"Do you think he's alive?"
"He's still breathing. He still has a pulse."
"That was a nasty break he got. He's just resting."
"You sound like you're trying to reassure yourself more than anyone else, Mr. Sharp."
"I am not."
"Volger, Mr. Sharp, stop."
Alek managed to force his eyes open, three blurry figures standing around his bed. His vision took a moment to sharpen, but he was able to see the three strangers more clearly once it did. One was a woman in her early thirties, probably, and another was a thin man with a mustache. The middle one caught his attention more than the other two, with his neatly cut blonde hair and bright blue eyes. He was probably sixteen, if Alek could gauge anything.
"Water," he rasped out, catching the attention of the bickering trio.
"Hey, you're awake." The boy grinned at him and reached for the bedside table.
"We will finish this discussion later, Mr. Sharp." The man, Volger was his name, swept out of the room. The woman nodded and followed after the man, leaving the two boys alone. The blonde pulled up a chair and helped Alek sit up and, despite the pain that shot through his leg, he still managed to give a soft smile to his assistant.
"Where am I?" The prince croaked, voice scratchy. The blonde didn't answer at first, choosing instead to bring the glass of water up to his companion's lips. Alek almost cried out in pure happiness as water wet his tongue and lips, soothing his throat and cooling his body.
"What's your name, redhead?"
"Alek." He responded, digging his hands into the sheets and getting a fistful. "Your name?"
"Dylan. Dylan Sharp." Dylan grinned, his entire face lighting up. He helped Alek drink the rest of the glass of water until there were only a few drops on the bottom of the glass. "You took a pretty hard fall, mate."
Alek looked at his leg, which was bound with bandages that wrapped around a cast. "Yeah… I suppose I did." He said absentmindedly. Dylan smiled.
"You hungry? I could go get you food or something." The blonde boy stood up, waiting for Alek to respond with his arms crossed.
"How long was I out?" Abrupt change of topic.
"Umm..." Dylan thought, counting on his fingers. "I found you three days ago."
"You found me?" Alek's eyes widened a fraction.
"Is there a problem with that?"
"Er... No. No, of course not."
You're going to be okay.
The words came back to him, making his gut twist. That voice had sounded so clearly feminine to him, but maybe he had just been delirious and misheard. His lips formed an 'oh' that he couldn't vocalize, and he leaned back against his pillows, burying down into them.
"This your beastie?" Bovril was in Dylan's arms, sniffing him and giggling in its slightly creepy way. The loris chirped out happy little notes, similar to a bird call, and Alek watched in wonder. Bovril had never liked anyone this much. Well, besides maybe himself.
"Uh, yeah." Smooth, Alek. "Yes, it's mine." He cleared his throat and sat back up. He beckoned to his loris, curling his fingers in a gesture back at himself. "C'mere Bovril."
"Isn't that a type of tea?" Dylan laughed. "Who came up with it?"
"An ex-friend of mine." Alek responded, tone bitter. It was true, Lilit had decided to name the loris and the name had just stuck. It infuriated him that the loris still payed Lilit's decision any attention, but at least it didn't like the woman herself. It seemed rather fond of Dylan, as it was being rather reluctant to crawl off of his shoulders. During that split section of hesitation, the blonde had tugged him off and place him in his owner's lap.
"That's barking ridiculous." Dylan said with amusement. "Cute, but absolutely ridiculous."
"Tell me about it," the prince mumbled, letting the loris creep back onto his shoulders. It looked at Dylan with a smile that only an animal could make. "You mentioned food?"
"Yeah, want me to get you something?" Alek's paranoia of poison, driven into him from when he was small, made him shake his head.
"I would rather come with you." He confessed. Dylan quirked an eyebrow but shrugged.
"You aren't supposed to be outta bed, but I'll help you." He helped ease the skeptical archduke out of bed, one arm slung over his shoulders while he held onto the prince's waist. Alek frowned a bit at the foreign contact, but decided it would be better to not say anything. It seemed to take forever to pull him onto his feet, but the moment weight was put into his bad foot, his leg crumpled beneath him and Dylan scrambled to grab him, keeping him from hitting the floor.
"Lean on me," the blonde directed. "Put all your weight on me and you should be able to walk." Alek did as directed and together the two hobbled down the corridor in the direction of the kitchen. When they got there, Dylan assisted Alek in sitting down, placing him on the counter, and then he started getting out different ingredients for some sort of food. He poured some milk into a pot, placed it onto one of the stove's eyes and sprinkled in cocoa before stirring and chatting away as he did so.
"Where're ya from, Alek?" Dylan asked.
"Er... around."
"The nearest town is a good twenty miles away." He said, peeking at the redhead in curiosity. "How'd you make your way to Leviathan?"
Leviathan? Oh, that must be the name of the manor. "I was looking for someone."
Dylan snorted. "Who is blazes would take this route?"
"My caretaker."
"Your caretaker is daft. What kind of person has a caretaker, anyways? You a prince?" Dylan was joking, but Alek's green eyes widened as he thought that the taller male had guessed who he was. But Dylan was obviously smart, and he caught the scared look. Everything clicked within that moment, and he let out a simple, "oh".
Alek cursed himself mentally, muttering out, "Dummkopf."
"So, you plan on letting anyone else 'round here know?"
"I believe I will have to." He confessed, deflating a bit. Dylan pursed his lips as he stirred the concoction in the pot with a wooden spoon.
"I'm pretty sure Volger already knows. That bum-rag's barking smart." The blonde scowled, obviously not enjoying the thought of the man. "He's a count, you know."
Alek's eyes widened. "A count?"
"Sure is." With a roll of his eyes, Dylan pulled down two thick ceramic mugs and placed them on the counter. He turned down the eye until the fire had died down completely. Picking up the pot, he poured some of the thick, brown liquid into the two mugs. He finished it off by adding spoonfuls of honey and peppermint shards. "Here you go, your princliness."
Alek raised the mug to his lips and took a long drink, eyes widening at the rich taste. "... This is delicious." He breathed. Dylan smiled, though the archduke could only see the corners of his mouth twisting up into a smile.
"Thanks." He grinned. "It's a favorite around the castle. Gimme a call if you ever want some." He gave a wink, as though it were an inside joke of sorts between them.
"I'll keep that in mind." Alek said slowly, a twinkle gleaming in his green eyes.
They continued to chatter away until both of them had finished off the pot of delicious liquid. Dylan had to carry Alek back up to the infirmary,
not wanting to risk him hobbling his way up the stairs to the third floor. So that was how he found himself clinging to the back of his new acquaintance-Dylan was referring to them as friends, so it made him wonder if he should too.
The blonde was warm, heat radiating through the fabric of both his shirt and the prince's. It was awkward, but the only comfortable way to cling was to wrap his pale arms around Dylan's neck and lay his head against the back of his companions. The silky hair tickled his face, and Alek couldn't help but breathe in his scent. He was left with a sense of disorientation when Dylan pretty much dropped him onto his bed, confusing thoughts swimming around in his mind.
He didn't notice that Dylan had left until the heavy doors banged shut, leaving him to gather his scattered thoughts.
Here's chapter two, guys! Sorry that it took so long to get up, I've been in Mexico all week so I haven't had wifi. Or cell service...
Also, to my single reviewer, I am sorry to say we won't be witnessing Lilith singing that Gaston song, because I don't think I have the creative juices to write a parody that would serve her justice. But we will see the tavern scene, I promise you that.
Until next time! Ciao!
-Starry Eyed Artist