My Lord My Prince Ch. 02

A small hand touched his tentatively but he snatched his away as if it burned. Prince Hammand was mortified, he turned to Miriam with teary eyes and she nodded towards the door, indicating that he go ahead and leave them alone.

"I... I'm sorry," he choked painfully to the big man and rushed from the room.

Asgar let out a deep breath as the tension dissipated with Prince Hammand's departure. Miriam put a cool but strange looking drink before him and sat down at the table with her own different drink clasped in her hand.

He drank it with relief, enjoying the somewhat familiar bittersweet taste. It perked him up a bit.

Miriam was smiling at him, "I suspected you would like that... more?"

He nodded and she went off to the cupboard and poured him more. He drank with relish, smacking his lips "I know this drink...I have it every morning..." He shook his head a bit. "I mean I think I did."

"I hear you lost your memory. So you do remember bits here and there?" A nod. "That's something at least. Like this drink... mmh. You are definitely not what you seem, proud one."

Unknown to Asgar, the drink she had given him was from the Chief's coffers. It was a drink saved only for the royals. It was regarded as the nectar of the Gods and there were not a lot of the berries around. If he remembered taking it each morning, then... there were possibilities. But the reality of that was not good at all. She wondered if she should warn Hammand about this. Shetna had already told her at the gate that he had warned him from the start. From the looks of things now and the effect the man had on the prince, it was obvious it would be even more difficult to convince him to sell Asgar off. She doubted that they could do anything to change the situation now with the ankh on her back. Whether he stayed or not, the die had been cast; it was in the hands of the Gods now.

"He does not mean to offend, proud one. You must know that." He nodded slowly. "We will find things of interest for you to do, don't worry. I will help him with that."

He thanked her and then began to relax as they chatted. His relaxation seemed to help quell most of the tingling in her back. It most definitely was him that it was connected to. Before long she had him helping her with most of the lifting around the royal side-kitchen. She knew that as they got closer and he got totally comfortable around her, the tingling would disappear completely just as Prince Hammand's had.

She, for one, liked him already.

* * * *

Over the next few weeks Asgar discovered there were actually a good number of things he could help Hammand with.

He had gone with him to the royal library, where Prince Hammand sat at the largest table with documents and ledgers strewn all over it. "This is one of my main responsibilities." He said at Asgar's puzzled look, "I found I was very good with numbers when I was younger and my father gave me the duty of doing the taxes when I turned 14 years old."

He smiled shyly under the big man's admiration. "I levy taxes and borrow money as and when the royal house needs it."

"That is impressive. My prince is a genius." Asgar exclaimed, earning a blush from Hammand. "But your brother, the Crown Prince...?"

"He is not interested in taxes. He finds it too much work for something so boring. The growing costs of administration and military upkeep had forced father to continually assess how to raise funds whilst trying, as much as possible, to avoid increasing the cost of living for the people. Neither him nor Jinor cared about how taxes affected the people so I gladly took it up. I've been doing them ever since."

Asgar sat with him and gave it a try. He soon found he understood taxes pretty well and was able to help Hammand assess how to levy them so the people of the land were not too affected. It turned out to be an interesting, though tedious job, and doing it together took away most of the tenuousness of the duty.

Prince Hammand was also in charge of the military somewhat. This came as a surprise to Asgar as it did to most people considering that the prince was so tiny and obviously not a warrior in any shape or form. He had been shocked when Hammand had mentioned what they would be doing that day.

"Speaking to the soldiers? The warriors who fight for the region? The ones that go to war?" Hammand nodded with a smile for he was not surprised at Asgar's reaction. He got it all the time. "This is one of your duties as well?" Another nod. Asgar looked a bit unsure of this one. Doing taxes was okay, it was behind closed doors and could be corrected if a mistake was made and Hammand was a genius at it. But talking to warriors was a different thing entirely; one wrong move could earn his prince disrespect for life.

Warriors never forgot. He knew that... after all he had –What had he done, damn it!The thought was gone. Refusing to dwell on the lost thought, he focused on Prince Hammand again.

"If you are sure then..."

