Happy October 🎃

Day 26: Prince Rome

Out of everyone, there was one who pities him.

A faint song echoed in Kadir Al-Muntasir's mind as his guards delivered a portrait, poorly wrapped in some cloth and smudged with the remnants of its defacement. The Sultan peeled back the fabric and stared at the painted face of Prince Rome, smeared with dried stains of paint and bits of food. Whoever did this did it for the fun, sick satisfaction, mocking the Prince's beautiful eyes and small freckles around his nose.

"We'll clean you up, Rome..." he muttered.

Kadir tilted his head, studying the young man's face. Even with the vandalism, Prince Rome looked proud... yet lonely. The Sultan could almost feel Prince Rome's isolation, as the man was surrounded by those who only saw him as weak, foolish, or unfit to rule. Italy, he thought, was wasting a perfectly interesting Prince.

Kadir set the painting on the table in front of him, waving his guards away with a flick of his hand. His room was filled with similar artifacts: sketches of Rome laughing, grainy photographs of him reading alone, an old, faded ribbon that the Sultan's spies claimed Rome had worn as a child. Apparently they found it somewhere outside the garden, almost entirely disintegrated. Each item made Kadir more curious about this Prince.

He knew little about Prince Rome other than what his guards had told him. They spoke of how the Italian prince was ridiculed for his looks and gentle ways. Rome, it seemed, preferred his books and the servants' cooking pots more than politics and war. Though everyone else saw shame, Kadir felt curiosity, and, strangely enough, pity.

Why would Italy mock such a prince, someone who was incredibly kind, compassionate, and intelligent? Kadir traced the contours of the painted face with his gloved finger, as if he was trying to pull the Prince into reality. A small smile reached his lips. Perhaps it was his gentleness that made Prince Rome so easy to disregard... and conquer.

The Sultan leaned back, considering what to do next. For now, he would keep his fascination a secret. His empire's strength had grown under his rule, and perhaps it was time to look towards Italy. Prince Rome might be the perfect bargain, or maybe even something more. Kadir chuckled, picturing the look on Prince Rome's face once they meet. Would he be frightened? Scared of the oh-so-powerful Kadir?

But that meeting would have to wait, to his misfortune. But, for now, Kadir was content with the portraits, the trinkets, the stolen mementos of Prince Rome, who didn't even know who he was.