Shadow ~The truth always conquers~ part 3

The only noise the Prince’s could make were half-strangled noises. Shadow however made a low growl from the back of his throat.
“Doth thou not hast any privacy f’r a lady?” He was up from his position on the floor in a flash and now had his hand out shielding Lalitia.
“Colours mine brother! He wast just curious!” Sonic shot a glare at his brother.
“‘Curious’?” Shadow almost screamed.
“Prithee, just wait just wait f’r us in the bath cubiculo. I just ne’d to slip on a gown,”
“A-ay! Apologies be mine,” Sonic grabbed his brother’s shoulders and carted him into the servant’s bathroom.
“Fie!” Shadow growled once again but helped Lalitia into her bath robe that covered her short undergarments.
She pulled open the bathroom door and addressed the cobalt Prince. “I thought thou wouldst knap!” Lalitia’s face reflected betrayal in Sonic’s eyes.
“I wouldst hast knapped! It wast mine brother!”
Shadow’s glare fixed on the lime hedgehog who was still gawking at Lalitia. “A-apologies I…”
“‘Twas a bad idea inviting him from the start!” the ebony hedgehog cut him off.
“I shalt not doth it again! I… I did not realise a lady of such beauty would be eyeless within the doors,” Lalitia stood with a blush overtaking her face from the lime Prince’s words. “Pray, thy name be Miss Jade, ‘tis not?” The lime Prince was now blushing from his own words. He had no idea what had overcome him but something had hit him and it had hit him hard.
“Lalitia,” She curtseyed.
“Nay ne’d,” the lime Prince kissed her hand. “Prithee, clepe me Manic,”
“Ay, anon,” Shadow pulled his friend away from the blushing prince.  “Art we going abroad?” The four friends gathered on the bed where Manic sat adoringly next to Lalitia.
“Ay but… We ne’d to conceal thy faces and encave the fact that Lalitia be a woman,”
Of course Lalitia felt offended. “O, God-i-god-en! A woman is always conceited so! Nev’r can a woman doth nay thing but dance f’r the drunken sirrahs once cleped men!”
“We cullionly not to make thou dance f’r us, as men we art not,” Manic assured. “The woman who dance hast no dignity like thou f’r a brothel they doth come,”
“A brothel thou send us to?” Shadow’s crimson eyes flicked with a certain anger.
“Nay!” the cobalt prince recovered. “A brothel they doth come not a brothel we doth go,”
“Ay, ‘twas what I meant,” Manic smiled at his brother who gave him a disapproving look. “Sorry,”
“Stop this, ‘twas a misprison that I can be forgiving. I am at fault f’r dressing in such a manner,”
Shadow tensed up. “Nay,”
Manic smiled. “I be agreeing with Master Shade,”
“Thank you…?”
“Anyway the place we be travelling to dost not allow woman, only those who dance f’r the sirrahs,” Sonic quoted Lalitia with a smile. “If this displeases thou-”
“Nay! I be for it!” She grinned. “Not to be insulting thou but the castle not be a place for me to lay every night,”
Sonic and Manic both shared a smile. “Ay, ‘tis the same for us. Father’s presence is not a merry one n’r is mine brother’s, sister is a nightmare and mother…”
“Mother dost not hast a mind of her own, she obeys father like the meiny, no offence to thou,” Manic added quickly to stop himself from gaining another bad mark from the two Mobians he was coming to know.
Lalitia wanted to laugh at the lime prince for being silly and forgetting about a woman’s place but did he know? “Doth thou take orders from thy mother?” she asked tilting her head with an innocent smile.
“Nay… we doth not, wherefore dost thou ask?” Sonic tilted his head to Lalitia’s question.
“Be begging your pardons but doth thou not wot of a woman’s place?” Lalitia could only wander what the boy’s father had taught them about the world.
Manic knitted his eyebrows in confusion. “I doth not wot wherefore thou ask f’r a pardon, be it not absurd but our mother’s place be at father’s side,”
“Ay, you Prince’s be young,” Shadow’s lips curled at the sides.
“I be older than thou,” The cobalt Prince looked the ebony servant up and down.
“I be an adult, thou art a child,” Shadow had to stop himself from sneering.
“Ay, but we may be children capable of behaving in an adult manner,” Sonic took to the banter.
