A/N: It's the bois!!
***
Altair stood before the tall wooden doors of Scorpius's room, giving three quick, sharp knocks.
"Good morning, young master. This is Altair entering."
After pausing for a second, he turned the knob, pushing the door open. In the grand luxurious bed against the far wall, he saw the brief rustling of sheets, before the familiar lump on the bed stilled once more.
Altair bowed, not a single fault in his form, and motioned for Rebecca to pull the cart with the wash pan and tea set in, to which she stiffly compiled. It would normally be Altair doing everything, but now he had a useful little pawn to divide some of the grunt work it seemed. She'll learn to not be so skittish, but it was to be expected at this stage.
Giving the awkward Rebecca a reassuring nod to where she should leave the cart, he approached the room's windows, routinely opening its draping curtains to let the light inside.
Altair hears the lump in the bed faintly shift, but he paid no mind as he continued to methodically go through each window, until the very last one right beside the bed where the young master defiantly lay, attempting to use his blankets to shield his sealed eyes from the light.
"Good morning, young master. I'm afraid it's time to start the day."
Scorpius grumbled a bit, sinking further into his pillow with a wrinkled frown.
As per their daily routine, Altair waited for a small moment, before he made his way to the cart which had been set at the foot of the bed. In the silence of the morning, his dress shoes clicked rhythmically while the wheels of the cart made subtle creaks as they rolled across the floor and over the carpet.
Routinely, he ungloved his hand and delicately dipped his fingers into the water, to which was the perfect temperature– just as he had intended, of course. Drying them and putting his gloves back on, he turned to the young master.
"Young master, your wash pan."
Scorpius grumbled again, but begrudgingly rose from the comfort of his bed, wiggling within his puffy silk sheets and shuffling to the bedside where it waited for him.
After he finished, Altair gently dabbled his face with a freshly warmed towel, its temperature similarly calculated. Altair was very thorough, after all. As he took special care around the crevasseses of the eyes whilst he went over each divet in his face, the still-dozy Scorpius lay limply in his arms, in perfect content as the soft warm cloth dried his bare face.
As Altair moved away his hand to prepare the tea, his arm was grabbed by his wrist by Scorpius, who despite his drowsiness stared intently at Altair's face through half lidded eyes.
Altair paused expectantly, wondering what he'd do next.
"... Your wound," Scorpius mumbled, his eyes still puffy. He frowned. "It's not bandaged. I thought I sent someone over to check it yesterday afternoon."
Altair blinked, then smiled. Ah right, that thing.
It had been a surprising sight to come home to, and though it was more mildly inconvenient than anything, he had appreciated the gesture since it was the young master of all people. His efforts were bearing fruit, he supposed.
"Do not worry, young master. Us beastkin heal quite quickly. It has already closed up for the most part, so a bandage would be unnecessary. And yes, the physician you sent was waiting for me upon my arrival. That was very considerate of you."
The boy faltered at the compliment, shyly looking away. "I... wasn't being considerate. I just... as a Linhearth, I took responsibility for my people, that's all. And... I wasn't worried."
My...
Altair chuckled. "Is that so? My, the young master truly is noble-hearted. You bring this humble servant much joy with your kindness."
Scorpius opened and closed his mouth, and Altair didn't miss the way he glanced over to Rebecca, who gave him a not-so-subtle thumbs up and a shooing motion forward as if encouraging something. Scorpius leveled his gaze back at him, determined. How curious. Knowing Rebecca, it would have to do something with reconciliation.
"Altair, I... about the other day... I'm... "
The young master held his gaze... for around a full second before it began wavering, darting around his face then around the room, quite panicked. As Altair waited for the continuation, Scorpius quickly stood up from his bed, shoulders squared like a soldier's.
"I'm- I'm awfully fond of your tea!!" he declared stiffly.
Altair blinked, and Scorpius's face turned bright red, his lips pressed together tight and body rigid. Altair heard Rebecca facepalm behind him.
"Is that so?" Altair replied with a smile, indulging him.
"Y-yeah! I- I mean yes!" Scorpius replied hurriedly, his eyes very slowly trailing away from Altair's face, until they were simply looking at the carpet on the floor. "You always know the perfect ratio of milk to the tea, and the right amount of sugar. And the teas you brew are always excellent."
"Wasn't the young master always complaining about it being too sweet for your taste?" Altair couldn't help but tease, finding this situation to be too amusing to pass up.
