Chapter Text
“Snowy! You didn’t need to drink that! What if it was spiked?!”
Phainon averts his eyes, when he replies. “Well I did and can confirm- it was spiked. However, I didn’t want you to drink it because I know you would’ve as well.” His eyes slid over to her, watching her face.
“You can’t call me out like that. Hmph.” she pouts, eyes looking away. “I hate how well you can read me sometimes.”
“I am your younger brother after all. I learned from you.” he snickers before his head snaps up and a voice talks behind them.
“There you are, little Wolf.” he shivers- it was him .That strange lord from earlier- why was he here? Phainon hides the urge to frown and gives a tight smile, turning around, standing in front of Cyrene protectively. “Hello, my lord, is there something I can help you with?”
“I do apologize as it may have to wait for another day as I don’t feel too well right now, I again apologize.” “Duel me.” “I beg your pardon. Duel you?”
A sinister smile appears on the man’s face, and Phainon resists the urge to recoil physically. “Yes. As you see, I would like to duel for your hand.” A soft frown appears on the Deliverer’s face, his fan going up to hide it. “My.. hand? May I ask why?”
The smile gets worse, and he takes a small step back, keeping the fan over his mouth, eyes giving nothing away. “Why, it is easy. I’d be able to finally become a duke and I’d have the feared guard dog of Duchess Aglaea on a leash .”
“Is that.. All? You want me on a proverbial leash while you’re a duke? This doesn’t have anything to do with Duchess Aglaea’s estate does it?” his guard was up but the stupid lord couldn’t tell. ‘What a buffoon. I know he thinks he’s so smart.’
“Well, you would know when we get married-” ‘ when we get married ?’
“Well Mr..?” “Mr.Parrish.” “well, Mr. Parrish, you sure do seem mighty confident.” a soft southern drawl came from the white haired man’s mouth, an old habit he hadn’t stopped since coming to the city and to Aglaea’s estate. “May I ask why?” he bats his eyes from behind the fan, biting his lips to stifle a laugh, Cyrene hiding her face behind him,a hand over her mouth.
“It’s easy, really. You are so stupid to trust someone strange bringning you half drunk champagne and thinking they didn’t do anything to it. It’ll be an easy win. Of course, if anything goes wrong there is your spinster, Lady Cyrene. Though, if no one’s wanted her this long, I’ll probably just pass.”
“There is no need to involve My Lady in this, my Lord. another question, if I may.” the man- Mr parrish, is his gross name- nods, hair looking greasy and slicked back in the moonlight. “What are we dueling with? And pray tell, is it tonight or another day?”
He scoffs, a disgusting sound out of a rancid mouth, as spit sprays out of his mouth, landing on Phainon’s fan,and he bites back a sigh, getting fairly annoyed by this point. “Obviously tonight, no way will I pass this opportunity up. And the wooden swords on the training grounds. I grabbed some earlier just for this .”
There was someone else there- not the other men Mr- no- ‘ Lord ’ Parrish had been with, it was someone of higher standing. Mydeimos .
‘ What the fuck is he doing out here?! He could get sick! ’ Phainon keeps his face neutral,a little irritated and a little nervous with Mydei there.
Back to the swords, they were leaning against one of the pillars as one of the men brought it forward- Phainon recognized it as one of the ones who was most likely a lackey of the Parrish’s estate or a servant- one or the other, he sort of felt bad. Sort of.
Phainon bent down to whisper to Cyrene- “Now, I’m going to fight him, okay but I think half way through the fight, whatever he’d given me- I think its something to make me pass out, I’ve had it once before with Anaxagoras to practice fighting slightly impaired, don’t kill him it was for this reason. It’s a higher dosage then I’m used to, I need you to puppeteer me with your magic. Can you do that?” The fan is still covering their mouths, both side-eyeing the greasy blonde man, who smirked victoriously.
“I suppose I have to accept it, Lord Parrish . Who am I to let a duel stand unanswered?” Cyrene had not been given an answer to his request but he knew she would oblige him. The dewy grass, wet from the earlier rain in the day- which had stopped just in time for the ball, party, whatever. “Thats the spirit , future wife . Now let us get this on with.” the rat of a lord hurries on the grass, slipping slightly on the grass but quickly corrects himself, hoping Phainon didn’t see it (he did.).
