Chapter Text
The bench creaked as a woman got up, calling for one of the children playing tag around the town square.
Letting out a deep sigh, Sapnap shifted, leaning back against the bench as he gazed over the children.
They were so happy, at a time like this.
Sometimes Sapnap wished he could be like that too, having fun instead of worrying. But those times were gone, he had a job to do and he had no time to have fun.
Especially with the country in such a state.
Maybe the children just didn’t understand the terrifying possibility of death, or maybe they chose to ignore it, spending the days they still had having fun with people they loved, instead of moping around.
Sapnap got up, dusting his shoulders as he started walking, passing the group of kids.
He wasn’t sure where he was going, but he continued on.
After passing many houses and shops, he decided he might as well go home, as there was nothing for him to do today.
So he set his destination and started walking, passing through an alley, holding the dagger he always kept with him tightly.
But gladly there was no reason to use it, and he made it safely home.
But there, at his door stood a guard, seemingly a royal guard at that.
Frowning a bit with confusion, Sapnap greeted her, stopping next to her.
She cleared her throat, handing him a letter.
“The king wants to meet you tomorrow, come in the afternoon,” she stated.
Sapnap always wondered did the guards ever get tired of being so professional all the time, of course he was when he went to meet the royalty, but at least he could be himself when he wasn’t in the castle.
“Of course, thank you ma’am,” Sapnap responded and the guard nodded, before turning around and marching off.
Sapnap shrugged to himself and opened his door.
It was quiet like always, as he lived alone. No wife or family to take care of, just himself.
Stretching his arms a bit, Sapnap put the letter down as he took off his cloak.
He was hungry, so he went to the kitchen and sighed when he saw the dirty table. Of course he forgot to clean up this morning.
So he took the plate and his glass, before going to put them on a counter, he could wash them with the other dishes later.
Now he just needed to eat something.
Opening a cabinet, Sapnap took out some bread, he was low on food so why waste anything.
After sitting down at the table Sapnap leaned on his hand, thinking about today.
He should probably read the letter soon, it could be anything, but knowing the king it was just money to keep him satisfied.
The king knew very well that with his knowledge and skills he could kill him easily, but Sapnap knew he wouldn’t. There was no need to kill him, he was just some guy who happened to mean a lot to the kingdom.
Maybe he should be mad that he’s sending people to war, but it’s not like their kingdom even started this, they had to fight back.
So he couldn’t really blame the king either, if anything he should blame the other king, the one who attacked them first.
Maybe tomorrow's meeting was a hit on the king, that would be interesting, usually it was just some petty fight that the king took as disrespect and wanted them dead.
So after finishing eating, Sapnap got up and walked to the desk where he left the letter.
He leaned on the wall as he ripped it open, pulling out a piece of paper.
Dear Sapnap
I have a job for you, I will promise to reward you handsomely for your hard work, please meet me tomorrow in the afternoon, we can set the details over dinner.
Sincerely, the king
Ah, of course, who could have guessed it was just another job.
What else did the king want with him anyways.
Putting the letter down, Sapnap turned his gaze to the window.
It was getting late, as citizens were hurrying home.
Turning away, he stepped into his room, brushing his hand through his hair and pulling it down from the bun it had been in the whole day.
He sat down on the bed, taking off his shoes as he laid down.
After staring at the ceiling for god knows how long, he fell into a dreamless sleep.
Sun shone through the window, hitting Sapnap right in the eye.
He let out a groan of annoyance as he shifted, shielding his face from the light.
As he did that he became way too aware of the fact he had fallen asleep in his clothes.
Slightly opening his eyes, he sat up, brushing hair from his face.
Sapnap got up from the bed, stretching himself as he realized he had slept a bit late as the sun was further up than it was when he usually woke up.
Shrugging a bit he went to his closet and pulled out an outfit the king had gifted him once.
It looked way too fancy for him, but the king would probably like it if he wore it.
So he pulled it on, when finished stepping in front of the mirror and staring at himself.
God he looked like some rich bastard.
