Chapter Text
Hesse-Nassau Province of Prussia, Frankfurt am Main.
Eren von Jäger watched the morning happenings with minimal interest, every day provided the same scenario anyway. But it had still become his habit to rest his arms on the window sill while the rest of his body was still halfway sprawled in bed. The second storey of Palais Thurn und Taxis had a good view over the busy streets full of early workers, noisy coaches and colourful flags of black and white. Yes, people were still celebrating the peace treaty of Frankfurt, marking the victory of Prussia over France, which had gained the kingdom Alsace and part of Lorraine. The overall atmosphere was still euphoric. And if Eren were to tilt the window open, he was sure that the scent of freshly baked bread would tickle his nose.
But Eren had no time to revel in the high feeling of victory and enjoy his morning routine of taking in the smells and sounds of the city. A crumpled piece of paper lay abandoned on his pillow, it had come with a seal. Now, Eren knew the letter was the direct consequence of his actions one week ago when he had beaten a Prussian official to a pulp in front of a pub. It was foolish, certainly, but watching the man harass an unwilling woman was not an option. It would have gotten him in big trouble hadn't there been intervention from the main house- and now he was still a free man but subject to gossip.
Compared to the headlines of Prussia's victory over France Eren's scandal was only worth a small column in the papers, but it was still a public matter. The violent bastard of the Thurn and Taxis nobility, attention seeker and disturbance of public peace. Eren felt like punching the loose mouth of the one responsible of that article. And now he was more in trouble with the main house rather than the law.
Born as the bastard child of the Fürst von Thurn und Taxis and a woman of low noble rank, his life had never been very dignified. Still, he had been granted a life in the Palais and an allowance although without a rank in the family. Though now it seemed like he was going to lose everything. The little scandal, which had brought up the forgotten stain in the family's image, was probably the last straw that would make them abandon Eren for good. He tried to be apathetic about it but still couldn't shake off the lingering feeling of fear in his gut.
Eren crawled to grab the letter again and read it for the fifth time that morning. The family crest on the wax seal was unmistakably that of the Princely House Thurn and Taxis, it also said that he was summoned to Regensburg, the city of the family's main residence. That could only mean that he was summoned by non other than the Fürst himself, which was bad news.
After his father's death six months ago, his legitimate son, the offspring of a marriage with a Bavarian duchess, became head of the family and the new Fürst von Thurn und Taxis by default. His half brother.
Eren dreaded his first official encounter with Fürst Levi von Thurn und Taxis.
"Don't you have anything else to bring with you, young master? And any friends you would like to bid goodbye to before we depart?" Asked the coachman who had just finished loading Eren's suitcase.
The one addressed blinked at the middle-aged man with a blank face.
"I don't have to go that far for a brief trip." He shrugged and climbed into the surprisingly comfortable carriage. At least he didn't have to sit on wooden seats for three or four days straight, because he was sure, whatever punishment he would receive from his serene highness could never amount to the butt pain.
The coachman looked at him with doubt plastering his face. "But master, I was told that you were not to return to Frankfurt. At least not in the near future."
Eren stared at him. Nobody had even bothered to give him that important piece of information. What on earth was awaiting him in Regensburg? His offence couldn't have been that bad, now was it? A wave of panicked thoughts flooded his head as he pictured several fatal scenarios regarding his fate with wide eyes and face gone pale. Maybe he was going to be thrown into some kind of a medieval torturing basement. By now he was toying with the idea of jumping out of the carriage in the middle of the journey.
"Young master?" The voice startled him out of his panicked thoughts. "We still have some time. You could still say farewell to your comrades and take some more of your personal belongings."
The young noble's hands were clenched in fists as he shook his head. "I don't have any...friends to say goodbye to. And I won't miss anything, my essentials are already packed anyway. I don't mind going now."
It was true. Eren wasn't only a bastard child deserted by the family of high status, he was also a loner in the social department. He liked to blame it on his position as an illegitimate child, however in truth he simply wasn't a human magnet. Apparently he lacked charisma and polite common sense, and his unfiltered mouth called more trouble than friends.
The journey from Frankfurt am Main to Regensburg lasted more than just four days due to Eren's insistence on sleeping in each time they spent the night at an inn. It was his way of prolonging the trip. Though they eventually crossed the border and entered the Kingdom of Bavaria. Königreich Bayern. He knew Bavaria had acted a big part in the Franco-Prussian war that would eventually establish the German Empire under the rule of the Prussian king Wilhelm I. And everyone knew that the King of Bavaria was in fact suffering under said victory. He might have won the war under the alliance, but it was a loss of his sovereignty. Eren wondered how such a beautiful and proud king dealt with the fact of being subject to the emperor. He'd heard many stories about the king's handsome features that would capture a nation.