Phainon bends down to cyrene one more time, a soft peck on the forehead and another whisper- “if you need to hide, I believe the crown prince is here, just right around that corner before the library doors. He hid there quite a bit when I used to tutor him. A pain in the ass, that one was.” he snickers softly, hearing shoes scoff the ground. Bingo . “If you ask nicely he might be able to hide you if you need it, alright?” He gives her a wolfish grin before a rude ahem takes his attention, and he turns back, heading out to the middle of the field, grabbing the other sword. “I apologize,my lord, I was just letting My lady not to worry. I didn’t mean to keep you waiting.”
The man shakes his head, a strand of greasy blonde hair falling over his face. “You need to be more efficient if you are to be my wife.”
Fighting an eyeroll that he feels deep in his soul, he and Cyrene would laugh about this in a little bit- Phainon knew he wasn’t marriage material. He was hideous, not physically but- everything else. He was born a commoner, then his own village burned down, Cyrene found him and he’d protect her and she would teach him to write and read. Then Duchess Aglaea found them when they were adults, she took them and Cifera in with Anaxagoras and since he knew how to fight, she asked him to learn sword fighting and to refine it. He obliged willingly.
He liked being relied on. But it was also tiring, but he kept on. Cyrene took to high society better then he did but they were still together- looking after each other and right now was no different.
“Apologies, again, my lord. Shall we begin?” the man only nods before launching himself at Phainon, sword raised- ah he was offensive, this means he could work on defensive positions.
The swords clang, splinters from the hit poking up on them- Phainon would have to apologize even though it wasn’t his idea.
A pull back before another swing, this time coming up from the side, getting blocked. ‘ Has he even trained with a sword before? ’ the man grits his teeth and pulls back, once again. “G-Give me a moment.” Phainon only nods, looking at the damage to the wooden sword. ‘ Hmm.. ’ his eyes go back to his opponent who is scowling.
The man straightens up, a glint in his eye and points the wooden sword at Phainon's chest. “If I can’t have you then- no one can.”
A soft sigh and he slouches, the moon shining a soft silver on to the grass the two were fighting on.
“If that’s your wish, My lord. However,” he pauses, before raising his sword back to the other, eyes narrowing. “If you even think about trying to kill me, I suggest you think again.” the man scoffs, not taking him seriously. They always do this, especially when he can’t conceal himself with a glamour to make him look more masculine. They always look down on him and while he is used to it, it gets quite tiring.
The lord raises his sword and sprints at him, the sword arcing downwards, only for Phainon to swing his and knock the man backwards, making him land in front of Cyrene.
The man lets out a loud OOF! As he lands but he scrambles up, shaking his dizziness away (it doesn’t quite work.) He smirks as if he’s trapped Phainon. “There you are, Little wolf.” Phainon keeps his face impassive, eyes tracking him, when a wave of dizziness hits. ‘ Damn.. it hit earlier than I thought. Whatever I can hold out- I know I can but… ’ his eyes flicker to Cyrene and she nods slightly, little ice flakes latching on, unnoticeable to the untrained eye thus meaning the man in front of him.
His eyes flutter a little as he places his head in his hands, urging the dizziness away because if he passes out now it could spell danger with Cyrene’s ice magic controlling him- he remembers the last time they tried it.
The lord once again sprints at him, breathing heavily as if he hadn’t expected this, Phainon letting the ice crystals yank him back, moving with them to not give it away. He moves to block just in time as the swords hit again.
‘ Maybe someone will step in. I’m so tired but I.. I can’t stop. Fuck. I should have had Anaxa give me a double dose to try and fight this- ’ he moves back as the blows keep coming , staying upright, he knew he had to try and at least fight back and that stupid smirk meant he fucking knew.
Sucking in a quick breath, phainon pushed back against the newest offensive blow, making him stagger back, he just had to outlast this strange man. He stays upright, letting Cyrene move him at her own whims, eyes trained on the man, as he gets hit back from the force of the blow. “Sh-Shouldn’t you have submitted by now, you stupid mutt?! You don’t deserve to be on Duchess Aglaea’s-”
“That is quite enough.” Phainon stills, head staying still but his eyes look over to Cyrene, trying to figure out what is going and she only shrugs before he feels a hand wrapping around his waist. “I believe, Lord Parrish , now as the Heir to Castrum Kremnos I will ask you to leave- and this is asking nicely in the kremnoan language.”
The lord glared at the crown prince, attention away from the Deliverer,the latter opting to stay silent.
“What will you do if I don’t?” and that was the wrong thing to say because two guards came up behind him and grabbed him, making him squirm in their grasp. “It was- It was her idea! It was that stupid mutt’s idea!”
