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A large castle sat on the edge of a cliff. Snow and ice covered every inch of the land, making the kingdom look more cold and dark.
In one of the smaller towers of the castle, a young boy pushed open the tall windows and stood by a railing looking out onto the land.
The Prince, Winter, had grown into a handsome young man. He was tall, and lean, with smooth pale skin, and short dark black hair and black eyes. He wore a simple white shirt with a blue coat over it with a red necktie, black pants and black boots.
Winter sighed as he looked out at the kingdom, appearing to be in deep thought.
*KNOCK**KNOCK*
Winter jumped at the sudden knock at his door. He walked away from the window and hurried over to his door and pulled it open.
On the other side stood a girl who was smiling brightly at him. The girl had (s/c) skin, (h/l) (h/c) hair, and pretty (e/c) eyes, and she was wearing a maid's uniform.
Winter smiled brightly. "(Y/n)!" He exclaimed. "What are you doing here so early?"
Winter had known (Y/n) since he was a child. He met her not long after his father died, and she quickly became his first...and only...friend. She had always there for him, helping him move past his father's death, and made his life less lonely. As a result, he grew to care for her. Very deeply.
(Y/n) smiled and shrugged lightly. "I wanted to be the first person to wish you a happy birthday."
Winter stepped aside and she entered his room. (Y/n) leaned forward and wrapped her arms around his shoulders. "Happy Birthday."
Winter wrapped his arms around her waist and felt himself blush lightly at being this close to her. He was thankful that she couldn't see him right now.
"Thank you (Y/n)." He muttered.
In the distance, the muffled blare of trumpets could be heard, signaling to some kind of event.
"Oh, I think the party is starting." Winter commented.
He took (Y/n)'s hand in his, and pulled her out the door with him.
...
Downstairs in the throne room, the Queen was sitting on a large golden throne. She was tall, with sharp features, and curly brown hair. Her dress was elegant and golden and poofed out at the bottom.
"F to D-9." The Queen announced.
On the floor of the room, several people were either dressed in gold or dark blue, and had a small ship on their head.
The Queen seemed to be playing a game with real life pieces.
One of the golden players started moving along the floor, to the spot that the Queen had announced.
"To your left, Lord Waiverly. If someone could teach Lord Waverly his left from his right, I would be so very grateful." The Queen stated sarcastically.
A man standing by the Queen's throne dressed in dark blue colors, wearing a powdered wig spoke. "B to J-12."
One of his players moved to the indicated spot, as the Queen's opponent turned to face her. "My lady, I feel it is my duty to tell you of the rumors that I've been hearing."
The Queen raised her brow. "Rumors?"
"Well, there have been rumblings that the kingdom is close to destitute. If we were to join our two houses in marriage, I feel the gentry would be reassured that the kingdom was stable once again." The man proposed.
The Queen chuckled and turned to someone sitting in a chair. "Brighton, a word please?" She requested.
Brighton, a short man in a red suit and gray wig, hopped up from his chair and turned to face her with a bow. "Yes, Your Majesty?"
"Loose lips sink ships."
"Yes indeed, Your Majesty, exactly. Which ship would you like to have sunk?" He asked.
"It's an expression, Brighton. A royal decree. Take it down." She ordered.
Brighton nodded. "Ah, marvelous." He said, pulling out a pen and paper.
"Any busybodies caught rumoring, gossiping, whispering, or even thinking shall be put to death." The Queen declared. "How does that sound?"
Brighton looked uneasy. "It's...decisive." He replied.
The Queen waved him away, and he scurried out of the room. Off to the side, Winter was walking past some of the columns, with (Y/n) right behind him.
"Winter." The Queen called, making him stop in his tracks. "Is there a fire?" She asked.
Winter nervously stepped forward. "I'm sorry?"
The Queen patted the bottom of her dress, signaling for him to come closer. Winter slowly approached his step-mother and knelt down on one knee beside her.
"Is your bedroom on fire?" The Queen repeated. "Because I'm searching for an explanation as to why you would be out of your bedroom and in here, and my first guess was fire."
Winter lightly shrugged his shoulders. "I thought maybe I could come to the gala, you know, because today is my 18th birthday."
The Queen gasped and grabbed his hand. "Is it now? Oh my, oh my." She suddenly released his hand and looked to the players. "E to F3 please."
Then she turned back to Winter. "Winter, maybe it is time I ease up on you, Hmm? I mean you've done nothing to me, caused no problems. And yet, there is something about you that's just so incredibly...irritating."
(Y/n) furrowed her brows at the Queen.
"I don't know what it is. The slumped shoulders. The hair, that voice...Mm!" She shuddered in annoyance. "I know what it is. I think it's the hair." The Queen reached forward and grasped Winter's hair, yanking his head forward as he gasped in pain. "I hate your hair. I don't care if it's your 100th birthday. Don't ever sneak into a party like this again, or I will forbid you from seeing your little maid." She threatened.
"B to F-6." The Queen's opponent called.
The Queen sat back up and smiled smugly. "C to D-4. Baron, you've been beaten for the last five minutes and didn't even know it."
The ship on the Queen's player's head extended small cannons and fired at the Baron's ship, knocking the masts over.
The players clapped at her victory and the Queen looked back down and Winter, taking his chin in her hand. "It's important to know when you've been beaten. Yes?"
Winter nodded and slowly got up and exited the room, (Y/n) rushing after him.
"Winter." She called, grabbing onto his forearm. "Are you alright?"
He nodded, and placed his hands on her shoulders. "I'm alright. I just...wish I could experience more than the walls of my room is all."
(Y/n) gave him a pitying look. She hated seeing him so upset, and she hated the Queen even more for causing it. She'd never liked her, mainly because of the way she treated Winter. But unfortunately, she was just a maid and couldn't stand up to her, otherwise she'd be fired and cast out of the kingdom. And she would rather die than leave Winter to deal with her all by himself. So, she stayed silent.
(Y/n) took Winter's hand in hers and started leading him down the halls of the castle. "Come on. I can't have my best friend being upset on his birthday." She declared.
Winter cracked a small smile at her behavior. "Where are we going?" He asked.
"You'll see. It's a surprise." She replied mysteriously.
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