vigorli

Title: Destiny’s Fool
Author: Greenleaf
Pairing: Viggo/Orlando, Sean/Orlando
Rating: NC-17
Disclaimer: This is fiction. I make no money with it and remain a poor student
Beta read by: The glorious, awesome

sylvanelfqueen All remaining mistakes are my own
Warnings: AU, M/M sex, later MPREG
Feedback: Never fails to put a smile on my face, brightens my day, and inspires my muses…so yes please!
Summary: Orlando's life is turned upside down when he travels with his sister Samantha to Denmark. Nothing goes according to plan and Orlando finds himself in a situation he would've never guessed.
In this story males can get children and marriage between men is common, so you be warned ;) It takes place around the 18th century and Orlando is 15 years old while Viggo and Sean are 25.

Chapter One – Many Meetings

“Orlando stop it!“ Sonia boldly rolled her eyes. She loved her son, she really did, but Orlando’s restless bouncing in his seat was putting her patience to a hard test.

Orlando pouted, crossed his arms and sat still for some seconds before he started to shift around in his seat again. He hated traveling. It was so boring. He had already played cards with Samantha, looked at the passing landscape, chatted with Samantha what her husband-to-be would be like, tried to sleep, and even tried to read! There was nothing left for him to do and he was terribly bored.

They had been on their way for seven days now and would soon reach their destination. The drive with the ferry had been very exciting but now that they were back in the carriage, Orlando was bored again. The brunette sighed and tried to find a comfortable position before he closed his eyes. Dozing was the only thing left to do after all. Orlando wrinkled his nose and grumpily stroked a strand of hair behind his ear before drifting off to sleep again. Not for long though, because only minutes later his mother woke him up again.

“Mhh jus’ some more minutes.” Orlando mumbled before snuggling closer to the blanket again.

“Orlando you have to wake up now. We will be arriving in less than an hour and at the moment you really don’t look presentable.”

“Thanks mum.” Orlando groaned before he slowly opened his eyes and blinked a few times to adjust to the sunlight. He stretched and silently thanked god that they were finally there. He wouldn’t have been able to stand one more day in the carriage. Before he could do anything else, his mother had already pushed a washcloth and a bottle of water into his hands.

“Refresh yourself and don this.” She handed him blue trousers, a matching tunic, and white stockings.

Orlando sighed. That was another thing he disliked about this journey. When he was finished, his mother started to brush his hair, ignoring the protests of her son.

“Mum! I can do that myself, why don’t you help Sam? She’s the bride after all.”

“Samantha is capable of making herself look decent, you are not. That’s why I am helping you.” Sonia retorted and tried to tame the unruly curls of her son. She braided them into a low ponytail, a few locks still falling into Orlando’s face.

“That should do.”

Orlando wrinkled his nose again but the sight of a big castle caught his attention before he could answer. He shifted closer to the window to have a better view, his mouth opened in awe. The building was beautiful and huge; their castle in Canterbury was not even half as big! He also caught a glimpse of what seemed to be a big garden, all green and beautiful. Orlando couldn’t wait to find out more about it. He was so absorbed in the view that he didn’t even hear the excited talking of his mother and sister.

When the carriage came to an abrupt stop, Orlando nearly fell off the bench and only managed to stay on it because Sonia was quick enough to react. She knew her son to well.

Moments later a servant opened the door of the carriage and Orlando stepped out after his mother and Samantha. He looked at the big castle in awe and spun around once. He didn’t notice nor care for the woman approaching them and hugging his mother. When Samantha elbowed him Orlando was startled from his daydreams and found himself facing a woman he didn’t know. She had sandy blonde hair that was pulled back into a neat nap knot. Her eyes were of piercing blue but held no warmth. Her lips were thin and her features hard. She was standing completely straight as if she had swallowed a broom. Orlando found that she didn’t look friendly at all.

“Grace, this is my son Orlando. Orlando this is archduchess Grace of Denmark.”