"I lied," Scorpius said bluntly, in the same stiff manner, his face absolutely rigid despite the impressive amount of color painting his cheeks. There was a beat of silence.
"I see," Altair said, chuckling into his gloved hand. "Thank you for your kind words, young master. I am glad that you find my services to be satisfactory."
It seemed the young master was a very blunt boy when he got flustered. Quite honestly, he was downright impressed by the young master's poor skills in diverting attention. Couldn't lie to change the topic, it seemed. He didn't blame him. The art of socializing was a learned skill after all. The poor thing probably only learned that aggression was the only way to react to any conflict.
Altair poured the tea he prepared into the fine china cup, handing it to the still yet-to-be-unfrozen young master.
"I hope that today's brew will be up to par as well."
Scorpius took the cup, holding it up to his mouth to make a poor attempt to hide his face.
How precious, Altair thought. He couldn't help but chuckle again, to which Scorpius glared at him cutely, eyebrows furrowed behind the apparently infinitely filled teacup.
Altair continued their morning by helping the young master dress for the day, glancing over to see that Rebecca was watching in awe of his efficiency— and taking notes, he hoped.
It was obvious that Scorpius's rather pathetic attempt of apologizing was Rebecca's doing. It seems like the time he had left the girl to the young master had served him well, it seemed. He had only expected her to encourage small tokens of reconciliation, but to think that the young master who would never lower himself to anything in his speech would admit to something as far as to apologize— that was some development indeed.
Of course, he will have to observe Rebecca's obvious coaching to find out exactly what she was trying to accomplish and her methodology— one can never be too careful when it comes to the fragility of a child's development after all. As unfortunate as it was, he could not undo what had been done for the past nine years of the young master's lifetime— the years of social ostracization accompanied with poor guidance and reception— so Altair would have to be extremely attentive from this point on. For that, he'll need to place them into a situation where they have the opportunity to talk— naturalistic observation, if you would.
After taking note of the young master's choice of breakfast for the day, he left the room, leaving the two alone along with some instructions for Rebecca to occupy herself. He began pushing the cart along the hallway, listening.
True enough, once those tall wooden doors closed behind him, a voice piped immediately afterwards. Of course, unbeknownst to them, Altair had no trouble hearing them as he steadily marched forward without suspicion, courtesy to his frightening sense of hearing— a weapon he has never shied away from using to his advantage. A perk of being an Ii'ahn.
"Young Master, you are really quite something are you..." Rebecca muttered unamused.
Scorpius made some offended little squeaks, and Altair could easily recognize his little taps of his stomping feet.
"What?! Don't look at me like that!"
"... You were supposed to apologize, did you forget?"
"I did not!" Scorpius squawked back, "I-It just wasn't the right time, understood? I have my reasons!"
A sigh. "Reasons my butt you hopeless gremlin! You just got too nervous so you changed the subject!"
"I DID NOT! MY ATTENDANT MAKES THE BEST TEA AND I COULD PROVE IT!"
Some bickering, that casual way of speaking, and the teasing but firm reprimands— it seemed Rebecca's dynamic was indeed companionate— with Rebecca as the scolding older sister. Not bad.
While the outward informal speech and bold name calling was a surprise— the girl was surprisingly brave, after all— their interactions generally fell within his expectations. Although he would normally never tolerate a mere servant to be talking so informally to the young master, it seemed to be benign (Rebecca herself is quite harmless, too simpleminded for malice or for complex or petty schemes), and rather it seemed like it allowed her to forcefully break through his defensive nature. Greatly beneficial really, since he had fully intended her to become Scorpius's future emotional anchor.
With the addition of her genuine attempts at building his morals, it seemed everything was progressing smoothly. Good— because if a pawn stopped acting as one... well, he'll have to adjust some things accordingly. It would be such a shame too— he would rather not replace her, as it would go heavily against his goals to surround his young master with stability, along with other things that a child would need, but he'll have to do what he must. Hopefully his little guinea pig he had handpicked would not disappoint him.
He purred with satisfaction inwardly. Perhaps he should reward her with something suitable soon, since she's been serving him well so far. She treasures her siblings greatly, so perhaps he should get her a gift or two for them. Plus, if he could make even her siblings favor her serving Scorpius, he won't have to bear any concerns of her leaving.
