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anonymous-squirrel · 4 years ago

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@morningsaidthemoon it's called "I'm so helplessly sugar high (on you)"

(also sorry about the spacing, I couldn't adapt it to fit tumblr bc I'm doing it on my phone and it would drive me crazy)

You started eating my favorite candy

You buy a pack in every store you're in

Stocking up on strawberry mentos

So when you kiss me it'll taste like them

Daichi padded through the apartment, his feet thudding softly against the hardwood floor. Amber light streamed through the windows, bathing the room in a soft golden glow. It was peaceful, the feeling that he was the only thing in the apartment that was moving. It reminded him why he felt at home here.

He made his way to the kitchen to get his day started with some breakfast. A bit of a sugar fiend, he forced himself to eat a healthy breakfast every morning so he wouldn’t feel so bad when he broke and ate a ton of candy.

As if to remind him of just how true this was there was an empty wrapper from a tube of strawberry mentos. He didn’t remember eating a whole roll (14 individual mentos!) but it checked out for his sweet tooth and eating habits. He sighed, threw the wrapper away, and set about making himself a salad for breakfast. Yes, a salad. He needed something without too much sugar.

Daichi checked his phone to see the time, and couldn’t help but grin at his lock screen. It was a picture of him and his boyfriend, Sugawara Koushi, at their favorite restaurant. It had been their second date, and he’d already felt more at home with Koushi than he had with any of his exes.

He remembered what he was doing on his phone and read the time off the screen. 8:30. He was running a bit early, so he slipped his laptop into his bag to work while he waited. He made his way out the door and set off down the street.

He was on his way to meet his boyfriend at the park a few blocks from their apartment. Koushi had early morning classes on Mondays, so they always met up at the park with some snacks and coffee to boost his spirits.

Daichi stopped at the little cafe that was on his way to the park. He got an iced caramel latte for himself and a cold brew for Koushi. He wasn’t as into sugar as Daichi was. In fact, he was quite the opposite.

Ironically, this was one of Daichi’s favorite things about him. They loved to tease each other and jokingly argue over who was right. Kou was also so cute when he had sugar. His nose would always wrinkle, as if he was surprised by the flavor. It was adorable.

Daichi sat in the park and worked on his school work. He was also in university, but he had the sense to avoid the early classes. He sipped idly at his coffee while he worked, occasionally looking up to people-watch.

Koushi got to the park at around 9:15. Daichi waved him over, putting away his laptop. As Koushi got closer to him he thought he saw a slight wrinkle in his nose, but he wasn’t sure. He stood up to kiss Koushi (they didn’t get a chance in the morning, and he didn’t want to wait until he’d already started drinking his cold brew; it was too bitter for Daichi) and was surprised by a sweet taste. He pulled back a moment later, looking at Koushi quizzically.

“Was that..?” he started, trailing off as Kou smiled.

“Strawberry mentos? Yeah, I was eating some on the way over. What, you're not happy I’m suffering through sweets for you?”

Daichi couldn’t contain his wide smile. “You’re so sappy,” he teased.

“You know you love it,” Kou said, just as teasingly. Daichi responded by kissing him again.

I've been searching for someone like you my whole life

So I pick up black licorice from еvery candy aisle

Even though I hate the taste of it

I know that when I kiss you it'll make you smile

Koushi, the man of habit he was, started keeping a roll of strawberry mentos on him at all times. Daichi, of course, never got tired of this. If anything, he fell a little more in love every time he noticed. It was the little things, the tiny attention to detail.

Daichi, not to be outdone, started to look for something to do for Koushi that would have the same effect. The corner store he normally went to didn’t have any of his favorite candies, so Daichi started venturing out of his normal routine in search of somewhere that did. He went to a different store every Monday before meeting up with Kou at the park.

In the meantime, he started looking for any little thing he could do. One Sunday he surprised Koushi with his favorite food, super spicy mapo tofu, when he was cramming for an exam the next day. He started bringing sandwiches with him to the park on Mondays. He even bought Koushi’s favorite movie so they could watch it anytime he wanted to. Koushi always seemed touched or excited by these acts, but Daichi still wanted to do something for him that would be as regular and as sweet as what Kou continued doing for him.

