At the palace

"Hey," A voice cracked open her dreams, making her open her eyes to the barely lit room. "Get up, today's Damien's day."


"Drake," she moaned rolling over onto her face, "what time even is it?"


"Like seven forty-five, dear, but come on," he ushered her, "we haven't got forever and you are walking a thin line with the man as it is. Do you seriously want to risk falling?"


"Making amends," she muttered half angrily and then sighed. She would listen to Dane's advice because she wasn't a selfish person. She just wasn't. She knew that.


"Yes, yes," he said soothingly, but in an overwhelmingly sarcastic way.


"Breakfast," she mumbled into the pillow.


"On the schedule, Jade," Drake growled, impatiently, "you now have precisely five minutes before we leave."


"Mph," she sat up and looked at Drake with a drained expression. "How on earth are you so awake?"


"Yes, three hours wasn't much sleep was it?" He smiled with a shrug. "I can cope with one sleepless night, but Damien on the other hand . . ."


"Dear God!" She shouted, beginning to wake up more. "That man is never in a good mood is he?"


"Rarely," Drake replied bitterly. "We need to go unless, you want him in a worse mood. Although I wouldn't be surprised if he was calm. He did shake off a lot of his pent up anger last night, didn't he?"


She sighed and slipped out of bed, "Let's go."


That made Drake burst into laughter, "No way," he roared, "there's no way Damien will let you go around with him looking like that!"




"I don't give a-" She stopped herself glancing at a mirror hanging on the wall and biting her lip stormed over to her closet and ripped a dress from the hanger, slipped into it and tore a brush through her hair a few times, "better?"


"It'll have to do," Drake tilted his head at her with a frown.


He guided her downstairs, where Damien was casually leaning against the wall, watching the smoke dance through the air streaming up from the cigar resting in his right hand. His eyes lazily traveled onto Drake and Jade and with a sigh he stood up straight, "I said seven didn't I?"


Drake scowled at his father, "Yes, you did. What of it?"


Damien rolled his eyes, "Whatever, come on. We're far beyond late and the carriage is waiting outside."


Drake turned towards Jade wearing a smirk. This should be interesting, love. Keep your eyes open.


She rolled her eyes as well and followed Damien out the door. The world outside was grey and rainy and miserably humid. She scowled at the smell of rain, knowing her hair would frizz into a mess. Damien opened the door to a red carriage sitting only a few feet from the door, motioning for Jade to step inside and so with a heavy sigh she slipped by him, but before he'd let her go he grabbed her shoulder, "Please, don't make a scene, my darling."


She shot him a glower, "Not forcing me?"


"Just get in," he sighed, shoving her by the small of her back.


She stumbled into the carriage landing on the floor knees first. Her hands were in two extremely tight fists. She stood and then sat down on the velvet cushioned seat to notice a middle aged woman and young man sitting in front of her. Neither seemed like they were shocked that she had been shoved into the carriage and neither seemed like they would ask her if she was all right. Drake stepped into the carriage and smiled at the two, "Well, well."




"Got a problem?" The young man with unnatural teal green hair spoke. There was a black hoop hanging from his bottom lip and a diamond stud in his nose and his eyes were lined with a blue eye liner.


"Hmm," Drake smiled, "no, just been a while."




Then Damien stepped in forcing Drake to sit by Jade as his father sat beside the woman.


"Damien," she spoke coldly. Jade eyed her jewel blue eyes and thick reddish brown hair. She had a sour but serious look on her face and Jade wondered if she had ever laughed in her life before.


Damien glanced at her, but said nothing. That put a smile on the young man's face as the carriage gave a jolt and took off, "Still in a sour mood?"


"Not really," Damien looked out the window lazily. "Just tired. I was up late."


"As was I," the man smiled.


"Partying," the woman rolled her eyes in dramatized way, "doing God knows what drugs."


"Aha," he continued to smile idly. "It would seem my dear Cornelia that you could use some of those god knows what drugs."


"Humph," she snorted and then turned to Damien, "who's the snotty girl?"


"Excuse me?" Jade stood up with an irritated laugh.


"Sit down, for god's sake," Damien shot his eyes at her as he spoke in complete calmness.




