Arthur blinked, taking a moment to collect his thoughts and another to process Francis's question before letting himself attempt to reply. "Wh-what do you mean, that Peter…?" He frowned a bit. "N-no… our child won't be like Peter, i-it will have a good life… P-Peter didn't even get to see the outdoors until he was four years old…"

"Non, non, I'm not implying something bad. I'm implying a good thing." Francis tried to smile comfortingly, taking Arthur's hands in his own. "I don't mean to say that it will have a bad life, or something worse, heavens no. I just feel something around Peter...and it's not a brother-in-law way..." He sighed, trying to think of some better wording for it. "He's like a son to me." He pecked a soft kiss to Arthur's lips, hoping to stop the tears that were starting in his eyes. His hand crept over Arthur's stomach, hoping to feel the beginning of a new life. "Calm down amour. Even if our child simply isn't as wonderful as Peter...I...I don't know...It's so odd… I'm in love, cher. I've finally decided I'm going to accept your condition for what it is. This is our own little Peter. We can dedicate it to him and make him the godfather. Because honestly, Arthur…" He hesitated, turning Arthur's face to his own. "As much as I hate to mention your little brother so much...His smile melted my heart of ice...and...I... From now on, I will try to be the best father and husband I can be… for him, for you, pour notre bébé." He smiled a little, kissing the bridge of Arthur's nose.

Arthur stared at him, smiling a little. "R-right…" he mumbled, although his mind had already started drifting into ideas of whether there was something different about Peter than there was from the rest of his brothers. As much as these thoughts persisted, however, he refused to believe them. They were absurd, and even with Peter's unusual eye color that set him apart from all of his family except for Francis- if he counted. He sighed and hugged Francis, in need of a shoulder to cry on should he start doing so. "W-well… if w-we see him ever again, th-then we can tell him, okay?" he smiled a bit. "I-I'm sure that he'll want to see you again… h-he seemed to have taken a liking to you… Heh, I-I remember during the wedding wh-when he ran up and h-hugged us, I w-was so afraid that he was going to call me by m-my real name and ruin everything... it feels like so long since I've seen him, b-but it was really only yesterday..." he sighed. Where was Peter now? Probably in the Blue Kingdom by now, enjoying real food and questioning Allistor as to why Arthur had been wearing such silly clothing the previous day even though the person he was supposed to be married to looked more womanly to him with their long, golden hair. Arthur chuckled, practically able to hear those exact words in Peter's voice. He could only hope that Peter wouldn't ask these questions to his past lover, who resided in the Blue Kingdom. He hoped that they all assumed that Arthur was dead, or that they had been told so. It pained him to wish for such a thing, but in this situation it wasn't like he could just leave Francis. "D-do you think that we'll get to see them again?" he asked, looking up at him hopefully.

"Of course." Francis grinned a bit, leaving behind his loving attitude. "You'll see them on holidays, and even your birthday if you'd like…" he sighed. He looked at Arthur again, somehow feeling that there was sadness in his expression. "I have to say, I'm quite sorry all of this happened. I didn't even want to get married either. I'd stay shut in my room and I didn't want to talk to anyone. Mostly I've been in there alone and sleeping. My dreams were the only things giving me some sort of comfort…." He sat up a bit, staring at something in the distance that was easier on his eyes than looking at Arthur for the moment. "I'm sorry, I'm just not sure how to feel right now… You're… well, you're my spouse, and I hardly know anything about you. I've sort of rushed everything on you and now, if anything, you're probably stressed out…" He looked at Arthur, who looked anything but stressed out although possibly a little afraid. "I… I need some time alone…" he muttered, pulling himself up and running off to who knows where. In truth he felt like he needed a quiet place to think on his own, to collect his thoughts, to let himself face the reality that had been so violently thrown into his and Arthur's faces. Hell, he had ruined Arthur's life himself when all he wished for the other was for him to be happy, back in his own home with his own family with no war, no prison, no unhappiness to tear them apart, but it was far too late for that. Now there was a list of deaths following behind him that was over a mile long and in one night alone he had destroyed Arthur's life. He had torn him from his family, womanized him until just a few minutes ago, and had given him a child that he probably didn't even want. He knew that he would have to apologize to Arthur- to really apologize- but he had done plenty of that for now and it would all sound as pointless as his other apologies had sounded. His heart was pounding, not only from his stressful thoughts but also from all of the stairs he was climbing on his way back up to his and Arthur's bedrooms. He was in that very hallway when he stopped, finding a room with plain white walls. He looked around in it, finding that it was blissfully empty and taking a seat inside against the back of the door. He was sure that it wouldn't be easy, but he would think of some way to help Arthur through the whole 'baby' thing, and he'd be damned if he didn't.

