Four Suits (Book 1)

Day 38-3: Hotheaded

"You're being unfair, Leda," Avel calls. "If the honourable prince wants to slit his throat, let him."

It only takes a single glower to shut Avel up. Leda returns her attention to Ro who's buckled over his knees, weeping. To think such a prideful man can be reduced to this...

"There's no way you can understand, Leda," Ro whimpers.

"And why wouldn't I be able to?" she retorts. "Even if what we heard is true, you still have your mother and siblings. You still have your people. You still have me, Orian, and Avel."

"You're including me?" Avel says.

Leda ignores him. "If you kill yourself who's going to save them?"

"I haven't done anything useful this entire time we've been on Straeh," he remarks. "You would be better off going on ahead and leaving me to die the death a pathetic man like me deserves."

Avel slowly blinks and turns to Orian. "Okay, so we should go then?"

"Avel!" Leda shouts.

"I love it when you scream my name," he gushes.

   Fortunately, Orian grips him by the arm, motioning him off. "How about we get those antidotes ready for our departure?"

"Aren't you interested in how my genius mind crafted them?" Avel prods. "You see, making the serum wasn't the difficult part. Rather, it was figuring out the effects it could have on the body considering the different magic or fairy influence—even taking into account the Spade suit as opposed to a Heart—and—"

   Avel gladly rambles on to a perky-eared Orian as he leads him through the icy haven. Orian spares Leda a discreet nod to which she grimly returns one. Returning her gaze to a teary Ro, her lips meet, tightly.

   He doesn't look any better. Snuffling, cheeks puffed like a child's. Then again, how is he supposed to recover from news like this? Long before Leda and Orian came to Edaps, he was living with this crushing guilt. Dealing with death after death of his civilians—a disease nobody could cure. A disease he, and the rest of his royal family, were powerless against.

   Leda can't even begin to imagine how he must feel. Sure she's gone through the loss of her own family, but Ro considers all of Edaps to be his family. He treasures the well-being of the other Spades over himself, and often went on long expeditions in order to find a solution to this deadly plague. And when they finally find it, Nixon, his closest vassal, is the cause. And not only his father, but countless other Spades are dead from it?

   They've been gone a couple of days. Would the Edaps they return to truly be the same kingdom Ro loves deeply? Is it possible to go back, head-held high, to the family he cares so much for? Who knew how much longer they were going to last. And maybe, that idea hurt him more than it should.

   "There's nothing more shameful than a prince who can't protect those he holds dear."

   "You can't begin to understand, Leda," Ro mumbles, amber eyes blanketed by a new layer of tears. "My people are weak. The proudest and toughest suit kingdom—nearly decimated in as easy as two years."

   As he properly sits and rubs at his puffy eyes, Leda attentively listens from beside him.

   "It affected them all before me. I could only watch as they died in front of me. Time and time again. And by the time my family members became affected I figured we were doomed. I'd rather die than live with this shame. But I couldn't do it. Because more than that, I wanted to find a cure. I wanted to do my best. Even so, I brought you all here and couldn't be there to do anything. I was powerless. In saving my people; you."