Horace had been prepared to stay up all night before trying to find a way back home. He refused to let his guard down again, not when he was the only one here to keep Varian safe. Nobody else was around to protect them. It was Horace's responsibility.
Hector's bearcat was curled against Horace and Varian's side. It was sleeping, but its position would allow it to easily protect them at the first sign of danger. Things were quiet for about half an hour, but then the bearcat jolted awake and looked around curiously. It sat up and started sniffing. It looked like it was looking for something. A moment later it shot up and dashed off, growling and yipping.
Horace only wondered for a moment where the bearcat was going before he heard an answering growl in the distance. The other bearcat must be nearby, and with any luck it brought help with it.
"Hello!" Horace called out. Maybe it was foolish to draw attention to himself when he'd just been attacked by a wild animal, but if one of the Brotherhood was out there Horace wanted to be found by them sooner rather than later. "Help!"
Horace heard a familiar huff that thrilled and terrified him every time he heard it. Horace straightened and pulled as close to the black rocks as he could, holding Varian close. He refused to kill a tiger only to be trampled by a rhino.
A moment later the two bearcats came running towards them, with Hector's rhino just behind them. Riding on the rhino was Hector himself. He looked furious, but Horace had never been happier to see him.
"Hector!" Horace smiled in relief. Varian groaned and shifted, but didn't wake up. Horace didn't know if that was a good or bad thing.
Hector jumped off the rhino before it even stopped running. He prowled towards them, almost looking more like a predator than the tiger had. "Well, if it isn't his royal pain in the butt himself." Hector grabbed Varian by the back of his shirt and pulled him out of Horace's grip before he could even think to stop him.
Horace knew that Hector would never hurt Varian on purpose, but he couldn't help the spike of panic he felt when the kid was snatched from him. Hector frequently forgot how strong he was and how small and vulnerable Varian was. He could easily accidentally hurt him. Horace jerked up to try to get Varian back, only to be kicked harshly in the chest, knocking the air out of him.
Horace gasped and curled in on himself. He felt a tight grip on his hair. He barely had a second to prepare himself before it was harshly yanked, forcing him to raise his head. Horace glared at Hector, who just gave him an unimpressed look.
"You just can't help yourself, can you?" Hector growled. "Look, I get it, the adrenalin rush of almost dying is addictive, but did you really have to drag the kid into it?"
"Tha-agh!" Horace yelped when Horace gave his hair another tug. "That wasn't what I was doing! I tried to avoid the tiger, but it must have circled around. And whether or not I meant to almost get myself killed, do you really think I would do anything to put Varian in danger? He followed me."
"Then you're an idiot if you really didn't think he would do that." Hector said. He gave Horace's hair one last pull before tossing him to the side. Horace groaned and rubbed his head with one hand as he used the other to pull himself to his feet. Hector immediately noticed the way he was favoring his ankle.
Hector's glare softened, but only a little bit. "What's the damage?"
"Just a sprained ankle for me." Horace said. "Varian's got some scratches on his back, but they don't seem too bad." Hector frowned and adjusted his hold on Varian so there was less pressure on his back. The man was surprisingly gentle with him. "The amur tiger is worse off than we are."
"Yeah, I can see that." Hector shot a look at the tiger. His bearcats were sniffing and growling at it. "Is it taken care of?"
Horace grimaced. "It's dead."
Hector nodded. He looked impressed, but also a little worried. "Which of you did it?"
Horace didn't really want to answer, but he knew that it was important. "I killed it, but it was more of a mercy killing at that point. Varian's cut did more damage than mine did."
Hector looked at Varian. "The kid did that?"
"I don't really know how," Horace admitted. "But yes."
Hector hummed to himself and walked towards the tiger. One of his bearcats was sniffing at a small dagger on the ground and hissing. Horace recognized it as Varian's dagger. Hector picked it up with his free hand and sniffed it. He immediately grimaced and glared at it suspiciously.
"Smells like that alchemagic he does." Hector said. Horace didn't bother correcting him about the alchemy. He knew that Hector knew perfectly well what it was called, he just liked to call it alchemagic to annoy Varian. "The kid poisoned it."
Horace grimaced sympathetically. He remembered the burn scars that Varian's mom, Ulla, used to have, and that was just when her alchemy got on her skin. Horace didn't want to think about what kind of damage that stuff could do inside the body. No wonder the tiger had been taken down so quickly.