Sapnap grabbed a hair tie from the desk and pulled his hair into a messy ponytail.
Stepping out of his room into the hall, Sapnap hummed quietly, walking into the kitchen, where he stopped for a moment, seeing the dirty dishes on the counter.
Letting out a frustrated huff, he grabbed them and decided he needed to wash them now or he never would.
So he spent his morning doing that, and after he finished he started making himself some food.
He sat down at the table, taking a bite of his meal as his eyes wandered around the room.
As he finished eating, Sapnap quickly washed his plate, refusing to leave it dirty.
He brushes a loose strand from his face, deciding he could go for a walk, and he needed to check the time, so he would need to go outside anyway.
Sapnap pulled on his boots, kicking off some dirt. He checked himself in the mirror one last time, before grabbing his dagger.
Knowing this was a mission, he would most likely need it.
So he set out, stepping out of his house into the outside world.
The street was alive, two girls ran past him, forcing him to stop for a moment so he wouldn’t walk into them.
A woman scolded them, before apologizing to him.
“It’s alright,” he smiled, noticing the way the woman’s face heated up.
He quickly made his way towards the church and it’s clock tower, not wanting to deal with that.
A few people greeted him, and Sapnap wondered why, until he remembered his clothes and how he must look like a noble. The attention was unwanted though, as he was never one to enjoy the public.
As the clock tower got into view Sapnap sighed relieved, he had some time, so if he took the long route he would get there just in time.
He hated being early, it made him seem like a try hard. He would rather be late and apologize to the king.
Sapnap continued past the church, his hand gripped the dagger, before untightening the hold.
He wasn’t usually so anxious about missions, but being watched like he was right now while going to get one was a new feeling.
He hated feeling like he was watched.
The castle came into view and Sapnap fastened his pace, soon slowing down as he got closer to the gates.
Two guards stiffened as they noticed his presence.
He bowed a bit, “I’m here to meet the king,” he informed them and one of the guards nodded.
“Yes, sir Sapnap,” he replied, making Sapnap blink at the formality. He wasn’t even that important, it was always weird.
Though if you are the king's royal assassin, maybe you were a bit important.
Stepping through the gates, Sapnap noticed the king’s “assistant” or whatever his title was, walking through the garden towards the gates.
He halted before Sapnap, clearing his throat.
“Sir Sapnap, the king is waiting for you, please follow me,” he said and Sapnap nodded.
He followed the man through the garden. It was in full bloom at this time of the year and the different flowers were a nice view.
They stepped into the throne room as two guards stepped out of the way.
There on the throne sat the king, his majesty.
He smiled at the two and Sapnap prepared himself.
“Sapnap, how nice to see you again,” the king spoke as Sapnap stopped in front of him. The man, who Sapnap had forgotten the name of a few months ago, stood next to the king.
“It is nice to see you too, your majesty,” the king chuckled a bit, motioning him to stop.
“No need for such formalities, we have been working together for years have we not?” He said, stopping for a moment before continuing on.
“I would say we are friends, and my friends don’t need to call me such things, call me Dream.”
Sapnap nodded, swallowing dryly.
“Well Sapnap, we should discuss this mission over dinner, would you care to join me?” The king, or well, Dream asked and Sapnap nodded.
Dream walked through the halls, Sapnap not far behind.
He seemed to know his way in the big castle with no problems, Sapnap could never understand that. How much room did someone need?
Stepping inside the big dining room Sapnap felt himself stiffen a bit.
Dream only walked up to a chair and sat down, a servant pulled a chair for Sapnap and he sat down close to Dream.
Dream thanked the servants, who went to do something else in the castle.
“Well, should we talk about this mission, but Sapnap,” his smile falls into a more serious expression.
“This is a serious mission, failing could mean death.”
As if it wasn’t always serious, but Sapnap stayed quiet and only nodded to show he was listening.
“This war has gone on too long and innocent people are being hurt. I want the king of Badlands to feel how I’ve felt losing my citizens.”
