A/N time! Love you, and here we are at the finale! As a treat we will be updating both chapters tonight! read them! Anticipate them! It shouldn't be much longer now. love you! and once again, be aware there ARE more major character deaths before the story is up!
After that night Francis allowed Alfred to spend his nights with the king instead of being on duty. He figured if something did happen Alfred would be able to help.
All the while, Arthur had been waiting for days for the messenger to return but the man never did. Weeks, months. The fighting had begun to spread and Arthur was having to send troops in. One night he got into bed and admitted his thoughts. "I think they killed him. The messenger I mean."
Alfred nodded. "I think you're right…" He let out a sigh. "I'm sorry."
"But I need a conference. I need to talk to the king…. I wonder if… I should go in person…" Arthur questioned aloud.
Alfred bolted upright. "No! That's too dangerous!"
The king let out a long sigh. "Alfred, if I send men to the battlefield I can risk a bit of danger myself… Besides I'll have plenty of guards."
"I will be there with you right? I can protect you."
Arthur opened his mouth to say something but then closed it. "… No… After thinking about it… You'd better stay here." Arthur sighed, still laying down in the sheets.
"What! Why?" Alfred looked at him questions filling his eyes. "I'm your knight, why would I stay here?!"
Arthur sighed and sat up. "I… I can't risk losing you, besides; I feel they need you here more… I'll make sure it doesn't get out that I'm traveling without you. If assassins come, they will go after Oliver; I need you to protect them.
"But what about you? If you die… I… I don't know what I would do." Alfred looked the king in the eyes. "Oliver has Francis!"
"I know that Alfred." Arthur put a hand on Alfred's bare chest and with a frustrated sigh, pushed him down on the bed and kissed him into silence. "Listen, I need somebody to be my eyes and ears while I'm gone. You're the only person I know I can trust right now okay? And everybody will think you're with me. I need you to find this insider who has been cooperating with Gercio."
Alfred mumbled small protests, but gave up. "I-I'm not saying I agree… But… I will do what you ask… J-just don't get hurt okay?"
"Thank you." Arthur kissed him again. "Be careful. Nobody can know you're not with me."
"I-I understand." The knight said between Arthur's kisses though he didn't return them.
Arthur pouted. "You look so sad…" He sighed. "I'm sorry I just… I need to solve this."
"I know. You have your duty to the kingdom… Who are you planning to take with you?"
"Gilbert won't be too busy. I will probably take Feliciano and Ludwig… Ivan perhaps… Even Yao to be our doctor in case anyone gets hurt… I feel they are the most trustable knights we have, even though many knights have been here working under my family longer. I will leave Francis and Antonio to protect my brother." Arthur explained.
"I guess you trust them because you grew up with them." Alfred suggested.
"… I liked that whole group… I always felt they were… More devoted to the good of the people." He sighed and kissed Alfred again. "I'll leave in two days. I need to arrange some things before I go… Forgive me?"
Alfred nodded. "How could I not?"
"Oh… I don't know… I thought maybe…" He grinned and pressed himself against his knight. "You might need at least a little persuasion…"
"Well...maybe a bit of persuasion." The knight said in a sing song voice.
Arthur smiled. "What the queen wants the queen gets…" He locked Alfred in a sweet kiss, and despite the state of things, he never felt happier.
Arthur was leaving and Alfred was a wreck. He knew he wouldn't be able to protect the king when he was gone. Why did he have to leave? Alfred knew the answer, but he still wasn't okay with it. He felt like tearing out his hair. "Damnit!" He whispered to himself.
Arthur paused in front of the carriage and sighed. "You'll be fine. I'm counting on you." The group had left the palace already and had stopped out of sight so Alfred could leave and sneak back inside the palace.
"I know." Alfred ran a hand through his hair. "Shit Artie… Please be safe."
Arthur sighed again and smiled. "I'll be fine… You stay safe as well…" He glanced around before leaving a quick kiss on the knight's lips. "I love you." He added before getting back in the carriage.
"I love you too." He whispered as he waved to his king as he rode away.
Arthur waved as well as the carriage moved forward. Gilbert was the only one outside the carriage, he controlled the horse. The rest of the guards were inside with Arthur so they could appear as a regular coach, not royals to attack. They even went out of their way to rent a rusty old one from the city; they were trying to avoid suspicion at all costs. The king let out a long sigh and looked across the coach at Feliciano as she wielded her crossbow. "We have a long journey ahead of us… I'd suggest everybody get comfortable, we will switch drivers every so often."