Then one day his search ended. There was a cute little mom and pop store across the street from the cafe that he entered as a last ditch effort. He went to it a few weeks into his search and it was exactly what he had been looking for. The third aisle had several kinds of candy, many of which were not carried by corner stores Daichi had looked in. About halfway down the aisle he found what he was looking for; black licorice. He didn’t know what Koushi enjoyed about these, but if he could suffer through the sweetness of strawberry mentos for Daichi then Daichi could handle black licorice.

This monday it was Kou’s turn to be surprised. “Dai, did you get black licorice?”

Daichi tried for a shit eating grin, but it probably just looked elated. “I might have.”

Koushi laughed, then spun Daichi around and kissed him again. “I love you, you know that?”

Daichi rested his forehead against Koushi’s. “How could I not?”

You're deliberately kind

You make efforts to share your time

You're not afraid of your feelings

And you're not afraid of mine

I never knew love could be soft

I never knew love could be light

Now I'm so helplessly sugar high

On you

Daichi was head over heels for Sugawara Koushi. He’d known he was going to fall hard even when they had just started dating, but he’d never expected anything like this. They had been dating for two years now, and it was the happiest Daichi had ever been. He woke up every day with a smile on his face.

He was so gone.

Kou always surprised him with acts of kindness or little things to help him through his day. They weren’t even big things (well, sometimes they were, but most of the time it was small things), but Daichi had never been in a relationship where someone cared enough to notice or act on these small details. He still wasn’t used to being treated with that much care or given that much attention, but he wanted to be. He never wanted to stop feeling the way he did when he saw Kou.

Oh you're so sweet that my teeth are gonna fall out

I'll get cavities in every single one

Taking weekly trips to my dentist

But I know that it's worth it because

When I tasted strawberry mentos

I knew you were the one

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anonymous-squirrel · 4 years ago

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@morningsaidthemoon this is my attempt at hurt/comfort ajdns

Shummed quietly to himself as he walked through the halls. He was walking at a slightly fast pace, not in a hurry but not leisurely either. He stopped by the club room, dropping off his things and changing into gym clothes. Asahi and Tanaka were already there when he got there, so the three of them exchanged pleasantries and made their way to the gym together.

The squeaking of shoes on the waxed floor, the smack of volleyballs against skin, and the raucous voices of several highschool boys drifted out of the gym as they approached it. Suga couldn’t help but smile fondly as he took in the team warming up, bumping back and forth.

His smile slipped slightly when he noticed Daichi was missing. That was strange, he was usually the first one in the gym. He shook his head, clearing out the thought. Daichi was probably just staying late in his last class. He had mentioned that he was having some trouble with some of his schoolwork.

Suga, Asahi, and Tanaka dropped off their jackets and joined the rest of their teammates in bumping back and forth.

When the team had moved from bumping to spiking and Daichi still hadn’t shown up Suga started to get worried. He told Coach Ukai that he was going to go to the bathroom and left to go in search of the captain. He knew it was silly to worry, but it was unlike Daichi to just not show up, especially since he had had plenty of opportunities to tell Suga he wouldn’t be at practice. Something was off.

Suga checked in all the places he thought Daichi might be studying, reading, or even ditching with other friends.

He even peaked into the girl’s volleyball team’s gym to see if he was with them, but it was distinctly Daichi-less. He had half a mind to ask Michimiya if she had seen him, but they were doing serving drills and he didn’t want to intrude on their practice time.

It was a last ditch resort when he walked up to the club room. He opened the door, glancing around quickly and turning to leave almost immediately. He was halfway through closing the door when he registered what he saw in his hasty glance.

He turned around and sure enough, there was Daichi, sitting to the side in the back of the room with his back to the door. At first he thought Daichi was reading or doing some sort of schoolwork (or maybe even on his phone, although that was a bit of a stretch) because of his hunched shoulders and downturned head.

Then he noticed the shake of said shoulders, accentuated by the volleyball jacket hanging off his shoulders, and the fact that his head was cradled in his hands. Suga’s brain was lagging, unwilling to accept what was in front of his eyes, but there was no arguing with the facts.

Daichi was crying.

