A/n: The chapters will get longer and better its just I'm in a bit of a rush right now. I will try to update at least once a week. Thank you for reading and enjoy . . .
Dan had a tendency to be rather spoilt around other people. It wasn't his fault really; it was just that no one had the nerve to say no to him. He was a prince after all. He was also the heir to his family's kingdom and therefore their favourite and most doted upon child, so everyone just assumed he was a brat. Dan, who was in fact quite a decent person when he wanted to be, was rather annoyed by this fact but with him being seemingly allergic to most types of social interaction, he was never really in the public eye long enough to change their perspective of him. Yeah, he wasn't a horrible person, he just didn't really like talking to people, at all. It didn't help that is sarcastic attitude often came across as rude and while it was completely unintentional, he had managed to somehow managed to offend almost every noble in Serultria. Dan knew that he would one day have to mend these broken relations and he had to at least make some noble friends but for the mean time he was content to wallow in the lofty rooms of the palace, alone.
The palace Dan lived in was enormous. It had been passed down the family for generations and generations to the point, where despite its constant repairs, parts of it were beginning to fall to pieces. If you looked past the weathered brick and slightly off-white plaster on the outside of the palace however, you would have noticed the overall magnificence of this huge building. The grand entrance was outlined by the large intricately carved wooden doors that had everything from the Howell family crest to depictions of epic battles and passages from books carved into the shiny, maroon wood. You could spend hours looking at it and never get bored, at least no one had spent enough time looking at it to get bored. Several towers rose above the main part of the palace and pointed towards the sky, each one with a large room at the top and a solitary window looking out over the large expanses of forest and field outside the city. They always reminded Dan of the books be would read in the palace library, almost as if they were in a fairy tale and some poor maiden was about to lean out and sing a pretty song about the Prince that was sure to come and rescue her. The countless other windows that looked over the city were hung with green ivy and other climbing plants of all sorts, from dainty blue flowers to great bit roses the size of a hand. Although the outside of the palace was immensely impressive, it was the interior that made it special.
There were too many rooms to count for a start. At least thirty bedrooms along with a multitude of lounges, music rooms, painting rooms, pottery studios, kitchens, pantries, store rooms, servant's quarters and far more that probably hadn't been entered for years and years. Dan had tried many times to visit all of them however the winding corridors and endless rooms had always daunted him so he tended to keep to his own quarters. His room bore the usual red and gold that was saturated throughout the rest of the palace however with a bit of black to dull it down a bit. Black is, in Dan's opinion, the only acceptable colour for a room to be. Pair that with the young princes almost completely monochrome wardrobe and you have the perfect combination. Dan's favourite place however was the library. The shelves stacked up towards the ceiling and the once organised rows of books had been pulled out and stuffed back in so many times that the shelves no longer fitted them all so they had started to spill onto the desks and chairs by the floor. The library was quiet and for the most part deserted so it made for a great place to slowly get absorbed into another world. Plus, you could never run out of reading material.
Despite these amazing rooms there was one that stood out from the rest as the most beautiful in the palace. The Great throne room. The giant hall on the other side of the main doors was vast. The 50ft walls were ingrained with gold and red paint and five golden chandeliers, each holding at least 50 candles hung from the painted plaster ceiling. The floor was made of polished marble covered by intricate rugs and mats. Huge fireplaces, four on each side of the room, warmed hall and the flickering light made you warm and welcome. The Stain glass windows lining each side of the hall were like that of those in a church however the pictures were a little more light hearted than those in the city cathedral. There were endless things to look at, from small trinkets, gathered from every corner of the known kingdoms to exotic flowers displayed in colourful vases. The palace was certainly not a boring place.
The most striking objects of all however in the hall, were the two golden thrones at the far end of the hall, sat beneath the great rose-glass window which bathed the entire hall in a multitude of different colours when the sun shone right. Sometimes the hall would be filled with long dining tables where all manner of people would come together for great feasts. At these times the King, dressed in shiny gold armour topped off with a flowing red cloak, would sit cheerfully at the top of the hall on this throne with his wife in her lavish gown and kind smile sitting proudly next to him. Their two children, dressed in red and gold would sit at the end of one of the long wooden tables smiling politely and joining in with various conversations. This was particularly stressful for a certain antisocial Prince but it only happened rarely and he just had to fight his way through the awkward eye contact and invading questions that were constantly thrown at him.
