Hello everybody. I have to say I was quite surprised at the reaction I got when I mentioned that Straton wasn't originally a main character. It seems that most of you have grown quite fond of him. Hmm, I'll have to take that into account for anything that happens later ;)

Chapter 9 - Of Breaking and Hope

It'd been a week since Straton had mentioned the overheard conversation to the red headed prince, and it was hard to Keane to not think about it at times. Specifically, times like now, where he was called into an emergency lesson with his civic advisory tutor, in order to discuss the likelihood and scenarios of a full scale revolution in the country.

When Keane was finally allowed to leave, he felt more worried then he had in any recent memory. It wasn't trying to just take simple precautions anymore, they were literally trying to prepare for the very likely worst possible scenario, or at least that's how it seemed. He remembered when Straton had first said that he felt the country wouldn't stop until the monarchy was either demolished or replaced. It seemed so long ago now, and he couldn't believe how stupid he'd sounded. He was probably still just as stupid though, because he just couldn't understand how all this could be happening.

Reaching his room, Straton wasn't in there like normally. Keane had to remind himself that the blonde had his own classes to go to sometimes, and flopped down on his bed. Was it bad that he really wished he didn't?

When the guards came around announcing dinner, Straton still hadn't shown up. The red head tired to keep his annoyance with the other boy down as low as possible. He couldn't expect him to be as his side all the time, even if he really didn't feel like being alone at the moment, Straton had no way of knowing that.

Grabbing a hap hazarded plate of food Keane quickly returned to his room, definitely not in any sort of mood to have to deal with the other princes. Luckily, he hadn't seen much of Maxwell since he'd pushed Straton down, but he wasn't about to take any chances.

Eating alone in his room, the red head tried to think of something that would appear a bit more promising then his current train of thought. Of course, that was a bit hard when your life was on such a strict schedule that the only things allowed to disrupt it tended to be on the down side of life. Even most of the good things he had seemed to come with a price. Becoming crowned prince alone had come with both being ostracized from the rest of the princes and never getting the chance to rest or see his mother anymore, but the only reason it ever happened was because Myrrha had ended up breaking.

Hearing the chimes signaling the next hour, Keane placed his half eaten plate aside and started towards the door. He had economics lessons, and he was going to be late. About halfway to the classroom, the red head stopped. He didn't want to go. At all. Making a split second decision, Keane turned around and started heading in the direction of the court yard.

He'd never skipped class before, only not going if he was sick, but he guess he could say that he was sick in a way. He was mentally exhausted. Of course, that excuse wouldn't hold up when his teachers eventually found him, but it was enough to reinforce him for the moment.

There weren't that many children out in the courtyard since it was starting to get late, and Keane made sure to avoid any of the stragglers. They hadn't been messing with him as much the worse things seemed to get, apparently sensing the tension of the situation. Keane didn't know if it was out of whatever kindness they decided to show him, or fear for him snapping again like he had on Maxwell. He couldn't tell.

Reaching a back corner of the yard, he made sure to crawl behind a bush for extra effect. He was going to get in trouble, but he didn't really care at the moment. It wasn't like his father had enough time to actually punish him anyway, and his teachers were limited in what they could do because of his royal status.

It didn't take very long for the red head to fall into a fitful and rather uncomfortable sleep. At one point he was woken up when a mouse ran across his leg, effectively startling him. Keane half wished he had something to throw at the annoying animal for scaring him like that. You wouldn't think there would be mice in the royal palace, but those things got everywhere.

He didn't know how much later it was when he was woken up for real by a very worried looking Straton shaking his shoulder. All he could tell was the sun was set, but he wasn't able to see the moon.

"Huh? Um, hey Strat," the red head mumbled as he sat up off the ground. Straton looked both annoyed and relieved at the same time, and thinking about what probably happened after they weren't able to find him, Keane did not blame him one bit. Maybe skipping class wasn't his best idea of all time.

"They've been searching for you," the younger boy informed him, and Keane nodded. Chances are they were still searching for him, since Straton probably tried to wake him up as soon as he finally found out where he was. Keane rubbed the back of his head as the blonde helped him stand up off the ground. Looking out at the horizon, there was still a bit of color left in it, so luckily it wasn't really that late. The more he thought about it, the worse the timing was for him to be worrying everyone in the castle.

"Um, how long they been looking?" he asked sheepishly, not really looking Straton in the eye.

"About an hour, it really hasn't been that long," the blonde reassured. Keane nodded, and started heading out of his little hiding place, before a thought occurred to him, and he stopped to turn back towards his odd companion.

"Hey…" he started, looking Straton over one or twice, "How is it that you, of all the people and guards probably looking for me, were able to find me first?" Straton seemed to have to think this over for a few moments, before finally shrugging noncommittally.