“That be a sooth howev’r an adult doth not ne’d a woman to complete his duties early in the morrow,”
“We doth not ask f’r Miss Lalitia’s service in the morrow,” The lime prince snapped into the conversation.
“Be forgiving me,” Shadow sighed. ““I did not cullionly any offence,” he retracted.
“Hath been a stressful day upon thou, the quick wit of banter frees any man,” Shadow offered a smile to Sonic’s words which the azure prince gladly returned.
“Which is wherefore to-night we let go of thy pesky feelings,” Sonic motioned for his younger brother to bring up the pack he had been carrying earlier. “Also disguising thy faces will be a priority,”
“This sounds like it be an interesting idea,”
“Ay, it sounds like it be an idea that shalt almost certainly bag our heads f’r disloyalty,” Ruby eyes were alit with a certain light.
“Naught disloyalty,” Lalitia stuck out her fingers. “We shalt be treason’d  f’r law breaking,  going abroad aft’r the King hath retired, dishonouring the dress code. Most importantly we be announcing our disloyalty to our master and what the king would clepe ‘Fraternising with his sons’,”
“That all f’r being with us f’r a night?” The azure prince stared at the ticked off fingers in a strange amazement. “Surely, our father is harsh?”
The girl shrugged and went to lean on the ebony hedgehog only to realise he was laying on the bed –no longer sat looking interested. She huffed and sat up straight making Shadow laugh slightly. Rolling her eyes she continued. “Being hither with thou anon is a crime that shalt be talk’d about as an example of defiance f’r years to come,”
The princes exchanged glances to one smiling servant and the other who looked like he was about to take his friend someplace safe.
“I wish to wonder what ye are thinking. If it wast to doth with us ‘r the king,”
“Moo to doth with us as a whole,” The girl took her partners arm, lightly braceleting his wrist. “I be gasted f’r our safety and thy own. Mine heart beats loud at the mere thought of dancing as a sirrah but it beats harder of being caught, and amerced be far worse,”
“Yet thou smile like the break of dawn. Wherefore doth thou smile like a knight at his death?” Sonic shuffled closer to the smiling wolf.
“She be moo valiant than any knight the King hath,” The silent ebony boy was up and had taken hold of Lalitia. “Anon, Miss Lalitia. Thou ne’d to change aroint from the male’s prying eye,”
The lime hedgehog handed over a neatly tied bundle pinking at the cheeks. “Pray that everything dost fit,”
“Clepe f’r help by me if thou so wish f’r any,” Shadow smiled. “I wot how much thou flail,”
The young wolf just smiled back. “Be it the other way around, master Shadow,” shutting the door she sighed and realised it did no justice to eavesdrop upon the boys.

Sonic became worried at the glare and smile mixed onto the elder boy’s face. “If aught wast to happen to her, with ‘r without thy bodies present, I shall take the blame to thy souls. Understood?”
“Shadow- Master Shadow… We would not dream to put a vulnerable maiden in the face of danger, if thou doth fear then we will lay our arms down to protect the young girl,” It was Manic who stuttered the answer fearing his words would provoke something in the dark hedgehog.
His brother nodded in unison. “Shadow heed mine dram brother’s words. They be true!”
“I hold a man by their word, I pray yours be true… F’r thy own sake,”

The trio of boys were dressed before the wolf in the bathroom. The Prince’s dabbled in a richer taste than that of the servant who refused to play dress up of that extent. So he stood in a red tunic with gold edges, brown pants and leather pirate boots. His fingers quite comfortably looped into his belt.
“Lalitia, be thou okay?” he rapped his fist on the door.
“‘Tis embarrassing f’r thou to see me,” the boy rolled his eyes.
“Wherefore be that?” a little groan came from the back of the door before it opened revealing the girl who blushed and looked to the floor. Men’s clothes were often tight at the chest due to the belt that held it down, the pants were skinny and the boots were slightly heeled. “I see wherefore thou would keep thyself eyeless,”
“Thou look amazing, Miss Lalitia,” Manic smiled as wide as he could.
“I doth not feel like mineself,” The chocolate wolf frowned at pulled at the tunic edge trying to get it lower.
“It dost bewray thy corse a dram too much,” Shadow pressed his lips together. “Art thou alright?” taking her hands he scanned her face.