When Dan was little he had always decided that he would move out of the royal palace and into a castle. He'd always liked the ideas of castles. The royal family of Reliquia had a lovely stone castle with broad grey walls and fairy-tale turrets, Dan been there once as a child and had been in awe. He remembered playing in the gardens with their daughter. Dan thought he'd had a bit of a crush on the girl but looking back she really was a bit of an arsehole. The Reliquia royal family were horrid, greedy people but the country of Reliquia itself had been quite beautiful. Dan wished Serultria was that pretty. His country was a land of boringness outside the palace, he was heir to a country of boringness, what a title. Since he had grown up, however he didn't mind the palace as much and, as awesome as a castle would be, as it would be rather impractical to build an enormous 70ft stone building in the middle of the city so he gradually went off the idea.
Although for the most part he enjoyed the quiet solitude of the palace, he did occasionally get lonely and that's why he had Louise. She was the palace doctor and had moved to the palace with her father, who had been the palace doctor up until he realised that pigeon racing was his true calling and had left to buy a flock of premium pigeons, when Dan was about 14. Dan had been overjoyed to have someone to play with. He had spent the better part of his life alone. Sure, he had his brother but he was a too young and Dan thought he was a bit annoying. He had always spent hours looking out of the clouded palace window into the streets below, watching all the children play and mess around with their friends. When Louise had come along he was so happy he finally had a best friend, even if she was just a little bit invasive. Although Dan was covered in the friend side of life he still lacked any sort of love life, something that bothered his parents greatly, and now a he was quickly approaching his 21st birthday, his parents had been almost desperate to find their son a princess. Dan had to admit that the parade of women that had been introduced to him over the last few weeks had all been lovely (except that one countess from Perinia, yikes) and if he were someone else, then he probably would have been happy settling down with anyone of them.
The only problem was that Dan didn't particularly want a princess; he would much prefer a prince to sit beside him on the throne when he came of age. The only person he had divulged this information to was his best friend, Louise. He has considered telling his parents but assumed it wouldn't go too well so whilst his parents spent hours excitedly introducing him to various suitable girls, Dan would sit and daydream about the beautiful prince that would come and rescue him from his dreary existence whist his little brother would drool over the lovely women attempting to woo the older. Not that he would ever be able to have his prince. Two men couldn't make a child and that's all his parents wanted out of his partner. The purpose of a queen was solely as the royal baby maker, something Dan had never really liked. He had come to the decision that since he was going to have to marry a girl he would always treat her as his equal and teach their kids to do the same. It was a nice thought but he wasn't sure he would actually be able to go through sex with a woman in order to make the little princes and princesses the king and queen wanted from him. After a few months of Dan rejecting almost every girl in Serultria the King and Queen had had enough. If Dan didn't find someone to marry soon they would have choice but to stop giving Dan the choice, and you'll never guess who their backup was. "The countess of Perinia!" Dan shouted as he entered his chambers, his mother looked up in shock of his sudden outburst.
"Please just anyone but her!" he begged as his mother regarded him with a sour look.
"Daniel stop being so rude. Come on she isn't that bad. She's rich, powerful and well respected, she'll make a good queen." She tried the last part hopefully as if it would help him change his mind.
Dan felt like crying. How could his parents do this to him? He barely even knew this wretched woman. When they had met, Dan had hardly spoken a word to her but he could tell from her turned up nose and sharp, bird like eyes that she was not the kind of person Dan wanted to be associated with, and that was before she had decided she was quite fond of the prince and dragged him around the castle like he was her little pet. She had been all over him, her hands wandering to places that they really shouldn't have been and when he got up to leave she had practically licked his face. It had made Dan feel sick. He cringed hard at the memory and his eyes stung with the effort of keeping back tears. He couldn't face the thought of spending the rest of his life with her. Dan's mother noticed his distress and went to comfort her son.
"I know you're not too happy about this but a King needs a Queen and you can't seem to settle on anyone yourself so we're just trying to make it easier for you."
"I won't do it."
"You don't have a choice."
Dan sniffed pitifully at his mother's words. Despite his instant disgust in the idea of getting a queen he realised he probably couldn't get out of it, especially if the king and queen had already informed her about their decision. There was nothing he could do about it, he wasn't just Dan, he was Prince Daniel of Serultria and he had duty to perform. He needed children to carry on the royal line and unfortunately that wouldn't be able to happen if he was with a boy. Not to mention the uproar it would cause in the kingdom if they found out they had a gay king. There was simply no way he could be happy if he wanted everyone else to be. Maybe he could invite one of the kinder girls back and take her as his wife. She could be happy living in a nice palace although they probably wouldn't be too happy if Dan came out. Not the countess though. She would tell everyone if she ever found out and Dan would be ruined. He couldn't live with her, he just couldn't, but there was no way he could get out of this, unless. . .
"What if I find myself someone else to marry? You know, before its made official."
"Daniel, you have seen and rejected pretty much every girl in the kingdom already. Who do you think you are going to marry?"