"Quite the mouth," Cornelia mused, "so again Damien who is she?"


"No one of any significance," he muttered, returning his eyes to the dewy window.


"Ah," the young man grinned, "there's some filthy history with that one isn't there?"


"Drop it," Damien glared at the two of them, making them shut their mouths and not involuntarily.


"So Castle where are Rue and Poppy? Or are we picking them up along the way?" Drake smirked at the young man.


"Nah," he replied casually, leaning back in his chair, causing a plethora of weapons at his side ranging from swords and guns to weapons Jade had no clue to what they were to show themselves. It unnerved Jade, but she didn't say a word. "They'll be at the lunch."


"Oh?" Drake smiled cheerily at Castle. They were friends, Jade realized. "And how's Gavin?"


That filled Castle's grey like purple eyes with fire. "He's a piece of shit I never want to lay eyes on again."


"Hmm, sorry to hear that," Drake frowned, tilting his head in sympathy.


"Don't be," he replied, "I-"




"That's enough!" Cornelia snapped, suddenly. Jade was beginning to presume, mostly due to Drake's thoughts, that Cornelia was the superior of Castle and Damien. Although she couldn't even imagine anyone trying to order Damien about. "I don't want to hear any more of that shit. It's revolting."


"Shut up," Damien moaned in a quiet, bored sort of way.


Cornelia clenched her teeth, but didn't object. Then Damien slid on a devilish smile, "Lieutenant, you should bring whoever your new friend is to this luncheon . . . or were you already planning on it?"


Castle glanced at Damien with raised eyebrows giving Jade the feeling that the two of them weren't exactly familiar enough with one another to talk like that. "Yeah," he said uncomfortably, "I had already invited him."


"Right," Damien laughed as Cornelia pursued her thin lips, still without turning his eyes away from his precious window.


Drake glanced at Castle thinking You shouldn't listen to a damn word that comes out of his mouth.


Castle didn't seem to be able to read the expression on Drake's face though and merely shrugged.


"How much sleep did you get Damien?" Castle spoke out. He didn't seem afraid of Damien, but he was clearly being cautious.


"I don't know give or take an hour or two," he sighed.


"And you're better now?" He narrowed his eyes as if that would help him see whether Damien was telling him the truth or not. Jade quickly realized that he was talking about Damien's issues with power control.


"Yes," Damien threw on another grin this time freezing Castle with his eyes, "why are you afraid?"


"Of course," Castle said, surprising Jade, "who isn't?"


Damien pursed his lips and tilted his head in a kind of agreeing way, allowing his laughing eyes to fall onto Jade.


"Is it just me or do you love to hear people say that Damien?" Jade growled at him, folding her arms across her chest, which was a bit more exposed by her red dress than she would have liked, but there wasn't much that could be done about that.


It was a long time before Damien answered her question. He really seemed tired and Jade wouldn't have doubted it if he had fallen asleep, but he did answer at long last, "No my love," he sighed, resting his elbow against the bottom of the window and laying his head on his hand, "I'm simply trying to find someone who doesn't like you and so far I have failed."


"We're here any ways," Cornelia growled. She seemed clearly vexed with Damien and Castle, but that was covered up by the fact that she was an attractive lady and had a somewhat deep seductive voice. "You two boys need to behave all right?"


"Yes, mom," Castle grinned.


Damien didn't respond until she coughed loudly to grab his attention. He sighed, "Look, I won't be surprised if I fall asleep half way through."


"You have a tendency to pick fights with the King," she muttered.


"And?" Damien spoke softly. He was barely giving the conversation any of his attention.


"Just please, I am in over my head with trouble because of the two of you as it is," she shook her head, making the long loose red curls twirl around her face.


"You say that as if we work together," Castle laughed as the carriage came to a stop.


Damien glanced out the window with a faint smile and muttered very lowly, "Well, here we go."


Immediately the doors were flung open and all of them were torn from the carriage by at least fifty hands. Servants all dressed in pale blue uniforms crowded around Damien in particular, shoving papers in his hands, speaking a hundred things to him, and one even handed him a glass of something, which he harshly shoved back, sloshing the bubbly mixture all of the poor man. He seemed to be signing things left and right while answering the questions that were being thrown at him. Jade bit her lip. No wonder the man was always on the brink of a breakdown.


