@atraeris
It would come as a surprise to no one that Prince Tenya wasn’t used to breaking the rules. On the rare occasion he broke one as a child, even if he thought no one else was aware, he’d stew in disappointed guilt in himself until he couldn’t stand it any longer and would out himself for his infraction. On one memorable occasion, he’d burst into his older brother’s room in the middle of the night with the tearful contriteness of a confessing murderer. He’d held out the crumbled remains of a cookie he’d secreted into his pocket earlier that day as he gave a prepared speech about why he knew what he’d done was wrong and could Tensei please tell Mother and Father that he would never do it again? The crown prince and castle staff were particularly fond of retelling that one, despite Tenya’s increasingly embarrassed requests for them to stop.
All this to explain why, when he was spotted sweating outside the royal treasury by the royal guard, no one suspected him of any wrongdoing. No matter that he had no discernible business being there. He was merely trying a new route for his morning run, he explained, despite the fact that neither his dress nor his footwear was suitable for trekking out in the boggy grass outside the building. It was inconsequential that it was in the small hours of the morning. And that there were plenty more designated areas for such a thing.This was Tenya they were talking to, and he never broke the rules.
When he reached his royal chambers, he made doubly sure both his outer and inner doors were locked securely before he pulled his prize from inside his vest. He set the item on his desk, just staring at it while he collected himself. To the uninformed observer, it simply looked like a well-crafted bottle. Sure, it was decorated lovingly with intricate golf paint patterns accented with brightly colored jewels, but the only value it had was perhaps monetary. Tenya knew better. It was the solution to all his problems. All he had to do was rub it.
He hoped.
He swallowed as he picked the lamp bottle up again, careful not to rub the surface as he did so. This was it. His last chance to pull out and abort this ridiculous scheme. Hell, perhaps he should just stuff it into his wardrobe and wait for a better time to sneak it back into the treasury from where he’d stolen it. Its absence wouldn’t be noticed for months, possibly over a year. But if he did that, he’d still be stuck with the same problem he’d been sitting with for weeks. Right back where he’d started with nothing to show for all the planning and effort he’d gone through to obtain the lamp. The thought was enough to push him past the last barrier. Taking one deep calming breath and rub the lamp, the magic words spoken beseechingly. “Vahl t'nash-veh istaya.” Grant my wish. “Please.”
