The Flower of Serving Men - 4. Chapter 4

The King had been harried with work left and right. Whoever thought the life of a patriarch was luxury lived in sweet, blissful ignorance. If anything, the nobility below him had easier lives than he did. As a responsible ruler, he felt the need to make sure everyone stayed on track, at least everyone under his direct command. There was so much to do and so little time. He now understood the stress his father went through.

There was a knock on the door of his study, and he allowed entry without really thinking. Only did the scent of pot roast pork belly make him turn his head, and there he spied the mysterious stranger he met the other day. The curious man who was made a servant of the castle, the one that his seneschal deemed 'noteworthy'. The man was busy setting a vacant desk with the silver trays of food the kitchens sent up for him, undoubtedly at Sebastian's suggestion.

The servant turned and caught glimpse of his king staring, making him jerk. "Ah, Your Majesty, my apologies. I'll..." The man stuttered as he fumbled over his words. It took a few moments before he recovered. "I'll take my leave now, Sire, please."

The servant was about to scurry away when Brandt cried out, "Wait!"

Both of them flinched from the outcry, and slowly, ever so carefully did the servant turn. "P-Pardon, Your Majesty?"

"No, uh... Sit, please."

The servant looked around and settled for a humble wooden chair just off to the side, with his King's gaze lingering all the while. They watched each other carefully, unable to meet gazes. One was as anxious as the other, fiddling with their thumbs and practically scouring for a way to break the silence.

"So, uh, lovely weather today," Brandt began, followed promptly with a swear under his breath. He thought he was better than this; he'd gained court favor before by charming men and women with his quick wit and audacious flirting.

"Indeed," the servant answered.

"I'm... sorry. Your name escapes me."

"William Valen, Your Majesty."

"Ah, yes. William." About to become a jittering mess, Brandt opted to sit down by his bed. "So, how do you like the castle so far? To your liking, I hope?"

"More than I could ask for."

"Good, good." Silence again fell between them, a thick and bitter sludge they could barely trudge pass. Frustrated, Brandt groaned aloud, practically roared in his frustration. "Maker's Breath, this is getting us nowhere!"

"Your Majesty?"

"Do you want to play some chess?"

William blinked twice, perplexed. "Play chess? With you?"

"What, not a big fan of chess?"

"I've never won a game in my life, Your Majesty."

Brandt pondered over that. He marched to a corner of his study and dragged back a small table and slammed down a chest that held the game. He watched as William bewilderedly set up the game. At least, the man was familiar with it. Brandt nodded to himself and dragged a chair over so they could play decently. "Ready to play, then?"

"I'm afraid I'm not sharp enough for games like these."

"We'll make do."

It was nearing sunset when Sebastian stumbled into the study, finding a servant laughing as he moved a piece all over the board, and his liege chasing after him with his own. There were filthy dishes on a table, haphazardly covered but altogether a child's mess. He cleared his throat and managed to draw their attention. He didn't expect William, or rather Ellis, to yelp, but he did, as if he were burned. Brandt's smile merely fell off his face.

"Are you two quite done?"

"Ah, I better get back to my duties. My apologies, Sirs." Ellis was quick to move, gathering the dishes and high-tailing it out of the room with a panicked grace that was enviable. That left Sebastian to fix his stern glare on Brandt.

"Look, Seb, I can explain."

"You're procrastinating," he interjected, with a scathing, warning tone. "You're forgetting we have much to do this week, yes? We're expecting ambassadors next week, Maker's sake!"

"I know!" Brandt snapped, enough to give Sebastian pause. Brandt's voice trailed off as he calmed himself down. "I know, I just... needed a break, Sebastian. Do you know how much I had to go through this morning? I had to deal with all the self-entitled snobs trying to wean off their daughters to me while I wanted to discuss our plans for the coming winter! And someone was abrasive enough to ask about the purpose of this and that when it is clearly his people and his land we're dealing with. I swear, I wanted to punch someone in the face!"

Sebastian took his rant in stride, however, and merely patted his shoulder. "My daily routine exactly, only they'll be much more bold with me. I'm just a seneschal, after all."