Alfred stood there long after Arthur was out of sight. He stood staring off in the distance where Arthur had disappeared. Later that night he had made his way back to Arthur's room, taking the many covert passageways. He sat in Arthur's room alone and waiting. It already felt like Arthur had been gone for too long. Alfred was worried and couldn't wait for the king's return. He ran a hand through his hair. "Damnit." He needed to prepare himself for his mission.
They boy looked out the window; hoping nightfall would come sooner so he could leave the room and seek out suspicious activity. It would be difficult to not be seen but it would be nice to just get to work so he could stop thinking of Arthur. He could think of every bad possibility that could happen. He laid back on Arthur's side of the bed breathing in his scent. They day was passing by slowly as Alfred tried to find things to occupy his time with.
It was then he noticed the doorknob turning. Who would be coming in when Arthur was gone, a maid? He leaped off the bed and crawled under it to hide himself, tugging the sheets down to cover him even further. He heard the door open and he waited. He listened for the person to enter. The door was carefully pushed open and he could hear the steps come closer. He held his breath.
The footsteps stopped and traveled around the room a little before Alfred heard something move around on the bed before the person walked back towards the door. Alfred lifted the sheets just in time to see black studded boots leave the room and close the door.
The knight scrambled out from under the bed. "Who was that?" He whispered to himself as he moved the sheets away. Then he looked to the bed. There was blood covering the sheets. "Blood… Why?" Alfred stared at the stained sheets. "This is… Not right…" He was decently sure it was the spy, but why would they want to do this? Were they trying to fake the king's death? What about Oliver? Was he safe?
Alfred quickly peeked into the hallway, empty… He ran a shaky hand through his hair. "Shit. What am I supposed to do?" He kept his eyes fixated on the hall before him. "Who was that person?" He took a deep breath before returning to the room and wait for nightfall. Once the sky was black and the torches were lit, he set to the corridors looking for any kind of suspicious activities.
There wasn't much to see. The maids were doing what maids do; everything was quiet, enough to where he could hear the small pattering of the mice through walls. As he walked further through the palace he began to hear whispers but strangely it was only one, not two. The voice was defiantly a male's voice. It was vaguely familiar. He stepped closer making sure that his feet didn't make a sound as they touched the stone ground.
"Close now… Soon… Who's there?" Alfred heard a clatter and turned to run, he slipped into a secret passage. He took a deep breath his heart was beating a mile a minute. That voice… Was it Oliver's? No, he couldn't jump to such conclusions… he's never been fond of Oliver, he couldn't justify his thinking, and he needed proof… but… What if it was? It could be conceivable. He was next in line for the throne, but why want a war? Alfred gulped. "Now what?"
Alfred shook his head unsure of what to do. He peaked through the door of the passage but saw nothing, no one was there. He wondered into the hall again cautiously but even when no persons were present. He sighed and crept back through the hall and stood in front of the door to the room. He opened the door slowly, but no one was there either. He let out a sigh and looked around.
He continued searching, but found nothing. The night stretched out and he was already becoming sick of it. He slept in Arthur's room, near the window instead of on the bed in case someone was to come in again. He pulled the curtains in front of him and fell asleep.
Alfred was woken in the morning by a shrill scream coming from a maid. She dropped the cleaning supplies she held and ran out of the room. He stood quickly. "Right… Blood… Oh they're going to think it was me!" He panicked as footsteps echoed along with voices of panicking maids. He ran into the room attached to the bathroom for heating water and ducked into a dark corner. He listened to the footsteps storm in as the guards entered through the doors. His breath hitched, would they find him? Alfred curled tightly in the corner.
"This blood is old." He heard a voice say.
"But the king has been gone for a day or so." Another voice protested.
"So why is it here then? I saw the king off myself." The man questioned. The men argued back and forth for sometime before deciding to tell Francis and leaving the room.
Alfred stayed in the corner and waited for them to be far enough away. This room was no longer safe. He had his own room, but would they check that room too? If they found him without Arthur, would they believe him to be dead? Alfred cursed under his breath. At least there were better places to hide in his own room. He made his way there as soon as he was able to. He could use the secret passage if he had to.
He waited until the excitement died down and was able to sneak through the secret passages to grab some food in the kitchen while everybody was distracted. Alfred hadn't eaten anything for a while, but even so he only took enough so it would go unnoticed by the chefs, not really enough to fill his needy stomach.
He waited once more for nightfall. Time was going slow and he was starting to tire of this. He wasn't finding anything useful as he searched for the man who spilled the blood on Arthur's bed, nor did the guards have a clue what was going on.