"Why aren't they swarming you?" She asked Castle.


"We," he gestured to Cornelia, "aren't the chief advisor to the king. She is the General of his army and I the Lieutenant. So," he grinned with an uncomfortable laugh, "we're just considered to be here for formality and the alcohol."


She let her eyes study the many badges and medals and ribbons decorating his olive green uniform with golden elaborate shoulder cuffs. Cornelia had even more only her uniform was a deep burgundy. Now she could also see a few weapons hanging from Cornelia's side as well. The tips of her lipstick covered mouth titled up, "You thought that we worked with Damien didn't you girl?"


"Why is that so strange?" She asked as they continued to walk through the garden-like courtyard.


Cornelia laughed out loud in a deep mocking voice, "Oh dear child, do we resemble any part of him?"


"What do you mean?" Jade glanced at Damien and then back at Castle, comparing the two.


"We, can obey orders and we have complete control over our powers," she spat, "don't get me wrong, I respect him and while friends would be pushing it we're something around that."


"Although," Castle added, "I wonder if I'd have enough of my mind to control my power if I was under all of that," he gestured to Damien, who was moving with his herd of people. Jade watched his cool demeanor. "Fuck them," Castle growled at the mob. He then took a few quick steps until he was beside them, "Scram!"


"Lieutenant," one of the servants spoke, "the king-"


"Fuck the king," Castle growled, placing a hand by the gun on his hip, "I said scram."


"Ignore him, he's a hot headed brat, who can't mind his own damn business," Damien growled, ripping a piece of paper from a man's hands and signing it with his pen.


"Nice try," Cornelia laughed heartily.


"Hmm," Castle smiled as he stepped back, rolling his eyes up to the cloudy sky and when they fell back down he gave out a sort of chuckle as a man about his age with fair hair ran rather into than up to him to embrace Castle, who in turn wrapped his arms around the man tightly, burying his face in the crook of his neck.


"I haven't seen you in months!" The man exclaimed. It appeared that he couldn't stop grinning. He then rested his hands on Castle's shoulder and standing on the very tips of his toes kissed him on the mouth, passionately.


Cornelia folded her arms across her chest as she scowled like she smelled sour milk. "I'll meet up with the you later Castle."


"We'll come with you," Drake said hastily, "I'm not in the mood to be a third wheel."


I am here idiot.


Yes well, idiot, I want to give Castle his space he hasn't seen Maxie in a while, besides we're technically one so we would be a third wheel.


"Sorry," Damien growled, stepping up beside Cornelia redirecting Jade's mind onto him, "they're vultures."


"It would seem," she spoke through clenched teeth.


Damien glanced over Drake and Jade's heads at Castle and Maxie and then laughed, but not in an amused way, "You need to get over yourself General."


"Of course, Lord Killer," she spat sarcastically, Jade frowned unsure of what she was referring to. Drake was struggling to keep her from those thoughts and she couldn't reach them.




Damien only rolled his eyes in response. Drake sighed. So Damien finally had control over his temper again. It sure had taken him long enough to adjust to Jade. He glanced at the girl with a smile, her eyes were wondering all over the courtyard, from the finely dressed people to the marbled fountains. The poor thing had probably never seen such luxury. She was beyond pitiful.


"Do you never respond?" Cornelia laughed irritably, probably needing to vent her anger on something. Drake laughed himself, Damien not respond? Well, it was rare, but he had seen a lot of it those past few days.


"Only on extremely special occasions, General," he bit his lip into a forced smile.


"Hmm," she murmured, glancing around the courtyard. She was obviously planning on finding away to force a reaction out of Damien and if Cornelia knew Damien better, Drake would have been afraid, but Damien had about as little energy in him as rock and Cornelia had no idea what buttons to push. In fact it would be amusing to see her try, which she looked like she was just about to because she reached over to her left and pushed a young girl about Damien's age right into him. Drake quickly grabbed Jade's hand and pulled her towards him she gave him a bitter look, but he pointed her eyes at Damien, who was now smiling at the young blonde girl.


