His White Knight - Prince!EnglandxOutlaw!Reader 7

Alfred flinched a little bit as he splashed icy cold water on his face, but he eventually adjusted and soon just dunked his whole head into the bucket. After about five seconds of letting the it do its job, he immediately lifted out his head again and breathed a long-awaited sigh of relief, before proceeding to shake off the excess water. Though he was alone, he couldn't help but laugh at knowing that his brother would've probably called him a dog had he seen that. Though remarks like that were of course meant to ridicule, half the time Alfred just thought them funny, if not accurate. He had to give Arthur points on being creative with his insults.

Though, to be fair, as he began drying his face with the first towel he found, Alfred also had to give his brother props for his skills with a sword. During the entirety of their training session, Arthur had pulled no punches, or rather strikes. He had said at the beginning he wasn't going to go easy on him, but Alfred had underestimated just how hard he was going to be on him. Granted, he himself was pretty decent with a sword. But the way Arthur went at him gave him the impression he could take out a whole group of bad guys on his own.

He soon finished drying his face, and only realized then that the towel he'd chosen wasn't exactly clean. But Alfred just shrugged his shoulders. No matter. He could always just soak it up in the tub. He was actually looking forward to getting these sweat-drenched clothes off, when one of the castle guards spoke to him, seemingly out of nowhere. "I take it you had a rough lesson, your Highness?"

Alfred flinched again as he remembered that these guys could actually talk. But being the joker he was, he decided he might as well humor them. "You should know," he chuckled. "You two were watching the whole time, weren't you?"

The guard on the other side of the doorway nodded. "It's always a pleasure, your Highness."

Alfred gave him a smirk he didn't even bother to hide. "To do what?" he asked. "Watch Arthur kick the crap out of me?"

"Give yourself some credit, your Highness," the first one replied. "You may not be as skilled as his Highness, the crown prince." He was about to go on, but Alfred's lack of impression reminded him to be more careful with his words.

"Not yet, anyway," he added. "But you are tenacious, and you're receiving training from the crown prince himself."

"Thanks," Alfred smiled briefly. "But tenacity doesn't exactly equal skill. Besides, Arthur's always been a bit more of a natural at this kind of stuff than me, what with him being the crown prince and all. Honestly, he's probably the best swordsman I know." That was when he realized what was coming out of his mouth and immediately shut it.

For good measure, he gave both the guards a stern look and warned them with a matching tone, "But don't you ever tell Arthur I said that, 'kay?"

"Of course not," one of the guards said. "You have our word, my liege." Both of them then put their fists to their chests and bowed in salute.

Alfred's smile returned. That was one good thing about tonight's training session. Only the guards were here to watch in the otherwise empty arena. Had there been any court ladies watching… His face reddened and he shuddered slightly just imagining the embarrassment he might have suffered. Fortunately, the men didn't seem to notice. He stood straight like the prince he was and nodded at them in return.

"Thanks guys, I know I can always count on you," he said. "See ya." He moved past them, giving them both a friendly slap on the shoulder, and walked back into the castle. He then let out a yawn and rolled his shoulder slightly, looking forward to getting back to his room and going to bed. It had been an unusually long day, and he couldn't blame his brother for leaving immediately after training was over.

Alfred made his way through the maze of corridors and halls that was his home, but just when he was getting close to his room, he thought his ear picked up the sound of muffled voices. Curious to listen, he stopped in his tracks and leaned forward a little bit so he could hear better. He couldn't make out very well what was being said, but it seemed like it was only two people talking, and that they didn't want anyone to hear them. Alfred was beginning to wonder why when his heart started to race. He recognized one of those voices. It was his father!

Before he could wonder who he was talking to, or why he didn't want to be heard, Alfred knew he would probably be in big trouble if he was caught eavesdropping. He felt new supplies of adrenaline course through his body as he looked frantically around for a place to hide, until his eyes landed on a shadowed alcove in the middle of the hall, which seemed big enough to hide him. He immediately dove for it when he saw the shadows of both people coming his way. As he sunk down on the floor and crunched himself up the best he could, Alfred held his breath and could only hope that the lit torches in the hall wouldn't give him away.

