The Princess and The Outlaw

To the Moon and Back

Six Months (prior to proposal).

There's been series of murders in this little town and every citizen who bothered about modern news was stricken. A suburban housewife was found with her wrists and feet chopped clean off in her backyard while her little boy hid in his treehouse. The police chief investigated to the bare minimum and issued a thoughtless statement to flag the demise of all intrigue. Two days later teenage twins were found on their way home from late afternoon classes in the same condition as the middle class mother. That seemed to be enough for a strict curfew to be imposed on all residents until a certain suspect is brought in.

Public facilities were shut down by seven in the evening and anyone caught outdoors by then would be taken into the station for questioning. Despite these precautionary measures, three more unconnected individuals were sliced through with an unidentified weapon and found by dawn on the curb. Nearly everyone was in a panic and found themselves triggered by the slightest rustle in their gardens or a single bark from their dogs at a window.

The killings have prompted nothing overly cautious in Harry except his promise to stay with Louis until the hype was irreversibly quietened by an arrest. He was either unbothered by the horrific serial murderer traipsing around their town or did not plan to take the entire ordeal very seriously. Louis could not read which it was when they sat in front of the television together watching King Kong (2005) and he strayed from the screen to study Harry's side-profile.

"You're not the killer, are you?" He blurted out softly, surprised by his own enquiry.

Harry glanced at him out of the corner of his eye and curled the corner of his lip in a chuckle. "No, princess. I am not the killer."

Louis sat up from his slouched hiding amongst fourteen cushions and crossed his legs so they weren't draped over Harry's lap anymore. "You sure?"

With a nonplussed sigh, Harry turned to Louis. He was dressed for bed as was Louis which meant he had on nothing besides boxers; Harry was at his most harmless when he could fall asleep at any moment. The bags under his eyes were usually difficult to spot even if he wore no cosmetics but after a shower and he let his mortality show, he was no more vulnerable than Louis.

"Does it not satisfy you to know that I'd never hurt you?" Harry asks with a raised brow, his voice many times raspier from exhaustion.

"I knew it." Louis collapses back into his nest of plush objects while Harry gets to his feet, prying the rings off his fingers to toss onto the chipped coffee table. "No one's as good looking as you and not luring poor innocents out of safety."

Harry briefly glares at Louis in jest before walking away to set the alarm at Louis' front door. "You should be in bed by the time I come back, Louis."

"I won't." Louis yawns in the middle of his response, barely reacting beyond a whine when Harry pats his behind encouragingly. "I'm sleeping here tonight."

Upon Harry's return he finds his boy fast asleep clutching a beaded unicorn plush toy from their first carnival visit together. He hates to indulge Louis and each time swears it will be the last time he does, doing so even now when he carries Louis and his silly stuffed toy away from the couch.

"You're not fooling anyone, princess." Harry whispers in Louis' ear when he's nudging the bedroom door open.

Louis reveals one eye open and screams when he's tossed carelessly onto the bed. "You still fell for it though."

"Sleep." Harry orders when Louis rather scrambles over to the window and peeks through the blinds. He sighs at being ignored and crawls over to the boy, sitting at his back while Louis stares out at nothing. "Nothing's gonna happen to you, baby."