As the vice captain of Karasuno’s boys volleyball team, Suga was prepared for a lot. You never knew what new trouble those crazy underclassmen would stir up, so he was ready for most things.

Walking in on Daichi crying in the corner of the club room was not one of them.

“Daichi-” he started, taking a step towards him.

Daichi froze. He must not have heard Suga enter the club room.

Suga faltered. This seemed private, maybe he should have just left Daichi alone. But no, as Daichi’s friend and vice captain it was his place to check in on him. And besides, it was too late to turn back. Determined, he started forward again.

He sat down next to Daichi, turned so he was facing his side. Daichi turned his head as if to hide his tears. Gently, so gently, Suga reached out to turn Daichi’s head to face him. Absently he wiped a tear from under Daichi’s eye.

“What happened?” he asked, his heart clenching. If someone had hurt him they were about to have a lot of regrets.

Daichi tried to pull away, but Suga kept his grip firm. Not painfully so, just enough that they stayed facing each other.

“Please, Suga,” Daichi started, flinching at the way his voice cracked. He swallowed hard and started again. “I don’t want you to see me like this.”

Suga’s heart broke. He smiled sadly, then released Daichi in favor of rooting around in his bag. It took him a few seconds, but he found a small travel packet of tissues. He offered them to Daichi, who accepted them. He didn’t look Suga in the eyes.

“Daichi,” Suga started. “Daichi, look at me.” When he hesitantly did so, Suga smiled softly again. “I’m your friend. I’m here for you. Please, you can talk to me.”

Daichi seemed to process that for a minute, then averted his eyes in favor of studying the tissues in his hand. The silence stretched on between them for a few long seconds before he spoke. He mumbled something quietly, so softly that Suga wasn't able to to make out what he had said.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t catch that.”

Daichi’s shoulders were trembling again. “Suga, am I broken?”

Suga froze. “No!” he said, louder than he intended to. Daichi flinched at the unexpected noise, so he took a breath and tried again. “No, of course not. Why would you think that?”

Daichi fiddled restlessly with the tissues still held in his hands. “I can’t-” his voice broke and he took a second to compose himself again. His eyes glistened with new unshed tears. He turned away from Suga, almost as if in shame. “I can’t… I can’t love anyone.”

Suga reached out and took Daichi’s hands between his own. Daichi flinched at the contact, then seemed to lean slightly toward the comfort.

“Daichi, listen to me. You are not broken. There is nothing wrong with you. There are many people like you. You’re alright.”

Daichi, usually so strong and confident, the backbone of the team, sat trembling like a leaf in the wind. Then, all of a sudden, the dam broke and tears streamed down his face. He surged forward, clutching at Suga and burying his head into his shoulder. Suga, with his quick reflexes, immediately wrapped his arms around his friend and began to rub calming circles on his back.

They stayed like that for a long time. Eventually they separated, Daichi making his way to the bathroom to wash his face and Suga changing into a shirt less tear soaked. Then they talked, Suga explaining what aromantic, and then asexual, meant.

Even after that they stayed in the clubroom, Suga easily slipped into the role of cheering up his friend. He convinced a reluctant Daichi that he deserved a day off, so they messed around for the rest of practice. They slipped out a few minutes before the others would get back to the clubroom, wanting to avoid having to explain their absence. There would be time for that tomorrow.

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anonymous-squirrel · 5 years ago

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For @ademonwithinternet if you want to read it here's my wip. It's an untitled prinxiety fic with the idea of a character just thing 'oh their eyes are really pretty. Oh they're really pretty. Oh fuck I'm gay.' That kind of thing

Warnings: none that I can think of, maybe some self deprecating thoughts, let me know if there's something I need to tag

Virgil’s eyes had always been one of his most notable features. Of course, Roman admitted, it was mainly because of the classic black eyeshadow he was never seen without, but still. They were a big part of his look.

So it makes sense that seeing him in sparkly purple eyeshadow would be big to him. Of course, that’s what it was, he just wasn’t used to seeing the emo in such a bright, sparkly, happy color. That was it.