"Sorry, Seb," Brandt finally sighed. "It's just that sometimes I wonder about the basic education these... these children get."

"As I recall, you were nearly as sheltered."

"Father groomed me to have proper tact."

"Small mercies." Sebastian observed the once-cluttered desk that held the food from earlier. "Tell you what, I'll appoint William to serve you in your rooms on the weekends?"

"That sounds... inappropriate."

"We'll just say our lovely King requests the young servant's presence for consultation regarding matters of... Oh, I don't know. Medicine? I think that's a fine excuse, don't you?"

"Medicine? What for?"

Sebastian's smirk was all-knowing, and faintly smug. "Research is highly revered, I hear."

Brandt spent the rest of the week tending to his duties, but each day seemed to weigh on him. Every now and then, he'd catch a glimpse of William, but he should have expected as much; a servant's duties were just as tiring, though less mentally straining. An incident like their impromptu chess game hadn't occurred again, but Sebastian kept giving him a knowing smile at times during their meetings. It grated on his nerves but all he could do was swallow his pride.

When the weekend came, however, he found breakfast served by a very welcome face.

"William, I haven't seen you in a while," he greeted him, pleased to see the servant in his bed chambers. William, however, was pointedly looking as far away from him as politely possible, his movements terse and tight. It took a while for Brandt to realize how nude he was under his sheets, and how the blankets offered enough of a view to tease onlookers. "Ah, sorry. I prefer sleeping in the nude."

"People will talk, Your Majesty," William warned him carefully, preparing the morning tea with his back turned against him. "People expect a King to act in decorum."

"Mostly on meetings and affairs of the state."

"This entire conversation is an affair of the state."

"Well, it's quite an affair," Brandt teased, bright with a grin. William looked over his shoulder, and the glare in his eyes was a shadow of Sebastian's: unimpressed and cold. "Just a joke, William."

"One in poor taste," he quipped, bringing the tea over to him with a more relaxed gait. "Like your preference for these tea leaves."

"Bad mood today, then?"

William huffed and fetched the rest of the tray to set by the bed. "I could do without talk, and yet I seem to have made an impression on you and the Seneschal."

"You don't like the attention?"

"I was hoping to be almost ignored, actually."

"You shouldn't have come to the city, then. It thrives on gossip for entertainment."

"Clearly," William muttered. "Though I won't leave; I'll just hope this dies down."

"Doubt it," Brandt offered, taking a slice of bread from the breakfast tray. "It's been too late since I first met you, actually."

William narrowed his eyes at him, a tired but warm look. "You mean you're fond of me?"

"Clearly. And Sebastian knows it."

"That explains his interest in me. I'd like to ask, what about yours? Care to clarify what madness has gotten you to take interest in someone like me?"

Brandt smirked as he deliberately dipped his bread in honey, his eyes locked on William's as he brought it slowly to his lips. He took a bite, then again, and promptly tasted the ashen underside and spat out the entire chunk in his mouth with a disgruntled look that rivalled a child's.

William's smile was wry as he took a napkin and patted away the mess on his face. "There, there, Your Majesty. I'm sure you'll get better on your seduction, once you stop trying to impress me like a very gay peacock."

Brandt's face went red right before his jaw slacked. "Excuse me?!"

"I'll admit, it's a good look for you, though," William teased. "THe flouncing peacock and this outrage."

Brandt glared, but the jutting lip just cemented the fact that it was half-hearted, at best. "Count yourself lucky that I'm fond of you."

"And there begs the question."

"What? Can't a man find another attractive? Curious?"

"I wouldn't say that," William reasoned. "I mean, I'm rather the same."

"What's the matter, then?"

"I'm just..." But William trailed off, a pinch between his brows the only hint Brandt could see to something that obviously hurt so much. "I'm just not ready, I guess."

"You seem to warm up to me rather easily for someone who 'isn't ready'. And this affection we have for each other isn't a farce, that much I can see."

