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Neutral
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"Mistakes happen," Aspen sympathized, glancing down at the pieces of the violin. It definitely wasn't fixible and he felt saddened that Prince Avery lost a piece of his childhood. He wasn't sure why it mattered to him but it did. Perhaps, he understood what that felt like. He leaned against the wall that the prince had been seconds before. He was surprised when the other man grabbed another violin and began playing. He never knew what type of mood that the prince was in. Apparently, right now he was open to sharing a little more about himself. He watched as the prince's composure changed once he began playing. He somehow relaxed and somehow got more attractive to look at. He had never seen him look so...perfect. And when he smiled? A pain rippled inside of his heart, a familiar pain as he realized what emotion he was feeling right now. It was one that definitely wasn't appropriate to feel toward the prince. "Well done!" He praised the prince, clapping once he was finished. It was beautiful hearing him play. He added teasingly,"You truly are one of the best performers in the world." Of course the moment was short lived when he mentioned such a nasty comment about himself. "Avery Arlington, you are not the worst person on the planet," Aspen stated with a stern voice. Somehow, he wished he could remind the prince of the worth he had. And that worth wasnt because he was royalty. He realized he had felt so passionately about that he forgot to mention prince before hand. He cleared his throat, correcting himself quickly,"Your Highness." But the prince was already on a different mood than before. He had so many mood swings it was hard to keep up. "I'll find you later? If that's alright?" Aspen was a bit confused until the prince added to inform him of what his father says. He really didn't want him getting in trouble for trying to convince his father to change his mind about the opportunity and the locations that he will look for him for. "Why yes, of course," He responded, moving to leave the room. He ended up brushing against the prince who was taking what appeared to be Tylenol. He almost knocked the bottle out of his heads. He glanced down at it, frowning and wondering how much stresss exactly he was under. "If you ever need a friend, I'm just a text message away," He whispered before walking back toward the South Wing.
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Darkseeker
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Avery gave the other man's back a slightly confused look. It seemed an odd time to make such a comment, but he decided to just take it in stride. He knew that his father would just be finishing the meeting, so he hurried down the halls to his father's office. The king was just getting back from the meeting, and smiled jovially at his son, motioning for him to go inside, and followed after him. Avery hated his father's office. It felt like the designer had tried so hard to make it seem cozy, but it just seemed cold, empty, and forbidding. Even when Avery and Robbie had coloured him pictures, and made him little trinkets, they never went in his office. They went in his bedroom, or parlor.
Avery settled into his chair, and heaved a sigh. His father sat on the other side of the desk, and gave Avery a look that told him he could start speaking. And speak he did. Having been part of countless debates and speeches gave him the elequence and polite argumentativeness to convince his father to at least let Aspen come and see the palace. Avery felt very satisfied.
Not only did he get what he wanted, he also proved that he had what it took to state what he wanted in the best possible way. He started towards the South Wing, but decided to bring his brother with him. He found Robbie also wandering the halls, Zara with him. The cat had a new collar, that sparkled with some kind of gems. Avery laughed, and told his brother to walk with him. Robbie agreed, and followed Avery through the halls. While they walked, Avery explained what he'd been up to, and Robbie gave him a sly look.
"Do you like him that much?" He teased. Avery blanched. "Robert Tobias Arlington, so help me, I will slap you so hard you see stars!"
At that moment, the two boys walked into the South Wing, and they headed to the Art Room to look for Aspen/
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Neutral
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Aspen did another check over the south wing just to double check to make sure the floor was completely clean of potential hazards. The castle had a cat in it and god forbid, something happen to Prince Robbie's cat. Plus the natural uncomfortableness of getting a staple in one's shoe. While he was in the south wing, he took all the previous decorations and pictures down. His next step was to paint the walls and he wanted to get that down very soon. Especially since he promised Prince Robert he could help with painting. He had to get the walls painted to keep up with his current fast paced work. He sure wouldn't want the king to become impatient and fire him from the work here too. Although, he didn't want the prince to argue with his father, he truly didn't want to lose a job opportunity. He just wanted to assess all possibilities and since the king didn't respect that, he wondered just how difficult the king could be to work with. He sure didn't want a job if it meant his boss was difficult. The best of jobs were always done with mutual communication on both ends. He did end up finishing taking the decor down before Prince Avery had returned so he went back to the art room. He wished there was more work he could do in the south wing but he didn't have his supplies or paint. At this point, sitting around and waiting for the prince was becoming awfully boring.