Time passed, and Alfred become more and more frustrated, he couldn't find anything but still he was keeping a closer eye on Oliver. Personally he didn't want the culprit to be Oliver; it would hurt Arthur too much.
Sometimes he could hear multiple voices in the room Oliver would go in to, but the sounds were always too muffled for him to know what was going on. He couldn't figure out what he was doing, but he also couldn't push away the nagging feeling that whatever it was wasn't good.
Arthur's journey was boring; he disguised himself as a commoner to avoid attention. It took a week to reach the enemy kingdom. Everyone was worn and exhausted by the time they reached the imperial city. The group decided to stay at a small inn near the palace.
They laid low for a while until the next morning. At that time they approached the royal palace, Arthur took down his hood and was quickly recognized, he waved a white hand kerchief before the guards charged him. "I come with a message, no more."
The guards felt him up and down for weapons. "Is it only you?"
Of course not, my few guards are back there, but I'm looking for a meeting, not a fight. I brought them for self defense reasons, I won't bring my guards in if it makes you feel better." The king was confident in his hand to hand combat skills, if he was attacked he had armor, he had also come prepared to take risks.
"Wait here." The guard motioned for him not to move before he took off. The guard made his way to the gate and spoke with someone. He then walked back to the young king. "You will come alone. It may be a while before you can have a meeting, our king is very busy."
"That is fine." Arthur took a deep breath and held his hands in front of him in a submissive manner. "I mean no harm. Lead the way."
A few guards surrounded him and they began to walk towards the palace. They took him through many corridors, it would be impossible for him to find his way out unescorted. They led him to a room. "You may stay here until we can make you a meeting. We will get you for dinner in a few hours."
"Thank you for your hospitality. It's much more than I was expecting." He smiled politely.
The man nodded and left without another word.
Arthur's smile fell; he sighed and began to pace nervously. The room was comfortable, there was a large bed placed near the edge and many other amenities. He waited hours before he was called out to dinner.
A guard knocked on the door. "Sir, dinner is served in the dining hall. The king will see you, but he will be late, but the queen is already there."
Arthur cleared his throat. "Thank you." He remained tense as the guards led him through the halls. He wasn't expecting this at all.
The queen waited patiently for Arthur to arrive. She stood and curtsied when he walked in. "Please sit and enjoy the feast." She was a beautiful queen. On the table there was a bowl of soup placed in front of the queen and Arthur, there was also a basket with fresh baked breads and a bountiful amount of fruits and vegetables. This was only the start of the meal to come.
Arthur smiled pleasantly and bowed to her. "Your highness… Thank you… but may I ask you a question?"
"Yes you may." The queen said as she sat back down gracefully.
He waited for permission and continued standing. "… Why are you being so kind? Let's be completely honest… People are dying. It's not that I don't appreciate it. I'm just confused is all."
"Well you are a monarch of another kingdom. We figured if you came all the way here you must have something important to say."
"Of course… But pardon me for asking… Why is a monarch from another kingdom more important to treat well then a messenger from that very same palace?"
"Messenger? What messenger?" The queen cocked her head to the side, her eyes looking directly back at Arthur's.
Arthur paused. "… A month ago I sent a messenger to ask for a conference with the king… but he never returned. A scout informed my brother he had been killed when he arrived here…" Arthur stroked his chin. "But… once again the dots don't connect… You don't seem to know of it at all…"
"I'm very sorry for the mix up." She sighed. "But as I understand it, it was your kingdom that started this war, was it not?"
"… That is another thing that confuses me… Excuse my forwardness but…" He sat down in front of the queen, earnestness in his eyes. "That is why I called this conference, from what our kingdom knows, your army attacked us first. What the man at my coronation said didn't match up. That is why I sent the messenger, but apparently he was intercepted. War seems to be the last thing either of us wants."
The queen stood up pulling something off the table and giving it to the young king. "You say your people didn't want a war, but how do you explain this?" She set a paper in front of him. It took him a moment to realize it was a declaration of war. "This has your kingdom's seal."
Arthur stared at it wide eyed. "I… I have never seen this in my life."
"But that IS your seal." She stared down at the paper. "Did your father send it without your knowledge?"
"My father was less interested in war than I am… Do you mind if I take a closer look?"
"Please do."
Arthur took the parchment and inspected it closely. "This is… definitely our seal… but we have been suspecting for some time… There is a spy in our midst's… Otherwise the assassins wouldn't know about the layout of the castle as effectively as they do… I don't know if you're aware of whom I am talking about… But this spy may have played us both. They must live in the palace to have gotten a hold of the seal…"
"Well there is one who has been helping us. You see after we received this document, we wanted to end the war swiftly. So we offered magic to the boy in the hope he would help us." The queen stated. "I would like to get to the bottom of this. Mindless slaughter is the last thing we want."
