Sage continued to stare at her hands as she guided them through the grand corridors and into the warm and cosy Quiet Room. The room had no Wi-Fi, TV, plug sockets or books. It was designed for socialising or sitting in silence. The space was full of couches and chairs of all sizes and colours. Those sitting on either side of the room could hear without speaking louder than necessary. Sage had once heard his father call it her room of truth. Everyone who entered to talk always left with nodding heads and straighter backs and relieved smiles.
She motioned for them to sit by the fire. Sage sat first, and Taro sat so closely that Sage had a sudden need to shuffle away, but he didn't. Sage assured himself that he no longer had to hide who he was.
Granny Dalia sat in front of them, in a sky-blue armchair with golden tassels that swallowed her small frame. She fiddled with the tassels and Sage was once again drawn to her green nails. Is it nail polish? He couldn't tell, and he didn't know if he should bring it up.
"So, my darling, how have you been coping? I imagine it hasn't been enjoyable at the Palace," Dalia said, flicking her gaze between them.
"Things have been a bit strange," Sage admitted. "The palace isn't what it used to be, at least not for me. I don't know if I should move out. Mum and dad are not making it easy for us both. They're rude and mean about Taro and his kind." He felt Taro's eyes on the side of his face.
Granny Dalia stiffened at the mention of her son being cruel. "And Oxley?"
How much does she know? "He's supportive," he says, thinking, if it suits him. Sage glanced towards Taro, knowing he was thinking the same.
"Is he," she replied. "And Haliver . . . Is he really being difficult?" Sage nodded. "Well, I raised him to be a loving young man. He disappoints me now."
Sage fidgeted, feeling as though he had dragged his father through the dirt. But he hadn't visited his grandmother to lie, he had visited for support. "I'm hoping that they'll get used to this with time."
"Well, they must because you are the future King, and you are their son."
Sage wanted to say, that's all fine and well, but they don't support who I love, and they would prefer it if I dumped him because of their disapproval. Though Sage had troubled enough people with his problems, so he said, "I hope they get used to it."
"I'll have a word with your father, if you think that would help?"
"No," Sage said quickly. "I don't want him to think that I've come here to complain about him."
"Why have you visited?"
"Because I wanted to be with a member of this family who still supports me."
"But you said that Oxley supported you."
Sage fell quiet. I'm sitting in the room of truth. Still, he resisted. "He does . . . he's just . . ." He sighed. "I just want to know who I can trust."
She nodded knowingly and turned her attention to Taro. "And you my dear, how are you dealing with all of this?"
Taro shrugged. "Okay for now. It's not easy seeing Sage's parents being so hateful."
"He means, it's not easy for him to hold his tongue," Sage added. They smiled at each other.
Dalia smiled with them. "You're not a royalist, are you?"
"I support Sage," Taro replied carefully.
Dalia folded one hand over the other. "I'm proud of my son, but the day he married into the royal family, I cried for him that night. The Greenthenors are not an easy family to be around. I always thought that Oxley was a lot like his mother, and Sage was a lot like his father. I always thought that Oxley should have been the older one- the one next in line for the throne. Although, Sage would make a much better ruler."
Sage had forgotten how freely she spoke. Taro sank into the couch, making himself more comfortable. "Are you not a royalist?" Taro asked her.
"I support my son," she said, holding his gaze. Taro's eyes sparkled with a likeness towards the old woman. "Do you have parents?" Taro nodded at her question. "Have they met Sagerian?"
"Yeah, they worship the ground he walks on."
Dalia chuckled and said, "Good. But I think we should arrange for all your parents to meet."
Sage felt his stomach drop. "I'm not sure that's a good idea. What If it goes horribly wrong? Actually, I can't imagine it going well at all."
"Your parents won't embarrass themselves. I think they'll be painfully polite. They wouldn't want- forgive me Taro- ordinary people to see them for who they really are."
"But they're fine with being rude in front of Taro."
"Because they want to scare him off. You're brave for dating another man, but bringing home a green . . . now that's courageous."
"You know about them?" Sage asked, staring at her nails.
"Of course."
Sage sat back with frustration. "Why was I the only one who didn't know?"
"How much do you know now?"
Sage told her about the ancient agreement and how most of the Palace guards are greens, and how they all live in secret and have been silently following the royal family through the centuries, because of the ancient agreement.
