(no subject)

[triompher.livejournal.com]

[ it had been five days full of nothing but silently following robert along, knowing their path yet allowing the younger boy to take the lead due to his mood. who could blame him, though? he was already well aware of robert and annabelle having a close-knit relationship, one that nobody (not even himself) could wiggle their way into. despite being quite inept to the full extent of the bond the two siblings had, he was perceptive enough to realize that their parting had been quite different than their usual. this is why he ceased the typical banter he always initiated, whether it be with good intent or not.

when robert had finally spoken and begun to say more than a discussion of their plans, he knew that his neighboring prince had begun to settle back into place. dare he say it was a comfort of sorts, despite being the one that needed to be extra strong and encouraging. and with that hurtle behind them, the elder of the two moved to his rightful position once more: on robert's left side, striding next to him as if they're simply taking a walk and nothing more. he subtly kept his pace slower than usual as to not pass the boy, using the map robert had previously pilfered from the archives as a silent excuse to keep their position leveled and even, as they had finally reached territory that both of them weren't completely familiar with.

keeps to their comfortable silent for a while longer. stops in his tracks when a thought hits him and pauses. face is rather straight as he says: ]

I'm hungry.

Comments

[sauvegarder.livejournal.com]

[ it's been a difficult five days, each day more difficult than the last on account of the knowledge that every step was taking him further away from the castle (annabelle). against his will, he finds himself replaying the farewell over & over in his mind, unable to shake the worry that has plagued him ever since his first intake of breath of the outside. the only point of pride is that he hasn't looked behind him once since the journey had begun, fully intent on completing their quest at a timely pace such that he may return all the sooner. still, it takes him most of the first three days to speak more than a handful of words & one more to steadily push himself back to baseline. even five days in, he finds his mind wandering -- thinking. not thinking. remembering. dazing.

but he does snap out of the reverie when riku's voice echoes off his eardrums, snapping the entirety of his attention on the other prince. gives him a long look, then unhooks the bag slung over his shoulder to offer in riku's direction. ]

You have a choice between dried bread, dry crackers, dried fruit, or jerky.

[triompher.livejournal.com]

[ takes it despite making a face down at the bag. ]

A feast for kings.

[sauvegarder.livejournal.com]

You've no rights to complaints. As it were, I do not remember you being present at the time of its preparation.

[triompher.livejournal.com]

What's that? "I thank you for coming along on this journey with me to keep me company"? Well, I suppose I may consider that a proper expression of gratitude.

[sauvegarder.livejournal.com]

I will utter my proper thanks when we complete this quest, or lay dying.

[ short pause, then grudgingly. ] But you may have two jerkies should you need it.

[triompher.livejournal.com]

[ lifts a hand, resting it on top of robert's head. it almost seems as if he's merely giving some rare affection... up until he pushes some of his weight on him, as if using him as an armrest. ]

Well aren't you just the sweetest thing.

[sauvegarder.livejournal.com]

[ grunts a little, then outright oofs at the weight. glares up at him through his bangs. ]

Move your arm or lose it, heathen.

couple of weeks later...

[sauvegarder.livejournal.com]

[ it's a gradual thing, something that begins in the middle of the night that eventually find completion before dawn. his body is edging closer & closer to the only warmth he is able to find in his unconscious state (that being riku). there are nonsense words being mumbled under his breath throughout the entire process as he shifts around during his slumber, eyes fluttering as he dreams off & on of a brother. of safety. of endless food. by the end of it, he's curled right up against riku, his forehead pressed against the side of a thigh. stays like that for a while longer before his arms wiggle out from under the blankets to wrap themselves around riku's legs.

wiggles a bit to settle himself into a comfortable position, pressing himself as close as possible as he murmurs a single phrase, spoken almost too softly to be picked up: ]

. . . I'm sorry.

[triompher.livejournal.com]

[ he's dead to the world at this point in time, having finally gotten some proper sleep after stubbornly staying up as much as possible to keep to the private promise he had made to robert several weeks ago. thus he is slow to notice the prince clinging onto him, cracking an eye open when he hears some murmuring that sounds suspiciously like i'm sorry. stares at their position for a while longer in silence.