With a smug grin, Altair continued to march towards the kitchen, where he was sure the head baker would have some desserts waiting for him. After all, his young master was waiting to be served his breakfast. He shouldn't keep him waiting.
***
Scorpius sat in his velvet chair, flipping through the pages of his book. At the creak of the door however, he perked up to see his attendant enter the room. Upon meeting his gaze, the older boy smiled. It was almost fox-like, the way it reached his eyes. Despite the new change of expression, he was still as sharp as ever, and keen— yet still irritatingly polite, somehow.
He found himself staring again without intention, but the attendant paid no mind as he set down a tart beside him, along with a warm drink, which steam curled in the air freely. It complimented the chilled weather, which was getting colder by the day now that winter was approaching.
"Please enjoy, young master," he said, and Scorpius suddenly remembered his objective. His face pinched a bit in dread.
Just how was he supposed to apologize? The attendant wasn't angry with him– rather, he was smiling at him again. Did he just say it now? Should he do it at a later time? But what if he leaves and doesn't come back later? Then wouldn't it be weird to call him exclusively to apologize? Shouldn't it be naturally woven into their conversation? But it wasn't like they were having a conversation now, since he was just staring at him again in panic. His cheeks grew pink again.
The attendant chucked, which only made his coloration worse. Did he know? Is he just messing with him? At this point he swore he was just here to enjoy watching him suffer. He suddenly felt very annoyed at the attendant's perfect, handsome smile.
"Do you need anything else, young master?"
This was it! The opportunity!
"Actually..."
Scorpius opened his mouth, and the attendant seemed to wait expectantly with another one of his smiles, though it was much softer... just like last time.
Ah, he was staring again.
"Young master?"
Dear god, he could feel himself panicking again. Just thank him and move on!
"Thank you for your consideration, attendant. I am always moved by your thoughtfulness."
TOO MUCH TOO MUCH ROLL BACK.
As Scorpius stuttered in his seat, astonished by his own words, the attendant chuckled into his hands, his eyes full of undisguised amusement. Despite his own crippling embarrassment, the other's expression made him oddly... happy.
"There's no need to flatter me so, Young Master. I am but your humble and loyal servant."
"Is that so?" Scorpius bit back, "Well you can go ahead then, I don't need anything else."
"As you wish," the attendant bowed, the amused grin still plastered all over his face. He kind of wanted to punch him. "Please tell me if you need anything else. Rebecca and myself will be nearby, so please just ring the bell."
"Yeah, yeah," Scorpius huffed, turning himself away and hiding his face in his book.
Only when the attendant closed the door behind him did it occur to him... he failed again. He threw the book on the ground, screaming so undignified that his father would surely berate him.
He curled up on the couch, flopping over with his knees tucked under his knee, staring ahead and frowning. His gaze met the lonely book thrown haphazardly on the ground, and after staring at it for some while, he stood up and picked it back up. As irritated as he was, it was an interesting book.
He huffed defiantly as he skimmed through the book again, trying to reclaim his lost passage while slightly regretful that he had thrown it without looking at what page he was on. He'll succeed next time, he was sure of it. He was a brave and noble Linhearth. Something as simple as apologizing can't get the best of him, surely.
***
It seemed the young master's continued efforts were slowly having more difficulty, Altair observed. Every attempt led him further and further away from that magical phrase, 'I am sorry.'
"Attendant, was about to say that I'm s– ...so incredibly glad you're here. ... Because my tea was getting cold."
"I was trying to tell you ... I'm... going outside!" It had been the first word he had spoken to him while Altair had been standing beside him for hours.
"I'm..."
At a certain point it seemed the young master had just about given up, seeing how he just stared up at him for a long silence before muttering out a small, ".... nevermind."
He couldn't deny that his struggle amused him greatly. How couldn't he, when the infamous brat of Linhearth was struggling so cutely just to apologize, to him of all people– not to mention it had him shouting out all sorts of interesting compliments, if the young master happened to be flustered enough. He supposed eccentricities were a requirement to be featured in a main cast of characters, he mused. And if Altair was intentionally giving the poor young master more opportunities... well a couple of 'coincidences' won't hurt– nor would overlooking some of the young master's adorable excuses.
***
He couldn't believe that trying to apologize was getting the best of him. He groaned as he sat in his chair, the remnants of his studies on the table, untouched. This whole ordeal was by no means helping him concentrate, in just about everything he tried to do. How agonizing, the way the horrid feeling clung to him– to think that it has lasted for days now... how disgraceful.