She pouted and looked away. “Ay, ay. Mine hair it also dost bewray me,” she picked at the ginger hair falling to her elbows.
“I shall sort that out,” Nicking the elaborate black pirate hat off the startled young Prince, Shadow began to tuck and tie up the locks into a bun underneath it. “Thither,”
“Thank thou,” she swiped her hand along the brim. “Ay savvy?”
The boys laughed and Manic adopted the less elaborate hat. The lime prince was dressed in a brown tunic with a red undershirt, his shoulders were draped in a sea green cloak and he was also in pirate style boots.
Sonic however wore the sea green in a tunic with a crisp white undershirt underneath. He wore brown pants like the wolf but black boots like his brother. “Ladies first in picking out a mask,” Sonic held out the bag and after dipping her hand in Lalitia brought out a cracked cream mask that was swirled with gold. It caught her breath as she admired the rich object in her hands. Shadow drew out one with the same cracked effect -his however wasn’t just for his eyes- his cover covered half his face in a ‘phantom of the opera’ style. Sonic had an eye mask too but his was silver with swirls, Manic’s was similar without the swirls but odd patterns instead.  “Hoods up anon, we ne’d to escape out a window downstairs- the height hither couldst break a man’s fork,”
Shadow let a smile play onto his lips. “Guards, art thither any outside, f’r thither is a window opposite us,”
“Did thou not hear a man’s caterwauling?” The Prince exclaimed.
“Trust a man,” Lalitia held out her hand to the boys. “Yarely anon, the coast be clear,” The ebony boy followed out with the Prince’s exchanging worried glances.

The hallway was cold and with the now open window, breezes began swirling.
“Be it not careless to lock an entrance so gross in sense as this?”
Shadow hid his laughter as he swung himself over the edge. “‘Twas until Lalitia made shift of opening it,”
The girl offered a curtsey. “I aim to please,”
“But certes thou gleek of jumping,” Manic gave a scared smile.  “Right?”
“I shall leave thou in Miss Lalitia’s careful hands,” The ebony hedgehog shuffled off the edge and Sonic followed his movements with a hushed cry. Rushing to the edge he only just made out an outline of the boy descending the castle walls. Hearing a soft thud Lalitia turned to the wide-eyed Princes.
“Good f’r thou to grise fia, Sonic,” The girl gave him a large beam.
“A woman shouldst naught gleek of a fall so perilous,”
“Certes thou doth naught think I gleek. Shadow be thither to catch thou if thou doth choose to jump,” Sonic immediately backed up after realising she wasn’t joking.
Sighing, Manic hitched himself onto the ledge offering his brother a near heart attack. “I shall jump,” Lalitia gave him a nod of appreciation. Whistling down she got the reply of a bird call.
“He’s ready f’r thou, also try naught to holler,” Sucking in his breath he cast a grin in Lalitia’s direction and jumped off the edge and a rustle of a bush was the indication Shadow had caught him. “Thou next Sonic,” The azure hedgehog lifted himself up and once stood up he cast a look at Lalitia which expressed his concern. “Thou will be alright Mine Prince. Shadow will catch thou,” The hedgehog only nodded and looked out into the inky sky patterned with stars. Breathing shakily Sonic let a smile take over his worry.
“Prithee Lalitia, I believe in equality. Thou may clepe me by mine Christian name and I shall clepe thou by thy Christian name. Just clepe me Sonic, Second heir to Regnum,”
“Wherefore art thou betokening me of this anon?”
The boy chuckled. “To distract me from what I’m about to doth,” She smiled up at him and gestured out the window. Letting his breath go the ground seemed to rocket up to him at an amazing speed. The wind pulling around him was natural and felt just like a tunnel. It was enjoyable. And seeing the castle from the angle he was in made it look like one of the fairytales he had heard so much about. But in the day it looked like an angel- Beautiful but was most likely holding a dark secret.
All was drawn to a halt when strong hands took hold of his waist. Flustered and confused he searched in the dark until his hands felt soft cotton beneath them. But by the time he had figured it out the Prince found himself lying on the floor.
“Be forgiving me mine Prince, thou scared me,” From the little light Sonic took note of Shadow’s scarred hands pulling up his shirt.
