Chapter 5

David threw himself into the chair by the fireplace, glowering at the cheerfully flickering flames.

Joris, moving discreetly around the room, putting things to rights before he retired to his own quarters, silently placed a tankard of ale in his hand, and the furious blond knight drained half of it in one gulp, then rose to stride angrily around the room.

Michael took a swig from his own tankard, and looked up at his friend.

"Calm down, David. You're going to wear a hole in the rug pacing like that."

"I am calm!" David stormed. "Why aren't you more upset about this? Don't you *care* what Ky'lin does when you aren't around?"

"Of course, I care! I'd just like to hear the explanation before I draw and quarter them."

David's answer was lost as the two young princes entered the room.

"Where have you been?" he demanded angrily.

Ty'lin looked at him in surprise. "In the Hall. You left early."

"Not the whole time you weren't. You were out in the courtyard part of the time."

"So? There were a lot of people out there. It's a warm night."

"Warm, dark, secluded..."

"What?" Ty asked blankly.

"Don't give me that innocent look. I saw that strange man fondling your butt."

"Strange man? Fondling my-! David!" Bewilderment gave way to outrage. "That wasn't a 'strange man'! He's the prime minister's son and we've known him all our lives. And trust me, he was not fondling my butt! All he can talk about is his new bride. It was one of the most boring conversations I've ever had with him."

"I *know* where his hands were, Ty'lin! I saw it with my own eyes!"

Ty gave an exaggerated sigh. "He was just brushing off my tunic. We'd been sitting on the wall and he was brushing the dirt off. You didn't expect me to walk around with my butt covered with dirt, did you?"

"It was barely covered at all!" David switched his line of attack. "That tunic is positively indecent!"

"There's nothing wrong with this tunic!" Ty raised his voice angrily. "It's the latest fashion!"

"Which you probably set! I'm getting sick and tired of watching you parade around, barely covered, flirting with everything that moves!"

"What is wrong with you tonight? I do *not* flirt with everything that moves!"

"And anyway, you told us to act like that!" Ky leaped to his brother's defense.

"What? When? I never told you to-"

"Yes, you did!" Ky insisted.

"Just a minute, Ky," Michael raised a calming hand. "I'm sure we'd remember telling you to flirt outrageously with every man and woman in the palace."

"We *don't* flirt outrageously with every man and woman in the palace," Ty shouted.

"And you did too!" Ky raised his own voice. "The first night! You told us to act normal, so nobody would suspect anything and that's what we're doing!"

"This is NORMAL behavior? Gods, I'd hate to see your abnormal behavior then!"

"And what about you?" Ty took up the attack, as if David hadn't spoken. "You have a lot of nerve, criticizing us for flirting when you're looking down the dress of every woman that walks by, ogling her and running your hands all over her."

"We are NOT ogling or running our hands over them! What do you want us to do? Stare at the ceiling while we dance??" Michael was rapidly losing his own temper.

"Yes!!"

"Well, we can't! We're supposed to be looking for brides! It's our cover! How believable is it going to be if we act like monks?"

"About as believable as it will be if we do!"

There was a long silence.

"This isn't working." Ty announced flatly. "We thought you wanted to help us, but all you ever do is yell at us and criticize us."

"That's not true!" David was stung by the accusation.

"Yes, it is. You yell at us in training all morning because we aren't natural warriors like you. You ignore us all afternoon and evening, then you come in here and yell at us some more."

"We thought this was supposed to be a time when we talked and got to know you, and maybe we could at least be friends first, but-" Ky's voice broke and he turned away.

"Why don't you just fuck us and get it over with?" Ty demanded.

"What?" David asked incredulously.

"You heard me! You don't care about us or our feelings or anything else. All you care about is the reward. So why don't you just do it now and get it over with and then leave us alone! Here, I'll even take off this disgusting tunic so you don't have to look at it while you do!" He grabbed the hem with both hands and started to pull it over his head.

Before he got it past his hips, David had thrown the angry young prince over his shoulder and swept into the bedchamber, slamming the door behind him.

Ky stared first at the door, then at Michael, a growing horror in the sapphire eyes. When Michael took a step toward him, he backed away, obviously torn between going to his brother's rescue and fleeing in terror.

"Ky," Michael said soothingly, reaching out toward the frightened young man.

Whatever he was going to say was lost in the shriek of outrage coming from the other room.

"NO!" Ty'lin shouted angrily. "NO! DON'T! STOP IT!"

This was followed by a loud shriek of pain, and Ky's indecisiveness was forgotten. He darted toward the bedchamber, only to find himself trapped in Michael's implacable arms.

"Get out of my way!" he cried, hitting and kicking angrily at the larger man. "He's HURTING my BROTHER!"

