Etho was reading in his bedroom when he heard the unwelcome sound of knocking on his door. After looking around and coming to the conclusion that there was nowhere he could hide (and pretend he wasn't there), the white haired prince sighed, sitting up and closing his book over. "Come in!" He called, trying to sound like he hadn't been actively avoiding talking to whoever it was.
The door opened to reveal the even more unwelcome sight of a woman with long white/gray hair, dark gray eyes, an overly extravagant red satin dress with ruby embroidery and an excessively shiny golden crown with circles of amber and ruby embedded in it. His mother, the queen of Pherus.
"You shouldn't spend so much time reading, you know, there are much better hobbies." The woman commented.
Etho nodded, gritting his teeth slightly. "I'm aware that's what you think, Mother, but I find it quite enjoyable." He said, adjusting the mask that covered his mouth and nose.
"Still." She glanced around with a disdainful expression.
"Why are you here, Mother?" Etho interrupted her with a yawn. "You hardly ever make the time to actually show your face."
"About that... I've been noticing that you haven't been being incredibly productive with the way you use your time, and I figured I could get someone- a servant- to assist you. Commander Symmetry's brigade recently discovered and captured a group of those... crossbreeds." Hybrids. The prince corrected her silently. "One of Commander Symmetry's new squires, a boy called Scar, made a very valid point- that it would make more sense to put some of them to work rather than killing them all. I was thinking that one of them could be a servant of sorts to help you be more productive."
"Like... an assistant?" 'Servant' implies that they're getting paid, Mother, Etho thought with an internal eye roll.
"Servant. They could take care of simple tasks that might take up your time- like managing letters you receive from citizens, and reporting back to me on how you make use of your newly gained free time- so that you can be more productive. A future king shouldn't spend all day in his room reading and drawing." The queen added with a somewhat disappointed expression.
"So... an assistant." Etho repeated wryly, ignoring the last part of what his mother had said.
"Servant." His mother repeated stubbornly, smiling icily. "I have a list of some of the more agreeable ... cross-breeds that were captured. Namely, the ones that didn't try to attack any of our knights. I'll be generous- you may choose which one will be your servant." She handed him a scroll with hastily written notes that Etho quickly recognised as Commander Symmetry's (or False Symmetry, if he was using her first name) handwriting. He scanned the list quietly.
•Blue Slimecian male, 19 years of age
•Floran hybrid male, 16 years of age
•Vampire male, 18 years of age
•Satyr female, 18 years of age
•Goat/sheep hybrid (unsure) male, around 19 years of age
•Iron golem hybrid male, 18 years of age
•Dog hybrid, 17 years of age
Etho frowned slightly. Jeez, how many were there? That's like... an alarming amount of hybrids, compared to the amount that have been found over the last few years. He paused, shivering slightly under his mother's impatient gaze. "Uh... the second one?" Florans are the plant ones, right? Like- they control plants?
"Of course. I'll send Stress up with him later." The woman said, referring to Etho's friend Stress, a brunette who nearly always had flowers in her hair who worked as a maid in the palace. "Hopefully you'll be more... productive with your time now." His mother added, looking the prince up and down with an unimpressed expression that made the white haired boy want to punch her in the mouth. "Well, that's all. I'll be going now."
Etho waved halfheartedly as the queen left, getting up to close the door behind her before lying back on his bed and opening the book again.
——
Etho glanced up as the door opened, brightening slightly as Stress walked in. "Oh- Stress! Hi!"
She smiled slightly. "Prince Etho."
"You don't need to be formal, Stress, my mother isn't here." The white haired boy said with a laugh.
"I was just being formal in front of our... guest. Your mother told me to bring him down here. He's your new assistant." Etho smiled slightly under his mask at the term Stress used, and he opened his mouth to speak before stopping and staring as a boy with an incredibly annoyed expression followed her into the room.
The Floran hybrid was a bit shorter than both Stress and Etho, and he had curly brown hair, tanned skin and freckles scattered across his face. He had (rather pretty) heterochromic brown and green eyes, and a small flower tucked behind his ear. The boy also had an odd, dark green tattoo-like pattern on his neck that reminded Etho of criss-crossing flowers and vines.
"Oh. Uh... it's... nice to meet you." Etho said quietly, and the boy rolled his eyes, muttering something under his breath. "My name is Prince Etho. But you can just call me Etho, no need for the formalities-" The prince added hastily as the brunette shot him a skeptical look. Etho watched as Stress quietly left the room before looking back at the person stood in front of him. "What's your name?"
The boy with heterochromic eyes glared at him, meeting Etho's gaze for the first time. "Why do you care? I'm just a 'servant', right?" He said mockingly. Wow, even if he's mocking me, his voice is- cute- cool. Cool, not cute.
"Well, I was just being nice." Etho pointed out.
"Humans? Being nice? Yeah, no, doesn't sound that accurate." The Floran hybrid snapped. I can't even say he's wrong- one of our brigades did just basically destroy his entire village.
"I mean, I'd like to think that I'm different from other humans." Etho said slowly, frowning slightly. "Come on, just tell me your name- I really want to know now."
The other boy paused. "Not that it's any of your business, but... my name is BDubs."
Woo, chapter two :D
If I had a nickel for every time I made a main character's parent a terrible person, I'd have three nickels (I think).
Which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it happened thrice.
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Just The Two Of Us- A Hermitcraft/Ethubs Fantasy AU
FanfictionA Floran hybrid who's been hiding from humans his whole life until one of his friends had an unfortunate encounter with one. A human prince who has been raised to dislike anything that isn't 'normal'- even though he doesn't quite agree with his moth...
