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Prince Viktor sighed as he watched the outside view from the window of his carriage. He hated having to leave his Kingdom to visit others ones. Those trips used to be boring and tedious, since he had to reach his destination at an specific time and then immediately leave to continue his march to another kingdom, barely having time to even know the surface of the places he arrived at.
Above all, he hated the kind of trip he was on now. He had to meet in courteous dates with princes and princesses (still single) to choose his future spouse, so they can reign at his side to forge commercial and social ties with theirs kingdom, which would benefit both sides equally.
Until that moment he had already talked with at least two princes and three princesses and... none was to his liking, which meant he had no choice but to continue traveling.
At least he always had the company of his faithful pet Makkachin.
This time he would meet with the one that everyone called the "Sweet Princess Yuuko of Hasetsu". Viktor had no idea that that Kingdom even existed in the first place. But since he was there, he realized that, instead of a kingdom, it looked more like a small town but with beautiful views of nature and great waterfalls, and that its air smelled quite clean.
All right. At least Hasetsu was a nice place and it felt cozy. The next step would be to know if he was compatible with their princess...
Viktor's thoughts were interrupted when the carriage made a thunderous noise and it stopped. According to the coachman, one of the wheels got stuck in a stone and it caused a fissure, but it would not take too long to change the wheel for another one, so they could continue on the road. However, the silver-haired prince decided to take advantage of that moment to take a break and stretch his legs, leaving the vehicle with Makkachin following him.
Viktor could see Hasetsu Castle in the vicinity, just behind the trees, so he knew that a few minutes of delay would not affect his journey.
After escaping from his royal guards (as usual), Viktor walked through the forest, feeling increasingly relaxed and carefree thanks to the gentle wind and the happy song of the birds. However, Makkachin began to bark and run behind a black piglet, who was running away crying scared, which made Viktor run after them to keep track of his dog.
After a not very long race, Makkachin finally managed to corral the piglet against some rocks, but the prince took his dog from the neck to separate them.
"Oww, poor thing." Viktor took the little pig from the ground and then sat on the rocks, talking to the little animal as if he were dealing with a baby. But he piglet tried to break free from his embrace. Although he stopped moving when it's legs got stuck in Viktor's long silvery hair, so the prince hurried to untangle it. "Makkachin, it's your fault he's scared!"
Makkachin whined at the scolding. He was just trying having fun, but he licked the piglet's head as apologize.
"I-I'm fine. I just didn't expect a dog to chase me..." Viktor heard a soft voice spoke, and turned around to know where it had come from. "Umm... Down here?" The voice said in a questioning tone, and Viktor finally returned his gaze to the little animal.
"Can you talk?!" He exclaimed in surprise, holding the little pig at the height of his face, examining it with his blue eyes wide open. "Hello! My name is Viktor, and who are you?"
"My name is Yuuri... And... ehm ... I know who you are, Prince Viktor."
"Wow! I didn't know that I was so famous that even animals know me!" He said jokingly, already imagining that the piglet must be under a spell. "And tell me, what kind of sorcery is this? Are you a person or a pig who can talk?"
"I'm a human... Uh. My best friend Phichit, the real Sorcerer, was trying a new transmutation spell, and... He used me as a guinea pig." Viktor could sense the shame in his voice, so he decided not to joke about it.
"That's bad. Why haven't you returned to your normal state?" As soon as he finished the question, he petted Yuuri's ears curiously. The little pig was too cute, he couldn't help it!
"Umm... Phichit ran out of ingredients for a Regression potion." Yuuri replied, flushed by the prince's gesture, although it didn't show on his face because of his fur. "And some of those ingredients are in this same forest. Thanks to my nose I managed to find some mushrooms, but when I was going to return to the castle to tell Phichit, your pet ..."
"Oh! We so are sorry. Makkachin just wanted to play with you." Viktor said with a hand onto his chest, feeling distressed by what happened. Then he realized something. "Wait, if you're a friend of the Royal Sorcerer, does that mean you live in the castle?"
"Yes. I'm…"
"Tell me you're a prince and I'll kiss you!" Exclaimed Viktor with joy, thinking that in that way he could imitate his favorite fairy tale, and then could marry his perfect 'prince charming' and both be happy forever (and thus be able to avoid more trips to other Kingdoms).
"Um... No, I'm sorry?" Yuuri tilted his head, confused. "I'm just a simple plebeian who works in the kitchen. In any case, I don't think that a 'kiss' is an effective counter-spell ..."
