Chapter 8: Rumbling Belly.

Chapter 8: Chapter 8: Rumbling Belly.

Bongo was making sure to maintain his vicelike grip on the redhead’s bicep, lest he try to make a break for it before they reached his new quarters. And, judging from the way he kept trying to head-butt and shoulder his way free, that was exactly what Khobi had in mind. It was a good thing that Bongo was well-matched for the prince in size –anyone too much smaller might well have been flung aside by now.

Some of the men had suggested blindfolding him –probably to disorient the poor man even more, but there was no need, Crade was a large castle and easily confounding to those not familiar with its halls. That, and, as loosely as the term ’guest’ seemed to be used in his situation, he was one –a prince at that, and Bongo was loath to force him to suffer any further indignities, the gag was enough already.

Most men would have found it humiliating to walk the halls like that, such an obvious prisoner, despite what the king might say, and would turn their heads away at the looks of disdain from passing noblemen. But not this man, and Bongo had to wonder at it, this man held his head high and met their scorn like it was nothing...as if he was daring them to do more than simply glare.

It was a relief to finally reach the room that Lord Vogrid had designated as the prince’s new lodgings, the door open and the sound of a servant busying themselves inside.

"Welcome to your new room, my lord," Bongo remarked politely, as they drew up, two of his men automatically taking up a position on either side of the large wooden door, "Please reconsider trying to escape again," he added, tugging the gag away from the redhead’s mouth and narrowly avoiding losing a finger in the process, "We will catch you."

"Don’t count on it," Khobi spat back hotly, again trying to yank away from him and failing, "...And don’t call me that –"

"...What would you ask that I call you, then?" Bongo inquired flatly, only for the redhead to glance away in a childish refusal to answer. "My lord it is, then." He turned to beckon to the servant in the room, who seemed to be in the process of filling a bath, "Servant, come. Lord Vogrid ordered us to bring food for our guest." There was a brief pause as a bucket was dumped to the stones and the dark-haired servant wandered forwards to receive the large tray of food that one of Bongo’s men had been bearing.

"You must be hungry, my lord," Bongo remarked, cutting the bonds tying the redhead’s wrists in a single motion, but easily gripping his fists before either of them could come flailing to strike him. It was admirable the amount of strength still in those hands considering how he hadn’t eaten since coming to the castle –not to mention the ordeal he must have been through while getting there.

"Khobi," the prince growled irritably, his voice failing to mask the loud groan of his stomach. Bongo felt the hands in his grip relax slightly, almost as though he had only just now been struck by the realisation that he was famished. "Just Khobi...Is fine..."

How strange.

"As you wish," Bongo replied dutifully, unfortunately used to the eccentricities of royals. One couldn’t serve King Gurdet for any amount of time without coming to acknowledge that sometimes it was impossible trying to understand them. He nudged Khobi forwards slowly, ushering him towards the room and nodding at his men to get ready to barricade the door.

"...So you are imprisoning me," Khobi scoffed angrily, though he thankfully seemed to be accepting that that door was still going to close on him no matter how much he tried to escape from Bongo’s grip.

"If that’s how you choose to see it," Bongo answered neutrally, releasing the redhead’s wrists and giving him a firm shove into the room. Before Khobi even had time to react to being freed, the door was slamming shut behind him.

"Hopefully you’ll find this one a little harder to break down."

Khobi curses were quickly drowned out by the sound of something heavy scraping against the stone floor of the corridor, a sure sign that his most obvious exit was being walled off. He slammed a fist into the wood angrily, but was rewarded with nothing but a muffled thump and a stinging hand. But that didn’t stop him from aggressively swinging another punch at the door, and then another, and then finally knocking his forehead against the solid wood in frustration.

Of course, none of that did any good.

"Ugh...." Khobi groaned into the door, his hands clenching and unclenching in an attempt to stop his shoulders from shaking with fury.

This was not happening.

