Royal Agreements [Kylo Ren x Reader]

chapter nine

He walked over to you and sat at your side. You wiped your eyes. When you were sitting in your spot, half in the dark and half in the blue moonlight emitting from the three moons in the sky, Kylo noticed the pink shading of your cheek.

His fingers danced across the skin there. You winced and pulled away slightly, reaching up to wave his hand away. He turned toward you.

"Did your mother do that?" he asked softly.

You nodded.

He looked down. "Because of me."

You sniffed. "No, it was because of me," you whispered. "I'm a grown woman, Kylo. She has no control over me, yet she likes to think that she does."

"She is your queen," he reminded you.

"But I am her heir," you growled. "And I am not something she can control as she pleases. I will not allow myself to be a miserable being as she was and is."

"I know," he murmured.

You sighed. "It's all my fault, Commander. You shouldn't have considered your involvement as the reasoning for her lashing out."

He shook his head. "I said something to your father that I shouldn't have," he said.

"What?" you mumbled.

He shook his head and gave a short, dry chuckle. "I suppose I should have told you first, but he asked me. I didn't know it was true until I was faced with the possibility of Juban claiming you for marriage."

"What?" you asked.

"I should have told you-"

"Start over, please," you breathed.

He nodded. "When Juban mentioned allowing us his army in exchange for marrying you, your father was obviously considering it. I told him that you were spoken for already, and your father told me that things would change for the better of the planet."

You nodded and swallowed.

"I spoke to him alone," he continued, "and I reminded him of who he worked for and who he aimed to please. I told him that the Supreme Leader would not find him as anything but a traitor if he chose to align himself with the planet of Domzay instead. Your father is a coward. I realized that when he took back his consideration and began to plead for his life."

You scoffed in disgust. "He was that willing to have a strong army?" you asked. "His daughter means that little to him."

"A strong army, especially to a man with no common sense, means control over the entirety of the galaxy," he said. "Your father must have considered overthrowing the Supreme Leader himself."

"He what-"

"That's not what's important," he interrupted, grabbing your hand. He ran his tongue along the front side of his top teeth before continuing. "He asked me what made me act so quickly to defend you, to keep you as my own."

You swallowed. "And?"

"And I told him that I love you," he said simply. "I told him that love wasn't something I was supposed to be feeling, given my past, but I felt it stronger than anything."

You felt tears in your eyes. "You truly love me?" you asked.

"Yes," he breathed. "Truly."

"Yet you have hardly known me," you said.

He shook his head. "I have admired you since before our arrangement. I looked at you for the first time last year, and I saw a princess that stood for everything she believed in: grace, order, and serving her people.

"I have yet to find one thing about you that I do not admire, Princess. You are dedicated and devoted, and that's what I need when I rule the galaxy. I need you by my side."

"As I need you," you breathed.

You held his face in your hands. He warmed against your palm and his eyes closed. You smiled and traced his features slowly. As you pushed your forehead against his, he spoke.

"You touch me like I'm not a murderer of hundreds," he breathed in realization. "Like I don't haunt the dreams of nearly every creature."

You shook your head. "I don't see a monster when I look at you, Kylo Ren. I see a Commander that will fight bravely for what is right."

He smiled. "That's the first time you have said my name, Princess."

You smiled, too. "Then perhaps you should say mine," you whispered.

"___," he breathed, and he watched you like you were the most beautiful, astounding thing he had ever seen. "___, you are amazing."

You put your palms flat against his cheeks. He moved his hands to your wrists and locked his fingers there. You basked in the warmth that held you both together, as one.

"Things are complicated," you whispered, "and our future is uncertain. But Kylo Ren, my betrothed, please know that I do love you. I love you as I have loved no other."

You sat with him all night. Sometimes, his hands would run down your arms. His fingers would move the your hair, where he would pull lightly at the curls in amusement, or brush his fingers through your roots. He would whisper to you as he ran his hands down your back, or as he cupped the sides of your face.

He didn't show any sign of leaving, and you showed no sign of sending him away. You held him, touched him, and spoke to him with passionate love.

When the early morning came, and the lilac peeking of the suns threatened to brighten the dark yards, Kylo said that he had to leave. You panicked inside, but nodded and pulled away.

You stood from your spot, bones aching from lack of movement, and took his hand. You walked him to your balcony and turned to face him. He looked solemn as he leaned down and cupped your face.

"I will be counting every day down," he whispered, "every day until I get to see you again."

You smiled. "And I, you, but you mustn't forget what your duties are. They come before me, Kylo."

He shook his head. "Nothing comes before you, ___. Not anymore."

He leaned further in until his lips were centimeters away from yours. You shut your eyes and gasped at the warm feeling of his breath that washed across your face. He shut his eyes at the sound and closed the space.

He held you as he kissed you. His hands pressed against your back and pushed you closer against him. Your hands fell weak against and around his shoulders. You kissed him long and softly, afraid that you would scare him away if you did anything too roughly.

Although Kylo had opened up to you first, it was his fear that held him back still. Whatever his past was haunted him, it kept him from wanting to feel anything. You wished to tell him that whoever had hurt him in his early life couldn't anymore; and that you would always, always be there for him.

"You must obey the Supreme Leader," you said, "and come home to me safe and sound."

"I have every intention of returning to you, my princess," he said. "I'll see you at the alter."

"Yes," you breathed. Your eyes twinkled and your cheeks blushed. "I'll see you."

He kissed your forehead before descending down the side of your tower. You leaned your elbows against the cobblestone and watched him go. He offered one final parting glance before he disappeared in the vegetation.