Levi flinched at first, but he let Cadmus ruffle his hair. “Haha! I suppose it would,” he returned the grin. “I might have already said it to him a couple days ago when I first met you. I don’t remember though, and his face looks alright to me.”
Cadmus smiled, scratching gently at the back of his head for a few seconds before he pulled his hand away. "I think he's one of the hottest guys I've ever met, but obviously my opinion is biased. And anyways, his abs are the real draw. Have you seen how he walks around shirtless all the time?" He fanned his face playfully, smiling.
“Yes, I’ve seen,” Levi chuckled, mostly because it was amusing seeing Cadmus faun over Fiori. “When I first met him, he was intimidating. Almost as intimidating as his uncle. To be honest, I still am, a little bit.” Not that he felt like Fiori would hurt him, it was just his large build, and the way he handled him. Gentle, of course, but also possessive. That was what made him still shrink.
"Yeah, he's… he's kind of like a big dog." Cadmus remembered his first meeting with Fiori, how even when he was young he seemed to tower above everything around him. "A little scary at first, but… after you get to know him, he's really sweet. He'd never hurt you, you know. Even if he does get a little possessive."
“I know,” Levi nodded, and smiled a little bit when he remembered a handful of times when Fiori was sweet. The most recent being sharing his food with him. “I’m just not used to being, er… possessed, I suppose.” He smiled again, but more sadly as he thought about how he might not have much more time to get to know Fiori, if he was going to be freed at the end of the festival.
Cadmus laughed. "Oh! He's not… he does that with everyone, it's not because you're…" he trailed off, gesturing towards his own throat vaguely, trying to indicate the collar. "… you know. It's his way of being protective, I think. Letting you hide behind him because he knows nobody's gonna call him out for shit."
“Alright,” he returned with faint laughter. His fingers reached up to touch his own silver collar. “So that’s just him, it has nothing to do with my…status,” he reiterated to himself quieter. He pulled lips into his mouth to moisten them while he considered asking something that he had mulled over in his mind since he was on his way here. He wouldn’t dare ask Fiori, not because he was afraid of him, but it was just a strange question to ask him. He took in a short breath, “Not that I’m going to, at all but…” he began hesitantly, “What would happen, or what would have happened.” He cleared his throat, “If I tried to just…leave? It-It’s just a question. I thought it before I got here.” He finished the last couple sentences quicker than the dread that built up to the question.
"I mean, it might have a little to do with his status, but… it's not because he thinks you're his." He watched curiously as Levi went quiet, watching him think until the question was out in the open and it was his turn to mull things over for a bit. "Nothing good," he finally answered. "Fiori wouldn't have chased you, but his uncle would've. Some soldiers probably would've been sent out, if you managed to escape the castle, and they would've brought you back and had you flogged and then you'd be given to Fiori with a much bigger collar around your neck."
“I see,” Levi answered shortly with a nod. He wouldn’t have expected much different, but he still felt himself a fool for not fighting any of it, specifically when he was first brought in, the first time Fiori let him sleep and he went out to get his collar. He wouldn’t have known how kind Fiori is was, and things might have been easier. His brother would have fought, tried to escape multiple times, even. As for the flogging, he’d never experienced it himself because he was a prince. But he had witnessed prisoners in his kingdom being flogged. It looked agonizing, and he was glad he wouldn’t have to experience that.
Cadmus nudged him gently, just enough to snap him out of his little faze. "You're not an idiot for deciding to go peacefully, you know. Fighting feels good in the moment, but… it's not worth the prince. It's not worth the punishment, I can promise you that." He rubbed the top of his shoulders lightly, a faraway look in his eyes. "Flogging is… horrible. You're lucky you kept your mind steady enough to realize running is a fool's game."
“Well, I’m not very good at fighting anyway.” He blinked his way back to the present, his gaze returning to Cadmus. He noted the far off look in his eye when he mentioned flogging again. “You’ve experienced it?” He half assumed, half questioned tentatively.
(Happy New Year!)
(Happy new year!!)
Cadmus swallowed and nodded, pulling his shirt a little higher on his back before he let his hand drop. "Yeah. It's…" He stopped, unable to find the right words. "It's like I said; you're lucky you were smart enough to keep from running."
