CHAPTER ELEVEN
Caleen wished more than anything that they could stay like this, cocooned in their bed, for at least a week. Just Taveris and him, no one else.
But real world sadly didn't play by Caleen's rules, so the next morning the two of them were dressed and ready in time for breakfast, and after the meal, they headed for the meeting with the headmaster and Lord Dalon.
The one thing Caleen allowed himself was tangling Taveris's fingers with his as they walked and not breaking the hold even in the headmaster's office. As long as Taveris didn't mind, Caleen didn't care what others thought of it. Not only was there no way they could spend any time apart right now—his heart started thundering any time Taveris disappeared into the bathroom—but there were also moments when simply seeing Taveris wasn't enough. Sometimes Caleen had to touch him, had to know for sure that he wasn't just a figment of his imagination, wasn't just a dream.
It was easier to concentrate with Taveris's hand in his.
There was no news so far from Master Dorrat and Caleen hoped the lack of contact wasn't out of spite, an act of continued protest for what his advisor considered to be reckless behavior. It seemed unlikely, though. Master Dorrat might be a hard man, but he took his duty seriously and there weren't many people who cared more about justice than him. Caleen might not always agree with him on what constituted justice, but he believed Master Dorrat always did what he thought was right. And catching Master Oriyan and bringing him in to answer for his crimes was exactly that.
Caleen just needed to be more patient.
"We sent a messenger out with your letter to the king yesterday, but he came back without a formal reply," the headmaster said next, and Caleen nodded. He hadn't expected anything else. "The press announcement went out earlier this morning and, as we agreed, there's going to be a press conference tomorrow, so it would be best to prepare for that."
"I know you never liked to speak up in public," Lord Dalon said, turning to Taveris, "but this is one of those times it simply cannot be avoided."
"I figured as much," Taveris told him. "I'm willing to answer a few questions, although we need to be ready for the fact that what we can share with the press won't appease their curiosity. They will be left with more questions than answers, just like we are. It may lead to assumptions and wild theories."
"That's why we need to focus not on the investigation of what transpired, but on your happy return and the reunion of the Prince Heir and the man for whom he'd taken on the world, even after his presumed death," Lord Dalon said.
Caleen winced. It made him look like a romantic hero instead of a man who simply couldn't give up or else he'd break into pieces with the entire kingdom watching. He knew that was the right plan—they definitely couldn't tell the public all that they knew—but Caleen didn't have to like it.
"The press adores a love story with a happy ending," Lord Dalon added and Caleen saw Taveris trying to hide his grimace. Thankfully, Taveris's blank face in public was much better than behind closed doors or he would never be able to stand in front of the press.
Before Taveris could open his mouth and most likely suggest they eased up on the sappy language, Caleen cut in.
"So we'll answer some questions and sidestep the others. We should prepare for it this afternoon," he told Lord Dalon. "We'll come up with a list of most likely questions and run through them then."
After that, the headmaster asked about their plans for graduation.
"I'm just throwing it out there," he added. "I know you probably didn't have time to think about it yet. You're welcome to graduate with the next set of students, but if you'd like to defer that for any reason, we may discuss it as well. It's up to you."
Caleen exchanged glances with Taveris.
"You're right, we haven't discussed it yet," Taveris said. "At the moment, I can't think of a reason why we would defer, but we'll get back to you on that one."
The headmaster nodded, satisfied, and the meeting ended soon after that.
Caleen and Taveris headed to the infirmary for a check-in and as they left the main building, Taveris paused and tilted his head up to the sun, closing his eyes.
You okay? Caleen almost asked, but he came to hate that question. Taveris seemed to hate it, too.
So Caleen just paused by his side and waited. He looked around, noting everyone in their line of sight. He knew it was their security escort's job—it was Aderys today—but he figured it didn't hurt to double-check.
"It's like I haven't felt sun on my skin in forever," Taveris said suddenly. His voice was quiet, almost like he was wondering out loud and not starting a conversation. He kept his eyes closed and head tilted towards the sun, soaking it in.
"We can go for a walk after lunch," Caleen suggested. "Or just sit out on the balcony like two lazy old men."
