Sovereign

Two - Stranger

That morning I woke up with twice the amount of guards outside my door, and an empty feeling in my stomach. I was being forced to work by my own father. Was that even allowed? I was a prince, didn't I at least have some authority?

Just walking to breakfast felt like a chore. The two guards flanking me were much taller and stronger than I was, and it felt as if my every move was being carefully watched. Father really was true to his word.

As I walked into the dining room, I tried my hardest to ignore the persistent stares of Jaxon and Elanna. They didn't break their gaze even after I sat down next to my sister, and I was forced to meet their eyes.

"What's going on?" whispered Elanna worriedly. "We saw how many guards were outside your room last night, and father won't tell us anything. Neither will this guy," she jerked her head towards Alarik and glared before continuing. Our brother continued to eat his breakfast in silence. "Did you do something wrong? Are you being punished?"

My cheeks reddened at the thought of my siblings knowing what I was being forced to do. Before answering, I took a spoonful of porridge and chewed it as slowly as I could. "Father...he...he...caught me," I began timidly, not able to meet Elanna's eyes.

"Caught you? Doing what exactly?" said Jaxon. I could hear the confusion in his voice without having to look at his face.

I made a noise that suggested I was about to say something, but nothing came out.

Alarik sighed exasperatedly, setting his spoon down with an obnoxiously loud clatter. "He's been sneaking out of the palace after curfew, and father is making him the physician's new assistant for a couple weeks."

The fact that this was the first time we'd heard our brother speak in over three days was quickly overshadowed by his news.

"What?!" Elanna exclaimed.

"He's making you work?" said Jaxon. "But you're a prince!"

I glared at Alarik over the din of my siblings' nonstop questioning, and he gave me a lighthearted shrug in return.

"Sorry, baby brother," he apologized. "It was bound to come out anyway."

I suppose he was right, but I still didn't like the fact that the whole palace was going to hear about how Noble Prince Adrian, Second Son of Welldyn was now a physician's assistant (albeit only for two weeks.) Princes didn't work. Royalty didn't work. The fact that my father even considered it as punishment was baffling to me. Our belief was that those with the purest of blood- Sacredbloods, or royalty- should only perform their duties as such. Work was dangerous.

Jaxon and Elanna's questioning eventually quieted down, and we moved on to other topics.

"What do you think the new physician will be like?" Jaxon mused, stirring the remains of his porridge absentmindedly.

"Who knows," sighed Elanna. "Whatever he's like, Father must really trust him. Supposedly he's from very far away. That's all I heard. Honestly, though, I don't get why Burgess never had an assistant."

"You know why, Ellie," Alarik warned.

She rolled her eyes. "Well, yeah, I know why, but it's a stupid reason. Father really needs to loosen up with the whole trust thing. It's costing us all."

"Oh, don't start-," I said angrily.

"You listen to your brother, Ellie-"

"I have a right to have opinions! Why can't-"

"Because all you do is cause trouble-"

"This physician better work miracles," Jaxon interrupted, making us all turn to stare at him. "Otherwise, I don't know how he is going to learn to deal with our family."