"Do you truly find my clothing so detestable?" Delta asked once again, trailing after Yuen, their footsteps echoing off the walls of the large halls.
An amused smile played on Yuen's lips that Delta did not see. Yuen continued to ignore his advisor as they carried on, down the western hall and into a servants corridor.
Staff politely bowed as the first prince passed, used to seeing the high imperial fae in the tunnels and service hallways.
They moved their way through a pair of maids, hairless twins with swirling markings on their skulls, carrying trays of food. Hurring off to feed some of the emperor's guests. A turned corner and the two were arching out of the way of a juvenile group of low ranked laundry attendants. A small variety of lesser fae called Gynmors, incarnations of individuals blades of grass. Three huffed as they pushed along a large cart piled over with sheets and blankets, while the fourth sat atop directing them forward in barking commands of their gravelly dialect.
Delta entertainingly huffed from behind a palm while Yuen arched an eyebrow at the slacker. They glanced away with a guilty smirk before jumping down to help pull the cart along.
A side door led the two outside and into a hedge lined path built to keep the servants from view. Yuen preferred to transverse the imperial grounds by these means. It was an easy way to avoid having to talk with court officials, nobles, and visiting dignitaries. Small talk, pleasantries, and words said in passing were a valuable way to garner support but he preferred to plan such 'chance' encounters.
An exasperated and annoyed sigh came from behind him for the tenth time. Yuen burst out in pleasant laughter that was baritone and low. "Oh great realms, Delta! Your attire is nice as always."
Delta clicked his tongue, moving up to walk beside the prince. He rolled his eyes and stuck his nose to the air. "Of course it is." He smoothed down the front of his robe, hands running over elegantly embroidered carnations and ivy. The night prince quickly reverted back to his air of smugness but not before he gave Yuen a flash of a toothy grin. Yuen only caught the end of it but for a moment he saw Delta open his eyes and peek at him.
Every once in a while he'd catch Delta with his eyes open. More often when the man was in the presence of his friend. His dark irises peering from barely lifted lids, heavily obscured by pale lashes.
He remembered the first time Delta ever showed him his eyes, the memory vividly seared in cerebral folds.
A little after Delta first came to court as a ward, the two had gotten in a fight when Delta's smug attitude finally got to the collected first prince.
In a private hedge much like the one they walked through now, the two had accidentally smacked into each other, both on their own secret outing. Yuen demanded an apology fit for an imperial prince and the rebellious and displaced Delta only snapped something about 'want in one hand and shit in the other'.
Yuen had struck first. Knocking Delta's head to the side with the back of his hand. He had already planned to scold the night court ward and this was the perfect opportunity. But before he could speak a single word of his judgment, fire was kissing his nose and stars were blooming across his vision.
Yuen smiled fondly at the memories. Looking back he had been stunned at the audacity. Delta had slammed a closed fist right between the eyes of an imperial family member without a second thought. Well, Yuen supposed it wasn't too hard to believe. Delta was the night court prince after all.
The attack had him stumbling back, before catching himself and pitching forward, a hit of his own ready in his clenched hand. Neither backed down, each trading blows, each enraged at the other, their anger bubbling and turning into something maniacal.
Between heavy breaths, and under a bloody nose came a laugh from Delta. A little shrill and a little insane, vocal cords vibrating with tremors of puberty. A laugh, followed by another, and soon he was giggling between swings and huffs. At some point Yuen had started to giggle too, their movements growing sluggish and their hits weak.
Delta swung last, lazy, fist flying wide, and his laugh turned hollow as he choked on a sob. The momentum of his arm pulled him down, and he fell on his ass, hot tears staining the flushed skin of his cheeks. "Fuck, I don't want to be here!"
There was a way his voice had grown loud and cracked, a desperate wail in his growl that had Yuen losing his composure as well.
"Why the fuck are you crying!?" Deltas brow furrowed at the imperial prince who was rubbing his eyes with the back of his hand, silently sniffling.
Yuen shook his head, "I have yet to find a single person who truly wants to be here."
The moment stilled for the two boys. Delta had heard rumors of the Imperial court and its detached culture. And when he had freshly arrived to the fae capital he saw evidence of it everywhere.
For the fae a court wasn't just a system of governance but a living organism. It was a home a fae lent itself to and in turn the court altered the fae and granted its nurture and protection.
This alteration was evident in everything from individual behavior and physical appearance to collective consciousness and culture. Fae of the Shimmering Court, for instance, all had various warm shades of luminescent skin. The court amplified whimsical behavior, the people known for interpersonal drama, riddles, and playful banter.
