Claret.

That was the colour of the wine they ingested. Sweet, heavenly taste filled with the subtle scent of the Liliponia flower swished around his mouth with every sip, saturating it with the delicacy of the elves. It was definitely more exotic than the mundane ones humans currently produced or the beer that dwarves liked to drink.

“Brother, I don’t think we should drink this early. Father won’t like it.”

The third had always been more uptight among them, but he was not without a point. The sun hung overhead, beating down mercilessly with its rays. They were only shielded from the heat by the shade of the courtyard tree they currently sat beneath. Drinking in this heat and time was akin to asking for suffering.

“Not like Father could do anything about it. Right, Brother? Cheers.”

“Cheers.”

Two wine glasses tinkered together with a soft chime and they downed the red liquid in a single gulp.

They still drank anyway because he could not be bothered to care. The second, ever pompous, simply did whatever that went against the old man’s wishes. As a teenager himself, he could see why. Father had always been uptight about etiquette and tradition, and enforced it strictly upon the household. The third took it to heart, while the second openly rebelled. He, on the other hand, just went along as a front to save himself from unnecessary trouble.

The youngest of them was more carefree. At a mere seven years old, he was still too young to come under Father’s attention. It was why he could currently chase pigeons in the courtyard without regards to his image, making rounds about the tree and entertaining his brothers with his adorable antics. All of a sudden, the boy jumped at one of the white pigeons. All he managed to grab was air as he crashed onto the ground in a pathetic heap.

He heartily laughed at the scene along with the second. The third clicked his tongue in disapproval at them before heading out of the shade to help.

It was as usual.

“Hey Quar, don’t cry. Here, let me see that for you.” He said as they came back, checking over the boy’s arm carefully for any cuts like a big brother would. It just would not do if an inflammation develops from a neglected open wound; Father and Lady Leiss would never let him hear the end of it. There was one.

“It might hurt a little.”

He poured what was left of the bottle on the cut. To his credit, the boy did not cry even as his arm stung from being drenched in the alcohol, although he grimaced and winced in pain. Soon after, the bottle was empty, ending the impromptu wound sterilization.

“Look, it is all okay now.” He grinned at his youngest half-brother.

“Thank you big brother!”

Even though they were all brothers from different mothers, he still loved them all the same.

He would give anything to continue this kind of lifestyle with them. Even as time passed and they grew older, he hoped they could still sit under this tree as brothers, drinking Liliponia wine and sharing stories about their lives and adventures.

Alas, it was not to be.

“What the hell did you think you were doing?” A shriek came from the direction of the palace doors, revealing a woman dressed in the finest silk and finery in distraught. She hurried towards them with her lady-in-waiting, grabbing the youngest in horror the moment she came under the shade of the tree.

“Lady Leiss.”

“Mom-“

“Quiet!” After hushing the youngest in one word, she screeched at him in fierce accusation. “What is the meaning of this? What did you do to him? Why is he bleeding?”

“It is wine, Lady Leiss.”

A brief look of confusion flitted for a moment before she realized her misunderstanding but her voice came, harsh and shrill for the sake of maintaining her own self-esteem.

“I don’t care. You better not be thinking of anything funny, Solent. If you dare harm my son, I will make sure you suffer the same fate.”

The third tried to reason with the lady – his personality unable to stomach the accusations she hurled. “But Brother meant no harm. He even treated the wound for-”

“He will soon enough.” Leiss snapped, cutting the third off.

She then said the one sentence that would prove to be the ultimate flaw of his dream.

“After all, there can only be one king.”

Then, she stormed off with the youngest in tow, leaving the three of them slack-jawed under the courtyard tree.

……

Claret.

That was the colour of the blood he is spilling.

The second stood over him with an expression of shock and horror, his sword glistening with claret liquid. The sounds of fighting seemed so near and yet so far, becoming gradually more distant by the second.

What happened? Why was he here? Why did he look so pained?

He did not know. All he knew was that his eyelids were heavy. He wanted to sleep, to turn his back on this stupid world where he was born a prince to three other brothers he loved so much. The throbbing in his chest started to ebb, making it easier for him to calm the chaos in his mind.

Someone seems to be shouting his name.

In the end, he settled on the one image from ten years ago that he had never forgotten, when they were all under the courtyard tree having the time of their lives – drinking claret wine, chasing pigeons and simply enjoying the passage of time.

It was a nice image to sleep to.

And so he closed his eyes.

Ages Online Compendium

Author's Notes:

Just as a disclaimer, this chapter is a small tribute to the story Claret, by Innotui.

Do participate in the poll! The question this time is which of the Qqers do you like the best and would like to see more of. It is not limited to a single choice, so vote away! Give your reason too! It may affect their future screen-time. :)