Banished

Kelvin twiddled his thumbs impatiently. He glanced up at the large gold door leading into the throne room and heaved a sigh.

"How long are they going to be in there?" he asked the wall, as if it would have an answer. Instead, it just stared back with a stony glare, and he sighed again.

What could Dad possibly want with Aiden and Cyrus? he thought.I was the one who cast the--oh, what am I thinking?! It's their fault I read it! It's all their fault!

But Kelvin couldn't keep that thought in his head for very long, and soon he was overcome with guilt again. In an attempt to keep himself busy, he studied the long hallways surrounding him.

To his right was a long corridor lined with large doors of bronze and iron. He knew the straight path then made a sharp left and would continue on past the laundry room and the maids' room until it reached the ballroom.

To his left, another hallway continued on, though fairly shorter than the other. Three red, wooden doors lined the walls before they came to an abrupt halt at a wide staircase.

Kelvin knew well enough that these stairs led downward about nine stories until finally reaching the basement. But, unlike the other castle staircases, as you continued down, the stairs branched off into many other tunnels that traveled throughout the entire castle. Every room in the elaborate structure was connected to the chain of hallways in some way, whether it be through a door or a fireplace. Kelvin had traveled through these tunnels enough to know where each and every room was located, which equaled several hundred tunnels leading to several thousand rooms.

Maybe I could sneak down to the dining hall before Dad's done lecturing Aiden and Cyrus, he decided, slowly standing up from his spot on the embroidered red carpet. But before he could take a step forward, he heard footsteps on the other side of the gold door, as well as muffled voices.

Curious as he was, Kelvin hurried over to the door and pressed his ear against its cold surface.

"You both will need light clothing, for it will be very humid. You can find your Summer outfits in the laundry room."

"Yes, Father."

"Hopefully by the time you return, you will have learned somethi--"

"Father, I understand. There's no need to explain further..."

Someone forced open the door, sending Kelvin reeling backwards and falling onto the carpeted floor.

Aiden's eyes widened in surprise. "What the heck are--" He quickly cut himself off and looked away as to keep from raising his voice. Once Cyrus closed the door, he mumbled, "How much of that did you hear?"

"Not enough," Kelvin shot back. "Why do you guys need to wear your Summer garments? It's the end of Autumn."

"Look... Kelvin, I..." Aiden's voice trailed off and he turned around towards the staircase several yards away. "Cyrus, could you retrieve my red cloak for me?"

"Of course, Aiden." Cyrus looked at his brother with concern. "Are you going to be OK?"

With long, quick strides, he hurried down the stairs without a word.

"What's wrong with him?" Kelvin inquired once his older brother was out of earshot.

Cyrus sighed. "You'll find out soon enough, I'm sure." He then walked away in the opposite direction of Aiden and rounded the corner without looking back.

Cyrus was right. Whether Aiden liked it or not, Kelvin was going to find out what was going on behind his back. Silently, he raced over to the staircase.

* * *

"I don't understand. How did this happen, Cyrus?"

Cyrus placed his gold, sleeveless tunic in his travel bag and turned to his elder brother by the bedroom window. "Our constant feuding has finally led to our punishment," he replied, a bit skeptical of his own answer.

For a long time, Aiden didn't say anything. His gaze followed a black chariot as it crawled across the cobblestone roads like a fly on windowsill. Finally, after watching the vehicle make its merry way towards the castle gates, he spoke, though without taking his eyes off of the chariot. "I've always known that punishment was bound to rear its ugly head eventually. I just never expected something like..." His words got caught in his throat and he struggled to swallow down a sob. "I just don't see why Kelvin is the only one who can stay. He's done worse things than us."

Cyrus shrugged sadly. "He is younger. Father always believed that he knew no better."

"Though he does."

"My point exactly," Cyrus continued. He smiled softly. "But at least we can be sure that, here, he will succeed in life one way or another."

"True," Aiden replied thoughtfully. "Very true."

Cyrus's grin grew wider. "And we won't have to worry about being ordered around by Father anymore."

Aiden laughed. "Won't that be nice?"

Their laughter was brought to an abrupt halt as the castle gates opened, telling tales of old rust on its hinges.

"...Chariot's here," Aiden commented gravely, looking out the window.

Cyrus finished packing the last of his garments and glanced over his brother's shoulder at the road below. "Guess so."

Aiden reluctantly stood up, slung his black pack over his shoulder and left without another word.

Cyrus followed his older brother until he reached the doorway. Slowly, he scanned the room, observing every detail as if he could mentally take it with him on his journey. He let out a sigh, then focused his attention on the duct behind his white bed.

"Take care, Kelvin," he said aloud.

Kelvin shifted his weight uncomfortably, making the metal vents groan beneath him.

Cyrus smiled and took one last glance around the room. As soon as he was sure he hadn't forgotten to pack anything important, he turned on his heels and walked quickly down the hall to catch up with Aiden.

Once he was certain that Cyrus was gone, Kelvin pushed on the duct frame. To his relief, it popped out easily and landed softly onto the floor. He crawled out without a problem and stood up to stretch, when something caught his eye; a small, silver figurine of a dove with a branch inside of its mouth lay on the mahogany dresser.

Kelvin tenderly picked it up and observed it closely. Its wings were outstretched, as if welcoming, and its sapphire eyes seemed to look straight through him. The small bird was resting on a half-inch thick granite pedestal that curved around in an almost-half circle.

This looks extremely expensive, Kelvin thought to himself. I wonder why Cyrus left it here.

For a moment, Kelvin thought about selling the precious item in the marketplace, but instead shoved it into his pants pocket and gazed out the bedroom window in time to see the doors of the black chariot close with a thud! and watched it drive away.

r/r/e: Sorry it took me so long to update. I promise the next chapter will be up soon. ^-^ Thank you all for reading this far!