"I'm sure Asgar." Hammand replied patiently, pulling his hand. "I've been doing this for a long time. Come, you'll see."

Asgar went along, not wanting to be a spoilsport. He had always thought it preferable that a warrior speaks to warriors.How would his prince know the right words to say?He didn't know how he would react if Hammand was disrespected by the men, warriors or not. Asgar was jittery as they climbed on the podium, wondering if he should leave. He probably would have if Hammand had not held his hand until he was about to step forward and speak. He couldn't trust himself if Hammand got it wrong and was...Damn.

It was until the prince spoke out loud in all his princely glory that all doubt was gone. He had everyone's attention and always managed to keep them listening. It was a fascinating gift and magical to watch.

"My prince..." Asgar muttered in awed pride.

If he was not already falling for the prince he would have done so then, falling even harder at the way the little beauty transformed into a different person on that podium. He looked even more beautiful and resplendent as he spoke and gesticulated, so much that Asgar wondered if his overwhelming beauty was not a part of this intoxicating effect he had on the soldiers.

He motivated them with ease and confidence, teaching them how to march with pride and ensuring their spirits were high especially in times of peace, like now when they felt useless.

"You are amazing," he whispered in Hammand's ear when he helped him down afterwards. The enormous grin on the prince's face made all the advisers around them wonder what the slave had just said to him.

Asgar helped him prepare his speeches each time from then on and also helped keep his mind off it until every meeting started. He also helped calm Prince Hammand's nerves just before he went on the podium. This generally involved standing up there with him throughout the speech. Asgar soon began to wonder how the prince had done them without him, considering how hysterical Hammand went when he had jokingly said one day that he was too ill to come along with him.

With Miriam's help, once they discovered that Asgar was admirably adept with the sword and the bow and arrow; he was allowed to teach Hammand this so he could perform for the Emperor King at the annual Ciz festival.

All this greatly helped to dissipate his feelings of wrongful idleness. Hammand didn't do a lot but what he did was interesting enough and time consuming so Asgar was fine with it. He would not be completely useless after all.

Over the next few months, they became extremely close. Closer than Hammand could have ever hoped for or imagined. Asgar began to shorten the prince's name to Ham and it delighted Prince Hammand beyond reason for it sounded like an endearment. Asgar had steadily managed to erase the price's fear of him almost entirely. The prince was no longer nervous around him and it was like they were joined at the hip.

They were always together and never seemed to get enough of each other's presence. Eventually Prince Hammand built up the courage to introduce Asgar to his siblings, Jinor the Crown prince and the eldest child, Prince Moran the next eldest and Princesses Kitina and Arina his immediate elder sisters who were twins.

Prince Hammand was the youngest royal and tended to get left to his own devices most of the time, especially with having not one, but two, brothers before him. They were also much older than him, with Moran being 4 years older than Hammand whilst he and Jinor had just a year between them. They didn't see as much of each other as they used to once they reached puberty for each child had a different form of tutoring for their position in the royal lineage.

Even then, he had always been closer to his sisters but now they were fast approaching marriageable age and soon to be past the healer's checks, they had spent the better part of the year going from region to region to make themselves known to all the royal houses in the hope of snagging a good husband. Other than that they met mostly at occasional visits or at parties such as this. Hence the fact that he had such a close companion whom none of his family had ever met up until now.

It was the day the Crown prince was to have his betrothed over to visit and was hosting her with his brothers and sisters in the palace. Hammand felt it was the best time to introduce Asgar, as there wouldn't be too much scrutiny especially as the bride-to-be would be there to occupy everyone's mind. It would be perfect.

Asgar didn't really want to meet any of them but he knew it was inevitable. He hated the attention such things brought, the eyes assessing and judging, like he needed all that. He had had enough of that already with the palace staff and he certainly was not looking forward to the attention of the royals.

They were to join Princesses Kitina and Arina as well as Prince Moran in the mini banquet hall and await Princess Memm's arrival. Once she was ushered in, Crown Prince Jinor would enter. Prince Hammand entered the hall with Asgar walking behind him. He had no idea what to expect from his brothers and sisters but he just wanted to get this over with

His sisters were huddled in a corner chattering but their eyes lit up when they saw him and they excitedly rushed over.