What was Silas thinking, sending him here? Ever since Khobi had been a boy, not a day had gone by without some bitter reminder that he was going to be chained to Briyagi until he died. Silas had made sure that he could never call Briyagi home, and yet could never leave. And now he was far from there, but still trapped, all over again, doomed to marry a man whose very presence set him on edge and had his guard rising.

Even just thinking of that man’s face and the crude clench of fingers digging into the flesh of his ass made Khobi’s anger flare, and his fist met wood again, only to throb uncomfortably.

"I take it your escape didn’t go so well."Khobi had forgotten that he wasn’t alone, and the sudden comment made him start in surprise, prompting him to spin around to face whoever it was that had decided to mock him so familiarly. And then, when he recognised who it was perched at ease on the windowsill, he couldn’t help but scoff in annoyance."Ugh," he snorted in heated aggression, "...What are you doing here?" he asks.

"What does it look like?" Binny snorted, holding up his empty bucket with one hand and gesturing dramatically with the other at the full bathtub a few paces in front of him, "...Seeing as someone can’t seem to go more than three hours without needing another bath..." He met Khobi’s gaze rather coolly, and then his eyes skated down, resigned to how dirty the redhead had managed to get in such a short space of time, "Seriously, where did you even find all this dirt...?"Khobi didn’t answer, the growling of his stomach the only thing that was currently rivalling his anger.

He could smell all that food just sitting there; taunting him, making his mouth water something terrible. He wanted to shout and beat that door down, and if it would’ve done him any good he might’ve demanded to be set free. But the sudden gnawing emptiness of his stomach made him realise that he needed to regain his strength.

In the years at Briyagi, he’d come to know hunger, of course, but it had become so constant; so ever-present, that it had eventually come to be a part of him, and only now that all this food had been placed before him, did he realise just how famished –and therefore, just how weak, he was.

His stomach growled again as he made a beeline for the table, and he swallowed, and with that, tried to push down his rage. Getting angry in Briyagi had never done him any good, never gotten him anywhere, and what good was he if he stayed starved when there was food on offer?.

Tentatively, he reached out towards the tray of food, as though it all might vanish if he touched it; as though there was some price he might have to pay. It was all for him, though, right? That’s what they’d said? And was this just one meal? The captain guy hadn’t mentioned anything about having to ration it, right?"...What was that?" Binny inquired, informing Khobi that he had mumbled a question aloud.

The redhead didn’t look at him, just licked his lips and picked up a piece of soft bread. It wasn’t warm anymore, but it was definitely fresh."Will I get more?" he asked vacantly, and once again, the servant was struck with how strange he sounded."Of course," he replied curiously, raising an eyebrow, "You’re a guest here. We’re not going to starve you." Red eyes flicked over to him, assessing his face as though searching for some kind of deceit. But if there was anything in Binny’s face it was puzzlement, and that seemed to be enough.

Khobi crammed the piece of bread in his mouth and couldn’t help but let out a soft murmur of something much like delight at how soft and delicious it was."...At least wash your hands..." Binny sighed rather belatedly, shaking his head in disbelief and sitting back against the stone wall as he watched the redhead wolf down morsel after morsel, looking as though he couldn’t get enough of it.

It was actually astounding how fast the food vanished –Captain Bongo had been quite generous with the food he’d brought up, but nothing about that seemed to daunt Khobi; he was eating as though someone might steal it from his very fingertips if he slowed."...Wow," the servant couldn’t help but remark with a low whistle.

The sound attracted Khobi’s attention and he glanced over, licking his fingers; cheeks stuffed to bursting and food scraps stuck to his chin. Binny burst out laughing, and the redhead looked appropriately put out.

"What?" he sniffed, his voice muffled by the sheer volume of food still crammed in his mouth."Nothing, nothing," Binny chuckled, waving away the accusatory look the redhead was giving him, "I just...you’re really hungry, aren’t you?""...I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t," Khobi shrugged simply, turning back to his emptying plate as though it were no big deal.

