Kenric's blood was boiling.
Fortunately or unfortunately, Edward's words left him in such a shock that he stood on his spot motionless until the siblings were out of his view. He did not know what else he would have done had that not happened. He would not put it below himself to take out his sword. So maybe it was a good thing that he was too stunned to respond as that would have definitely led to a war. Though he would have really liked to show him his place.
Kenric had so many questions circling his mind. How did Prince Edward know who Archie was? How did the blond know he was participating in the tournament?
And most importantly...how did he know that Kenric was going to visit Archie?
Did he know what was going on between the two men? Kenric believed that he was being careful. He had not even met Archie since the royals arrived, so it was impossible for Edward to have seen them together. Only Godric and Sir Christian were aware of their relationship, and Kenric trusted them. It could not have been them...so then who?
Was there somebody else in the castle who was aware of what was going on between Kenric and Archie? A rat? A spy? Someone who worked for King Alfred?
Was this the only secret that they knew? Or were there more? Suddenly, Kenric did not feel as secure anymore. He felt exposed. Vulnerable. He did not care much for his safety, but he would rather die from a thousand cuts than let any harm befall Archie again.
Kenric's head was spinning. He was torn between going to Archie. To see him and to ask whether he had any clue regarding what Prince Edward was on about. But on the other hand, he was no longer sure that nobody was watching them. It seemed like too big of a risk to take, so with a heavy heart Kenric returned to his chamber.
The next morning was worse than the night before. Kenric was used to planning battle strategies and figuring out what his enemies' weaknesses were on the field. What he was not experienced in were games of politics. He was out of his comfort zone, and that scared the prince.
Kenric wanted to go to his brother first thing, but the tournament was starting and both of them had too much on their plates. Kenric had to control the urge to not confront Edward at breakfast, and for the first time, the prince reminded Kenric of his father. King Alfred was a scumbag, he was a conniving son of a bitch and it seemed like the apple did not fall too far from the tree.
This made Kenric wonder how Princess Eleanor turned out the way that she was. She seemed too pure for the men in her family. But now Kenric was all the more hesitant to put any trust in her either. What if she was just putting up a façade that Kenric had been too blind to notice? Nothing was certain anymore.
For the time being, Kenric had to keep the matter to himself. Edward had not made any threat, so maybe Kenric was simply overthinking it. Maybe there was a spy or maybe all he knew was that Kenric and Archie were friends, it was not like that was a secret. Kenric pushed the thought to the back of his mind until he could talk to Godric or Archie about it.
The tournament was starting, Archie was going to be there, and Kenric had to win.
***
Sir Christian apparently did not have enough, and he once again convinced Archie to grab him some blueberry pie from Francis. Archie was amused at the knight's love for pies, and this was the least he could do so he enabled his addiction.
However, Archie made his way out of the kitchen as fast as he could after procuring a slice for the knight. It seemed like the only topic of conversation the servants had these days were the two alleged 'lovebirds' of the castle. The last thing that Archie wanted to hear about was how beautiful they looked as a couple and how grand their upcoming wedding would be.
Sir Christian did not fail to notice Archie's foul mood as soon as he handed him the plate. He was confused at first until he heard what two of the servants were saying as they passed them by.
"—and Katherine told me that Prince Kenric visited the princess's chambers last night and was there until sunrise—"
"Do you lot not have anything better to do than gossip?" Sir Christian snapped, giving his deadliest glare to the handmaidens. The poor women looked like they were about to faint from fear. "If I hear another ridiculous rumor about the prince spreading around the castle then I will personally throw the perpetrators in the dungeon. Starting with you both."
"We...I was not...I mean...We just heard..." the woman kept stuttering, and Archie could not help but feel bad for them.
"Enough!" The knight raised his hand to silence them. "Show some respect for your prince and keep your mouths shut. Understood?"
"Yes, Sir, please accept our apologies," the other woman said as both of them bowed before scuttering out of there. Once they were far enough to not be able to overhear, the stable boy spoke up.
"Thank you," Archie whispered. Sir Christian turned to look at him, his lips pressed in a thin line as he tried not to frown. He nodded at Archie before keeping his hand on the man's shoulder and squeezing it reassuringly.
"This will pass. They will leave soon," the knight stated.
"Not soon enough," Archie muttered. He exhaled deeply as he shook his head. "It's okay. It really is."
"No, it is not," Sir Christian replied. "I cannot even begin to imagine how hard it must be to hear the bullshit that people are saying about Prince Kenric. It infuriates me so it must be agonizing for you. You do not need to pretend like you are fine when you clearly are not."