Arthur sighed, strangely disappointed by his decision to leave so suddenly. He thought that if Francis wanted his turn to take some time alone, then he may as well give it to him. Besides, the garden- although saturated in red flowers- was very nice, although he could see that the sun would be setting in only a few hours so if he was going to explore it, he may as well do so now. Arthur picked a direction and set off, exploring a bit. He soon found that even so far away from the tower, magical plants dotted the grounds. He found one tree with fruits that looked a bit like crosses between peaches and tomatoes, but glowed with a warm, fiery light. Upon tasting one he found that the strange light could be felt hen it hit his stomach, which was a bit strange but undeniably comforting. He continued his little exploration until his feet hurt and he was sure that he was being followed by some invisible entity before making his way back to the castle. He felt like such an outsider, entering it on his own. Like he might get in trouble for being without Francis. He knew that he wouldn't, being a resident there now, but he still felt so very out of place in the endless hallways. At first he tried asking any of the servants if they had seen Francis but when all of them replied with "Hasn't he been out in the gardens with you, princess?" he simply sighed and thanked them for their time. After several of these responses he began to become a little worried, his walk speeding to a near run as he tried to navigate his way through the castle. "God, why did the damn thing have to be so big? And why does every single damn hallway have to look like every other one?" When he finally stopped it wasn't to finally reach the room but to catch his breath, leaning against a wall. He felt a bit dizzy, swearing that he could hear the very walls whispering his name. After he had caught his breath he realized that although it wasn't the walls doing it his name was definitely being called from somewhere. He looked around a bit before seeing what looked like the entrance to some secret passage, and inside were a few of the young noblemen that he had seen the previous night at the party. When he looked at them they beckoned him closer. He took a few cautious steps closer, looking at them. While he wasn't sure that it was entirely safe to be with them he knew that they were friends of Francis's and that they might know where he was. Before he could ask them if they knew- to which they probably wouldn't have responded, seeing at they didn't speak his language- he was grabbed by the arm by one of them and was dragged into the secret passage. While this did surprise and even startle him a little he followed them, hoping to see Francis again soon.

Francis, eventually sorting out his thoughts with his usual "I'll think about it tomorrow" plan and letting his mind wander a bit, had begin to wonder about the room he sat in. It had no furniture to speak of and had never been used for a bedroom. He had heard rumors though, a sort of legend among castle-goers, that the noblemen often used the room for their not-so-legal 'fun'. The self-proclaimed leader would sleep in the room, and from the one time that Francis had been in the room he knew that the room often contained little more than a round table set up for card games, half a dozen chairs, an old cot, and literally nothing else. On occasion, however, they would find that more was being done in there than drinking, smoking, and gambling, the best of the worst usually involving prostitutes and the worst of the worst involving a sort of underground slave market. That was what had gotten them kicked off of castle grounds for doing such things- not arrested, of course, being noblemen, and not even their ban from the grounds was permanent. Of course, once they were allowed back they started searching for a more secret place to conduct their 'business'. The room itself had been changed completely. The furniture had been burned- or at least they said it had been- and the walls had been painted white, covering up all of the horrid cigarette burns and blocking most of the smoky stench. The walls reminded him a bit of seagulls, and having the freedom to go where one pleased with not a thing in the world to hold them back. However, his previous thoughts had caused him to worry a bit about Arthur. He left the room and wandered a bit before finding a maid and asking her if she knew where Alice was. She just shook her head, and after several of these responses he began to become a little worried, his walk speeding to a near run as he tried to navigate his way through the castle. On his way to the gardens he swore he heard Arthur's voice from behind a painting, pulling the paining away and finding that it was a hiding place for one of the noblemen's secret passages. This scared him a little, and he hopped in just in time to hear Arthur's voice start to fade away. "Cher?" he called, walking in the direction of his voice.

Arthur stopped, although he was dragged on by the two noblemen. "Oh, I think that I heard Francis-" he started, but was cut off by a rough pull and the taste of a cotton cloth in his mouth. Arthur suddenly realized that even if they were friends of Francis's, they were most certainly not friends of his own. He struggled, trying to pull the cloth away from his mouth but only ending up with his other arm being pulled behind him. One of the two oafs hissed at him to keep his mouth shut and he glared at them. He was sure he knew what they were going to do with him, but if they did then it would blow his cover. He couldn't let them find out. Not like this at least. His wide eyes looked frantically around him, looking for some way to free himself from the two brutes. Fortunately, this opportunity presented itself; He found that they were both tipsy, although still much stronger than he was. The more sober of the two, and the one who was dragging Arthur, was holding both of his wrists with one hand. The fact that he still couldn't struggle away from him actually frightened Arthur a little, seeing as he had no idea where these men were taking him and if he would be able to escape once they got there. He tried to run against them but was stopped, not by them but by tripping on his own green silk dress. They laughed huskily, and Arthur swore that he felt one of them grab his bum. This earned a shriek of protest from Arthur and a kick to the shins from him that bought him just enough time for him to pull the cloth from his mouth and run a short ways in the direction that he had heard Francis's voice. He attempted to scream for him, "Francis! Fra-" but was cut off when a large hand was slapped over his mouth, the cotton cloth was replaced, and he found himself in the same position that he had been in only a short time before. He clawed at the man's meaty hand with his femininely-manicured nails until he had broken the skin, causing him again to let go. Arthur picked up his skirts and ran, not bothering to look where he was going. He didn't care, as long as it was away from the two bozos and into some safe place.

