Chapter 5: Big expectations

5 annuals later…

Ambrose was tucking on his dress uniform for the hundredth time now, the collar was too tight so that his Adams apple was constantly brushing over the fabric , he also had the feeling that the sleeves were too short since he had grown again after the last Royal ball. All in all he was very unsatisfied about his outer appearance and it didn't get better when Cain entered the room being perfectly dressed …of course.

"Ready for the big party?" He announced with a sing-songish voice and that damn smile on his face. Ambrose only rolled his eyes in response and harrumphed when his friend stepped closer.

"You know that I hate these things. I will only blend into the wallpaper again after all." He couldn't suppress as sigh although he knew that Cain wouldn't approve of his constant moaning.

"Oh come on don't be silly Ambrose, you LOVE dancing and we will find nice ladies for you and me to dance with." At that Ambrose blushed lightly and Cain had to pat him on the back for support.

Since they had reached puberty not only their voices had changed. Cain was almost a head taller than him now and he didn't shave off the stubble that was decorating his face because he claimed that the girls were loving it. While Cain started to look tall and muscular though, Ambrose was pale and lanky and not a single hair wanted to grow on his face. Cain had become a real charmer and gentleman and the girls their age loved him. Ambrose was silent and clumsy when he talked to girls and more than one had rejected his offers to dance. Slowly but surely Ambrose was asking himself if he wanted to spend his evening with one of the ladies after all.

"Why did my mom allow you to join these boring royal events again? You're not as good at encouraging me as mother hoped." This time it was Ambrose who gave Cain a mischievous grin.

"You know why," Cain answered with a deep masculine voice and wiggled with his eyebrows so that Ambrose burst out laughing.

"I see you're a true ladies man and mother hopes that you will help me to find my future bride, but I'm only 15I shouldn't be forced to look for girls!" The prince whined.

"And yet we're here, well, there is no turning back now, so hurry up. Today is a special day." With another pat on Ambrose back, the young Cain boy turned around and headed for the door. Before going off to the ball and the festivities, he moved his head for one last time and now the joy on his face was purely genuine.

"Before I forget it … Happy Birthday old boy." Then he was gone.

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The celebrations were in full swing when he finally entered the ballroom but his nerves weren't set at ease when he saw how many people from all over the country had come to celebrate the 15th Birthday of him and his twin sister. Unlike the 16th Birthday, where the court and the magical oracle of OZ would decide which of them would become the successor of their mother, the 15th Birthday was the last celebration of their time as carefree children.

Ambrose didn't count a room full of nobles from all four nations and a crowd of giggling girls a carefree Birthday celebration though. He was glad when he spotted Cain standing in a corner with his younger sister, Rose, and Ambrose's younger sister, Thea.

"I tell you, you're too small. The Queen won't let you stay till Midnight." It looked like they were in a debate about Thea's and Rose's bedtime again.

"Try me! I think we will be allowed to stay up till midnight this time, we're 10 now you will see!" Rose stuck out her tongue at Cain but suddenly blushed when she saw that Ambrose was approaching him. The boy didn't know when it had started but the little girl had a crush on him and couldn't help but turn beet red whenever they shared looks.

"Hello Ambrose, wanna tell Cain that we will be allowed to see mother's speech?" His sister Thea asked him. The brunette nodded when he entered their circle to tell Cain that he shared his opinion but when he turned to his sister and Rose he shrugged with his shoulders and gave them an encouraging look.

"I will cross my fingers for you, but I can't promise it." With that he turned around to Cain again who was sipping on a glass of sparkling wine. With 16 he was allowed to drink some alcohol at special occasions.

"Have you spotted anyone to your liking?" This usually wasn't their normal type of conversation, but Ambrose knew that Cain wanted to meet a girl and he didn't want to be the party killer at his own birthday party. He also wanted to be what all the older boys were for each other, he wanted to help Cain with finding a nice lady and he wanted to be a match maker.

