"You knew?" Archie whispered, getting off the bed as he let out a bitter laugh. "You knew and you did not think to tell me?"
"I did not want for you to worry unnecessarily," Kenric explained, following Archie as he paced around the room. He tried to hold the stable boy's arm, but Archie shook it off harshly as he scoffed.
"Why would I worry?" Archie questioned, his tone sarcastic. "If you wish to marry some princess then just tell me, Kenric. You are free to do whatever you goddamn please, but I would appreciate some honesty up front. I think I have earned at least that much, have I not?"
"I do not wish to marry anyone!" Kenric sighed. He made a mistake not telling Archie the truth the moment Godric told him about the letter, and now he was paying the price for it. "I have reassured you time and again, Archie. I neither want to nor will I ever marry a woman. Or even look at another person the way that I look at you."
"Then you could have just told me what was going on! What was the point in hiding this from me?" Archie asked.
"I was going to tell you, my love. I swear it on my life that I was. But I just..."
"You just what?" Archie snapped.
"I was just waiting for the right time. I knew the news would upset you and I did not want to distract you from your work or training. But I swear on everything that I hold holy that I was going to tell you before her arrival," Kenric explained, his voice desperate. Archie was still not looking at him, and that was killing the prince. He did not wish for Archie to be upset, and that is exactly what he ended up doing.
"Why would I be upset if you are not interested in the proposal?" Archie raised a challenging brow as he finally faced the prince. "You are a prince, you are one of the most, if not the most eligible bachelor in the entire kingdom, so it is not a surprise that you will have fathers wanting to marry off their daughters to you. Hell, everywhere I go I hear women gushing over you and dying to have your babies. Did you think I was not mature enough to deal with this?"
"That is not what I think, Archie," Kenric exhaled tiredly as he ran a hand through his hair. "I know you are smart and that you would not have made a big deal about this and I know these proposals are nothing new but this one, this one in particular is a little complicated. I just needed some time to sort my thoughts."
"Complicated how?"
Kenric licked his lower lip, now that the cat was out of the bag, he might as well tell Archie everything. So that was what he did. Archie already knew about King Alfred and his nature. Princess Eleanor was his daughter, and he was the one who initiated this entire ordeal which was why Kenric had to be careful in how he navigated the matter. He could not outrightly say no to her, not without raising questions and potentially worsening their relations with their already unhinged neighbor.
Archie listened to the prince with undivided attention, nodding occasionally. Once he had a clearer understanding of the whole thing, he sat on his bed. He was looking down at his feet, his shoulders sagged and his lips curled downwards.
"It is complicated," Archie muttered. He looked disheartened, and the sight made Kenric's heart ache. He took a seat next to the stable boy, wrapping an arm around his shoulder, which thankfully Archie did not remove.
"You do not need to worry, okay? Godric and I have a plan. I am going to be the worst potential husband in the entire world and the princess will run the moment the ball is over. Trust me, she would not want to marry me in the slightest," Kenric spoke.
"I cannot imagine even your worst being undesirable," Archie said with a sad smile. "But I hope it works out the way you have planned."
"It will," Kenric stated. "How did you even find out about this?"
"James overheard the king and queen talking about it," Archie mumbled. "He was worried that if you get a wife you would not have the time to train him how to fight."
"Oh," Kenric hummed, "I see." The two men stayed quiet for a few minutes until Archie spoke up again.
"I do not... I do not want to lose you," Archie whispered. Kenric's grip tightened around his shoulder as the prince pressed a soft kiss against his temple.
"You will not," Kenric replied with confidence. "I am not going anywhere, Archie. And I am never leaving you."
"You sure you do not want to think about marrying her? She can give you everything that I cannot. And King Alfred... maybe this will finally put an end to the feud," Archie said.
"She cannot give me everything that I want, because the only thing I want is you, my love," Kenric spoke softly. "And are you kidding me? King Alfred is a devious bastard. I would not trust him even if I were the father of his grandchildren. I am certain he has something planned. Something sneaky and deceitful."
"I am sorry I got angry and yelled at you," Archie mumbled.
"You have nothing to be sorry for. I should have told you about all this the moment I got to know. I should have trusted you to understand," Kenric said as he shook his head lightly. "I am the one who should be apologizing. And I do. I apologize, and I swear I will never keep anything from you ever again."
"You have so much on your plate, Ken, I do not blame you. The amount of responsibilities you have...Sometimes I wonder how you manage to remain sane. I would have lost my mind ages ago if I were you," Archie wondered out loud.
