Chapter Text
The sun is soft on my skin and it warms me like a comforting embrace, olive skin pressed to the gentle sun-warmed wood of the wagon. I can hear the other court children giggling to one another as they sing hymns, their voices harmonising in a cacophony of pitches that make me smile into my bare shoulder childishly. It’s a good day. The sky is a bright blue, the sun caresses my skin, and the jostling of the wagon rocks me like a mother would.
A small laugh breaks me out of my daydream. Turning my head to the left and opening a single eye, I spot one of the younger children - Jana, daughter of a vizier - smiling at me from behind her small tan hands. Her brown hair is long and daisies are braided into her plait. I grin and sit up, leaning back on my elbows, “Jana? Is there something on my face?”, I ask teasingly.
Her eyes widened, “No! Of course not!”
I sit up further, crossing my legs and holding a hand in front of my face, shielding my eyes from the blinding sunshine, “Are you sure, sugar? Perhaps something in my teeth?” I grin wider as Jana examines me carefully, as if actually considering it.
“No, sir. Not that I can see.” She’s a quiet and diplomatic girl and her green eyes are bright when she speaks.
“She giggles for you ought to find a mirror, Cassius. I think a twig may be lost within your mane, there.”
I let out a laugh suddenly and turn, my curls bouncing in front of my eyes, to see a fellow court boy watching our conversation, eyes full of mirth. He’s younger than me, just, and the son of one of the councillors.
“Milian! The cheek of you! I should have you thrown from the wagon for such jests!” My laugh shakes my entire body, bare chest convulsing in joy.
“Ah!” He raised his dark hands, palms to me, as if preparing to defend himself, “My dear prince, a jest is a jest, is it not? Surely, that does not require any wagon tossing. You never know: perhaps there is actually a twig in there.”
I smack his arm gently as the wagon heaves on, led by a beautiful black stallion. The court children never stop their giggles and songs. Jana has lost track of the conversation at some point and instead decides to stand on the edge of the wagon, dress held onto tightly by an older girl so that she may not fall. I can almost feel the joy coursing through my veins.
“You wound me, truly. Whatever would my father say if I walked into court with twigs in my hair!” I ask.
“I should think it branches rather than twigs. I fear you are transforming into a stag with wooden antlers,” Milian replies, only slightly smug.
Before I have the chance to reply, mock offence already plain on my face, the stallion snorts and comes to a stop near the edge of the field; the shade of nearby trees shrouds us from the sun. The children cock their heads in confusion, the singing paused. Milian looks at me briefly before standing and leaning over the side of the wagon.
“Goodness! Cassius, get down from there!”
I close my brown eyes as every child turns to stare at me simultaneously, their gazes pitying. I can feel their eyes digging into my skin, deep and cloying.
“CASSIUS! If you do not get down from that wagon this instant, I will be forced to drag you myself!”
I sigh heavily and get up from my seat on the warm wood, wobbling slightly before Milian catches my arm. “Oh, Claudia! Can our dear Cassie not stay a minute more?” one of the older boys asks. A faint darkening to his cheeks is visible, I know he enjoys my sister's company, “He is always lost to us so early these days!”
I jump down from the wagon, bare feet hitting the dirt field softly as Milian lets go of my arm. Claudia comes around the side, a vicious glare on her face as she examines me, “I think not, Aydin. Cassius has responsibilities, he does not have time for wagon rides with court children.”
Aydin visibly deflates and some of the younger children scuff the floor of the wagon sadly. I wince internally as Milian raises his eyebrows at me.
“Coco, my dear, I do not believe there is a need for such cruelty,” I say as she grabs my arm tightly, nails digging into my skin, and pulls me away from the wagon which has now begun to continue its promenade down the field's length. Her brown curls that normally reside in front of her face are pinned back today, revealing the anger that consumes her visage like a storm.
“I do not have time for this, Cassius. Father is in a meeting and you are spectacularly late,” She sighs angrily and the glare slips off her face to be replaced with a stressed sadness, “The courtiers refuse to listen to me, as usual. I volunteered to go get you.”
Frowning, I reach out and grab her hand, holding her tight. I see Claudia smother a small smile.
“I apologise, Coco. I hardly get to speak with the other children, that's all. I didn’t intend to abandon you to the Council.” I am barefoot and half clothed, slightly sweaty under the unrelenting noon sun, but Claudia is radiant and brilliant, dressed to perfection, and we swing our arms as we stroll through the fields towards the palace.
