Dinner could have gone worse.
Upon entering the room, Kiku was greeted by what was the longest table he'd ever seen. And it was full of food. The head chef had even presented dishes native to Kiku's land in honor of his arrival. Apparently the queen had a word or two to say to the prince before dinner as well, because he'd kept silent through the formal event. After dinner the queen had even invited Kiku and Arthur to her garden, where they had tea. It was nothing like his garden back home, but it was beautiful in its own way.
There were no white snakes in the queen's garden.
Over their tea, they told stories of their lives, cultures, and even old folk tales. It was peaceful, but Kiku was more than ready to sleep when night fell.
"Good night." Arthur said, giving Kiku what was now a common gesture- a soft kiss to his forehead.
"Good night." Kiku returned the gesture with a kiss on the cheek.
The night was still and unfamiliar to him as he laid in his bed. The lack of familiar sounds, and the rise of unfamiliar ones, made the room rip at Kiku's conscious with an eerie vibe. Every noise, no matter how quiet or rare, was enhanced by his paranoid senses. He felt like he was suffocating.
So when he heard the door creaking open, every nerve became hypersensitive. When no one spoke, he felt himself tense up. Frozen.
Arthur? He wanted to ask, but he couldn't make any noise. His throat felt dry. The suffocation became stronger. If it was Arthur, he would feel like this, he was sure of that.
Then who? His eyes scanned the room until they stumbled upon a mirror that revealed a silhouette in the darkness. It was holding something.
A knife.
"Arthur!" Kiku screamed, jumping out of his bed. All at once his ability to move had come back in a brilliant display of flight or fight reaction. In this case, he chose flight. He darted to a corner of the room as the figure approached.
The knife was raised high, but didn't make it back down, as another blade stopped the user in their tracks. Arthur had rushed in, and was holding his own blade to the attacker's throat. He gasped when he realized who it was. "Your highness!"
The prince dropped his weapon in surrender, but was smiling. "I could call for the guards." he said, easily pushing away Arthur's blade.
Kiku ran around him to Arthur's arms.
"We'd only explain to your mother the circumstances." Arthur said, "I think she'd agree with us, seeing as you weren't actually harmed. Despite my better judgment." The last line was delivered through gritted teeth.
"Feeble old woman." The prince smirked, "She was clearly loosing her mind, trusting you over me."
Arthur frowned at the use of one particular word, "Was?" His eyes widened in realization, "You didn't!"
"As far as the guards will be concerned, I didn't." He smiled, then pointed to them, "You did. And who will say differently? You? The old woman may have fallen for your tricks, but that doesn't matter now. From this moment forward you'll be known for treason against the royal family, and the kingdom of England."
"You're bluffing!" Arthur tried standing his ground, though he had little hope.
"Would you like to stay here and find out?"
"Arthur, we have to get the crew together." Kiku said softly.
"Your crew? Forget about them. They all committed suicide after finding out their prince did something so horrible to a trusted ally. At least, that's what the evidence says." The prince began to laugh in a way that only a crazy man could. Without a care for his pitch or posture.
"You monster!" Kiku yelled now, "Do you really hate me that much?"
"Oh, I always did. Even when I saw the photos of you as a woman."
"Why? I don't understand."
The prince rolled his eyes, "One of those 'awful bandits' was my friend. He told me about the horrible things your father did. I tried to tell my mother you were nothing but trouble. I tried telling her from the moment your father stepped foot on this shore. She was so concerned about the war though, she didn't care that she was letting a wolf right through our front door. So when your father sent word he'd be replacing Arthur, I tipped my friend off. He was thankful for the information. I was sitting pretty until what do I see? You! Both of you! Walking into MY throne room! Telling me you killed MY friend, and yet you wished to seek shelter in MY castle!"
The two were too shocked for words, but Arthur took Kiku by the hand and began running.
The prince then began to yell for the royal guards, "Help! Treason! Help! The queen is dead!"
It felt as though the whole castle was alive as they could hear the forces mobilizing, but despite their fear they kept running. They made their way into town and kept dodging around corners until they were out of breath, ending in one of the back allies of town.
"What do we do?" Kiku asked.
"I don't know..." Arthur responded, "Even if we could get to the port, we don't have a crew."
"Should we find an abandoned building to take shelter?"
"That sounds like our only option at the moment." The two stuck close together as they wondered trough the quiet streets of England.
"No doubt if we keep checking back routes, we'll find something no one's using." Arthur assured Kiku.
They wondered around for what felt like hours when Kiku noticed something. He pointed to a boarded up building across the street, "What's that?"
"Hm, I don't know." Arthur tilted his head, "Lets have a look."
They sstepped across the street and peered in between the boards.
"It looks like someone just got up and left." Kiku noted. They were looking at a small house, still fully furnished from the looks of the living room they were starring at. It also looked dusty and run down, meaning it had been abandoned for some time.
"It'll have to do." Arthur said, stepping back and walking around to the side of the house. The side faced an alley, and there Arthur found a window. "Beats being on the street." He said as he began to tear away at the boards to get inside.
Once the window was broken, and he'd gone through, he turned to help Kiku in. "Watch your step." He whispered. With both secure in the house, Arthur began to look around to size up the place.
"Well, it's two stories." Arthur said after looking around, "But judging by what I see, I'd say it wouldn't be smart to trust our weight on the upper floor. That being said, I am going to go up there to see if I can secure some bedding." He began his journey to the second floor while Kiku began brushing off the couch. Dusting was easier said than done though, and he was sure there was no way it was all coming off.
Above him he heard Arthur's footsteps, and then a crack. What happened next was too sudden to register. There was a loud crashing sound and he could feel weight upon him. But it was soft. He was covered in blankets?
He quickly shuffled out from under them until he saw Arthur sitting awkwardly on the couch, rubbing his back. A layer of dust was floating back to earth as though it had snowed.
"I believe I've proven my hypothesis." He said.
"There are better ways of going about finding an answer." Kiku chuckled.
Hearing the happiness in the prince's voice sent a wave or relief through Arthur, causing him to laugh as well. "I think the fall knocked most of the dust off the bedding."
"And you knocked the dust off the couch." Kiku added.
"Shall we sleep then? We can think of our next plan in the morning."
"That sounds fine." He nodded, though he was sure he wouldn't sleep very well.
He was right.
For the short time Kiku was asleep, he had a horrible dream.
"Mother! Mother!" The only sounds in the garden were Kiku's voice, and his footsteps as he ran. He was young again, and felt a sense of completion and happiness as he raced towards the silhouette in the distance.
"Your mother is dead." A distant and familiar voice made him freeze.
"N-Nao?" Kiku whispered. He looked behind him, then back at the silhouette. It turned, but wasn't his mother. It was the prince.
"N-no, I didn't mean to."
"You could have prevented it."
"I didn't know what I was doing."
"There's no use talking to me. Look, look and see what you've done." The prince stepped aside, revealing the 'white snake'. But that's not what it was. It was- "Kiku. Kiku!" Arthur's voice broke his nightmare. "It's morning. I'm going to sneak into the market and get some food. And hopefully a disguise for you. Please stay put."
"Ah... Alright." Kiku looked dazed.
"Are you alright?"
"I'm... Fine." He said softly, "It was just a nightmare." As he watched Arthur leave, he found himself dozing off again. He hoped that this time he wouldn't have a nightmare.