Curio strides into the garden and sits down on the other side of Juliet, looking at Francisco. Had he been crying? Should he mention it?
"Are you okay? Juliet did you make him cry? You know he's fragile." Curio teases lightly.
He notices the blonde's face turn red and he wasn't sure if it was from embarrassment or the crying. He was concerned but didn't want to overstep. He knew Francisco would talk if he wanted to and he had no right to push.
Curio looks up as Francisco stands.
"I will be off now. I need to rest because I left just after dawn and didn't sleep well last night." Francisco gives a small bow and leaves the garden.
Curio looks at Juliet with a raised eyebrow.
"Is he okay?" He asked. "He isn't his usual flamboyant self."
Juliet shakes her head and gives him a smile.
"He's just needed someone to talk to. He's been having bad dreams." She explains.
Curio crosses his arms and nods. It must've been a really bad dream if it affected Francisco this much.
"What was the dream about?" He asks.
Juliet places her hands on Curio's forearm.
"That is something you need to talk to him about." She says gently. "And you should probably do it soon. Trust me."
Curio squints his good eye in confusion at her.
"What do you mean? Is something wrong?"
What the hell was going on? Was he- Curio shakes his head. He would never. RIght?
"Just talk to him. He needs a friend.'
"I will. After he is done resting."
Julier sighs but nods. She gets up and brushes off her skirt. She turns and looks back at him with a smile.
"Come. I'll show you your room and then we can spar. It's been too long since we've spared.'"
Curio gets up and grins. He had missed Juliet's attitude and energy.
"You're on but don't think just because you are royalty, I'm going to go easy on you. Because I'm not."
Juliet laughs.
"I wouldn't expect any less. I can still kick your behind." She says as they started down the hall.
"Here we are. You get settled in and I'm going to go change. Meet me in the courtyard in ten minutes?"
"Yes ma'am." Curio say good naturedly, waving and opening the door.
The room was nice, much nicer than he was used to. It had a plush carpet, a large and beautiful bed and an elegant armour. He didn't really care about those things would have been fine with just a simple mattress on the floor but knew Juliet wouldn't stand for that. He approaches a large window that overlooked the garden. It was even more beautiful from up here . All the colours made a lovely picture.
Curio tore himself from the view when he heard footsteps outside his room. He approaches the door and nearly runs into Francisco. The blonde looked his usual self now, so perhaps he was feeling better now.
"Francisco?"
Francisco clearly hesitates but puts a easy going smile on his face.
"Lady Juliet is waiting for you. Come now. It's rude to keep a lady waiting."
Curio smiles and nods.
"Of course. I'm on my way. You can walk with me if you'd like."
"Yes. I will. I'm heading that way anyway."
The pair walk in silence for a few moments before Curio stops and grabs Francisco's arm.
"Are you okay?" He asks.
Francisco blinks at him.
"What do you mean? Of course I am. Why wouldn't I be?"
"You mean it?"
"Of course. Now, she is waiting for you."
He was obviously trying to change the subject. Curio decided not to press on, not right now anyway. But he didn't appreciate being straight up lied to. Something was going on and he needed to find out what. The rest of the walk fell back into an uneasy silence.
In the courtyard, Juliet was swinging her sparring stick at a wooden dummy, grunting softly. She stopped when she saw them and smiles.
"You managed to get him to come along?"
Curio nods, picking up another sparring stick.
"Francisco, are you going to spar with us?"
"No. I think I'll just watch Juliet kick your butt." Francisco answers, sounding more like his usual self. He sits down and opens his book.
Curio shrugs and takes his stance.
"Suit yourself."
After Juliet and Curio changed, they all sat down to dinner with Romeo. The young couple shared a sweet kiss and chatter soon filled the room as the food was brought out.
"Are you two excited for the wedding?" Francisco asks,leaning on his hands.
Romeo nods, swallowing his food. He reaches over and takes Juliet's hand.
"More than ready. It been a long time coming to publicly celebrate our union."
"I just love weddings! Lovers coming together and-"
Curio zones out as Francisco babbles on about weddings and love and whatnot. The blonde seemed to be feeling better but he wasn't sure if he bought it. Before he realized it, the meal was over and the room was empty. He stands up and leaves the room, walking down the dimly lit corridor. He sees Francisco standing near a window and approaches him slowly.
"The grounds are beautiful in the moonlight." He says, making the blonde man jumps but visibly relax when he say it was only Curio.
"Yes. They are quite lovely. I have missed the sight."
Curio leans on the wall, watching him.
"Are you sure you're okay?"
Francisco turns and looks at him., a look of confusion on his elegant face.
"Of course. I told you I was. Why wouldn't I be?"
Curio gets off the wall and steps closer to Francisco. Francisco takes a step back,ending up against the window.
"Curio?" He asks softly, fear seeping through his voice.
Curio slams his palm into the window sill roughly, making Francisco flinch.
'What-"
"God damn it Francisco, why won't you tell me the truth?" Curio demands, his voice echoing in the empty hall.
The smaller man cowers a bit, his eyes wide.
"I-I don't know what you mean."
"I know you Francisco. You are my best and oldest. We are basically brothers. I know when you are not okay. I can see it in your eyes. You may think you can mask it well but you can't. Now tell me what's going on with you."
Francisco looks down, away from Curio's burning stare.
"I can't tell you."
Curio furrows his brow, confused.
"What do you mean? Why not? You can tell me anything."
Francisco shakes his head and let out a loud sob. Curio steps back, his posture softening.
"Francisco?" He asked, extremely worried now.
"I-I have to go now. Good night Curio. Sleep well."
Francisco pushes past him and takes off down the hall without even looking back.