"Oh! Come on, Yuuri! Kisses are always a good counter spell!" The prince made a pouty face, but he smiled. "If it works with frogs, it should work with little pigs as adorable as you, right? Let me try it even once, okay?" He winked, and Yuuri felt himself blushed again.
"N-no, please, your majesty! A kiss is something very sacred!" The piglet tried to run again, but Viktor had him tightly held to his torso. "Besides..., you will soon be engaged to Princess Yuuko. She is my friend, and I don't want to put you two in an uncomfortable situation... "
"I understand." The prince nodded gravely. "But Princess Yuuko and I aren't yet committed, and we may never be, adding the fact that I don't even know her in person. So it doesn't count as infidelity!" He smiled again, and before Yuuri could reply again, the prince planted his warm and soft lips on Yuuri's cold nose.
A light flashed for a couple of seconds, and the next thing the prince knew was that he no longer had the adorable little black piglet in his arms, but now he had on his lap an adorable boy with black hair and brown eyes, which wore glasses with wooden frames and quite humble clothes. Definitely not a prince, but Viktor's heart beat so hard that he knew that he was the person he was looking for.
"Marry me." Viktor said suddenly, and Yuuri let go of him because of the shock, almost falling with his back to the ground. Makkachin leaned on him to lick his face again.
"What?! Bu-but... I don't... I'm just... " Yuuri was so stunned by the sudden request for marriage that his head was a total chaos. He wasn't even bother by the dog's saliva. "You cannot be serious!"
"I would never joke with something like this." Viktor gently took Yuuri's hands and brought their faces closer. "I know this will sound quite unlikely, but my heart tells me that you must be my prince. Your spell was broken thanks to my kiss. You know, spells only can be broken with a 'True Love' kiss!" He added with his mouth forming a heart.
Yuuri knew that what the prince said was true (Phichit had joked about to look for a boyfriend for him to break the spell before they going out to look for mushrooms). Still, he thought that the only logical explanation for that result was that, being the first time that Phichit used that spell, perhaps it was quite weak and any kiss would have effect. Yes, that should be the case! But about the prince's sudden infatuation with him...
"No no no! This cannot be happening! "Yuuri yelled as he shook his head in denial, trying not to panic, because he didn't want to say or do anything that could annoyed the prince. Would it be a prison crime to refuse a royal wedding? "The spell! Maybe the spell has a side effect on you and that's why you're confused!"
"Oh?" Viktor laughed at the suggestion. "In that case, I hope it's a long-lasting effect and I can love you forever." Yes, even the prince himself knew he had said something really corny, but seeing Yuuri's totally flushed face was worth it.
"Eh... Well, I..." Yuuri would lie if he said he wasn't attracted to the prince. Not only was Viktor attractive but he had a playful and friendly personality, and his blue eyes were quite expressive, and it seemed that his proposal was really serious. "... I think it would be preferable for you to meet Princess Yuuko first. She is very pretty. Maybe you can fall in love with her, and your union could benefit our kingdoms... " Yuuri just didn't add out of prudence that he himself was in love with her in his teenage years, although he had overcome it years ago.
"Yuuri..." Viktor's face seemed really hurt by what he had just heard, but he could understand the doubts of the plebeian, who seemed seriously concerned about the survival of his Kingdom. "If the princess is really your friend, I'm sure she won't be against our marriage. From where I come from, princes can marry whomever they want regardless of their social position. I had only been searching among princes and princesses because I never thought I would find someone who wanted to marry me for love." The prince said that in a voice so sweet that Yuuri felt like he could taste the honey.
"Bu-but... Hasetsu really needs..." The dark-haired man looked around, trying to find a way to explain to the prince how important his union with Princess Yuuko was for his Kingdom, no matter how much that could broke theirs hearts.
"Yuuri." Viktor cupped his cheeks and made him look at him, showing him a compressive smile. "When I marry you, I will make my Kingdom join yours as a sign of my commitment to you and your people. And if Princess Yuuko is as good a sovereign as everyone says she is, she will know how to accept that condition without problems. Although... in case she refused, you can always become the next 'Helen of Troy'." He said with a bright smile and Yuuri can't help but laugh a little.
"Oh... In that case, maybe ..." Even a little confused, because everything was happening so fast that his head wasn't working properly, still his heart asked him to trust Viktor's words. So Yuuri smiled and nodded.
Because of the positive gesture, an enthusiastic prince properly joined his lips with those of the man who just a few minutes ago was a black piglet.