You'll wanna watch this.


Why?


He stopped to stare at her with wide mocking eyes, you do want to get to know Damien White right? Or am I reading you wrong?


I already know him.


Ah, then you'll definitely want to watch this.


Who's the girl? She was looking right up at him, making him smile.


Some whore hired to work here, look how she's dressed, idiot.


What did Cornelia expect him to do? She knew about Lyra, his mother and how her death had broken anything of a heart that Damien had. Did she expect him to cower away and cry at the sight of any woman? Surely not, she knew him more than that, but then what did she think?


Damien looked directly into Cornelia's eyes and then bent down to kiss the girl on the mouth fervently. Drake felt Jade bite her lip uncomfortably as Damien ate away at her. She was thinking to herself that that was not how Damien had kissed her and she was trying to see how the two kisses compared as they were both meaningless. However, Drake thought, Damien was enjoying this kiss unlike Jade's as the girl began to stroke her hands through his hair. Then suddenly Cornelia grabbed the girl by the back of her tight dress jerked her away, giving her a glare that sent her walking even further from the two.


As Cornelia stared hard at Damien as he began to smile, "What?" She looked harder as if she was trying to find his heart. "What did you expect exactly?"


"What the hell makes you run?" She blubbered, half sarcastically. Then she reached out a hand towards his chest and prodded it right where his heart would have been, while he bent down with his hands in his pocket so that his smirking face was incredibly close to her's.


Suddenly he grabbed her finger and pulled it back down to her side, "Wouldn't you like to know, General."


Then Damien made a mistake, more than likely because he was tired, but nonetheless a mistake that might have cost him later on. As he was wiping what was left of that girl from his mouth he glanced at Jade. The one thing there that would without a doubt get a reaction from him if used the right way. Drake smiled. He would have been bored out of his mind if it had not been for this enticing entertainment of a game. Cornelia following Damien's example glanced at poor, unfortunate, pathetic Jade as well and then smiled through closed lips. What the hell was she thinking though?


However her smile melted as her eyes lifted over Jade's head. Damien who was still looking at the General frowned in a mocking sort of way, "What? Out of ideas already?"


"Damien," a gruff voice came out from behind Drake. He didn't turn around because he knew who the voice was from and he wasn't a particular fan.


Damien's mouth twitched into the worst impression of a smile Drake had ever seen him make as he turned towards the man who laid a cold heavy ringed hand on Drake's shoulder to move past him so that he was standing closer to Damien. Drake shivered of the feeling of the King's hand. "Your highness?" Damien made a quick bow with Cornelia and Drake grabbed Jade's hand pulling her down into one with him.


"Don't," Drake could almost laugh the poor man's voice was just about quivering, "I know you're furious and I'll admit that this last week has been pushing it for you. I apologize. I'll tell Prandine to lay off."


"Of course, whatever you think is best your highness," Drake had never seen Damien put so much effort into an act. Cornelia's smile broke free again. Drake had been wrong there were now two people at this luncheon that could break Damien's emotionless act. Obviously the King had seen Damien's temper otherwise he wouldn't be so fidgety. Damien wasn't afraid to explode in front of him, but he had it all together at that moment as usual.


"Damien," the king sighed as he rubbed his fingers into his multi-colored eyes, "I-I. . ." He paused and turned to look at Jade. He pointed a finger at her and then turned moving that same finger onto Damien, who's face was turning white than a ghost's, "She looks familiar."


"No, she doesn't," Damien smiled thinly and crossed his arms across his chest.


"Is that your son?" the King spoke out suddenly as if Damien had made him forget all about Jade, twisting the knife that had been in Drake's back since he was born and forcing a hiss of irritation out of Damien. "I haven't seen him in a while," he bent down to look Drake in the eye, "fucking hell he looks exactly like you!"


Drake clenched his hands into tight fists so that he could vent his anger into something.


"Go on," the king laughed standing straight and motioning with his hand at Drake as if he were some circus performer, "say something. I want to know if you sound like him too."


"Fu-" but Jade stepped on his foot hard, "damn it, Jade!"