Francis found himself soon out of breath, looking down every side passage possible in order to find his beloved Arthur. He had run so much that his legs had been numbed from soreness and he nearly gave up until he hears his lover's weak cry from not far away. He ran again in its direction, rewarded with the sight of Arthur plowing into him at top speed and almost knocking him over- which was a rewarding sight nonetheless. He wrapped his arms around the younger boy, taking a moment to look him over; although he looked relatively unharmed, there was a bit of blood on his dress from his clawing at the nobleman's hand. The small amount of makeup that Arthur had applied to cover his injuries had been rubbed away almost completely. "What did they do to you?" he asked, lifting him up bridal style and exiting the passageways through the nearest concealed door. "Tell me everything, I'll dress you and listen…" He carried Arthur to their room and had him stand in the middle of the floor as he had about that time the previous evening, taking out this time a plain white dress. He started to slip the old dress off of him, letting it fall unceremoniously from his shoulders and to the floor.

Arthur let himself cry a bit once they were alone, terrified that they were still chasing after him. He didn't even protest when Francis started to undress him. "I-I don't... I don't know... I-I thought th-that they were g-going to help m-me find you, b-but... wh-when I heard you call, I-I tried to f-find you, and th-they..." he choked up, looking at Francis with wide eyes. He rubbed tears from his eyes and let the slightly reddened tears drip down his hands, colored by the blood on his fingers. "Th-they didn't get to do anything... B-but I know th-that they would have, one of them at l-least..." He blinked. They really hadn't gotten a chance to do anything, other than touch him a little and possibly bruise his wrists. He was a bit ashamed of himself for allowing them to lead him away so easily to who knows where to do who knows what. He had a decent idea of what they would have done to him if he had been caught; There had been rumors going around that he'd heard in his short time of freedom- granted a lot of them were taken more as jokes since they didn't have the time or resources to deal with such a problem- that the Red Kingdom was involved in quite a few underground activities, one of them being the black market. Its involvement was seconded only by- obviously- the Black Kingdom. He pushed the thoughts out of his head, pulling Francis into his arms before the dress was pulled on all the way and burying his face in the soft, golden hair.

Francis tried to smile warmly, although Arthur wouldn't see it with his eyes hidden in his no longer tidy hair. "Hush now, it's alright. I won't ever let it happen again, okay?" he said softly. He went to their drawer and pulled out a small roll of bandages, taking them back to Arthur. "This may hurt a bit, but it should help those bruises go down a little…" He carefully bandaged his wrists, pressing a light kiss to the emerald of his wedding ring when he had finished. "There we go…" he whispered in satisfaction, placing the bandages on the bedside table. He looked Arthur over and smiled. "Oh, you look simply beautiful in white…" he commented, sitting them both on the bed. "Now you're not injured anywhere else, are you? Nowhere I can't see?" He asked, looking at him hopefully. For someone who had lived through as much as Arthur had he certainly seemed to be sensitive to these things, becoming hurt so easily as if being treated like a woman was turning him into one.

Arthur's face went dark pink at the compliment, and he rested his head on Francis's shoulder as he attempted to hide it. "N-no, I'm fine now…" he mumbled, absently examining Francis's work. He had broken that wrist at least twice in his life, and had dislocated it one time. He almost felt lucky to have escaped with nothing more than a mere bruise, but while he couldn't see it quite a few of his other injuries were showing now that his makeup had been rubbed off. He had put it on himself and, having no real experience and thinking it quite vulgar, he had applied as little as possible. He sniffled and rubbed his eyes, revealing a nasty bruise next to the left one. He slowly raised his eyes up to Francis's face, staring for a moment before sitting up. He noticed how disheveled his hair looked and took the ribbon out of it, turning his head a bit so that he could retie it. . "Your hair is so nice..." he murmured, making a neat little bow. "My hair used to be long like that, until we escaped... and then I had it all cut off and burned. It may sound strange, but it was actually quite fun." He chuckled, trying to find something to distract himself from Francis.

Francis chuckled lightly, tilting his head a little to give Arthur a better angle. "I'm glad that you think so… My father always says it makes me look like a girl, but it's not my fault that it feels so fantastic to ride horseback with the wind in your hair…" He smiled for a moment, but it disappeared when he noticed the bruise near Arthur's eye. "I can't...I can't have you hurting yourself anymore." He said softly. "Please, and not anytime in the future." His head lowered but he continued looking up at Arthur. "I'm terrified that something will happen to you and that I won't be there to save you… I-I'll protect you to my last breath, and I swear that I won't let anything split us apart…" He was whispering now, and he laid his head softly in the crook of Arthur's neck. There were a few moments of aching silence before Francis slowly raised his head again, pressed a kiss to Arthur's cheek, and shifted into a cross-legged position. "How do you feel? I know, I'm sort of hovering, but ...It's just...I worry about you a lot...You're very special to me and I don't want you hurt." He held onto Arthur's arms, his eyes showing that his concern was genuine.

