The Sweetest Downfall

They never speak of marriage, of the laws that stand against them.

Serena, however, knows Layla is the one. The moment it settles in her heart, she starts to dig through old texts. She looks for loopholes. Opportunities.

There has to be a way.

She takes meetings with the brightest minds in Aldagar. She asks every man and woman who claims to be an expert in law or tradition.

They all come to a sobering consensus: nothing can be done under the current laws.

It is the "current" which captures her attention.

Laws can be changed. It requires effort and dedication. Fortunately, Serena has both. Right now, she and Layla still have time.

They've yet to speak of marriage, but if and when they do, Serena wants to be able to have that option. She wants to take Layla into her arms, smile, and whisper 'yes.'

Or even be the one who drops down to one knee. Because Layla is worth it.

She's the one.
 

~Layla likes to snuggle, but Serena hates excess heat. They may start the night cuddling, but eventually, Layla rolls into a blanket burrito, and Serena sprawls out on top of what’s left of the covers.

~Layla is the more sexually experienced of the two, with both male and female lovers in the past, but Serena is an eager study. She has only had female partners.

~Serena says ‘I love you’ first, a quiet confession during a tender moment. It’s several months later when Layla blurts it out in return, over a public lunch, and during an unfortunate, if not hilarious, lull in the dull roar of surrounding conversation.

~They have spent at least one nigh in every inn, bed and breakfast, or hostel in Aldagar. Some they have frequented enough that they have a favorite room.

~In the Spring, the peak of flower season, Layla snores. She also sneezes like a horse.

~Layla enjoys watching Serena apply her make up for official functions, but rejects wearing any herself. She doesn’t have the patience and refuses to let Serena’s handmaidens help her.

~Serena is a messy crier. It’s a good thing she doesn’t do so often, because her face turns splotchy, tears go everywhere, and her nose runs.

Layla is definitely the impulse buyer of the two. She knows how to manage her money, but she keeps what she calls “impulse coin” for the things here and there that catch her eye. Especially if shiny or new.
 

who draws in the dust on their cars

Serena. Bath fog in the mirrors. Frost on the windows. Dust on the desktop. She often idly draws designs with her fingertips while lost in thought.
 

who starts the snowball fights

Layla. Always Layla. She loves a good challenge, she loves to have fun, and even though Serena’s aim is better than hers, she can’t make a decent snowball, so they are evenly matched.
 

who throws away the directions to things

Layla. She thinks they can figure it out on their own. Just wing it. Serena prefers to have something to fall back on just in case, or you know, do it right the first time.
 

who puts up holiday décor

Both of them. Serena has a keen eye for interior design, another something she was raised to know, but Layla gets really excited for holidays and has set times when the decorations must go out to get them in the spirit.
 

who is more likely to forget to bathe

Layla. It’s less likely that she forgot to bathe, as it is she gets to the end of the day, realizes she hasn’t bathed yet, and is too tired to go through the effort of doing so and saves it for the next day. Or the day after that.
 

who gets more obsessed about things

I wouldn’t say obsessed is the right word, but once Serena gets focused on something important, there’s little that can deter or distract her.

who sings in the shower more often

Serena hums, but Layla sings, sometimes in tune, sometimes not. If they’re bathing together, and have the time, they might indulge in a duet or two.

who cries when someone dies in a movie

Definitely Layla. She tries to hide it, but she reacts first, thinks later. Serena’s been trained to keep her emotions in check, so she might feel like crying, but she’s good at putting on that stone face.

who wears the ugly holiday garb

Layla. She loves to find the ugliest thing she can possibly locate and wear it with pride. Especially if it’s comfortable. Plus, it makes Serena laugh.

who pays for the meals

They take turns, especially at first. Layla insisted upon it. Once they get married, though, the pull from a joint pot and pay together. And Serena is always a big tipper.

Serena. Layla’s too practical when it comes to strays, but Serena has a very big heart and still thinks she can save the world and everything in it.

who leaves the bathroom door open

If using the facilities, neither of them, at least not at first. If bathing, Layla. She hopes to entice Serena to join her.

who tells the ‘dad jokes’

Layla. She loves puns and bad jokes and silly things. Stuff that makes Serena laugh and give her a fond look.  

who wants kids more

Neither of them. Serena is hoping she can foist off the idea of heirs onto her brother, while Layla has enough nieces and nephews that she thinks she’s set for life.

who travels more

Layla. She’s at least been out of the city a few times thanks to being a member of the militia and Nolan’s Guard. Serena hopes to get out of the city soon. She wants to make diplomatic trips to both Aldagar and Ivaline to maintain friendly relations with their neighbors.

Let’s talk about maps, shall we? As in world maps.

“A Royal Pursuit” is set in my The Mimickers universe, something that I created over a decade ago, that I’ve been gradually honing and building. This world map was drawn a long time ago in MS Paint but it still serves as a handy reference tool until I re-do it with more current information.

This is the world of Raetaen. See the bottom right continent? That is Ghent, and at the top of Ghent, in a forest that straddles a river, is Aldagar, which is where A Royal Pursuit takes place. Aldagar is both the name of the capital city and the name of the country.

