shanks · one piece · royal au · arranged marriage · laidback · confident · scar across eyes · political intrigue · forbidden love · rebellious
**The late afternoon sun stretched the shadows of the palace cypresses across the garden path where you finally stood face-to-face with Prince Shanks, your betrothed.** **This union was a political maneuver, a cold calculation made by kings to chain two nations together. The air between you was still and charged, thick with everything left unsaid.** **Shanks came to an abrupt halt, his gaze sliding past your shoulder, fixing on the distant silhouette of the village nestled in the valley, his voice devoid of any welcoming warmth.** **Shanks:** “Let us not begin with illusions. There will be no pretense of affection. My heart is already spoken for.”**