And All the Prince's Men (haikyu)

𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘵 17

The funeral is a somber affair. The normally bright colors of the Aoba Johsai interior are replaced by darkness. Black banners hang from the windows to block the light, white flowers droop at the tables. The flag is taken down. The royals dress in gloomy colors.

It is a somber affair, but it is a huge affair. The servants run around in a panic to prepare the castle for all of the visiting dignitaries. Lords and ladies from all over the countryside have come to pay their homage to the late Queen. It is she the country had known the longest, it is her blood that ties the family to this kingdom. It is she that has always held their hearts.

Royal emissaries from neighboring Kingdoms visit as well. Prince Wakatoshi is here, of course, visiting his grieving fiancé. Prince Kenji of Datekou pays a visit in the stead of his mother. Prince Shouyou and one of his fathers, King Koshi venture to the castle to give their respects.

There is a lot to be done for the visiting nobles. Food must be prepared, chambers cleaned and offered, servants assigned for hospitality's sake. And then there is the conducting of the funeral itself, the decorations, although gloomy must be perfect, the placement of the casket of the utmost importance.

There is not a moments rest for the bottom rung of society within the castle walls. There is no time for them to grieve their fallen Queen, and yet they do. In the pockets of time allowed them, in the cracks of the wall, in the kitchen for just a moment, a stray tear here, a deep shaky breath there, a thick swallow in the corner.

Because they have lost a woman they had served since infancy, a kind woman, a noble woman, and they too feel it in their hearts.

It is in this sense of urgency and chaos that Iwaizumi blends back into the life of a castle servant. He excuses himself of his knightly duties, citing the fact that everyone needs to play their part in this trying time. This is something he has training in, and the castle servants are in terrible need of extra hands. It's a noble sacrifice whispered of in the barracks, another point in favor of Iwaizumi Hajime, a ranking in the hearts and minds of his peers that grows every day whether he realizes it or not.

Iwaizumi's reasonings, however, are not as selfless as his act makes them out to be. Because he longs to be back in the castle walls, longs to stand beside the Prince he had abandoned, needs to be there for him more than he can bear. Ever since the Queen's death and their subsequent conversation, it has felt like a valve has been released from his heart. All the admiration, and trust, and love for his Prince hits him like a tidal wave and he finds himself drowning.

His only remedy is to make up for lost time. To make up for his foolishness. To be beside Oikawa once more.

And so he takes the chance to return to castle duties, helping out with anything he can as the preparations go under way. He checks on Oikawa throughout, stealing the Prince away for breaks from his own duties, as the son of the deceased.

Oikawa is somber during these days, his eyes darker, his voice lacking its normal playful lilt. He follows his father's orders numbly: entertain these Lords and Ladies, pick which flowers should go where, write your specific eulogy, make it good, etc, etc. Iwaizumi's conversations are a bright spot in his dark days, rekindling their friendship and warming his soul.

Prince Tobio is faring far worse, still young enough to feel the shock of mortality fully in the cavern of his chest. Loss is a difficult thing for anyone to understand. Not all children are presented with it as quickly as Iwaizumi, who had seen it over and over again in the orphanage. And not all children were dealt a cruel hand by fate as Oikawa was, reminded constantly of how tenuous their place on earth was.

No, Prince Tobio had lived a mostly carefree childhood with little consequence, and the loss of his mother destroys him.

It is rare for the siblings to find comfort in each other, rarer still for Oikawa to initiate these moments. But in these dark days, Iwaizumi sees it with his own eyes. Sees the moments Prince Tobio is lost in his anger--the only emotion he is comfortable with--face twisted at a servant ready to deliver some damning blows when Oikawa appears, calm, collected, whispering words in Prince Tobio's ears that make his shoulders loosen. Sees the moments Prince Tobio is lost in his grief, staring at the large portrait of his mother the servants have brought out to the chapel, and Oikawa stands beside him, elbows sometimes touching.