***
Juele Fiore
November 1, 1800

"I personally don't believe in this war, Father. I do, however, agree with a few points you made. I suggest we should start with a negotiation before waging war against Tereline," Juele Fiore said, playing with the jewels on his bracelet. "Wouldn't you agree?"

King Fiore stroked his beard. He'd been in a good mood for the last five days, so he was bound to agree today before regretting it tomorrow. The king's happy days never lasted longer than a week, but his negative days sometimes lasted years. "Juele, I can see where you are coming from, but every time we tried to reach out to them, they refused to even meet us."

Jules wanted to laugh, wanted to release a demon in the room and allow it to devour every last living soul. But he'd promised himself to hold on and tolerate the war council until the war became history.

From the way things were going, it would be going into history much differently than he hoped.

"However, when you suggested I marry Princess Maya Djord, they agreed to that. Tereline must've opened up to us slightly." What the prince didn't say was: If you were planning a war long before you agreed to the alliance, why bother agreeing? Why let your son marry the daughter of your greatest enemy? To tear them apart from the inside? To use Maya as a bargaining tool?

"If they've opened up," started Sir Collinson, "attacking them is the perfect route."

"Not everything is solved with violence, Sir Collinson." Jules sighed, gripping his golden-brown hair, fixating his brown eyes onto Collinson.

For the last three meetings, Juele tried hard to waver their thought process, and in those meetings, Juele learned how to speak to old men who were days away from death. Speaking to them in their own language. Manipulation and kissing up to the king. However, speaking in their language became difficult when he was tired and agitated. "Are you willing to sacrifice our soldiers? Are you ready to tell families, 'Sorry, but since Tereline is reserved and unwilling to give us their land, we'll have to send your children to war.'"

Collinson opened his mouth to retaliate, but the king held a hand up, ending the meeting. "I believe we need some time to think things over."

All twenty war advisors bustled out of the room, leaving Jules alone with his father--his uncle, rather.

The wind rushed into the room from the window, blowing out the candles with a swoosh.

"July," said King Fiore, beckoning him to take a seat next to him. "I have to ask you something."

"Yes, King Fiore."

Juele fell into his seat, not bothering to keep his legs shut.

"July, why are you against the war?"

Juele clenched his fist, his only way to hold his hysterical laughter in his chest. Why are you against the war? "I don't want to taint Auber with unnecessary death. We should avoid massive losses of soldiers and civilians alike. This war is not in Auber's favour, especially with the castle just a few miles from the border."

"Why do you think that is? Why is our castle so close to the border?"

A trick question? Everybody in Auber knew the answer to this. "Because Tereline won our land in a previous war."

"Exactly, July. I want to reclaim that land. I want to return Auber to its glory. We used to be a country even Britain feared, but now we're one of their allies when it should be the other way around."

"Even so," Juele said, his voice raspier than before. He should clear his throat, but he couldn't bring himself to do anything but refute everything his father said. It had become his ultimate pass time. Picking fights with every willing person. "How do you plan on winning with all of our strongholds so close to the border."

To this, the king roared in laughter. "What makes you think I haven't prepared for that?"

The prince nodded weakly. "Shall I take my leave?"

The king thought about it, wondering whether he should. "Sure, but do me a favour."

"What is it?"

"Actually, I have two favours I want you to do for me."

Juele gave a look saying, Tell me what you want, but it was a soft face. Much fainter than the way he imagined it in his head.

"First, go to meet your sister. Princess Ytger has started moving around in her slumber. And second, there's a prisoner I want you to meet."

***

Upon arriving at his sister's room, Jules closed the windows and grabbed a spare blanket for himself. To keep Ytger alive, even in her sleep--the one that lasted years--the room needed to be cold. The physician noticed unhealthy behaviour whenever the Princess' Suite was warm.

Which wasn't a desirable thing for the prince. He would shiver in his room even during spring.

He noticed her twitch an eyebrow every so often, wiggle a finger.

Every time she moved, Jules was reminded of her smile. More than anything, he wanted her to wake up. Ytger had been in her coma ever since Aeryn moved away from the castle nearly seven years ago. Back when he was twelve, and she was his age.

"Ytger," he whispered as he hugged himself under the blanket. The dark room, lit by a single candle, provided a comfort nothing else could.

As much as he preferred the pirate lifestyle, he missed having a stable home, having a bed taller than him and feeling secure. With the freedom of a pirate came the fear of loss. The fear of the British Navy finding you or even the thought of the White Crow sinking made Juele want to return to the Arce Ace.

"Ytger, I wish nothing more than for you to wake up." He smiled at nothing, his eyes focused on the curtains rather than his sister. He wouldn't be able to look at her without crying or tearing up. "I'm almost embarrassed to say that it was the king who told me to come here."

He expected a reply from her, but all Jules got was the sound of cloth folding upon itself as the wind pushed the curtain.

