Heart Burn

Your Eyes Whisper... Have We Met?

~Chapter Two~
Your eyes whisper have we met

“Thank you. We hope you come again.”

“No we don't.”

Killua's slouched over in his throne, face squished in the palm of his hand and a deep frown on his face. Slowly, Elizabeth turns to face the young man, a look of disapproval taking her features over. A sigh leaves her lips as she gives a small shake of her head, to which the young prince gives an outrageous gesture that shouts what?!

“They didn’t hear! I don’t see why it matters.” Killua rolls his eyes, and Elizabeth represses the need to sigh once more at the young boy's dramatic antics. “Seriously,” begins the woman. “You need to better filter your behavior, your highness…”

Killua waves her off with a shrug of his shoulders, dismissing her concerns rather quickly. He’s been too tired to care since this morning, when then life was almost literally sucked out of him by simply meeting his older brother’s gaze. Sometimes Killua forgot that those eyes were a trap full of the most deadly of poisons.

Practically throwing himself up from the throne, Killua falls onto the balls of his feet and strides right out of the throne room. The most social part of the day is finally done for, so he might as well ditch this room before Sil manages to assign him with more guests to tend to. The idea alone makes Killua want to find the nearest cliff.

“What’s next?” mutters Killua with a huff of heavy air, giving Elizabeth a short glance as he already sets off for the halls. The maid simply stares for a moment before trailing behind him, the two beginning to walk off towards the first floor, where the front room is. There's still one more obnoxious chore left until Killua’s free to rot in his bed for the remainder of the day. And that task just has to be the one he dreads most.

Village Taxes.

“Must we sincerely do this? Perhaps we can just take from the thieves and give father their gold instead! It’s not like they’ve righteously earned their share to begin with.”

“That is not how a prince must act, your highness. Stealing isn’t justified by law, anyhow.”

“Father does it all the time.”

Elizabeth gives him this look, one Killua always pictured to be the expression of a gently scolding mother, though he would never know personally. The tall woman pinches the bridge of her nose and just sighs away Killua’s response. Though the young boy definitely speaks the truth, she simply cannot argue with him over these matters. It isn’t in her place to do such. So, silently do the two remain to rush down the halls of the gloomy castle, and out the large front doors they set to, making their way down the tiring long path towards the village that faces doom.

The strong smell of flowers and pollen fills the breezy, warm air. It’s early august, fall just barely beginning to unpack its bags and settle itself over the kingdom. Soon it will be death saying hello to all the trees and the plants, filling the place with deep oranges and browns and that crisp scent. If only Killua were a tree. He could slowly wilt leaf by leaf, torn apart piece by piece by gentle winds instead of pale, slender hands.

Killua sighs softly at the thought, those blue eyes flickering over the flowers and tall grass that surround the pathway. This is the only part of Zerealm that ever looked alive. It’s so earthy that Ki feels like he can finally breathe for once. And although he didn’t like his purpose for going down to the village, the path there is oh so nice.

The docs aren’t too far down from here. Vast ocean is spread out and separates the island from the rest of the world, keeping everyone here held like prisoners with no chance of escaping. Ships rarely come to this kingdom unless it’s for more produce or riches for the castle. These lands are too dead to grow anything now. Everything here is dead, all but this one field that remains untouched by the cruel Zoldyck family. So Killua basks in it for as long as he’s given, descending down a quite different route just to keep isolated from the world for a little while longer.