Sonia’s eyes lingered warningly on her son. Orlando swallowed hard and tried to remember what he was supposed to say. He wasn’t really used to this. Never did high monarchs visit their castle in Canterbury; mostly the friends of his father would visit and they were workers from town. He had also never been taught about etiquette, and he thought that it was stupid anyways. For him it made no difference if someone was a lord or duke or a simple worker, the character mattered.

“I am honoured to meet you.” Orlando finally managed to say smiling in his usual way. Only when Samantha jostled him as discreetly as possible he remembered to bow. It looked rather clumsy and Sonia twisted her mouth but Grace didn’t seem to notice. Her attention was on Samantha and she took in the appearance of the young woman before she nodded in satisfaction.

“I’ll show you to your rooms so that you can prepare for the ball. I apologize that my son is not here, but there are matters he has to deal with right now.”

Grace didn’t wait for them and turned around, walking towards the castle.

~*~*~

“Why do I have to change my clothes again?” Orlando flopped into one of the big chairs, pouting.

“Please, Orlando, do it already.” Sonia sighed before she rushed out of the room again to see if Samantha was ready. Now that the ball was coming closer and closer, everyone seemed to run around like crazy. Orlando snarled before he got up with a sigh and looked at the clothes gloomily. Why did he have to change his clothing again? He didn’t understand the fuss everyone made about this ball. With another sigh, he finally changed his clothes, not looking into the mirror. He really didn’t care and just donned the clothing because his mother wanted him to. This time his trousers were of a dark green, the tunic matching and embroidered with ornaments in white and gold. The stockings were white and the shoes black with a golden clasp.

When he had changed, Orlando flopped into the chair again. Seconds later he shifted uncomfortably. The clothes were scratchy, and he preferred the simple clothing he was normally wearing. Orlando wrinkled his nose. Why had he agreed to come here?

Moments later his mother stormed into the room again, looking utterly stressed.

“Oh you have dressed already, that’s good. I’ll send the chambermaid over so that she can do something with your hair.” With that, she was out of the room again before Orlando had any time to argue. His eyes grew wide. Do something with his hair? Again? He didn’t even brush it on a regular basis and his mother had already done ‘something’ with it back in the carriage so why was she still fussing over it?

A maid entered the room, slightly smiling at Orlando.

“Would you please take a seat here, milord?” She gestured towards a chair in front of a dresser with a mirror.

Orlando found it utterly weird to be called ‘milord’ but stood up none the less and dropped in the chair in front of the dresser, accepting what he could not change. He looked into the mirror, following the girl’s movements. She brushed his hair before she took up some golden pearls from the dresser. Orlando suppressed a ‘Ewwww’ because he didn’t want to insult her. She was only doing her job after all; he would blame his mother for this stupid idea. After ten minutes, the maid was finished with braiding Orlando’s hair and putting in the golden pearls.

“Thanks.” Orlando flashed her a smile before she left. When he was alone again, he looked into the mirror once more and stuck his tongue out to his reflection. If his friends could see him now they would laugh. With a frown on his face, Orlando went into the next room where his mother and sister were. Samantha stood in the middle of the room and his mother was adjusting the dress for her one last time.

“Sammie? Are you somewhere underneath that dress?” Orlando tilted his head to the side innocently. Sam was wearing a blue dress, the crinoline huge compared to her delicate figure. At least Orlando thought so. Samantha just laughed at him.

“Yes I am somewhere underneath that cloth but where have you left my brother? He looks like a vagabond and not like a prince.”

Orlando glared at her.

“I don’t look like a vagabond and I don’t look like prince.” He stated his point of view. Samantha laughed again before she walked towards him and pulled her brother into an embrace.

“No really Orli, you look amazing. I bet there will be quite a few people that’ll ask for your hand after tonight.”

“Bollocks. And I don’t plan to marry in the next…twenty years anyway.” Orlando returned the hug while his mother made a desperate sound.

