When Whit awoke, it was dark. He could faintly hear the pattering of the rain, slightly muted by windows. He was laying on the cold floor - stone, perhaps he was in the palace. Which was odd. He had avoided the loud festivities Cap's band had been hosting, so he hadn't passed out or anything.
He stood up shakily, using a conveniently located table to push himself up.
The rain continued, thunder roaring outside.
He heard voices coming down the hall, cold and clinical, sounding awfully familiar, like a memory he'd long buried away. He turned his head to attempt to hear them better.
"Boss says we should nab the kid before he wakes up," a doe's voice said, sounding completely done with the world. Whit gripped the edges of the table, confusion racing through him. He remembered the voice now - Lieutenant Laissa, a member of the Black Band who died in a short-lived riot. She had been one of the only casualties, and to be honest, Whit had been happy to hear the news of her death.
It only confused the prince further. Laissa should not be alive. What was going on?
"Yeah," sighed another voice, a little less familiar. Whit racked his mind for the names of the Black Band members, but none came up to match the voice. "Ugh, it's gonna be messy. You know I hate blood."
Laissa groaned, stopping in front of the door. Whit's heart pounded as the knob turned slowly, the dramatic sense of impending doom growing.
"Who are you?!" Laissa all but shouted, pointing at Whit's still figure. Whit stared at her for a few seconds, wondering if he should take his chances and lie his way out of this situation. Watching Laissa draw her sword told him it was a definite no.
He dodged the first strike, the skills Cap and pure survival had taught him rising up in the face of danger. Laissa's companion had no weapon, attempting to strike Whit with a powerful kick. He dodged it again, realizing they were attempting to pin him into a corner. Looping around the table so his back was to the open door, he dodged another swing from Laissa, this time narrowly.
Realizing he couldn't win a fight involving both of them, Whit turned and began sprinting down the hallway.
He hadn't been to the palace in years, but the memories of the winding halls and dusty rooms rose to mind.
Boss wants us to get the kid.
Whit narrowed his eyes. If he was correct in his assumptions, this was right after he had been scarred. He raised a hand to his face, slowing slightly. He remembered dragging himself from the puddle of blood, forcing himself to walk half-blind to the library. Winslow and Laurie had found him, unconscious and still bleeding profusely.
If he was correct, they would be on the way to the library now.
Laurie. The thought of his older sister made his heart ache in melancholy pain. She had vanished around four years into the chaos, either carried off to Akolan or killed discreetly by the Black Band. It had been the turning point for the Joveson.
"Agh, who are you?!"
Whit slowed to a stop at Laurie's shout. She barely looked a day over fourteen, looking too exhausted for a doe her age. Winslow was on her heels, looking half-asleep - he must've fallen asleep in the library again, Whit thought with a twang of nostalgia.
He threw a panicked glance behind his shoulder, wondering if Laissa was reporting the disturbance to Daggler.
"I don't have time to explain," he said hurriedly to Laurie. "We need to hide."
'Hide?" Laurie hissed out, glancing at Winslow for some type of mental communication. If Whit wasn't a Joveson, he honestly would've thought they were twins and telepathic, with the way they stuck by each other's side.
Whit did not want to think about how much Laurie's disappearance shattered Winslow.
"Yeah," Whit huffed out, ducking into the library.
"Who are you?" repeated Winslow, narrowing his eyes at Whit. "Black Band?"
"No," Whit said, almost offended, but he understood Winslow's distrust of the situation here. The last two years had been a living hell for the Jovesons. "I'm…a friend."
"How can we trust you?"
Whit closed the door. "You're going to think I'm crazy." He went over to the window, gauging the height. He could probably make the jump. The only problem was the courtyard was swarming with Black Band members - he could spot Laissa rallying a few. He scowled.
"Bad crazy or weird crazy?" Laurie ventured after a short silence, hands on her hips. Whit sighed, racking his mind for a way to explain this phenomenon. No one would believe him if he said he was time-traveling, the only logical conclusion that he'd arrived at.
"I'm a causer," he finally said. He would improvise as he went, wouldn't he?
Winslow's breath hitched in surprise. "A causer?" he hissed out. "What are you doing here? You need to get out - Daggler's going to murder you if he finds you here–"
"I'm here to get you out," Whit cut him off swiftly. He was never one to consider consequences or ripple effects. Even if he tried not to change the past much, Laurie and Winslow seeing him already changed numerous things.
"What about Whit?" Winslow snapped. "You aren't thinking about leaving him here."
Whit hardly missed a beat. "One of my friends has already gotten him out." He would deal with the aftermath of that lie later, his mind zeroing in on the one goal of getting his two older - younger? - out of their practical prison. If he was correct in his timeline assumptions, Wilfred and Smalls would still be hanging around First Warren, hoping to establish a connection with the causers here. However, Cap's band was still in the beginning phases, spreading information about the Band and setting up their base.
Whit needed to find them and Wilfred.
Winslow would not survive under the pressure much longer. The minute Laurie vanished, his willpower would completely snap and he'd withdraw from the world, leaving Whit completely alone. Laurie never emerged after the war.
"Well, what are we waiting for?" Laurie demanded. "What's your plan?"
"I'm going to distract Laissa and her lackeys," Whit said quietly. "They wouldn't guess I'm working to get with you. You guys run to the alleyways behind the castle - I doubt anyone would suspect you going there. I'll meet with you there…" he hesitated. "And we'll go meet the cause."
"But the entire kingdom's going to be under Daggler and Falcowit's control," Winslow finally threw his two cents in. "That's going to be a living hell."
"Which is why we're working towards overthrowing Daggler and Falcowit," Whit breathed out harshly, a headache building up. "Besides," he added. "Nothing much will change. You're just the figurehead to keep the people calm. The atrocities will continue either way."
Laurie looked away, furrowing her brow angrily. It was a hard pill to swallow, but Whit preferred to get the harsh aspects of this change over with.
"Alright, go," he urged them. "Be safe."
Prompt: There was something different when they woke up.