She hurriedly led you to the washroom. The décor was similar to the bedroom. The only difference was that the bath tub appeared to be made out of polished stone, possibly granite. The room was furnished with gold and red curtains. There was a golden colored towel hanging on a rod attached to the wall.
"Well, undress than." Ama said as she pulled at your pajamas that had been provided to you.
"Thank you Ama, but I can bathe myself. If you don't mind?"
"Ah, yes of course. Just call for me if you need any assistance. Another maid has already placed your dress on your bed."
Ama left you to bathe in peace. The water was the perfect tempature. Not too hot, but just the way you would prepare your own bath. You undressed and sink yourself all the way in to the bath. Allowing your somewhat sore body to soak was very soothing.
After you washed your hair, you got out and dried yourself off with the towel that was hung for you. Wrapping the towel around yourself, you exited the washroom and walked towards the bed. Laying on the bed was a beautiful (f/c) silky dress. The sleeves were long and made from a sheer material. The dress was classy and modest, as you would assume a princess would dress. You sighed to yourself as you remembered how the prince spoke of you to his mother. He was sure to be crushed when you told him that you really cannot marry him. He was just going to have to move on. Besides, no one in the village was happy about his decision. You reluctantly put the dress on, making sure to smooth it out so that it did not wrinkle.
"(Y/n), are you ready?" Ama said as she burst into the bedroom.
"Yes, I'm ready."
"This way than!"
You followed Ama down the lengthy hall. Once you reach the palace foyer, Ama took you left doqn another hall. This hall was not as long, and it led went right past a large meeting room. After that was the entrance to the kitchen. And finally, the dining room. As you entered the room, you saw Sakima speaking with a man that must have been a palace servant. He immediately noticed you, standing to his feet with a smile on his face.
"Ah, good morning my dove. Have a seat, please." he said as he pulled out a chair next to his.
"Um, thanks." you replied as you sat down. Sakima pushed in your chair before sitting back down. He snapped his fingers and servants began to bring out both exotic and American breakfast dishes.
"I am aware that you are an American, so I had my cooks prepare a few American dishes as well as our own personal favorites. You are sure to love our food." Sakima said, full of confidence.
"Thank you. The food looks amazing."
"I would like to discuss with you some details of our engagement."
"Well, about that..." your words were cut off.
"You will have to go through some basic training. You will have to learn about all our laws and the duties of a queen. Once my father passes, we will immediately take the throne so my mother will no longer have queenship. Of course, she will continue to live in the palace with us."
"Sakima..."
"And, obviously you will be expected to become pregnant shortly after our ceremony. Having mother around will indeed be helpful for when the child birthing process begins."
"SAKIMA!" you said, this time raising your voice.
"Yes my dove?"
"Listen to me. I can't marry you and I definitely do not plan on getting pregnant anytime soon! I presented myself out of respect to your laws and to keep my friend and I from being executed! I never did intend to actually be chosen by you. Sakima, you seem like a sweet prince, but this just cannot happen. No one in your village besides Ama appears to like me and even your parents are disappointed."
Sakima took your hand in his. The smile on his face had melted away and he now appeared very serious. His golden orbs were glued to your own (e/c) ones. "It does not matter what anyone else thinks about my decision. As far as your intentions go, those do not matter either. You made a decision to present yourself to me so you should have been prepared for the possibilities. I have chosen you. This is a great honor. As my bride, I promise to treat you well, to adore you, to lavish you with whatever your heart desires, to protect you from every danger. You will want and need for nothing. My darling, simply stay with me. Accept me. Love me." His sentence ended with a smile returning to his face. However, there appeared to be a sadness about him. Even when he smiled, you knew there was some kind of pain he was fighting to hide as he spoke.
"Oh, Sakima." you said with a bitterness in his voice. He truly seemed to want to please you. But you had a life of your own. You were not simply going to throw that all away. You didn't even belong here. If he wouldn't allow you to leave, you would have to escape.
"If you are not ready to continue this conversation, we will have more time later. Please, eat." Sakima said as he offered you a bite from your own plate. You gave Sakima an annoyed look and rolled your eyes. Still, he waited patiently for you to accept the food. Not wanting to drag things out, you took the bite. The food was absolutely amazing. There was a unique blend of seasonings used in the food that you had never tasted before.
"Wow, that is incredible!"
"I knew you would enjoy this dish." Sakima replied, his grin widening.
The two of you enjoyed the rest of your breakfast in silence. It was a little awkward for you, so you finished as quickly as possible. Once the maids had come to clean up, Sakima took your hand and began to lead you out of the palace dining room.
"Where are we going?" you asked.
"I want to show you around your new home." he replied, smiling. You sighed at what he said. As he held firmly to your hand, he walked you back towards the palace foyer. Before you could reach the main palace entrance, however, Sakima's mother stood there waiting.
"Sakima, your father wishes to speak with you. He is not doing well. I fear he may only have weeks to live. Go to him"
"Of course mother, at once." he replied, no longer smiling. "I am sorry to cut short our time together. I promise my dove, we will spend our evening together." He quickly headed towards his father's chambers.
Now what?
"It appears my son has made sure to inform every guard that you may try to leave. It would not be wise to try to escape" Sakima's mother said, once her son was no longer visible.
