The prince was sitting on his father’s throne, again. Darius sat below him, cross legged on the cold stone, unsure if he liked being there, but knowing it was where Elkar wanted him.
“I’ll make a good king, won’t I?” Elkar said, smiling and leaning forward, elbows on his knees.
“My highness—” Darius started, then paused, trailing off and looking out past Elkar.
“Oh, come on, you can tell me.” His grin widened as he leaned down even farther and Darius had the delicate feeling that he was being toyed with. He was nearly sure of it, in fact, as Elkar continued. “I could give you whatever you want, you know.” He smirked.
“So you’re going to release me from my service then?” Darius said, raising an eyebrow.
Elkar simply laughed, head tilted back, throat bared, fingers curving into the stone armrests of his father’s throne. “Freedom? You want freedom? Really Darius, that’s not what I was going for.”
“You asked, your highness.”
“Oh, come now, don’t be bitter. If I gave you freedom, I’m pretty sure you’d leave me.”
“I love—”
“Yeah, you love power, the throne, and the life I could give you more than you love me.”
“We both know that’s not true, what with all of your crap I’ve stuck by your side through.”
Elkar blinked and studied him for a long moment, then stood and stepped towards him. Darius straightened up and crossed his arms. Elkar only grinned at him though, before reaching down and pulling him to his feet with calloused hands. He was supposed to have soft hands, Darius had though long ago, but too many sword and daggers had passed through them for that. Too many nights spent picking fights in dark alleys when he shouldn’t have been out of the castle.
The whispers in the streets said that he was more war than politics, more fighter than ruler, but Darius knew he was both.
“Darius,” Elkar said, and his hand constricted, tightening on his arm. “Stop asking. I’ve already told you it’s not negotiable.”
“You’re the prince. You could give it to me if you wanted to.”
“And therein lies the problem.” He released Darius, turned around, and once again took a seat on the throne. It wasn’t his, but one day it would be. “Now, I have things to do.”
“Elkar, can’t I—”
“Darius.”
He flinched, turned, and walked away.