"Hammand! How are you? It has been too long! What have you been up to? You have forgotten all about your sisters, haven't you?"

"No I haven't! You've been away remember?" he laughed in their embrace.

They bombarded him with questions, not even allowing him to answer before asking more. His brother Moran came into their midst and ruffled his hair, laughing as Hammand raised his eyebrows in frustration.

Asgar watched the whole exchange quietly, stepping back to allow them their space. They rambled on for ages, talking about trips and potential princes of the surrounding land. It seemed that was all the girls would talk about. Seeing how they acted, you would wonder that they did not see each other on a daily basis. They were sharing everything it seemed and it warmed Asgar's heart that his prince had this.

The two Princesses were exactly alike and he could see that they shared Hammand's beauty though their hair was much longer and luxurious. His brother Moran was slightly taller than Hammand and a bit on the plump side. He shared the same pale skin as his prince but that was where it ended. He seemed very quiet too, choosing to listen in and smile or laugh when the others spoke.

It took a while before they noticed him, and even then that was because Hammand had peeled himself away and hollered that he wanted to introduce someone. They watched in amusement as he went over and shyly pulled Asgar forward.

"This is Asgar," he said with a smile. "I bought him some months ago. He is my companion now. This is Princess Arina and Princess Kitina."

"Ohhh," both girls giggled excitedly, "he is sooo handsome..."

They fell back into the catching up, telling Hammand about all the places they had been to and all the handsome and not so handsome men they had met. Asgar was thankful for that.

It was not long before Princess Memm was announced and they welcomed her heartily as was expected. She was a beautiful young woman, if a little haughty looking. She was introduced to each of them by the royal head adviser even though they had all already met her at different times in the past. She presented gifts to each of them as was the custom too and Hammand passed his to Asgar.

When the formalities were done and everyone was settling, the betrothed stepped around Hammand and watched as Asgar helped him open her gift. Asgar nodded respectfully, unable to do more than that with Hammand practically in his lap.

"And who might this be?"

Hammand looked up but didn't budge from his position. He didn't like her gaze; she looked like she wanted Asgar for herself. "He is Asgar."

"A slave?" Her eyes seemed to be roaming all over Asgar's muscled ripped body. Prince Hammand felt his blood boiling with jealousy.

But he nodded, clarifying clearly, "Myslave."

She smiled widely at Asgar, seeming to reach out to touch his cheek then realizing the utter inappropriateness of that action and pulling her hand back. "My, he is a very fine specimen of a slave. Has he always been here? I must say I have never noticed him before. He definitely is one to remember don't you think?"

"He has not always been here. Just a few months."

"He looks more like a warrior than a personal slave?" It was a question.

Hammand smiled tightly, getting tired of the attention she was focusing on Asgar. "He is not exactly my personal slave, more my companion really..." With that he settled fully on Asgar's lap for good measure, leaning back into the huge man's welcoming body. Asgar in turn moved the parcel around so they continued unwrapping it on Hammand's lap instead.

"Oh."

That shut her up quick.

Asgar smiled to himself, Hammand was even more beautiful in his jealousy. He decided he liked it. He noticed his prince was still tense and looked up from the parcel to find Princess Memm still staring at him lustfully from where she had sat down on the heavily gilded chair had been set specially for her. It would be her designated chair when she married the crown prince. So much for the virgin bride, she sure seemed very wanton for a supposed innocent. He looked away, hiding his reaction with subtlety.

The Crown Prince was going to have a lot of work with that one, he thought. Then again, Prince Hammand had told him the union had nothing to do with love so not much could be expected. It was all for the good of the land, to cement relations with another region. He shook off the thought that the same would be asked of Hammand in due time. He could not face that just yet.

Prince Hammand's sisters watched the drama unfold, trying with difficulty to hide their amusement. When Princess Memm realized they were watching her, she went red in embarrassment and looked away with a scowl.