Arthur just smiled a little. "Alright, I'll try not to get hurt… but I don't mind if you're a little feminine, and at least nobody's mistaken you for a woman like they have me." He chuckled, looking down at himself. The new gown was another without hoops, and the soft feeling on his skin made it feel more like a nightgown than anything. If he were in his pajamas at this time of day he would have likely received him a good tongue lashing, and possibly a smack from Allistor. "Besides, there's nothing shameful about being able to ride a horse... I've never had a horse of my own, but I'm sure that you've had dozens." He muttered, a bit jealously. The only person he had ever known to have a horse was his eldest brother, a sweet little mare with ginger hair to rival his own. Arthur had always been told that should the mare ever have a foal it would be his, but the poor creature was donated to the war effort before she ever got the chance. He and his brother had been heartbroken. Arthur thought vaguely of the various bruises and broken bones that Allistor always got from the creature, but how she was always so sweet to little Arthur and she would nuzzle his face if he brought her apples or sugar cubes. Arthur let himself daydream a little, letting his thoughts drift blissfully to the beautiful ginger mare.

Francis chuckled, but he his smile was a bit sad. "Non, only the knights are allowed to have horses these days… but if you sneak away to the stables at night, you can see them… I never had a horse of my own, but on my fifth birthday I was given a little dove." He smiled a little, letting his own thoughts wander. The little creature had been found by one of the servants in the kitchen. They had tried to put it back in its nest but it reeked so of human that it was rejected. The kitchen girl who found it was so desperate to keep it alive that when Francis discovered it she acted as though it had been a gift for him all along. Despite its tiny, fractured wing, he had loved it with all of his heart. . "He was white and his name was Pierre. Honestly, I never expected myself to like birds. I tend to scare little animals away." His smile started to come back. "I loved him so much, every morning he'd sit on my windowsill and sing and it was quite beautiful." He sighed. "One day I let him out to go find a mate and I let him live his life from there." His cerulean eyes gleamed a bit. "But I've always loved seagulls. They are almost everywhere around the lake and I always wanted to watch them all in the morning. If mon parents would take me to the lake, I'd start chasing them and try to catch one, but I was always so little." Francis had always thought his childhood to be the happiest time in his life, the only time in which he had not yet learned how to hate, and loved everything. "I always wanted to go on adventures when I was young and if it wasn't for Gilbert and 'Tonio, I don't know what I would be like." He gave a sigh. "Je suis desole, I've been rambling… but I suppose that now you can see why I love children so much, as they are the sweetest people I have ever known…"

"I understand… Peter looked so innocent the night we escaped. It was his first time being out of doors, the first time he had grass touch his feet and moonlight in his eyes. He was so fascinated with the moon, reaching up his tiny hands to try and pull it down to light our way but always finding himself unable to do it…" Arthur chuckled. They had eventually escaped into a swamp and, being summertime, it was absolutely swarming with fireflies. Peter was elated. . "Our biggest adventure when I was young was fighting the Red army... Dylan and I would always yell at the guards, using our dinner forks as little spears and acting like we could take them on. We never did win against them. It was a fun game for a while, but... well, once we realized that they weren't going to let us go, it stopped being so fun." He looked up when Francis mentioned his own friends. "I have to wonder, what kind of adventures did you get to go on?" he asked, looking at Francis with curiosity in his eyes. He had always asked his older brother to tell him stories of his adventures, but he would always say "later" and then forget, or be in a bad mood, or be too tired, or some other excuse. But he and his brothers always knew that he had dozens of stories to tell of his time beyond castle walls.

Francis chuckled. "I would give almost anything to be a child again… but now that I'm already an adult, I suppose having children of my own is the closest I'll ever get again…" he thought back for a moment before Arthur's question snapped him out of his thoughts. "Adventures? It depended on who we let lead that day. If it was Antonio's turn, we'd play with his father's swords and call ourselves the three musketeers, or listen to him play guitar and watch the sun set. If it was Gilbert, we'd do some dangerous things, but they were worth it. Sometimes we'd climb the tallest tree and see who would be too scared to go down. If we were lucky, his little brother Ludwig would join us and we would steal pastries from the kitchens. Then if it was mon turn...Ah...We would run around my castle and cause chaos, bothering the guards or sneaking out to the stables or playing hide-and-seek in the pantry. Or we'd act cute in front of ladies so they could kiss us on the cheek. And there was that one time we drew all over the faces of the drunk noblemen with ink." Francis laughed, remembering one instance in which they had run and hid in the washrooms for nearly an hour from a group of gentleman who bore a poorly-drawn coat of arms from each of their kingdoms on their faces. "Toni's in the gold kingdom, and Gilbert is now a Silver kingdom knight. We go out to drink every couple of months." He gave a faint smile and took soft breaths. "I think that explains my adventures, non?"

Arthur nodded, a happy smile spreading across his lips. "Oh, that sounds so nice…" he murmured, thinking of his own wretched childhood. He had spent a lot of his time locked up in the Red dungeon. He couldn't remember a time that he'd had more than a single friend, and after that he only had the ones he made up for himself. Often times when he saw them he was asleep, and when he was forced from his lovely sleep into harsh reality he often found himself in tears. He dreamt that they would help his escape, and when he played with Peter he would often pretend that he could see them too. But one day, soon after Cailean and Dylan had died, they had just stopped appearing. He felt lonelier than ever without them, having only Peter to talk to. They were all quiet then though, silenced with heartbreak. "S-so, those people you were talking about... Gilbert, and Toni... what are they like?" he asked, rolling onto his stomach and resting his head on Francis's knees. The knights if the Silver Kingdom were famous for their bravery, and a thirst for justice that was rivaled only by their thirst for alcohol. And the Gold Kingdom… people said that it was a place better than heaven itself, or at least that was what was said by those who left long enough to tell anyone about it. "I would love to meet them some time... I-I mean, if you would allow it of course. They sound simply wonderful..."