"I miss you, and I'm sure I've told you that enough. You know, Aeryn became a pirate, and her brother, Dain, turned out to be nothing better than a dog. She told me what he did to her, or what he failed to do rather. You ought to forget about him when you wake up. I know you were friends with Dain, but he is unworthy of your friendship. He could not even take care of his sister."

Silence.

"Ytger," Jules said, his voice shaking. "I'm not sure what I should say. Ever since I last met you, I kept writing things I wanted to tell you in a notebook, but I asked a friend to hold it for a second. She has it now, so until I get my hands on it, I'll tell you all of my broken memories."

Silence again.

"I lived as a pirate for a few weeks. It was fun, but it constantly gave me the feeling that I was going to die. Also, I returned to Auber only for Father--or Uncle, rather, to have me arrested. Funny, right? I understand the king's situation. He has such extreme mood changes, but at the same time, every time I see him, I want to choke him to death and gouge out his eyeballs with a fork and make bowls out of his knee caps. But then I remember how he was before the power messed with his brain. The time he used to love me with his actions rather than his empty words."

For a few minutes, Juele sat and watched his sister sleep, finally mustering the courage to look at her without crying. He forced his mind to think of anything other than her accident. Even though he kept his thoughts elsewhere, that memory kept playing on repeat in the background.

"Bye, Ytger," he said, waving his sister goodbye as he stood from the loveseat. "The king wants me to take care of a prisoner, so I'll see you later."

He shut the door quietly behind him as if she were sleeping and would wake up at even the smallest of sounds. It was his way of pretending she wasn't comatose.

Juele greeted the guard at her door and made his way to the dungeons. The dungeons were as secure as a dog without a leash.

Suddenly reminded of dogs, Jules regretted his decision of letting Indie escape with Maya. Breaking out of the dungeons seemed something he'd done ages ago, but it had been less than a week since it occurred.

Had Indie been by his side, there would have been a conscious life form to be his companion.

Descending the stairs into the dungeons, he walked past the prisoners Maya had made conversation with just days ago. All of them look deflated. Especially without Indie roaming around with the keys in her mouth. The prisoners lost their hope of escape. They no longer waved dog bones around or called Indie over with a voice too high even for a woman.

The dungeon was a place that tore down dignity, and now the prisoners saw that too.

"Cell number forty-eight," muttered Jules as he walked down the halls, occasionally focusing on the number next to a prison cell until he found the chamber he searched for.

Upon looking inside, Jules' eyes widened. He could've sworn she died.

"Hello, Prince Juele Fiore," said Lara, the woman who caused the attack on his engagement function.

"Lara," Juele said as if the name were a forgotten curse rather than a prisoner. "I thought you died."

"I was under the same impression," Lara replied, pushing her hair behind her ear. She rose to her feet slowly, clutching her body in pain. Though she was alive, it didn't seem she would be for long.

With sunken cheeks and a barking cough, Lara approached the prince and grabbed the bars separating her from the prince.

Juele stepped back and cleared his throat. "You know, I didn't believe it when my father told me you were still alive. But now that you are here, breathing, I can't help but ask you the millions of questions I have."

"Ask away, Prince."

"Why did you let those ruffians ruin my engagement party? You spoke of taking revenge against the castle for ruining your town, but upon further research, the town was ruined much before your birthday."

"Well," Lara started, her stance falling into nothing. "I didn't want you to marry that baboon."

Instead of defending Maya, he asked her why knowing that arguing with her would be useless. He'd caught her reading his letter to Aeryn and she ruined his engagement.

"I wanted you to myself."

Juele scoffed. "You are over a decade older than me. I hardly doubt our union would be appropriate."

"Age is just a number, is it not?"

"Not only is it a number, but it is also a gauge. Wouldn't it be odd for a middle-aged man to wed a girl who's just barely a woman? Not only would it be odd, but it would also mentally scar the poor girl. Age is power as well, and exercising such power on a younger person is horrendous."

"In that sense, you hold much more power than I do. You may be younger, but you are a prince."

"I wouldn't abuse my power regardless of who I wed, but this is not why I am here. I came to ask you about the engagement. Now, tell me everything from start to finish as quickly as you can."

Lara laughed hysterically. "I shan't tell a prince my ways."

"Apparently, you requested to speak to me many times. My father only told me this today, but if you fail to tell me what I need to know," Juele closed the distance and smirked so darkly, even a devil would shiver, "you'll be disposed of."

Lara gave it some thought, rolling the idea of revealing her crime in her head. "No."

Juele released the cell's bars and left the dungeon's. "I'll be back tomorrow, so think about it. You have two chances left before my patience runs out."

As the guards opened the door for him, all Juele could hear were Lara's screams and erratic behaviour combined with the other prisoner's complaints and moans.

Too bad they didn't know how to escape as he did.

***
Word Count: 2100