Michael grabbed the slim wrists, easily holding them in one of his own hands.

"Stop it!" he ordered, having already interpreted the sounds coming from the other room. "He isn't hurting him. He's spanking him."

Ky paused in his attack, his mouth open. "Spanking him? He's spanking my brother?"

"Swatting him," Michael amended. "But trust me, Ty'lin still does not want you in there right now."

"Ty ALWAYS wants me there!"

"Not this time, little one."

Ky's full lower lip was caught between his teeth as he looked up at Michael in dismay and disbelief, and the knight unintentionally loosened his grip on the young man's wrists, filled with pity for his distress.

Ky took immediate advantage of the relaxed hold and, wrenching his hands free, darted around Michael to open the door, intent on somehow rescuing his brother. He stopped dead, staring into the room. Ty'lin was sitting on David's lap, struggling to get his wrists free from David's hands, but even as Ky took a step forward, Ty'lin gave up. He buried his face in the knight's neck, obviously accepting David's comforting, and just as obviously not needing, or even thinking about, his twin.

David glanced up as the door opened, made a shushing gesture at Ky'lin, then went back whispering reassuringly to the young man.

"Oh," Ky whimpered, and quietly closed the door. He stood for a moment, as if lost, then whirled and darted off again, this time headed toward the door to the main corridor.

"No," Michael told him firmly, intercepting him and grabbing him by the arm.

"Let me go!" Ky tried to jerk his arm free, striking out at the knight with the other fist.

"I said no!" Michael wrapped his arms around the distraught prince and held him tightly. "You are *not* going out in public like this. And stop kicking me or you're going to be spanked too!"

Ky'lin stopped twisting and turning, looking up at Michael in a dazed mixture of bewilderment, hurt and horror.

"I mean it," Michael told him firmly, holding the young man securely against him.

Ky'lin stood rigidly, refusing to struggle or even acknowledge that he was being held against his will. Then a single tear rolled down his cheek, and as Michael brushed it away, he heaved a great sigh and rested his head against the knight's chest.

"Ah, my poor babe," Michael said compassionately, picking him up and carrying him into his bedchamber. He tenderly undressed the disconsolate young man and helped him into his robe, then pulled back the satin spread that covered the bed. Kicking off his boots, he leaned against the headboard and pulled the prince onto his lap, holding him close and gently rubbing slow circles on his back.

"Shhh, it's all right, my little one," Michael soothed as the miserable young man burrowed into his arms. "Everything will be all right." He loosened the tight braid, then finger-combed the ebony wave.

Ky sighed and burrowed even closer, worn out by the tumultuous emotions of the evening.

After a time, the door between the bedchambers opened and David came in, leading a subdued prince by the hand. They stopped near the opposite side of the bed and David gently pushed Ty'lin forward.

The young man took a deep breath, nervously tightened the belt on his robe, then looked back at David.

"Go ahead," the knight said encouragingly.

"I'm- I'm sorry," Ty'lin said softly, facing Michael again. "I'm sorry I was discourteous and shouted and told David to... to..."

"It's all right," Michael helped him out. "We all said some things we didn't mean.

"That's my babe," David approved, putting his arm around Ty'lin's shoulder.

"Ky?" Ty said hesitantly, as his twin ignored his presence.

Ky'lin twisted around to look at him, then deliberately turned his back, burying his face in Michael's shoulder once more.

"Ky?" Ty'lin's voice was panicky now. "Ky, why won't you look at me?"

"Look at your brother," Michael said sternly to the young prince in his arms.

"Why? He doesn't need me anymore," a petulant voice emerged from his shoulder.

"Look at him!" Michael repeated, administering a sharp swat to the young man's thigh.

Ky reluctantly turned back to his twin, a sullen pout on his face.

"Why are you angry at me, Ky? What do you mean, I don't need you? I always need you," Ty said piteously. "More than anything."

"You went with him!" Ky'lin accused miserably. "We're supposed to be on the same side. *Always.* But you went with him, and now you're apologizing, and you didn't even notice me when I tried to come help you. All you noticed was *him*!"

"Oh, Ky!" Ty'in cried remorsefully. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to. I didn't go with him on purpose. I won't do it again. I promise."

Ky's hurt and anger melted at the desolate look on his twin's face, and he scrambled off of Michael's lap, meeting Ty halfway across the bed.

They knelt together, clinging to each other and crooning wordlessly, as the knights watched in amazement, feeling totally superfluous. Finally they let go of each other long enough to slip out of their robes and under the covers.

"Are you two planning to stay together all night?" David asked.

"Yes," Ty'lin said in puzzlement. "Is there something wrong with that?"

"No, not at all," Michael said. "We don't want to interfere with your arrangements."