Francis nodded, laying a hand on Arthur's head and lightly stroking his hair. "Yes, it was all quite amazing… we've had so many fun times that I'm afraid I've lost track of them all." He sighed, thinking of his two best friends. "Antonio's a man nobody can hate. He's always happy and makes everything in the room the same way, no matter what.. He's lived in the Gold Kingdom his entire life, and he has dozens of amazing tales just from there. There's nothing that can make him sad. And if he feels like he's not happy enough, he keeps on trying." He smiled, knowing Toni would probably be out with his family and they would all be singing and enjoying life. "Gilbert… is not the ideal person to invite into your house if you don't want anything broken. He's wild and makes everything a joke or a challenge. He's tougher than Antonio and me, but he actually has a soft side if he's not drunk. He's in the Violet Kingdom at the moment I believe, but he travels constantly from being a knight. If he doesn't sound interesting enough, he's an albino." He grinned, running his fingers playfully through Arthur's hair and twisting the short locks between his fingers. "That's the both of them, I suppose. I'm the lovable one, Gil's the wild one, and Toni's the happy-go-lucky." He felt a little happy to explain his friends, making a bit of a game of it. "They would have been my best men for the wedding, but Antonio's sister died, and Gilbert was in a huge war ." He laid down, still letting Arthur rest at his knees. "You can ask me anything else about my life and I'd spend hours just telling you~" he chuckled.

Arthur smiled a little to himself and closed his eyes, trying to envision the two people that Francis had described. "Your life... I envy you so Francis. You've had so many wonderful things, people who care about you..." he sighed. "I know, when I was locked up I often wondered if there was a prince living in the castle. My mother always said that there was, and that he was a nasty child, but I never really wanted to believe her... Allistor said that the child was a coward, and that sometimes he would see him sneaking down to spy on us... I-I think that it might have been you…" he mumbled, letting his eyes drift up to Francis. He laid next to him with his arms wrapped around one of Francis's, the unbruised side of his head facing upward. "I always tried to stay up late and see you, but every time I just ended up falling asleep… Allistor said that he had always caught you though, because he always sleeps during the day…" Arthur nuzzled his arm, his eyes darting away. "I would always think I'd hear you, and then I would wake up and Allistor would say "too bad, you just missed him", and then ruffle my hair... it would make me so mad, never getting to see you. I guess I just wanted to have some connection to the outside world, and I felt like you were it..." He hesitated a moment, trying to remember all of what Allistor had said about their nocturnal visitor. "Did you… Did you ever get to speak to him? Allistor, I mean?" he asked.

Francis timidly shook his head. He could be a bit of a coward sometimes, and he knew it. "N-non, I never got the chance to talk to your brothers… The eldest one, Allistor, he would always just whisper at me and tell me to go back to bed, or to go away, but I would never say anything back. Sometimes I wouldn't leave and I would just hide because I didn't want to go yet, but then he would throw pebbles at me… Never did hit me though." He sighed, rolling over and wrapping his other arm around Arthur. "If you did see me then, you probably wouldn't recognize me now. My papa had my hair cut then, s-so I looked like a miniature version of him." He sighed heavily and stared up at the high ceiling. "When I was young I didn't understand things. How I loved you when I was a boy myself when only men and women could marry. Or why you could never be already awake once I was down there. That's all over now and...Well...Arthur, we need to start thinking about our lives and our positions, and how the future is going to work. One my parents leave us, we will be crowned as the high rulers, but...I don't know, you're my spouse now, and I just feel like we should plan ahead. How do you think everything's going to work out...? That is, if, nothing bad happens and it's just us." He sighed softly and held onto his hand tightly. "I want to hear your view on everything before I express mine."

"My view?" he repeated, giving a small sigh. "Well… practically speaking, I'm a foreigner, and as far as anybody knows a woman too, and I don't know even a single word of your language, so... chances are no matter what I say I'm not going to be listened to by anyone but you." He chuckled. Francis had caught his interest when he had mentioned seeing Allistor. He wanted to know everything about their encounters, even if there wasn't anything more to be told. He decided not to ask now though. Things would reveal themselves slowly, he was sure that they would. "As for a plan... I'm honestly not sure. I may have spent most of my life here, but I know next to nothing about the place." He frowned a bit. He really had spent a good chunk of his life there, probably a majority of it. As a prisoner of war granted, but he had still been there. He knew nothing of their people, of their traditions, and he certainly didn't know anything about their royalty. He wasn't even sure what was expected of him, other than to produce an heir. Everything was strange here, and a little scary. "...Francis, I feel that I should at least ask... are you the only heir to your family's throne?" he asked.

Francis chuckled, having been distracted by his own thoughts of Arthur's language. "Oui, I am the only heir. I'm made of the blood of both my parents, and I was born to them. Therefore I'm an heir, non? I had siblings, but they had prostitutes as mothers, and died from...wh-what they were good at. The two alive, Louis and Givante', are both married separately and have children of their own now. I love being an uncle." He leaned back and closed his eyes. "You'll get used to the castle, don't worry. I'll be here to guide you around and stay with you. I don't want you getting lost like earlier…" His hand snaked into Arthur's, brushing momentarily over the bandages. He frowned a bit as he looked down at them. "What do you think we're going to do together Arthur? What do you think we will… accomplish, together?" he asked, adopting the word from Arthur's language.

