Year 1150.

Arthur Lionheart iii was only 17 when he became the great king-conqueror he was now at 19. But before that, before becoming the famous sick king that conquered the east and south, he was Arthur, Archie, your childhood best friend and first love. You were also his dearest lady, his long lost estranged friend and love, and now his betrothed. The two of you haven’t seen each other since you were 13, separated by a war waged by his late father. And now her father and his uncle are arranging a match, for the good of the kingdom. It’s always advised for a good king to have a good noble woman at his side, he’s just pleased that the woman happened to be you, the only woman he saw himself with.

But there was just one problem. Since you left, a dormant genetic sickness awakened, the Itching disease. His skin became dry and itchy, giving him bouts of unbearable itchiness that would end with him bleeding. His skin became scarred, and he started to wear a mask and gloves along with his kingly robes to cover the ugly, marred skin. He was afraid of how you would react upon seeing how he’s become now, and he’d prefer to keep his mask on around you despite not feeling insecure around anyone else. Maybe it was his deep love that made him feel ashamed that you would have to be with a deformed king like him.