On the opposite end of the spectrum the fae of the Night Court were all muted chroma, features and colors to blend with the night. Night fae were known for their more sinister behavior and large sexual appetites. Often compared more so to the ancient fae than even the Shimmering court, who liked to boast about their old bloodlines.
Courts absorbed and changed fae, integrating each member into its network. Delta had hardly changed at all in the few months he'd been there. More than long enough for the court to absorb him and homogenize his appearance.
No fae in Kisiian looked as if they belonged. At least not fully. There was an under glow just barely hinting at some interconnectedness but it was hardly noticeable and only evident in the older court members.
Apparently the lack of belonging traveled further than appearances alone. Perhaps the disconnect was an attribute of the unnatural order of the Imperial Court.
Delta threw his head back, wiping the remnants of blood from his nose, right eye blooming a bruise, making an ugly 'gauff' at the prince. "What a shit hole."
Yuen laughed, relaxing next to the kid who had been his foe just a few moments ago. "Yeah it is."
There was a bleakness in his words that had Delta thinking about the imperial prince in a new light. There was more to the Imperial court and its royal family than any of the other courts knew. Something Delta was just beginning to become aware of.
The two sat in silence on the secluded hedge path until their breaths had steadied. "You know you look like an absolute cunt right?" Yuen finally broke the silence, cocking a thick eyebrow at the night fae
Delta rolled a lip at Yuen and his unprincely foul mouth then smirked, flipping his expression. "The eyes right?"
Yuen nodded.
Delta chuckled, tucking his hands behind his head, brush rustling behind him. "Advisor Skom hates it. I think I catch a smack from him every time he sees me now."
"Oh I hate that old fuck!"
Advisor Skom was the king's right hand and from a prominent and powerful bloodline. The old fae demanded respect that Delta refused to give him.
The boys laughed together in their mutual disdain for the man before once more growing quiet.
"Can I see them?"
"My eyes?"
"Yeah."
Delta shifted, rolling his shoulders. After a moment he clicked his tongue and sighed, " I guess so." He turned towards Yuen sliding thin glasses down the bridge of his nose. "But don't fall in love with me or anything."
Yuen snorted and Delta struck out at the prince, this time playfully, thumping him on the shoulder. "I'm serious." He reiterated, voice dropping with a hint of embarrassment.
Yuen reigned in his amusement, suddenly remembering the court Delta hailed from and their strange and sometimes explicit powers.
When Delta's crescent eyes began to lift, Yuen felt himself bracing for something unexpected.
Thick white eyelashes split to reveal eyes that were somehow beautifully feral with large, wet irises like pools of oil. They were catching for sure, the pure black of a fae's eyes in their most primal state, but Yuen didn't see himself falling in love with Delta anytime soon.
That was until Delta cracked a mischievous smile and a band of white appeared and expanded from the center, oscillating back, pulsing forward, creating a hypnotizing effect. Yuen watched, entranced, as the ring grew and shrunk over and over, a glowing 'o' in high contrast to the glossy black. The motion pulled at him and soon a sweet bubbly feeling was sprouting in his chest.
It weighed down his eyes and pulled him forwards towards the night fae He felt muscle losing tension, relaxing into the comforting lul-
Yuen threw himself back, slamming his eyelids shut. Covering his eyes with one hand he blindly swiped out with the other, fist connecting with some part of Delta who had dissolved into a fit of laughter.
"Holy hells." Yuen growled, peeking from behind his fingers making sure Delta had closed his eyes again.
"I told you not to fall in love with me." Delta said innocently like he hadn't initiated the strange hypnosis.
Yuen let his hand fall but a twisted scowl remained. He rubbed the spot in his chest where the warmth had been. "What was that? Hypnosis?"
Delta shook his head, returned to his slumped position leaning into the hedge. "You tell me about your eyes and I'll tell you about mine?" He proposed. Everyone knew of Yuen's ability to command with tears like soul songs and Delta was curious to know more.
Yuen huffed, pulling himself up and straightening out his clothes then held out a hand to the other boy. "Maybe later."
Delta gave the first prince a cocky grin that pulled up more on one side, carving a little devilish line into his cheek. It amplified his smug appearance even more and Yuen rolled his eyes. It'd been the rocky start of an unlikely allegiance between the two fae. One that over the years had grown into an amicable and mutually beneficial friendship.