Chapter Text
Once upon a time, there was a handsome prince known as Edward of Brockmoor. Despite hailing from a rather large and wealthy kingdom, Edward did not have very many suitors. He’d attended countless balls and could even be fairly charming when he wanted to, but he simply wasn’t anyone’s idea of what a prince should be like. There were two major reasons for this!
The first was that Prince Edward had chosen to pursue writing rather than learning the ways of swordsmanship. He was even quite good at it, though most would never know. After all, a large majority of the prince’s writing was done in secret and distributed anonymously. Edward’s favorite pastime was surreptitiously gathering evidence of wrongdoing, then writing and posting his findings in various places around the kingdom where folks were bound to find it. The prince had to keep up appearances, which meant he didn’t receive any credit for this. Not having obtained glory in battle was enough of a strike against him; he didn’t need everyone knowing he was the cause of so many lives being uprooted (even if the ones he'd outed certainly deserved it). Either way, he was content with his persona "The Newsbringer" getting all the recognition.
The second reason for Prince Edward’s lack of popularity was his refusal to adhere to societal expectations. He wore simple clothing whenever it wasn’t strictly necessary for him to dress in formal attire, and he seemed to prefer the company of impoverished villagers and servants over folks more closely aligned with his social standing.
Regardless of how Edward was perceived by others both within and without his kingdom, the prince was completely satisfied with his life. He didn’t mind remaining single as long as he could out evildoers and improve the lives of the poor and destitute, whom most of society ignored. His cold-hearted father King Carl, however, had other plans.
King Carl did little to hide his disdain for his only son, whom he blamed for the death of his wife. When Queen Jamie died on her birthing bed, King Carl never once smiled again. His wish that Prince Edward had died instead was well-known, though the king preferred to ignore his son’s existence altogether more often than not. Nevertheless, he had no intention of allowing his lineage to parish with Prince Edward. With little regard for the prince’s opinion on the matter, King Carl secretly arranged a betrothal with a princess from another kingdom.
Prince Edward did not learn of his impending wedding until Princess Annabelle of Weying arrived on his doorstep. Although the prince initially rejected the idea outright, for he did not believe that something as important as marriage should be forced on either of them, Princess Annabelle quickly changed his mind. She was witty, beautiful, and more bold that any other woman he’d ever met. And happily, Princess Annabelle’s own reservations were erased once she realized how kind, selfless, and humble Prince Edward was. Before long, the two found themselves genuinely falling in love. In fact, they were ecstatic about their upcoming union!
Not long before the ceremony was to commence, Prince Edward and Princess Annabelle decided to share their biggest secrets with each other. The prince revealed to his dearest “Annie” that he was the one responsible for the damning missives that’d been appearing all over the kingdom. The princess told her darling “Eddie” that she’d accepted an apprenticeship under Sir Carlton Drake, the most respected apothecary in the kingdom.
When Prince Edward heard Princess Annabelle’s secret, he became very uneasy. After all, he’d been researching Sir Carlton Drake for a very long time. All of his subtle questioning and espionage had amounted to nothing, but Prince Edward was convinced the seemingly innocent man was up to no good. And so, Prince Edward did something he knew he shouldn’t: he got Princess Annabelle to tell him everything she knew about Sir Carlton Drake under the guise of curiosity. While the princess didn’t know much more than Edward, what new information she did provide made the prince more certain than ever that Sir Carlton Drake needed to be stopped.
The next morning, missives appeared around the kingdom in greater numbers than ever. As Sir Carlton Drake was the subject, rumors spread quickly. Prince Edward had been sure to include his own findings and those of Princess Annabelle, though neither was entirely conclusive. His hope was that gossip and The Newsbringer’s popularity would be enough for Sir Carlton Drake’s position to be questioned. Unfortunately, the consequences of Prince Edward’s good deed were not at all what he expected.
Instead of angry townsfolk running Sir Carton Drake out of business, it was the mysterious Newsbringer whom people lost faith in. Sir Carlton Drake’s apothecary kept the villagers alive and he could do no wrong, as far as they were concerned. Worse still, Princess Annabelle was furious that Prince Edward had betrayed her confidence by releasing information that she’d told him in secret. Because of the prince’s thoughtlessness, she’d even lost her apprenticeship! The princess made it very clear that whether or not the two of them had any choice in getting married, she would never forgive Prince Edward for using her.
Prince Edward of Brockmoor was many things, but he was not the type of man who would force someone to marry him against their will. Heartbroken and filled with regret, the prince fled his kingdom under the cover of night. He didn’t know where he was going. In fact, he knew nothing of the outside world. All he knew was that if he didn’t get as far away as possible, his father would find him and punish him and force him to marry his beloved Annie no matter how much it pained either Prince Edward or the princess.
And so the prince ran determinedly onward, stopping only once he’d reached the wilderness that marked the edge of his family’s kingdom. The only home he’d ever known...Frightening stories had long been told of this place, but the determined prince paused for only a moment before diving straight into the thick tree growth.
Having well and truly abandoned his kingdom, it would seem that Prince Edward was destined to remain alone forever...