Muffled shouting filled the air.

It was evident that there was a commotion of some sort happening in the throne room.

Perhaps a new guard or a guard of a different kingdom would be more alert or worried, but Nikkol, along with all the other guards, were completely at ease, or at as much ease as they could be while on duty.

Shouting was normal.

At least when it came to the prince.

Prince Setial was quite the character, as could be attested to by anyone who worked in the castle. He was loud and easily angered, taking what he wanted when he wanted and if anyone tried to stop him he'd make their lives miserable. This included his parents, the now deceased Queen and the King, who seemed to constantly end up on the receiving end of the prince's rage.

Those not in the royal family, Nikkol included, thought the prince was a spoiled, uncontrollable brat and believed that he shouldn't have so much freedom and power. Nobody ever said this to him though.

It wasn't like he was a horrible prince. In princely matters he actually excelled. He held himself like royalty and could be diplomatic. He was incredibly smart when it came to matters dealing with other kingdoms or their own, or so Nikkol heard. Personal problems were a different matter. When a problem like that came up, he was known to get loud and violent, just like Nikkol was sure he was being now.

He didn't even know what the problem was today. He didn't care to know. It seemed like every other day the prince stormed into the throne room and yelled at his father. He was quite dramatic.

And it always ended with the prince pushing the door open violently and storming off to his room. Nikkol happened to end up on the side of the throne room that he had to pass to get there. Nikkol was just happy that he was far enough away from the King's study to not hear anything from there, because he was sure the prince did the same there too but that much yelling might give the guard a headache.

It was always one of the more interesting points of Nikkol's day when the prince stormed past. He wasn't allowed to move his eyes unless there was danger, so he only got to look at him for a second before he was out of view. It was funny to him, seeing someone so powerful, so angry, going to his room because he was upset.

Prince Setial's voice rose. It was louder than usual, showing that whatever he was upset about it was a bigger deal to him than normal.

Normally, if Nikkol strained his ears, he would've been able to hear what words the prince was saying, it always being loud enough to barely make out, but usually chose against it because it never was of anything Nikkol found that interesting and it caused his ears and head to hurt after some time, but with the extra elevation, the words were clearer than usual.

"Just because this outsider happens to be-"

"Enough!"

Nikkol resisted the strong urge to flinch where he stood. The prince was always yelling, but the King had never yelled back. Well, until now. Now Nikkol was very interested. Unfortunately, their voices had quieted down again after the King's outburst to the point where he couldn't hear if he tried. And he tried.

Without warning, the door was flung open. Based on how loud the sound was, it was evident that the person responsible for it was the prince. Loud footsteps came down the hall, but he wasn't going as fast as normal, almost like he was waiting for something... or looking for something.

Nikkol only realized this when Prince Setial came into his view, eyes scanning the guard critically, anger still on his face. Nikkol really wanted to look back at him in confusion, but his eyes stayed straight, trained directly ahead, which just so happened to be the prince's face.

He'd never really seen his face before, but that wasn't what he was thinking about, the only question being why he was looking at him, and why so angrily. Was he doing something wrong? Was his armor misaligned or dented?

His questions weren't answered, only got worse when the prince spoke. "You'll do." It was said quietly, like he was talking to himself. He then reached out, grabbing his hand, and turning, continuing his angry storming off.

Nikkol was at a loss. Nothing in his training had prepared him for this. But what they were taught was the word of royalty were their orders, and he figured he'd be disobeying him if he resisted against his hand.

He also didn't know what to do with his body. His steps, now that he was used to the pulling force, had regained their practiced rhythm, but his other hand hung limply at his side and his eyes remained on the prince's hand. He knew they should be looking straight, but what was there to look straight at? The biggest thing ahead of him was the prince's head, and staring at royalty like that was greatly inappropriate.

Through his peripheral vision and his awareness of the twists and turns that he was being pulled through, Nikkol was able to figure out the general direction he was being pulled towards. They were heading to the more Eastern section, the one most notably containing the large library.

However, it wasn't towards the library that he was pulled. He didn't piece together where they were going until he stood right in front of the door the the room of Prince Setial himself. The prince wasted no time, pushing open his door and walking right in past the guards stationed at his door, hand still clasped around Nikkol's.

There was a single servant in there, but due to Nikkol's gaze still on their hands, he couldn't tell their gender or if he'd seen them around the castle before. "Leave." The prince spoke to the servant, who left quickly and without a word.

Then the prince finally let go of his hand.

