Bastien

Bastien, a character in the Rules of Engagement and The Royal Romance series, is European Guy's and Prince "Liam"'s bodyguard. He is first seen in Rules of Engagement, Book 1, Chapter 10.

Appearance
Bastien has wavy black hair, gray eyes and fair skin. He wears a gray suit with a black shirt, silver tie and tie pin.

Personality
He often shows no expression and seems very serious. In Rules of Engagement, Book 3, Chapter 8, when he joins European Guy's bachelor party, he is described to be always daunting and silent. European Guy can tell Main Character stories in which Bastien was overly protective, for example when he tried to sneak away to a water park which led to a lecture by Bastien about diseases in the water. During the bachelor party, Bastien is able to cut loose, knocking back drink after drink while being cheered on, much to the surprise of European Guy. Main Character states she doesn't think she's ever seen him smile.

It is revealed in The Royal Romance, Book 2, Chapter 8, that he is one of the people involved in the plot against you and that he coerced Penelope into setting you up. It is later revealed that he was following King Constantine's orders and he has expressed remorse for his actions.

Drake says he is very dedicated to his job and he doesn't think Bastien has many friends.

Book 1

 * Chapter 10: Training Day
 * Chapter 18: Last Call
 * Chapter 19: The Morning After (Determinant)

Book 2

 * Chapter 1: Uncharted Waters (Off-Screen; Determinant)

Book 3

 * Chapter 1: Setting Sail (Mentioned; Determinant)
 * Chapter 3: Meet the Family (Determinant)
 * Chapter 8: The Bachelorette (Determinant)
 * Chapter 16: Save the Date (Determinant)

Book 1

 * Chapter 3: Reunited (Determinant)
 * Chapter 6: Queen of Hearts (Determinant)
 * Chapter 19: Long Live the King

Book 2

 * Chapter 4: Flirting with Disaster (Mentioned; Determinant)
 * Chapter 5: International Impressions (Mentioned)
 * Chapter 6: Italian Nights (Mentioned)
 * Chapter 8: City of Lights (Mentioned)
 * Chapter 9: Brotherhood of Man
 * Chapter 11: A Night at the Opera (Mentioned)
 * Chapter 12: Family Ties
 * Chapter 13: The Art of Drinking Tea
 * Chapter 18: Noble at Heart
 * Chapter 19: Ascension

Book 3

 * Chapter 1: Twilight Hour
 * Chapter 2: Crown and Country
 * Chapter 4: Any Port in a Storm (Mentioned)
 * Chapter 6: Ember of Hope
 * Chapter 8: Artistic License
 * Chapter 16: What Happens in Vegas... (Mentioned)
 * Chapter 18: Bride to Be (Mentioned)
 * Chapter 19: You Are Cordially Invited
 * Chapter 20: A Warm Reception
 * Chapter 21: Taken
 * Chapter 22: Happily Ever After

Book 1

 * Chapter 16: Great Expectations
 * Chapter 17: Hot Off the Press
 * Chapter 18: The Last Apple Ball
 * Chapter 19: Truth and Lies

Book 2

 * Chapter 1: Labor of Love
 * Chapter 3: Welcome to the World
 * Chapter 6: To Catch a Traitor (Off-screen)
 * Chapter 8: Exit Strategy
 * Chapter 19: To Betroth, or Not To Betroth (Mentioned)

Book 3

 * Chapter 17: The Crown Regent's Coronation (Mentioned)
 * Chapter 18: Crowning Glory

The Royal Finale

 * Chapter 1: Hidden in Plain Sight
 * Chapter 2: Courted (Mentioned)
 * Chapter 5: Testing the Waters (Mentioned)
 * Chapter 8: The Playdate (Mentioned; Determinant)

Conspiracy Against Your Character
During the fashion show in Book 2, Chapter 8, Penelope revealed that Bastien was the one who gave the order for the photographs to be taken and for it to be arranged that Tariq would find Your Character in her room. When Your Character and Hana tells the rest of the group about it, they are all shocked especially Drake as he is very fond of Bastien having being looked after by him when he was younger.

