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Will woke up to the sound of knocking. Groggily, he sat and stretched, looking around him. His room was small but cosy, with fur rugs thrown on the floor and painted portraits of past kings hanging on the walls. The bed was huge and made for two, with curtains for privacy. He even had his own bathing room, however tiny and squashed it was, and there was a windowsill with blankets thrown over it to make it a seating place. It had been ages since Will had last had his own room, but he did not let himself get comfortable. He wasn't used to being able to keep good things. Plus, he wasn't used to sleeping alone. It was a luxury that he found uncomfortable after years of sharing rooms with other commoners, their snores, giggling, and shuffling filling the quiet. After trying to sleep on the comfortable feather bed, he had eventually given up and lain down on the windowsill instead, his head by the glass and the hard wood under his head. He could not get unused to his familiarity with sleeping in rough places.

His bare feet tapped against the wooden floorboards as he walked over to the door, trying to shove down his messy hair into a more presentable look.

"Yes?" Will called, opening it to find Audrey standing there. She had tucked some of her brown hair—the blonde dye had been washed out—into a headdress and her blue eyes were rested, some of the red that used to surround it gone. She had donned a dark red gown with a tight bodice, and an amber necklace hung from her neck.

"Come. It's breakfast time now," Audrey said.

Will grinned, sitting on the floor to pull on leather boots. "I'm honoured you decided to come down with me. Why, am I special?"

Audrey scowled at him, but Will didn't wipe the grin from his face, noticing the hint of a smile tugging at her lips.

"You're pushing it," Audrey said simply before striding out.

Will laughed and followed her out. He was dressed in simple clothes perfect for his status: woollen trousers and a belted tunic that hung to just above his knees. He had found many doublets and silk shirts in the chest that lay at the foot of his bed, but he had ignored them. He wasn't highborn or a royal. His white hair was also back—he had washed away the dye the night before.

"And yet you haven't told me to go away yet." Will followed her, keeping up with her brisk pace.

"Go away."

Will rolled his eyes. "How do you know where you're going, anyway?"

"I had the sense to ask my maid for directions."

"You have a maid?" He grinned. "They never thought to send one to me."

"Shut up or I'll throw you into a pillory."

"Ouch." He made a face, but obeyed.

Audrey smiled at him. "That's better."

They reached the long, winding staircase and began to walk down. As soon as they reached the second step, however, a bell sounded. Will almost fell down the stairs in shock and Audrey had to catch him to stop him from tripping over his own feet. He grabbed her wrist for balance and steadied himself, cursing.

"Never heard a bell before?" Audrey smirked as he let go.

Will frowned. "I didn't know they had a bell tower here."

"They like to eat food together. That bell means the meal is just beginning."

"Don't Westerners eat together as well?" Will asked.

"They do. But the different status' mix in the West, and here they are still separate. In the East, only the highborn people may feast in the Great Hall and everyone else eats in the 'small hall'; down here, everyone can eat together but there is still segregation within the different ranks and in the North we... they..." Will heard Audrey's voice choking up slightly as she spoke of her home, refusing to label herself as belonging anywhere. "...they respect each other and eat at their own times."

"I'm sorry," Will muttered.

Audrey didn't need to ask to know what he meant. "Landon can't keep the throne forever."

"He's not going to. You're not going to let him," Will told her.

"I can't stand against him. I can just avoid him and ridicule him with my absence." Will saw the stiffness in her body and took one of her hands in his own. She tensed, then relaxed.

"What did he do?" Will asked.

"He made me... want."

Will knew better than to ask. If she wanted to speak, she would in her own time. "Come on then. I'll race you downstairs," he made himself say.

Cheerful Will. Keep putting on that smile of yours and no one will suspect that your conscience is blackened with death, he reminded himself.

Audrey's eyes lit up ever so slightly at the change of subject. "You are like a child," she chastised.