"So whose kill was it?" Horace asked, and he was almost afraid to hear the answer. He knew what it would mean for whoever had killed the tiger, and it wasn't something that he wanted, even if he used to when he was a kid and didn't fully understand just what it was.
Hector looked thoughtful as he pet at the fur that he wore. Horace could count on one hand the number of times he had seen the man do this. "It was a team effort, so I guess it was both of yours."
Horace sighed and looked at the tiger's fur. It looked nice and soft, but the thought of having to see it every day and be constantly reminded of what he had done hurt. Then again, Horace supposed that was the point of this tradition.
"It's not so bad." Hector said. "Soon enough you'll feel naked without it." Hector walked back over to Horace and handed him Varian. The kid curled up against him and Horace held him as protectively as he could. Hector carefully wrapped a cloth around Varian's small dagger, covering it with multiple layers.
Hector, with the help of his bearcats, hoisted the tiger's body onto the rhino's back. Hector climbed on behind it. Hector gave a sharp whistle and nodded at his bearcats. The uninjured one that had arrived with Hector approached Horace. It gestured to its back and Horace climbed on.
He thought he was getting a little big to ride on the bearcats, but they were stronger than the looked. The bearcat didn't even seem uncomfortable with Horace's weight.
"You ready to go, kid?" Hector asked.
Horace nodded. He'd been ready to go home as soon as he saw Varian come riding in on the bearcat. Horace held on tightly to the bearcat's scruff with one hand and held Varian close with the other. Hector whistled and the bearcats and rhino started to run back towards the castle.
Though Horace's original trip had taken several hours the day before, the ride back to the castle was a quick one. Far too soon Horace saw the castle in the distance, and they were quickly getting closer to it. He was relieved to see it, but Horace couldn't help the anxiety curling up in his chest as they approached. They were almost safe at home, which meant that he could afford to think about non-life threatening things, such as how much trouble he was going to be in.
Normally after getting dragged home from a running away attempt Horace's biggest concern was being lectured by his dad, but that was his least concern this time. He may not have tried to, but Varian had been in danger because of him, and Horace doubted that Quirin would be very forgiving.
He would consider himself lucky to get off with just a scolding this time.
By the time they got back to the castle Horace had gotten himself so worked up that he was half convinced that Quirin was actually going to kill him. Hector got off the rhino and gave it some quick instructions. It nodded and retreated back into the stable, taking the tiger with it. Hector helped Horace get off the bearcat and supposed him so he didn't put pressure on his ankle.
"Are you ready to face your dad?" Hector asked.
"Better my dad than Quirin." Horace said. Hector chuckled. He seemed amused about the imminent danger.
"I'll talk to my brother." Hector said. "It'll give him the chance to calm down a bit before he bans you from even looking at his kid again. He'll still be mad, but maybe not mad enough to want to kill you."
"How reassuring." Horace sighed. "No, I'll talk to him. Varian was only out there because of me. It's my responsibility." If there was one thing that had been hammered into Horace's head since he was a child, it was that as prince of the Dark Kingdom he couldn't just shy away from his responsibilities. He tried to, sometimes, hence the running away, but that didn't mean that he couldn't do it.
Hector smirked, and maybe Horace was just imagining things but there seemed to be a look of pride in his eyes. "If you say so, kid." The man supported Horace as they made their way down the stairs towards the Brotherhood's chambers. The door to Quirin's room was wide open, and a glance inside showed that he wasn't in there.
"Moonstone chamber?" Horace asked with a grimace. He assumed that Quirin had noticed his son was absent and had run for help, and the closest place where help would certainly be was the moonstone chamber, which was constantly guarded.
"Probably." Hector said. "Look on the bright side, your dad's there too. If Quirin's in there you'll only have to tell the story once and get it over with."
"Fantastic," Horace said through gritted teeth. It should be a relief to not have to go through what had happened multiple times, but Horace was not looking forward to talking to both dads at once.
Horace considered putting Varian in his bed and letting him sleep, but he reconsidered it. He didn't want to leave Varian alone, and he was sure that Quirin wanted to see that Varian was okay with his own eyes.
"Let's go." Horace said. He let Hector lead him towards the room that he had rarely ever seen. Horace could count on one hand the number of times he'd been in the moonstone chamber. It was not a place that he wanted to be at the best of times, but especially not when he was about to get in trouble, but there was no helping it.