“Nay, be forgiving me,” Sitting up Sonic found Shadow’s hand in his face. The prince took note of the servant’s rounded shoulders and his averted eyes. Judging by what he knew about the brazen hedgehog it wasn’t in his nature to not look directly at a royal.
Taking the awaiting hand Sonic opened his mouth to speak but the older boy darted to the side and just caught the falling wolf. “Thou art a bold fearless child,” he scowled.
“Colours mine, f’r I… I slipp’d off the wall…” the wolf lowered her head at her clumsiness.
“Blinking idiot I am, forgive me Lalitia I forgot of the wall and how it crumbles,”
“Nev’r mind, thou caught me on mine fall and I couldst naught bear the thought of thou not being here,” She slid out of the ebony hedgehog’s arm and was steadied by the lime hedgehog. “Thank thou,”
Manic smiled but his eyes drifted concerningly towards the locked hands of his brother and the servant. Shadow saw his eyes and quickly let go of Sonic’s hand.  He cleared his throat and stepped back from the Prince. “My apologies,”
“Nay ne’d, thou caught me and I be fain f’r it,”
“So mine brother, would thou like to lead ‘r follow?” the younger prince cast his older brother who looked towards Shadow.
“I shall stay thou wot of the ground better,” his words made the lime hedgehog hum in a sort of disagreement. “It be the sooth,”
“Ay…” Taking Lalitia’s hand Manic turned his head to hide his blush. “Anon Miss Lalitia, the view of the woodlands becomes amazing in the moonlight,”
“I can only imagine,” the girl secretly smiled at their conjoined hands. “Art thou wearing gloves?”
“Nay. Wherefore doth thou ask?”
“Thy hands be as soft as freshly press’d sheets,”
“And yours art not?”
The wolf gasped and giggled. “Certes thou art speaking a gleek, f’r a servant to hast soft hands is an insult on the house they serve,”
“Means they doth not work hard enough mine Prince,” Shadow spoke for the Prince’s confusion. “‘r just art naught amerced, that of which is especially insulting to the Regnum house,”
“A stain upon the King’s fabric , I am,” The two servants laughed as they approached their first obstacle.

The night’s air doused the teens in the cold they needed. The moon and stars acted as their travelling lights as well as the young boy’s sense of direction, he was treading with certainty whereas the others were inching along the foreign ground. Once at the undergrowth they began to feel the biting and scratching of branches and occasional thorns on the little exposed skin they had and minor loose threads of clothing. In the end by the brambles Shadow brandished the knife he had concealed in the waistband of his pants. While he hacked away the Princes made conversation with the other servant.
“Nothing seems fair from the eyes of a servant, whence as when thou admire life from our eyes it appears almost beautiful,”
“Life is beautiful but thou wilt understand what we see is not free,”
Shadow made a noise that sounded halfway between a grunt and a chuckle. “Will thou stop talking with the wits of a poet f’r me to translate to the prince’s what in god’s good name thou cullionly,”
The maiden huffed and hinted at a snarky tone. “Well colours me good Sir but I think the way I feel and so I shall speak mine mind,”
“A distemperate fault that will most likely heave the gorge on thy mind and mine body,” Sheathing his knife he held out his arm to allow his friends past. “Something I doth naught want to bear witness to,” She hug her head and the ebony boy draped his arm over her shoulder. “But something that will naught escape thy mazzard,”
“Nay… But it be a rare thing f’r me to doth,”
“True, true,” The boy grinned. “But shall we leave it to the belov'd Prince's to decide,”
“Master Shadow, thou hast a funny way of expressing thy feelings to a woman,” Sonic set his emerald eyes to the hedgehog in front of him.
“She be not a woman,” Shadow swilled to look at the Prince and carried on walking backwards. “She be mine cater-cousin and if ye are not careful thou couldst end up being treat'd just like her,”
Turning back to face forward left the azure boy to stop for a brief second to think. “As thy cater-cousin?” he set a finger to his lips playfully as if he’d just been kissed.
The older boy just laughed and shrugged. “It be contingent mine Prince,”
Sonic caught up to the servants with a few short bounds. A glitter was in his emerald eyes and his mouth was open in excitement like a kid at Christmas. “Master Shadow,” He cast his crimson eyes down to the pinking boy. “It would be a delight to be thy cater-cousin,”