"Magic?... Who… Who was it, do you know? Can you describe him to me?" The young king asked.
"He had red hair and green eyes… I don't really remember." The queen said.
"… Red hair?..." Arthur's eyes suddenly widened. "No…" He stood. "No that can't be right!"
"Who is it? Do you know him?"
"… My… Maybe I'm wrong but… It sounds like you're describing…" He gulped. "My brother."
"He did share a slight resemblance to you." The woman stated. "But why would your brother do such a thing?"
"I don't know… That is the strange thing… It doesn't make sense; he has never shown any indication of… Or maybe… Forgive me, but I would like to address the king as soon as possible."
"He will be joining us shortly." The queen nodded. "Then maybe we could get this settled."
"That would be great." Arthur replied.
The servants entered the room bringing steaming hot food to the table; something Arthur hadn't had the pleasure of eating in the past week. "Help yourself to whatever you'd like." The queen offered.
Arthur cleared his throat. "Of course… Erm… Thank you." He took another look at the document before setting it aside and sitting back down. "Excuse me…"
"Yes?" She glanced back at him.
"… I wonder if you have some form of… Ah… Never mind… Business can wait can't it, I'm being awfully rude, and I should wait until the king arrives. Forgive me."
"No, I know this is a rather urgent matter. Do forgive my husband for not being here yet. Though we did not know you were coming." The queen apologized.
"Seeing as a messenger was killed, I was afraid to send another one… But I'm very concerned about that… If my brother is behind this then… I shouldn't jump to conclusions… But I don't know why he would want a war…"
The queen glanced up at him as she took a sip from her tea. "Power." She said simply. "It is something that calls to us all. He, if it is him who started all of this, has received that ability to use magic now."
"… It makes sense I suppose… But… He has been close to me this whole time… Why would he only do something now? How long has he been spying for you?"
"He has been working for us a while now. Since we received that." She motioned to the document.
The king entered the room at that moment, his eyes falling upon the young king before him.
Arthur quickly stood up as did the queen, showing the proper respect.
"Sire." Arthur bowed. "Excuse me."
The man nodded. "I hear you are suggesting that this war was false and never part of your kingdoms plans." He spoke as he sat next to his queen.
Arthur blinked. "… Information… Travels fast here…"
The king smiled. "Of course it does, it must during war time." He looked at Arthur. "It sounds like we are in agreement. Something is going on. It seems like it could be your brother?"
"Yes… AH, I always forget the convenience of magic… Thank you for coming so soon…" He sat down after a moment.
The king smiled. "Right. It was brave of you to come here alone and unguarded. So do you have a proposal?"
"… This… Spy… Has he discussed his plans with you at all?"
"He planned on taking your kingdom down by the inside. His plans were to kill you next, you and your protector." The king said.
Arthur's eyes went wide. "My… Protector…" His heartbeat sped up. "… Alfred… Oh no." He stood up suddenly. "I need to get back as soon as possible. Forgive me but I think we both agree we don't want a war. I will pull my troops back in three days time, will you do the same? Do I need to sign anything? A treaty of mutual surrender?"
The king nodded. "I will have the papers written up quickly, and then you can be on your way." The man turned to his servant with a nod. The man quickly ran out of the room to come up with the documents.
Arthur toyed with his sleeves nervously. Leaving Alfred at home was the worst thing he could have done. "Excuse me but… Is there a way you've been transporting your spies faster than conventional travel? I'm not sure I can spare another week away from the palace."
The king eyed him. "It is a very difficult process. Only the strongest can do such a far transportation, and even that takes a large toll on one's body."
Arthur pursed his lips together. "Yes of course… Thank you… If I am able to pay that toll I will… but I know nothing of magic."
"That would be a problem." The king said as he touched his bearded chin. "We could show you the basics but that wouldn't allow you to transport yourself. I could have one of my most advanced magicians see if he could transport you with him..."
"It could be possible… But very difficult." A nearby man mumbled.
The servant entered the room with a stack of papers. "The document is ready." He placed a copy in front of each king so they could read it over.
Through the loop here!
One more chapter! We are working on it now and you can expect it in an hour!
PLease review! fearless party tonight!
(I'll get it up if I can, my mom enforces internet restrictions, so if it's not up tonight that's why and I'll get it up tommarow.)