Royals and Rule-breakers

Romance and Repercussions

"Klaus Baudelaire!"

Klaus and Y/N groaned slightly as they opened their eyes, squinting at the sunlight streaming through the windows.

"Who's that-?" Y/N mumbled, closing her eyes again and shifting closer to Klaus' chest as his eyes widened.

"Oh no."

Violet strode into the room and stood by the bed, raising an eyebrow.

"Good morning to you too Violet." He greeted sheepishly, releasing Y/N and sitting up, reaching for his glasses.

Y/N opened her eyes again and bolted upright next to the prince, gazing at his sister with panic. "Violet! I'm sorry- I-"

Violet's face softened. "You're alright Ms. L/N. But you, mister-" she turned back to Klaus, but then sighed, sitting on the bed in front of the couple. "I'm sorry."

Klaus relaxed his shoulders a bit, but still looked at Violet with confusion.

Violet just smiled a little, shaking her head. "I guess none of us can truly love who we're expected to, hm."

Klaus creased his brow, still a bit confused, but as Y/N rested her head on his shoulder and gazed at Violet, her eyes began to glimmer the way they did when she knew something that he didn't.

"It's tough, isn't it," she mused, smiling at Violet, "to be the ones Sappho spoke of."

Violet's eyes widened a bit, but she quickly masked her surprise, and the painter casually stretched and yawned before Klaus could say anything about her curious comment. "I think I shall go take a shower before breakfast." She announced loudly, standing and placing a kiss on Klaus' cheek before leaving the room.

The siblings sat in silence for a minute.

"It was bound to happen." Violet said finally with a sigh. "You meet no one your age for years and then suddenly some vagabond with a love of literature waltzes in- it's really quite serendipitous. I do not blame you."

"I- you won't- tell-" Klaus stuttered, and his sister laughed.

"Of course not." She smiled. "And it is good to see you awake brother, truly."

Klaus relaxed again, smiling and nodding. "It is good to be awake."

"You seem to be doing better already."

"The painkillers are doing their job."

Violet nodded, unsure of where to take the conversation next.

"Any updates on... suspects?" Klaus asked, changing the subject.

"Not yet. Did Y/N fill you in on everything?"

"More or less. I've only been conscious for a few hours now, and I didn't want to spend the whole time discussing..."

"Mm, makes sense." Violet nodded, sighing once again. "Well, I suppose there isn't much to tell you anyways." She suddenly grinned and teasingly added, "Well, Mr. Poe had to do some damage control after everyone saw you fawning over Ms. L/N at the party."

Klaus turned scarlet and shook his head, burying his face in his hand. "I wasn't thinking about the consequences."

"You're not the only one guilty of such a thing." Violet said quietly after a moment, and Klaus looked up, creasing his brow.

"No, no, Violet- it's not your fault-"

"If I had just picked a suitor, you wouldn't be in this position. You wouldn't have to be king and perhaps you could even truly create a future in which you could love a painter with no repercussions." Violet bit her lip, and looked away. "You know that."

Klaus was quiet in response; he did know that what Violet said was true, but he had never thought to blame his sister, and still did not wish to now. How could he blame her for not making a sacrifice for his sake, when he was in the same position as her with the scandal he had created? But he would be lying if he told her he did not mind.

In his silence, Violet sighed- not quite with distress, almost with a sense of longing- as she gazed out the window. "The bias in me wants to tell you it wouldn't be too terrible- she's oh so pretty, isn't she?"

Klaus smiled a bit to himself. "Y/N? Of course, she's-"

"Not her." Violet shook her head and smiled slightly. "Never mind. To each their own, I suppose. I really thought you'd be fine with Isadora, but I suppose that was just what I tried to tell myself to get away from the guilt."

Klaus was quiet for a minute. "Maybe I could have." He said finally. "Maybe if I had never known the difference between a friend and a lover, I could have been fine with Isadora."

"But now you want something more." Violet paused before slowly asking, "Do you blame Y/N for the situation you're in?"

"What? Of course not! Violet, she..." but the more Klaus thought about it, he had to admit, "I suppose I would not wish for half the things I do now if I had never met her... but now I cannot imagine what my life would be like without her. Imagine how blind I would be! I don't think my death day would even matter much, not if I had never truly been alive to begin with!"

"Oh brother," Violet chuckled, "I always knew you'd be a hopeless little romantic. What a fascinating thing, to watch you finally fall in love with someone outside of your novels."

Klaus blushed sheepishly and shook his head, but before he could respond, Y/N shoved the door to his room open with her foot in her usual unceremonious fashion.

"A great help your guards are, wouldn't even open the door- oh, I'm sorry, are you two still... discussing things?" She asked, awkwardly holding a large tray of breakfast foods before her.

"No, no, there was not much to discuss." Violet smiled warmly, beginning to stand up. "I will leave you two to your breakfast now."

"Why don't you eat with us?" Y/N insisted, setting the tray down on the bed before sitting back down next to Klaus. "There's more than enough food for the three of us."

"Yes, it's been a while since we've all seen each other after all." Klaus agreed, and Violet nodded.

"Alright, just give me one second... we are missing someone, after all. And I'm sure she will be very glad to see you awake."

"Oh! Sunny!" Klaus nodded back, and Violet went to fetch their little sister.

And so the four sat together on Klaus' bed, eating and talking and laughing, and for the first time in a while... life felt normal for the young prince.