To be honest, it was weird being in the Academy with no classes to keep their schedule somewhat consistent. He hadn't noticed it in the last two months, because classes or not, he couldn't have handled any kind of schedule, but now they might need to come up with something. Otherwise they would end up drifting between the official business Caleen had to attend to and spending all their time locked in the bedroom.
Not that there was anything wrong with that, but they should probably spend some time outside, too. And with their friends. Caleen wasn't the only one who wanted to hang out with Taveris, after all.
"I like that," Taveris said, and Caleen had to rewind their conversation to remember what he was referring to.
"A walk or sitting around, old-men style?"
"A walk. Since that's the only exercise the head healer would allow me to do."
"Well." Caleen raised his eyebrows and offered a small smile. "But not the only exercise you're allowing yourself to do."
That brought the familiar heat to Taveris's eyes and the answering pool of want awakened in the dip of Caleen's stomach.
Hook, he missed this so much.
"How about we exercise back in our room right after lunch and then go for a walk?" Taveris suggested, dropping his gaze to Caleen's lips.
"Perfect."
It really was.
* * *
The press conference was scheduled to start in less than half an hour and Caleen felt sick. He'd been fine during the prep yesterday and throughout the morning, but the moment he caught a glimpse of the press arriving, his stomach had started hurting and hadn't let up yet. He'd already thrown up once, but it didn't seem to help with anything.
"We'll cancel it," he heard Taveris tell Lord Dalon right as Caleen finished brushing his teeth.
"No, we won't." He stepped into their other room. "I'll be fine. I may not look my best, but they'd definitely seen worse lately, so it doesn't matter."
His attempt at a joke was, of course, not very well received by Taveris, who frowned and crossed his arms against his chest.
"What's going on?" Lord Dalon asked. "Was it something you ate?"
Taveris bristled at that. "Sure, because he can't simply be stressed about going out there, can he?"
Lord Dalon narrowed his eyes and opened his mouth, but Caleen raised his hand and moved between them. He'd heard enough arguments when Master Dorrat was here, he didn't want his other advisor to land on the bad side of his companion.
To be fair to Lord Dalon, he had no reason to expect Caleen to be this nervous before a press conference. He had done hundreds of public appearances throughout his life, and he'd spoken with reporters dozens of times. He'd never been particularly afraid to go out there. Even when he'd been planning to announce his betrothal, he hadn't been stressing out about this part. He'd been worried about the fallout and what was going to happen in the kingdom, but not the press.
Then again, on the day of the actual announcement, he'd barely felt anything at all, so of course he hadn't been stressed then.
That's it, he realized suddenly, swallowing down another wave of the nausea. That's what's wrong.
The last few public appearances he'd done happened after he'd lost Taveris. One of them literally the day after. So now when he'd seen the preparations, all of that—the anguish, the pain—came back and his body rebelled.
He took a deep breath, and he felt his stomach unclench a bit. Good. He just needed to relax and to remember that Taveris was here, at his side, and everything would be okay.
"Please, leave us alone for now," he told his advisor. "The conference will start on time. I just need some time with my companion."
Lord Dalon looked between the two of them, but finally relented. Unlike Master Dorrat, he was rarely confrontational.
When the door closed behind him, Taveris tugged at Caleen's hand.
"You're not fine."
"No, I'm not," he agreed, stepping closer and closer, until he pressed himself against Taveris, whose arms came around him in an instant. "But I just need you, that's all," he added, resting his forehead against Taveris's chest.
Taveris didn't say anything for a long moment and then let out a deep sigh.
"You have me," he whispered, tightening his hold. "You have me."
* * *
When the time came, Caleen was calm again. He knew how to do this. He'd been doing this for years now and he'd been through much worse. Nothing could really hurt him today, not for long.
Taveris was standing by his side, their hands entwined together. Caleen expected his companion to let go of his hand, but he didn't. Taveris just squeezed his fingers and turned to face the patio doors.
"Come on, let's get this over with."
