pretty boy || dreamnotfound

his poison

a sickening silence is the only notable thing in the room the king stands in, except from his stern gaze and his son, who is tiredly rubbing at his eyes. his father glares at him, as if to tell him to stop acting sluggish. dream shrugs, before straightening his posture with a sigh and dropping his hands to his sides. he had asked around twenty minutes earlier why exactly his presence was called for here, but he received a dismissive glance as an answer. the man turns his head, peeking at the time before returning his eyes to the door.

finally, an echo bounces off the walls, a frantic stranger heading towards the king. "sire, he said yes. he planned to accept the offer!"

dream lifts his head, narrowing his eyes at the man briefly, before turning to his father who nods.

"thank you." he states, and confusion washes over the prince as his father looks at him. "son, we need to discuss private matters."

gears spin in dream's mind, but he's uncertain. "what's going on?"

the stranger leaves abruptly, another echo as the door closes behind him.

"i had one of the guards dress up last night." he pauses, testing waters. "that servant of yours planned to accept a large amount of money for your death."

dream scoffs, "you're telling me that scrawny idiot is plotting to kill me right now?"

the king clears his throat, taking a breath in and straightening his spine. "yes."

"i'm sorry, but how is this considered even remotely important? you had me wake up at five to stand around waiting for this?"

"excuse me?"

the prince laughs, "have you seen george? you really think he, of all people, would plan to murder me?"

a thick silence floats in the air for a moment, before the king speaks again.

"it doesn't matter if you think he's capable or not. we can no longer trust that boy as a servant, this is the second time he has put your life in danger, we're not taking any more risks!"

dream flinches as his father bellows, realising how serious the topic has grown in such short time.

"i know you think this is all a joke, but you're showing signs of weakness every time you're around the boy! you let your guard down, for just a second, and you could be dead the next." his father's cold eyes stare into his, and he finds himself completely, utterly speechless.

"this is why we taught you about the power of friendship. friends like him- that you get attached to- will cost you your life. why? because you'd never want to hurt him," the king pauses, taking a bold step forward, "and he wouldn't think twice about hurting you."

dream closes his eyes for a moment, before gulping. "he wouldn't do such a thing."

"would he have accepted the deal if that were true?"

"what do you suppose i do?" his eyes gloss over, "kill him?"

his father paces, before halting in front of dream. "fire him immediately. there will be no changing my mind."

the prince lets out a breath, knowing the stern tone in his father's voice means the conversation is over. he exits the room, and is instantly followed by his guards. he wants to yell at them, yell at everyone. why must the only friend he's ever had betray him like this? after everything they've gone through, after all that time spent together. after all the jokes, sarcastic comments and arguments. he had truly found himself growing fond of him, and now?