Title: Fading Colors.
Disclaimer: Hetalia is not mine.
Paring: Alfred/Arthur,
Warnings: Male/Male and the rating is for something just not yet though. Cardverse AU.
Genre: Romance, fantasy.
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There was a story once… of o those of promises we make, brushing lightly traces of fate in stone and mocking the unforgivable time. It is said of being the story of a queen and her love-
It is said she loved her king with all her heart, he made her smile and made the loneliness melt. A prosper kingdom they both had, one of the four, the most new and yet the most powerful.
They ruled wisely but then in one of the many wars they held, her beloved king was hurt of death.
She cried in his agony and in the end –despair won over logic. She knew in this land of magic there could be a way of stop his impendent withering.
And indeed she found it before it was too late. Time, all she needed for him was more time.
And between the old and forgotten scrolls of forbidden magic she found how to obtain it. A clock was granted to her born of magic and earth –a clock that would never stop its movement, a golden pocket watch.
She managed to bring him back but to a high price the clock was immortality to her beloved while for her it meant stolen life.
It is said that after than the ban from magic was lifted for that colorful place called spades. The king asked to all the sorcerers to bring his wife back. He would give them anything in exchange but no one was ever able to match the queen skills in magic and so only choice the king was given was a life forever waiting every time for his love to reincarnate over and over again.
And so wait he did –the day she finally came after a thousand of years, she showed him a lovely smile, carrying with her another clock, one that was stopped and wouldn't move no matter what. A smaller pocket watch than his but still linked at the same spell. As long as his time kept moving her time would be forever stopped and it would not follow natural course of life leading to old age and then dismiss. She had obtained the same gift of his husband's albeit in different terms and had been cursed to an eternity of blindness for that.
The colors faded of her one by one, red of passion, orange of gladness, gold of greatness, yellow of kindness, green of calmness, blue of indifference, lilac of seduction and finally pink of love.
She stopped knowing how to love her king and those there were indiscretions of her having thirsts never seated –lovers many of them, blood and corruption.
The king realized then, the high price he had paid to have her with him –she couldn't die and she wasn't really living.
Praying for forgiveness he smashed his own clock against the floor –it stopped moving and those hers began its march. The king forgot his name, his life, his queen and everything else.
It is said he disappeared from the palace and that when the queen finally opened her eyes after months –she was able to see. Out of trance she realized she had a child growing in her and called happily to a king who no longer ruled there.
They took her to trial for all her sins without her husband to protect her anymore. An evil queen had invaded their kingdom while she slept, had bewitched her husband's little brother and had blamed her for all the pain caused to the common people.
It is said that the night before her execution someone set her free and is also said that she spent what was left of her life searching for her love –a love who never remembered her.
"I am starting to believe you really do enjoy my company."
The dry sneer –albeit politely- in the well concealed words, wasn't lost on Gilbert.
"Right" he stated emphatically, shrugging it off in favor of resume what he had been sent to do. His basis being 'end this fast so you can drag yourself back to your bed just as damn fast'
"Here's the catch," He said in a plane-uninterested tone. "you talk, they don't get to question your reasons neither to submit you to military trial, you will only have to hand down the scrolls with the forbidden magic and then the king will put you under politic asylum towards Hearts"
The dim light emanating from the candles resting in the wall flickered petulantly –the pitch dark room partially illuminating and distorting in shadows- almost like the sudden shift of mood of the man in front of him who offered no answer, neither truce to this troublesome challenge they had been having for the last four weeks.
"Yao has been arranging meetings whit the council and some elders from the court," He continued. "still is a long way to go, you should take the easiest way out of this." 'And save the awesome me some trouble' he thought to himself sighing and leaning against the door.
The rustle of the chains clanking in the otherwise silent room had the albino narrowing his eyes.
"No." The prisoner replied icily calm.
He should have guessed as much. Well, shit.
Gilbert massaged the bridge of his nose and closed his eyes, at the imminent throb that threatened to engulf what was left of his will to deal with this, which given the hour wasn't much, and the patience he had somehow managed to collect in aid of camaraderie.
Camaraderie, it was only fair… tending a hand to the nearly-friend in need and all that crap…
"Beilschmidt" A low toned yet decided voice flooded in his ears. Damn, he knew where this was going… "I have no intention of relinquish the scrolls nor do I have intention of allow exile."