When confronted about it at the Bachelor party, Bastien gave up very little information, which in turn causes an uproar between Drake, Bertrand and Maxwell about Drake's sister. They leave and after some thinking, Drake comes to Your Character stating: "There's a very short list of people that Bastien would feel compelled to obey, no matter what the order". Suggesting that the conspiracy runs all the way to the top and that they should investigate the former king and queen. Your Character talks to Regina in Book 2, Chapter 11, and mentions Bastien's name to see how she reacts. Regina answers that Bastien has always been loyal to Liam's late mother, and while he is respectful to her, she doesn't 'believe to measure up to her predecessor in his eyes', so she avoids giving him any orders and has her own staff.

European Guy
Bastien was European Guy's bodyguard and is very loyal to him. He remains with Leo until the day after the Ember of the Sea Gala in Rules of Engagement, Book 2, Chapter 21. Because Leo abdicated the throne, Bastien is reassigned to guard Liam starting that day. If Katie marries Leo, Bastien returns to be his best man at the wedding. His best man "speech" consists of prolonged eye contact with Leo and his bride before raising his glass of whiskey and downing it before exiting the dance floor. Leo says that was beautiful.

When Liam was a child, Leo convinced him that Bastien was a vampire. So, Liam wore garlic around his neck for a year and slept with a stake under his pillow. Leo also convinced him that he could turn into a bat, "Bat-sien".

One time when he was younger, Leo tried to sneak away to a water park, but Bastien caught him and lectured him for an hour about the diseases found in the water.

King "Liam"
Bastien is Prince "Liam"'s bodyguard (starting one day after the Ember of the Sea Gala in Rules of Engagement, Book 2, Chapter 21) and is very loyal to him. When his involvement in the Conspiracy against you is discovered, Liam is hesitant about trusting him again. Bastien says he did it under orders as he serves the Throne of Cordonia (meaning previously, King Constantine) but now that Liam sits on that throne, he serves him and will do so unless Liam dismisses him. Liam forgives him and allows him to remain, the quickness of said forgiveness is dependent on your feelings towards Bastien.

In The Royal Finale, it is revealed that he is a member of the Via Imperii. If you angrily tell him about all of their crimes, he swears to you that he had no idea the extent of what they had done and that he is a bigger fool that he thought he was.

Drake
Bastien looked after Drake when he was younger, as the former was a junior agent when Drake's father, Jackson, was in charge. Because Bastien had no family of his own nearby, Jackson would often invite him over to the Walker family home and they would have many dinners together. Bastien even babysat for Drake and Savannah, and Drake tells you that the former was surprisingly very lenient as a babysitter, allowing the children to stay up past bedtime and eat cookies. When Jackson was killed in the line of duty, Bastien took it upon himself to look after the Walker family. He drove the family to the funeral. Drake felt that even though they were "outsiders" in court, at least they had Bastien. Drake thinks of Bastien like an uncle. They have a deeply special bond. Bastien is very loyal to Drake, which made Drake very hurt by his role in the Conspiracy against you.

Trivia

 * It is possible that he is a descendant of Raydan because they share many similarities, including the face model.
 * The name Bastien is of French origin and means reverence, venerable, dread, awe or scruple. It is a short version of the name Sebastien.
 * According to Pixelberry's latest blog on September 7, 2018, during the writing process for Book 3, Kara, one of the writers, wanted Bastien to die at the start of Book 3. The idea was scrapped because the players will probably be unhappy.
 * In Book 3, Chapter 1, "Liam" mentions that Bastien was wounded and that his leg may never be the same again, but that Bastien should still be able to walk.
 * He shares the same name as the default name of Alpha Werewolf from Wolf Bride.
 * In The Royal Finale, Chapter 1, he confesses to being the Via Imperii member who allowed Eirik to enter the Applewood Gala. As such, his crimes include treason, and he's arrested.