*ON HOLD* Solangelo Royalty AU

Seven

Will let out a sigh of relief when the door opened, Hades and George filling the doorway and blocking the light from the corridor beyond. Nico dropped his arm and instinctively, Will's hand shot to his own throat, to run his fingers over the spot Nico's sword had been just moments before, one movement away from taking his life.

Hades was the first to speak.

The King of Pègre yelled at his son before dragging him away to where Will assumed was Hades' rooms.

Once the king and crown prince left the room, George rushed over to Will to check he was okay. "Oh Will, are you alright?" "Did he hurt you? "What happened?" - were only some of the questions that came out of George's mouth.

"George. George! Stop. You sound like my mother, calm down. I'm fine." Will reassured his servant as the man continued to fuss over him.

Finally, George calmed down and left Will alone.

Grateful for the peace, Will sat down in his dining room and rested his elbows on the table, cupping his chin in his hands. He sat there for a long time, processing what had just happened. Prince Nico, the beautiful yet terrifying crown prince of Pègre, had held a sword to his throat! Will never thought he would be in a situation like that in his lifetime yet here he was.

Will didn't leave his room for the rest of the day.

~time lapse~

The next day there was a dinner for Will and his parents and the family of his future bride. That meant Will would have to face Nico again after what happened. He didn't know if he was prepared but he had no choice; George knocked on his door at 5 o'clock to tell Will to begin getting ready.

"George, don't make me go." Will whined like a small child.

George laughed. "Come on Will, it'll be alright."

Will wasn't so sure. Nico was feisty and cunning and dangerous. Will couldn't compete with that. He was just a boy born into a royal family. There was nothing special about him - at least he thought so.

When the time finally came for him to head down to the dinning hall, Will was shaking. He was so nervous to come face to face with Nico, not only because he was afraid of Nico's potential actions but because of Will's feelings towards Nico.

Pushing open the doors, Will came face to face with Nico, who seemed to be mid-tantrum. From the scene behind the dark-haired boy, Will could decipher that there had been an argument and Nico was trying to storm off.

Will switched his attention from the scene at the dinning table to the seething short boy in front of him. Nico looked ready to murder someone so Will, fearing for his life, stepped to the side to let Nico pass but not before he noticed the purple bruises on Nico's

Once Nico was down the hallway, King Apollo spoke up. "Will, son, come and join us please." So Will did.

He took his seat next to his father at the head of the table. The only difference from regular dinners was there was someone to Will's right - Bianca. Until now, it hadn't really registered in Will's mind that he would have to marry the princess and spend his life with her. Was he making a huge mistake?

Stopping the self-doubting thoughts before they could come, the food was served. Everyone at the table turned their attention to the food.

After everyone had a plate full of food, the conversations began.

About Will and Bianca.

King Hades was the first to speak. "Prince William," still with the formalities even though he was to become Will's father-in-law. "What made you pick my Bianca over the other contestants?"

"Well..." Will had to pause. He couldn't say the real reason - wanting to be closer to Nico - or that would insult the princess as well as make it public that he was gay. What should he say? What should he say?

"I picked your daughter as she was the best option, to put it simply. She's beautiful, she's polite, she's everything I need in a queen and more." They seemed satisfied with his answer: Hades grinning proudly, Bianca blushing, Apollo smiling in approval.

After that, Will's mind began to wander. He started thinking back to the run-in with Nico before the dinner. Nico had bruises all over his face.

What had caused them?

Who had caused them?

Because, to Will, it looked a whole like someone had been repeatedly punching the prince in the face, not that Will had a lot of experience with what the aftermath of a fistfight looked like.

He couldn't help but wonder what had happened to the boy.

Nico wasn't the kind of person to let someone land that many punches on him. He seemed like the type to be able to defend himself successfully.

Will was snapped out of his thoughts by his father's voice. "William!" He sounded angry.

"Sorry father. What were you saying?" Will said, putting on his best smile in an attempt to get out of trouble.

King Apollo's face softened. "Oh try to pay attention William." He said before continuing his monologue.

Will got lost in his thoughts about Nico again and didn't speak at the dinner again.

When they were finally excused from the table, Will stood up and left the dinning hall. Then he set out on his mission to find Nico.

As he walked through the hallways of the castle, Will refused to let his confidence drop. It was only when he was facing the door to Nico's rooms did he finally start to waver.

Before he could walk away, the door swung open and Nico bumped into Will, knocking both of them to the ground, Nico on top of Will.

Nico's face, so close to Will's, was furious.

**********

a/n

I feel like all my authors notes are apologising about slow updates, so I'm going to stop. I do update slow, and that's just how I roll. I have other stuff to do as well as writing so you'll have to respect that. If you like this book enough, you'll continue reading and put up with my update 'schedule'.

Thank you.

Please vote/comment if you liked this chapter.

~Em