"So, you don't know about the prophecy?"
"What prophecy?" Taro asked quickly.
Dalia studied them both for a quiet moment. "One that has been buried so deeply into the royal histories that only the most senior members know."
"Does it involve Sage?" Taro asked.
Dalia nodded.
"How?" Sage questioned.
"It's rumoured to involve two brothers," Dalia said in a hushed tone. "One on the throne of humans, one on the throne of greens, fighting for peace in a land full of conflict."
Sage and Taro glanced to each other. Sage was surprised to see Taro's round stunned eyes trailing over him, as though he believed the story. "Who told you this tale?" he asked.
"Your father, years ago."
Sage felt shivers crawling up his arms. "But dad wouldn't believe something like that. It's just an old story, isn't it?"
"You've chosen to date a green. The prophecy, in my opinion, has already begun."
Sage shivered when Taro slowly climbed to his feet, staring unblinkingly in Sage's direction. He then left, mumbling about needing 5 minutes of air. When the door closed behind him, Dalia leaned forwards with a stern stare. "This has to stay between the three of us until I can figure out what Oxley is up to."
"What do you mean? This can't be true."
"Sage, not too long ago, you didn't believe that Taro's kind could possibly exist. Don't be so quick to dismiss this. There haven't been two brothers born into the royal family for generations. You're next in line to be king, but for which monarchy?" Her wise blue eyes circled his face. "Your parents don't want you to date a green because they don't want conflict between our kinds."
"Our kinds?" Sage was too astonished to question more.
Dalia linked her fingers. "Your parents will reject Taro because they think they're doing the right thing. But I think that'll push you further into your prophecy."
"So, you're saying that Oxley will one day be on the throne, and so will I, but I'll be the ruler of the greens, and he'll be the ruler of the humans? And then what? We fight for what? I don't understand."
You're not meant to understand, you're just meant to be."
"You don't understand either, do you?" Sage quizzed.
"No, I don't. But that doesn't mean I can't believe it'll happen."
Sage stood up, shaking his head. "I'm going to find Taro."
"Sage, hold on." Dalia struggled to stand too. "Don't be frightened by this. You're just finding your purpose in this world."
"I'm not frightened. But I'm getting a little fed up with all the secrets in this family." Sage found Taro leaning against the outer wall, by the garden door. His blond hair reflected the sun as his head hung low. His arms were crossed over his chest, but his fingers tugged at his jumper sleeves. "Hey," Sage said, leaning against the wall next to him. Birds sang and talked in trees lined neatly around the pebbled courtyard.
Taro's eyes fixed up to a magpie chittering away to another perched on a higher branch. "I believe this prophecy. I don't want to believe it because there's going to be a struggle between my kind and yours."
"Why do you believe it? Where do prophecies even come from?"
"I'm guessing it's a part of the ancient agreement that has been forgotten. I'm willing to bet that it has been forgotten in hopes of it not existing." Taro pressed his shoulder into the wall and faced Sage. "You're going to rule the green."
"No," Sage disagreed, shaking his head. "I'm not."
Taro softened his intense stare. "You're so much more complex than I could have ever imagined."
"I don't want to be." Sage felt his heart racing. What if this is all too much for him? "Is this going to scare you off?"
Taro raised a brow. "Scare me off?"
"From me. This is not what you signed up for."
"I don't remember you signing up for this either." Taro grabbed Sage's jumped and pulled their bodies together. "Dating someone doesn't mean that you can run off at the first sight of change. I've made a commitment to you by calling you my boyfriend. I might have moments of oh fuck, but I knew dating you was going to be like that."
Sage wrapped arms around his shoulders. "But this is a really big oh fuck moment."
"Yeah." Taro coiled arms around Sage's waist, and they held each other for a long while, with heads against the wall and a gentle breeze twisting between them. "So, Oxley knows about the prophecy. I wonder why he said that Patrick didn't want you on the throne for that reason. It's not adding up."
"If Patrick wanted to kill us all because he wanted to be in power, then maybe he was trying to deter the prophecy or something?" Sage sighed. "I'm not sure I even believe in this prophecy. It just sounds like an old story."
"Well, someone was willing to kill because of it, and I think we need to find out if that was Patrick, or your brother. Because I don't think we're being told the whole truth here."