My sister says nothing but she squeezes my hand gently, and only birdsong accompanies us as we walk home.
The stroll back is calming and I try not to think about what awaits me when we enter the meeting room. Claudia’s face is deceptively neutral but she has a tightness to her body, a barely tense stance, that lets worry creep into my mind. Father tended to be lenient with me and dear Coco, too lenient some might say, but the courtiers, the viziers, were not so kind. Their punishing stares tend to leave my skin with pin-pricks, and those are on the good days.
It is barely anytime at all before the shadows shade my skin and soft grass makes way to cool stone beneath my bare feet. We had been rather far out in the fields so the sudden temperature change shocks me out of my thoughtful stupor. Claudia roughly lets go of my hand when she sees a servant boy walk past us into the gardens. I smile at him but he avoids my eyes. The old rules of politeness dictate he is not allowed to look at me, but I do not mind at all.
“You need clothes,” Claudia mutters, now refusing to make eye contact. Our palace walls make my sister cold, as if the marble seeps into her skin and chills her to the bone. I don’t say anything about it, but I wish she would not mind being seen as herself. She’s in her finest years, Father always says, she should take full advantage of the freedom her title gives her.
“I lost my tunic,” I say with a sheepish grin, scratching the back of my neck nervously. Coco stares at me, deeply unimpressed. She doesn't even question how I lost it, just closes her eyes briefly as I shift from foot to foot.
“The washroom is not far,” she muses, “We can find you a spare cloak so nobody has to look at your weird hairless little body.”
“Coco!” I cry, laughter bubbling from my lips at her audacity. She can be so inappropriate sometimes. Claudia smirks, “You need some meat on those bones of yours, Cassie.”
My eyes widen and my face splits into a smile, Claudia so rarely calls me Cassie; it’s a silly childhood nickname, she claims, ridiculous to use it now that we’re grown, though she always smiles so gently as she says it so I never believe her.
“I suppose,” I say softly.
Claudia, perhaps realising where she was, blinked and came back to herself, “Come now, Cassius,” and she strides away from me rather quickly down the hall. My smile doesn’t disappear but I feel the childish delight slip away from my face at her tone. I follow my older sister.
The further we get into the palace, the quieter we have to be, until Claudia even takes off her leather sandals so they do not echo. We are technically not allowed in the servants quarters, though I myself might often be found here speaking to the servant girls or stealing a treat from the kitchens. Father does not mind as long as we don’t disrupt their work, but other, more… concerned people might consider my excursions to be of a subordinate nature.
It’s a quick stop at the washroom and I hide around the corner as Claudia goes in and steals a cloak from the waiting basket. Thankfully, it’s barely dirty and as we walk, rather briskly as we are now horrendously late, my sister wraps it gently around my shoulders so that it covers most of my torso. It is a bit too warm for a cloak in this weather but I let my bare arms show instead and hope nobody questions my sense of dress. Unfortunately, Coco was unable to acquire any shoes for me in the washroom, her brief scavenge almost disrupted by the myriad of servants coming and going from the room. I hope, as we approach the large hall holding the meeting, that Father does not question it.
The hall outside is grand and Claudia’s sandals, now back on her feet, clatter slowly as we approach the doors. There are two guards posted outside, one on each side of the doorway, and with a singular nod from Claudia, they reach over and open the doors for us. Though I should probably be used to arriving to these meetings quite late, I still find myself holding my breath as the court turns to face us simultaneously.
My sister strides into the room with confidence, not even hesitating as the stares and glares of the interrupted courtiers bore into us. I am slower to recover and I set off a step behind Claudia as we stride toward our father, the King of Mayaluce, who sits patiently on his throne. His face doesn’t change as we approach save for a small smile as Claudia bows her head and sits on her own chair to his left. The silent court watches me as I shuffle to my own seat on Father’s right after smiling and bowing low to him. My father stares briefly as he examines me, from my messy curls down to my bare feet, but he does not say a word and nods briefly in greeting.
As I take my seat, I only just take notice of a man standing at the base of the steps leading to the three thrones. He’s tall and lanky, with wispy grey hair and a rather severe expression, his eyes roam from me to my sister in disdain; it seems our entrance has interrupted him. It's not like it’s our fault that you are forbidden from speaking when a royal enters the room.
“Apologies, Counselor, you may continue,” my father announces cheerfully, his bright smile firmly back in place. Ah, it seems he is not as mad as I had previously expected, I sigh softly in relief.