" I have indeed, but I found someone for both of us." Looking to the direction where Cain was pointing Ambrose could spot a brunette beauty with long curly hair and a pale goddess with straight strawberry blonde hair that was laying on her shoulder in thick braids. Ambrose turned around to Cain again to make sure that he really meant these two and when his friend nodded with a grin he had to gulp.

"They look like they would eat guys like me for breakfast," the prince stammered ´but Cain knew no mercy and pushed him forward in the direction of the young ladies.

"I will be always at your side and I doubt that they're hungry anymore, the buffet is much too good," With a wink Cain let go of Ambrose's shoulders and courageously walked towards the ladies only to stop with a bow and a smirk.

"Good evening ladies, mind if my friend and I share your company for the evening?" He asked with a honey sweet voice and the girls both blushed lightly.

"See it's easy-peasy," Cain whispered to Ambrose ,who doubted that even one of them was blushing because of him instead of the blond.

The ladies whispered something unintelligible, before they faced the two guys and nodded with a giggly expression on their faces.

Without an invitation Cain laid his hands around the shoulders of the brunette who looked like she would faint any minute and instructed his friend to do the same with the blonde goddess. Ambrose gulped again when he watched the small shoulders of the girl in front of him. She looked like she was made out of porcelain and he didn't want to hurt her. When he heard that the girl was getting impatient though, he threw off all his doubts and calculations and awkwardly wrapped one of his arms around her waist.

The girl didn't look very satisfied but she didn't mean to be rude and gave him an assuring smile.

"You know my friend here is a little bit shy, but I can only recommend you to dance with him because he is a fantastic dancer! And who knows maybe he will be King of Oz one day," Cain said reassuringly as he saw that the blonde was looking at Ambrose as if he was a weird curiosity. Within one second Ambrose knew that Cain didn't need a friend to help him find a girl, but that Ambrose was glad for the help of Cain. Instead of accepting Cain's offer, though the girls suddenly burst out laughing and looked at Ambrose and Cain with nasty smiles on their faces.

"Him? KING of OZ? PAH! Everyone knows that Oz only has Queens since the coronation of Dorothy the Great and with him and his sister it won't be different. Ozma will be the new Queen of Oz and this freak here will be glad if Ozma will make him her adviser. Come Annabelle it smells too much of weirdos in this corner," the brunette said with a horrible sounding snarl and left with her hand wrapped around the wrist of her blonde friend.

Ambrose and Cain were left behind with shocked expressions on their faces and when Ambrose looked at his friend he could tell that the boy was boiling.

"Stupid, mindless, arrogant bitches. How dare them to say something like this?" He asked with anger written on his face and evident in his voice. Ambrose only shook his head sadly.

"They're right though, I heard my parents talking about it and they both agreed that the Oracle of Oz will choose my sister." He said silently.

"Bullshit, no one can know what the old oracle will say. You would make a good and kind king." Cain responded and Ambrose was asking himself why it was so important for Cain that he became king and if he meant what he said.

"Thank you nevertheless. I think they weren't worth my dancing skills after all," the prince responded and now his friend had to smile again.

"Would you give me the honor of a dance then?" Cain smirked and Ambrose frowned at him, not knowing if he should be surprised or shocked.

"Wouldn't that look a little bit too weird?" The brunette asked cautiously, but Cain didn't want to hear any of it.

"I don't care what they say, it's your birthday and if these ladies are too ignorant to appreciate your dancing skills I'll have to cut in for now." It sounded like he said it with complete carelessness but Ambrose knew that his friend was worried… and that for a reason, it wasn't very common that two guys danced with each other, especially not the heir to the throne and his best friend.

"Cain you don't hav-," Ambrose started but was interrupted by Cain's horn-ridged hand that covered his lips.

"I don't want to hear any of it! I lead, you follow, is that clear now?" Although Cain sounded very commanding , Ambrose had to grin when he imagined that he and his friend would be at the center of the dance floor any minute now and he couldn't suppress a tiny laugh when he imagined his mothers face when she would see them in action. Being still a bit unsure about their plan but willing to go forward with it he nodded.

