Mason sighed and looked out the window of his bedroom on one of the upper levels of the palace. The sun was beginning to rise. The kingdom was quite lovely this early in the morning. He frowned and thought about his life so far. Ever since he was born, Mason was the heir to the throne. Because he was so important to the kingdom, he was never to leave the palace without a guard or two (let alone exit the borders without the entire round table on his heels). When he was ten, his parents finally let him out of the palace. He chose his favorite knight— Sir Golden— to go with him. The two went to one of the near villages and found themselves in the market. They were dressed in peasant garments so that no one would know who they were at first glance. Within the first hour, Sir Golden pretended to lose sight of the you prince and let him wander around the village. On the outskirts of the Market, Prince Mason wandered over to the edge of the woods, were he found a girl about his age throwing pebbles into the stream nearby. "Hello," she greeted him, "I'm Belle. What's your name? I've never seen you around here before."
"I am Mason." He told her importantly, choosing to keep his last name and title hidden. The girl smiled at him and the two had stayed together for hours until Sir Golden had to fetch him and bring him home. Belle never knew who he was, but asked if she'd ever see him again. "I live here in the village. I'll always be here, if you want to play again sometime?" She offered hopefully. Mason was happy, knowing that he had made a friend without meaning to, and told her yes. A month went by before he could see her again, but she recognized him almost instantly, and they picked up where they left off. Years went by, and Mason would leave the palace to visit Belle in secret. He brought her gifts. He would show her things he's learned, such as how to read and write, and how to sword fight. He even taught her to be able to read and write herself, which she was very grateful for. In return, she'd bring him things from far away places— like the outskirts of his father's kingdom, as well as others— and show him different tricks that her own parents taught her, like sowing and carving wood. All the while, Mason still kept his true identity a secret. When he turned sixteen, he decided that it was time to tell Belle who he really was. One day, he had confessed to her that he was the prince of the kingdom, and that the man who would bring him to see her was his most trusted knight. Belle was shocked at first, but it quickly subsided into awe. Her best friend was the heir to the throne this entire time? Better yet, he wanted her to be his best friend. The prince himself had set aside some of his own time to see a peasant girl in the name of friendship. He asked her to keep it a secret. She promised him that if he wanted her to never tell anyone, it would be a secret that she'd take with her to the grave.
The two would still meet up like normal, and Belle never treated him any differently than she did before he told her who he was. Slowly, he felt himself fall for her. He was confused why at first, but then he knew why. It was small things, really, that made him want to be with her. Her warm pink eyes and sapphire-blue hair that made her unique, the fact that she saw him as an equal and not a superior, the way she looked at him like he was important even without being the prince, the way she valued his opinion like it really mattered... it made him grateful that he had met her all those years ago. Almost half a year ago, he turned eighteen. He would soon take his father's place as king. While it made him feel proud that he'd be the leader of his kingdom and help guide his people to a bright future, he was also dreading it.
A king needed a queen.
He won't be coronated until he's married or engaged. While most princes would be eager for this, Mason was not. He knew who he wanted to choose. He wished for Belle to be his queen. She was precious to him, and he'd be damned if he let anyone take her light from his life. The only problem was something he knew from the beginning: his parents would never approve of her. Belle was a peasant, born from a family of peasants. Her entire life was centered around hard work and helping her family gain currency by— you guessed it— working. She was not a blue blood. She had little to no money. She most certainly would not be enough in their eyes. To them, she would be nothing more than their son's manipulator. They'd try to turn him against her, or they'd simply have her 'taken care of'. He would never let that happen, but he always feared that if he wasn't careful, his parents would find Belle and throw her in the deepest, darkest dungeon they have, or simply sentence her to death.