Arthur gave a small sigh. "Accomplish… well, I suppose having a child for one thing. Perhaps even a few." he smiled a little to himself.

Francis smiled brightly. "Ah, I nearly forgot that we were expecting a child…" he whispered, pressing a soft kiss to the top of Arthur's head.

"Oh, I'd like to have a big family someday, a bit like my own… although hopefully not all boys like mine was." He chuckled. He envied Francis a bit for being an uncle already. Arthur would never know it, but he was too.

"Non, I would prefer a small family personally. And maybe, maybe not. We could have two little boys just like us, you know.." He chuckled.

"Yes, I suppose…And who knows, maybe we could bring peace between our two kingdoms… and if mine is gone by then, well, other kingdoms. That way we won't have to deal with any more wars…" he gave a small nod as if to confirm the thought. If he couldn't save his own people at this point- which he was almost sure he couldn't- then he would keep it from happening to anyone else, especially to the Blue Kingdom. Oh, what would they say if they saw him like this, wife to the prince of his former enemies' kingdom. They'd laugh at him. At least until they really saw Francis, then they would probably be afraid or disgusted with him.

"Ah yes, I suggest we make peace with the other kingdoms. I hate wars because our castle is always on the bad side." He said softly. "And I don't want your family to go through the same thing again, you know. But you can always write to them if something does come up."

Arthur sighed, snuggling up to Francis's side. He wouldn't be accepted in the kingdom of Blue again, not if he was going to give his heart to Francis at least. "M-maybe you can teach me to speak your language?" he asked, hoping to drive the conversation in a different direction. "I-I mean, since you already know the language... then you could teach me?" He only vaguely remembered learning his own language, and he knew that it had been a boring and tedious process.

"Yes. actually, I would love to teach you French. You would sound so beautiful speaking mon language. But you'll start to pick up some words, mon ange du sucre~" he chuckled.

"Are there other people here who speak English, per chance?" Arthur asked, smiling a little.

"Yes, actually, all the people in the tower speak English and some of the maids. Well, actually, anyone who isn't a noble or rich who lives here speaks English. Most of them are prisoners who gave up all their money, so my kingdom gave them jobs and a place to stay." He looked down. "Once we both own this kingdom, I'm going to switch them around. The tower people will stay, but the noblemen will be cleaning our floors and washing our clothes. All those servants will be rich and famous. I hate that horrible people get rewarded for being the way they are. I'd personally see a nobleman kissing the ground I walk on, then seeing a servant spend all day sweeping it." Francis muttered.

Arthur chuckled. He had always imagined them doing that exact thing to the people of the Red Kingdom when they had won, granted this was when he was only a child and he hadn't known better. He had dreamed of marrying a princess, although every girl at the time he had ever known to be beautiful had been several years older than himself, and he had always thought that it would be more like having an older sister or something. The idea really sort of embarrassed him now, and Francis's idea of having the noblemen beneath their feet, while an attractive one, seemed more like a pipe dream to him. "That does sound idealistic..." he mumbled, giving Francis a smile. "So... how many of those servants do you think are from my kingdom?" he asked. Traitors, that's what they really were. He was sure that many of them were soldiers who had run away from the army, hoping to leave for their sweethearts and then hide in some distant kingdom until the war was long since over. He knew that they did it, because his own brothers had planned on doing it once if they ever joined the army. Of course they never did, not that they had anywhere to run to. "M-maybe… maybe, we can visit my family sometime… f-for Christmas, perhaps…" he mumbled, hoping to re-direct his thoughts. He knew that it would probably take the Red and Blue Kingdoms years, if not entire generations to form any type of alliance, but he knew that he could find a way to make it work at least by the time they had their child. Peter would just love having someone near his own age to play with, although the fact that by the time their current child was his age Peter would be grown up completely slipped Arthur's mind. "Your home is so different from mine was…"

Francis thought a moment, trying to recall the number of servants that had suddenly appeared one day during the war, when he had been younger. "Plenty of them are from the Green Kingdom, I know that much at least… It took a while for some of us to figure it out though, including me. They were so quiet for a while." he chuckled, rolling over to face Arthur. "You will see your family Arthur, and I think that visiting them for Christmas is an excellent idea. And once we make alliances, they can live in our kingdom with us. We have a lot of work to do though. It will take several years until this is finished, but we will get rid of the red kingdom's bad times and re-open it as the best kingdom around. We'll even change it to a color that hasn't been taken yet if we need to." He wanted to suggest White Kingdom, but that was a myth...Or just couldn't been seen in all of the heavy snow of its region. He only knew of few kingdoms that were hidden. But then again, nobody really knew if the Grey Kingdom was there at all behind all of that fog. He could only think that the Red Kingdom had been chosen as such because it wanted to be seen, and to see those who were weaker cower before it, or some other such thing. "You know, Arthur...There's this abandoned room a few doors down..." His face went light pink. "I...I was thinking...we could use that for the child...If...you don't mind." His voice was quiet. He really wasn't sure as to whether or not he should talk about it, especially since he still wasn't sure of whether or not to believe Arthur. It would certainly take a while to become noticeable, and he really wasn't even sure that he was ready to be a father. "...I have to ask first though...If you really are...pregnant...Do you want to keep it? Do you think we'll love it...?" he asked, looking him in the eyes. He was worried that something would go wrong, that they would only end up hurting it or killing it somehow.

