BASED OFF OF THE "Children and Parents" AU

"Your majesty," the skeleton bowed his head, offering a humble greeting. He knelt to one knee, his crisp white lab airbrushing the floor. "It is an honor to be in your presence."

"Dr. Crow, no need for formality." The king chuckled, greeting the man with a firm handshake. "We're friends after all, right?"

"... Right." The doctor adjusted his spectacles in thought before continuing. "I brought the weapon you requested."

"Ah, right. The one which will protect my kingdom?" The king put a hand to his chin, thinking. "You seemed very proud of the idea."

"I still am." The doctor couldn't help but smile a little. "It may be my best invention yet."

"Well, let's see it then." The king strolled over to his throne, taking a comfortable seat in it while the doctor spun around to the entrance.

"Seven, get in here!"

On cue, a tiny skeletal head popped in, staring with wide, wondrous eye-sockets. It stumbled a little to the doctor's side, looking in awe of the grand corridor.

The king blanched. "THAT'S the weapon?! IT'S MEERLY A CHILD!"

"On the contrary," the doctor directed a hand to the small thing clinging to his leg. "It is a fully-functional weapon that is capable of wiping out several armies."
The doctor couldn't help but smile with pride as he said his next sentence. "And not only is it entirely loyal, it also possesses a sort of... 'sentience'".

The king stared uneasily at the child, frowning. "Dr. Crow-"

"If I may, it's actually Doctor Corvus."

There was a small pause before the king spoke. "Corvus, we need to talk."
The king got up from his throne and walked over to the child, kneeling down in front of them. "You can go play with my little,boy while we talk, little one. It will only take a short while."

The childlike at the man before looking up at his creator, unmoving. The scientist sighed and waved a hand. "Go find the young Prince and amuse him for a time, Seven. I will pick you up once we are finished discussing whatever matter concerns the king."

With hesitation, the boy unlatched from the doctor's leg and reluctantly went on his way, leaving the two alone.

~~~

"Hello! What's your name?" The boy smiled excitedly, offering a friendly little smile.

The other skeleton stared in curiosity, blinking blankly at the Prince. He thought for a minute before turning to the other with a confused look.

"You know, a name!" The boy smiled, listing names while counting off his fingers. "Like Joe, Billy, Bob, George, Henry, Alex, Larry, Garry, Darryl, Tarry, Jim, Tim-" he caught himself before he could continue rambling and smiled at the big-eyed kid.

He was met again with confused silence.

The Prince huffed, thinking. "Let's see... a name is something someone calls you!" He smiles. "My papa and mama named me Cynric! What about your papa?"

The kid blinked. He thought once again over the matter before finally opening his mouth. His voice was quiet and his pronunciation was a little slow. "Seven."

"Seven?" Cynric tilted his head. "Like the number?"

The kid shrugged. "Name." He paused, thinking of how to form his sentence. "Is Name. My name."

"Huh." Cynric blew out a breath. "I don't like your name."

Seven didn't seem hurt at all, ardently nodding. "I don't too."

"Why don't I call you something different then?" Cynric grinned, picking a flower off of the ground. "Like..."
He snapped his fingers. "Harold!"

"Harold?" The boy quietly repeated, finding the name a little distasteful.

"Yeah! Or Joe!"

Seven made a face. He quietly shook his head.

Cynric frowned, putting one hand to his chin and using the other to twirl the flower in his fingertips. "Hmmmmm...."
He smiled. "I know!"

Cynric gave the flower to Seven, cheerful. "How about Darling? My mama and papa call each other that all the time! I don't really know what it means, BUT I think it means that whoever is called it is the most special person ever."

Seven stared at Cynric, blinking before a small smile crept onto his face. "I like it."

"Yay! Finally!" The Prince took both of Darling's hands on his, spinning around while cheering. "I won our name game!"

To be possibly continued uwu