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Darkseeker
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Avery ran a hand through his already messy hair, and walked into the art room, Robbie trailing behind him. "Hey. Guess what? Dad says you can at least come to the Island for a while, at least. Maybe if you're there, if you end up wanting the job, we can get him to change his mind." Robbie gave them both a cheeky grin. "And you guys can get even closer!" Avery's eyes went wide, and he didn't want to blush. He gave Robbie a death stare, and the younger boy made kissy noises, and hurried out of the room before his brother killed him. Avery put his face in his hands. "I-...I am so sorry. That was completely unnecessary of him, and we will definately be having a talk later." Avery felt like the day could not get any worse. First the stupid, fucking headache that wouldn't go away, then the violin incident, and now Robbie making them both incredibly uncomfortable. "Anyways, if you're interested in coming, we'd love to have you. And we can provide fancy enough clothing for any royal events, so you don't have to worry about getting a suit or anything. As long as you have warm weather clothes, that will be fine, I'm sure." Avery was painfully aware that he was rambling, but after Robbie's comment, silence felt like it would be even worse.
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Neutral
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Aspen was sitting on the piano bench with one knee bent and against his chest and one foot underneath of him. He was questioning rather or not he could play the piano. He had been taught to play back in his hometown. It was something to keep him out of trouble and to give his mother one less kid to worry about. "Hey. Guess what? Dad says you can at least come to the Island for a while, at least. Maybe if you're there, if you end up wanting the job, we can get him to change his mind." He jumped ever so slightly at the sound of Prince Avery's voice. He had been so lost in his thoughts he didn't even hear the prince coming. His fingers accidentally brushed one of the keys and the piano gave a low out of tune note. He flinched away from it, standing up to greet both the princes. Right when he did, Prince Robert said something about the chance the two of them could get closer. He froze in his tracks, blushing a little heavy at the hidden content hidden in the younger prince's statement. Is that why the prince argued for the king to let him come in the trip? So they could closer? As friends right? Right? The kissy noises told a different story and worsened Aspen's blush. Worst of all, even if he tried to look away, it was too late. The prince surely had seen his embarrassment. There was no place to hide. He let the prince continue to ramble, trying to calm himself to the point where is face wasnt equal to a red balloon. He just listened, giving slight nods where he found fit.
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Darkseeker
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Avery really just wanted to leave, but made sure that the conversation was at a good stopping point before quickly excusing himself, and running down the hallway. Robbie must've know he was coming, because his brother's door was locked. He picked the lock in record time, and grabbed his brother by the lapels. "What the hell was that?!" Robbie's eyes were wide, and he tried to take a step back but Avery held him tight, his lips pinched. "You have an awful lot of explaining to do! Do you know how awkward that situation just was?"
At that moment, Avery's headache flared, and he stepped back rubbing his temples. Robbie had the good grace to look abashed, and muttered an apology. "I didn't think it would mess you guys up that much. It's pretty obvious there's a "connection" there. A mutual like!" Avery gave his brother a skeptical look.
"Really? Well, there certainly won't be anything now! You had better go apologize to Aspen too. He was tomato red!" Robbie gave him a remorseful look, and picked up Zara. "Maybe the cat will soften him up," Robbie said, quietly. Avery took his arm.
"I'll walk you there, to make sure that you make it there alright." Robbie rolled his eyes, but Avery marched him back to the Art Room to see if Aspen was still there.