“Thank you, your Majesty,” he sends one last glare in my direction, “As I was saying, Emperor Heinrich is much too comfortable near our borders. Though the mountain region may be hard to cross, it is not impossible, and we need to have stronger ties to our allies in case we receive the same treatment as Kestan-”
Suddenly, the room split into chaos, advisors shouting over each other to counter the Counselor. I was stunned momentarily at the outburst before my father held up a hand, “Silence!” he bellowed and the room fell quiet in an instant. My father was always a man to be respected regardless of authority.
My father turns to the Counselor with a harsh stare, “Now is not the time for fear-mongering, Counselor. What happened at Kestan was a compromise between our country and theirs-”
“Compromise?!” someone cries. I gasped and turned my head to see a young woman standing up amongst the courtiers. Nobody ever dared interrupt the king, “Kestan was stolen from under our noses! A hundred people vanishing overnight, and hundreds more fleeing to the capital in fear of Emperor Heinrich is not a compromise!”
My father faltered momentarily, “Lady Ilkay, I understand your concern but-”
“Emperor Heinrich reaps the mines of Kestan and rings their people dry!” someone else exclaims.
Another voice, “You handed the province of Kestan over like it was nothing, and people still died! There are Kestani children clawing at the border right now-”
“The massacre at Kestan,” the king boomed, the room falling quiet again, “Was a tragedy. And our kingdom does all it can to provide for those who have left the Osterek Empire’s borders. But it was a choice of appeasement or a full invasion.”
“And you think that Heinrich’s bloody empire won’t come back for more?!” a woman shouted. My jaw drops in absolute shock as I see my sister standing, hands on her hips and eyes full of rage glaring at our father, “You honestly think that dictator will let us live in peace-?!”
“Claudia Antonia-” Father began, hands gripping the arms of his throne, but the Crown Princess herself had already sent the court into uproar.
“He wants us all gone!”
“We need more soldiers at the border!”
“If the Osterek Empire breaches our Eastern borders, our farmers will be massacred and where will that leave us?!”
Panic begins to overtake the room at those last words and I begin to feel my head aching as the noise increases. My sister sits back in her seat, tense and hands clenched at her sides.
“ENOUGH!” shouts the king and the court promptly falls into a fearful silence. My father’s breaths come heavy and he stands, shaking slightly as he glares disbelievingly at his subjects, “The Osterek Empire will not bring us to ruin!” he declares, face contorted with fury, “I am well aware that we are still suffering the loss of Kestan, it was not long ago for many of us.”
My father glances briefly at me and my sister, “We are all devastated and we want retribution. This land is our birthright, and the good people of Kestan deserve to be here with us today. But we do not have the soldiers, we do not have the resources, and we do not have strong enough allies to efficiently defend ourselves against such a grandiose empire. We are suffering each day as the military presence increases at the border but…” The king looks across every person in the crowd who are both awestruck and terrified at the king’s mere presence, “I’m afraid that more sacrifices may have to be made in time.”
Shouts and cries burst from the crowd once more but the king has heard enough, “Council dismissed!” He bellows and watches as one by one, his court files out of the large room until only his closest advisor and his two children remain.
My father slumps back into his throne and holds his head in his hands, taking deep breaths. My eyes are still wide and I slowly turn to see my sister who has risen from her throne and is instead standing opposite our father, arms crossed and glaring, although she keeps shifting nervously. I am shaking slightly as my head aches from the noise and chaos that had just exited the room. There was almost a palpable fear in the air, sour and painful. Or maybe it was just the acid in my throat.
“Father-” Claudia attempts, but our father raises his hand to ask for silence and she closes her mouth, a grim look overcoming her face, a mix of embarrassment and the type of fury that arises in someone who considers themselves just. I say nothing, and choose to watch my father who, after a minute of blistering silence, looks up to stare at me and my sister with sad, green eyes. My breath catches in my throat at the sight, and immediately, I want to leave the room.
The unusual sight catches Claudia off guard and she drops her arms to her sides, “Father?” she asks hesitantly, sidling closer to the man and placing a delicate hand on his arm resting on the chair. We both take a silent breath of relief when he moves his hand to rest on hers, knowing that he is not truly angry with us.
“I’m afraid that-” Father stutters, and he begins stroking his beard in embarrassment. Claudia kneels at his feet and brings his hand closer. I do not move from my chair.
Father clears his throat, “I’m afraid that I haven’t been entirely honest with you. Nor our people.”
