araliliu-blog

[araliliu-blog]

henryxyoung‌:

She was impossibly beautiful. She didn’t need her red dress or the intricate combs in her long, shining hair—without any of it she was more perfect than anything else that he had ever seen and when she wrapped her slender arms around her tiny frame as if she was afraid of him it tore his heart in half. He knew that she didn’t want to marry him, he knew that her idea of love had nothing to do with an older man she had been forced into an engagement with, but she kept herself at so much of a distance that he wasn’t even sure how to approach her sometimes. He wanted to be close to her, he wanted to tell her how much he admired her. He wanted to make her happy. But right now, what she wanted seemed to be for him to be anywhere else.

“Things are never dull when I’m spending time with you, princess,” he said gingerly as he took a cautious step towards her, tentatively he used one of his calloused hands to tuck a strand of her pretty hair back into its delicate updo. “And you aren’t holding me to anything. I enjoy spending time with you, angelfish, have you not realized that yet?” His hand lingered at the side of her head until he was almost stroking her hair before he stopped himself, she hadn’t hinted that she wanted to be touched by him and he wasn’t the kind of man who would thoughtlessly assume. “You look breathtaking tonight,” he continued quietly, his gaze intent and focused solely on the quivering princess. “It would have been an honor to escort you.” 

Henry Young was nothing if not a man of bravado. His presence overwhelmed her with a practiced air of superiority. She swallowed her wit and let it sink into the pits of her stomach. A dark flush befell her cheeks, wafting in shades of crimson between the flickers of candlelight. Who was she kidding, she was a fool, to let herself be swayed by a few pretty words. But the weight of his gaze fell heavy on her, and despite every yard of finery draped across her, she was utterly naked before him. He...was too good to be true, like a portrait hung from a wall one must never touch. She backed into the shelf, desperately wishing for a lake or even a measly pond to escape into. 

“There’s no need to flatter me, please,” she said shifting away from him. “We’ve far more important things to tend to while we’re above the sea than my wants. Of course, there’s much to be done with negotiations among our peers and I-” Arabella stopped herself, embarrassed, “but what am I saying. I won’t bore you with talk of business at a party. Mot-Her Majesty has accustomed me to entertain you.”

[araliliu-blog]

The hall was entrenched in chaos but Arabella stood perfectly still, muscles rigid and unmoving amidst the portrait of small war. Her mother’s violence was quiet, slight, and underhanded, something you could never see on the surface as Liling was a master in psychological warfare; this was visceral. Warnings swirled through her head like a sickening rhythm. This is what the world on land is, death and destruction; her mother’s voice resounded in her thoughts. She needed to find water, somewhere these beasts couldn’t reach. She spied Lilianna across the way and could barely find the strength to wrench herself from the wall into the other girl's arms. 

“We need to go,” she said, panicked. Her eyes darted around the room nervously searching for Henry to no avail. “Lilianna please let's go.” She was a coward, a damned coward, but she’d stay a coward and a tool to her mother if it meant not facing the horrors or the world. // @liliannashulei

[araliliu-blog]

henryxyoung‌

Henry had had eyes for no one but Arabella the moment he saw her walk into the crowded ballroom, he hadn’t expected her mother to allow her to attend a wedding on such dangerous foreign territory, and so the sight of her in her elegant dress had caused his heart to lurch almost painfully. She didn’t stay for long though, no sooner had she arrived was she darting away from the reception completely, and after apologizing to Lilianna, he was heading after her. She made her way into what seemed to be … the library, maybe, and Henry followed suit. He found her with a book in her small, delicate hands that she quickly slammed shut as soon as she caught sight of her. “Your highness,” he said slowly in greeting, gingerly holding up his big, calloused hands as he took a cautious step towards her. “I’ve only been here just a moment. I wasn’t expecting to see you tonight—you should have told me you were coming, it would have been an honor to escort you.” And keep you safe, he added mentally, but he didn’t want to undermine her. “Are you quite alright?”

Arabella’s heart leaped into her throat, pounding viciously. He was beautiful, she thought, beautiful and her mother’s. His loyalty remained solely to her mother, he knew nothing of the terror she’d caused, the true nature of her person. Despite his beauty, it was kindness she couldn’t afford to allow herself to be swayed. She wondered how the sharp slope of his jaw would feel under the touch of her hand and flushed. Her arms wrapped themselves around her bodice as a protection, a wall from any childish fancy she might invent. When she left the palace, he would remain with her mother scorning her name. It was for the better that she kept her distance. 

“It was decided rather recently.” Her teeth worried her bottom lip leaving it red in the wake of her nerves. “I’m perfectly fine. I wouldn’t want to bother you to escort me, it’s probably dull. After all, I’m sure you have better prospects and it isn’t your fault her majesty has decided we’re to be married. I won’t hold you to that.”

[araliliu-blog]

gabrielvbeaumont‌:

( &&. @araliliu )

Unable to garner the full support of the merfolk, Gabriel had turned to the next greatest weapon in his arsenal: the pirates. The Pirate Lords were grungy and rugged in their own right, but they possessed the tenacity and ambition of creatures starved for power, so Gabriel supposed it could have gone worse. With that being said, the last thing he wanted was to cut the merfolk entirely out of the running, so he’d taken the initiative of inviting their entire court to the wedding. Perhaps they could be persuaded to his side after all, and the pirates and merpeople could war over the ocean on their own time.

There were much bigger fish to fry, after all. 

“Your highness,” Gabriel began smoothly, approaching the young princess of the Mer Court and inclining his head towards her slightly. “A pleasure you were able to make it this evening.”

Being allowed out of the palace like this was a gift of its own. Fortunately, her mother’s disdainfulness was overruled by her attempts to keep up appearances. But Arabella still teetered on a thin wire of allowance, every step could have set her mother off in a rage. She blinked owlishly at Gabriel, unable to believe the sight set before her. She’d never met a vampire in person before, but the rumors were true, his face was a sight of uncanny beauty. The beauty, however, was so perfect it made her stomach turn, not a flaw rested on his delicate face, he looked more a marble statue than a person. She tilted her head in greeting towards him. 

“If you’re looking for her majesty I believe she’s off speaking with another clan. I’m quite afraid you’ll find I’m not very good company.”

[araliliu-blog]

Weddings are just curtains of trickery, they’re shows of grandeur to convince everyone of some couple’s undying love when truly none is present Arabella thinks. Her parents were married and there was no love lost between them. She’s going to be married to a man who sees her as little more than a foolish child. Marriage for love, the very thought of it is laughable. The book in her hands slammed shut with decided precision, a romance was folly and anyone who wrote about it had probably died sick and overwhelmed. She pushed the book back into its safe place inside the shelf. Arabella jumped back startled at the sight before her. Henry, she wondered if he could hear those vile thoughts inside her head, or if he could stare right into her soul with those eyes. 

“Henry,” she said. “How long have you been there?” @henryxyoung

[araliliu-blog]

A genuine smile had arrested Arabella Li Liu’s features. It was a rare sight, a true interpretation compared to the thing of falsehood she typically wore. The garden was lovely and quiet, a hidden corner that existed in a reality of her own design. She relished the feeling of the grass’ dew underneath her feet. She preferred them to her tail, with feet she could jump, climb, and run away. The tightness welled in her chest but Arabella bit her lip, chiding any tears that dared to emerge. A small sound caught her attention, breaking the serenity of her solitude. She grabbed at her slippers and raised one slowly as a weapon. 

“Who’s there?” 

[araliliu-blog]

HER ROYAL HIGHNESS ARABELLA LI LIU of the MERFOLK seen at the wedding of king gabriel beaumont and queen consort sophia.