ᶜʰᵃᵒˢ

˖°🌊𓇼⋆

[ a familiar face ]

𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐮𝐬 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐞𝐱𝐜𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐝, 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐚𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐭. He hadn't seen you, his little sister in over a month. Yes, to many that may seem like not enough for siblings to be parted, but when the pair of you were so close, it seemed like years before you saw one another again. 

Speaking of his young sibling, you filtered through the crowd, often bowing and nodding your head in respect to the lords and ladies, receiving kind words and well wishes, as well the occasional prompt for a marriage. As the daughter of the king, you were expected to be married by now, or at least in a courting relationship with a man of high status. But you felt no need to be tied down in a rather boring relationship to someone who really only wanted you for your title and the wealth that came with it. You were already castle-bound, due to your overprotective father.

"Proteus!" you beamed, E/C eyes locking onto the figure of your older brother. The tanned man turned, his lips lifting into a large smile as you nearly ran across the room. The moment you were close, your arms were around his neck as he spun you around in his embrace. Onlookers observed the interaction with soft smiles and coos, the close bond of the royal siblings of Syracuse being a known topic across the kingdoms.

"Ah, my little sister!" he chuckled, placing you down as his hands went to your shoulders. "You look marvelous."

"And you don't. Did you bathe yourself after such a horrendous trip?" you questioned with a snicker, causing a snort of laughter to sound from behind you. You knew that laugh all too well, spinning around to find Proteus' wife, and your sister-in-law, Marina. 

"That is a remarkable question," she mused, smiling at Proteus who offered his arm to her. She took it, glancing between the quarreling brother and sister.

"I don't recall you having any whit," Proteus countered, and you fumed from your spot, though a playful smirk was on your lips. 

"Please, settle yourselves," Marina joked, before removing herself from Proteus' grip, and moving onto you, the pair of you wrapping arms around each other. "Now, I must steal your little sister away."

Proteus held his hands up in surrender with a smile. "Only if the princess wishes for it."

"I do," you chuckled, and both you and Marina left your brother, venturing over to the table full of exotic fruits, and delicious smelling main courses. "Are you happy to see him?"

"I am. I really am," she said with a girlish giggle, looking down at her hands; more specifically the purple stone wedding ring on her finger, the priceless gem surrounded by an ornate gold band.

For a few minutes, you made zealous conversation with your sister-in-law, but she was soon whisked away by Proteus, wishing to introduce her to someone. You found yourself alone by the vast expanse of food, often plucking small serves for yourself. 

"Princess," you heard from beside you, causing you to turn around. A small smile lifted at the corner of your lips at the sight of Aramis, a fellow lord working with Zadkiel, one of the leading Ambassadors. 

"Lord Aramis," you said, nodding your head in acknowledgement.

"Quite the party, no?" he wandered, taking a piece of bread from the table and covering it with one of the many spreads on the table. 

"Yes, I suppose it is. Though, it calls for quite the occasion," you hummed. 

The man nodded in agreement, and you found yourself zoning out as the lord spoke of the many fine achievements he had accomplished in the time of his last visit. 

"Y/N!" 

You spun around, eager to remove yourself from the presence of Aramis, the wispy fabric of your dress fluttering with the smallest of movements. The gown fell to your feet, and was of a light, dreamy blue. You needed no necklace due to the silver chained haltering of the design. 

You found your brother and Marina, the man waving at you, gesturing for you to come over. With a soft sigh and a nod, you placed the chalice of wine onto the table, and glanced at Aramis. 

"I'm sorry to quell your fine stories of your expedicitons, Lord Aramis," you smiled, though it was really a well disguised grimace. "But my brother calls for me. It has been a pleasure."

"But, my princess-."

You quickly made your escape, rushing over to the couple, leaving a sputtering Aramis in your dust.  Your lips held a smile as you moved through the crowd, often having to stop to greet them, before brushing their words away as you wandered closer to your brother.

But you felt it drop from your face as you came to a pause in your trek. There, standing opposite Proteus and Marina was...

"Sinbad," you whispered to yourself, watching as the familiar man's eyes raked across your face and body, his expression one of shock; eyes wide and his mouth hanging. 

You slowly walked to the small group of people, before you came to a halt in front of the pirate. 

"Y/N," he breathed out, blinking rapidly, almost as if he didn't truly believe that you were here, standing in front of him, looking so beautiful and radiant in a color he was never really quite fond of. But the sight of you in such a soft blue had him rethinking his likeness. 

