Only A Fool~

Power Struggle

'It had been awhile since I had spared Cicero's life from the wrath of the dark brotherhood, I'm not sure if I regret it or not ye-' "Da da da de de dum dum" my thought train was cut off as Cicero pranced pass me singing and dancing. '...but I guess he is interesting enough to keep around.'

"Hey Cicero!" I called, halting his movements. "Wanna spar?" I said devilishly with an impish grin on my face. Cicero eyed me warily.

"Spar?...listener??" He said tilting his head to the side.

"Yeah! A no holds bar spar, everything goes except killing." I grinned at his shocked expression.

"I don't think I want to do this listen-Aauhh!!" Cicero's complaining was cut off with his yelp of surprise as I tackled and pinned him to the ground.

"You don't have a choice in the matter, NOW FIGHT ME!" I snarled in his face with mock rage, still pinning him against the stone floor of my room in the sanctuary. Cicero averted his gaze allowing me to keep him pinned down, not wanting to fight.

"Mother would not want us to fight listener, she watches over and loves us both... what would fighting accomplish? This surely would not please her." He fidgeted under my weight, no doubt irritated at me holding him down. 'Hmmm, he's right of course. Fighting 'solves' nothing...but it is fun.' I paused thoughtfully. Cicero was looking up at me expectantly, probably thinking I was considering letting him up. Wrong. I smirked down at him an evil plan forming in my mind. 'I have to make him angry if Im going to get him to spar with me at all'

"Oh...Mother..." I smiled down at a confused Cicero. "That old hag doesn't control me, in fact... I don't even LISTEN to what she tells me. I'm not a weak little servant to obey a corpse's whim like you." Cicero's eyes widened in a mixture of shock, fear, and anger. "In fact...I think ill dispose of it like a body should be after we're done here." I gave a malicious grin and waited for the jester's reaction. That was it.

Cicero kicked me off of him with a surprising amount of force for such a little man, I flew back into the stone wall and he was on me in an instant with his dagger to my throat. He was breathing heavily and his eyes were fogged over and unreadable to me.

"Woah Cicero" I said with a tight voice. "Sparring means no weapons buddy." I swallowed hard to keep my composure. A bit of my confidence was gone but my rage was simmering.

"Shut up! Cicero screamed in a high pitched voice and pushed the knife up against my jugular, my lifeline. His voice lowered to a deadly whisper when he spoke. "You shouldn't say such things about our mother listener..." he paused, still breathing heavily. He had murderous intent in his eyes. "Tell me they were lies!!" He screamed at me. "All of them! All of those words!! TELL ME!!!" I gasped as the blade bit into my skin, he was pushing too hard. I let my body go limp and slowed my breathing to trick him into thinking he had knocked me out somehow... it was working.

"Listener?" I felt his grip loosen as he studied me. Mistake...

BAM! I uppercutted the jester, snapping his head back and knocking the dagger out of his hand. I wasted no time in retrieving it and throwing it in the fireplace. Hidden. I smirked at a furious Cicero rubbing his chin.

"What now keeper?" I mocked him in his own voice, I'm extremely good at mimicking. "Cant even protect your own mother?" Oooh I was really pushing it. Cicero was shaking with boiling anger, mother was a touchy subject for him... The one soft spot. Suddenly the jester's gaze softened.

"Your trying to vex Cicero..." he accused with narrowed eyes. "To make me fight you like you wanted." He hissed. I growled in response annoyed that he had pieced my skeem together. Smart fool. "Why." He inquired looking at me with an unreadable expression. That made me pause in my crouched attack position...