As they approached the chamber Horace looked at the stained glass portraits of his ancestors. They had all dedicated their lives to protecting the moonstone and keeping it hidden from the rest of the world. Horace always felt a sense of awe mixed with dread when he looked at them. Their legacy was his destiny, whether he liked it or not, and he didn't.
It was a lot of pressure to keep the moonstone safe, and it was pressure that he didn't want. He couldn't run from it though. His ancestors were protectors, and Horace was expected to be as well. He didn't want the responsibility, but it was his nonetheless, and today Horace had seen for himself just what could happen if he slacked on his responsibilities.
He'd been lucky today, but he couldn't push it. The moonstone was an unpredictable force of chaos. Horace had been told over and over again that it wasn't a matter of if the moonstone unleashed its destruction, but when. The smallest mistake could destroy the kingdom and generations of work.
Horace had never asked for this responsibility, but he also didn't want to be the one who brought his kingdom to its knees. The moonstone was his responsibility, just like Varian was, and Horace swore to keep them safe.
"Horace?" He flinched when he heard his dad's voice. He sounded confused and relieved, but Horace knew from experience that his relief wouldn't last long.
"H-hey, dad," Horace said sheepishly. His gaze shifted from his father to the knight standing next to him. Quirin wasn't looking at Horace. His gaze was glued to Varian, who was still fast asleep.
"Varian!" Quirin ran towards them. He pulled his son out of Horace's grip and held him close, protectively. Horace understood the feeling, but it stung a little bit that Quirin felt the need to protect his son from him.
"What happened?" Quirin asked. There was barely restrained anger in his voice.
"I-I'm sorry." Horace said. "I didn't realize that he would follow me."
"You ran away." Edmund gave him a disappointed look, and that hurt. He would almost prefer to face his dad's anger. It was familiar, something that he was used to. Edmund's disappointment was rare, and it was a lot harder to deal with.
"I wasn't thinking." Horace said. "It just happened. I-I won't try to give any excuses this time, because I don't really have any. I messed up, it was a mistake, and I won't be trying something like this again for a long time."
Edmund looked unimpressed and unconvinced. "I've heard such promises from you before. What reason do I have to believe you this time?"
Horace swallowed thickly and looked at Varian. He still had some of the tiger's blood dried in his hair. "Because we're both going to be wearing a reminder of what happened."
Quirin's eyes widened. "You killed an animal?"
Horace grimaced and rubbed his hands on his tunic to try to get rid of the blood that had long-since dried. "A tiger," He tried to ignore his dad's sharp intake of breath, or Quirin's pained groan. "I tried to avoid it, but it found me anyway. If it wasn't for Varian, I'd be dead." Edmund looked very pleased with himself, probably proud that his plan to have Varian be Horace's bodyguard had actually worked out. Quirin just looked pained. He understandably didn't like the thought of his son throwing himself in danger.
"I have a punishment in mind for our wayward prince." Hector said. "How about he helps me prepare the pelt? Take it from me, the reminder is stronger when you skin the animal yourself."
Horace shuddered at the thought. He already had the tiger's blood on his hands, and Hector wanted to make the pain even worse. Unfortunately, Horace didn't have a decent argument against Hector's suggestion. He didn't like thinking about what he had done, but if it would keep him from making the same mistake again in the future, maybe this painful idea would be for the best.
Edmund eyed Horace carefully before he nodded. "Very well. Horace, you will assist Hector. Next week, when the pelts are done and young Varian has recovered, we'll hold the ceremony."
"Yes, father." Horace nodded his head in a bow. He looked towards Quirin, who was trying so hard to hide his frustration and fear behind that stoic mask of his. "I really am sorry. I'll do my best to not let this happen again."
Quirin took in a deep, slow breath before he looked at Horace with cold eyes. "Forgive me, your highness, but after what happened today I don't think that your best is good enough." Quirin bowed at Edmund and made his way back down the hall, carrying Varian with him.
"Y-yeah, I guess that's fair." Horace flinched and wished that the ground would swallow him up, or maybe for a black rock to come out of the ground and pierce him where he stood. It might hurt a little less than getting the cold shoulder from a man that he saw as his uncle.
"Come on, kid," Hector gave his shoulder a squeeze in what he probably meant to be a reassuring way. It felt more threatening and painful than anything, but Horace appreciated the sentiment anyways. "We've got a lot of work ahead of us."