kingdom ; minishaw

nineteen.

josh was a kindhearted person by nature, believe it or not, and that's why he was pacing up and down the corridor with guilt swamping his heart.

this job he had obtained at the castle was everything he had ever wanted and more, he had come from a lowly, poor village and this job meant everything to him. embarrassment, was what he thought of his upbringing and it drove him to become cold and distant.

however, the heart-shattering look in that kid's eyes as he was torn from his room had truly hit josh right in what was left of his heart. he felt guilty, incredibly and undeniably sorry for that troublesome worker he had grown to be very irritated by. truth was, he saw something in that boy that reminded him of his former self and he despised it.

simon was only young, and the secret meetings he had been having with the king and queen's secret son was questionable but he felt bad for ruining something that made the two boys happy. it was all his fault.

that was why he grabbed a candle and hurried downstairs, out of his room and to the basement- where the dungeons were. he cursed under his breath as he shakily unlocked the door, the guards stepped aside to let him through- he was trusted because of his high position.

"minter! are you there?" josh held up the flame so he could distinguish between cells, it was torturously dark down here, the faint glimmer of the candle suddenly highlighted a face.

josh almost dropped the candle, quickly regaining his composure he held the candle up again.

"boss? what are you doing here?"

even with the scarcely scattered lighting, josh could see how simon looked dreary, that mischievous fire in his eyes was no longer present- he looked like all the happiness had been taken away from the world.

josh gritted his teeth, "i'm doing this for my own benefit, not yours." he snapped and then proceeded to unlock the door, quietly ushering simon out of the cell.

"what's going on?" simon was bewildered, he rather felt like he was dreaming.

"let's go! quietly." josh hissed, grabbing the boy's arm and pulling him along, he blew out the candle to not give off any light and then swiftly stepped past the guards, who couldn't tell there was another person leaving the dungeons.

once they were out, simon dropped to his knees, lapping up the fresh air.

for the first time in what felt like years, simon smiled.

"i can't let you escape," josh said, woefully, "but you can see the boy again, the king and queen are away."

simon nodded, "thank you, sir." he whispered, his eyes wide with gratitude.

josh nodded, "be back down there by the evening tomorrow, latest."

simon agreed, then suddenly pulled josh into a bear hug. him being the slightest bit taller than josh meant he could wrap his arms firmly around the guy, he was so overcome with thankfulness.

josh couldn't remember the last time he had been hugged, he melted into the hug, patting the boy on the back. "be safe, kiddo." he said and then pulled away, before he could think about what he had just done.

then simon tore upstairs, a new found energy pushing him on to clamber up those familiar stairs and get past the lock. his heart was racing with new found hope, igniting that old magic in his heart as he rushed to be with harry once more.

-

harry couldn't sleep. his cheeks were stained with tears, he could feel the wetness of his eyelashes when he squeezed his eyes shut. crying himself to sleep had become his inevitable fate every night. he was just sad.

he was sad because he worried and worried, it was the last day of december but he didn't care for a new year because a new year without his simon was a year he didn't want to be a part of.

harry sighed, turning over and rubbing his face into his soft pillow, snuggling into the dent he had created, and closing his eyes trying to pretend he was the slightest bit tired.

out of nowhere, a rustling noise could be heard and into harry's room hurtled a person, the noise was so very familiar- sounding like the way simon used to fall into his room and unthinkable hours of the night.

"harry?"

he knew that voice, he would know it anywhere. oh please, don't let this be some wonderful dream. harry threw the covers off of him, clambering off the bed and then stopped short, all of a sudden anxious.

"is it really you simon?" he whispered, stepping closer to the figure.

"it's really me, princess." simon stepped forward and into the patch of the room in which the moonlight was filtering through his little window.

harry ran forward, jumping right into simon's open arms and then snuggling into the crook of his shoulder, his legs wrapped firmly around simon's wait and the the taller boy held him securely, breathing in his fruity scent and suddenly, he was okay again.

[a/n]

so sorry this is incredibly short and bad but i just wanted to give you an update, i've been so unimaginably busy and i couldn't find a spare moment to update but you'll have a really long next chapter, promise !! ^^

love, mia. <3