Chapter Seven: Autumn
Lotor's love of summer turned into an enchantment for the autumn. It was agreed that since the next Academy session did not start for another 138 standard days. He could stay a bit longer. Borak was confused at the boy's excited reaction as he had promised him his first flight trainer if he returned. Borak had said the gift was due to his placement in his exams. The young prince, much to the dismay of the court, had placed first in the city of Sarrinoth. Borak knew that all the boy had talked about and obsessed over at the Magistrate School was flying as so wrangled the gift out of his father. He had been lucky, Zarkon had been in the middle of negotiations with the Langorthians and had hardly notice the papers in front of him. It had been an incredibly expensive gift and now Borak sadly cancelled the order.
The boy seemed content to stay there. Haggar continued to approve of the boy's continued human education so the magisrtate relented. Zarkon usually valued the witch's advice over his in these matters. But truthfully, Borak had wanted the boy back at the Castle. He had looked forward to the Lotor coming home. He had missed their nightly conversations. But then, knowing that Zarkon and the boy were always at odds, he had to agree with the witch. Arus, was the best place for him to be for now.
Lotor was in no rush to leave Arus. For one, the temperature of the air was much cooler during this season and was more suited to his metabolism. He basked in the coolness of the night. The trees had turned to glorious hues of red, golden, purple and yellow. Nowhere on his world was such a tapestry to be found. He watched the food on the table give way from melons and berries to various root vegetables and squashes. Some of these he had even seen on his world. Warm soups began to appear – along with certain deserts that made the humans ooh and awe. They especially seemed to like apples turned into everything – be it a beverage, a pastry of some sort or even shoved into the bowels of a bird. The scent of apples and cinnamon was everywhere in the Castle these days. The food did not sate his appetite but it was pleasant to look at and smell.
As usual, when Allura went hunting for him, he was to be found in a tree. He claimed he liked it up high because one could see your enemies. Allura could never find his elusive foes. She secretly thought he preferred the shades of the trees as they cut the brightness of the sunlight. He was not one to admit any weakness.
His studies were winding down, He had lost that odd singsing accent he had spoken Arussian in when he first came, He still plowed himself into the history of Earther's in general and their literature, but it was done at a more liesurely rate. He had even developed a tendency to correct Allura's grammar which gave her mother extreme pleasure. He was every bit the scholar they were promised. He had already exceeded his tutors in the mathematical arts. The Queen had thought to summon a graduate student from the University but the Drules said it was not necessary. The boy would fill in the blanks at home. It was best to work on the various aspects of human culture. After all, the prince was there to learn about their neighbors and not differential equations.
As the season wore on, Lotor noticed that Allura was getting more and more excited. She started to go one about a holiday called Halloween. Lotor looked it up. It was a pagan thing adopted by some of the Earthers. It involved a lot of candy and some mischief, two of Allura's favorite pastimes. The humans, he mused, really liked to eat sweet things.
"You must come to the ball next week. It won't be like the others you shy from. We will go trick or treating." Lotor rolled his eyes.
"I do not want to go. Humans always look at me strangely. And as for the candy, it is just you being greedy for what Nanny will not give you. You want me to give you mine." He went back to his books, but as usual she persisted.
"I will be a princess and you will be my knight." Allura spun around the room. "You will spin me around the room.
"You are already a princess. Why would you dress up as one?" Lotor looked at her quizzically. Humans baffled him at times.
"I will be a fairy tale princess. I'll let you kiss me." Lotor shook his head. Allura was grinning from ear to ear.
"And why would I want to do that?" He had crossed his arms and gave her a look that he had learned from Nanny. It was quite disapproving.
"Because we are going to get married one day. I heard my parents talking about it when you arrived. Your father wants to arrange a marriage between us." Allura threw her hair back. "Then I can make you do whatever I want."
"Really? I can think of four princesses off the top of my head that would be a far better match. The ideas that you humans come up with." He sighed and patted her on the head as if she was a small child. "I will be a warmaster when I grow up and have no need of a wife. I would just throw you in a harem. You would serve me night and day like a proper companion to a warrior. Perhaps, if you prove worthy, you would bear my heirs. But I think not, you are too small and far too demanding of me." He broke out into a deep laugh that had even surprised Allura. The idea was beyond preposterous to him.
"Little sister, your head is always in the clouds. You should be studying. It is not time for play. You need to learn discipline." Lotor frowned at her.
"You are too serious these days. Promise me you will come." Allura pleaded. He looked into those cerulean eyes and groaned.
"When can I resist you? Fine, just leave me in peace." Lotor threw up his hands and shoved her through the door. He opened up his book glad that the maddening girl was off to torture someone else.