"You should go" Right there, checkmate.
Dramatic bastard.
Time to modify strategy. "Nah, not leaving" He said yawning, contemplating all the possible outcomes of how the conversation he was about to have would go, not that any possible scheme that his head considered, seemed promising though.
Right. Camaraderie was it. "You are in deep shit here," Gilbert remarked sullenly and shifted his focus, averting his gaze towards the place in which the rustle of the chains had been heard earlier. "your actions are to be leveled as treason to the kingdom and the court would prefer your head before letting you go around as a deserter,"
"I don't know if you don't get it, but in other words, you are screwed" He added bluntly.
Receiving only silence as response, Gilbert knew the number one outcome had come to play; meaning, the prisoner had finished talking for what was left of the night –if it still could be called that- and wasn't going start to reply let alone cooperate anytime soon.
So, time to go. "I'll drop by tomorrow. Just rest and stop being a pain in the ass" He voiced finally giving up, closing behind him the door of bars.
The fresh air down greeted him kindly. He yawned once again and hurried the peace of his walk. He was just about to reach his destination, when something got his attention; there were no stars in the nightly sky.
He scorned, crushing smoothly one thick branch in his steps to stare intently at the empyrean, which figures was as clear as crystal.
He couldn't wait to crash in his bed and sleep like a dead for the next nine hours; unless something happened, which was likely to do happen given the annoying nature of this particular case and the complicated man who was involved in it.
Fuck.
"Arthur kirkland" The aforementioned remained still. "under immediate orders of the king of this empire, you are to be prosecuted today for undeniable charges of treason and conspiracy."
Arthur shifted stoically and stood to leave the cell -the chains moving with him-
It didn't take him much to reach the exit. The formalities as well as his transfer went without problems and soon he was placed in another confinement room; albeit this one smelled different than the other, he supposed it was pretty much the same.
It didn't take much to the Royal guard to act in regards of scattering either.
He had been left alone only with explicit orders to wait and the chains still hanging heavily to his wrists. And so, wait was what indeed he had been doing, sitting impassibly in the floor –back reclined in the wall, one leg folded elegantly towards his chest while the other rested stretched- trying to achieve one of the most simplest forms of meditations he knew: merging with the environment.
He closed his eyes, throwing his head to the front - thick dark golden strands of hair falling freely as a curtain to his face-
Alive. The sounds, the smells, all came to him in triplicate. A bird singing three meters to his left, the fresh aroma of recently made food from upstairs, the soft murmur of the wind, the movement and chatting in the building…
With a light crackle the sealed door that kept him captive opened loosely. "What about not being a pain in the ass?" a familiar rough voice asked with a hint of irony.
He exhaled in resignation; his meditation seemed long lost now.
"Beilschmidt " He acknowledged coolly, titling his head back to its original position –opening his eyes-
"So you believe me now," Gilbert's tone usually laced with sarcasm sounded tired and annoyed. "Remember? The deep shit part thing?"
"You were sleeping." He affirmed contemplative.
"No, I was fucking" Gilbert mocked.
Arthur lolled his head "What now?"
"Honda Kiku is marring our now new king" His words were somewhat kindler towards him, this time.
Arthur felt the air leave his lungs to the hit back with a force that made him recoil at the earlier statement. Like ingesting poison. He squeezed his knuckles sharply cutting out the circulation and swallowed hardly to try and find his voice; however his face remained blank and collected.
Still when his voice finally returned, it rattled more distant that he had intended. "I didn't intend to-"
"I'm sure you didn't" The other interrupted him. "In fact, I prefer your fat-ass over him" Gilbert answered, his lips curving in a smirk fueled by dark humor and futility.
"Obviously." He whispered bitterly.
The clockwise continued turning like sand falling and fading yet all that was left for him was to keep lingering in doubt.
Alfred stared to a starless sky –he was still not finished with work and had to end his share of it for tomorrow. He feed the horses kindly while speaking with them. He ruffled their mane and told those stories of fallen kings and shining hope.
He told them, all of his worries, of how all the people of spades were getting sick and poor. Of how all the friends he had always seemed distressed and even his boss, the owner of this stable was troubled.
He sighed and smiled softly at the animals, really thankful for their whole attention.
"Good night" He told them and walked towards his own place close to them, he would sleep now and hope for a better situation, tomorrow when he woke up.
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TBC...
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