"I'm so sorry, your Majesty." Once more, the lieutenant knelt before the White Prince, bowing her head. "…We managed to recover Prince Fakir's body. We will give him a grand burial."

The Prince did not reply, apparently lost in thought. He stood at the window of the fort with his back to her, staring out into the bright day. The sunlight did not touch the inside of the room, and the walls and floors resonated a still, gloomy darkness. Finally, without moving, he spoke.

"Did you know that the King and Queen of the Red Kingdom have been missing for almost three years?"

"Your Majesty?" The lieutenant rose her head slightly in confusion.

"They disappeared two months after Princess Rue turned fourteen."

The lieutenant didn't answer, waiting for the Prince to continue.

"More accurately, they disappeared the night before they were to make a contract with a foreign King to betroth his son to Princess Rue. No one has seen them since."

Silence fell over the room. The lieutenant didn't know how to respond.

Finally, the Prince turned from the window. The white sunlight caught the tearstains on his emotionless face and made his white hair glow with an unearthly aura.

The lieutenant didn't shirk, but her gaze fell. She'd never seen the Prince cry, and now, it felt wrong to look at him in this state.

"We must find the Princess." The White Prince's tone was ice cold and closed off. "We must find her as soon as possible." He began to walk past the lieutenant…

"Your Majesty." The lieutenant stood.

The Prince halted. He did not turn to look at her.

The lieutenant paused slightly before starting again. "Your Majesty, I know these past few days have been hard on you – hard on all of us. But…"

…

"Is it really worth starting a war over a single maiden?"

For several moments, there was nothing but the distant sound of birds calling outside. Then the White Prince replied.

"She took more than a fiancée from me."

The Prince continued on his way. "Please gather the rebel officers and inform them of these latest events, won't you, lieutenant Pique?" Then he was gone, his cape billowing out behind him.

The lieutenant remained standing, the darkness enveloping her. The lieutenant; the neutral observer, actions tied with that of the White Prince's. Her job was not to make key decisions and actions, but to carry out the wishes of the Prince. And yet, a marionette as she was, she would not allow herself her only freedom – that of forming her own inner opinions and thoughts. Thoughts about the death of the Pink Maiden, who had been her best friend. Thoughts about the Knight, whom she'd been infatuated with as a little girl. And thoughts about the White Prince himself, who she would not let herself think about her feelings for.

A single tear slowly made its way down her stoic face. Even crying, she would not show a change in expression nor heart. But she finally allowed herself to begin to ponder the recent events, and her eyes did not leave the window where the Prince had stood.

Princess of Red, you have killed our Prince.

The tear slowly made its way down to her chin.

I just had to upload this because I loved how it turned out and didn't want to wait to post it :) Rereading this, I actually found this sadder for me personally than Fakir's death. I started tearing up actually, which was funny because I hardly start crying over my own writing.

Chronologically, this is AFTER the next chapter. I might get around to fixing the order eventually... :)

Keep reading, my friends. ;)