“I want you to go and kill his son, I don’t care how you do it, just don’t get caught and make sure he’s dead, that should be a good enough punishment.”
Sapnap stared at him puzzled, it sounded like a big risk to take just to anger the king more, this would most likely result in more war.
“Are you sure? This could just make him want to hurt us more,” he stated and something in Dream’s eyes flashed with anger, but he stayed quiet for a moment.
“If you do the job well there’s no reason to suspect us, now, are you going to accept the mission?”
Sapnap thought about it for a moment.
There was a big risk he would be caught, but could he go against the king? Dream was known for being angered easily, he would probably be jailed or at the worst executed for going against his word.
So with a sigh, Sapnap agreed.
“Thank you, now, after you’ve finished eating George will show you the room you can stay the night in. You’ll leave tomorrow.” And with that Dream left, leaving Sapnap sitting alone at the giant table.
After finishing his meal, Sapnap thanked the servants coming to clean after him and walked up to George, who was standing against a wall.
“You’ve finished? Follow after me, I will show you your room,” he opened the door next to him and walked through.
Sapnap looked around the halls as they walked, it felt weird, he had spent a few nights in the castle before, but knowing where he was going tomorrow made it somehow feel unfamiliar.
The big corridors seemed endless until George came to a halt, making Sapnap almost walk straight into him.
“Your room sir, we will come get you when the king wants to speak to you.”
George opened the door, bowing a bit as Sapnap stepped in.
When the door closed he was left alone.
The room was pretty big, nothing compared to his actual room. But what interested him the most was the door leading to a balcony.
So Sapnap opened it. He gazed down into the gardens, they looked nice from up here.
He stared into the horizon for a while, until he decided to go back in to check out the bookshelf he had noticed against a wall.
Brushing his hands against the back of the books, Sapnap picked out one at random and turned it.
He didn’t know the book, so he decided to read it, as he hadn’t had the time to get any new books in a while. Or he had the time, but he never went.
Sitting down on the balcony against the railing, Sapnap let himself get lost in the book, not noticing how much time passed while he read.
And as he closed the book, he let out a deep sigh. It had been good, not his favourite, but the story was enjoyable.
Then there came a knock at the door.
Quickly getting up, Sapnap put the book back where he got it and rushed to open the door.
George stood there, looking like he was going to knock again.
“The king has invited you to join him at the dining hall,” George explained and Sapnap nodded, following George.
“Do you ever get tired of speaking like that?” Sapnap asked as they walked and George glanced at him.
“No, I don’t.” He stated and Sapnap shrugged.
It was worth a shot to ask, but George did look a bit amused at his sudden question.
The door opened to reveal Dream sitting at the table.
George led Sapnap to a chair and he sat down.
“Good evening, I hope you enjoyed your room,” Dream spoke up.
“It looked nice,” Sapnap responded a bit awkwardly, he was not one for genuine small talk.
They ate in silence.
Dream tried to strike up a conversation a few times, but quickly stopped as Sapnap made it clear he didn’t want to talk.
Dream huffed, getting up from his chair.
“Well, I’ll get going now, have a good evening.” He smiled before leaving towards whatever was in the rest of the castle.
George went after him quickly and Sapnap was sure there was something going on with those two, but who was he to speculate about the king and his relationships.
Sapnap was led back to his room by another servant. Sapnap was a bit tired to be honest, but he was interested in the other books, so maybe he could read another one today, or at least start one and buy it for himself when he got back home.
The servant left him at his room and Sapnap went back to the bookshelf, grabbing one that interested him and going back to the balcony.
The breeze was a bit colder with how late it was getting, but he liked it.
The next morning Sapnap woke up in a bed to knocking at a door. The bed felt way too soft to be his bed, and it took a bit for Sapnap to remember where he was.
He sat up, sighing loudly.
Sapnap stretched, fighting back a yawn as he glanced around the room.
Then there came another knock and Sapnap realized Dream must want to see him.
He looked around for his clothes and spotted a pile of new looking clothes next to his bed on a chair.
