[h2]E L I A S & A L E J A N D R O[/h2] [hr] Alejandro led the way down the hall away from the parlor, eyes discreetly scanning the corridors for any passerby. Most of the people they passed were part of the palace staff, and they paid him and Elias no attention as they hurried about. Alejandro was grateful that they didn’t run into anyone else; it would not be too terribly difficult to send them on their way to the parlor, of course, but it was still a bit of a hassle. The library was one of the less well-known ones, located in the eastern wing of the palace. From his previous visits to the palace, Alejandro knew that this library was the one with materials regarding anything about the natural world, and that it happened to be one of Lea’s personal favorites. There were encyclopedias on geology, biology, bathymetry and oceanology, environmental and/or earth science, and the like, as well as animal husbandry guides and books filled with gorgeous illustrations. Perhaps the most interesting feature of the library was, however, the animal displays. The moose display was towards the back of the library, but Alejandro pulled Elias into one of the secluded reading rooms. A quick glance around the room showed that it was empty; hopefully, they would have some privacy in there. Alejandro turned to the other prince. “I do apologize for not bringing you to the moose display immediately,” he began, laughing lightly, “but I believe that this location will provide more...privacy.” A delicate pause. “Elias, I-I know you have something to say. Whatever it is, I will hear it.” There was a noticeable shift in the quality of Alejandro’s voice; gone was all the light teasing and playful mischief. Instead, he was about as serious as he ever got, bringing his eyes up to meet Elias’. — — It felt odd, wearing pants, but at the same time that he wasn’t used to wearing them he also was so it…was a confusing matter nonetheless. Not that it felt uncomfortable, per sé, just that it felt [i]wrong[/i], confining everything in a much-too-small space and expecting it all to be happy about it. [i]I wouldn’t be comfortable cooped up in a very tiny space either,[/i] Elias thought grumpily, but dismissed the thought as they entered the library. It was impressive for sure, though he was fairly certain he caught the sight of antlers in the back before he was dragged into another room, a reading room. He gave at Alejandro glare as he brought up the moose again, before sighing. Elias crossed his arms over his chest, legs adjusting to an “at ease” stance. He shook his head. “No, not really,” he said. It wasn’t entirely true of course. There was a lot he wanted to say, actually, but none of it would come out right or work or really do much. They had a fling, that was it. “It was a fling, I need to accept that,” he said. “Dafni didn’t mean anything by her remark, mind you. Sure, I was a little sad when you were gone—hell, I [i]missed[/i] you—and more than just the—” Elias looked around, then lowered his voice. “And more than just the sex, mind you.” He raised his voice to a normal speaking volume. “I like you. You’re a good person, a good friend, and a wonderful lover, and I miss you. You were right. It never would work out between us. Castilya would have a heart attack and I doubt the alliance would hold. The secrecy would kill us.” He sighed, relaxing his stance. For a moment, there was a bit of that nineteen-year-old romantic back in his body as he sat and allowed himself to relax some. “But I look at you and I see the parts of me I lost over the years. I see the flirtatious side, I see laughter, I see smiles, I see someone who isn’t afraid to hold nothing back. I look at you, I see the old me, and it [i]kills[/i] me. Alejandro, back then I thought I loved you, and maybe I did, and maybe I still do. But seeing the old me…” Elias shook his head slowly. “Makes me miss him.” He exhaled, hanging his head as he braced his arms on his legs and tapped his fingertips together between his knees. “That’s all I want. I want to be myself again, to not be constantly on-guard, to not be so angry, so bitter, so alone. I used to be able to take a joke like Elimoose. Hell, back then I would have embraced it. My father is proud of how ‘mature’ I have become. I haven’t had a lover in four years. I’m cold. I’m nothing but a soldier. Commander Supreme indeed.” Elias shook his head. “I have nothing to say to you about being angry with your or blaming you or hating you, because I don’t. None of that is true. I just hate the me that I became when you went away.” — — Alejandro let out a breath and ran a hand through his hair. [i]You give me far too much credit, Prince Elias,[/i] he thought to himself. [i]A[/i] good person[i]? Maybe, five years ago. But not so much anymore, I would imagine.[/i] Oh, it wasn’t that he had done anything particularly atrocious or cruel, specifically, but five years was a considerable amount of time when one was as young as he and Elias were. On the surface, he was still the same Alejandro-what was it that Rhia had said? Noisy, vibrant, and bright. Anyone with even half a brain cell could see that, well, that’s what he was. Noisy, vibrant, and bright, with his teasing grins and loud florals and sparkly accessories. [i]Mmm. Well, I truly am quite fond of sparkles and floral print, but that is beside the point.