Chapter Text
The year was 1673. The Dostoevsky kingdom was doing well at the time. The king, my father has been ruling for nearly two decades now, and before him our whole bloodline have been royalty. And I, Fyodor Dostoevsky, will be the next one taking on that responsibility. Everyone took it really seriously, except for me. Honestly, who wanted to lead a whole kingdom by themselves? It seemed soul-killing and crushing, and I had no intentions of destroying myself with it. However running from fate is pointless, so I wanted to make the time I have before the best time of my life, so I have something to remember when i grow older.
As usually, my best friend Nikolai Gogol, the jester and I have been roaming the halls of the palace. The place was huge with fascinating decoration, but it all became boring after a significant amount of time spent here, at time threatening and depressing, even. But somehow, Nikolai always managed to find something new and interesting, it was like a superpower of his. Something that I could never seem to get enough of, which was strange, because I never got fond of anything or anyone, and when I did, I lost interest quickly.
He has been working here for about two years now, and over that time we got really close, which my father was happy about, since as I mentioned, I never really got around. But now Nikolai has become a heavy part of my everyday life, which didn't bother him, and I was just happy to have someone by my side, otherwise it got really lonely.
There were just no things that i could dislike about Nikolai. But nobody is perfect, and i knew that. What he shows is what he chooses to show. That, honestly, implies to everyone. But sometimes, the performance ends, the mask slips, and it comes crashing down. Sadly I have witnessed that many times myself among my family and the community of the kingdom. Most people here are rotten at the core, and there is nothing to do about it. After a time it stops mattering and also becomes a part of the everyday life. When you accept the fact that however hard you try to change some people, their hatred and manipulation that has been taught for generations won't be gone. Not entirely, it will keep lurking at the back of their minds and no matter how hard they try fighting it, they will lose eventually.
So there was no point in trying to make matters better either. But that was fine, you just have to be extra careful, both with words and actions. Even the smallest mistake, a tiny slip of attention can cause terrible endings to one's story. Taken this, I had no actual idea how or why Nikolai was so straightforward and bold. I liked it, but was also scared for him. I didnt want him to be taken away, or worse, killed for a stupid joke. I was way too attached at this point.
But the possibilities of the consequences of the jester's actions never seemed to bother the man himself. He has once said that playing around with his own fate was one of the most exciting parts of his job. It was his business though, so I never really interfered, unless I have decided that his actions could lead to serious punishments. And him experiencing that, was the least pleasant thought to live in my mind rent-free. But I trusted him enough with his own decisions, so that didn't happen very often.
...
This day was no different than any other day in december. Everyone decorating for Christmas like their life depended on it, rushing to buy presents for their loved ones, spending money on stuff they will use maybe five times total. Except if it's books or clothes. Honestly, Fyodor preferred recieving books, and lucky for me, his best friend, I knew just what he likes. And honestly, seeing his eyes light up with joy when he sees the perfectly made, brand new covers, is worth every single penny spent. It was priceless, even. Those beautiful wine-color eyes were a fascinating sight, and they followed me everywhere. I saw them in my dreams, and when I was with Fyodor, I had the pleasure to look into them as much as I wished.
Honestly, I was extremely lucky to be hired. Getting paid to hang out with the prince? Who just happens to be the most interesting person to be around? Seriously priceless. Though sometimes he acted like he's supposed to be too much, like I'm supposed to be annoyed by him or something. Which, to me was absolutely unbelievable. Fedya? Being too much? Or annoying? Never. I can never spend enough time with him. There is always something new about him, something more to him, and it was addicting.
Plus, he would let me talk about birds as I wanted to. I really liked birds and their anatomy. When I was younger, I used to have pet birds, but all of them died of an unfortunate disease that I did not manage to catch in time. Sometimes I'm sad about their passing, but I know I wouldn't have time to care for them now anyways, and birds deserve better than neglect. Nobody and nothing deserves neglect. Especially when they're birds... but enough of birds now, Kolya. You have duties to fulfill. And for today, it was keeping Fyodor out of the castle.