As they went out, the reporters looked like a wave rolling through the lane, getting on their feet. For a few seconds they were silent as they stared at them—were they staring at Taveris? At their joined hands? Who knew what interested them more. Then the first flash went off and it seemed to break the spell. Flashes came from everywhere at once and people started shouting their questions, as if that ever worked at any of his press meetings.
"Good morning, everyone," Lord Dalon spoke up first, making a gesture for the crowd to quiet down. "The Prince Heir will read a statement first, and then he and his companion will answer some questions."
Caleen thanked Lord Dalon then surveyed the crowd, recognizing the familiar faces. He knew the names of most of the people here and for some reason, it always put him at ease to repeat some of them in his head right before the start.
"Welcome and thank you for coming on such short notice. I am aware that the situation is—unusual, to say the least. We are all still reeling from it ourselves. I will read my statement now, to give you an overview of the situation. Please, refrain from asking questions until I'm done."
The statement wasn't overly long, but they tried to put as much details as they were comfortable with sharing, to avoid getting at least some of the questions later on. It was easier to just get things out in one swoop.
"And here we are today," he said, when he got to the end of the statement. "Please, be aware that there are parts of the ongoing investigation we cannot share with you, but rest assured, we are doing everything in our power to get to the bottom of this. There is no one in this kingdom who wants this solved more than I do." He glanced at Taveris. "Maybe aside from my companion."
Taveris raised his eyebrows at him. "Maybe?" he mouthed, making Caleen break a small smile.
"Maybe," he repeated before looking back at the reporters. "We will take questions now."
Most of them went in line with their predictions—the circumstances of finding Taveris, the medical side of things, the state of Taveris's health and mental abilities now. Taveris maintained his blank face throughout it all, but Caleen could tell it was hard for him to answer the questions pointed at him, especially those about how he was feeling and what he remembered.
Then Sheryn, a reporter from The Terapress, the paper with the biggest following in the eastern regions of the country, stood up.
"There are voices out there that suggest that it was all a ruse to endear the public to your cause of seeing the marriage definition extend to what you wished it to be, and that your companion had been simply hidden away in the Academy this whole time. What would you say to those accusations?"
The silence that fell was almost deafening, but it had nothing on the noise of his heartbeat thundering in his ears. Caleen opened his mouth, but no words came, because how could he even respond to such a thing?
You should've known, the voice eerily similar to that of Master Dorrat told him. You should've prepared for that.
Before Caleen could get it together, though, someone else spoke up.
"If I may." The headmaster stepped to the front. He was always present when the press meetings were happening at the Academy grounds, but he'd almost never spoken up. "I would like to answer this, because I feel putting the Prince Heir up to defend himself from such egregious accusations would be…untoward." The glare he sent the reporter who asked this question was worse than anything Caleen had ever seen him give any student, no matter their fault. "No one who has spent any time with the Prince Heir in the last two months would doubt his honesty on this issue. Moreover, anyone who knows him personally, would also never make such a claim. I understand you are all shocked and believe me, so were we. Including the Prince Heir. It's the happiest surprise I've ever gotten, though. I consider this a reason for celebration, both here and in Taveris's homeland. And I hope everyone in Teranea wishes the Prince Heir, as well as his companion, all the best."
The headmaster stepped back to where he'd previously stood, shoulder to shoulder with Lord Dalon.
Caleen finally got his voice back. "Thank you, Headmaster. To reiterate, though," he added, meeting the reporter's gaze head on, "I deny these accusations. They are untrue. That is all I am going to say on this matter. Does anyone have any more questions?"
A woman in the first row got up—Darenea from The Weekly In, the newspaper close to the palace. Caleen remembered her from when he was still a little boy, and she covered almost every event at the court.
"Two months ago, you told us that you'd been planning to publicly announce your betrothal," she said. "Seeing as your companion is back with us and the royal council agreed with you on the issue of marriage definition, would it be safe to assume that you will be moving forward with the wedding plans?"
He looked to Taveris, who raised his eyebrows at him once again, and Caleen chuckled before turning back to the reporter.
"The timeline is something we will have to discuss, but yes, it would be safe to assume that."
Nobody was taking it away from them. Not again.