... must be dreaming. yeah, that must be it.

he closes that eye but soon lifts his head when he doesn't feel the weight leave his body, observing the strange phenomenon while still half-asleep. opens his mouth when he gains some coherency and then closes it, slowly placing his head back onto the ground. can't help but softly puff out a breath of amusement through his nose, lifting a hand to play with the ends of robert's hair idly, the touch barely there. just lets him stay like that for now, finding no harm in the contact. at least for now, anyway. ]

[sauvegarder.livejournal.com]

[ is roused by the familiar sensation of his hair being touched, only hope giving him enough motivation to pry open his eyes. is still drowsy when he cranes his gaze upward to drink in the scenario as it stands. comprehension doesn't come to him even after a long moment. ends with him tilting his head a little, deeply confused. his voice is still thick with sleepiness when he speaks. ]

Not. Annabelle. . . ?

[triompher.livejournal.com]

[ quirks another smile, feeling more awake than he did a few minutes ago, fueled entirely by robert's words (and expression). ]

I'm afraid not. [ flicks a strand of blond hair lazily. ] Rise and shine, Your Highness.

1/6

[sauvegarder.livejournal.com]

Rise and. . .

[ ... ]

[sauvegarder.livejournal.com]

Shine. . .

[ ... ... .. ]

[sauvegarder.livejournal.com]

. . .

[sauvegarder.livejournal.com]

[ another glance, but this time at their positions. ]

[sauvegarder.livejournal.com]

. . . !!!

[sauvegarder.livejournal.com]

[ DISLODGES & reaches for his dagger. ]

YOU--!

[triompher.livejournal.com]

[ keeps his position on the ground, looking over at robert with disinterest. lazily yawns before rubbing an eye. ]

Me.

[sauvegarder.livejournal.com]

[ grips the blade as steadily as he can, stabbing downward at a thigh -- misses by a few centimeters due to his hand-eye coordination being slightly off at this hour. snarls. ]

Who allowed you onto my patch of grass?!

weeks into their town-hopping...

[sauvegarder.livejournal.com]

[ if he's being optimistic, he'd say that they were having little luck. it's more realistic to say to say that they had absolutely no leads, even weeks later. the hunger situation isn't as severe anymore, not with them hopping between towns; he's gotten used to surviving on rations for small days at a time. but with towns had come the important middle ground of their journey -- information seeking. he'd kept his hopes as low as he could, mentally prepared for a long hurdle through rumours and lacking intel. but to have absolutely nothing?

the thought makes him snarl a quiet profanity under his breath while slicing through one of the lower branches jutting out from a tree. the force behind his violence leaves his arm feeling a little shaky, forcing him to switch the blade into his left hand so that he can shake out his abused right. doesn't even spare a glance at riku, knowing himself to be far too irritable to hold a proper conversation; stomps on ahead in moody silence, hoping the other prince would get the hint & leave him to sulk for a little while longer. ]

[triompher.livejournal.com]

[ he had slowly become accustomed to those days when silence was a must, where he'd look elsewhere and pretend to find something extremely interesting in the process of robert's up and down moods. half of him wondered if his companion was secretly a woman (the irony would be quite amusing, considering) and that he was subjected to traveling with one of great displeasure for x-amount of months. the better part of him was wise enough to not make these jabs, careful to not push robert too much due to more pressing matters at hand.

raises an eyebrow when he watches him throw one of his quiet fits, content in walking behind a handful of steps away to observe the boy. it's only a a few minutes later that they come upon a lake, strolling on over to the ledge that's nearby to peer down at it. after some quiet consideration he takes a seat a little ways away from the water, palms pressed flat against the ground behind him as he uses that for leverage. looks over his shoulder at robert, calling out to the brooding boy: ]

I believe it is time for my daily moment of rest.

[sauvegarder.livejournal.com]

[ stops in his tracks at the voice, looking over his shoulder at riku with a slight frown. ]

You cannot be serious. We've at least two miles left before you are truly pushed beyond your limits.

[triompher.livejournal.com]

[ looks like he's getting rather comfortable. ]

Someone this beautiful must take many-a rests. But I am such a kind, generous man, and thus I sacrifice much for thee. So I believe I deserve one at this moment in time.

[sauvegarder.livejournal.com]

[ scowls. then considers riku's words. then settles down right where he was standing, crossing his legs indian-style. ]

Fine. Ten minutes.

[triompher.livejournal.com]

[ watches him carefully, eyes roaming to the ground. notices a flower there and plucks it, lazily rolling on over to robert. lands on his back, holding the flower up to him as he says, a little plainly: ]

Cheer up.