"I'll go out and look myself, I can visit different kingdoms and cities I'll be able to see what it's like out there rather than be stuck in here for the rest of my life with a wife I despise. I'm sure the right person is out there somewhere. "
He waved his hand in the vague direction of the window to emphasise his point. The Queen raised her eyebrow at him.
"Well you've been pretty picky so far but Dan dear you know nothing of anything outside the castle. You've never seen what it's like out there, you'll be eaten alive. Besides the countess might not be too bad once you get to know her, despise in a harsh word"
"Why do you always talk about the other kingdoms like they are wild scary places where nothing is safe." Dan replied, his voice raising in volume, "Why can't I choose whether I want to go or not!"
"Daniel James Howell, you do not speak to your mother like that!" The Queen began to shout, "You are not leaving this palace and you will marry the countess, whether you like it or not!" With that she stood up and stalked out of the room, slamming the door shut behind her.
Dan sighed. He didn't really want to marry anyone, he just wanted to get out of the palace, disappear. Maybe then he could stop being the prince, find someone he liked. He would be able to get a good job, he was literate and good at maths so it shouldn't be too hard. He could set up a shop maybe, a bookstore would be nice, but then he let out a sigh and leant back onto his bed. He was the heir to the throne, he couldn't just disappear. Yeah, he had a brother but he couldn't just dump all the burdens of being king onto him. Dan had been training his whole life to be king and he still found the prospect hugely daunting. No, he wouldn't leave forever, just until he got married. Once he had officially got married there was nothing they could do about it, even if he has a groom instead of a bride. He wondered what this mystery man would look like, brown eyes, blue eyes, green eyes, tall, short, slim, buff. He was going to run away and marry his perfect man, what a plan. Oh, he couldn't wait to meet him. Dan was happy getting lost in his daydream when he was
"Earth to Dan, earth to Dan." Dan blinked suddenly at the interruption.
"Louise." he whined at his friend.
"Dan." she whined back mockingly, giggling.
"What? You sound funny when you go all whiny, like a little girl," she teased. Dan rolled his eyes but regarded his friend with a fond look. Although sometimes she was a bit overbearing, Louise really was his best friend. Suddenly he frowned, thinking about what he was going to tell her. He knew she wouldn't be very happy about it.
"Dan what's the matter?" Louise asked softly, noticing the change in his demeanour. Dan swallowed thickly, his throat suddenly seeming very dry. Perhaps he shouldn't tell her, it would probably only make her feel worse, then again he couldn't just leave with no warning.
"I'm running away," he muttered quietly.
"What do you mean you're running away?" Louise asked in a voice that bordered on shrieking,
"You can't leave! You'll die! Why do you want to run away!"
"Bloody hell Louise I'm twenty not two, act like it. I am perfectly capable of looking after myself. It won't be forever. Just until I find someone to marry." Louise looked at Dan with a puzzled expression.
"I thought you were going to marry the Countess of Perinia?"
"Well I'm not."
"Dan . . ." she sighed
"No Louise I'm telling you I am not going to marry that god-awful witch, she can burn in hell for all I care. I'm going out to look for someone I want to marry. Once I'm married my mother and father won't be able to do anything about it and I'll actually be happy."
Louise's eyes softened and she wrapped her arms around her best friend.
"Dan finding the right someone can take a long time and in this crazy, big world we live in anything can happen. Yes, the right person may be out there somewhere but that doesn't mean you'll be able to find them. There are a lot of people who want harm to come to you and your family and the world is a dangerous place. I just want you to be safe. What if you never find the right person? What if you spend your entire life searching and still end up having nothing to show for it? I'm just trying to protect you."
Dan stood up angrily.
"I'm sick of people trying to protect me. I'm not some precious object made of glass that needs to be kept same locked away so I can be safe at all times. I want to be adventurous, I want to see what's out there in the world, and if it takes me my whole life to find someone I want to spend the rest of it with then so be it. At least my life will have been an interesting one. I won't spend the rest of my life in misery because some people want to keep me safe!"
With that Dan stormed out of the room, although since it had been his own chambers he had stormed out of, he didn't really know where to go. Louise sighed to herself and prayed that Dan wouldn't do anything stupid. He tended to get too wrapped up in his imagination, the image of the world he had probably conjured up in his head was probably nothing like reality. She would always worry for him, that's what best friends do, but there was more at stake here than one man's health. She would talk some sense him in the morning when he had slept on the idea of leaving, and if he was really that set she would have no choice but to inform the king and queen of their son's decision.
disclaimer - I don't own Dan or Phil. I am not saying they are in a relationship (although I wish they were). This is simply fiction (obviously). Have a lovely day x