"You keep me sane," Kenric replied with a small, tender smile. "You have done so ever since we were children. I would be lost without you."
"You and your sweet words," Archie mumbled, his cheeks flushing a light pink. "My heart cannot take more of them."
"You are my heart, Archie."
"And you are mine," Archie replied, tilting his head to look at Kenric. "My sweet prince, my shining knight...you are my everything. And sometimes that scares me."
"Love can be terrifying. A love like ours...even more so," Kenric spoke as he leaned forward, resting his forehead against Archie's. "But I will promise you this, Archie. I promise that one day I will find a way for us to be free."
Kenric held Archie close that night, almost as if he was afraid to let go. Like if he did that then he would lose his beloved. The fear was paralyzing, and no matter how much he tried to ignore it, he could not. As Archie's breath leveled, indicating that he had fallen asleep, Kenric sighed deeply, his grip tightening around the stable boy even more. He rested his head in the crook of Archie's neck, inhaling his sweet scent to memorize it.
Kenric could not help but feel like something big was coming. There was something unsettling in the air, something that terrified the warrior prince. Maybe it was just a gut feeling, maybe his mind was playing tricks on him, but it simply would not go away. He could not stop worrying, and he did not sleep even a wink that night.
Kenric kissed the top of Archie's head once the sun rose. He slipped out of the bed carefully to not wake the other man. A soft whine escaped Archie's lips at the loss of Kenric's touch, which almost made Kenric want to hold him again, but he refrained from the temptation. He had to leave while nobody was out in order to get back to his chambers undetected.
Kenric snuck out, the same way as he had done a hundred times before. By now he was an expert in how to stay in the shadows and navigate his way from Archie's room to his own. Thankfully, nobody saw him and he safely reached his destination.
Archie woke up alone. It made him sad, but he knew it could not be helped. He knew Kenric would stay with him every waking moment if he could, but unfortunately, they did not have the liberty to do so.
The hours passed, and Archie busied himself with work again. The day felt grim. It was just another usual day, but it felt off and gloomy, which Archie did not like. He was grooming one of the horses when he heard footsteps, he turned around to see Joseph, one of the messengers.
Joseph greeted him, before handing Archie two letters. Archie's brows shot up in surprise, it was not every day that someone wrote to him. Most of the friends he had lived in the castle, and some in town. He did not have any family alive, at least one that he knew of. As a matter of fact, Archie could not even remember the last time somebody had sent him a letter.
Archie thanked him as he looked at both the envelopes. One of them had a royal seal which Archie recognized immediately. It was from Prince Frederic. Archie smiled, opening that one first.
The letter was nothing out of the ordinary. Frederic was simply telling Archie about his son, William. How he took his first step. That his wife was learning how to paint and had made a beautiful landscape that Frederic wanted Archie to have. He told him some more things, mainly about him and his happy little family. He ended the letter by saying that he would be coming to the ball and that he was excited to see the stable boy soon.
Archie's heart was touched by the gesture. Prince Frederic did not need to let him know that he would be coming, but he did so anyway. Archie could not help but feel guilty, however. He had promised the youngest prince that he would write to him and keep him updated on his life, but he had forgotten to do so. Hopefully, he would get the chance to apologize in person.
The second letter had no seal. It was waxed shut, and it had nothing written on the envelope to identify who it was from, it only said who it was for. Archie furrowed his brows as he opened it, his eyes skimming through the contents of the page.
Dear Archie,
I have so many things to say to you, but as I write this letter I feel like I am at a loss for words. I do not even know whether this will ever reach you or not, for I do not know where the consequences of my sins may have led you.
I hope my father proved your innocence in time, and that you are still working in the stables like you loved to. If not, then I will spend forever repenting for the pain that I have caused you. I never wanted to live at your expense, but I was foolish and selfish. I ran when you told me to when I should have stayed and owned up to my crimes instead.
If by some miracle this letter reaches you and you are reading it, then I suppose that tells you that I am alive. I found the cure, Archie. The Western doctor was real, her touch was magic. I do not know how she did it, but I can breathe for the first time in months. I do not feel pain when I move, and I do not feel like I am about to die at any given moment.
I know I can never come back to the capital. I know I will be executed. But I just wanted you to know that I am okay. I am traveling, and I hope that one day I will be able to find a home.
I owe you my life, my dearest friend and brother. And I ask you for one last favor, please look after my father. He has no one left in the world. Tell him that I am alive and that I am thinking of him. Always.
With love,
S