It definitely wasn’t the way it illuminated his eyes. Or the way the eyeshadow brought out the color in his eyes so much better than the purple in his hoodie ever could. Or the fact that Virgil’s eyes were just so god damn gorgeous. No, it was definitely just the shock of a new look.

The second Thomas dismissed them, Roman sank straight to his room. A small voice in the back of his mind tried to tell him that it was rude to leave so abruptly, but it was completely drowned out by the rapid beating of his heart. Oh, fuck no. This wasn’t happening.

Of course, it made sense he would feel this way. He had just set up Thomas and the emotions were bound to overflow into Roman. For the second time in 10 minutes, Roman shoved his feelings down. That was it, he was just feeling what Thomas was feeling. Virgil just happened to be right there, it didn’t mean anything.

So then why couldn’t he stop thinking about him? Roman groaned and put his head in his hands, only to be greeted with the image of those gorgeous eyes, the way they looked still fresh in his mind. Those eyes and the man they belonged to. Virgil.

Roman was so fucked.

The next morning came and went and Roman was hiding out in his room. Working, that’s what he told himself he was doing. He was just trying to get ahead on some projects, not hiding from Virgil and his stupid eyes and smile and- Working. That was what he was doing.

It was around 4 pm when he finally left his room. Even Roman knew he needed a break sometimes, and it was hard to concentrate when all he could come up with were Virgil’s eyes. And besides, he didn’t want to give anyone a reason to go looking for him. Not that they really would, but it was safer to grab a snack and put something on a table to make sure Patton knew he had left his room at some point.

As he walked through the hall toward the kitchen he heard a faint melody drifting through the house. Curiously, Roman followed it to the living room. There was Virgil, humming along to whatever song he was listening to on his headphones.

Roman couldn’t help but take a moment to admire the man, and he was suddenly hit with a wave of certainty. His plan for food forgotten, Roman turned around and quietly padded back to his room.

He must have known this already. He definitely had. He had loved Virgil for so long it was almost pathetic. Looking back it was painfully obvious. All those jokes about how awful Virgil was, panicking over holding Virgil’s hand, the way his heart had pounded when he realized what the fair joke sounded like. Roman was a sad fool who was too good at lying to himself. No wonder it was so easy for Janus to do just that.

A different, worse feeling rose up at that thought, but Roman quickly buried it down. There was enough of unearthing feelings going on for one night thank you very much.

Roman sighed, suddenly feeling exhausted. He shuffled to his bed, where he promptly collapsed. He sunk into the mattress and soon fell asleep.

Roman woke up tired and sore. He had fallen asleep in his princely attire and that was never good. Groaning, he got out of bed and made his way to the bathroom to take a hot shower.

He knew that he was going to have to go out at some point, he didn’t want Patton to worry, but he needed to mentally prepare first. He definitely did not want Virgil to think there was something wrong.

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anonymous-squirrel · 5 years ago

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I'm glad! Thank you!

Blue dresses and blue eyes

Pairing: Royalty (Roman x Patton)

Word count: 1327 (This might change after editing)

Warnings: None, let me know if I missed anything

Human Cinderella au, bisexual Roman, genderfluid Patton

( @ionlyeatcomfortfood if you meant it about editing, if not that’s also cool)

The masquerade ball was a splendid thing, filled with splendid people. Prince Roman smiled down at his guests as they arrived, paying little to no attention to the names they were being announced with.

This ball had been thrown in Roman’s honor, but not for any heroic deeds, which Roman would have much preferred. Instead, this ball had been thrown to find Roman a wife.

Roman was the crown prince of the little kingdom in which they all resided. And because his father was growing older with each passing day, Roman would have to take the thrown soon. Everyone felt it would be better if Roman had a queen to rule by his side. Everyone, that is, except for Roman himself.

Keep reading

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anonymous-squirrel · 5 years ago

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@ionlyeatcomfortfood This is my attempt at the fairy godmother scene. It got a away from me a little, so I apologize for that. If you have any complaints/comments/anything you think should be changed of fixed please let me know.

Also, I am a cis girl, and I do not really know how to write a genderfluid character, because I do not really understand that experience. If you know any way I can improve or fix this please let me know, I did my best but I know I probably did it wrong.