William's breath shot out, exasperated and weary. "Your Majesty, please." But William made no motion to move, even as Brandt reached for his chin. He pulled gently, turning those strange eyes to meet his own. William's thoughts, his doubts , his words, were silenced by that intense stare.

"Just call me Brandt, please," he whispered to William, their noses only inches apart from each other. "I'd like to know you more, if you don't mind, and until we drop the formalities, I don't think that can happen."

Brandt watched as William's eyes danced around a few ideas. The docile look became fierce and sharp in the blink of an eye. "If I'm just some bloody fancy to distract you from your work--"

"Never," Brandt finished. He moved himself closer, but William shuffled away. "What?"

"Too soon," William simply answered. "Very much too soon."

Brandt hadn't felt the rug pulled from under him in a long time. The dismissal was almost jarring, and he had to shake his head to regain his bearings. "Fair enough. Sorry if I came on too strong."

"That's one word for it," William chided. "Anything else, Your Majesty?"

"I told you, you may call me Brandt, even if it's just for here." William stayed as impassive as before. "Fine. Would you join me for another game? We never did finish our last one."

William's smile was wry this time as he pulled the game table over to the bed. "You're just looking for a way to stroke your ego."

"In a manner of speaking."

William paused from setting up the game, glaring at Brandt. Brandt, however, was the epitome of innocence. "I walked right into that one," was his last remark before they began to play in earnest.

It would have been a day well spent doing nothing, merely unwinding and sharing stories. Brandt learned bits more about William, as elusive as he was with his queries. He began to see why Sebastian mentioned to ask about medicines. The way William practically lit up when discussing the medicinal benefits of some herbs and the books he's read practically declared just how learned he was. It made Brandt wonder just why he decided to become a servant. He figured Sebastian must have learned much by now, but it was all still a mystery to him.

When day gave way to night, through games, story-telling, and a stroll around the gardens before their return to the bed chambers, William sorted the game board and the furniture in the room before he took his leave. They'd enjoyed a rather nice lunch together in the king's bedchambers and no doubt the gossip was already amok the castle. William insisted he leave so that he could soothe some minds with more appropriate details of gossip. Brandt trusted him there.

It wasn't long before Sebastian made his appearance, dressed for the night but with an armful of books. "Your day went well, I take it?"

"Relaxing, actually," he admitted. "William's wonderful. Just... wary?"

That statement was enough to draw Sebastian's full attention, something as helpful as was terrifying. "What did you do?"

"I, um, flirted with him. A bit more forwardly."

Sebastian nodded slowly as he tried to read his king's face. "He rebuffed you, then?"

"Calmly. I also choked on a toast trying to seduce him."

"Like a very clumsy peacock."

Brandt groaned. "Ugh, you two are like siblings, it's mortifying."

"Not untrue," Sebastian reasoned, the hint of a smile gone as fast as it came. "Perhaps you should give him time, Sire. He's a rather squirrely fellow. And perhaps he's harboring some hurt."

"How would you know that?"

"Intuition," Sebastian simply answered. "My agents are still gathering information, but once we have all that we need, I will let you know."

Brandt eyed him suspiciously, knowing this song and dance from far before. "You know more than you're letting on, don't you?"

"I just want to make sure we don't jump to conclusions."

"This won't backfire on you?"

"I doubt it."

"Well, let's hope so," Brandt breathed. "I'm not too fond of tomorrow, to be honest."

"The Duchess of Arngard? Or the Council Meeting?" Sebastian stated more than asked.

"Both, but mostly her. She's been rather volatile the past few months. I wouldn't have paid much attention to her if it weren't for her fiery temper. Half the time, I'm tempted to sic Mother at her."

"Well, she took control of her late husband's lands. ANd proved ehrself rather capable."

"Yes, but I think anyone under her is half-afraid their hearts would be ripped out for her supper."

"That's hardly nice."

"I'll be 'nice'," Brandt stressed. "When I see her acting less like an angry hydra."

"Please refrain from insulting our delegates in public, Brandt. That is all I ask."

"Only within reason."