"Wait, what?"
"I do not wish for you to marry my son. However, he has made his choice. If you are to be his bride, you must learn obedience. Remember that." As she finished her sentence, she quickly turned away, leaving you alone in the foyer.
This could be my chance you thought. Despite what the queen had said, you couldn't just sit around and do nothing. Otherwise you would end up married to a man you did not know in a foreign country. You slipped out through the main palace doors. You looked around to make sure there was no guards standing at the doors. You walked casually down the steps to avoid drawing attention to yourself.
Jeez, how many steps does this path have?
As you finally reached the bottom of the stone steps, you took a moment to catch your breath. However, that moment was short lived.
"What are you doing out here girl?" you heard a man's voice with a thick accent addressing you. Looking to your left, you saw a guard staring at you with his arms crossed. This was not the same guard as before so you were surprised he spoke English. He looked like he could be in his mid 40s, but it was hard to tell since Kintonans aged differently.
"Who, me? Oh I....uh, I was just getting some fresh air."
"I'm sure the prince order the guards that you were not to leave the palace alone." he replied grabbing your arm tightly.
"Ow, that hurts!"
"Be silent. I promise I am much more gentle with you than the last foreign girl."
"Last.... foreign girl?" you responded with a hint of confusion in your voice.
"Hm, seems you don't know about her after all. It does not matter. I am taking you back to the palace where you belong." The guard began dragging up back up the steps. Man, I just came down these stupid steps you thought. "Hurry up girl."
"Excuse me, I am a grown woman not a little girl!"
"Are you now? We will see about that." The guards words made you nervous. He seemed angry that you talked back to him. You were afraid that you would be locked in the Prince's bedroom, foiling your chance to escape today.
"Let me go! I get it, I'm suppose to stay in the palace. I don't need to be dragged back like an animal!"
"Silence woman." His grip tightened around your arm. He seemed angrier as he yanked you up every step with great force. What did I do wrong? There is no reason for him to treat me like this.
"Please, stop. Your hurting me."
"I said be quiet!" The guard replied, smacking you across the face. You were left in total shock. Not knowing how to respond, you just remained quiet and followed the guard as he pulled you into the palace.
Once you were back inside the palace walls, two other guards were posted by the door. They simply nodded at the guard whom had a grip on you and then opened the doors. The guard began pulling you up the stairs and down a hallway to the left. You were tempted to ask where he was taking you, but you didn't want to be struck again so you remained silent. Once nearly to the end of the hall, you were brought inside a large room. This room was the King's council chamber.
"Good noon Majesty. I caught the Prince's item trying to go into the village. Attempting an escape no doubt. What would you have me do with her." The guard addressed the sickly king as he bowed before him.
"Do with her as you wish, Azul." The king replied waving his hand in a shooing manner.
"Very well." The guard quickly whisked you around and began taking you out the way you came.
"W-where are you taking me?" you asked nervously.
"To teach you a lesson."
The guard took you straight to the room you had slept in the night before. Before you had a chance to prepare yourself for a fight, you had been tossed onto the bed like a paper weight. The guard began to remove his clothes, giving you a lustful smile.
"What are you doing!" you exclaimed out of fear.
"Sadece iyi eski günlerdeki gibi"
"W-what?"
"You are going to see what happens to foreign women that try to invade." The guard said, approaching you with oy his groin covered.
"What are you talking about! I was never trying to invade, this whole situation is a misunderstanding!" you tried to plea with the man, but he would not listen. He pushed you back against the bed and began to crawl on top of you. You tried scooting away but he dragged you doqn so that you laid directly beneath him.
"There is no use trying to escape. I am going to find out just how much of a woman you are." A sadistic laugh escaped his lips. You were terrified.
"Someone, help!" You screamed as loud as you could. However, the guard smack you across the face once again. You felt the side of your fave starting to bruise. Tears escaped your eyes as you realized you weren't strong enough to get away from him.
Just as the guard began to pull up the hem of your dress, the door flew open. Trying to see over the guard towering over you, you saw Sakima standing in the doorway. Time appeared to stop in that moment. Sakima stood there in disbelief. You saw a look in his eyes, it was almost...demented. His pupils seemed to disappear into the yellow hew of his eyes.
"You....pig!" Sakima screamed as he began charging. He grabbed the man by his shoulders and tossed him off of you as though he was a mere feather. He pulled a dagger from his belt and began delivering relentless blows to Azul. Over and over. You could hear Sakima repeating the words "Never again." with every stab. This cannot be the same man. This cannot be the prince I met earlier...
Soon, the guards movements stopped. Sakima was covered in blood. He was breathing heavily as he still knelt over the motionless guard. He looked over at you, a crazy look still on his face. Ama came into the room only moments later and screamed after what she saw. She began shouting in a foreign younger causing several maids and servants to come flooding the room. Everyone was in a panic. Sakima said something to Ama, causing her to rush to your side, checking you all over.
"I will be back (y/n) with some medicine for your injuries at once!" she yelled, running out of the room. Servants began wiping the blood from Sakima's face with towels as a few others dragged the guard away. You were unsure if he was dead or alive. Sakima pushed his servants off, and came to side by your side. He gently placed his hands on your gave causing you to flinch slightly from pain.
"Are you alright...my dove?"