The One You Feed × Brandrew AU

I

-Brandon's POV-

My bed was a cot. It had a thin mattress, and nothing but a thin sheet for me to wrap myself in. Servants were lucky to have pillows, and I was one of the fortunate.

I hadn't slept at all last night. Now, the sun was rising, and I still wasn't tired. I had to be up by sunrise, and if I wasn't, that meant ten lashes.

"Hayden, Brent, get up," I said, sitting up on my makeshift bed. Hayden groaned, rolling out of his cot and landing on the floor. Brent had one hand cuffed to the railing of his bed, since he had another violent outburst last night. He hated this place more than anyone, and often showed it in acts of aggression. It often got him beaten, though he didn't care. We had to wait for a guard to come in and uncuffed Brent, before they dragged him down to the dungeon for the day.

I slipped the nearest shirt on, not caring if it was clean or not. I did the same with my closest pair of jeans, and tied up the only pair of boots I had. Hayden was still on the floor. "Get up," I told him. I could see the lash marks on his back from just last week.

Hayden sighed, finally pushing himself up. "I'm gonna run away one of these days," he said. I laughed at him. "Alright," I said, still laughing, "keep dreaming."

Hayden dressed himself, just as the sun appeared fully in the sky. "We better go," I said, trying desperately to organize my hair. I quickly ran a comb through it, getting rid of the frizz on the top.

"See you later, Brent," Hayden said, opening up the door to the room. I walked out, Hayden right behind me. He shut the door, and we made our way towards the throne room. If we weren't there by the time our names were called, we'd be sent to the dungeon. Sometimes, it seemed better than working.

We arrived in the throne room, taking our places in the back of the huge crowd.

"...Brandon Hoover..."
"Here, sir."
"...Hayden Tree..."
"Here."

I sighed in relief. We were barely on time. "I hate being here this late," I complained. Hayden rolled his eyes. He didn't care for the job, and didn't have any respect for the king.

The crowd dispersed, everyone going to the location to where they worked. There were cooks, advisors, strategists, medics, translators, and many more. Hayden, Brent and I were the only actual servants.

"I wish I could have left while I had the chance," Hayden growled, shoving his fists in his pockets. Sunlight began pouring in the windows. "Me too," I whispered, "but we have to make the most of this."

I was too caught up in my conversation with Hayden to realize we were the only ones left in the throne room. King Andrew was staring directly at us.

"What are you two talking about?" He asked. I tensed up. If he was in a bad mood, we'd be punished for sure. "Nothing, sir," I spit out, looking the king in the eyes. King Andrew slammed his elbow down on the arm rest of the throne, sending a loud thud throughout the room. "You expect me to believe you were talking about nothing?" He growled.

My heart skipped a beat. I didn't want to go through the king's awful mood swings again. I didn't want to say anything. "Go ahead," King Andrew said, "tell me just what you were talking about."

"We were discussing Brent, and what he did last night," Hayden lied. However, the king seemed to believe him. "And why were you speaking of your foolish friend instead of working?" King Andrew questioned. Hayden's jaw dropped. He didn't seem to have an answer.

"You didn't give us any orders, um, sir," I said quietly, but loud enough to be audible.

"Then you wait for orders, and you do not speak without permission in front of me, understood?" King Andrew said, leaning out of his throne.

"Understood," I said, nodding my head quickly.

"Good," King Andrew said in response, "now both of you, go clean the halls leading to my room."

I nodded my head again, keeping it down as I walked towards the long hallway. "How has he not been killed yet?" Hayden said to me. He was a bit too loud I thought, but the king said nothing. We entered the hall, and as I grabbed up a broom from the corner I began repeating the rules over and over again in my head.

Always refer to the king as "sir".

I began sweeping in the corners of the hall, slowly forming a pile of dust and dirt, along with the dead bodies of several insects.

When in the presence of the king, do not speak unless one speaks to you, or unless permission is given.

I dusted around the flower pots, making sure all the flower pedals stayed intact. Anything less than perfect was ten lashes.

Never talk back to the king, unless you have a relevant question.

I adjusted the paintings on the wall. They couldn't be tilted. If they were tilted I'd be yelled at. Messing up the paint was cause for a far more severe punishment.

Obey all orders given to you by the king.

I made sure all the windows in the hall were wiped clean of dirt and any finger prints. The glass was a beautiful pattern, and the way it was positioned almost formed shapes.

You are the property of the king. You may be sold if desired.

"Brandon," Hayden whispered into my ear. "The king's room is unlocked." I pushed Hayden away, rolling my eyes. "And what? We're not going in there, unless you want to king to murder you," I sighed.

Hayden pushed me as well. "You're no fun," he frowned. I noticed he hadn't done any work. He never did, but I always pretended he had, just to stop him from getting hurt.

"Please start cleaning. It's a big hallway," I whined, slamming my head against the wall. It caused a louder sound than I hoped for. I hoped nobody had heard it.

"Or, we start plotting the king's execution," Hayden whispered again, coming even closer to me. "No! You're delusional!" I shouted, practically screaming through the hall.

Hayden said a few words under his breath which I wasn't able to hear. "Pushover," he muttered. I came close to him again, trying to put my hand on his shoulder. "Look, I'm not a-"

Before I could finish my sentence, Hayden shoved me backwards, right into one of the flower pots. I fell directly on top of it, breaking the ceramic pot and several stems, leaving me covered in dirt. I hit the floor, causing several pieces of the broken pot to be wedged in my back. I cried out in pain.

Just as Hayden went to help me, something caught his eyes, causing them to widen. He looked up, gazing past me. I tilted my head, looking to see what it was.

Is was King Andrew.

"You're reckless, Hayden," he hissed, "and on purpose, too. That's forty lashes, let's go."

Hayden didn't even argue. He just followed King Andrew down the hall, leading to the dungeon below.

I began to feel myself bleeding out of my back. I took a deep breath, and tried to sit up. The pain only increased, but I managed to stand up. I just let the blood spill from my skin as I reached for the broom, beginning to sweep up the ceramic bits.

(Updates will probably be slow I apologize)