“Oh great, so he’ll be living at home and torturing us for the next twenty years.” In spite of her desperate tone, Sonia smiled none the less, looking at her children. She found that both of them looked gorgeous but apparently every mother thought like that of her children.

“But I have to agree with your sister, Orlando, you look very good.”

Orlando rolled his eyes and let go of Samantha. Sonia just smiled before she dragged both of them to the door.

“We’d better go now. We don’t want to be late, do we?”

~*~*~

Orlando played with the hem of his tunic and stepped from one foot to the other. The energy that always surrounded him was present in the ever-restless movements. They had to wait in the hallway until they were announced and could enter the big ballroom. The waiting was driving Orlando nuts. There was so much he could do here, so many things to explore, yet he was stuck waiting with his mother and sister. While he was restless, Samantha seemed nervous as did Sonia who picked at the dress of her daughter every now and then, adjusting a crease in the cloth that wasn’t even there.

Finally, after what had seemed like an eternity to Orlando, they were announced.

“The duchess Sonia of Canterbury, Samantha of Canterbury, and Orlando of Canterbury.”

Orlando nearly tripped over the stairs when they entered the big hall, his mother and sister walking before him. He found his balance again in the last moment, smiled sheepishly, and followed the women through the room. There were people standing at the left and the right mustering them and gossiping. Most likely because they knew that at midnight Samantha would officially be the bride of their King.

Orlando disliked being stared at and cast his gaze towards the floor, his cheeks slightly flushed. This time he did not forget to bow, mostly because his mother and sister curtseyed when they stopped before the throne. It stood on a little pedestal at the southern wall of the room, a red carpet covering the few stairs which lead up to it.

After some seconds Orlando dared to look up and was surprised to find blue eyes looking at him. They were of the same piercing colour as the ones of the archduchess but they held kindness and warmth. Orlando swallowed hard and cast his gaze down again. All of a sudden, he felt really insecure. He crossed his hands behind his back, not knowing what else to do with them.

The king’s gaze lingered longer on Orlando than it should before he smiled at Sonia, greeting her first appropriately.

“Welcome to Denmark, duchess. I am honoured that you pay my country a visit and hope you will enjoy it.” He nodded at her, Samantha, and Orlando.

“Thank you, your majesty. I am sure my children and I will enjoy our time here.” A knowing smile played around the corners of Sonia’s mouth. There was already the next person announced so the three went to the right side. Orlando turned his head to look over his shoulder before the crowd blocked his view. He followed his mother through the crowd over to the window where she finally stopped. Samantha smiled and seemed to radiate with happiness.

“Oh my god, he is even more gorgeous than on the paintings!” She exclaimed excitedly, looking at Orlando and her mother.

Orlando nodded absent-mindedly. He had to admit that Samantha was right. He had only caught a brief glimpse of the king, of the sandy-blonde hair and the soft yet expressive features, the red garments ornamented with blue. Nothing of it had really caught Orlando’s attention, it was the blue eyes that had fascinated him. He couldn’t place the emotion he felt when thinking back to the few seconds that he had looked into them. It didn’t matter anyways.

When the formal part of the ball was over and all the guests had arrived music started to play and more and more couples filled the dance floor. The King danced with Samantha while Orlando stood at the edge of the dance floor, watching the couples. He sipped on a glass of wine, lost in his thoughts when someone spoke to him.

“May I ask for this dance?”

Orlando nearly jumped and looked up at the stranger. He was slightly taller than Orlando with blonde hair and green eyes. He was wearing a blue uniform, the insignia of the royal guard embroidered in gold on the chest.

Orlando flushed and played nervously with the hem of his tunic.

“I’m…that’s…that’s really nice but…but I can’t dance. At least…none of these dances.” The brunette admitted, looking at the floor in embarrassment. He was startled when he heard soft laughter.