BONUS SCENE: FAIRY GODMOTHER

The day of the ball arrived, and Patton was excited. She was female today, so she was technically eligible to attend this ball. And even if she had not been, her stepmother and sisters refused to acknowledge the fact that she was genderfluid and treated her like a cis girl, so she would be seen as technically eligible anyway.

Patton had been cleaning out the attic, one of the few places that had escaped her stepmother, when she had stumbled upon an old dress. It was nothing fancy, merely a cream summer dress with blue and pink flowers embroidered on the hem, but it had been her mother’s. And it was a dress, and to attend a ball one needed a dress.

Patton had spent all night awake in the attic, adding her own touches to the dress to make it a bit more fit for a royal ball. In the absence of any real jewels, she had sown small pieces of glass into the dress and even made a necklace out of some of the glass and some string. She had added feathers and other pretty things from around the house and the garden and woods in order to make her mask, as it was to be a masquerade ball.

But now it was the day of, and Patton left her wonderful creation in the attic while she helped prepare her stepsisters for their big day. She dressed them, did their hair, painted their nails and faces, and did her best to ignore their usual horrid remarks.

Five o’clock came at last, and it was finally time for them to ride their carriage to the castle itself. Patton slipped away from her stepfamily and put on her own outfit. It was nowhere near as splendid as the dressed her stepsisters and stepmother would wear, but it was something, and it was a piece of her mother, which she could take with her to what might be the most wonderful night of her life.

Sadly, it was not meant to be. When she walked downstairs the other women took one look at her and burst into laughter.

“Oh Poppy, did you really think you could come with us?” they asked mockingly. “How quaint.” “We would never want to be seen with you.” “What are you wearing? Old rags? That’s not fit for a child’s tea party, let alone a royal ball.” And with that they started ripping up the dress, clawing at the glass, and pulling at her hair.

Even after they were gone, Patton could hear their laughter, mocking and cruel, echoing in her skull. She stood where she was for what felt like an eternity, trying not to break, until it became too much. She burst into tears, ripping at the dress, trying to get the ragged thing off of her. In her angry and broken state, she was too weak, and she eventually gave up.

She made her way outside, hoping the cool air would soothe her burning cheeks, and almost tripped over a woman sitting by the door.

“Who are you?” Patton asked, her sorrow momentarily forgotten.

The woman simply smiled, stood up, and started walking toward the garden. She did not turn and beckon, or give any sign she wanted to be followed, but Patton’s feet moved of their own accord, walking behind the strange woman.

As they neared the garden, the woman started muttering to herself. Patton strained her ears, but all she could make out was “pumpkin” and “carriage” and even “mice.” Patton gave up on listening and simply followed.

When they reached the pumpkin patch, the woman turned to look at Patton. “Alright. I suppose you want to go to the ball, don’t you? Of course you do. I need you to help me carry the best pumpkin you have over to the road.”

Wordlessly, Patton complied, and soon they were standing where Patton’s stepfamily had gotten into their carriage only about a half an hour before.

“I’m sorry, but who are you? What are we doing?” Patton burst out, her curiosity and confusion getting the best of her.

The woman chuckled. “I suppose you would like to know. Alright, I’m your fairy godmother, and we’re going to get you to the ball,” she stated matter of factly. Without giving Patton a chance to respond, the woman turned back to the pumpkin and pulled out a wand. “Stand back,” she warned.

Patton managed to scramble back a few steps before her fairy godmother exclaimed “Bippity boppity boo!” and the pumpkin was engulfed in glittering smoke, and when it cleared Patton was suddenly staring at a carriage where the pumpkin should have been.

Patton’s jaw dropped. “That’s- wow, I- wow,” she stammered.

The fairy godmother snorted. “Thanks, kid. Now, do you have any small animals? Maybe some mice?” Patton helped her round up some creatures and with another puff of glittering smoke, there were now horses and footmen and a coachman.

Patton took a moment to admire the carriage and such, feeling hope and excitement bloom in her chest. Then she remembered her ruined dress, and her heart sank. “I can’t go out like this. Look at me.”

Her fairy godmother fixed her with an annoyed stare. “You’ve gotta be kidding me. For goodness sake.” And with that, she waved her wand and Patton was herself surrounded by the magical smoke.