"I guess I just know you better then them," he decided, and all Keane could do was take this as the truth. He didn't really have anything to prove otherwise, after all, and truth be told the guards and probably all of the other princes for that matter, if they were even looking, didn't really know him as well as Straton did.

"Yeah…" the red head mumbled, turning back around and leaving his secluded corner in order to face whatever punishment was to be set out for him, which, from the worry he caused Straton alone, not to mention the rest of the palace, he probably deserved.

In the end the punishment was little more then being grounded. When he wasn't in class he was to be in his room, with all his meals delivered. What made this bearable was that Straton volunteered to be the one delivering all his food, and made sure to stay even after he had dropped it off. This was to go on for a week, and truthfully, Keane was just thankful for having a legitimate excuse to avoid the other princes. Save for Straton.

He was three days into his week long sentence when the blonde haired prince stopped in with both their dinners, as per usual. Truthfully this all wasn't much different from how he did things before, only really going to the courtyard and such on the rare occasion he got a very quick spot of free time. Keane was not about to tell them this though and purposefully give himself a worse punishment.

"Hey Strat?" the red head asked. He wasn't sure when he'd started calling the younger boy this, it just started happening after a while. If he really thought about it, it was the first nickname he'd given someone since Myrrha had died. Straton looked up from his food when he was addressed, and Keane quickly tried to find a way to put into words what he was thinking, something that was becoming increasingly difficult.

"I was just wondering… what do you think is going to happen?" he asked after a quick moment. Straton cocked his head to the side a bit, not appearing to entirely understand the question.

"What do I think is going to happen about what?" he asked, and Keane shrugged slightly, although he knew exactly what he meant by his question.

"Y'know, about the whole thing going on with the country, and all the riots… there was another small one on the outskirts of the city earlier today…" the red head explained, mumbling the last part slightly. He'd just heard it from his tutor in his last class, and wasn't sure if everyone had gotten the news yet. From Straton's reaction he guessed he hadn't.

"I really don't know…" the blonde said quietly, looking out the window towards the restless city surrounding them from all sides. Suddenly, Straton stood up from his chair and started heading towards the door. "I'll be back in a moment," he said, and Keane smiled slightly for what he was pretty sure the first time that day.

"Promise not to come back with a bloody nose or something?" he asked, referencing the incident which had now been over a month ago. Straton stopped where he was to smile and nod at the red head though.

"Of course," he said, before continuing his way out the door. He quickly made his way to his room, which was about halfway down the hallway from Keane's. On the inside Straton knew that nothing he did would truly bring the redhead any real peace, but that didn't mean trying to cheer him up at least a little bit was out of the question too.

Quickly grabbing the small trinket, he started back to where Keane was. Sure, his birthday had been several months ago, the same day he was named official crowned prince of Sailand, but the princes didn't really get each other anything for their birthdays anyway, not to mention the whole difficulty with how to get something for someone who already has everything. In the end it wasn't useful or expensive, just something he'd found, but right now the redhead needed anything he could to cheer him up after any of the false hope he'd built up for himself was pretty much dashed.

It didn't take him very long at all to find himself back at the door to Keane's room and letting himself in. The red head looked him over once before lying back down onto his bed. "So what was all that about?" he asked without looking up at the blonde. Straton didn't answer though, Keane instead feeling something being placed on top of him, and glancing up to see Straton walking back over to his normal spot at the older boy's desk chair.

Glancing down, Keane spotted a little wooden bird sitting on his stomach. Picking it up, he pushed himself into a sitting position and stared at Straton for an explanation.

"It's a bird. They're said to represent freedom and the such, I thought you would find it a bit uplifting," the blonde explained, and Keane couldn't help but smile as he looked the small creature over. Freedom huh? While he definitely wasn't taking his grounding all that hard, he could most certainly use a break from the cage the anger of the country was placing him in.

"Uplifting? Yeah, I guess I can see that. Thanks Strat," he said as he turned the bird over in his hand a few times. Sometimes it was just plain odd how he didn't feel like he was actually related to any of the other princes at all. The exception was of course Straton, and even that had only started less then four months ago.

Looking over at the blonde sitting in his desk chair rereading his Asterian book, then back at the little bird, Keane made a mental note to thank Maxwell one day for pushing him into that pond. He probably would of never ended up talking to the strange boy if it wasn't for that, and he really didn't think there would be any way he could of lasted though the stress of the country falling apart at the seams without breaking completely if he was entirely alone.

And besides, it realy would make him angry.

Hurray. Done, and super duper tired. This heat is killing me, stupid air conditioner doesn't reach the top floor right. Anyway, huge storm coming next chapter. Hurray for plans. I promise many of your unanswered questions will be answered in the next two (or three) installments.

I hope you like it and please review. (This was updated a day later then planned due to a spider forcefully kicking me out of the room, and I threw my computer down to get away. Stupid sever arachnophobia.)