The teen sighed during his daydream. The charm of Ludwig II von Bayern truly filled the air of his whole kingdom, and before long, even Eren was reduced to being a lovestruck youngster. He even bought a postcard with the portrait of the young king. What was wrong with him, he wondered. But daydreaming provided a great escape from his fears towards entering Regensburg. Later, he decided to hide the postcard. The family didn't have to know that he was interested in men; his situation was bad enough.
Crossing the bridge to Regensburg definitely destroyed his temporary elation and seeing Thurn and Taxis castle in front of him made him want to vomit. He definitely wasn't ready. Soon he was going to meet his older brother about twice his age. In his fifteen years of life he'd only met his brother once. Well, they hadn't actually met, Eren had only seen him from afar. When he was granted a visit to see his father, little Eren caught a glimpse of young Levi. He had looked stoic and dignified like the prince he was.
And now Eren was entering the family's castle, it felt like he was cattle lead to the slaughter. The heavy portal closed behind him and thus also his only escape. Eren fidgeted, played with the buttons of his waistcoat nervously, green eyes wide and full of terror. Because nobody had given him any instructions, he simply remained in place and didn't even dare to leave his spot. His usual courage had somehow left him. Even though he kept telling himself that he was not bound by the princely house, he knew it wasn't the case. He was bound to the name Thurn und Taxis by blood and the reality of being in their possession. An unwanted possession, but still without reign over his own life.
The sound of footsteps descending the grand staircase caught his attention, it sounded resolute like a soldier and at the same time graceful, very befitting of a Fürst. The boy didn't even dare to raise his head. Something about the man's presence squelched his confidence.
"You are late."
Surprisingly, the man didn't possess a booming voice - in fact, it was almost soothing. Nevertheless, it was filled to the brim with authority.
Eren finally mustered all his courage, and for the first time in ten years he was met with the sight of his half brother, the current head of the house Thurn and Taxis. And it felt like seeing the same young man from a decade ago.
Levi was standing in the middle of the staircase, one hand buried in the pocket of his tight-fitting frock coat, the other one grasping a cane with a silver scrimshaw handle. Even from a distance he knew the Fürst was shorter than him, though definitely more imposing. The nonchalant, almost arrogant posture was complemented by the icy grey eyes staring down on him with a frown. Black hair fell onto his face like a curtain and framed his otherwise pale complexion. Levi looked younger than his age but was as impressive as a long reigning king.
"F-forgive me..." Eren was frantically looking for an appropriate way to address the man before him. Did he say brother? Definitely not. "...Your Serene Highness."
Levi descended the stairs and approached him in a leisurely pace. Eren fought the urge to step back once the man was getting dangerously close to him. And now it was obvious that Levi was quite a bit shorter than him. The icy glare's intensity however did not wane. Those somehow unchanging eyes seemed to observe every little detail of Eren's expression, as if trying to pierce right into his soul.
"You seem frightened." Was there an undertone of amusement?
"I...I still have no idea why I was summoned here." Eren wanted to look at the portraits on the wall, at the furniture, at the ceiling, at anything else that wasn't those unnerving eyes. But he couldn't. It was so distressing that he felt his lips form a childish pout, about to tremble and eventually let out a mewl.
"Really no idea at all?"
"I hurt a Prussian officer," he answered meekly.
"Why did you do such a foolish thing, I wonder? What made the shitty brat in front of me who is about to shit his pants go so far as to punch an officer?" Levi's expression hadn't changed at all, but his voice indicated curiosity.
And Eren was sick of this power play. He was sick of being mentally oppressed just because he was standing in front of someone who had the power to crush his life in consequence of something he himself had had absolutely no control over. "Because that bastard deserved it! The world does not need worthless scum like him! He's lucky I even let him live! He claims to be a defender of law but in the end he's just an animal abusing his power to screw a woman. If that is justice, then I have no need of such a thing and-"
He was interrupted by a sudden jolt to his chin. Before he knew what was happening, he was already on the floor gasping. Eren groaned, tried to heave himself back up but the sole of Levi's polished shoe was pushing him down. This was it, he was going to receive his punishment. He cursed his father for being unfaithful to his lawful spouse, he cursed him for letting a child he never wanted be born in this world where he would simply end up as someone whose own flesh didn't belong to him. Eren was about to submit to his fate when he felt cold metal pushing against his chin. His face was tilted upward by the silver handle of Levi's cane and he stared at the lord of the house with his hazy vision.
The words that left his half brother's mouth was not what he had expected.
"I like your attitude. I shall train you like a dog. A dog that is going to become a worthy prince under my supervision. Because Eren, if you want to change anything, you will need power.
“Do you want power?"