Work Text:
It is the year 803 in the continent of Magvel. After a long battle, the Demon King Fomortiis was finally sealed and defeated and the now known as the war of Stones had officially ended. Everyone went back to their home countries with the hope of bringing a brighter future, officially beginning the reconstruction of the continent.
The desert country of Jehanna had already started to rebuild the burnt palace and cities affected by the war, motivated with the return of their long-lost prince after 10 long years to succeed the deceased queen Ismaire and the rumors that he was going to marry a common woman from Grado, something unusual for a king. Joshua accepted his fate of becoming the ruler of Jehanna and had already begun to plan what to do once he took over the throne. However, he had one last thing before being crowned king.
Joshua was at the royal mausoleum of Jehanna standing at his mother grave. He was wearing Jehanna´s royal attire, consisting in a cape and an outfit with a mask covering his face similar to the ones worn by desert assassins. He also asked for a hat complementing the attire to be more aligned with his style. It was strange to wear that valuable garb after wearing his mercenary clothes for a long time, but he wanted to understand how previous kings of Jehanna felt when wearing them.
The prince wanted to talk with the queen one last time, before the crowning ceremony, to make sure she rested in peace. Before going to the mausoleum, Joshua asked to be only accompanied by his fiancée and that she only entered when it´s necessary. The woman was waiting outside, but she felt that she needed to enter soon.
“Mother, you can rest in peace now. The demon king was defeated and the war has ended. Now I will take the throne and become king.” Joshua said. “I couldn´t be in the place I am right now without everything that I have learnt during all these years.”
He then remembered all the experiences he lived during his time as a mercenary: “Between all these fights and games of chance, I have met a lot of different people. Some were good, some were not that good, but all of them have shown me all the different perspectives about the world we live in. There is something new I can learn every day from anyone, no matter their status. That is something I would have never learnt if I didn´t leave the castle.
I see everyone working together to rebuild Jehanna. From the ashes of what remains of the palace, a new one is being constructed and it looks like is going to be more beautiful than the previous one. I know our people are strong and with their will and trust, I am sure that Jehanna will be even brighter than ever before. I will lead them to achieve this goal.”
He sighed and continued: “If there is something I regret, is not being together like a family.”
He started crying: “As a mother, you didn´t have a chance to see how I grew from a child to a man and I lament taking that away from you. Now we can never recover that lost time. We didn´t regard what the other was feeling, but at least I still was thinking about you. When I was away, I heard how people were talking about how you were ruling with wisdom and justice and I want to continue that legacy. You will never be forgotten, mother.”
He then paused and added, with some emotion in his voice and tears remaining in his eyes:
“But I won´t be alone at this important task. In the war I have made valuable allies and more importantly, great friends I can trust and count on when I am in trouble. Among all the people, I have met the person I want to share my life with and I would give it my all. Before I say goodbye, I want you to meet someone.”
He turned around to look at the beautiful blonde woman that just entered with a big bouquet with flowers from the desert. She was wearing a white robe, but she was moving gracefully like a butterfly in the wind.
“This is my fiancée, the woman that will become my queen.” Joshua said while looking at the woman, completely in love. “Her name is Natasha. She is a cleric from Grado I met during the war, but she had helped attending the people and families in need during the reconstruction of the kingdom. She is the kindest and most beautiful woman I have ever met and we are announcing our wedding to the public after I get crowned. I hope we will be as happy as you were with father.”
“The pleasure is mine, your highness.” Natasha said while bowing in front of the grave. “The war was terrible, but it did bring something beautiful. Your son has bet my happiness, and now I will help him ruling Jehanna. Wherever you are, I hope you gave all of your blessings.”
She carefully left the bouquet on the grave and after Joshua bid farewell to his mother, they left the mausoleum.
Once they were outside, they talked about what happened.
“How was the last conversation with your mother?” Natasha asked. Then she removed Joshua´s mask and caressed his cheeks to comfort him. “I see that you have been crying. I know how hard is to lose a loved one and I want to support you.”
“It was rough, but I hope she rests in peace.” Joshua answered. “Now I will move on and take charge of everything.”
“Wherever she is, she will be proud of you.” Natasha smiled while looking at her fiancé’s eyes.
“Thanks.” Joshua smiled back and asked his future wife: “By the way Natasha, what do you think about becoming the new queen?”
“I never expected you to be a prince, so it is shocking to suddenly become royalty after everything I went through. But now, I am thinking about the idea. Queen Natasha… sounds great.” She laughed. “I also plan to improve the relationship between Grado and other nations. The common people don´t have the fault of the war and I want to change that perception about my homeland.” She said with conviction.
“That´s really good. For that alone, I know you will be a great companion and queen. You deserve to be loved by everyone after all the work you did during the war.” Joshua replied.
“You bet my happiness, and in exchange, I will help you ruling Jehanna and building a better future for the continent. We will be winning in both.” She blushed and smiled. “Also, we will have a wonderful family. Our children will have a thoughtful and kind father.”
“And a beautiful and loving mother too.” Joshua replied tenderly. “I have an idea: If we have a daughter, I want to name her Ismaire, to remember how great her grandmother was.”
“I agree with it. But for now, you have to ascend the throne.” Natasha said “Your kingdom awaits their king.”
“Then the future is already afoot. We will be the best rulers Jehanna ever had.”
When Joshua finished the sentence, Natasha and him shared a passionate kiss, and after that, the couple went to where the crowning ceremony was being held holding their hands, marching towards the glorious future of the desert kingdom.