The Bars Between (MxM)

1

He looked like the human version of the word dangerous.

At least that's what little prince Adren thought as he looked at the man.

He mother had made him sit in his throne, which looked so small compared to his father's. Even though the chair was decorated and valuable beyond belief, Adren was uncomfortable, that's all he could focus on. Even when his father instructed him to stop moving in the chair, he just couldn't stop, the solidness of the cold metal was very distracting and he just couldn't find a way to sit that felt nice. His father's chair wasn't much better, he didn't look forward to sitting in it.

All of that fidgeting stopped when they brought him in.

The doors had slammed open dramatically, causing everyone in the room to look over at them immediately.

The first thing that Adren noticed was that he was surrounded by guards. They flocked around him, offering no chance for escape, several had their weapons pointed at him.

Adren's attention quickly moved from the guards to the man himself as soon as he was in view. He was tall, taller than most of the guards. He was also incredibly dirty. Adren wrinkled his nose in disgust, eyes sweeping over the man, who was covered in dirt and something else that was dark that streaked across his face and clothes. His hair was long and shiny, like there was some water in there or something, but there was no way that the water was clean and in the areas where it was more dry, the hair was matted. Not only this, his hair was brown, the white snow in it making the color even more evident, something very rare to see in the kingdom. His clothes were in absolutely horrible state, ripped and dirtied possibly more than his skin. It wasn't even very nice clothing, the shirt looked scratchy, his pants were a size too big, and his shoes had holes in them. He must've been freezing.

Another thing about the man, he looked... so different. But he was different in ways that looked more masculine than anything Adren's ever seen. His face was wider, nose bigger, eyebrows thicker, there was even the start of a beard! Adren didn't like that. In Secos, every man made sure to always keep their faces smooth, even if that meant shaving multiple times a day! So he was so different than anything Adren had seen, he's seen visiting people before, they often looked more similar to this man than Adren's people. This even went for Adren's cousins, who came from Tana once and each had dark hair or dark eyes. But nobody could match the intensity the man brought.

Adren was so busy thinking and judging the man that he missed the guard announcing who it was. When his father spoke, however, his attention shifted.

"The crimes committed by this man are..." Adren had looked back towards the man, then his fathers voice faded as the man's eyes suddenly found his. A terrible shiver went down his spine. From the distance, his strangely dark eyes looked black. They were cold, unfeeling. They seemed to bore right into his soul. The young prince had never been so scared, felt so threatened. It was ridiculous, considering the many guards who separated them, not to mention his father sat right beside him, and he was the strongest person Adren knew, but the man's dead eyes still frightened the prince beyond comparison.

A small smile came onto the man's face as his eyes stayed locked with his, and it was no doubt why. He knew he scared him. Adren couldn't have that, he was the prince, he would be king some day, but he couldn't move. He couldn't sit prouder or change his facial expression, he couldn't even look away, in a trance with the scary stranger.

The guards started moving again, one violently grabbing the man's bound hands and taking him away, the others following, leaving the room weirdly empty feeling despite all of the bystanders of the trial.

Adren turned to his father, to see him looking at him. "Never show them what you feel." He said coldly, standing up and leaving the room swiftly, several other people taking the cue and leaving to, heading back to their homes to see their families or going back to work.

Adren turned his big eyes to his mother, who was looking at him with empathy. "It's alright, he's just a little tired right now."

She was always making excuses for him, even at the age of 8 Adren could tell. He knew his father expected a lot from him, and those expectations were rarely ever met. "Who was that man?" He asked.

His mother smiled, knowing how her son had trouble paying attention. "A very bad man. Don't worry, your father locked him up and he won't be coming out ever again."

"Never?"

"Never."

Adren nodded his head, feeling a strange sort of relief. "Good." He looked at his mother. "He was scary."

She nodded. "That he was."

Adren pulled his legs up so his feet rested on the chair and rested his chin on his knees. "I hope I never see him again."

His wish would only hold true for a few years.