And so it was, that his namesake's season of bloom had become an annual celebration. Originally, King Lilac never meant to make such a big deal out of it, but year after year his little human's enthusiasm for it ensured it couldn't go any other way. The tables had turned - what once started with Markus forced to rouse the sleepy King of Bees from his titanic slumber, now saw him dangling half-awake in Lilac's eager grip.

"L-Lilac! C'mon! I only just woke up!"

"So you have~" Lilac agreed with little hesitation. "But we are running short on time and I am just about fully dressed myself."

"But why didn't you wake me up earlier? I haven't even changed out of my pajamas yet!"

"Hardly an issue. Thankfully, I've had the foresight to pick these out for you specifically so they would match the dress code. Just in case something like this happened."

"Y-you planned for this!" Markus pointed an accusatory finger at the uncharacteristically gleeful king.

Lilac's eyes softened as he allowed himself an amused chuckle. "Truthfully, I may have~" There was no shame, no hesitation in his voice, not even a hint of a rebuttal. Only fond amusement.

But Markus wouldn't get the chance to press the matter further as the fingers holding him parted, sending the human tumbling down into the awaiting mouth of King Lilac's dress shoe.

"Lilac!" was all Markus could manage as he landed with a soft, cushioned thump, immediately sensing a faint, familiar scent - the king's natural musk combined with the ever-so-faintly floral perfume to match his name. "Lilac wait!"

But the king wasn't listening anymore - he couldn't. Lilac rose up to his full, towering height, far above where the human's voice could reach. They both knew it was an act, of course. After all, Lilac was kind, calm, and above all, respectful. Acts such as these were not something he would normally ever allow himself. In truth, he held no innate desire to dominate or to assert himself over Markus in any way. But he also knew what his human was like; he knew how much the little thing relished the idea of being pushed around, of choices being made for him and so...

Markus looked up from within the shoe, seeing a gigantic insectoid sole eclipsing the world outside. He gasped, feet skidding along the slight wear in the insole as he hurriedly ran deeper within - the king's toes soon to follow. The three digits flexed and curled with almost indulgent glee, sloooowly advancing and herding Markus inward. And then, just as there was nowhere left to run, they'd pause, allowing the human to savor the sensation of being cornered, just for a bit. And then they pounced, collapon Markus, wedging him into the insole beneath their firm, protective grip.

...what better way could there be to show his human some appreciation for making this such a special day?

A deep, satisfied hum rolled through the shoe as Lilac took his first slow step.

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An absurdly adorable piece by  Flodrow, featuring King Lilac, Monarch of the Bee Kingdom in gently messing around with his precious, little human.

Flodrow actually drew this as a gift for my birthday a good while back. But at this point it's tradition to post images of this sweet boy when Lilac is in bloom, if only to motivate myself to actually put it up here (oh god, my unposted backlog).

But yeah holy shit look at this! Lilac god a snazzy new outfit, a perfect mix of elegant and unabashedly adorakable. Flodrow really knocked it out of the park with this one for me. Thank you so much!

Art by  Flodrow, please go check him out!

King Lilac belongs to  Nesciens and  JVector