He didn't even dare look behind him as he heard the voices get a little louder. He only bit his lip and tried to ignore the pounding of his heart as he listened to them.

"Forgive me, Majesty, but…you seem to be somewhat agitated." Alfred recognized the other, more nervous voice as one of his father's new advisors. He leaned his head out as far as he dared to hear him better.

"And what have I done to make you think so?" his father asked. "Are you sure you haven't simply imagined it?" Alfred shivered slightly as he tried to envision the king in this moment, and what would make him use such a low tone of voice.

"No sir, forgive me, sir," the other man replied. "It was just a little observation. I'm sorry to have offended you."

"You did nothing of the sort," the king assured him in a more magnanimous manner. There was a brief silence before he spoke again, more slowly. "Although, there is one thing that has been on my mind this whole evening."

"Might I ask what it is, sir?" his advisor asked him cautiously. "Perhaps it's something I can help you with. That is my job after all." He chuckled nervously, making Alfred feel almost sorry for the guy who didn't sound much older than him.

"You have a point," the king replied. His voice then became low again as he said, "But you are not to repeat to anyone else what you are about to hear, understood?"

Alfred heard his advisor gulp loudly, and when he didn't answer, he assumed he just nodded before Alfred's father continued. "Good. You see, earlier this evening during supper, my son the crown prince brought something very unnerving to my attention. He seems to have new information regarding the motives of the most wanted outlaw in the kingdom."

"The White Knight, sir?" his advisor asked. At this, Alfred's eyes widened and he almost raised himself up before he remembered he must stay hidden. Fortunately, neither men seemed to notice the little scuffle his boots made.

"Just so," his father replied. "You know my son Arthur is most determined to catch this masked man, but I am afraid I must not allow that to go unchecked."

"What do you mean, sir? If I may?" the other man asked. Alfred didn't know exactly where this was going, but he was going to listen to every word until they left.

"My son made the claim that the White Knight and his thievery could be behind the exponential rise in poverty, particularly in the large town close by," his father explained. "He was very passionate, you know him well enough. But when I began to press him about where he got this information, he seemed almost hesitant at first to tell me. He explained that he had heard rumors going about in the castle, but that was about all I could get out of him."

"You think he is hiding something, sir?" his advisor asked. By this point, Alfred was literally holding himself back from demanding to know right then and there what was being discussed.

"He may, or he may not, I must admit I am not sure," the king replied. "But, I do intend to find out. I intend to have my men watch him more carefully. See to it that he doesn't do anything rash or dangerous. And, more importantly, while he may be my son, I cannot allow him to get in the way of my other intentions."

"What do you mean by that, sire?" the other man asked. Alfred felt his heart pound even more as he realized he wanted to know the same thing.

There was a brief bit of silence before his father spoke again, as though remembering something important. "Perhaps I have said too much, but no matter. Please call all of my other advisors for me tomorrow, and have them meet me in the next twenty-four hours in my private quarters. I will elaborate further."

"Yes sir," his man asked. "Forgive me for prying, sir." That was when Alfred heard them start to move again, in his direction. He crouched into the alcove as much as he could, and once again held his breath as he watched the two men walk right past him without so much as glancing at him.

"Think nothing of it, my good man," the king said kindly. "A monarch cannot rule on his wisdom alone." And the moment he felt safe enough, Alfred leaned out a bit outside the safety of his hiding place and watched as the men strode down the remainder of the hall before they turned a corridor, once again leaving him alone as before.

Only then did Alfred quietly get back up on his feet. But while he tried to remain calm on the outside, inside his mind was running wild with suspicion and questions. He had a feeling something was bothering his father before, but now he knew it to be fact. And instead of easing his anxiety, it only unsettled him more. There was an intimidating air around his father that gave off that impression that he was in fact hiding something from his own family, much as he believed Arthur was hiding something from him. Alfred had the sense it wasn't good, and not just that it something to do with the White Knight. Considering that the king was now going to keep his brother under his watchful eye, Alfred knew he had to find the right time and place to tell Arthur, and soon.