It had been an uneventful week. Lotor had made his way down to the breakfast table where Allura and the Queen were waiting with big smiles. Lotor reasoned that they were excited about the grand ball that would fill the Castle with people tonight. He was loathe to go but he promised. He sat down to eat when the Queen made an announcement.
"Borak called this morning. He had wonderful news. Your sister Leanarra has given birth to twin boys. You are an uncle." Queen Alanna swore she saw his face turn to an ashen gray.
"Really, how interesting. I did not know Leanarra was expecting." Lotor said quietly as he quickly excused himself. The table was silent. It was obvious that this news was not taken happily. It was Allura who eventually found him. He was lying on the ground looking at the clouds.
Wordless, she lay down next to him.
"We have clouds on Korrinoth. But they are all in shades of black and grey. They are full of lightening and thunder. " He whispered.
"Lightening storms can be very beautiful." She answered back.
"But they are never relaxing. Your clouds are like everything on Arus, more dream than reality. Just like you, Princess Allura of Arus." He sighed.
"Why did you leave? Aren't you happy about the babies. Are babies a bad thing on Korrinoth? Is that why Drules have so few children?" She asked.
"No. Drules usually have great affection for their children. You should see Magistrate Borak's villa, he has over ten of them. It's worse than a harem because they have the run of the place." Lotor shrugged. "Making a baby is just a complicated thing. Much easier for you humans," Allura looked at him, not really understanding his words.
"So, why are you sad?" He looked over at her and for the first time his eyes looked rather human. Tears were welling up in them.
"My father hates me. I am now expendable. He will replace them with me. " The tears were starting to flow. He was ashamed to let Allura see how his heart ached but there was no way to stop them.
"Stop this foolish talk. Why would your father hate you?" She reached over to smooth his hair. At first he was going to stop her, years of training taught him it was inappropriate, but he relented.
"He blames me for my mother's death. Althea is gone because she tried to take me away from him." A small voice answered back.
"Then the rumors are true? The Demon King killed his Queen." Lotor nodded slowly.
"The story even made it to Arus, how impressive." Lotor looked up.
"I have heard many things about her, They called her the Ice Queen of Korrinoth. They say she was beautiful. But you have never mentioned her. What was she like?" Allura carefully wiped away his tears.
"My mother was not like your mother. She was a wicked thing." Lotor said with a devilish smirk that came from nowhere.
"I do not think you would have liked her. She was arrogant and selfish in her way. She could be kind when it suited her. Vengeful when she felt wronged. Althea was magnificent to behold and a force to be reckoned with. By the gods, I miss her.." After he said that, what little control he still possessed, was smashed into smithereens. Heart wrenching sobs came pouring out of him. It was here, on the planet of her birth, that he finally mourned his mother. After her death, he had not been even allowed to say her name. Fearful of his father's wrath, he had kept it all inside. The witch was right, self-preservation was hard wired into him. But here, so far away, he had nothing to fear. He cried and he howled to no one. He cursed his gods and his father. He wept openly for all he had suffered. He wept for Althea and he wept for himself. He even wept for Zarkon, though he did not know why.
At first Allura was scared at the rawness of what she saw. She scooted away from him. After a few minutes, she came close again and put an arm around him. He felt her hands trying to comfort him. They rubbed his back, stroking his long hair in the process. That alone should have made him pull away but instead he drew closer to her.
Looking back, when he recalled that day, he was amazed that such a small thing could bear the weight of his sorrow. And in a moment of quiet he felt something strange. An emotion swept over him and it caused him great distress. It was not his and he had not wanted to claim it – but it had shoved its way through, demanding that he taste its essence. It caused him to moan in its intensity. He cursed Allura for feeling it for it was the worse thing he had ever encountered and it made him wretch. Allura pulled away as he ran to empty his stomach. It took everything to force it into a place. It was months before he could attach a name to it because it did not exist on Korrinoth. He had read about it in human literature but he had not had a context to place it in so it had just remained a word that described an emotional state that had no meaning to him. It was as alien as she was. It was called pity and he hated her for feeling it. He must have looked insane to her. And as suddenly as the intensity of the moment came, it stopped. Through sheer force of will, he had shoved into into the recesses of his soul. He was Lotor, the Crown Prince of Doom, and no one – not a mere slip of a girl, not some pissant nephews, not even Zarkon the Demon King would make him acknowledge that he was less than what he was. Allura could take her pity elsewhere. He was a Drule prince, who would eventually become a warmaster. On that day, he would be pitied by none and feared by all.
He looked at the setting sun and told her that they had to leave. The party would begin soon. They had royal duties to perform. Even as they walked away, he knew that he had left what ever shed of his childhood behind. Leanarra had two sons to replace him. And they, unlike him, did not bear his father's animosity. He was already thinking of ways to dispose of them.