"As you said, they will leave soon and things will go back to normal." Unless Kenric has fallen for the princess. Then they will get married and Archie will live alone for the rest of his life with a broken heart.
"They will," the knight nodded with confidence. "I cannot wait till I no longer have to watch Prince Edward's snobby little face. What do these handmaidens even see in him? He looks like a rat to me. That thin nose and oh! His hair is just ridiculous—"
"Sir Christian, are you forgetting that you are blond too?" Archie retorted with an amused smirk, making the knight roll his eyes.
"Not as blond as that weasel," he defended. "Also, it is just Christian when it is the two of us. Remember?"
"Oh right, my apologies Just Christian," Archie grinned, and the knight laughed along. "Are you not getting late? The jousting tournament begins soon."
"Crap," he groaned. "Well, I have no chance of winning anyway since Prince Kenric is participating. But you are right, I should be at the grounds already."
Archie was expecting the knight to walk away instantly, but instead, he began eating the pie at a lightning-fast speed. Archie was worried that he might choke as the knight devoured the slice within seconds.
"Sweet lord..." Archie whispered as Sir Christian finished eating the crumbs before smiling in satisfaction.
"I shall head to the arena now. Will I see you there?"
Archie clicked his tongue as he thought about it. He wanted to see Kenric, but for some reason, he felt nervous to do so. Maybe he was just scared that he would see her with the princess, and then the stable boy would not know how to react. He could not endure his heart to hurt more than it already was.
But at the same time... he wanted to be there for Kenric. He wanted to support him and cheer for him. He wanted to watch him win and hear as the crowd screamed his name. He wanted to witness his prince in all of his glory.
"You will."
Archie wrapped up some work that he had left before making his way to the arena. His heart was beating fast, and it did not take him long to find where his prince was. His eyes landed on Kenric almost immediately, making him both thrilled and anxious.
Archie was staring at him. He was openly staring at the man he was in love with as he waited for Kenric to notice him. When he finally did, Archie's lips turned upwards as he gave the warrior prince a small wave.
Kenric's expression remained the same. It was blank, devoid of any emotion whatsoever as he looked back at Archie for a brief moment. Archie did not want or expect much. He knew that they were in public, a smile or a nod would have been enough, but he got nothing. To make it worse, he had to watch Kenric hold Princess Eleanor's hand as she climbed the stairs of the platform where the nobles were seated.
Archie felt his heart shatter as Kenric looked away. The moment-long eye contact was the only thing Kenric had done to acknowledge his presence in the last few days, and Archie had to bite his inner cheek to stop himself from crying right there and then.
Were his doubts and worries coming true? Was Kenric not interested in him anymore? Was this the end of their story?
Archie turned around, he could not bear being in the same vicinity as Kenric anymore so he left the grounds as fast as he had arrived. He rubbed his eyes as he rushed back to the stables, he went to his room and closed the door behind him. This was no longer in his head, he was losing Kenric.
Archie did not know how long he spent sulking and pacing around his room until somebody knocked on his door, and Archie was ready to snap at them for disturbing his breakdown. He was anticipating Sir Christian, or maybe one of the other servants or stable hands— but much to his surprise, it was someone completely unexpected.
"I watched you leave the arena and you seemed...sad," Prince Edward paused. "Tell me, pretty boy, what upset you?"
***
Kenric hated himself. He hated himself more when he could no longer find Archie in the crowd. He knew that the stable boy must have left, and he did not blame him either. He probably would have done the same had he been in his shoes.
It was not like he wanted to ignore him. It was hurting his very soul to do so, but that is what he had to do until he could figure out what Prince Edward knew and what his intentions were. Moreover, if there really was a spy in their midst then he needed to weed them out.
Kenric won the jousting tournament, as was expected. But the victory gave him no sense of pleasure as his beloved was not there to watch him. He was the only person Kenric wanted there, the one he wanted to share his accomplishments with. Without Archie, it all felt pointless.
The tournament ran long, and Kenric was tired by the end of it. Mentally more so than physically. He could not help but notice that Prince Edward had gotten up and left midway through the event, which raised suspicion in him but he could not follow him then.
Kenric had a bad feeling, and as soon as he had won and his duty was over, he left the arena to go find Archie. He needed to explain what was going on to him, Archie deserved answers for Kenric's behavior which the prince was determined to give him.
Imagine his surprise when he opened the door to Archie's room, only to find him with their guest of honor.