Author's Note: Aaaand another vignette prompted by an imagine from royaltutorimagines on Tumblr.
The royal physician sighed as he carefully dabbed ointment on Kai's hands. "Your Highness, you really should be more careful than to pick up strange plants in your wanderings. Poison ivy can be dangerous."
"Does it hurt, brother?" Leonhard asked anxiously, leaning around the physician and wincing at the red splotches.
Kai shook his head. "Not really. A bit sore. But itchy."
Viktor sighed. "Well, we should be grateful you didn't rub your eyes or things would have been much worse. But I'll tell the palace gardeners and groundskeepers to deal with the poison ivy. Lord only knows we don't need Adele or Shadow accidentally discovering it."
"Well, the ointment should bring down the swelling soon enough. But the itching might take a bit longer." The physician placed a large jar of the ointment and several pairs of cotton gloves on the chaise longue next to the prince. "You'll need to wear these in the meantime, Your Highness. Apply the ointment at least six to eight times a day. Good day, Your Highnesses, Your Majesty." Then he bowed and left.
Bruno picked up the ointment jar and studied it. "This should do the trick for treating you, Kai. Admittedly it doesn't smell that pleasant, but it does work."
"Is that the same stuff they used when we all had chicken pox?" Licht asked, wrinkling his nose, and Viktor nodded.
"Indeed. Kai, be sure to also rest your hands, at least until the swelling goes down." He rested one hand on his tall son's shoulder. "Don't worry, you'll be fine soon enough, my son."
As Viktor left, the princes bowed to their father, then looked up once again to see Heine enter the room.
"Prince Kai, are you feeling any better?"
"A bit." Kai held up his hands so the tutor could see. "But now my hands smell. And I have to wear gloves."
"You wear gloves all the time anyway," Licht pointed out. "But cotton isn't nearly as comfortable as silk."
Heine noticed Kai struggling to pull the gloves on, and stepped over to help. "Fortunately, it should be only temporary, prince."
"Brother!" Adele came dashing into the room with Shadow right behind her. "Are you okay? I heard you were hurt-"
"Do not worry, Adele. It's just an itch. I touched a plant that I shouldn't have. But Father is making sure that it will be removed so no one else will be injured."
Adele threw her arms around her brother's legs. "I was so worried!" Then she wrinkled her nose. "But now your hands smell funny."
Kai smiled and reached down to pat his sister on the head, but winced.
"Kai, what's wrong?" Licht asked in alarm.
"It's nothing, it's just that my hands hurt. I forgot for a moment. Don't worry, I'll be fine."
Heine, however, saw the sudden realization in Kai's eyes that he wouldn't be able to touch things.
While Kai had the mental discipline not to scratch at his hands, and to ignore the pain, his absent-mindedness when it came to touching things plagued him throughout the day. Whether it was petting Shadow, playing with Adele, or his ongoing habit of rubbing Heine's hands, time and again the pain would force him to stop.
By dinnertime, the prince was frustrated and mentally exhausted, and the thought of trying to manage a knife and fork was almost too much to bear. Still, he knew he was expected at dinner, and so he went.
To his surprise, however, he heard Licht cheering from halfway down the hall. "YES! What a terrific idea, Heine darling!"
Kai entered the dining room to see Licht, Leonhard, Bruno, Adele, and Heine all sitting around the table already, while the servants were bringing in trays.
"Ah, Prince Kai, you're just in time," Heine said as he came in.
"Check it out, Kai! The Professor had the most wonderful idea!" Licht was gleefully looking at the plate that the servant had just placed before him.
As Kai took his seat, he realized that dinner that evening was Käse Krainer, the cheese-filled sausages on a bun that Heine had introduced the princes to on the first trip into town. At first, he was confused… until he realized that this was something he could eat with his hands.
And so were all the other dishes - potatoes sliced and fried and sprinkled with salt and spices, and soup served in bowls made of bread.
Bruno was showing Adele the 'proper technique' of how to eat Käse Krainer, a task made somewhat more amusing by the fact that it was nearly bigger than her mouth.
Licht was laughing at Leonhard nearly causing an inadvertent flood of soup across the table after he tore a too-large piece of bread from his soup 'bowl'.
And Heine was just quietly sitting and watching Kai.
The prince ducked his head and smiled, then began to eat.