“Really? What a pity. But to be honest, I am not a very good dancer either; I just wanted to have a reason to talk to you.”

Orlando looked up again and felt a smile creping onto his face when he looked into the sparkling green eyes.

“You could’ve just said ‘Hello’.” He suggested in his uncomplicated manner.

“Yeah I could have.” The stranger agreed, before he bowed slightly.

“Forgive me; you don’t even know my name. I’m Sean.”

“I’m-“

“Orlando.” Sean finished Orlando’s sentence with a smile. Orlando felt the heat in his cheeks becoming more intense and assumed that they were coloured in an even deeper shade of red now. Of course he was often the centre of attention but that was among his family and friends and they all thought of him as a child. He wasn’t used of having the attention of a man like Sean.

“So Orlando, you don’t dance but do you take walks?” Sean smiled even wider at the image of innocence that was Orlando. Something about this boy made Sean want to protect him and do everything just to get one of those lovely smiles.

“Yes, I guess I take walks.” Orlando answered shyly.

“Would you grant me a walk instead of a dance then?” Sean held his hand out towards Orlando who flashed him a smile and took it. Together they walked out of the ballroom, not aware of the eyes following them.

Orlando took a deep breath of fresh air when they left the room and entered the deck from which steps lead down into the gardens. The air cooled his heated skin and he took in his surroundings with excitement. Sean watched the youth with a smile on his face. Orlando’s energy was infectious.

“Do you want to go down into the garden?” Sean didn’t have to wait for an answer because Orlando took his hand again and pulled him down the steps.

“It’s beautiful here.” Orlando examined the exotic plants and bushes around him. Candles and torches had been lit so that everything was bathed in a warm, golden light.

“Yes, it is indeed.” Sean agreed although he only had eyes for the brunette. His skin shimmered even more in the candlelight, shadows dancing over his face.

“We also have a garden at home but it’s very small compared to this.” Orlando started to babble while walking with Sean, still holding the older man’s hand. Orlando started to get more confident with each minute and Sean enjoyed the lively conversation.

“Do you know the king well?” Orlando asked, all of a sudden a frown appearing on his face.

“Yes. We have been friends since we were children. Why do you ask?” Sean raised an eyebrow and looked down at Orlando.

“Is he nice?” Orlando didn’t answer Sean’s question, chewing on his bottom lip.

“Yes, he is very nice and a kind man. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be a friend of mine.”

“Good.” Orlando nodded satisfied. “After all he is about to marry my sister. He’d better be nice to her.” A small pout formed on Orlando’s face causing Sean to laugh.

“Don’t worry about that. She won’t have anything to complain about, I am sure. You’re very close to your sister, are you not?”

Orlando nodded and a shadow seemed to veil his face.

“Yes. I love Sammie very much. I can’t imagine how it’ll be without her.” Orlando sighed and Sean felt the urge to gather him in his arms and chase the sadness away.

“You can always visit her…and me.”

Orlando smiled tearfully and hugged himself. It was then that Sean realized that Orlando was slightly shivering.

“Are you cold? We’d better go inside again.” Sean placed his arm around Orlando’s waist and gently directed him back to the castle again. Once inside he led the young man into one of the smaller sitting rooms.

“Wait here, I’ll see if I can get you something warm to drink.” With a last smile Sean left the room and Orlando flopped down on the sofa in the empty room. He felt good in Sean’s company and couldn’t help but smile happily. He reached for one of the pieces of chocolate that were arranged on a silver plate on the table. He suckled on it, enjoying the sweet taste, lost in thoughts already. After he had finished the chocolate, he licked the traces of it from his fingers, not aware of a person entering the room.

“Do you like the chocolate?”

Orlando hesitated. This was definitely not Sean’s voice. It was a deeper and raspier. Orlando turned around, one fingertip still absent-mindedly in his mouth. The brown eyes widened in surprise when he recognized the person walking towards him.

TBC