A/N: So since squidneyxd always does it, I'm going WAY over the word limit :D As you guys can see, the prompt is "Soldier", and go check out her entry!

"Your Majesty, we have a prisoner." The guards around me bowed to a weird-looking man dressed in a red and purple robe, sitting on a throne adorned with snake etchings, who I presumed to be the king.

"And why did you find it necessary to bring him to me instead of sending him straight to the concentration camps like you do with everyone else? Shoo," he said with a wave of his hand, clearly uninterested.

I opened my mouth in anger, only to get kicked in the backside by a guard as soon as I made any sort of sound. "But, Your Majesty, rumors say he's closely associated with Lloyd Garmadon."

Now they had this man's attention, who immediately leaned forward in his chair with his face resting on a fist, his eyes scrutinizing my appearance. "A mere foot soldier?"

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. First of all, I wasn't a simple foot soldier, I was a Captain, and second, if it weren't for that stupid woman who just had to report me to the authorities after I'd saved her life, I would've been promoted Major by now, which was supposed to have happened as soon as I got home.

Ugh, I knew I should've taken my superior's advice in practicing local accents and dialects before making that quick detour into the village to pick up supplies.

"Bring him closer," the man ordered, and the guards shoved me forward, clearly taking delight in seeing me stumble. I mustered the worst glare I could at this king, which only seemed to make him happier for some reason.

"So, you know Lloyd Garmadon?"

"Who doesn't?" I spat with an eye roll, only for a guard to "accidentally" jerk my shoulder forward.

Lloyd was my best friend and almost like a younger brother, and because his father and uncle were in the top ranks of the military, it was widely known that our enemies had been trying to capture him for several months already. He was too young to be enlisted in the army, so they sent him into hiding instead. There wasn't much use in interrogating me, though, since I hadn't even talked to him since he left.

"Skylor!" the man shouted, and seconds later a girl about my age, maybe a bit younger, came hurrying into the room, her hands clutching the skirts of her dress to avoid tripping. Her hair, tied up in a fancy bun, was the brightest color of red I'd ever seen, and the tiara on her head implied that she was the princess, his daughter.

The king sighed and pressed his fingers to his temple, "What have I told you about running in the palace?"

She flushed and turned to face him, her back towards me. "Sorry, father, I was in the courtyard. I'll try to be more punctual next time. What did you call me in here for?"

He gestured to me, and the princess turned around so that I could get a full view of her face for the first time. "As you can see, dear Skylor, we have a guest."

Her amber eyes met mine, and suddenly I felt a fluttering in my chest I'd never experienced before. My mouth fell open slightly, which I only later realized when I noticed the dryness of my tongue, and I couldn't help but notice the corners of her lips twitching slightly upwards. I figured she was probably going to interrogate me, but since I didn't know anything about Lloyd's whereabouts, it should be fine...

"I see. Follow me," she said, and promptly began walking towards the door to the left. The guards dragged me after her, but they didn't have to use as much force since this time, I was perfectly willing to do as she requested.

We were sent into a room with a table filled to the brim with food; on either side there was a plush chair fit for at least a high-ranking official. Having not had anything but army rations for over two months or food in an entire day, my mouth began watering and I quickly swallowed the saliva that had built up inside, not wanting to drool or make a fool of myself in front of the girl.

"You may leave now," she informed the guards.

"We've removed all his weapons, Your Highness." I did my best to maintain a straight face, knowing they hadn't taken away my last weapon, the one that had gotten me out of many many interrogations. Though I didn't like to admit it, I'd already been captured multiple times in this war alone, and the only reason nobody had realized this common pattern was because all these rulers were too proud to reveal the fact that they'd be outwitted by some random foot soldier.

"I trust that you have," the princess said with a sweet smile, and ushered the guards out, who closed the door behind them. Then she turned to me. "Would you care to take a seat?"

"Actually, not at the moment," I said with a crooked grin, leaning against the back of the chair with one arm on the top rail. "You're gorgeous, by the way."

"Does the food not look appetizing enough?" she asked, with obvious concern on her face, though I knew it was all an act. "You look really hungry."

Making sure to keep eye contact, I licked my lips in a way that would make the girls at home scream, and for a second something flickered across the princess's face before she quickly resumed her more professional demeanor. "Maybe," I said with a smirk, "But there might just be something I'm more interested in."

"Like what?" she asked with a grin, though I noticed how she stiffened slightly. I couldn't help but pity her, since if her father was using her to interrogate war prisoners, she must've dealt with people much worse than me. What kind of man let their daughter deal with weird older guys (not to mention enemies) alone? And she seemed so young; there had been other rulers who used girls to question me, but they were all at least in their late twenties.

Oh whatever, she was still the daughter of our enemy, so it didn't matter what I put her through as long as I got out of here.

