#look at all the angst
This is the first fic that I have written for me and @annaoi ‘s Crown AU! This AU is our BABY and I’m so excited and happy to finally be able to share my part in it as this has been sitting in my files for way too long and just waiting to be posted. This fic is before the events of Ann’s draw
Thanks to @loveiscosmicsin so suggesting that I post this short fic as the prologue to this AU
More Crown AU fics written by Ann on her writing blog (@luna-ulric)
SHIP: Luna/ Nyx
WORD COUNT: 794
AU:Crown AUThe footing of the prince consort was heavy–with each movement a struggle to not drag with the weighted ceremonial robes and cloaks trailing behind him. Piercing eyes watched from behind, each glance of noble ill judgement as he made his ascent up the steps to the throne to play his part in this sacred coronation.
Nyx eyes cast upwards to the woman before him. She was dressed in a white gown laced with embroidery of brilliance and gold exquisites. Her shoulders were cloaked by a cape of feathers–dipped in the blue of royal flowers. But the crown of crystal and silver was the most precious of all jewels. An irreplaceable heirloom it was, said to be blessed by the gods alike to the land it resided in. And now it sat, nestled on the head of Tenebrae’s new sovereign with its delicate chains of silver framing her face. Heavy was the weight of the crown, yet she wore it with dignity and grace much like her ancestors who reigned before her.
There she was; the Queen of Tenebrae, the embodiment of all holy, his wife.
And he who shall kneel before her; a mere subject, slave to duty of more importance than a promised loving husband.
He took off his coronet of crystal and placed it in the hands of the altar boy before lowering his knee to meet the marble floor in a kneel of eternal devotion. It was a gesture which had become second nature to him throughout his time as a glaive to the king of Lucis. However, his knee was not bent to the kingdom he once served, more so to the crown of a kingdom that his beloved one called her home.
He fixed his gaze at Lunafreya, hoping to see a glimpse of the woman he called his wife. However, with the Oracle’s Trident in hand, she sat upon the throne, back straight and the stare of her blue eyes unwavering—cold and unfamiliar. Nyx found his gaze wavering, unable to keep his sights on the eyes of a stranger.
Exhaling a low breath, his lips parted, mouth drying for the piece he was going to say.
“I, Nyx, consort of Tenebrae, who kneel before thee, do become thy vassal of life and duty and eternal worship…”
Oaths of loyalty weren’t foreign to the lips of a soldier. But for a homage of such unnatural, a bitter taste was beginning to fester on his tongue–even if he did rehearse them for days, hours and minutes before the coronation.
“Faith and truth I bear unto thee…to live and die against sinner and foe of holy mother and land…To the blessed stars who bear witness to I who offer my pledge, I beseech mercy and guidance…”
And with remaining breath, he uttered his remaining prayer of worship.
“This is my solemn vow…”
Nyx felt winded as he spoke those last words. His voice was robbed to a mere whisper—soft and weak like a choking plea. The vile taste continued lingering, sitting like poison even after he spoke the speech of reverence. But his words were not intended to be spoken as a husband to his wife, but as a liegeman of life and limb to the crown of a nation which robbed him of his own.
The glaive who once promised for Hearth and Home was dead, sacrificed and left to decay in worthless honour. This was a life for a life—as it has always been.
The prince consort, glanced up at Lunafreya once more, holding what he beheld for one last hope of seeing his wife in those distant eyes. Alas, much like the man he once was, the woman he had loved so dearly was lost in that abyss of her darkened gaze. Lunafreya peered at him with a look of absolute sovereignty—a face stripped of warmth and endearment. Nyx didn’t see his wife or the mother of his children at that moment. But the embodiment of the living goddess of all Tenebrae’s worship as she was born and raised to be.
Divine she was, and out of reach.
This was real, and there was no returning back to the simpler of life that they once both dreamed.
Hopelessness filled his burdened heart as he rose from his knee to a stand. With a gentle hand, he reached and caressed the crystal of her crown. Yet with whatever remained in his shattering soul, he leaned down to press a kiss upon the softness of her cheek, before leading his footing backwards from the steps to bow his head to his queen once more.
Small and quick was the kiss, but to the prince consort, this was enough for his final plea.
Please remember…I am still your husband…