"Hello, Sinbad," you nodded with a gentle grin, looking up at him through your lashes. "You look... fantastic."

You were grasping at words, and you knew you couldn't allow your emotions to play with your tongue, so you willed yourself to keep the comments orderly. 

Sinbad cleared his throat, brown eyes boring into yours as he spoke, "You've certainly grown."

"Ever the enthusiast," you teased with a roll of your eyes, eliciting a chuckle to escape his chest. 

"I see you were speaking with Lord Aramis," Proteus observed, causing both him and Sinbad to watch the black-haired man at the food table, making conversation with another lord. 

"Yes, quite the conversationalist," you brushed off, eyes remaining on the man in front of you. You drank in his appearance, already noticing the stark change from the young thirteen-year-old boy you knew all those years ago. He was taller, the same height as Proteus, and his build was... impressive. Not that you had noticed or anything. 

"So, this is the infamous Sinbad," Marina murmured, drawing the pirate's attention away from you, and back to the couple. "I heard all about this morning."

"This morning?" you questioned.

Your brother went to explain as you glanced at Sinbad, but Marina beat him to it. "First you tried to rob Proteus, and then you save his life. So, which are you... A thief or a hero?"

You and Marina turned your attention to Proteus as he supplied, "Sinbad wanted to give me an opportunity to thank-... him."

He came to a stop as the three of you looked back to where Sinbad once stood. Now, it was vacant, and as you searched for the man, you found his retreating red and brown clad back to you as he walked off.

The loyal companion of Sinbad, a dog named Spike, was ferociously eating at one of the food tables, devouring everything and anything in his path, whilst one of his crewmates, Rat, a skinny and ragged little man, explained in his raspy voice to a lord who was looking on with disgust. "Eight months on the sea with nothing but eggs and pickles... You don't know what that can do to a man." At the sight of his captain, he drew his attention away from the man. "Oh, it's almost too easy. There's only a handful of guards."

"Forget it," Sinbad curtly ordered, brushing past him, and his second in command, Kale.

"Just like that? But the Book is almost ours," the large man shrugged in confusion. The pair turned, spotting where Sinbad had just come from, finding the prince, his wife, and the young princess. You watched the man with concern, but also disappointment clouding your E/C eyes, almost as if you had expected such behavior from the man. "Oh," Kale breathed out.

"W-What? Who is she?" Rat asked as he watched you shake your head and turn back to the couple beside you. "An old girlfriend?"

"I'm afraid it's not that simple," he denied, before shouldering the little man. "Let's go." As they moved past the entry, where their friend, Jed, and a few guards were, he spoke up, "Jed, pack it up."

The man looked towards his pile of weapons, stammering, "What? I-I... I just put the... Ugh." He groaned in annoyance, sweeping his arms underneath all the weapons and gathering them to his chest, before following his friends.

However, Sinbad and his crew were oblivious to a certain Goddess watching them leave the party. Her movements were languid as she draped her body atop the roof. Eris, the Goddess of Discord, grinned mischievously as she claimed, "Oh, this is just too easy."

The grey women disappeared into a thin streak of black smoke, the stream floating with speed through the air, making its way to the ceremonial holding place of the Book of Peace. 

.・。.・゜•・.

Back inside, you were speaking to your father, a fond smile at your lips as he talked of meaningless little facts and, as you had known for a long time now, the man was a true gossip. 

A giggle escaped you as he informed you of a high-status couple, and their misfortunes which were an amusing topic of conversation when you suddenly felt a rumbling beneath you. 

The room's atmosphere had darkened as the joyous laughter and boisterous chatting of the guests seeped into a frightened questioning.

"Father-."

Out of nowhere, a shadow slithered across the room, and cracks began to break in the walls and columns of the ballroom. Screams sounded from many as pieces of stone fell from the roof, the entire room and castle collapsing. 

"Y/N!" Dymas yelled, hands going to your arms as he held you close, your fingers latching onto his as your breaths came out labored due to your beating heart.

Venturing outside, you found your brother and Marina by the balcony's edge. "Proteus!" you shouted, and he turned around, eyes going wide as you and your father ran to him. 

"Y/N!" Marina gasped as her arms went to yours. The two of you embraced, looking away from the rumbling swirl of clouds that emitted from the tower holding the Book of Peace.

"Who could've done this?" you whispered, fear seeping over your body as the dark clouds covered the kingdom of Syracuse.