Arthur stared at him in shock, caught off guard by the question. "Of course I want it! Unless…" he stopped, frowning a bit. "U-unless, you don't want it…" He hadn't even considered the possibility that Francis wouldn't want it. "I-I mean, y-your parents, wanting to continue the bloodline and all, I-I guess I just figured... b-because we're married now, a-and..." He curled up a bit, shrinking away from his husband. He hadn't thought any of this through. He had no idea how any of this would go for him, especially the process of getting rid of it. He was sure that Francis- having thought that he was married to 'Alice'- hadn't planned to have children for a little while, if at all, although it wasn't Arthur's fault that they had gone as far as they had the previous night. His legs and bum still ached from their activities, and he was sure that he had torn the skin a little bit. He hadn't really thought about what having a child would mean before letting himself dive in as soon as the possibility of surviving another day had presented itself so painlessly to him. He had just seen it as something a princess- or rather prince, in his case- would have to do. "God, how could I have been such a horrendous idiot?" The only pregnant woman he had ever seen in his life had been his own mother, and even then he had been much too young to remember the bad parts, especially once loveable little Peter had been born and they had all been so happy. "S-so... if you don't want it, I-I guess that I-I could... g-get rid of it..." he murmured, his voice became softer as he spoke, tears prickling in his eyes.

"…N-non…" Francis replied, frowning only slightly. "N-non, I want to keep it with all my soul and heart. I was asking you because I only want you to be happy." Some tears started in his eyes. "I'm just so torn and afraid because I feel like I won't be good at this. I know so very little about taking care of children, but I'll try my best to be the best father I can, even if I'm not entirely perfect." He sighed, pulling Arthur into his arms. "We're going to make it through this. I'll risk anything to make sure you both are okay." He smiled, although his voice was shaky and uneven. "Arthur. I promise." He hugged him tighter and kept them both quietly there. "Nine months then, oui? I'm not sure I can wait that long, but it will be worth it to see this child that is so promising. Even though I don't know what this will do to your body and how it will even work. You're not physically a woman and I fear you will be hurt. But I'm going to be here for you no matter what. When the time comes, I'll still be here by your side." Francis let one hand find its way to Arthur's head, petting his hair like he would a small animal. "We should wait before we tell anyone though. If people find out about the Red Kingdom's heir being a father, they'll most likely tell everyone and who knows what might happen…"

Arthur nodded. "It would only make things worse if they found out that I'm the… the…" he hesitated a moment, his mind processing what he was about to say before he giggled a little. "I… I'm the mother, aren't I?" he asked, laughing a bit. "I hadn't actually thought about it like that... but, you're right, something might happen... e-especially since most people still think that I'm Alice..." he sighed. He was sure that, out of habit, his parents would correct someone if they actually called him 'Alice', and then word could get out… God, he hoped that they had sense enough to keep their mouths shut. Especially Peter, who loved Arthur more than anything and would stand for none of this 'Alice' business. "But... I think that it will be okay. We'll take care of it ourselves... I would even do it all if I had to." He placed a hand over his belly, his face turning a light reddish color as he did so. He hadn't been particularly attracted to the idea of gaining weight, but with the amount that he already ate- which was practically nothing- he knew that he may even lose weight, even if he did eat a bit more. At that moment, his stomach decided to growl, as if to remind him of how hungry he was. He laughed a bit and looked up at Francis. "Heh, e-excuse me..." he mumbled. "I-I haven't really been eating much... I felt a bit sick this morning, so I didn't eat very much..." he chuckled nervously. The empty food tray sat at the back of their room, clear of breakfast dishes and food spills. It was actually quite clean, probably meant to be used only by himself and Francis.

"You have nothing to worry about cher. You're technically the mother, oui, but that doesn't mean the child won't be like you too~" he grinned brightly. "We'll have to keep the Alice act up for a bit longer though. If people found out about your gender then they could panic, or even kill you or the child… and I refuse to let that happen. I'll do anything to keep you safe." His grip tightened a bit on Arthur, but it loosened again as he heard Arthur's stomach growl at him. "We really should get you something to eat, you're simply much too thin…" he sighed, pulling himself off of their bed with a somewhat sad glance at Arthur's waistline. He was sure that it couldn't be more than twenty-two inches around, which was practically unheard of for a boy his age. If he had it, morning sickness wouldn't help. He wouldn't be able to eat any solid food for weeks. This really worried Francis, and made him wonder how much he would be able to eat before getting sick from purely overeating. He went to their bedroom door and called in a servant, giving them their tray and asking him to fetch them dinner. "Do you feel well enough to eat?" he asked.