"Did you say sorry yet?" the maid said to him as she tidied the cushions.
"... No," he grumbled.
"I can tell," she laughed, clearly enjoying his struggle.
He frowned at her grumpily, but she just kept cleaning the room. Well, at least someone was in the room with him. Just because someone was assigned to him at all times didn't mean they would stay with him in the same room, though the attendant was surprisingly almost always around when he wasn't doing errands and during Scorpius's studies.
He had found it irritating at first having him there for so long, just standing there beside him like a statue, completely motionless. He had wondered if all the Black Dogs were like that, since it seemed his father's attendant too was equally stoic, as were many of the others.
Suddenly, he was reminded of the maid's earlier words. 'I don't think you understand how abnormally and insanely good Black Dogs are at their job. They're the elite of the elite.'
Well, he was starting to see that now, seeing how the maid went about her work, stumbling and sometimes looking out of place as tried to find her next task awkwardly. Hmph, of course the Black Dogs weren't meant just for show. They were a great pride of the esteemed Linhearth Dukedom after all— their renown elite servants. The best should serve only the best.
Still he couldn't help but feel like his own attendant was a little odd. He was almost too good to be true— too eerily... perfect. What a strange thing. ...How thrilled and prideful his father must be, to have a son that was perfect.
Scorpius slumped forward, staring at his incomplete papers with contempt. He wondered if the attendant ever had trouble with anything. ...Did he ever have trouble apologizing?
"Say, young master, why don't you have a walk outside?" the maid piped up cheerfully, breaking him from his thoughts. "It's a beautiful day out."
Scorpius grumbled without answering her, and the maid hovered over him with a knowing smile.
"I bet Altair will come with you. You'll have another excuse to talk to him privately, no?"
Scorpius perked up at that. She was right. He didn't want to admit it, but the maid had the capacity to be smart, surprisingly. Hmph, who knew that the attendant who spent so much of his time sticking next to him like an annoying bug would be so hard to talk to? To think that he had to think of excuses to just talk to him was beyond him.
"Your suggestion isn't half bad, old hag."
The maid huffed, but didn't say anything back, to his surprise.
Scorpius rang the bell, and a moment later the attendant was knocking on the door. He was always errily quick.
Elite of the elite, his thoughts echoed.
"Young Master, this is Altair entering."
The attendant opened the door, bowing to him before leveling his gaze at him with that polite grin of his.
"You called for me, young master?"
Scorpius cleared his throat. "That's right. I've decided to go for a walk outside."
"Very well. Allow me to get your coat."
After the attendant got him dressed appropriately with thicker outdoor clothing, the dreadful maid gave him a wink, and he stuck his tongue out at her, before walking out the door with his attendant tailing right behind him.
As he walked along the hallway, with the elegant footsteps of the attendant echoing his every move, he froze in his tracks, suddenly remembering why he preferred to stay in his room all day.
A trio of young maids were giggling as they carried a basket of something in their arms. His mood suddenly soured, and he frowned with irritation. Did servants have to be goofing off every single time he was around? Did they have nothing better to do than chatter all day?
He clicked his tongue. He had better things to do than bother with a couple of servants.
As he continued to walk forward, trying to disregard them, the maids finally turned around at the noise. They promptly froze at the sight of him, their laughter dying quickly in their throats, like their energy had been sapped right out of them. How irritating. While he was going to ignore them and continue walking, they suddenly grew incredibly pale, gripping their baskets tightly before scurrying away like rats.
Confused, Sorpius turned around to look at the attendant, who watched them leave with a sharp, watchful gaze. Feeling his stare, the attendant looked down at him, giving him his now apparently now-usual grin, looking too cunning to be innocent. He did something for sure, but Scorpius just huffed and continued walking. He did admit though, having such a perfect attendant was indeed... convenient.
Hmph. As he should be.
***
Altair gazed upwards at the skies, where the clouds left scattered prints of thin white across the icy blue canvas. With the leaves completely shed from the trees, it seemed like winter would soon be in full session. Navigating through the path, Altair saw the familiar structure in the distance, a smile finding his way on his face.
Unlike the first time he visited, instead of the side doors Altair went straight to the gates which led to the main courtyard, where the sight of different soldiers training greeted him.