I barely notice Claudia’s tiny gasp of surprise as my hands shake against the wooden throne. Father? Being dishonest? It was unheard of, completely out of character for the man so confident and commanding. I stared at the man, who was still holding Claudia’s hand. He was sitting straight, back pressed against the wood, and his limbs were still. To the stranger, he was perfectly at ease; to us, his eyes were full of fear and his hand grasped his daughters too tightly.
“What is it?” I whispered. Father turned to me, then back to Claudia again, then closed his eyes as if he could not bear to look at us.
“I have not lied,” he explained, voice empty of any emotion whatsoever, “But I have not been clear about their intentions,” he clears his throat for the second time and reaches out for me, beckoning me to his feet. I go, slowly, slipping out of my throne and kneeling beside Claudia. Father takes my hand in his and grips tightly. Very faintly, I feel his hand trembling over my skin, featherlight.
“Emperor Heinrich… has informed me, just me, that he will be arriving within the week to discuss-” Father does not get the opportunity to finish before Claudia rips her hand from his and jumps to her feet. Her dark eyes are alight with sheer fury and fear, and she stutters as she struggles to scream her thoughts. I am much the same, my hand limp in our father’s hand, who was gripping too hard for me to slip away, and my entire body shaking in terror. I could not believe the words coming out of his mouth. The Emperor of the Osterek Empire was coming here. In just a few days no less! The knowledge was like a dagger into my heart and a swift shove into the sea. It would have been a better fate than meeting that monster.
Father looks pained as he watches Claudia flounder for words, “Coco, please -”
“Please?!” she screeches, turning her fiery gaze onto our father, “You will let that monster onto our land, our birthright?! He will taint every grain of sand and every temple with his mere presence!”
I rise to my feet when Claudia gets too close to our father, “Claudia-” I begin before Father drags me to the side and I stumble over the length of my robe, falling onto the cold marble with a shriek and the jingle of my bangles. I watch from the floor and my father stands up, looming over my sister as she looks up to face him. My arms ache as they hold me up but I do not dare move, my eyes wide.
“Claudia, you know very well the position we are in,” Father states, voice steely, “There is no choice in this matter, nothing we can do. It has already been decided.”
Coco seemingly ignores this but squares her shoulders and hisses, “Why is he coming?”
Father hesitates, “Political discussions. That is what he has told me.”
“No word on anything? Only politics?” Claudia’s shoulders slump in defeat and she takes a slight step back away from our father.
“Only politics,” he whispers, though it is loud in the hall. I realise that I am still splayed on the floor and I slowly rise to my feet and clean the dust off my clothes whilst my father and sister stare at each other.
“Father…” two heads snap to me simultaneously, as if they’d forgotten I was ever there, “What will we do?” I ask.
He sighs, straightens his back, and turns to face me, “The same as with every guest, Cassius. We will be kind and courteous. And,” his eyes snap back to Claudia, “We will be respectful,” She growls and crosses her arms, “Regardless of our true opinions of them.”
I nod, slightly dazed from the shouting that had been reverberating around the room moments prior. Father puts a heavy hand on my shoulder, “How about you go to bed, Cassie? Your sister and I have a few things we need to discuss yet,” his smile is kind and it makes my heart sink in my chest.
“But Father-” I am not ready to go to my room, like a small child, no matter what the King may say. I have just a right as the crown princess to know what is happening in my kingdom.
My father doesn’t say anything, and simply shakes his head. I do not bother arguing with him; I know he will not listen. I turn and leave the hall, ignoring the lowered voices of my only family behind me, and I go to my room, like a young child excused after dinner.
The stroll to my room is both calming and sends a sharp spark of fear through my chest. If our… guest decides to change his mind, all this, my entire life, will be ripped away from me like it had been a brief flicker of flame. The warmth of my homeland will be ripped from my grasp and I will be dead or worse, enslaved, in the coldness of the Osterek Empire. I have never visited, of course, it is far too dangerous for me, though I have heard tales of their endless hills and freezing winters. We do not have such things in our simple land of plains, both sandy and grassy, and the palace by the sea is the sweetest pleasure my life offers to me. Yes, death would be much better than living in such a place.
My room is bright when I enter, the sheer curtains along my balcony peeled aside to reveal the beauty of the ocean beyond. Looking down across the cliffs and the endless depths, I cannot bear the idea of losing it, and I promise myself that I will do whatever it takes to keep my family safe.