"We'll get out of your way," David added, and the two knights started toward the door.

"Don't go." Ty started to reach out, then hesitated, looking down at his hands.

"We'd like you to stay. Please?" Ky sounded unsure as well. "Just until we're asleep. Please?"

The knights looked at each other, then at the pleading princes.

"All right," they agreed. "Just until you're asleep." They slid into the bed on either side of the young men, who managed to snuggle up against them while still maintaining body contact with each other.

As if on cue, Joris came in carrying a tray with four steaming cups and a covered plate on it. "I thought their Highnesses might be ready for their nightcap," he said deprecatingly. He bustled around handing out cups and small pastries, and the knights eyed him suspiciously.

"Joris," Michael paused to take a sip of the rich chocolate, "there are two armed guards outside the door, whose sole duty is to protect the princes. You would expect them to burst in the moment they heard shouting. Yet we heard nothing from them, even when Ty'lin was obviously in pain. Would you perhaps know anything about that?"

"Forgive me if I made a mistake, m'lord," Joris said humbly. "But I saw that you were going to quarrel, and I felt that you wouldn't appreciate an audience bursting in at an inappropriate moment. So as I went to get more chocolate, I suggested that they ignore any outcry they might hear. I hope you don't mind."

"Not at all," David replied calmly. "I'm sure Prince Ty'lin appreciates it."

"Not at all," Ty'lin reiterated, blushing at the very thought of his guards seeing him over David's knee.

"I'll be going to bed now, if you don't need anything else?" Joris said with a questioning air.

The princes looked at each other, then at the knights, who shook their heads.

"No, that will be all, Joris," Ty replied.

"Then good night, sirs, Your Highnesses. Sleep well." Joris nodded to the knights and left, quietly closing the door behind him.

"You know, we didn't solve anything," Michael remarked as he set his cup down on the table beside the bed.

"That's right, we didn't," David replied. "And if Ty'lin can control his temper, I think we should deal with it now."

The young prince squirmed under the knight's stern look. "What is there to solve?" he asked impudently. "We're all agreed that we have to act natural and you have to look down the dress of every woman that walks by. OW!" He gingerly rubbed the spot where David swatted him. "Stop hitting me!"

"Do we need to go back to your bedchamber for another talk?" David asked sternly.

"That wasn't a talk!" Ty'lin started to protest, then thought better of it as David put one foot on the floor. "I mean, no. No, of course not."

"Good. Now where were we?"

"We're agreed that we have to be understanding about some of the behavior that goes on," Michael continued the conversation. "That doesn't mean you two can go hide in dark corners with whomever you please."

"And it doesn't mean that you can go on parading around with your butt on display for anyone that cares to look," David added.

Ty rolled his eyes. "And you don't think anyone would find it curious if we suddenly started dressing like monks?"

"We're not saying that you have to dress like monks. But surely you own something a little more conservative than what you've been wearing."

"No," Ky replied after a long consideration. "I don't think we do."

"But we could have something made," Ty said thoughtfully. "I know several people that would be devastated if they had to get a whole new wardrobe just because we lengthened our tunics an inch or two." His eyes gleamed at the prospect.

"Not an inch or so," Michael dictated. "From now on, the tunics have to be longer than your hair."

"Our hair!" Ty'lin sat bolt upright.

"Our hair!" Ky'lin echoed indignantly. "Do you know what you're saying?? We'd be wearing tunics almost to our knees!"

"That's about right," Michael said judiciously.

"No! We'd be the laughingstock of the court. We are not going to dress like old men!"

"Old men wear gowns to their ankles," David informed them, "and if you keep up with this attitude, that's how long yours are going to be."

"No," Ty folded his arms across his chest. "I am not going to wear tunics down to my knees."

"You don't think you could pull it off?" Michael asked slyly. "I thought you set the fashion and everyone else followed, but if you don't think you can do it..."

Ty'lin eyed him suspiciously. "Of course we can do it. The question is why we would want to."

Michael and David's eyes met over the princes' heads.

"Because it would make us happy?" David offered.

"And when we're happy, we do things like this," Michael's lips brushed sensuously over Ky'lin's.

"Or this," David feathered kisses down Ty'lin's neck and collarbone, stopping just above the deep V of his robe.

"Or this," Michael pushed Ky'lin's hair back to gently nip at his earlobe and bared neck.

"Well..." Ky'lin was rapidly weakening.

"Maybe..." Ty'lin managed to hold out a little longer.

"If you think we ought to..." Ky tried to remember what they were arguing about, then decided it wasn't all that important after all.

"Whatever you think is best," Ty'lin agreed mindlessly as David swept him out of the bed and carried him into his own chamber.