bitter water // dreamnotfound

eleven

their conversations were indirectly offensive, but karl was clueless.

"So, what's it like living in the village? I'm used to fancy cathedral ceilings and silk sheets, what do you guys have?"

Tommy huffed. "Stop bragging you filthy rich wrongen," he carefully moved his injured leg, "we wouldn't be able to afford silk sheets if we worked our asses off for fifty years!" Not even thirty minutes ago, Tommy had been thrown off the stallion and straight into a horse hurdle. Thankfully, or not depending on the way you look at it, he had not been horribly injured. He could walk, it was just slightly painful to do so. He was sitting with his leg perched upon a stack of bags filled with rice. Karl laughed a bit, looking down at the dusty ground. "I know, I'm just genuinely curious as to what your life is like. I'll never get to experience it unless I get myself kicked out, which I'm not really looking at doing."

Tubbo sat down next to Tommy after securing the horse back in the stall. "It isn't great where we live but we make do. Just imagine living in a house like this horse's stall. And then only eating barley, cabbage, and whatever crops you grow that actually make it. Also, we never drink the water. It'll make us sick. We mostly drink ale and wine, which doesn't sound too bad but the quality isn't much higher than the water."

Karl nodded in understanding. "What the honk? That sounds awful. I don't think I've ever tried barley and the only cabbage I eat is in stews. Do you guys get meat and cheese?"

Tommy sarcastically laughed and looked at Karl with an unamused expression painted on his face. "What do you think?" Toby awkwardly smiled and tried to quiet Tommy. "We get meat and cheese on special days like holidays. Tommy is just a little brat and his parents never give him any." Tommy completely disregarded his injured leg to launch himself at Toby, playfully throwing punches. Karl wasn't used to this type of behavior and got a bit frightened. He wasn't exactly accustomed to play-fighting.

The teenagers quickly realized that Karl was shocked and sat right back up. "Sorry about that. As I was saying..."

"You two are so unusual."

While the three conversed about what life was like for both classes, a familiar face peered out of the enormous stained glass window that overlooked the stables and the equestrian training pasture. The window was usually very calming to gaze out of as the rays of sunlight tinted the floor, but this time was anything but calming. It was none other than Queen Niki. Her first instinct was to panic, which was perfectly reasonable seeing as two scruffy teenage boys she had never seen in her life were on the grounds with her son. Even though Karl looked completely at ease and the two boys showed no immediate threat, Niki grabbed handfuls of her layered dress and rushed through the halls, her eyes darting around for a nearby guard to fetch the attention of. To her dismay, none seemed to be around when she needed them. The clicks of her light footsteps echoed throughout the halls, her anxiety growing at every growing second. Niki reached the nearest door to the stables and tossed them open, lifting her dress up a few inches from the ground so she wouldn't dirty it.

"Karl!"

The prince jolted at the calling of his name, instantly recognizing it as his mother's. Karl's eyes grew timid and afraid, Tommy and Tubbo instantly recognizing it. Tommy's first thought was to hide, but where was he supposed to go when Niki had already clearly seen him? Tommy looked at Tubbo and laughed to avoid crying out of fear. "Oh, we are royally fucked."

Karl's heart was at the bottom of his chest, he felt lightheaded and he could feel his hands go cold. "Oh, uh... Hi... Mom..."

Niki's eyes darted between her son and the two dodgy-looking boys next to him. "Karl, sweetheart, what in the world are you doing out here, and who are these boys? Why are they in the grounds, how did they get in here, we have high security-"