In the midst of his training, the always friendly, surprisingly competent Walter noticed him walk in immediately, sheathing his sword to run over and squash him with a giant bear hug.
"Hey Kiddo! Where have you been?!" he cried dramatically, "It's been so boring here without you!"
As per tradition, Walter ruffled up his hair fondly, though fortunately it's been long since Altair has gotten tall enough so that Walter couldn't swing him around in circles during their hug.
"What would the mister do without me, seeing you're this distressed when I've only been gone for a couple of days?" Altair said back with an amused grin.
"I'll be nothing but a sad, lonely old man," Walter said with a fake tear.
Seeing as he hadn't gone to the barracks since the incident with Scorpius, he supposed it has been awhile since his last training session considering he went almost everyday during Scorpius's tutorships. Now that he was fully recovered, it was time he returned.
"Wait, what happened to your face?" Walter said in concern, pausing his theatrics. His gaze lingered where the scar from the incident had healed over, now revealed due to Walter messing up his hair. The man brushed the hair aside to get a closer look.
"Just a small injury I received a couple days ago," Altair replied easily. "It's all healed now so you don't need to worry."
Walter stared at him, and Altair saw his gaze darken with anger, seeing as there was really only one possible culprit. After all, Altair had been sure to silence the maids so that the news did not fall into the Duke's ears, but it did little to stop people from speculating the obvious.
Huffing, Altair gave Walter a light flick on the forehead.
"Everything is fine now, so you don't need to make such an expression."
Such a dark expression didn't suit such a stupidly happy man like Walter.
"You know that it's not fine," Walter said back, unrelenting despite rubbing the stinging spot on his forehead.
"It will be from now on," Altair replied without skipping a beat, casually giving waving soldiers a wave back accompanied by one of his charming smiles. Pleasantly, many of them had warmed up to him over the years after being in proximity for so long.
"How can you be so sure?"
"... The boy was trying his hardest to apologize to me every hour of the day. Every single day. Surprising, is it not?" Altair turned to him, whose eyes had widened greatly. "You give the young master too little credit, Mr. Walter."
"But–"
"You trust me don't you?"
Walter began wavering dramatically, his pupils practically trembling as he was being swayed. Altair chuckled. The man was almost too easy.
A tall figure approached behind them, their steps distinctively light.
"Sir," Walter said, his posture straightening.
Antonio looked down at Altair with a softened gaze.
"Welcome back, kid," he said simply, his large hand reaching down to pat his hair with gentleness that vastly contrasted with his rough, coarse hands that were calloused with decades of experience. "Go get changed and we can get started."
Altair nodded, a little disappointed by the pat's briefness. He began walking towards the building, where he was to change. It had been one of the things that had changed after his official attendant apprenticeship began. While he began training under Antonio himself after Renald's ambition and even Alatir's own insistence, the scars on his back, though hardly a big deal in comparison to his peers, no longer allowed him to change freely in the open. It would only cause unwarranted concern knowing who was looking, the forever soft-hearted men he had admittedly grown fond of.
Antonio spoke again, making him pause. "Be careful. Don't ever forget about yourself, kid, you hear me? Cherish yourself. I taught you these skills so that you would be able to protect people you need to... that includes you."
While they never seem to be able to accept how their servanthood worked (with the exception of his uncle, who too was a Black Dog), Altair supposed he should appreciate everyone's concerns for him, as unneeded as they were. It was endearing how much they cared— his uncle, mother, and them. At least Antonio stopped treating him like a naive child after Altair showed him his supposive 'conviction'. The man was too much of a softie when it came to children that he had originally flatly refused to teach him. Antonio wasn't a regular knight after all, unlike what appeared on the surface. To such a man, it's only natural that the innocent should not learn the dirty, ugly parts of battle.
"Of course, Sir," Altair grinned, knowing full well that the man had already deduced his intentions just from overhearing their conversation (only the surface-level, of course. How would anyone be able to deduce that he was using Scorpius's happiness as his own self fulfillment to spite this entire world?). "Who do you take me for? Sir Antonio of all people should be fully aware that I am always careful."
Besides, after what he's experienced, the pitiful beatings of a nine year old is the least of his worries
***
"Are you nervous, young master?"
Normally, Scorpius would bite back with some quip, but he stayed silent, his body tense and rigid in his seat in front of the mirror.