[/i] Alejandro was the very definition of ‘outrageous’, yes, but just as Mai had her [i]gorgeous[/i] matte lipsticks and high heels, Alejandro had his outrageousness. Instead of showing no emotion to hide his true feelings, Alejandro went the opposite way-an [i]excess[/i] of emotion, to conceal what he did not wish for others to see. After all, most people didn’t expect a person covered in head to toe with sheer silks and bright flowers and an overabundance of sparkly baubles to be quite so...ruthless. [i]Most do not understand the meaning of the word ‘ruthless’,[/i] Alejandro reflected. [i]They think it means cruel, or ambitious, or cunning, or a combination of all three. I do not believe that it’s about being cruel or ambitious. It’s about seeing the bright, clear line that leads from point A to point B; motive to means, beginning to end. It’s about seeing that line and not caring about anything but the [/i]perfection[i] of the solution, of that line.[/i] At Elias’ comment about sex, Alejandro had to suppress a grimace. It wasn’t that the sex [i]wasn’t[/i] good-it had been fantastic, actually-but now that Alejandro knew himself a little better, he was quite aware that his intentions hadn’t exactly been the most honorable, back then. The years between his mother finding him with Eduardo and his trip to Pólemos had been...rocky, to say the least. Although Portaya, and Castilya as a whole, was growing more accepting with each passing year, most of the people Alejandro lived and worked with were still quite conservative about such matters. In the two years between being separated from Eduardo and meeting Elias, Alejandro had taken every opportunity he could get to…[i]experiment[/i], as much as he could, without being caught. It had been stupid, yes. Unbelievably so. But after years of being led to believe that he was some sort of [i]abomination[/i], Alejandro had been sick and tired of feeling so ashamed for what he was. The numerous encounters that he’d had seemed to numb the pain and loneliness, for awhile. And when Elias had so openly expressed his interest-well, who was Alejandro to refuse? Sometimes, he wondered whether or not he would have agreed to, er, a [i]relationship[/i] of sorts with someone else-one of Elias’ friends, for instance-while he had been in Pólemos, if they had gotten to him first. Alejandro was strongly inclined to believe that the answer was yes. It didn’t matter that Alejandro had grown to like Elias as a person; the night that they were intimate for the first time, Alejandro had barely known the other prince. And yet he had still ended up spending the night (and a good part of the morning, too) in his rooms. Alejandro nodded, slowly. He wasn’t sure that there was very much he could say, in this situation; those years were far behind them, now. Neither of them were the same people they had been five years ago. “For what it’s worth, Elias, I miss you, too.” He paused. “Five years is a long time. I understand.” He took a step back and studied Elias for a moment. “I’m glad you are here,” he said, finally. “I think Aciras will do you some good.” — — Elias chuffed. “That’s it? No, ‘it is a good thing we parted ways because this is not the man I liked before,’ or even perhaps a soul-crushing ‘I never loved you, only ever lusted for you?’” He shook his head. “Gods, how far we have come indeed.” He sighed. “Dafni thinks so as well. Me, I am not so sure. As much of a bastard Stefanos is, he is still my brother, and the amount of incompetence shown by our guards would make anyone planning to kill him strike now, while I am not there to protect him.” He ran a hand through his hair and shook his head. It was probably best he didn’t think like that right now. “No matter. Right now this is supposed to be a bit of a party, no? If we stay away much longer, I fear they may think we are up to something, and for the sake of your reputation it may be best that we not let that happen.” — — Alejandro stayed silent at Elias’ response. He would have told him that it wasn’t true, that part of him [i]did[/i] love him, and still did-but no, that would not be fair to Elias. Alejandro wasn’t going to lie to him, or tell him half-truths. Elias deserved more than that. Alejandro himself wasn’t completely certain what exactly it had been, five years ago; perhaps it could have been love, if he didn’t have to go back to Castilya and if Elias’ brother was not such an asshole. Perhaps. But now? Alejandro didn’t know. Alejandro let out a puff of air. If they had been in this same situation five years ago, during that single month in Pólemos, Alejandro would have already been moving towards Elias, leaning in for a kiss. But that was five years ago. “Forget about that, for now,” Alejandro said, softly. [i]He should not put so much faith in his brother. Stefanos, if anything, is a power-hungry dictator. Or, he would be, if he were king. But Elias is either blind to his faults because they are brothers, or tolerates these faults for the same reason. I suspect that it is a combination of both.[/i] “I have a question,” he began, carefully. “Is there a reason why Stefanos decided not to come to Aciras? Lea would have invited him, no?” — — Elias shook his head. “He is the heir. He has a lot more to worry about than making an appearance at a party or a wedding. An heir should not be able to reasonably get away with abandoning their people and shirking responsibilities to their governments for two-three months. Believe me—we are much better off without him here, even if it means Pólemos risks suffering because I am not there to question him.” He shook his head. “You’ve met my brother. You know how he is. At worst he is going to get things he wants done without me there to try to stop him and gain the Council’s favor to oppose him. Without me there, the Council will side with him because he is future king and they would rather get on his good side. In Agrios I stand as the only barrier between his wishes for this country and what is actually good for the people.” — — Alejandro raised an eyebrow. There were, of course, heirs that were present in Aciras-Edwin Drakewine, for example, or Leonard Ford, not to mention Venera-but Alejandro supposed that Stefanos had his reasons. [i]If I were to hazard a guess, I would agree with Elias’ assessment,[/i] he thought to himself. [i]It does seem like something Stefanos would do.