"Understood Mr. Cain!" He saluted and within a blink of an eye he was guided to the dance floor and although the people around them started to look a bit uneasy, they both started to dance a simple waltz.

Ambrose couldn't explain the tingly feeling in his tummy, or the heat that was boiling inside of him when their feet moved to the rhythm of the music and their bodies touched at places that no one had ever touched on Ambrose body, but he knew that he was having fun for the first time at this evening and for a moment he even caught himself thinking that his and Cain's entwined hands fit perfectly into each other. He brushed of this silly fluffy thought though and looked into Cain's icy blue eyes instead.

The tingly feeling still wasn't gone when his mother caught their attention and demanded to know why they were dancing and it even wasn't gone when Cain let go of his hands and excused himself. Ambrose felt like he was in trance when he watched his best friend heading off for the buffet to fetch another glass of sparkling wine, until his sister suddenly approached him.
"Have you lost your mind? You can't just dance with Cain in front of everybody else. Mother is completely furious!" She whispered and now all of Ambrose's senses came back and he was released from his dream land.

"Why? It's not like dancing with a guy or your best friend is a crime," Ambrose answered snippy.

"I didn't say that, but people stare, Ambrose. It's better if you hide your true feelings, the royals won't approve of it. Mother will announce in her speech that she has big expectations in mind for us." With that she was gone and left a confused Ambrose behind.

True feelings? What was his sister talking about? Was it such a crime to have fun with Cain? They used to have that since they first met and Ambrose wouldn't stop now.

On the other hand he flinched when Cain's hand landed on his shoulder for the 10th time this evening and he felt the butterflies in his tummy again.

Was he wanting more than friendship from Cain?

For the rest of the evening Ambrose was trapped in his own mind, all his thoughts dealing with the one big question: Was he falling in love with Cain? Did he even have feelings for girls or only for boys?

Deep in thought he didn't notice the fantastic speech of his mom, that his sister Thea and Rose where allowed to hear, which told of the future of OZ and the peace and harmony that would carry on through the reign of her eldest daughter and her son. He also didn't notice that Cain was watching him for the rest of the evening with worry in his eyes since he couldn't know that his friend looked so sad because he was unsure about his true feelings and not because of the words from the girls that were too stupid for their own good after all.

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It was far after midnight of the next day when Ambrose heard the door of his chamber opening with a low crack. There was only one person around the palace who was able to open the old creaky door as silent as possible and that was Cain. Ambrose wasn't sure if he wanted to see his friend right now but he didn't protest when he could feel the light pressure at the end of his bed.

"Brosey, rise and shine... it's time for your morning calculations." Cain whispered lightly and Ambrose had to stop himself from kicking Cain for calling him Brosey. It was a nickname that his sister Thea had used when she had been only 5 and Cain found that it was too funny to easily forget.

"I should banish you from my room for calling me that," Ambrose said with a smirk, but the smile vanished from his face when he opened his eyes and saw the serious and stern look on Cain's face.

"We need to talk," was the short reply of his friend.

Ambrose lit a candle on his nightstand and now that the room was brighter he could see that Cain looked tired and worn out.
"What happened?" The brunette asked with worry in his voice.

"My dad gave me this letter before he and my mom went to bed. He said that he is proud of me and that they would expect only the best from me." Before Ambrose could ask him about this puzzling statement, Cain unwrapped a piece of paper and handed it to his friend.

Dear Mr. Wyatt Cain jr.

We're glad to inform you that the Academy of Oz has chosen you to attend this year's class for the training of new Tin Man recruits. Due to your good reputations and a recommendation of the Queen we want to offer you a full scholarship for all three years of your education program and we would be honored to count you among the students of the new semester. Please let us know if you accept our offer within the next week, training begins next month.

Yours sincerely,
Edmund Lonot

"Cain… that is... fantastic... you will become a great Tin Man!" Ambrose exclaimed as he had finished reading the letter in front of his eyes.