"And you're too serious, princess." Will bolted down the staircase, not expecting her to follow him.

She did, letting go of his hand and hurrying after him. She easily raced past him despite her long skirts, taking the stairs down two at a time.

Will stared at her when he reached the bottom, reaching it just a moment after she did. "Some princess you are. You leapt down those stairs!" He whistled. "Impressive."

"Used to do it with my brother. He was really good at it." Audrey shrugged. "Do I get anything, then?"

"What? No!"

Audrey smirked before striding straight past him. Will followed as they made their way down to the dining hall.

"Audrey?!?" a voice asked from the side as they entered.

Audrey turned, and her eyes brightened. "Clovis!"

Will watched as she threw herself into the arms of a tall, brown-haired boy. Will couldn't help but notice the slight limp he had on his left leg and the eye patch covering one eye, his pale cheeks dotted with freckles.

Audrey seemed to remember Will and untangled herself from the embrace, facing him.

"This is a childhood friend," Audrey explained. "Clovis, Will. Will, Clovis."

Will raised a hand awkwardly. "Hi."

"What happened to you since I went?" Audrey asked Clovis before he could reply. "How are you still alive? I can't believe..."

"I saved Junia first. I figured you'd be... impressed with me when I went to save you if I had helped your cousin. I thought I had a lot more time. But I didn't. We had to go. I got Junia here, fled because a guard threatened me, hid in the forest for a bit, and... well, long story short, I ended up here. And you?"

Audrey stiffened. "I was imprisoned. I tried to escape once but failed. Then, the second time, I got free." Audrey glanced over at Will. "And he was the one who saved me."

Will smiled lightly. "It was nothing."

"Ugh, so humble." Audrey rolled her eyes but smiled back before glancing at Clovis. "Right, you're telling me everything."

"I'll go in and grab some food," Will said, feeling like an intruder. Secretly, he was also jealous that Audrey had someone else to turn to. Will had no one left.

Thank you for showing me, Will, a voice said in his voice, and he saw Luella Hill clutching his hand with tear-filled eyes, a gaping wound in her stomach. He could not forget what had happened to her. It haunted him. No matter how many people he lost, he never could adjust to the missing places in his heart where they used to be.

"We'll be there soon," Audrey nodded, an obvious dismissal.

Will glanced at Clovis once more before slipping in. Eyes followed him as he took a seat where the commoners were. He couldn't bring himself to look up at where Annalee and Ulysses were sitting. Audrey could sit there, but Will wasn't going anywhere near the high table.

He couldn't seem to hide from the eyes that watched him, so he grinned at the Southerners seated around him.

"Where's the drink?" he asked. Cheers responded.

"It's the morning!" a voice called back teasingly.

Will grinned. "I am no craven." Someone passed him a drink and Will raised it. "To the South!"

The laughter of the commoners and the replies of 'to the South!' lifted his spirits, and he felt himself relax, easily slipping into their conversations and quickly gaining their acceptance. When Audrey walked over with Clovis, Will even had the nerve to raise his cup to her.

"To the most beautiful woman here," he called.

Audrey blushed, glared at him, and called him an idiot, but Will didn't mind, too busy grinning. He was surprised when she took a seat next to him, even though he was sitting with commoners. The Southerners looked at her uncertainly at first, unsure of how to act with a princess among their ranks, but seemed to work out that she would not snap out at them and accepted her presence. She mostly remained quiet, letting Will and Clovis talk enough for her, but seemed to smile a bit more as she relaxed.

Althaia hobbled in halfway through, supported by James, and took a seat by them. She spent most of her time complaining about her bandaged leg, but Will still smiled and teased her.

He finally believed that—maybe, just maybe—he had found a place he could get used to.

There will never be a place for you, a dark voice reminded him.

Go away, he told the voice, downing his glass.

I respect Will for being able to go up to a group of people and just befriend them since I could never do such a thing lmao

Love you all,

Shelly M x