When it dispersed, Patton looked down at herself to see not the ragged old dress, but a beautiful new one, baby blue and glittering as though the smoke had been caught in the fabric itself. Her glass and string necklace was replaced by a beautiful one with real diamonds. Her glasses seemed to morph into the mask, leaving her with the appearance of someone with perfect vision instead of being blind as a bat.

And then she realized that she was no longer standing on dirt. She looked down at her feet and saw that she now wore the most beautiful shoes she had ever seen. They were made of glass, but still wonderfully comfortable, and they were covered in intricate, delicate designs. They were the first shoes she had owned in a long time.

Patton turned to her fairy godmother, intending to thank her profusely, but her words died on her lips. The woman was gone, and all that was left was a piece of parchment, drifting lazily toward the ground. Patton caught it and read the words “Good luck. And be gone by midnight, for that is when the enchantment ends.” Patton smiled, and soon she was on her way to the palace, and the prince.

Blue dresses and blue eyes

Pairing: Royalty (Roman x Patton)

Word count: 1327 (This might change after editing)

Warnings: None, let me know if I missed anything

Human Cinderella au, bisexual Roman, genderfluid Patton

( @ionlyeatcomfortfood if you meant it about editing, if not that’s also cool)

The masquerade ball was a splendid thing, filled with splendid people. Prince Roman smiled down at his guests as they arrived, paying little to no attention to the names they were being announced with.

This ball had been thrown in Roman’s honor, but not for any heroic deeds, which Roman would have much preferred. Instead, this ball had been thrown to find Roman a wife.

Roman was the crown prince of the little kingdom in which they all resided. And because his father was growing older with each passing day, Roman would have to take the thrown soon. Everyone felt it would be better if Roman had a queen to rule by his side. Everyone, that is, except for Roman himself.

Keep reading

7 notes · View notes

anonymous-squirrel · 5 years ago

Text

Oh my goodness, really?! Thank you so much!!! I'll see what I can do, thank you!!

Blue dresses and blue eyes

Pairing: Royalty (Roman x Patton)

Word count: 1327 (This might change after editing)

Warnings: None, let me know if I missed anything

Human Cinderella au, bisexual Roman, genderfluid Patton

( @ionlyeatcomfortfood if you meant it about editing, if not that’s also cool)

(also sorry, I don’t know how to add the read more thing)

The masquerade ball was a splendid thing, filled with splendid people. Prince Roman smiled down at his guests as they arrived, paying little to no attention to the names they were being announced with.

This ball had been thrown in Roman’s honor, but not for any heroic deeds, which Roman would have much preferred. Instead, this ball had been thrown to find Roman a wife.

Roman was the crown prince of the little kingdom in which they all resided. And because his father was growing older with each passing day, Roman would have to take the thrown soon. Everyone felt it would be better if Roman had a queen to rule by his side. Everyone, that is, except for Roman himself.

Roman didn’t have anything against women or the idea of a wife. But he hated being forced to do anything, and he hated that no one seemed to believe that he was fit to rule, with or without a queen.

Roman looked around the room, bored. He spotted a young man in a well made purple velvet suit sporting a purple and silver mask standing by the food and allowed himself a minute to just look. Not that he was going to do anything about this man. Roman was bisexual, but no one, not even his father nor his most trusted companions knew. He would have to be content with only considering the women at the ball. Not that there was any shortage.

The clock struck six, and the king rose, beckoning for Roman to do the same. Everyone who would be attending was there, and it was time for Roman to choose a woman for the first dance. He was about to descend from the balcony where he was standing when the doors opened once more.

In walked the most beautiful woman Roman had ever seen. She was dressed in an elegant baby blue dress, the color so vibrant and the shimmering fabric so well made it put all the other dresses worn to the ball to shame. It had what appeared to be tiny diamonds woven into the very fabric of the dress, making it shimmer and glow in the light of the ball. Around her neck, she wore a grey necklace covered in more diamonds. Her face was enchanting, sunkissed, with a smattering of freckles as if someone had taken a paintbrush to her face, her cheeks flushed a light pink. She had big, kind blue eyes so bright and blue that even her dress looked pale by comparison. They were framed by a delicate gray mask that swirled with glimmering specks like stars in the evening sky.