"But I don't know if I even want to become a Tin Man! Sure it is what my father does and it's an honorable job because I will protect the people of OZ and serve my country… but it's...," Cain said but this time Ambrose interrupted him.

"Not what your heart wants," he finished for him.

"Yeah it's all still very foggy, maybe in a few years I will say that it was the best decision I ever made, but right now it feels so wrong," He said and for the first time since they were little kids Cain sounded desperate and helpless, it almost made Ambrose cry.

"You know... I don't know if I want to become King ... or Duke of one of the four nations, but I know that whatever decision I make it will be for the best, maybe not for the country, but for myself. So whatever your heart tells you...you should do what YOU want and not what other people tell you to do." The brunette laid a comforting hand on his friend's hand and the touch really seemed to relax Cain. After a moment of silence he smiled again and faced Ambrose with the familiar sparkle in his eyes.

"You would make an awesome advisor, you know that?" He said, and Ambrose hoped that Cain wouldn't see the blush that was forming on his face.

"Yeah maybe I will do that... become an advisor I mean, my sister surely needs one. See you can be everything you want to be," Ambrose answered with a raspy voice... for a moment his throat felt as if he had swallowed a frog.

"Hmm... maybe if you can become an advisor and duke I could become a Tin Man after all... Maybe I could take care of the horses rather than solving crimes," Cain laughed silently before his look changed into a stern one again.

"This would mean, though, that I will have to leave the palace in a month." The words felt like daggers were being stabbed into Ambrose heart at the thought that his best friend was going to leave, now that he was starting to ask himself if he had deeper feelings for the blond. However he gave Cain a reassuring smile, when those worried blue eyes looked at him questionably.

"You can write letters to me and I could write back and tell you all about the new rumors at the palace." He hoped that his smile looked honest and not forced, Cain seemed to buy it at least.

"Oh yes I wouldn't know what I do without the rumors about Emma and the new butler, Francis," Cain laughed lightly.

"I would accept the offer for such a chance won't come again. Your parents are surely proud of you and if you don't think that it's the right thing for you, remember my words and come back," Ambrose said when it went silent again.

"And you think that I would make a good Tin Man?" Cain asked suspiciously.

"The best," Ambrose answered with honest compassion in his voice.

"Well if the future head advisor of the Queen says so I can't regret this offer, right?"

"You can always say no, it's all up to you," Ambrose answered and this time he sounded sad.

"We will write and I will visit you whenever I can," Cain answered caringly.

"I don't doubt it," the brunette said with a sad smile.

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Cain didn't stay all too long after that. They both were tired and Cain was glad that Ambrose had helped him and that he could finally sleep in peace again. He had announced that he would accept the offer, just to see if it really wasn't what he wanted and was just to make his parents proud. Ambrose's advice, to do that what his heart told him had made him feel more confident about his future decisions and no Academy would bind him to an endless life as a cop. Only if his heart decided that it was the right thing.

Ambrose on the other hand couldn't sleep that night. The thought that Cain would leave was too painful and the thought that his mother had arranged all this after his disastrous behavior at the ball wouldn't want to leave his mind.
Did his mother know about Ambrose's recent doubts? Could she feel that her son was questioning his sexuality? Did she fear her sons feelings?

With no sleep at all he spent the night with thinking and in the morning he felt worse than before.

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One month later Cain left for the Academy and Ambrose was asking himself if every goodbye would leave a house of shards, like Cain's departure did.

A.N: Okay guys before I say anything else I want to say thanks for the follower! I will continue posting so please don't give up on me. I might have abandoned stories in the past but I still have loads of ideas for this one here. Right what I wanted to say here. Sorry to those who aren't really into Glitch/Cain or /Ambrose /Cain ..but I do and I wanted to add some love. For a long time this will be only one-sided love but otherwise it won't work out with the rest so sorry as well to those who read this story because it is Cain/Glitch. More next Saturday ;) Thanks for reading and for supporting my story!