It's so bright. The light stings so much right now. What happened?
Alfred covered his eyes with his forearm and sat up slightly in his bed, only to quickly grab at his side and hiss quietly.
"No, no, your majesty, you must lay down." Hands were upon his chest and assisting to do just that.
Once Alfred could finally adjust to the morning sunlight he looked to his bedside almost immediately. "What happened? Where is Arthur? Is he in his own chambers?"
A maid stood by Yao. The two exchanged glances before Yao nodded, sending the maid out of the room by a que. "You were hurt. We had to stitch you up and call a healer. At the ball, Gilbert was confronted violently by his brother on keeping the Jack of Clubs hostage. To quote your father, 'you were right.' The physical state of the king of Hearts is unknown. Chaos erupted before we could be so sure. The medical attention was difficult to get to in spite of it all. It was not safe there so I had you brought back home."
Alfred sat there and absorbed all the information before his eyes narrowed a bit. "Yeah...I remember..." He gently squeezed his side. "I can't believe I fell for that...where is Arthur?"
Yao adverted his eyes. "His status remains unknown. Last he was seen by your side. It is possible that he is still in hearts but you need to be well before we can launch a mission."
Alfred nearly sat up again. "You left him in Hearts alone?! Yao he was screaming for me when I got stabbed! We need to go back now!" He began to toss the blankets aside, only to be pushed down by Yao.
"Your majesty! Arthur is the Queen of Spades! It's only natural that he is good at anything considering war like affairs. At worst, Arthur can still get out of the situation! Give it a day. Soldiers have been stationed at hearts to prevent any pain from coming to his Queenship. For now, help your kingdom. The famine has gotten worse...Clubs threatened us with war last night."
~~~~~~~ Hearts ~~~~~~~
Arthur was panting heavily as he glanced hopelessly at the braces upon his wrists. They weren't chained together, but they were horribly tight. There was a knock at the door.
"Come in..."
Sakura walked inside the chamber and carried a tray with her. .
"What's that?" Arthur glared.
"Breakfast."
"...Why are you keeping me here? If I am to be imprisoned I'd like to know what are the charges." He seethed.
Sakura set the tray down beside Arthur "I'm not keeping you here. Ludwig is. Though he is a bit busy right now. Last night ended a bit loud and he mourns the death of his brother as brought by the early morn."
"G-Gilbert's-"
"Dead by the declaration of the people..." She frowned.
Arthur grabbed her by the scruff of her shirt. "What am I here for! What have you the right to kill him?! The jokers must have-"
The door opened and closed again. "The jokers are myths. Surely you can't live on fairy takes forever." Ludwig turned his gaze to meet Arthur's hands. The Queen of Spades hesitantly lowered them.
"Comfortable? Those braces restrict your magic so you can't simply leave yet. I hated to do this to you and mein bruder, but I am chained by the will of my subjects. As for you, the magic you displayed last night could have killed a dozen of my guests...including your husband."
Sakura took this time to leave the room.
Arthur glared. "Why am I here? What did you do to Alfred?!" There were no weapons in the room.
"Alfred has gone back to Spades. As for your purpose, we need a favor." Ludwig presented a small scroll. "I very much need your assistance in this war Arthur-"
"No. After what you did to Alfred-"
"That was something I have yet to correct my queen about. You are here because we require your help whether or not you are willing to spare it. If you don't sign this then I'll have to take unfortunate measures." He boomed and suddenly blocked a solid punch from Arthur, almost breaking his hand as he twisted it. "The magic of a virgin male queen can be quite powerful, Arthur." A loud snap broke the silence and Arthur cried in pain as he cradled his hand. Ludwig left the room.
~~~~~~Spades~~~~~
Alfred waited for his injuries to heal enough that he could walk. It had been a week since he saw from Arthur, none of his letters were getting through to him in hearts and thus he decided to contact Clubs on the matter. Eliza responded in short that she had reviewed word from Queen Joan of Diamonds that they were attacked. Though that Clubs would not help because owed Ludwig a great debt. Ivan also sent his comment on their current trade and with it another warning made its way into Spades. The famine could not be helped much but through the collaborative minds of Alfred and Yao an irrigation well had been set up to be built.
Yao approached Alfred with a letter.
"Thanks Yao. Mattie says we can spare enough soldiers to head for Hearts. I have no clue as to why our queen is their prize." He angrily tore open the letter. Eliza's words were true. Diamonds was being attacked. "Ready the horses."