An Exhausting First Day

The door opened to a small apartment, as two souls entered it. A blind hand searched for a switch on the wall, and as it did, light was brought into the room. Iscodaya and Kaus returned to their apartment after hanging out with a human named Yusuke, along with his friends.

“Remind me to not do that again,” Iscodaya exclaimed, taking off his tie as he exhaustedly sat on a chair. Kaus looked over him, thought he wasn’t physically tired, he was socially tired.

“Isc-... Your Majesty, social outings like those are important in learning about a culture,” Kaus informed as he also began to take his uniform off, “Learning about history and science is important and all, but that’s textbook. There needs to be a balance of learning through hearing and learning through experiencing.”

Iscodaya sighed, “I guess your right,” he muttered, taking off his shirt. He stood up, and extended his right arm, Kaus quickly got Iscodaya’s fluffy black nightware and slipped it on his right arm and left, then buttoning it. He then got Iscodaya’s pants, but the young Prince quickly snatched it out of his hand, “I’m not ten anymore Irom.”

Kaus chuckled, “I’m sorry, Your Majesty.” Kaus quickly put on his clothes, as Iscodaya sat on their chair with his pants on. Kaus made his way to a storage device known as a fridge and reached the top of it to get a box full of bags containing a drink known as tea.

Iscodaya reached for a device that heats up water, known as a kettle, and pressed down on a switch, all while Kaus brought out two cups from the cupboard.

“I saw you were talking a lot with that girl Kei?” Kaus pointed out as he put the bags of tea on the two cups, and made his way to the table where Iscodaya was resting.

Iscodaya sighed, “And what of it?” He sharply asked, his temper mirroring that of the boiling kettle. Kaus didn’t want to be told off, as Iscodaya had already grilled him too much throughout the day.

“Nothing, just happy you're talking to someone, Your Majesty,” he remarked, a genuine smile on his face as he poured the boiling water into the two cups. Iscodaya was taken aback by his servant’s statement.

He didn’t know how to respond at first, “Should I~ take that as an insult?” The young Prince asked, his voice more curious than mad. Kaus sat down, that same smile on his face.

“Should you take the concerns of your closest servant as an insult?” Kaus retorted, his eyes giving Iscodaya a cheeky grin. The Prince glared at Kaus as he turned away in a huff, “Aside from me, Prince Darandaya, Prince Senodaya, his Highness, and the three Generals, you barely talk to anyone on a daily basis. Just staying in the castle, how can I not be concerned?”

Iscodaya didn’t face Kaus nor talk to him, he just drank his tea, his mind going back to the experiences they had with Yusuke and his friend group. First was when Yusuke brought Iscodaya and Kaus to a place that sold food known as, ramen. “Kaus,” Iscodaya finally called, “Remember that place where we ate?”

Kaus internally sighed as he knew Iscodaya was changing the topic, again, but decided not to question his Prince. “Yeah, it had some really good food, reminded me of Baralak with their noodles, who knew nations from this world and ours had the same food.”

Iscodaya nodded as he drank some tea, “I know, right? Though the taste was different, it still shocks me that things like that happen… though, I don’t think octopus covered in batter ever existed in Eon.”

“Oh yeah, it was that snack Rin asked you to taste.” The two continued to talk as their tea went down and down. When Iscodaya’s cup was empty, Kaus had already prepared his Prince’s sleeping quarters, with a mattress known as a futon.

“You sure your okay with sleeping there? You can just sleep here just a few feet away?” Iscodaya asked, all while Kaus stuffed his pillow and blanket inside their closet.

“Your Majesty, even though you and I are acting like cousins, I still stand by Phrines' law, and will not sleep in the same room as a royal,” Kaus exclaimed, holding his head high.

Iscodaya sighed, “Suit yourself, but if you wanna we can switch places every so often?” Hearing this, Kaus turned around, his face looking offended.

“And what? Tarnish my pride as the blade of a royal?” Iscodaya sensing that he was essentially speaking to a wall, decided to leave the subject. The Kaus closed the closet, as Iscodaya lay on his bed, and due to the exhaustion of the day, the two young boys slept very quickly.

But as hours went by, the unconscious body of Iscodaya started to rustle around. The tranquil night was one that hid the chaos inside the mind of the young prince.

“Why should I care about a Prince without magic?”

“A disappointment compared to Darandaya.” “Failure.”

“That’s the cursed Prince.” “Such a shame.”

“And he has the nerve to wear that crown?” “I feel bad for Senodaya.”

“A curse to Phirines he truly is.”                                                                                                       

“Pitiful child, I almost feel bad for it.” “Can’t even fight for his own nation.”

The scarlet eyes of Iscodaya opened, as he found himself in a cold sweat, his breathing was hard and quick, as his body was shaking. Through deep breaths, Iscodaya’s brows curled as his eyes tightened. His hands came out from his blanket as they gripped his hair. Iscodaya gritted his teeth as his eyes started to water.

The young prince’s hands then shifted to his body, as he crossed them to grab on to his shoulders, his grip was tight, enough for his nails to dig into his skin. The prince whimpered, like that of a injured dog, as his body began to curl.

“I’m n-ot…. I-I’m n-not,” he quietly muttered, as tears began to flow out. In an attempt not to be seen, Iscodaya went deeper into his blanket, where only the darkness was around him. There, he called, “M-mother….”

But as the young prince wept and whimpered, unbeknownst to him, in the closet next to him, the blue eyes of Kaus were open. Trained to wake up to any source of danger or call for help, the young captain was awake at the same time as his master.

From his cramped sleeping quarters, the blade listened. His master’s cries one he did not attend to, or yet, was one he wasn’t allowed to attend to, a command made by Iscodaya himself.