(:D)
Levi’s face wrenched into a frown. “That’s so terrible. Does…Does Fiori know?” He didn’t know why he wouldn’t since Fiori and Cadmus were so close, but it looked like Fiori had been surprised at learning his uncle sent Cadmus to the infirmary. But wasn’t this different? Flogging left bad scars.
Cadmus forced a laugh from his throat. "The scars aren't exactly discreet, Levi. He fucking knows." He sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Hell, I'd be surprised if the whole fucking castle didn't know at this point. It's not like I've got the option to wash in private."
“Oh, that’s right,” he nodded, smiling even though it wasn’t even slightly out of amusement or happiness. He reached up to rub his hand on his neck. “Of course he knows,” he echoed softer, looking away to the arena once again. His mind went to Mordecai again. They knew practically everything about each other, and even their backgrounds and the shit they’d went through. Did Mordecai know he was alive despite the mangled body in his quarters?
Cadmus went quiet too, looking out on the arena as one of the men fell and, to the delight of the cheering crowd, refused to get up again. The other man helped him up and together they hobbled out of the arena, clearing the bloodied sand for the next two fighters. It was Fiori who stepped out first, tall and proud with a pair of dual broadswords in his hands.
Cadmus was yelling almost before he realized he was supposed to, waving furiously from his seat and beaming as bright as the midmorning sun when Fiori met his eyes from the center of the arena.
Leviticus watched in amazement. All his life, with the exception of the days he’d been here, he’d assumed that during these fights the loser fell to his death. He looked over at Cadmus and smiled, warmly amused at his passionate encouragement. His gaze fell back to Fiori. This would be interesting, watching him fight when the only time he had witnessed him fighting was when they were sparring.
Fiori gave Cadmus the most lovesick smile, sweet at honey, and then noticed Levi was sitting beside him and give him a respectful nod. His opponent came out just as he turned back to the doors, decked in emerald green cloth and holding a lance.
The fight began seconds later. The man in green was a fierce fighter, obviously well trained, but he was no match for Fiori. Every blow he made was parried and then quickly returned in movements so fast they were almost impossible to track. Fi moved with something nearing grace as he beat back blows, forcing his opponent up against the wall with all the ease of a panther going in for the kill.
Levi nodded respectively, and when the fight started he watched, completely enthralled. He only looked at Cadmus once to see his expression, and then he looked back at the arena. He shifted forward in his seat, watching intently with squinted eyes. “Wow,” he breathed, thoroughly impressed with Fiori’s skills. And how the other man, who looked just as impressive was no match for him. He’d never watched his brother truly fight before, but if he gave Fiori a real fight on the battle field… he’d underestimated Johan.
Cadmus cheered until the man in green was on the floor and Fiori was raising his swords in victory, offering the man a helping hand and laughing softly at some murmured statement, helping him back out of the arena and then returning to the middle. "Yeah," Cadmus agreed, finally tearing his eyes away. "Fi's been a fighter since he could hold a sword, his daddy made sure of that."
“Very impressive,” he laughed, twirling his ring around his finger again. “Amazing, in fact,” he breathed, shaking his head. Johan would happier here than home, if he had been born or taken here, at least. “What’s most amazing is… they’re comrades at the end of it.”
Cadmus nodded, grinning even brighter when Levi took the time to compliment Fiori. "Yeah, he's one of the best. He's always been so dedicated to his art, so when he gets to show it off it's… really something." His smiled was more for Fi than for Levi, which he realized with a sheepish blush. "But, yeah, you're right. That's one of the things I love about Usige; it may be warlike, but they see so much honor in fighting. Fi always says there's nothing shameful about a defeat you survive and… I dunno, that's really admirable to me."
“Huh,” he looked back at the arena towards Fiori. “That phrase could work for a lot of things, not just..physical fighting,” he noted. Usige was still so strange to him, and he still felt that it was the enemy of his kingdom. Such deep set opinions couldn’t be changed in a few days, but perspective could. He had to admit not every person in Usige was a bad person, specifically Cadmus and Fiori.
Cadmus laughed, nodding along to his comment. "Oh yeah, he spouts it at me all the time. I swear to the gods that boy got fed a book of platitudes when he was small because he spouts them all the time." He straightened up, imitating Fiori's squared shoulders. "Every scar tells a story, Cadmus," He deepened his voice, trying to mimic Fiori's bassy tone. "A smart man fights for himself, a wise man fights for peace, Cadmus."