Warning: Possible OoCness, mentions of past abuse.

I hope very much that I could erase all mistakes (be they spelling or grammar mistakes) but if you see anything that is written wrongly, please tell me so I can correct it. Aside from this I wish anyone who likes this genre and pair a lot of fun while reading. This is also my first story, so please tell me what was good and what wasn't.

So this was it. He would be sold. Sold off to some kind of fucking country with a dickhead as a king. And for what? So that his oh so loving emperor of the Kou Empire could save his fucking ass.

Judar's hands shook as he clenched them, cursing once again the extra necklace around his throat. It was a blue one and a nasty one at that. It completely sealed off his magi powers. He was cut off from his beloved magic and it felt horrible. He felt lonely and it was too damn quiet around him. Judar was used to the small sounds the Rukh made, the tales or feelings they sometimes whispered to him if he listened closely enough.

He could see them, yes, but it was…it felt like they all were on the other side of a wall of glass. There, but unreachable for him. Cold and far.

For a moment, Judar lifted his head and looked around, instantly regretting it. The other members of the royal family were with him. Except for Kouen who still tried to save whoever he could of his household. And he couldn't see neither Hakuryuu nor Hakuei anywhere.

However, he clearly saw Kougyoku who was almost deathly pale and trembling. She didn't cry, but the look on her face was ten times worse. Kouha tried to quietly talk to her and his big brother Koumei, but neither were really listening. The youngest prince was the most composed from them all, aside from Koumei. But maybe that was because they firmly believed Kouen would clear all this up.

None of them, not even Judar, had thought that they would lose the war they had picked. Maybe it all started to go down the drain when he declared to Sinbad that they would attack Sindria or when they fought with Reim. It certainly was a losing battle when even Partevia participated. Whatever that country of war wanted was unknown, but combined with Reim, and Sindria with their cursed seven seas alliance, Kou almost fell. Or rather, they were only an inch away from being swallowed by their enemy nations.

And now they were going to be sold off to the winners in order to 'make amends' and to 'calm' the other kings down.

Judar looked back at his hands. To tell the truth, it didn't matter to him what kind of king he had to listen to. It would be the same thing as here in Kou. However, he would completely lose his freedom, his possibilities of just leaving and clearing his head. To forget for a while how much shit had happened to him – and still happened. And even though he would never admit it, he would miss the princes and the princesses. His 'old hag' and the three brothers and Hakuryuu with his sister.

Right now it didn't matter to him where he ended up, it would all be the same. His red eyes were dull as he stared at his hands and at his bracelets. He just…a part of him hoped that in this war he would have found a means to free himself from this curse that was put on him not only by Al-Tharmen, but also by the current emperor. That man was the personification of evil and his personal tormentor ever since he had been a small, helpless child. A child which didn't know anything about the world and was learning to control his massive powers as a Magi.

Another part of him hoped that his friends – the only true ones he ever had had in his whole life – that his friends would be spared. He hoped so desperately that they never had to face the nightmares he had to. Even though he had to admit, Hakuryuu showed the signs. That was one of the reasons he kept a close eye on the prince and always offered him a trip to a dungeon. It was why he offered him power. It was the only way for him to help the raven and also the only way he knew of.

The door opened and Kouen came in. He had a deep frown on his face and was more than deadly serious. It was a face they all had to admit, they had never seen before. Kouha got up.

"My brother, my king, what does the emperor say?" Kouen sighed, taking a seat.

"He said if we all gather to fight again despite already admitting our defeat, then he would let you all off the hook. But…he also said we have to sell off Judar to gain time." Kouen's voice was full of disgust, even though his face didn't quite show it. He had forced himself to be too calm, to just not show whatever he felt now. Kougyoku who had been very silent up till now suddenly jumped up.

"What?!" She yelled, even though her face was still an ashen white. "How dare he!? Like hell we are going to let Judar-chan get the brunt of it! If it weren't for him, we would never have gotten this far!" Rage was clear in her voice and her gestures. Kouha nodded.

"Yeah! Just think about all the things he has done for us!" Judar's mouth actually hung open at the outbursts of these two. He had to admit that he never thought he was that important to them. He always thought he was 'just' the Magi, the guy who would help them to get stronger. It seemed he was wrong.

Kouen nodded.

"I know we have to think of a solution. I won't let any of you be sold off. Especially if they are people from a country we had a war with. But currently, all our Djinns are taken from us."

"Err, big brother Kouen, I don't mean to interrupt, but…where are little Hakuryuu and Hakuei?" Judar had to smirk lightly at Kougyoku's nickname for his favorite prince. Kouen's frown deepened at that and Judar sat up straighter. No…

"I fear they are already…gone. I am still trying to find out what happened to them, but none of those Al-Tharmen bastards nor our 'beloved father' or 'mother' will tell me anything." Kouen spat the words as if they where poison. It was silent for a long moment.

"Don't worry. I will find them. And I will get them back to us. We will stand together and we will get through this. I'll try to get to talk with the leaders of the empires and countries we fought against. Maybe they are willing to help us if we promise to fight for them."

"Them? But the Kou Empire-"

"Is no longer important! We are important. And furthermore, what can we expect of the people here who are willing to sell us off so easily?" Kouen interrupted Koumei, who fell silent again. Then the oldest of the siblings sighed heavily.

"This is the only solution I came up with. Tomorrow I will talk to father again. Maybe he will change his mind. If he doesn't…I will try to talk to the other kings."

"And what if that goes wrong?" Everyone looked over to Judar at the same time. A rare expression of seriousness was on the raven's face and he looked back unblinkingly.

"What if your plan doesn't work?" Kouen narrowed his eyes for a moment, his frown becoming even deeper, if that was possible.

"Then we will escape. There are guards still on our side who would be willing to make sure we can get away." They wouldn't get far, they all knew that. Not with such a dangerous situation around them and most certainly not with all those enemies in front of them. They had nowhere to run to if Kouen's plans failed.

Judar looked back at his hands. They felt cold and were lying limply on his folded legs. He had made up his mind. He would do one last good thing or most probably the first good thing in his whole damned life. He would save his friends. The only people who were willing to fight for him.

Maybe he will get lucky and end up with someone who was…no…in his world there was no one kind. And not in the way he would be connected to the king that would 'own' him from now on.

Oh, how much he missed his wand! How much he wished he could rip off this cursed necklace! But every time he tried to, it started to hurt like hell. He looked up, watching the dark Rukh fly around him. Slowly, Judar lifted a hand and tried to reach out to them. They flew around his fingers, without touching him. And for a short moment, Judar felt terribly alone and cold.