No other clothes were in sight, so he came to the conclusion these were meant for him.
Sapnap got dressed, staring into the mirror and realizing if he ruined these clothes he would probably be in debt for his whole life.
They looked like they cost a ton to make.
Quickly after, Sapnap opened the door, realizing he still needed to go see what was going on.
George stood there, looking mildly pissed off.
“Good morning, did you enjoy your sleep?” He asked, Sapnap apologized.
“We need to go, the king is waiting for you.”
George walked off quickly, clearly not accepting his apology.
Sapnap rushed after him.
They arrived in the throne room, where Dream stood waiting for them.
He didn’t mention Sapnap being late, so he decided to just not acknowledge that at all, glad to get off the hook.
“I want to explain to you what you’re going to do, then I’ll send you off,” Dream started.
“You are going to be posing as a tutor for the prince, I will give you enough money to sway the king’s decision if he doesn’t want you.”
Sapnap nodded, letting Dream continue, “I want you to earn the trust of the king and the prince, then you will kill him.”
The plan sounded weirdly risky, wouldn’t it be pretty obvious it was the tutor that suddenly appeared and disappeared? But who was he to complain, at least he was getting paid for this.
“I still want you to remember, this is important, this might be your most important job yet, so do it well.”
And with that he was escorted outside to a carriage.
“Thank you again Sapnap, good luck.” Dream smiled, and Sapnap returned the smile.
“Of course, thank you… Dream,” it felt weird using the king’s name so casually.
And so he was going to the Badlands.
A kingdom he had never been in. What if he wouldn’t even get accepted by the king? Everything he had heard around him painted the king as a ruthless ruler. Sapnap hadn’t even known he had a son before he heard about his mission.
As they got farther from the city Sapnap stared out into the surrounding fields.
He let himself grab his dagger, his fingers tracing the carvings on the handle.
All done himself.
At some point he must have fallen asleep as he opened his eyes and it was getting dark.
Sapnap yawned, looking around, only to see a forest around them.
Long pine trees surrounded them and Sapnap was a bit worried they would encounter a wild animal and the horses would get hurt.
But to distract himself he started thinking about different ways he could finish this mission.
The journey took a while, a few days until they were close enough to be stopped by two guards.
“State your business,” one of the guards spoke, and Sapnap quickly readjusted his posture.
“I have come as a tutor for the prince, I want to meet the king to discuss the job.”
The guards shared a look of suspicion, but Sapnap was prepared and took the bag Dream had given him and grabbed a bit of money.
He held his hand out, and the guards took it, checking if it was real.
“Well, you seem to be what you say you are, so alright.”
The other guard continued, “but if you cause any trouble we won’t hesitate to jail you.”
Sapnap nodded, “thank you, I’m sure I won’t be causing any trouble for you.”
And so they continued.
They stopped in front of the gates, guards refusing to open it for them.
“What business do you have with the king?” One asked and Sapnap fought back an annoyed groan.
“I want to discuss a job with him, could I get let in?” He asked and the guard stared at him.
“We haven’t been informed of any visitors today.”
Just his luck.
“I must see the king, I’ve come from far to give him an offer I’m sure he would love,” he took the bag, shaking it a bit so the coins made a noise.
The guard didn’t seem that convinced but relaxed a bit.
“I will let you in, but if the king wants you out, you will leave with no objections.”
And so the gates opened and they were allowed to go in.
As they stopped the carriage in front of the doors, Sapnap got off, grabbing his things as he thanked the servant who took him all the way here.
He wished him good luck, and Sapnap nodded, turning around.
Sapnap walked up the stairs and took a deep breath before he walked into the throne room.
It looked a lot different than the one at home.
He almost didn’t notice the woman walking towards him until she spoke.
“Good evening, how can I help you?” She asked and Sapnap cleared his throat.
He quickly explained why he was there and the woman nodded, “just a moment, I will get the king.” She rushed out of the big room, her steps echoing.
So Sapnap waited, a bit annoyed he had to just stand and couldn’t sit down.
