Chapter Text
(Kalos Region, Middle Ages)
Shauna hummed to herself as she made her way through the castle, carrying fresh laundry. To many, being a servant in a castle would be terrible, but to her she couldn't picture being anywhere else. The king and queen were kind and just rulers, and the kingdom had more than flourished under their rule. And it didn't hurt that she was the lady in waiting for their heir, Princess Serena.
"Ah, Shauna! Bonjour!"
Shauna smiled when she saw Miette, her best friend, running up to her.
"Bonjour, Miette!"
"Slurpuff and I have been working on a new Showcase routine! Care to practice with us?"
Shauna shook her head.
"I'd love to, but not today. I need to help Serena get ready."
"Lucky! It must be nice to spend all day with your girlfriend."
Shauna did a double take, darting her eyes about to make sure no one had heard.
"Miette, don't even suggest such a thing!"
Miette giggled.
"Ah, don't be so jumpy! I'm just teasing you."
"Still, you know what might happen…"
"One day things will be different, Shauna. I need to get going. Give the princess my regards!"
"Will do, good luck with Slurpuff!"
Miette hurried off, leaving Shauna alone with her thoughts. With a sigh, she continued to Serena's room.
While Miette loved to tease her, she was correct on one account: she was in love with The Princess. How could she not? She was beautiful, kind, and her smile could light up an entire room. She'd fallen for her the moment she had laid eyes on her at the fall harvest dance. Her graceful dance, her gleeful expression, and the way she choreographed her Eevee to follow her every move, everything about it left her in a trance. If only things were different…
As much as she wished The Princess felt the same way, she knew it could never be. For one, Serena was already engaged to be married to the Prince of Galar Alain. While they had only met a few times, it was clear that he was a loving, gentle soul who would never hurt her. But most importantly, he was a boy, something Shauna could never be.
Romantic relations between people of the same sex wasn't illegal, but it wasn't encouraged either. And since Serena was next in line to the throne, she needed to pass on the family lineage. So even if, by some miracle, Serena did love her, they could never be together.
Fortunately, Miette was the only one who knew, and only because the pressure had gotten to her and she blurted it out while they were alone. And Miette may love to tease, but she'd never betray her trust. So at the very least she could suffer in peace.
Maybe one day things would be different. But until that day came, she could live with just being her lady in waiting.
At long last, she reached Serena's bedroom. Taking a deep breath, she knocked on the mahogany door.
"It's Shauna, Princess!"
"Come in!"
Pushing the door open, she found the Princess adjusting her hair, her sleepwear already shed and tossed aside, allowing Shauna a good look at her beautiful body. Catching Shauna taking a peek, The Princess smirked.
"Like what you see?"
Shauna snapped out of her trance, trying to find an explanation that didn't make her sound like a creep.
"S-Sorry, Princess! I didn't mean to stare, I just-I…"
Serena rolled her eyes.
"Shauna, how many times must I tell you? We're friends, you can call me Serena."
"Right, sorry Pri-Er, Serena. I didn't mean to stare, I just…didn't want to distract you from…"
Serena smiled, and let out a soft laugh, making Shauna's heart skip a beat.
"It's okay, Shauna, I don't mind. Anyway, I take it you brought the dresses?"
"Yep! All ready for you to try on."
Shauna wasn't certain, but she swore Serena's smile briefly turned into a frown.
"Let's get started, then."
"Prin-Serena, is something wrong?"
"It's nothing Shauna, let's see what the weavers cooked up."
"Alright then, let's try dress number 1!"
Serena took the dress from Shauna's hands and began to try it on.
"Feel free to look!"
"Princess!"
Serena giggled, but continued to get dressed. A few minutes later, she was decked from head to toe in white.
"Well?"
"You look beautiful…"
"Oh, you're just saying that."
Well, she wasn't wrong, but Shauna couldn't let her know that.
"No, no! You look amazing!"
"Thanks, but I guess I should try on the others as well."
"Well, we'd hate for them to go to waste!"
"Right."
Serena tried on dress after dress. To Shauna, everything she tried on only enhanced her beauty, but Serena couldn't seem to make up her mind.
"Ugh, this is pointless!"
"Don't say that, we'll find your perfect wedding dress!"
"I don't even want to get married!"
Serena's outburst caught Shauna off guard.
"Princess?"
Serena sat down on her bed and sighed.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to snap at you, you're just doing your job. It's just..I barely know Alain!"
"I'm sure he won't hurt you, he-"
"It's not that! Don't get me wrong, he's perfectly fine, I'm sure he'd make an excellent king and husband. But I barely know him! All this marriage is for is to create some stupid treaty, as if it'll help. If I'm going to be married, I want to marry someone I truly love! And Alain…just isn't it."
"Oh…are you interested in anyone?"
Serena blushed, and looked away.
"You do! Who?"
"I'd rather not say…"
"Oh come on, you can tell me!"
"Well…I've known them a very long time. Almost my whole life, it feels like! And I can tell them anything. Well, almost anything…"
"It's Prince Ash of Alola, isn't it?"
Serena shook her head.
"He's nice, but I haven't seen him in years. Besides, he has eyes for Lady Lillie of Aether."
"Then who?"
"Well…"
Luckily for Serena, a knock on the door distracted Shauna long enough to drop the conversation as Trevor stepped in.
"Pardon me, Princess, but the royal family of Galar is here at Anistar Docks. They want you to meet with your future husband."
"Thank you, Trevor. I'll be there shortly."
Trevor nodded, then left to alert Serena's parents.
"Well, I guess we'd best not keep them waiting."
"You should take that dress off first, though. It's bad luck for the groom to see his bride to be in her wedding dress before the big day, after all."
"Right…"
Serena got up, and Shauna helped her get the dress off before putting on her regular clothes.
"Thank you for helping me, Shauna."
"Of course…Serena."
"Can you promise me something?"
"Anything!"
"Will you continue to be my Lady in Waiting, even after I'm Queen?"
"I will always be there for you, my Princess."
Serena smiled.
"Thank you."
"Now come on!"
Shauna got up and headed towards the courtyard, Serena watching her momentarily before sighing to herself.
"If only…"