Binny couldn’t help the way his eyes saddened for the briefest of moments; caught off guard by the flat, easy honesty of the statement. But then his gaze sharpened again and he let his crooked smile smear across his face again."Well, soon you’ll be our prince," he commented offhandedly, "And you’ll never have to go hungry again."

Any lesser man would have withered at the sudden heaviness that fell across the room. Binny, however, simply inclined his head most curiously as Khobi paused mid-chew, and slowly swallowed, hanging his head and glaring down at the table with eyes that could’ve held lightening.

His jaw clenched, hands balling into fists on the wood of the table, curled so tight his knuckles were turning white. That almost child-like simplicity that had been brought on by the gift of food just a moment ago had vanished in an instant, replaced by something much darker."I won’t," he whispered vehemently, almost as if speaking to himself.

And there a kind of reckless defiance in his voice that Binny couldn’t help but shiver; finding it all too like the kind of desperate tone one would sometimes hear from the mouths of condemned men. "I won’t marry him." "Ah, I’d heard that you didn’t take it very well," Binny mused, but quietly, because even though he was relatively confident with his ability to evade bodily harm, he’d been a servant of Crade for long enough to be a good judge of men.

He didn’t fear him; he knew that Prince Khobi wasn’t a malicious man...but he could tell that, genuinely angered, this man could be a force to be reckoned with. He could practically see the storm clouds brewing atop the redhead’s crown; thunder rumbling ominously, and lightning crackling across his scowl."Did you know?" Khobi suddenly asked, turning to face Binny so suddenly and with such heat that the servant actually flinched, and had to scramble for purchase on the stone to stop from toppling backwards out the window.

"Huh?" he inquired innocently, rather comically clinging to the wall." –You knew why I was here, didn’t you?" he accused, "...That’s why you laughed at me...""Laughed?" Binny repeated innocently, "Now that doesn’t sound like something I’d do..." Khobi looked so much like he wasn’t buying the façade that, despite the suspicion in those red eyes, he snickered, "...Of course I knew. I told you, didn’t I? The servants know everything.""So why didn’t you tell me?" he huffed crossly, getting to his feet and kicking his chair over in frustration."...Well, you didn’t ask," Binny reminded him rather pointedly, taking the opportunity to remove himself from the window ledge to check on the bath.

"And you could’ve. Though hearing it from me wouldn’t have made it any less true." And knowing the king, he probably would’ve been thrilled to be the one to deliver the news. King Gurdet was a lot of things, and sometimes petty was one of them.It seemed that Khobi at least seemed to accept that on that note, he was entirely correct."...Wait," he muttered in realisation, "...You say you know everything here? Does that mean you know a way out of the castle?"" –I’m assuming you’re meaning other than the front gate?" Binny raised an eyebrow, and received an aggrieved glare in response. He chuckled, "Of course, And your bath is ready; there are new clothes sitting on the edge of your bed. Again."

" –So you could tell me how to get out of here?" A small flash of hope had crossed Khobi’s face, and Binny somehow found it the slightest bit amusing, "Tell me!"He couldn’t help but feel a slight twinge of guilt for laughing, and then another at the way Khobi’s face fell as he came to realise that as friendly as Binny was, he was still a stranger, with loyalties that didn’t lie with him.

"Just because I know doesn’t mean I can help," he chirped, although he allowed himself to sound at least a little apologetic, "I do serve other masters, after all, Khobi." He had to take a moment to duck again as his empty bucket went flying straight towards his head. It hit the heavy door with a heavy thud and cracked. Ah, maybe he shouldn’t tease so much."M’lords?" he added brightly as a signal to the guards outside that he was ready to be let out. That loud, grating noise started up again in response, the soldiers most obligingly beginning to move aside whatever heavy item of furniture was blockading the door.

"But, nonetheless..." he added, glancing playfully towards the redhead, who looked like his frustration was rising again and might threaten to boil over at any moment. "...I do wish you all the best for your future escape attempts. God knows the castle guards could use the exercise..."He only just managed to slip out the door before a foot stool came flying his way.