But the king didn’t take too long to arrive, having decided to hear him out on his offer.
As he walked in Sapnap was a bit puzzled.
The king looked nothing like people described him, he gave Sapnap a welcoming smile, how was this the man who had killed their people?
But he had no time wonder if the king was just acting kind before he spoke.
“Good evening, I heard you have an offer for me.”
Sapnap nodded, bowing deep.
“Yes your highness, I have come with an offer.” He had been thinking of how he was going to explain this in a way that the king would be interested in the whole idea.
The king nodded, motioning for him to continue.
“I have traveled from a far away land, as I think I could be a good tutor for your son.”
The mention of the prince seemed to catch the king off guard, “oh, he has many tutors already, why should I choose you?” He asked.
“I have knowledge they wouldn’t have, and…” He held out the money bag.
The king grabbed it, checking inside and raising his eyebrows.
“Well, I’ll have to think about this for a bit, would that be alright?” Sapnap nodded, “of course your highness.”
A few minutes went by as the king paced around the room, before he finally stopped back in front of Sapnap.
“I’ve come to a decision, I’ll let you work as my son’s tutor, but I want to make sure you know what you’re doing, so if there are any problems, I will fire you.”
That seemed good enough.
“Yes, your highness.” All these formalities were getting on Sapnap’s nerves, he hated acting like this, he never talked in this way when he was being himself.
But he didn’t let his annoyance show, and instead bowed.
“Niki, could you go fetch Alex?” The king asked and the woman quickly nodded, speeding into another room.
When she came back around five minutes later she was joined by a young man.
Sapnap watched as his seemingly annoyed expression turned to confusion as he spotted him.
The king smiled, greeting him warmly.
“Alex, I want you to meet someone,” he stated, getting a slow nod as a response.
“This is…” Sapnap quickly butted in, “Sapnap.” “This is Sapnap, your new tutor.”
The prince bowed a bit, “good evening Sapnap,” he greeted him.
“And Sapnap, this is my son Alex, I trust you to be a good teacher for him.”
With the introductions out of the way, the king informed them he wanted to speak to Alex privately and instructed Niki to show Sapnap to his room.
She walked him through the halls.
“You say you’re from a far away land, what’s it like there?” She asked and Sapnap glanced at her.
Niki was smiling at him, a stark contrast to George.
“It’s nice, it’s colder there than it is here, but I like the change.” He responded and Niki nodded.
“I’ve never been outside the city, but I would love to travel someday.”
Sapnap nodded as Niki sighed sadly, “I’m just not sure how possible that is.”
“I’d say anything is possible if you just try,” Sapnap tried, and this seemed to cheer her up.
“Yes, maybe… Well, this is your room, please don’t be scared to come ask me for help.”
She unlocked the door, opening it wide.
The room was big, a bit smaller than the one at Dream’s castle, but still big.
“It looks nice,” Sapnap commented as he put his things on the bed, before turning back to face Niki.
“Would you like a small tour? It can be hard to find your way around.”
He agreed and Niki started leading him back to the throne room.
They passed a few people, who must have been servants.
“This here is where everyone who works here sleeps, my room is actually right there,” she points to a door.
They walked through the corridor and an opening that took them outside into a garden.
“This is one of the gardens, it’s the prince’s favourite.” Niki explained, moving past the flowers and bushes.
“It’s beautiful,” Sapnap spoke up, receiving a smile.
“It is, isn’t it?”
As they walked across the garden, Sapnap felt the familiar feeling of being watched.
He turned to look up at a window, only to catch someone quickly ducking from sight. A bit puzzled, he kept looking, until Niki started talking again.
They moved back inside through another door, and then into the dining hall.
“You can eat here when the king requests you to join him, otherwise you’ll get your food from the kitchen and eat in your room.”
She seemed to know just where everything was, making Sapnap wonder how long she had been working there, because she couldn’t be that much older than him.
The rest of the tour went by quickly, as time flew by while they talked about everything.
And finally Sapnap was back in his room, able to relax.
