Demons, Witches, and Toads (BoyxBoy) - Chapter 93: Chapter 93

The near kidnapping of the princes put a quick end to the royal pilgrimage, the brothers immediately returning to the palace while the criminals were properly dealt with by the authorities. Upon their return, the Grand Emperor had called on Wheeler, showering him in praise while barely even checking on his other sons. This had bothered Wheeler immensely. He'd tried to bring it up with his father, but the emperor had simply brushed it off, saying it was a learning opportunity for them to become stronger.
That evening, a light knock came from Wheeler's bedroom door, jerking him from his thoughts.
"It's Avery," a voice called from the other side. "Do you mind if I come in?"
"Of course not," Wheeler stammered, quickly springing up from his bed. "The door's open."
There was a light click as the doorknob turned, and at last Prince Avery slipped inside. The expression on his brother's face was unreadable. He carefully studied Wheeler for a moment before finally speaking.
"I came to thank you for saving us," he said slowly, his voice low. "And I...I wanted to apologize, as well."
"Apologize?" Wheeler blinked. "For what?"
Avery's gaze flickered to the floor. "For how I treated you. I should have never compared you to Emeric." He sighed heavily. "You're powerful, Wheeler, so much so that it made me distrust you. But you have to understand... Emeric constantly uses that same power against us. Ever since he gained Father's favor, he began treating us like his personal punching bags."
"I'm so sorry," Wheeler breathed. "That's horrible."
Avery swallowed hard. "If it had been just me, I could've handled it. But I..." His voice wavered. "I can't stand seeing Emeric hurt my brothers. I purposefully try to harass and provoke him so he'll hate me the most and take his anger out on me, not the others." He stared down at his hands. "It works sometimes, but regardless of what I do, I always seem to find them bruised and in tears and it..." His hands tightened into fists, trembling slightly. "It kills me. I just...I hate him so fucking much."
Wheeler reached out, gently placing a hand on Avery's shoulder. "Brother," he said softly, "do you remember what I said before we returned to the palace?"
Avery's gaze never left his hands. "You said you'd always be there to protect us."
"And I meant it," Wheeler said, his voice firm. "Even if it means I have to stand up against my own flesh and blood."
Avery laughed dryly. "That's a dangerous proclamation. Even with Father behind you, Emeric is a force to be reckoned with. Push him far enough and he might actually hurt you."
"Let him try," Wheeler replied, his tone unwavering.
Avery smirked, crossing his arms. "You've got some serious balls, kid."
"Perhaps," Wheeler said with a chuckle. "But I'm nowhere near as brave as you."
"Me?" Avery said, his eyes widening slightly. "Brave?"
"You selflessly look out for our brothers and put yourself in harm's way just to keep them safe. If that's not the very definition of courage, I don't know what is." He offered him a small smile. "I think you're really amazing."
"Do you...do you really mean that...?" Avery breathed.
"With all my heart. You're a good brother, Avery."
"So are you." As he said this, Avery smiled, and Wheeler realized it was the first sincere one he'd ever seen the prince display. His brother laughed, the sound warm and gentle. "I'm really glad I beat them to thanking you."
Wheeler blinked. "Beat who--"
And then the door flew open, an explosion of blonde princes bursting into the room. At the front was Osmund, who was struggling to carry a massive four layer cake.
"Look, Wheeler!" the small prince exclaimed, "we made this for you!"
"Whoa!" Wheeler gasped. "That's amazing!"
He actually looked down at the cake now, taking in its rather... odd decorations. Stuck amidst its uneven white frosting appeared to be a small blob made out of raisins next to several much larger blobs of raisins. Beneath the smaller blob, his name was messily smeared in yellow icing.
Bartram sighed heavily, placing his hands on his hips. "This was our first time decorating a cake, and it really shows."
"Well, I think it looks great!" Wheeler said with a grin. He pointed to the tiny blob. "Is that, um.... Is that me?"
Osmund nodded excitedly. "Yep! And look!" He pointed to a small line of raisins in the blob's hand. "There's you casting a spell, and then over there..." he pointed to the other blobs, "are the trees you're controlling!"
Avery leaned over the cake. "It looks like he's holding a dick which he's using to grow a bunch of even bigger dicks."
"Wha! Avery!" Osmund gasped.
"He's right," Bartram said flatly, eyes narrowing at the cake from behind his glasses. "Now that he's pointed it out, I can't unsee it."
From behind him, Roland and Radley nodded in silent agreement.
"Guuuuys, it's not a dick cake," Osmund whined. "They're trees and a wand."
"And what's a wand another name for?" Avery asked.
"Dick," Bartram finished.
The two exchanged a high five.
"And trees are made of wood, which can also be considered--"
"Okay, I get it!" Osmund muttered, glancing down at the cake as well. "Uuuugh, now I can't unsee it either. Let's just cut it up already." As he spoke, Osmund moved to place the cake down on the bed stand, when suddenly—tragedy struck.
The door had been left open a crack and a certain rambunctious puppy suddenly darted through, charging into the room. What happened next felt like it was occuring in slow motion.
The princes watched in horror as Pip sprung forward, slamming head first into Osmund's legs. The boy was already struggling to hold the massive cake, and this little push was all it took to send it flying across the room. Osmund screeched a single, elongated 'nooooooooooooo' as it slammed directly into the wall with a splat. Slowly, the poor baked good slid down the wall, leaving a sad trail of frosting and raisins in its wake.
The brothers stared down at the ruins of crumbs and icing, stunned.
"Wow," Avery said slowly. "Well, rest in peace, dick cake."
Osmund's shoulders sagged. "I'm so sorry, Wheeler. "
"No worries," Wheeler replied, giving the devastated boy a slightly awkward pat on the head. "We can clean this up in no time."
"Besides, that cake being destroyed was probably for the best," Bartram pointed out. "I'm pretty sure we mixed up the salt and the sugar measurements."
Osmund poked its ruined remains with his foot. "C'mon, it wasn't that bad--"
"Not that bad?!" Bartram retorted. "We used raisins for decorations that looked like dicks!"
"Okay, that's fair," Osmund mumbled as Pip scampered in front of him, beginning to scarf down the ruined cake.
"Well," Bartram said flatly, "at least someone's enjoying it."
Osmund let out a heavy sigh, looking back at Wheeler. "I'm sorry this was such a disaster. I just...I wanted to do something special to thank you."
"Well," Wheeler said with a smile, "there's plenty of other things we could do. To celebrate passing exams back at the academy, everyone used to always sneak into the local tavern."
"Really?" Osmund gasped, eyes growing wide. "That's so cool! What was it like?"
"I wouldn't know," Wheeler replied with a laugh. "I was always too busy studying, so I never went."
"I've never been to a tavern either," Osmund exclaimed, grabbing his arm. "We should totally go!"
From behind him, Roland and Radley nodded excitedly.
"You're forgetting one thing," Bartram interrupted, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "We're princes. We're not allowed in such a place."
Avery grinned, slinging an arm around Bartram's shoulder. "That's what disguises are for, little brother."