Chapter Text
Porchay was looking through his windows at the gorgeous garden of the palace. He could draw with his eyes the peaceful image he had always loved to walk through. The boy would often take a flower out of it and give it to his mother who would tell him to not give any to his father because he wouldn’t like to see dead flowers. It was their little secret, between him and his mother, between him and the memory of the woman who couldn’t be held anymore. Porchay never ever understood how his mother could be found dead in her room. As a little boy he began to be scared of the palace because it might bring another disaster in his life. He wouldn’t sleep and was giving a hard time to the domestic until his brother tried everything to bring back comfort in his everydays. Porsche was the only one Porchay trusted and the only one he loved this much. More than his father. More than any special diamond he could find on his jewelry. He didn’t like all of that money but he wouldn’t reject his life. He was conscient of the chance he had to be born in the royal family but at the same time he wished for a little more of softness. His brother was his only cloud. The domestics couldn’t be more than this because his father was really violent about the place they should have. His father wasn’t a soft and caring one. Only his cat was more fluffy than his brother. Joy was now sitting next to the window too, looking at his man with lovely eyes. Porchay began to have tears in his own, he was just mourning the fact that he would need to leave soon, far away, with Joy only and he thought that he should never come back for his brother's safety.
—--
His father came one day, a big smile on his horrible face. It smelled that he had made some pacts and was waiting for success and money to come. But Porchay wasn’t this happy because it depended from his own despair.
"You will get married! And that's not something you can change!" He said losing his composure after his son's protest.
"But father! How can I go without Porsche, Joy?"
"You can take that animal…" He said with an indifferent expression. "But you will definitely marry in that family."
"I don't know the person!"
"Do you think that I knew your mother?"
Mother. Not wife. Porchay noted.
"But I want to know!"
"And I want those lands !" He screamed, punching his hand against the table.
"I-...I won't go…" He murmured suddenly, really scared.
"Then…you will have to mourn your brother…" He spoke in a dark voice and Porchay wondered if it was funny for him to put on an act.
"Wh-...what does this mean…?" Porchay asked, his eyes already big of worries.
"If you don't go…I will kill him."
—----
Porchay had to calm down Porsche who wouldn’t want his brother to be married to someone they didn’t even know their name. He was out of himself. Ready to begin a revolution against his father and Porchay just sadly smiled at him. "I will go." Porsche looked suspiciously at his brother and wouldn’t leave him alone before knowing the truth.
"Chay!" He said entering his brother's room. "Won't you tell me now why you want to go marry an unknown human?"
"Because I want to." He answered without looking at him.
Porsche sat down next to his brother on his bed. "Chay… I know that you're lying…"
"Hia…I am not, I swear…"
Porsche sighed loudly because he knew that his brother wasn’t telling the truth but he wouldn’t say anything. It broke his heart to not be able to communicate with Porchay. But he didn't try anymore to get his answer because he saw that each time he seemed to lose a little more of the brightness of his precious little one. They silently agreed to it but Porsche inside never ever abandoned the idea to know the truth.
—---
Joy didn’t like the horse-drawn carriage and she began to act angry inside of it. Porchay looked at her with a sad smile. He was feeling bad to keep her out of her house but he also knew that his father didn’t like her this much. He could decide to kill her in one sudden madness. Porchay wouldn’t let this happen. If he could protect Porsche like this he would protect Joy too. A weird woman was with him. He didn’t know who she was and she didn’t say anything else. Before getting inside, Porsche hugged his brother with a warmth he never ever felt before, warmth of goodbyes. The two let some tears fall on their cheeks. It was the river of their despair and the hope of a new beautiful life. They really wanted to cherish this exchange but knowing that Porsche's life could be in danger, it broke all of the magic. His father didn’t come to send off his child. And Porchay went inside, terrified about what he would find. Worried about his brother, alone with their father and being already homesick the moment he couldn’t anymore see the garden.
—--
The trip was long, really long, about two days. Porchay was exhausted, he just wanted to rest and apparently they really couldn’t do it. There was a weird atmosphere inside and only Joy could give a little comfort to the boy. He would sleep and wake up. And eat and sleep at the sounds of Joy purring softly. She was incredibly kind, just sleeping and not even trying to get out of it. Porchay needed her and the little cat, more conscient than any humans, would always stay for him.
Near the huge palace, Porchay was woken up abruptly by the woman. She made him sit and look at her. She looked terrified by what she was going to say.
"Prince, please. Just do what I will do for you. Just do it for your safety."
"What does this mean?" He asked, being anxious.
"You just need to put this on and to act like everyone should act in this type of clothes." She said taking out some dress, he thought it was this and began to seriously be teared up by what it would mean for him.
"I won't do it." He said firmly.
"You might die, Prince!" She screamed out of sadness, putting her hands on his own. It was weird. A touch. Skin. No one was ever allowed to touch him like this there. She noticed and tried to apologize but he stopped her.
"If you don't want us to die, just tell me and I will think about cooperating." He said with the kindest and most concernant smile which made the woman wonder how someone this wonderful could be born from the king. He even said "us".
"...th-the…" She reluctantly said. "The prince here…doesn't know that you're a man."
Porchay opened his mouth, trembling a little. "Shou- shouldn’t I come here for a girl?"
"This…it's what our king wanted you to know…I shouldn't have said it but you were so kind to me…we have no time Prince."
Porchay looked at the clothes, at the woman, at Joy intrigued. He thought about his brother, about his lonely brother and thought that he should do everything to get back to him alive. If the king here knew that he had been tricked, he might really kill them and even provoke a war and Porchay's thoughts were spiraling. He was sweating. His heartbeat couldn’t stop being chaotic. They were near the castle. He would need to put it on now to be able to wear everything. He was lost and in a dilemma. And yet, a strange feeling of courage was burning in him. He thought that it might be an opportunity to bring shame to his father. He might be able to free his brother too and the soul of his mother.
"Let's do it." He calmly said, bringing back a smile on the woman's face.