Goldie was coming to the estate anytime now. The perfect, golden child that everyone loved. The child the people adored and fawned. No matter what he did, it seemed he was the only thing that would bask in the shining light.
He frowned as he stared at his own reflection, bland and dull, his expression unfriendly. He looked at the way some parts of his dirty blonde hair looked more golden against the rays of brilliant sunlight. He offhandedly wondered if Father would tolerate him more, if he had been born with golden hair, just like the 'real' royalty... just like Orion and even his mother– always captured so beautifully in the paintings hung around the estate, with golden hair so radiant she could have been confused for a diety.
Perhaps it would have been alright, if he had been more talented. Smarter, better at swordsmanship, and gifted with magic. Sure, he was on the studious side, but never good enough to make up for everything else. It seemed like everything— from his looks to ability, he just wasn't special enough to hold his father's warmth.
The attendant, seeing the lack of response, gently tilted his head up to look straight ahead, causing him to flinch out of his thoughts.
"Close your eyes, young master," the attendant urged, his voice so soft that it could have lulled him to sleep. "Relax your shoulders."
With his best efforts, he did his best to comply, though he couldn't help but be apprehensive. He slowly closed his eyes, feeling the gentle touch of the attendant's hand threading through his hair, the other using a comb to brush through. The bristles scratched at his scalp pleasantly, and he felt his shoulders relax. All his previous thoughts drifted away, favoring instead to melt under the pleasant motions with a soft hum.
"Enjoying yourself now?" The attendant cooed in amusement.
Suddenly, Scorpius's previously relaxed face fell away into a slight scowl.
"Not anymore," he grumbled, slumping forward to lean on the vanity. He stared up at the attendant, whose smug grin became much gentler. He felt his chest get all fuzzy again, and without his notice, his scowl loosened up again.
After the attendant finished fixing his hair with wax and made final adjustments, a knock at the door alerted them of the time.
"Young Master, His Royal Highness will be here soon," a footman notified, "The lord wishes you to meet him at the main entrance hall."
"Yeah, I'll be there," Scorpius growled, clicking his tongue, not even bothering to see the footman skitter out like a scared mouse.
The attendant, dutiful as he was, left his finishing touches to his appearance, and guided him to the door.
Thoroughly dreading what was to come, Scorpius made his way to the main hall, where his father sat waiting for him, dressed neatly in a casual, but sophisticated attire, of course accompanied by his own Black Dog.
***
"Val," the lord addressed.
"Father," Scorpius replied.
"I think you are well aware of what I'm going to say, but I believe your past behavior very well justifies this repetition, isn't that right?" the lord spoke with a scarily even tone.
Altair observed the slightest changes in the young master, from the clenching of jaws to the fists at his sides. Despite the young master's best effort to hide them, the signs were too painfully obvious– to Altair, and to the lord as well.
"I'm sorry, father," Scorius said automatically, "It won't happen again."
The lord looked more displeased with him, even forming a scowl as his eyes narrowed. "I don't want to hear your excuses. Just act how you're supposed to, Val. I don't want to hear a whisper that you've disrespected his highness, do you understand?"
Scorpius just nodded.
His father sighed deeply. "Just greet him and be on your way. Even you are capable of doing that, I hope."
The lord stood up from his seat, striding elegantly towards the front door located in the main hallway, speaking to his father and the head butler about the current status. Altair huffed as Scorpius was once again dismissed so haphazardly.
"Young Master," Altair said, coaxing Scorpius out of his daze. "Shall we follow the lord outside? His Highness will be here very soon."
"R-Right." Scorpius replied, scurrying after his father like an anxious rat. It couldn't be helped, since the young master felt so out of place— in his own home of all places— all the time. Altair wordlessly followed after him with confident strides, hoping he would be eased a bit with his presence. Scorpius had been acting less hostile with him lately, after all. Their steps echoing in the grand hallway, they exited out of the building, where the lord along with the head butler and his father as well as several of the knights, Scorpius's swordsmanship teacher included, waited for the arrival of the royal.
Altair heard him before he saw him, the sounds of horses pulling a large carriage echoing into his ears as they entered into the estate grounds, the small entourage steadily making its way to the front of the estate. The carriage was a luxurious black, generously adorned with gold accents all throughout, even to the ornaments of the horses' harnesses. As it was pulled to a stop and the escorting apprentice knight– Ren, no doubt, judging by the fiery red hair that represented the fearsome Hwayin tribe of the far north– opened the carriage door. Out stepped Orion— his hair catching the sunlight in a way that made no difference between him and the gold that surrounded him.