He fell onto the bed, sighing.
That was stressful, but now he was stuck here and he would need to finish what he has started.
Though as he thought of the prince, he wondered if Dream was any better, hurting an innocent person just to hurt a rival.
But they were the ones who started the war, so it should be fair.
After laying there he quickly got bored, looking around the room and spotting a pile of books under a desk.
He pulls them from there, setting them onto the desk as he wiped the dust off of them.
None of them were books he had read.
Sapnap smiled, glad he had something to do, at least for a while. And who knows, maybe he could ask the king if he could borrow some books from the library Niki had shown him.
He decided it looked like nice weather to go on an evening walk in the garden and read something. He had seen a bench in there during the tour.
So Sapnap took one of the books, a blue one and left his room.
He retraced Niki’s steps as he walked, proud of himself when he found himself in the hallways with Niki’s room.
Only a few people were there this time, two girls sitting on the ground talking about something.
Sapnap gave them a nod as they looked at him, and fastened his pace when he noticed the looks on their faces.
He wasn’t going to deal with that right now, he wanted to be alone and read.
So he stepped out into the garden, breathing in the fresh air.
He wished he knew anything about flowers as he watched the flowerbed he was passing.
So many colors filled it, all arranged perfectly.
But he wasn’t here to stare at flowers, he wanted to read.
Sapnap walked to the bench, wiping off some leaves on it, before sitting down.
He opened the book, crossing his legs as he started to read.
Somewhere in the middle of the book, he realized it was getting darker, as the sun was setting.
He closed the book, and happened to glance up onto a balcony.
Sapnap was a bit surprised to see the prince there, leaning on the railing as he stared out into the open.
He was sure he saw him glancing at him, but could he blame him, he was a stranger who he would have to spend time with, he would be curious too.
So Sapnap only got up, dusting off his clothes before he started walking back inside.
That’s when he realized he can’t remember the way back, he stopped for a moment, a bit panicked.
But the sight of Niki’s door calmed him, as he knocked quickly.
The door opened a few moments later, Niki gave him a smile when she recognized him.
She had taken her hair down, and was wearing a less formal outfit.
“Hello Sapnap, did you need something?” She asked and Sapnap nodded.
“I seem to be a bit lost, could you show me my room again?”
Niki chuckled, nodding.
“Of course, don’t worry, I was completely lost my first week here, it gets easier with time.”
They walked through the halls, this time Sapnap memorized the path as best as he could, a bit embarrassed about having to ask Niki for help.
“The king mentioned the prince having many tutors, do you know at what time I should be there with him?” He asked and Niki looked thoughtful for a moment.
“Hm, I think you should ask the king about that, I’ll take you to see him tomorrow morning alright?” She responded.
“Alright,” Sapnap responded and Niki continued, “but don’t worry about the prince, he’s a good student, but a bit reserved…” She looked like she wanted to continue, but didn’t.
Sapnap brushed it off, deciding to figure whatever that was out another day.
“If you get lost again, come ask me,” Niki smiled, stopping before his room door.
“Thank you, I hope this wasn’t too much work,” Niki just shook her head, “not at all, that’s what I’m here for, to help.”
With a wave, she left.
Sapnap closed his door after himself, taking a deep breath, before going to place the book down, making sure he had the page he was on marked.
Then he took off the annoying clothes he was being forced to wear.
Finally free from them, Sapnap laid on the bed, ready to sleep.
But first he wanted to eat a bit.
So he took his bag and pulled out some bread Dream had packed for him, for the journey.
Gladly he hadn’t finished it all.
As he ate he began to question how he was going to fool anyone that he was a tutor.
He had basic knowledge in a lot of things and maybe his excessive reading had taught him a lot.
But if the prince really was a good student, maybe there was no need to really teach him that much, and he could just lie about things, he was good at making up things.
After finishing his food, Sapnap laid back down, closing his eyes as he pulled the covers over himself.
They were softer than the ones at home, which was a bit unnerving, but also felt nice.
It didn’t take him too long to fall asleep.