dreams (alver x og cale)

Epilogue 3

When Alberu imagined the obstacles he would have to overcome in order to be with the man he loved, he had a lot of stuffy old men in mind who would argue with him over the impropriety of it and an obnoxious amount of propaganda that he would have to stifle, redirect, or take control of. A lot of very boring political nonsense that came with his position as crown prince.

He didn't once imagine facing a child with a sword.

"Oraboni said you're strong." Lily Henituse had a sweet looking round face that made her look cute and innocent to most observers. That is when it wasn't full of spiteful irritation like right now. "We should spar."

...why did he get the feeling that this was a veiled attempt to commit treason by the youngest of the Henituse clan?

As his coronation approached, more of the Henituse family had arrived in the capital and Basen had made sure to let his mother and sister know exactly what a debauched, corrupt, and dastardly piece of trash the crown prince was.

It was a bit distressing for Alberu, if he was entirely honest, when he'd received an invitation to come to the Henituse estate where Violan, Basen, and Lily all waited for him. Especially since he knew that Cale wasn't involved in inviting him.

...and lord, there was that butler there too.

Alberu knew that Cale was fiercely protective of his family and those who he considered family but he'd never before had reason to learn that perhaps they were even more protective of him.

"If you'd like." He replied to Lily's invitation, a bit disconcerted about the size and length of her sword. Was she really able to swing around something that size?

Violan and Basen apparently saw nothing wrong with this, continuing to drink their tea in the garden where the tea party had been taking place.

Cale was notably absent and it left Alberu feeling extra vulnerable.

Before Alberu could make an excuse about not having a weapon, a very familiar and very terrifying butler seamlessly arrived with one just for his use.

There was a terrifying fire in Lily's eyes.

Alberu was confident in his abilities to survive a spar without causing any harm to Cale's little sister or he would have never agreed to begin with, but he was suddenly unsure of his ability to do so without retaining any injuries in the process.

–

"...ow."

"You're a baby." Cale said but his voice was softer than normal, placing a comforting hand on Alberu's back.

Alberu grumbled into the pillow he'd buried his face into. "...I think your family hates me."

Cale chuckled, leaning down and kissing his temple before laying down at his sight. "Because Lily beat you up?"

"She didn't b–... it doesn't matter. It's not about that." He huffed, turning to face Cale with a sigh. "They're very... hostile. In general. Any hints on how I can earn their approval?"

Cale's smile yielded absolutely nothing as he leaned in and kissed Alberu's lips chastely. "Nope."

"...is this because you're still mad?"

"Oh yeah."

Alberu supposed he had earned a period in the doghouse. He was lucky enough that Cale took him back at all; it would be too much to insist that he be forgiven for his transgressions immediately.

"You can really hold a grudge, huh." Alberu said, giving up on negotiations and rolling onto his back.

"Yup." Cale said, straddling Alberu's waist like it was the most natural thing in the world to do and smirking down at him. "I'm not letting this go until you earn my forgiveness."