Chapter Text
Will's laying down on his huge king-sized bed, in his bedroom that's the size of his old house in the village. He's thinking of how different his life has been since his mother got married to King Jim Hopper. As a boy who grew up as a peasant, he never could have dreamed of getting to live this life, and he should be glad that he has this opportunity. Right?
Well the truth is, he enjoyed his life in the village when it was just him with his mother, and his brother, Jonathan. Being in this huge castle, living with the king and princess— being legally related to the king and princess— just seemed so foreign. He's been trying to get used to it for the past week, but it doesn't feel like he ever will. Even if he's technically a prince now, it feels like he'll never fit in with the real royals.
He's not used to having to talk in a certain way, or dress differently for certain occasions. He's not used to having separate rooms just to do different things. He's not used to having other people do things for him. He's not used to having his own room, walk-in closet, and bathroom. He's not used to the royal life.
And sure, some things are nice, but it's strange. It's strange the way that everyone in the castle is so accustomed to the way things are. The way they act like it's normal, like other people are supposed to do things for you. Most of all, he finds it strange how his mother and Jonathan are already acting like they've been royals their whole lives, as if it's that easy to adjust so quickly.
He feels trapped inside of the cobblestone walls of the castle. Technically, he is trapped, because he's not allowed to go to the village without one of his family members or royal advisor. The intention for this is so that he doesn't get mobbed since he's 'royalty', but who would care about a prince that doesn't even know 'proper' manners?
The rays of the setting sun illuminate Will's room, coating it in shades of orange, yellow, red, pink, and purple. Noticing it almost snaps Will out of his thoughts, and he deeply wishes he could paint the gorgeous sight. Though, he's only allowed to paint in one room of the entire castle. It's completely unfair, he thinks, because the sun never hits that room quite right, and the lighting is always wrong. Maybe he could convince the king to allow him to paint in his room, but he doesn't think the king would agree.
King Jim Hopper is definitely much nicer than Will's biological father had been, but that doesn't mean he isn't stern. He likes everything to be just right, and doesn't like seeing the castle a mess. Will hopes that once he comes of age, he can move out and have his own place where he's free to do whatever he likes; to paint whatever and wherever he wants.
A knock on his bedroom door startles Will, and he jolts up in his bed, using his hands to support himself. He looks over at the tall, dark brown double doors, and does his best to speak in the 'proper' way that he has been practicing, "Who is there?" He asks.
"It is time for dinner, Prince William." The words come from his royal advisor, Steven Harrington.
Will scrambles up from his bed, muttering curses under his breath. He remembers that he was supposed to be getting ready for dinner, not contemplating his life. "I will be right there!" He shouts towards the doors.
He doesn't fully understand the point in changing clothes just for dinner, but it's the new rules, and he must follow them. He moves to his closet, looking for anything that is fancy enough for dinner. His final decision for his outfit is a nice white dress shirt, a golden yellow vest, black dress pants, and his dress shoes. Dinner is one of the more fancy meals of the day, so Will is supposed to look prim and proper.
As soon as he's dressed, and has made sure that his fluffy brown hair doesn't look too bad underneath his golden crown, he steps out of his room. Steven is waiting there for him, and together they walk through the halls of the castle, down to the dining room. Beneath a large diamond chandelier, there is a very long table with thirty chairs.
Sitting there already is his entire family; his mother, Queen Joyce, his step-father, King Jim, his brother, Prince Jonathan, and his step-sister, Princess Jane. The servants are there, and a few of the knights occupy the rest of the chairs besides the ones left for Will and Steven. Will sits down at the table, across from Jane, and right next to one of the knights. Steven takes the last empty seat.
There is a ton of food on the table; steak, various vegetables, fresh cut fruit, and chicken soup as an alternate main dish.
"Let us feast!" The King announces, giving the cue for everyone to fill their plates and eat.
Will has a little bit of everything on his plate, trying it all so that he can expand his pallet. As he eats, he focuses on using his manners, keeping his elbows off the table and chewing with his mouth closed. Though, it's hard to focus when it feels like someone is staring at him. He's felt like that every night at dinner for the past week. It's weird to him, but maybe it's a normal royal thing.
"How was everyone's day?" Will's mother asks.
Will swallows his bite of food before answering, "Today was quite nice. I was in the library, reading for most of the day, and I took a walk around the garden. The sunflowers are very pretty, and I really like the architecture around the garden."
"I bought a new tiara!" Jane says excitedly, gesturing to the silver one on top of her head. It's accented with light purple jewels, matching her dress.
"I walked around the castle a bit." Jonathan tells them, speaking in a monotone voice and giving no details as usual.
"Well it sounds like the three of you had a wonderful day." The King says, "Mine was horrible." He starts to ramble on about his day, but Will tunes him out.
Will still feels like someone is watching him, but his entire family is focused on the king. Maybe it's one of the knights? Or possibly it's just his imagination? He's not sure, but it makes him a little self conscious.