Arthur nodded, smiling a little. "Yes, I feel fine now… but I suppose that's what they call morning sickness, isn't it?" he laughed weakly, looking down at his feet. In all of the time that they had spent in their home before the siege, they had acquired a sort of tan. Arthur had never worn shoes. There were simply no shoes to be worn. He sincerely hoped that the color wasn't dirt, although he couldn't imagine his feet not being a little dirty after all of the walking outside he had done. "O-oh, dear, I'll have to wash my feet later…" he mumbled, more as an afterthought. He sat up a little and looked at Francis, smiling nervously. "S-so, um... how much do you usually eat? I mean, I've heard some stories about people who don't eat enough, and then when they try to eat..." he shuddered, trying to push that awful memory out of his head. People in the dungeons would often go without food, being forgotten completely sometimes, and would resort to eating rats. At that point, however, a single rat could be too much for them, and their stomachs wouldn't be able to handle it. Arthur pulled his legs up and hid his face in his knees. Just thinking about it made him feel sick, especially the dull popping sound. He was sure that it wouldn't happen to him any time soon, but he couldn't help worrying. It was one of the few things he still knew how to do.

Francis chuckled lightly, rejoining Arthur on their bed. "All that matters is you feel well. I wouldn't want you very sick on our first week together, non?" His eyes fell to Arthur's feet. "Oui. We'll wash them as soon as we can. Most of your shoes are slippers or heels though so I can understand you can't get used to either." He mumbled, sitting up a little. He wrapped an arm around Arthur and pulled him a bit closer. "We eat on a normal schedule, breakfast, dinner, supper, and then usually dessert. But if you get hungry then you can ask for food whenever you want it, even if it's just something small. A feast, like we had last night, is only for special occasions, holidays and things… Yesterday was one of the only days the family gets together. Everyone has their own separate ways now." He sighed, glancing at Arthur as he said his last few words. He could tell that the other was sincerely worried about his own health, although Francis was almost positive that he would be fine to eat if he could make it through last night's feast. "You should be fine...Just don't eat too much and over time your body will take the normal amounts. You're so...slender though...So I suggest you eat a lot more than you did in prison." He was a bit scared just looking at Arthur, as he had such thin little arms that he could almost be qualified as completely skin and bones, but he had heard of a few women having children and gaining quite a bit of weight, so he wasn't as worried that Arthur wouldn't want to eat. He just seemed too timid to ask for food when he was hungry. Francis considered himself to be 'slender' as well, but it wasn't to the degree that Arthur was, nowhere close to it. "I just want to say...We'll be keeping quite a lot of secrets from this child." He sighed, looking up at the door as a tapping sound came from outside. He went to retrieve their food tray, now almost difficult to carry due to the amount of food that rested on it for them. There was more than plenty for both of them, but Francis would insist that Arthur eat enough first. "Eat up, cher. You're no longer going to starve." He said with a chuckle, setting the tray on the bed.

Arthur's eyes shined hungrily, although he thanked Francis and the maid before taking his fork and helping himself to a bite of something. He moaned softly, allowing his eyelids to flutter a bit. "Why… Why is all of the food here so good?" he asked, looking up at Francis with a large grin on his face. It appeared to be some kind of cake, being fluffy and sweet and so delicious that as soon as the first bite melted away in his mouth he popped another one in. Apparently, there were certain perks of being forced to marry someone richer than yourself, even if it was against your will. There was a light frosting of chocolate over the cake, and after thinking about this for a moment he flipped the bite of his fork over so that the chocolate side would land on his tongue. "What is this…? Actually, don't tell me, I don't care, but it's so good… Do you eat like this all the time?" he asked, looking up at Francis. Arthur wouldn't mind getting to eat like that all the time, especially since he was already so thin that his ribs had begun to become visible through his chest. He hadn't minded much though, getting used to the horrifying sight after a while. At first he had thought about waiting to regain his strength before trying to gain any muscle, but then he realized that seeing as everyone thought he was a woman, he would look a bit odd.

Francis smiled a bit, chuckled as Arthur indulged himself in the wonders of cake as he took the first bite of his own piece. "Je ne sais pas." He replied, taking a casual bite. "I'm used to it so this doesn't seem new. " He chuckled. "This is quite normal. You can ask for anything you want at any time of day. Usually there's someone awake at any given time of day, seeing as those noblemen always need someone to watch over their poker games, make sure that nobody's cheating." He frowned a bit. "Even you can ask for the most unusual things...I once asked for biscuits covered in chocolate and served with mint and honey and it was as normal as breathing, and wouldn't you know it they even brought a dessert fork with it." He laughed a bit. "Mon house is usually like this. If we're not in a war or a serious debate everything is calm and carefree. If the war still went on, I would sit here all night making battle plans with no sleep at all, and some of the servants feared me since I didn't talk to anyone." He took another bite of the cake. "Actually, I'm surprised nothing's going on. The castle is hardly this quiet. It's not normal in my opinion. Usually you would hear the soldiers training outside and the yells of prisoners...But instead I'm sitting here eating cake with mon lovely...husband." He smiled a bit. He really wasn't sure whether or not to call Arthur his wife or husband, but he decided that for the moment it didn't matter. He would think of it later, when he could stand it better.

…

Hey guys, sadly this chapter was going waaay too long and I had to cut it down to a half-chapter. Part two will be next week.