Prince Hammand and Asgar finished opening the elaborately wrapped present and it was a vase with a gilded dagger hidden within. They were both amused at it, both knowing what it was; one of the ways the royals protected themselves by hiding weapons in unlikely places. Neither Prince Hammand nor Asgar questioned how Asgar could know that.

The prince thanked Princess Memm for the gift but ignored her question whether Asgar liked it too. Hammand simply showed the gift to Moran who whispered that maybe he should have waited until he got to his private chambers to open the gift like the rest of them were doing. They analyzed the dagger intricately in order to avoid her persistent questions, both smiling to themselves as they shared looks and raised eyebrows.

Goodness, she was relentless, Asgar thought, feeling more and more uncomfortable under her scrutiny. She did not even seem to care about the impression she was giving her future in laws. Not a good sign at all. At moments like this he hated being a slave. It was demeaning for him to feel so helpless.

"Is no one going to answer me?" she called out. The four siblings and Asgar looked over at her directly. She raised her eyebrows haughtily, but then so did the twins, meeting her glare for glare.

Fortunately, the gong sounded to announce Crown Prince Jinor's entry so nothing more was said of it. The Crown Prince walked in with his head held up proudly but once the ceremony was of that was over he visibly relaxed and joined in the chatting. He was the tallest of them all, which was fitting for him. He was slightly darker in coloring and muscular.

Hammand was pulled playfully to Jinor's side as soon as he saw him; the older brother saying he had missed him and was sorry for not finding things for them to do together. Hammand once again introduced Asgar. Jinor's reaction was a surprise.

Asgar had expected indifference, disdain even. But the Crown Prince looked somewhat surprised, then puzzled. He stared up at him for Asgar towered over him too.

"Do I know you from somewhere?" he asked, looking Asgar over and over with heightening interest. The princesses looked on with interest going quiet for a second.

"No Prince Jinor," Asgar replied, "but I have no memories of my past life so cannot tell for sure."

"Why do I feel like I know you?" Jinor asked again, rhetorically. He was unable to shake that strong feeling that this slave's face was familiar. He was sure that if and when he had met him, it wasn't as a slave. He never remembered slaves faces, so he couldn't have been one. Certainly not this one. His face was eerily familiar but he couldn't place why. Jinor was greatly unsettled by this for some reason and made a mental note to check this out further.

A look of fright covered Hammand's face as he watched his brother try to decipher who Asgar was. He felt so afraid and at the same time remorseful that he did not want Asgar or anyone else to remember and have Asgar possibly be separated from him.

Relief surged through him when Jinor's attention was diverted from Asgar with a question from Princess Memm. Asgar settled back behind Hammand and tried to be invisible, not very easy with Hammand leaning back into him time and again to make him know he was not forgotten. If Hammand's siblings thought this was strange they sure didn't act like it. Asgar felt good that they accepted their brother's actions so wholeheartedly. It was nice to see such love.

They all chatted merrily, focusing most of their attention on their brother's betrothed after a while, the banquet was announced. Prince Jinor gallantly helped his betrothed up and they made their way to the dining area where the array of delicacies was laid out.

When the other siblings stood up to follow suit, Asgar thought it best to take his leave. He was the only slave there after all and it was a bit awkward for him. Much as Prince Hammand wished he were one of them, the reality was he was not and he needed to know his place.

Besides, Ham needed to catch up with them. He would give them their space.

Hammand knew from Asgar's expression that he wanted to leave. He pleaded silently with his eyes but his big man looked a bit resigned so he let him go reluctantly, leaning up to make a request. "Wait up for me?" he asked on tiptoe as quietly as he could.

"Of course I will." Hammand blushed prettily and fought the urge to press into the large welcoming chest in front of him.

* * * *

Hammand stepped into his chambers, feeling very happy at the way the day had gone. He could not have hoped for better. His brothers and sisters had taken to Asgar just as he had hoped and he was so pleased. He couldn't wait to talk to Asgar about it, and also ask why he had decided to leave early. That had bothered him a bit but he didn't want to question Asgar in front of his siblings so he had let him take his leave.