Aldagar is also near Meransia, to the left of Ghent, and Ivaline, which is at the bottom toward the middle, noted by the now defunct name of Ivey.

Meransia is home to the Merans, a cat-lizard like species who has very good relations and trade with Aldagar. Merans also, for the record and thanks to Magic ™ are able to cross-breed with humans.

Ivaline is home to the Verdillan, a plant-human hybrid like species who have two separate lifespans and are also able to cross-breed with humans. Ivaline, however, is very set apart, and its residents don’t interact outside their community.

Their first kiss had been in the dirt, sweat painting their skin, and clothes sticking to their bodies.

They’d been training, practicing self-defense for Serena’s benefit. Her amateur status was painfully obvious given the amount of times Layla got her on her back.

It was the fifth time Layla pinned her down when their eyes met. They’d been laughing because Serena didn’t know how to get frustrated, only flustered.

Layla straddled Serena, pinning her to the practice dirt, when she realized how very lovely Serena was. Dust-streaked face and all.

It struck her then, how very much she wanted to kiss Serena. She said as much aloud, mouth moving before her bran could caution otherwise.

Serena flushed and said, “Well then, why don’t you?”

Layla had taken the invitation, closing the distance between their lips as excitement grew within her.

Their first kiss was brief, an introduction of their mouths, one to the other.

The second and the third were better. Sweeter. Wetter. Layla instantly knew she wanted a fourth and a fifth.

And if the look of wonder on Serena’s face was any indication, she did, too.

Sometimes Serena forgets.

Layla is not royalty nor is she one of the nobility. She is the daughter of a soldier, one of the city guard.

But that doesn’t mean she is uneducated. Her father insisted that he and her siblings attend the local academies no matter the cost.

According to Layla, he’s always believed the path to self-improvement lay in a proper education.

Though that doesn’t explain why Serena keeps finding her lover with her nose buried in those… those obscene pieces of trashy romance that can barely be called stories, much less novels. They are the only thing Layla will read by her own choice, as raunchy and explicit as they are.

Poorly written, too, which if you ask Serena is the greater sin.

“You’re just jealous you can’t come up with a line as epic as this,” Layla says, sticking out her tongue. “My nethers quivered with tumescent desire, soaked in the honey of my longing. I–”

“Enough!” Serena laughs. “Please enough. My brain is bleeding out of my ears.”

“Elitist,” Layla teases.

“Only because I have a sense of taste,” Serena retorts.

Honestly!

For the people of Aldagar, who live in proximity to Elvie and Meransia, their rules of ascension are considered quite lax.

Same-sex marriages are not frowned upon and are treated as normal, even for the nobility or royalty. The Ruling Two can be m/m, m/f, or f/f. The Ruling Two don’t even have to be the married couple, so long as one of the Ruling Two are genetic heirs to the throne.

Take, for instance, Serena’s grandparents, her father’s parents. While they were husband and wife, they were not King and Queen. They were King and wife, with a secondary member of his support staff serving as the balance to his Ruling Two, (King and Dame, or King and Sir, in this instance, King and Sir). The Ruling Two do not have to be romantically linked.

Therefore, if Serena and Layla were to be wed, Serena would have the option to either nominate Layla as her Queen and the second half of her Ruling Two, or Layla (who honestly has no interest in learning how to rule a nation), could politely demur, allowing Serena to choose a more suitable candidate to rule beside her.

It is not the fact that they are a lesbian couple that prevents Serena and Layla from being together with ease, but that Layla is not only a commoner, she’s an Unlearned commoner (which is different from an uneducated commoner). Royalty don’t often marry for love, but for practicality, and Layla’s skills are impractical to assisting and supporting Serena in her future rule.

Princess Serena, daughter of King Elian and Queen Cerise, the Ruling Two of the country of Aldagar, located on the continent of Ghent.

Layla, daughter of Nolan’s Guard, a soldier in training. Her parents are Garrick and Noelle.  

Serena is older than Layla by a couple of years. She has a younger brother. Her father inherited the throne when he came of age, and he has a sister, but she declined the throne. (More to come on royal ascension in a separate post). Serena’s mother is an only child.

Layla, meanwhile, has three siblings – two sisters and a brother – and from one of them, nieces and nephews. Layla is the light of her father’s eye, the only one interested in following in his footsteps. Her father is part of Nolan’s Guard, and her mother works in administration.

They first met in passing, ages ago, when Serena asserted herself against her parents, to refuse their protection. They insisted that if she proved capable of defending herself, she wouldn’t need to keep a guard. Thus, she began to take self-defense classes, one of which was taught by Layla’s eldest brother, and Layla happened to drop by one day, causing them to meet.

Amusingly, Layla hadn’t even recognized Serena. She paid little attention to royalty or nobility and therefore barely knew what the Ruling Two looked like and didn’t even know the names of their heirs. She only noticed Serena because she was hilariously clumsy, but had the most beautiful head of hair.

Friendship came first. It later evolved to more…