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Neutral
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Aspen had been frozen in his tracks the whole entire time. He was embarrassed more than the life of him but more embarrassed that the younger prince suspected that he liked his brother and then publically announced it. He figured it was a gay joke, a teasing joke that he was accustomed to whenever he hung out with someone who was a guy. There was no way the prince would be into guys, especially guys of lower status. Besides wasnt he destined to marry a princess? How was little old Aspen Rhodes supposed to compete with that? He was finally found his feet to unfreeze once both princes were gone. He found the suit jacket and suit shirt, beginning to put it back on. He was going home before he embarrassed himself further. He stood by one of the mirrors in the room as he buttoned the white dress shirt, cuffing the sleeves. He had time to mentally prepare himself, hearing two sets of footsteps heading down the hall toward him. He had no doubt it was the princes, they had a certain walk to them. Guards were more heavy stepped and the rest of the castle staff seemed to step lighter than the princes and never traveled in two. By the time that they arrived, his face was back to normal and he was smoothing out his slightly frizzy hair and making sure everything was in check. Including himself. "Don't worry about it. I'm heading home anyway," He didn't bother to turn around, however his gaze did find their reflection in the mirror.
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Darkseeker
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Avery winced and stepped slightly to the side, so he couldn't see his reflection. "No, Robbie owes you an apology," he insisted. And so, Robbie apologized. It was a pretty good apology, and Avery could tell his brother really was sorry for making them both so upset. Once the conversation was finished, Avery told Aspen to text him if he had any questions, and then quickly left the room.
He practically ran back to his rooms, wishing he would get really sick, so he couldn't go anywhere, and wouldn't have to deal with the consequences of what Robbie said. Now, if they had any time together, most likely that would be what they would be thinking about, and it would make it so awkward. Abery flopped down on his bed, burying his face in his pillow. His headache had move to the back of his skull, and he tried to ignore it. To his relief, he felt himself dozing off. That would be nice. Maybe if he slept for a bit, once he woke up, the pain would be gone, and he'd be able to see if Aspen had needed anything, and texted him.
So Avery shifted to his side, and closed his eyes, and sleep came, but only for a short time. When he woke up, he fixed his messy hair, and smoothed his suit. Once satisfied that he looked alright, though hating to look in the mirrors, he went to find his phone.
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Neutral
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He tried to shift his own reflection so Prince Avery couldn't see his own. Of course, he still ended up seeing himself. He had watched the prince wince and move. He felt bad that the older prince had to live life fearing his reflection. He wished there was someway somehow he could make to prince see himself like he did. He raised an eyebrow at Orince Avery's tone toward insisting an apology. He really didn't feel comfortable being around the princes anymore. Especially since they had figured out so quickly that he was gay. However, the apology Prince Robbie gave was a rather good one. He could tell that the young prince said it with meaning and wasn't just doing it because he had to. "Very well, you're forgiven," He decided to forgive Prince Robbie. After all, he was just a kid. Kids do stupid things. He heard the prince ask for any questions and as soon as he shook his head no, the prince basically ran away. He blinked with surprise but in a way, it was understandable. A straight guy was bound to feel upset for being the center of a gay joke. He soon left after that, he had enough of castle life for one day.
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Darkseeker
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Avery was still too embarrassed to actually see if Aspen had any questions, so he just shoved his phone in his pocket, and decided to go outside. The late afternoon sun was warm, and soothed his raw feelings. He wandered te gardens, ending up by a koi pond, which had been one of his favorite spots when he was little. Despite the water being slightly reflective, he loved watching the fish holding silently beneath the surface. Avery sat down on the edge of the small pool, and dragged his fingertips over the water. He flinched when something touched his arm, and he moved to stand up, excuses already on his tongue, but then he saw it was just Zara. "Hello, lovely. What are you doing way out here?" He was pretty sure the golden tabby shouldn't be out that far. She was getting close to the outskirts of the palace, and Robbie would be heartbroken if she ran away. However, he hesitated, not wanting to pick up that cat if she was going to stay close. And she did. She perched on the edge of the pool, staring at the fish. Her paws twitched, and sometimes she made dabs at the water. Avery gave the kitten a tired smile, and rubbed her ears, letting his thoughts come to the front of his mind. What if Aspen didn't come back? And why did he care so much? Despite his best efforts, he couldn't help it, and pulled out his phone. We're leaving for the Island tomorrow. Will you be joining us? Avery sent the text before he could regret it, and shoved his phone away, closing his eyes.
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