When dinner is finished, the royal family gets up from the table and retreat to their bedrooms for the night, leaving a mess for the maid to clean up. Will feels a bit bad, but he's not supposed to clean up after himself anymore.
Back in his bedroom, he changes into his yellow silk pajamas, then gets into bed. He pulls the soft cotton comforter over his head and lies his head on the silk pillows. He tries to fall asleep, but he just can't.
He hears a knock.
It doesn't sound like it's coming from the door.
It's coming from the window.
Will turns on his side, and jolts out of bed onto his socked feet when he sees the shape of a boy sitting just outside of one of his windows. The darkness covers his true looks, but he looks to have long curly hair, and he's also wearing pajamas, but he has boots on. He looks cold.
For a second, Will stands there, frozen. He's terrified that the boy could have a weapon— that he's there to kill him. A few more knocks, and he grabs a candlestick from his nightstand, then cautiously walks over to the window.
The boy outside is now more visible since Will's closer. He looks harmless, as his long dark curly hair is blowing lightly in the wind, and his dark brown eyes gleam in the moonlight. The boy rolls his eyes playfully, and appears to say something, but Will can't hear it. He sets the candlestick down and messes with the window for a moment, trying to get it open.
When he finally gets it open, he whisper-shouts, "Who the fuck are you and why the hell are you outside my window?!"
The mysterious boy smiles slyly, "Prince William, you cursed?" Will can't tell if he's just messing around or genuinely going to get him in trouble.
Will crosses his arms leaning back a bit, "Who are you?"
The boy laughs softly, his long dark curls blowing in the wind, "William, you don't recognize me?"
"Why the fuck do you think I'm asking who you are?" Will retorts.
"I sat next to you at dinner." The boy seems disappointed that Will doesn't know who he is. "I'm Michael. Sir Michael if you want to get official."
"Well, Michael, why are you outside my window in the middle of the night?" Will repeats.
Michael swings one leg through the window, then the other. He rests his elbows on his knees, using his hands to hold up his head. His gaze never leaves Will. "Has anyone ever told you how pretty you are?"
Will feels himself blushing, and he swallows nervously, "I- uh- no..."
The other boy seems genuinely confused, "Are you sure?" He asks, and Will nods. "Well that's absurd. You are very pretty."
"Thank you?" Will is questioning why a knight would sneak up to his room just to say that. "Why are you here?"
Michael clears his throat and takes one of Will's hands in his own, "Prince William, will you go out to the village with me tomorrow? On a date?"
That shocks Will. The boy sitting in front of him— a knight— just asked him— a prince— to go on a date. It feels like his brain breaks for a moment, while he just stares at the boy. He wants to say yes, but he knows he shouldn't.
"I- I- yeah." Will finally decides, nodding, "But I- I'm not really supposed to leave the castle without my family."
Michael shrugs it off, "I'm a knight, it's not like anything bad will happen. Besides, what else will you do all day? Read?"
Will rolls his eyes playfully, "I do other stuff, you know."
"Like what?" Michael asks, tilting his head like a curious dog.
"I paint." Will says, "And- well that's kind of it besides the games I used to play with my friends in the village."
Michael smiles at that, "You seem really cool, William."
"And you seem like a creep, Michael."
"Yet you agreed to go on a date with me." He kisses Will's hand.
Will blushes again, then asks, "Do you want to come in?"
Michael nods, standing up from the windowsill. He looks around the large room like it's the most bizarre thing he's ever seen. His gaze falls to the bed and he walks over, immediately falling down on it.
Will follows him over, "Did I say you could lay on my bed?" He teases.
"No." Michael groans, "But frankly, I don't care because I haven't slept great in a week."
"Me either." Will admits, climbing onto the bed right next to Michael. Absentmindedly, he starts playing with the boys hair, twirling the long curls in his fingers. Neither of them say anything about it, as if they both secretly enjoy it. "I have a feeling that's a hint that you want to sleep here." Will says finally. He doesn't know why he's talking to the boy like he's known him forever, even though they only met a mere five minutes ago— well, officially met.
The other boy just nods. His eyes fall closed, and he looks completely at peace. It's so much different than when he's in his knight armor.
Will smiles softly. He's not entirely sure how just a few minutes ago, he was terrified of the boy sitting outside of his window, and now he's playing with that same boy's hair. He sighs, "What am I supposed to tell my advisor when he finds you in my bed tomorrow morning?"
"That you've chosen your knight." Michael says sleepily.
"You're tired?" Will asks, to which Michael nods.
Will finally stops playing with Michael's hair, and scoots over to the pillows. Michael follows, and Will pulls the blanket over them. Will closes his eyes, about to fall asleep, when an arm drapes over his chest. It wakes him up for a split second, but it's warm and comfortable so he falls back asleep quickly, despite Michael's snores.