"Haha," the king roared with laughter, "that's just great and tell me now do you even share the same power?"


"No," Damien muttered, "your highness could we please . . . goddamn it!"


Cornelia looked to Damien's right to see why he had hissed in pain and then bit on her lip, "Come on," she gestured to Drake and Jade.


"Why is your damn time traveler here?" Damien sighed. "Oh and," he laughed, "yes he's coming over here. Wonderful! Fantastic!"


Drake glanced back as Cornelia grabbed both Jade's and Drake's hands and began to tug them away with her. He got one last glimpse of the King's time traveler staring off at Jade and himself.


"Aww, taking them away so soon?" the time traveler smiled hideously at Damien.


"Please," the king growled, "you two are practically family, whatever happened between the two of you drop it."


"No, we are absolutely not family," Damien smiled calmly as he spoke slowly, "I'd kill him if it weren't such a painless affair. I want him to suffer like he's made me suffer."


"Funny that's my mindset right now," the time traveler simpered at him.


Damien struck out at him just like that hitting him hard enough to send him to the ground. There weren't many more people left in the courtyard as most of them had migrated to the dinning hall for the lunch, but even with so few people no one seemed to notice or care about what was going on.


"First you sold me out, then you put me in charge of her life when there was nothing that I could do to save her, then you blamed me and now here you are punishing me every moment of every day leaving me to clean up your damn mess," Damien hissed softly and in complete control, his voice barely carrying any emotion.


"There was nothing that you could do!" The man on the stoney ground scoffed. "How many times must we circle this argument boy? You could have stopped it with a single hand motion if you'd have liked!"


The King's chief counselor was quiet for a very long time as he looked away out into the distance intensely. Finally he spoke though he didn't move his eyes, "I don't want him here, please."


"Fine," the King sighed, "I'm sorry A-"


"Don't be, your highness," the older man growled contemptuously as he struggled to stand, Damien smiling at his struggle the entire time. "He hates events like these and as only one of us can remain I am glad that it be him for that very reason."


Damien barred his teeth at the time traveler like a vicious animal and then opened them about to say something.


"What!" He exclaimed mockingly before Damien could though, "Don't tell me you'll loose control over that mouth of your's just for me . . . that reminds me where is the gate keeper to your tongue?"




The King's chief counselor squinted his eyes at the older man as if trying to decide whether to use his power or not. He reopened his mouth suddenly, but then slowly closed it into a smile, shaking his head softly muttering, "No, no you aren't worth it in the least bit."


"Here," the time traveler stuffed a round delicate golden music box into Damien's hand. It immediately popped open on the impact due to its old wobbly latch. A sad lonely song thumped out into the air like a living heartbeat. Damien immediately dropped it stepping back with his hand covering his mouth tightly. Blood was streaming down his face from where his nails were digging into old scabs.


"Shut it now, please goddamn it! Shut it now!" Damien whispered through his hand, his eyes lit with fire.


The king stooped down and picked up the little box, closing it as he watched Damien intensely. A smile fluttered over his lips as he stuffed the trinket into his pocket. He glanced at his time traveler and nodded a thank you. It was obvious that he would use that terrible song to control his uncontrollable chief advisor.


"Damien," the king muttered after a while once the time traveler had left, eyeing the stooped over man. He dared to lay a hand on his shoulder. "Damien, what was that thing?"


"Where is it?" He stood straight suddenly, looking around slowly and shaking off the king's hand.


"He took it with him," the King frowned. "What is it Damien?"


Damien smiled, completely amused, "You're lying to me?"


"What is it?" He laughed, confused. He wasn't a stupid man and in fact the King's chief advisor sometimes found it a struggle to run circles around him.


"A music box your kingship," Damien purred through dark eyes.


"What's it to you then?" He frowned.


"We're late," he blinked hard a few times.


"And I asked you a question," the King growled, seeming to forget his fear of his advisor for a moment. Finally Damien allowed his eyes to fully meet the King's. It forced him to look away and mutter, "Fine then, you're right. You have a speech to make any ways. Don't you?"


"Not that I can recall," he growled, lowly.

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