The boy wouldn't stop screaming.
Tobias had tried everything, cold water, suffocating him in a pillow, a gag. But nothing could stop the piercing wails coming from the guy. They were both in a small cell in the west-wing of the courts, reserved for criminals and spies. Mother had dismissed herself after the mortal had begun hallucinating, leaving Tobias to sort this mess out by his lonesome. His hands were shaking when he dragged the thrashing boy to the cell. They were still shaking, even as he examined the boy laying on a hard cot for further injuries. Running his fingertips up the boy's arms, then legs, then arms once again. He knew he shouldn't be doing this, but he couldn't help himself. His mother had used an old torture method healers had during the war. Even Tobias had acquired that much from his studies. Tobias couldn't imagine how much pain the boy had been in. He felt up the mortal's neck, checking for bruises. The boy was sleeping like a baby now, his dark hair and light brown skin less clouded with dirt.
Tobias hadn't realized he was staring until the boy stirred, his eyes flickered open.
"Atherials ass!" The boy cursed, shoving Tobias off of him with surprising strength. He isn't looking at me directly, Tobias though. His eyes were unfocused, as if he were looking somewhere in the distance.
Tobias gave the guy sometime to calm down, the nightmares couldn't have been pleasant. He kept lashing his head from side to side, his eyes full of fear and panic.
"Stop that." Tobias commanded, only a slight tremor in his voice, "You're going to give yourself whiplash."
The boy finally focused on him, staring him dead in the eye.
"You." he finally started. Tobias was starting to feel uncomfortable, getting up from his crouching position and walking slowly back to the door of the cell. His hands wouldn't stop shaking, he needed a drink.
"You're Tobias Neverborn." the boy continued, his gaze flicking down to Tobias's hands knowingly, shame washed through him, he tucked his hands behind his back. "Your son of Queen Gabriela Neverborn and Lord Nicolas, the lead guard."
Tobias flinched, he knew he wasn't legitimate offspring of the Mathonian royal bloodline, but that statement still hurt. No matter how many people said it.
"Yes." Tobias moved his arm towards the cell door slowly, determined to get out of this awkward conversation as quickly as possible and get some brandy in his system. "I am well aware of who my parents are, mortal."
"Matthew."
"What?"
"My name is Matthew, not mortal."
"Oh." Tobias was pretty sure Matthew had told him that before. But he had a habit of forgetting important details when in conversations.
"I'll bring you food two times a day." Tobias stated, because the silence was getting unbearable. Matthew kept staring calculatingly at him, his dark brown eyes sizing Tobias up.
"Until?"
"Huh?" Tobias was getting sick of this.
"Until what? What are you gonna do to me?"
"How should I know?"
"Well, you were the one who tackled me."
"I was." Tobias said, mostly to himself. He had been way too drunk to remember anything else about that night.
The mortal, Matthew, wouldn't quit. He was sitting up now. His outburst from minutes ago seemingly forgotten. He drummed his fingers on the wood cot, eyes alight, "Blair has told me stories about you, do you usually work as a guard??"
Tobias stiffened, suddenly hating this guy even more. "No. And I don't owe you anymore explanations."
"Oh." something in Matthew shut down, his shoulders slumping in disappointment. "Can I at least write to my mom? She's probably worried. I told her-"
"The guards have informed your mother about your stay here, and your illegal escape from district 8." Matthew winced at that, he ceased drumming his annoying ass fingers on the annoying ass cot in this annoying ass cell. "So no, you're not allowed to write to your mother. You're a prisoner. Does that fit inside your stubborn head of yours??" Tobias sighed, "You stay here until my mother figures out what to do with you. For now, you're stuck here. Might as well make yourself comfortable."
Tobias gritted his teeth. The mortal was still staring wide eyed at him like an idiot. Something about this guy angered Tobias so much he couldn't deal with it sober. He turned on his heels and stormed out the cell, slamming and locking the door behind himself.
******
Tobias was floating. Not really, but it surely felt like it. He was in a fire-talent bar, and the smell of smoke wafted in the air. Usually you needed to verify your talent to get into talent bars, but no one dared to question the Queen's son. After his conversation with the mortal, Tobias was determined to get so drunk he couldn't think. He knew he shouldn't. He knew he was going to be subject to his mother's wrath, but he wasn't in the mood for making rational decisions.
He looked down at his 8th cup of ale. The familiar fuzzy feeling that came with drinking settled in his stomach. The noise and music seemed amplified, he was going to have one hell of a hangover.
Suddenly, Tobias felt a tap on his shoulder. He flinched, then immediately chided himself. He looked over to see a gorgeous golden skinned boy his age sitting in the stool next to him. He wore a colorful hawaiian shirt with loose jeans, tucked inside of thick black boots.
Ah. Tobias thought, A distraction at last.
The boy started without preamble, going from tapping Tobias's shoulder to laying his hand on it. The boy moved gracefully, like an acrobat. "You look bored," the boy said, Tobias wasn't too drunk to notice the guy's awful attempt at seduction, but he didn't care. A distraction was a distraction. "Maybe I can give you something to occupy your time?" he slid his hand down to Tobias's thigh. He shivered.
The encounter quickly turned into a sloppy drunk make out session, the two boys retreated into a back room in the bar filled with storage supplies.
As the boy suddenly pulled away from Tobias, his face going scarily blank. Tobias was confused, wondering if he'd done something wrong, just as a skinny dark skinned girl pranced her way into closet with them. She had on a loose black sundress and what looked like brown military boots underneath, with holsters attached to each hip— a gun in each one. Her hair was a methodical pattern of loose ink black braids. Tobias's drunk brain wasn't catching on quickly enough to the situation, so stupidly, he stared.
"This is him?" the girl said, and the creepy blank expression on the boy vanished, replaced with a shit-eating grin.
"Yeah. He's drunk as hell though."
"He isn't what I expected. You're positive this isn't just a man in need of a hookup?"
"Shut up Oli."
Tobias was still staring, very wobbly on his feet. It was clear the two were very close in some way. It made him uneasy in a way he wasn't before.
"Avery," the girl said, starting to look uneasy herself, "I think our guy is about to pass out. He'd be no good to us if he poisoned himself with alcohol and died at our feet."
Tobias didn't want to be "of use" to them. He suddenly wished the alcohol had killed him. At Least then he wouldn't have to deal with this.
"Oh I know sweetheart." and the boy, Avery? his grin just got wider. "I drugged him."
Tobias had already caught onto that, his tongue was numb, and he couldn't feel his legs. He was too tired of everything to care. Maybe his mother would actually care for him if he got kidnapped.
The girl gaped, bringing one hand up and slapping it on her chubby lips. "Ana told you not to do that!" she smirked, "You're in trouble." she elongated the sentence, not a hint of pity in her voice.
Avery rolled his eyes, obviously finished with the conversation.
Finally, Tobias felt the gray scene of unconsciousness trying to take hold. And gladly, he let it.