Phainon dipped his head, feeling Mydei look down at him, not in a condescending way but a questioning way, and the little ice crystals disappeared from his body making him stagger against the other, who simply held him slightly upright, without saying anything.
“Snowy! Good lord, you could have gotten hurt even or worse!” He looked at the ground, admiring how pretty the moonlight looked on the grass, as he hears the man screaming his head off as he gets dragged away and sees the bottom of Cyrene's dress.
“I didn’t mean to Cyrene. But he was annoying. It’s not like he would’ve stopped even if I won.” “what do you mean, Snowy?”
“He probably would’ve threatened you again or worse if I didn’t do it and I wanted to protect you.” “Oh snowy, you're so kind but also so stupid sometimes.” “I know.”
Cyrene chuckles softly, and lifts his head up, a soft smile on her face. “YOur such a silly guard dog! I already owe you so much-” her eyes flicker up to Mydei and back down to Phainon before a small, possibly evil smile crosses her face, making Phainon tilt his head before letting it droop again. “After all, you’re the one who took on tutoring higher up nobles to pay for my medicine when I was sick before Lady Aglaea found us when we were 17.”
Phainon stilled. “My lad-” “I am not done.” Phainon whimpers quietly as Mydei’s arm tightens around him. ‘ Oh no- oh dear- oh good lord what the hell Cyrene? Fuck fuck fuck fuck- ’ “I knew it was you but I’m glad I have someone else saying so, Deliverer.”
“It’s been a while, your highness.” the arm tightened before relaxing, as if remembering he wasn’t feeling well. “Would you have ever come to one of these if you had the chance too?”
“Would you hate me if I said no? I know you love parties though, so for you I probably would.”
“Just for me?” “Mhm, most likely, your highness.”
Phainon is have leaning out of the arm around his waist, as if trying to escape, but before he can escape he gets hit with another wave of dizziness. “Stop it.” Mydei grumbles behind him before picking him up princess style. “I can walk, you know.” “with a double dosage of a sleeping drug that you’ve apparently had before?” “Yes?”
A snort escapes the blonde, as Phainon gives him a flat look, before side eyeing Cyrene- she had to have done that on purpose. (she did.).
“Yeah, right. Stop being stubborn, just for tonight and I’ll help lady cyrene get you home.”
Phainon is silent, just for a few minutes as the two menaces to society wait, before he sighs and leans against the princes chest. “Just for tonight.”
“Snowwwy! You folded so fast! You never do that with me!” “and I never will after tonight-” Cyrene does a dramatic gasp, interrupting him, a hand flying over her forehead in mock despair. “How could you?” she snickers, looking at his flat expression, unamused, and the amused grin on Mydei’s face.
“Oh, yes- thank you for your help, your highness. I do greatly appreciate it.” she does a small curtsy and Mydei only shrugs it off. “No need to thank me, I was trying to make sure you two got hime alright and that lord had already been disruptive prior to this but making you duel? Stupid.” he shakes his head, the braid in his hair swaying.
The walk to the carriage is now uneventful and Phainon has his ear over Mydei’s heart, not on purpose, it was just how he’d been picked up. The sound of its beating made him feel sleepier than ever and he knew it wasn’t because of the stupid drug. It was because he felt safe again.
How pathetic he was.
“Thank you again, Your Highness. We do appreciate it.” Cyrene gives a small smile as Phainon keeps quiet, nodding with what she says, fighting to stay awake. “Again, it’s not a problem. I was just trying to make sure you were safe. Your fighting’s improved quite a bit, deliverer. Maybe you can finally keep up with me.”
That makes Phainon snort. “I’m fairly certain we tied in our many competitions, your Highness. But if you would like, we can always do a rematch.” he smiled triumphantly at the flustered look on Mydei’s face. “Not today.” “Obviosuly not, I’m stupid, not dense, Crown Prince.” the hmph from Mydei makes him laugh softly. “Have a good night, your highness. May triumph always be yours.” “Good night Deliverer, Lady Cyrene.”
Cyrene looks at him with a questioning look and he avoids it the entire way home, his heart pounding with excitement and a weird yearning sensation but he wasn’t going to address it- not yet at least. It could never work out.
“Good night Cyrene. Sleep well.”
The pair goes their separate way and Phainon, quickly undresses, back relaxing from the tight corset finally coming off, and everything else and all but leaps into his pajamas and into the bed, his dreams consisting of an Maple tree, wheat fields and honey eyes that seem familiar but so distant.