Once stepping down, Altair's most prized card looked up, emerald eyes searching while his no doubt pleading expression was hidden just from the surface. His bright green eyes met Altairs, and Orion looked as if he was frozen in time, as if he himself was unsure how to react. But Altair did. So he steadily held his gaze, eyes flashing with unspoken complexity, the hints of warmth that the young prince oh so craved— before lowering his gaze down to a respectful bow.
Submission.
How conflicted must the young prince be, seeing that of all things from Altair. It would have gone against everything Altair had engraved into that little heart of his, shattering his illusion of being carefree peers. Altair's persona that was full of warmth and brightness was now being washed away before his very eyes.
Naturally, Altair intended it that way. Things have changed since then, after all. It would be strange to have conflicting personas, especially in front of Scorpius. If he were to show such warmth that was characteristic of the Altair that Orion knew— it would be severely counterproductive to the point of no return. Using the time they haven't seen each other as an excuse, Altair could now shift to something closer to how he usually acted.
That's right, little prince. I didn't forget... I simply changed. You understand don't you?
Internally, he bore a wicked smile.
I'm still the Altair you knew.
That's right— there was no need to throw away the precious card he earned. He only needed to sprinkle in small hints of the past, and he could continue to maintain a positive relationship— that's how thorough of a job Altair had done to worm his way into his little heart. The prince won't be able to ignore him. As such, the prince would become very useful if applied correctly, even to Scorpius, his future arch-nemesis. If he were to establish a positive relationship between them using Altair as a bridge, Scorpius may much easily have a smooth sailing ride to search for his happiness. Of course, unless Scorpius didn't intend to. If Orion was out of the picture and there was no king to decide the next rightful ruler... the throne was a free for all for those with royal blood, as long as you had power to grasp it. If Scorpius wished it— well, he surely wouldn't mind playing kingmaker for his lord.
"Your Highness," the lord beckoned with a gentle smile, his eyes creasing as he flew open his arms to greet the prince.
Under hooded eyes, Altair watched as Orion forcefully tore away his gaze and put on a smile, embracing the lord. Scorpius twitched, but did not say a word. How hateful of a sight it was.
"I'm overjoyed Your Highness had made such a journey to visit us," the lord continued.
"It's only natural to visit my dear uncle and cousin," Orion smiled back, even turning to Scorpius who flinched under his sudden gaze.
At this age he had already learned how to put up a face—his little prince was growing up so fast. With such an endearing, innocent charm paired with his childish face, it was no doubt deadly. It was a skill he had used faithfully to fulfill his role as crown prince in the future, his smile always impeccable and friendly. How could anyone have known such a brilliant smile would hide such a cold heart? All but the heroine had been fooled. It was unsurprisingly the reason he fell for her, Altair mused to himself. Still, to think he would use seeing Scorpius as a front to see Altair... for his age the little prince was clever indeed.
The lord seemed to notice this detail as well. "Is that so? When was the prince so eager to see Val?"
"Well, I promised I would meet him as soon as I could after his party," Orion lied smoothly. After all, who would doubt him? "We couldn't talk properly with all the people around us, so we have much to discuss."
The lord looked thoroughly pleased with the response, his son finally starting to do something right. Altair did not need to imagine the infuriating feeling that radiated from the now quietly fuming Scorpius. "Then I shall not keep you two. Val, why don't you take his highness to your room?"
"...Yes father," Scorpius bowed, and the smile the lord gave him sickened Altair with disgust.
The knights of the entourage were sent to their temporary quarters, and Ren remained to accompany Orion into the building. Escorting them to his room, Scorpius and Orion sat across one another, Ren standing at Orion's left as Altair prepared tea.
Meanwhile Rebecca watched stiffly from the sidelines, sweating profusely. It was no surprise– the tension in the room was chilling. Orion's polite smile and Ren's stoic demeanor, contrasted greatly with the obviously hostile Scorpius, who stared with obvious questions in his eyes. But Orion's gaze lingered on Altair, watching him set down a teacup in front of the young master, then in front of Orion. He breaks the ice first, with a dazzling smile that hid his contempt.
"How have you been, cousin?"