"That's not what I meant, Nathaniel, and you know it." Nathaniel just snickered and kept petting Pixie. "I just mean that all people are valuable in my eyes just for being people. I try to treat the servants with respect. I like to think we're more like friends, at this point."
(gtg soon sorry)
Ellis raised an eyebrow a little bit. "All due respect, your highness, but servants and princes can't really be friends." he looked at Pixie rather than at Lloyd. "That's not really how the world works."
(Np)
Lloyd sighed. "I wish it was… don't take me to be naive. I do treat everyone with respect, and I do think the staff genuinely like me and aren't just pretending since it's their job. I also don't call on them for every little thing… there are many things I am capable of doing myself, and so I do."
Ellis shrugged a little bit, stroking Pixie's mane and biting his lip for a moment. "Maybe so. But…the fact remains that there's still a big divide between people like us and people like you."
"I suppose… I wish there was some way to change that. I'll be king soon, so I should theoretically be able to change things… I just don't know how." He sighed again and leaned back against the stall.
He let out a faint laugh. "All due respect, but… without any servants, your economy would collapse in on itself. Half of the nobility don't know how to wash their own clothes, much less take care of a home or any mending." He tugged on his sleeves a little bit, shaking his head.
Lloyd flushed a bit. "We do know how to do those things! I do, at least. You're forced to learn how to do many things in the palace, even if you never end up doing them." He sighed. "Free time is quite limited for everyone. Even Nathaniel is supposed to study almost all the time, although he doesn't usually do it."
Ellis looked at Lloyd. "I didn't say none of you knew. I said half the nobility." He shook his head a little bit. "I'm just saying. How much of your lives would become impossible if you had to pick up the work you usually hand off to servants like me?" He knew he was treading a dangerous line, speaking to the prince like this. He just hoped that Lloyd wouldn't be too offended by his forwardness.
Lloyd shrugged. "I don't know. Unfortunately, we've never been able to give anything like that a try. We really should head back in, though." He took Nathaniel by the hand and started towing him inside.
Ellis nodded a little bit, remaining where he was. He wasn't sure that Lloyd had meant for him to follow, and didn't want to assume. So he stayed where he was, stroking Pixie's mane.
"Ellis?" Lloyd looked back. "You coming?" He asked, still walking slowly, but keeping his eyes fixed over his shoulder at Ellis. "You don't have to stay out here if you don't want to."
Ellis blinked. "Oh. Alright." He said slowly, and followed the two princes, his hands tucked in his pockets.
"Rosie said she should be done with your clothes by tomorrow. Does that work for you?" Lloyd asked Ellis. "She's working quickly."
Ellis blinked. "Oh. That's…yeah. That works great." He replied with a quick smile. "Uhm…thanks." he ran a hand through his hair.
"No problem. She said she's excited to have something to work on anyways." Lloyd smiled softly. "Have you eaten?"
"Yeah." He hadn't eaten much, but he had eaten. He shifted slightly, still walking with the princes.
Lloyd nodded and was quiet for a few seconds. "Enjoying the palace?" He asked, pushing open the doors and heading in.
Ellis thought for a moment. "What I've seen of it, yes." He replied, nodding. "Though I admittedly have not seen much of it." He ran a hand through his blond hair.
"Well, you're welcome to go exploring anytime. I'm sure Nathaniel would be happy to show you around." Nathaniel nodded in agreement.
Ellis smiled a little bit. "Thank you." He replied. "But…I do have chores to be doing for Anton, so I don't have much time for exploring."
Lloyd nodded. "Whenever you have free time, then. You're free to roam. Speaking of Anton, I'm probably supposed to be getting to know him…"
Ellis let out a quiet laugh. "He…isn't so bad." He replied slowly, even though the words tasted like a lie as he remembered the way Anton had treated him in the past, the things that his stepbrother had done to him.
"Hopefully not, considering I'm to marry him." Lloyd sighed. "Well, here is where I leave you. I should probably go speak with Anton. It was nice speaking with you." He smiled softly and waved before walking off to Anton's room and knocking on the door.
(by the way, do you have any triggers/things you'd rather I not include? If you don't specify any than I will assume that anything is alright. I'm asking because I have a tendency to get very dark, and I want to know how dark I'm allowed to go)
Ellis nodded, watching Lloyd go for a moment, then shook his head and started walking again, meaning to explore for a while.
Anton opened the door after a moment, wearing a light colored button up shirt, the top two buttons undone. "Oh! Hello." He greeted.
(Nope! I don't have any triggers, and I'm probably just as dark aha. Do whatever you want!)
"Greetings. I figured we should get to know each other a little better considering we're going to be married and all. Mind if I come in?"
(alright, cool! I don't have any triggers either, so we're good, then)
Anton nodded slightly, stepping back and opening the door. "Yes, of course. I was just reading." he gestured to where his book sat on the coffee table, a bookmark sticking out of the pages.
(Cool!)
Lloyd nodded and stepped in. "Forgive me. Small talk isn't my strong suit. Is there anything in particular that you would like to know?" He asked.
Anton closed the door. "Nah, I get it." he replied with a shrug, running a hand through his dark hair. "I…don't really know. Is there anything you'd care to explain?"
"Um… I'm eighteen? There's not really much that's too interesting about me… I don't typically have time for hobbies or anything, to be honest."
He nodded a little bit. "Right." Anton himself was 21, nearly 22, so he was a bit older than Lloyd was. "Well…would you like to know a bit more about me?"