"You, of course," I said, and made to move towards her, but apparently she noticed and quickly headed to the other side of the table while still looking casual and elegant at the same time.

"Ooh, that's flattering," she giggled, mimicking the way I leaned on my chair, "We can discuss as we eat, what do you say?"

"I'm an impatient man," I replied, raising my eyebrows, and her smile quivered a little, betraying the fear in her eyes.

"Intriguing," the princess said thoughtfully, and I couldn't believe she was still putting up with this. I was almost certain that creepy old men had touched her inappropriately before, and though I didn't even know this girl, I suddenly felt an urge to protect her from any future recurrences.

"You don't have to do this," I said before I could even register the words in my brain.

She blinked, for the first time dropping the fake smile. "What?"

"Interrogate people," I said quietly, "I know you don't like doing this."

"Interrogating?" she asked with a laugh, "That's such a harsh way to put it, I just want to get to know you. I mean, you're so cute." Her face flushed as soon as the words were out, but she didn't say anything else after that.

"You say that to everyone in my position, don't you? You pretend to be interested in them for the sake of your father so that you can get answers. In return, you let these older creeps touch you and―"

She cut me off, her eyes narrowing. "Okay, you don't know anything about me, so you have no right to be throwing false accusations about my father or anyone else. I just wanted to have a nice, normal conversation and now you're completely ruining it. If anything, you're the one displaying an interest in me."

There was a tremble in her voice.

"Then what do you even want to talk about? It's not like we'll see each other after you daddy executes me," I said, crossing my arms over my chest.

The princess pursed her lips and straightened up, which I copied. Apparently noticing this, she picked up a pastry from the table, and I followed in suit. She raised an eyebrow and I did too.

"Stop copying me!"

"You're cute when you get mad," I said with a shrug, "It's the truth. I'm Kai, by the way."

"I'm... Skylor," she said after a few moments of silence.

"I know. Also sorry I just... I felt bad for you."

"The detained foot soldier feeling sorry for the princess?"

"I've gotten out of several interrogations and escaped confinement already," I admitted, "And no offense, but I'm getting out of this one too. And I'm worried about what your dad is gonna do to you."

"You're not getting out of this one," she scoffed, dropping her entire facade completely, though still looking scared.

"You sure about that?"

In one quick swoop, I grabbed the handkerchief, ducked down under the table, hooked my hands around her ankles (which were luckily exposed because her dress wasn't floor length), and pulled her to the ground. She let out a yelp as I jumped over and pinned her to the ground using all fours, and to prevent screaming, I shoved the handkerchief in her mouth. Her eyes widened as I prepared to kick the table to send it crashing down on her so I could escape before I stopped.

"I can't do this," I whispered, not wanting to imagine the injuries she'd have to suffer in addition to her monster of a father's wrath that she'd surely have to face after this.

The princess stared at me as I let go of her and removed the handkerchief, and to her credit, she didn't immediately call the guards to arrest me for attacking her. I held out a hand to pull her up, and to my surprise, she took it. Her hand was soft and warm in mine, and I was almost amazed that my callouses didn't scratch her.

Our eyes never left each other as she stood up, her hair now slightly frazzled and her dress wrinkled, but despite this, I didn't think I'd ever seen a prettier girl.

Her lips were slightly parted as I continued holding onto her hand, and neither of us seemed to want to be the first to break eye contact. I stepped closer and began feeling lightheaded, wondering how she would react. Hands shaking, I reached up to tuck a few strands of hair behind her ear, noticing the way I was reflected in her dark pupils. Her irises were a shade I'd never seen before, which only made them all the more enchanting.

I'd never wanted a girl so badly, which was stupid, considering we'd just met, she was the princess, and I was a military officer from an enemy kingdom.

"You have beautiful eyes," I breathed, suddenly feeling like she was so fragile that if I spoke too loudly I'd break her.

She blushed. "Thanks, and you do too."

"Nobody's ever said that to me," I said, lightly tracing my finger down her jawline. She gasped a little as my other hand trailed to her waist.

Seeing this as an opportunity, my eyes slowly fluttered shut as I leaned in.

"Wait," she said, quickly pushing me away, to my disappointment and frustration, "You need to eat."

"Oh alright," I chuckled, "Doing this 'cause you said so. But we share everything so nobody gets poisoned." And hopefully I'd get to kiss her.

"Sure," she said, giving my nose a light flick.

I think it was at that moment when understood what Jay meant when he said he instantly fell "head over heels in love".

A/N: Lol so this is a lot longer than it should've been. I hope you guys liked it! And if you did please vote and comment if ya want to, since they're an ego booster :D

I'm shameless

Anyway, with everything that's been going on lately, I hope you guys are all doing well and stay safe and healthy!