Storms of the Heart and Shadows of the Crown

The walk home was thick with tension, the silence so heavy it practically echoed down the narrow stone streets. Jack shuffled beside Joshua and Blanchette, glancing between them as though waiting for someone to detonate.

"Sooo... it's nice weather we're having today," Jack said, smiling awkwardly.

Joshua and Blanchette both turned to stare at him, blank-faced.

Jack immediately looked down at the ground, muttering, "Right… I'll just… walk back here."

Joshua turned to Blanchette. "Why were you so angry?"

Blanchette shot him a glare sharp enough to pierce armor. "Why was I angry? You know why."

Jack immediately began slowing his pace, falling behind the couple like a soldier retreating from the front lines.

Joshua frowned. "No, I don't. And honestly, you're kinda being unreasonable."

"Unreasonable?" Blanchette snapped, turning toward him with fire in her eyes. "You were flirting with another girl while I was risking my life trying to save you."

"You mean Grace? I was just being friendly. She was nice to me."

Jack crept even farther back, eyes glued to the cobbled path as though it might open and swallow him whole.

"Oh, so now she was nice to you," Blanchette scoffed. "I bet you were even thinking of sleeping with her, weren't you?"

"What?!" Joshua's voice rose an octave. "No! We were just messing around. She's a fun person to be around."

Jack shook his head with a tired sigh. "Idiot…" he mumbled under his breath.

Blanchette's eyes narrowed. "Ohhh! So I'm not fun to be around? What does she have that I don't? Is it because she's got oversized boobs?"

Jack snorted involuntarily.

Blanchette whipped her head around to glare at him, her look so deadly that Jack immediately looked away, lips sealed.

"Whaaaat!" Joshua sputtered. "Why are we talking about boobs?!"

By now, they had arrived at the gates of the Noble House of Kaizer. The evening sky had painted the horizon in warm golds and cool purples. As the gates creaked open, Jack took his chance and slipped inside without looking back.

Joshua and Blanchette remained outside, locked in their storm of emotion.

"It's because the other holy knight said she was better suited for you because she had bigger boobs than me," Blanchette said, voice cracking with frustration. "Is that true, Joshua? Do you like big boobs?"

Joshua looked at her for a long moment. (She's insecure… and it's my fault. Tiffany… all of it. I promised I'd change.)

"Blanchette," he said softly, "your boobs are perfect. You're perfect. Don't ever think you're inferior to anyone else. I'm sorry if I made you feel that way. It won't happen again."

Blanchette's face flushed red, her eyes softening.

Without a word, she threw her arms around Joshua, hugging him tightly. He wrapped his arms around her in return, the weight between them dissolving in the warmth of the embrace.

They released each other slowly. The setting sun bathed them in gold as they stood together, Joshua's arm around Blanchette's shoulders, her head resting against his chest, arms gently wrapped around his waist.

Inside the Kaizer house, Jack trudged into his room. Raphael was sitting on his bed, shirt off, preparing for sleep.

"How was your day?" Raphael asked, glancing over. "Did you get your training gear?"

Jack flopped onto his bed with a groan. "Yeah, but today was… weird. I should never have gone out with Joshua. Pretty sure I can't go back to the human district again."

Raphael raised an eyebrow. "Sounds like an eventful day."

Jack rubbed his face. "We got arrested by the city guards because Joshua tried to eat a human child. Then they dragged us to the church and made us walk naked through the city as punishment. Then Blanchette showed up, beat up the guards and some holy knights. It was chaos."

Raphael paused. "Joshua's kind of unhinged. What were the names of those knights?"

"I think… Joan and Grace?"

Raphael blinked. "Blanchette beat Grace? Even I struggled against her. Grace is no joke."

Jack shrugged. "Yeah… Blanchette beat her up pretty bad."

(So it's true. She's really strong.)

"That makes sense," Raphael muttered. "Back when Blanchette was a Noble Knight, people said she was just as strong as Captain Percival. Maybe even stronger. But she stopped training… probably because of something personal. Looks like she's fighting again, probably because of Joshua."

Jack lay back, eyes wide at the thought. "That's crazy. Anyway… I'm going to sleep."

"Same here," Raphael said as they both settled into bed.

Night fell.

Joshua quietly entered his room. The moonlight poured through the window, casting pale silver patterns across the floor. He sat on his bed, lost in thought.

(James… he was a pain, but he's still part of the House of Kaizer. We have to save him.)

He got into bed and closed his eyes.

In a dark cell beneath another part of the city, James sat hunched on his bed. His face was gaunt, eyes wide and wild. Cuts marred his back from repeated whippings, and dried blood crusted his skin. He scratched at the stone wall with trembling, bleeding fingers, whispering gibberish as strange markings formed under his nails.

Axel stood at attention near the bars, casting sorrowful glances back at the boy.

"Hey," Blake said from his spot across the hall, smirking. "Why do you keep staring at him like that? Does he make your dick hard? You can fuck him. I won't tell King Siegfried."

Axel rolled his eyes. "No. I'm not gay."

Blake howled with laughter. "Hahaha! Man, you're funny."

"I just… feel sorry for the kid," Axel muttered, watching James claw at the walls like an animal.

Blake's laughter died down as he glanced at James again, then turned away. "Yeah… I get it. Heard something earlier, from one of the nobles. In three days, they're selling him to a slave house. Siegfried's bored of him now… says he's already broken."

Unbeknownst to them, Zain crouched in the shadows behind a stack of crates, eavesdropping.

(Three days. That's good information. Joshua will want to know. And he'll owe me.)

Silently, Zain slipped back into the night, heading toward the Noble House of Kaizer with purpose.