[/i] Still, though. That left him with another question-“If you think Stefanos is going to do what you say he will, why are you here, then?” Alejandro asked casually, an expression of mild curiosity flickering over his features. — — Elias sighed and gave him a look. “The same reason half of these people are playing nice with each other. Politics. My brother the schmooze isn’t here to play them, so someone with more influence than Dafni has to. Besides…” He felt his back straighten some as he forced himself into something resembling at ease. “I’m not just playing them here, on an international scale. I’m playing them at home, too. Doing this business here is going to hopefully make me look better at home. ‘See, [i]I[/i] play nice with foreign dignitaries that we may not agree with.[i] I[/i] manage to keep the peace.’” He exhaled, back relaxing and head lowering slightly. “I don’t want to play their games anymore. I’m so tired. But the moment I attempt to turn off the soldier is the moment I’m going to need it again.” Elias looked at Alejandro with a silent “thank you” in his eyes. “Thank you for letting me unload this on you. There’s no one else I trust and no one else who understands what Stefanos is like. Dafni doesn’t even see half of what I see, else she’d be more vocal in court about it.” — — Alejandro shrugged nonchalantly. “Fair enough.” He gave Elias a long, assessing look, and hesitated, his mouth strangely dry. “Despite what you may think, I do consider you a friend, Prince Elias. A very good friend.” He paused, glancing up at Elias’ dark eyes. “Perhaps we could have been something more, but it seems like the world has other plans for us.” Alejandro chuckled, then, shaking his head to himself. “Though if you’re here to ‘play nice’ with foreign dignitaries, you may want to consider frowning...less.” He threw a cheeky grin over his shoulder as he strode towards the door, pausing as he placed a hand on the doorknob. “Well, are you coming? I wasn’t lying when I said there was a stuffed moose in this library, you know.” — — Elias looked at Alejandro carefully. This was an unusual admission for the blond, someone who had never been keen on expressing how he really felt at all. He found himself nodding appreciatively. “Maybe we could have been.” [i]Maybe I am in love with a time, with the idea of you, and not you yourself,[/i] he thought. [i]You deserve better.[/i] He rolled his eyes. “Smiling does not exactly fit a soldier.” He sighed. “But I see your point. Dafni has the same position, same belief. It is good she is here and Stefanos is not if we want me to attempt smiling more again.” However, the mention of the moose made him glare at Alejandro, but forced himself to follow along. “That moose thing will never die now will it?” — — Alejandro chuckled at Elias’ words. “You’re too serious. If you’re here to play nice, I would suggest getting rid of the whole ‘grumpy soldier’ look.” He led the way to the moose, grinning mischievously. “Here it is,” he said, gesturing towards the moose display. It was mounted on a low platform, head lifted towards the ceiling. Alejandro gave Elias a quick once-over. “Mmm. Now, if this moose had been [i]frowning[/i], I dare say it would have been a perfect match.” — — Elias frowned. “It is not intentionally a…grumpy soldier, just…a soldier who is very good at his job, very focused on his job. A professional soldier. A focused soldier.” He stared at the moose, then gave Alejandro a look at his frowning remark. Still, he looked at the moose again and, dare he say it, frowned. “Moose are bigger than I thought if this is lifesize.” — — Alejandro gave Elias a sidelong glance, rolling his eyes playfully. “So a grumpy soldier, then,” he said, his voice light and teasing. “And yes, I have been told that they can be quite intimidating. Princess Lea says that they are known to traipse freely through some of the cities in the northern parts of Aciras.” Alejandro shrugged nonchalantly. “I believe her.” Alejandro glanced at the time, briefly. “We should be heading back soon, I suppose. I promised Lea that I would let her show me her latest makeup obsession.” Alejandro grinned at Elias. “Something that would bore you to death, no doubt.” — — Elias sighed, shaking his head. “[i]Asshole[/i],” he murmured in Pólemesian. He sighed, but nodded. “You are right. If we spend too much time alone, Dafni may get the wrong impression, and I’d hate to ruin your reputation right off the bat.” — — Alejandro paid no heed to the muttered insult, instead flashing Elias a winning smile. “How considerate of you,” he teased, before turning on his heel and heading back towards the door that they entered from. “Come on, Prince Elias. I’ll lead the way.” — — Elias rolled his eyes but followed his old friend away from the moose sculpture and out of the library. He sat beside Dafni once more once in the parlor again, offering her a small smile. [i](Collab between [@Morningstar1399] and [@ayzrules])[/i]