Roman quickly composed himself and made his way to the floor, where he would be dancing. He extended his hand to the woman who had just entered, and she accepted. He kissed her hand in the way that was expected of princes meeting a woman for the first time, and he felt a shock from where his lips touched her hand.

They started the dance held at arm’s reach, and as the dance progressed they moved steadily closer. By the time the dance was over their faces were flushed and they were standing almost chest to chest. The woman fit perfectly in his arms.

Roman took a half step back and bowed, and the woman curtsied in return.

“Would you like to get some fresh air?” he asked, and the woman nodded. They made their way from the center of the room to one of the doors leading to the garden, slipping in between other guests to reach their destination. Once outside Roman shut the door to the ball immediately, almost sighing in relief.

He turned to the woman. “My name is Roman,” he started, then paused. “I suppose you already know that.” She nodded, smiling good-naturedly. “I don’t believe you were introduced.”

She nodded reluctantly. “I suppose I should tell you my name, shouldn’t I. Alright, they call me Poppy.”

“Poppy,” Roman repeated slowly, liking the feel of the name in his mouth. “What a beautiful name.”

They wandered through the garden, getting to know each other. They didn’t notice that the evening was turning to night until the clock began to chime. Poppy looked up at the clock to see what time it was signaling, and her eyes grew wide with alarm.

“I have to go,” she told Roman, already making her way to the path that would take her off the palace grounds. “I can’t tell you why, but I do.”

Roman started to walk after her, and she turned and fled. She was fast, especially considering her dress and the shoes she must be wearing. This and her head start meant Roman was unable to catch up with her.

He stood at the top of the stairs that lead to where the carriages were and watched helplessly as one pulled away, speeding off into the night. He sank to his knees, despairing at the knowledge that he would almost certainly never find her again when something shimmery caught his eye. He looked over and there sat a glass slipper. Roman grinned ruefully. Of course she had been wearing a glass slipper of all things.

He scooped up the shoe and made his way back to the palace. He had a servant run the shoe to his room, and he rejoined the party. He danced with many women that night, but none of them twice.

The next morning Roman woke early. Well, early for the day after a ball that lasted until three or four in the morning. He padded groggily from his bed to his door, off to breakfast with his father as he did every morning. He was about to open the door when something glinted in the morning sunlight right in the corner of his eye. He looked over to see what it was, and there on his desk sat the glass slipper Poppy had lost. He grinned, an idea forming. He left the room and went to see his father.

A proclamation had been made to all the citizens that Prince Roman had chosen a bride. Every woman in the kingdom was to try on the glass slipper that had been dropped by the woman who had fled at midnight. Roman was going to lead this trip, as he also remembered details about her in case multiple women fit the shoe.

The day was long, and by the time Roman and his party arrived at the manor out on the outskirts of town, he was ready to give up. In this house there were two girls about the age Roman would assume Poppy had been, but once again neither of them fit the shoe.

Roman was about to leave when there was a crash from the floor above. Roman moved to go see what had happened, but the mother of the two girls stepped right in his path.

“Let me through,” Roman all but snarled. “There is someone upstairs.”

“There is no one in this house other than myself and my daughters.”

Roman fixed the woman with a withering stare. “There is someone else in this house, and by order of the crown prince you will let me meet them.”

The woman shrank under Roman’s look and finally relented. She called up to the person and told them to come down.

In walked a young man wearing a cap, and simple, well-worn clothes with grass stains on the knees and soot on his tunic and no shoes. And he had freckles and light pink cheeks and big blue eyes you could lose yourself in. Eyes that were looking anywhere but Roman.

“Poppy?” Roman asked, his voice almost a whisper.

The man flinched. “Actually, it’s Patton,” he said apologetically, his voice wavering and cracking. “I’m genderfluid.”

Roman stifled a grin, not wanting to make Patton uncomfortable. “May I?” he asked, pulling out the slipper.

Those words said everything. Patton looked up, finally making eye contact with Roman, and nodded. Roman knelt down and delicately placed Patton’s foot in the shoe.

It fit perfectly.