Finally being able to know what to do, Nikkol straightened himself and set his eyes straight ahead as always, thankfully the prince stood more to his side so he wasn't looking straight at him.

At least until he moved right in front of him.

Nikkol noticed with a start that he was very close to him, and stood there unmoving. He took this time to really look at the prince for the first time. He had the cloudy grey eyes that most in the royal family had, and the same dark hair. His face was unobjectionably nicely shaped, all his features fitting well. Currently, his mouth was a thin line, what Nikkol assumed were full lips pressed tightly together, eyebrows furrowed. Whatever was going through the prince's mind was clearly a serious matter, making Nikkol even more nervous. He was pretty sure he wasn't doing anything wrong, but the was the prince was looking at him had him questioning everything.

Without a word of warning, Prince Setial's hands shot forward, grabbing Nikkol's head and forcing it closer to his own, lips smashing against his.

Nikkol, out of surprise and instinct, quickly stepped back and forced his head out of the prince's grip, his eyes wide. It was only when Prince Setial's eyes narrowed further that Nikkol's brain caught up to what he just did and realized that might have been a bad idea.

"You step away?" The prince said, his voice chillingly calm. "Even the palace guard rejects me." This was said quieter, like he was speaking to himself, before he eyes met Nikkol's once again. "My own father pushes me aside for some outsider, born of a different woman in a different land, even when he admits that he will produce no heirs. My father believes that I will, that I will breed future heirs for a kingdom I will never call my own, for somebody else to raise and teach and give things to! I have vowed to never bed a woman again, give him an extra dosage of the medicine my so-called brother forced down his throat minutes ago. But I doubt he believes that I am serious about that. But how can I show my seriousness or even survive in my own castle when even the palace guard rejects me!" He was yelling at the end, but Nikkol barely noticed, deep in thought.

Finally, Nikkol was able to somewhat understand what was happening, why he was there. He didn't know anything about the mentioned brother, he thought the King only had one son, but he figured out why he was involved. The prince intended to bed him. His eyes were still focused on the prince, rebelliously following his movements as he paced, hand running through his dark hair. He'd never considered being with a man before, didn't even know how it'd work, but he did know one thing: this was his chance to break free of the prison his life had become. His one opportunity to take control of his life by being reckless with it. He scanned the prince again. He wasn't attracted to him but he was attractive enough. Nikkol knew he should hit himself for even considering this, bedding the prince, but this was so exciting, such a change from his boring life.

He had to escape it.

So, probably breaking more rules than he could count, Nikkol stepped forward and grabbed the prince's chin, tilting it up. He could see the prince's widened eyes as he looked up at him, but he didn't let that deter him. He leaned down and reconnected their lips.

It took a second, but Prince Setial responded. And he responded with vigor. He immediately tried to deepen the kiss, and Nikkol let him, opening his mouth and letting him take control with no resistance. He had no plans on fighting the prince on anything, willing to go with whatever the prince wanted because he wasn't anyone fit to deny him. It wasn't like he minded anyways, this was such a change that the very thought of what was happening turned his blood into lightening. In fact, he was barely aware when the prince unbuckled his helmet and tossed it aside, only noticing when he felt fingers run through his hair.

Prince Setial pulled away, but the static feeling in Nikkol's veins didn't die down. In fact, it only seemed to grow when the prince looked at him and said, "Take off your clothes."

Nikkol broke their eye contact, starting to awkwardly unbuckle his armor.

It wasn't until all of the metal was gone from his body and all that was left was just cloth that he kept on under his armor that the prince also started undressing. But it wasn't like how Nikkol was, awkwardly fumbling around and slowly peeling things off, no, he ripped his shirt over his head and kicked off everything else, stepping forward and hurrying up Nikkol's own process.

Until they were both standing across from each other, completely bare. He didn't know why, but the swiftness and gracefulness of the prince changed something in him. He felt a sudden, strong wave of attraction for the prince, and suddenly he felt he was the most attractive person in the world. Nikkol wasn't sure what to do next, what they even could do next, but couldn't bring himself to ask. They weren't supposed to speak to royalty unless specifically ordered to. He had to at least follow some rules. At least Prince Setial seemed confident, his eyes roaming Nikkol's body, taking in everything. Nikkol had never felt self-conscious of his body or how he held himself in front of a partner, but the way his eyes critically looked over his body made him want to hide.

That was, until Prince Setial stepped forward again, pushing their bodies flush together and kissing him, pulling him toward the large bed.