Roman put on a fake smile as he shook hands with countless guests. He'd gotten incredibly good at being convincing with it, having perfecting the art of acting okay over the past year. Who knows how many formalities and introductions later, he was standing alone by the windows. All he did was look out at the darkening sky as the evening began to turn to night. The evening party would be beginning shortly, with the announcement of his little brother's wedding being the main event.

"Roman, the guests are starting to head into the ballroom," his father told him, pulling him from his thoughts. He nodded silently and followed him inside, standing regally beside his family. "Good evening everyone! We'd like to thank you all for coming!"

There was a round of cheers from the guests, but prince released an almost unnoticeable sigh. He just didn't want to be there anymore. King Logan and King Patton took turns talking about a few things before finally handing it off to Luis to speak.

"Uh, evening everybody," he said with a shy smile and a small wave. "I'm just up here to make a little announcement."

Princess Thorn, who'd been waiting, smiled and joined him. They intertwined their fingers and spoke at the same time. "We're engaged!" they exclaimed joyfully. There was an eruption of cheers and clapping met with the announcement, making Roman smile a little as he applauded as well.

At least everyone else is getting a happy ending, he thought, looking down sadly. I'll never be able to bring myself to fall for someone else...

Once the announcements were finished and the party dispersed, the prince found himself sneaking out of the ballroom. Making his way through the halls of the palace, he found a long balcony. He sighed in relief once stepping outside into the soothing night air. He could still hear the sounds of the party, which then grew louder when they moved to the outside portion of it. The outside portion had been added by his suggestion, seeing as being stuck in a crowded ballroom had always made Virgil so uncomfortable. Maybe this way, some poor soul having to suffer with similar anxiety would get some nice fresh air while still being present at the celebration.

Roman sighed heavily as he leaned on the railing, looking down at the people mingling. His gaze lingered on Thorn and Luis, who were joyfully accepting congrats for their announcement, before moving onto his father, who was murmuring something in King Patton's ear that made him giggle.

How is it that I'm the only one who can't find joy in still being here beyond Virgil's death? he wondered solemnly. Not just romantically speaking, they've all seemed to move on... how can they move on when he's gone? Virgil is gone. MY Virgil, is gone... how can they smile knowing that?

The prince knew he was being over dramatic given that the events had been a year ago, but he still felt a stab of envy and anger toward his friends and family for being able to move past his death.

His thought process was interrupted by the sound of footsteps on the tiles of the roof. Roman scowled, turning to look toward the sound behind him. There was a small figure running along the roof, staring down at the party. They had a hooded cape and a mask over their face.

"Hey! Who are you?" he called, making the person look toward him. Upon seeing him, they bolted. "Hey!"

Roman ran after them, having nothing better to do and being concerned with their intentions at the celebration. He was running across the tiles of the roof, chasing the hooded person. They whipped around, revealing throwing daggers. The prince gasped, dodging them as he brandished his sword. They withdrew their own sword, talking a few steps toward him.

"What are you doing here?" the prince questioned, sword raised. He found it difficult to believe he was an assassin of some kind. There were rarely ever any conflicts involving assassination or stealth attacks in the history of their kingdoms. "Who are you?"

They didn't answer his question, lunging forward and stabbing toward him with their sword. Roman blocked their stab, feeling slightly grateful for the chase to feel something other than emptiness as adrenaline coursed through him. "Fine, I'll take that as 'I'm trying to kill you'," he growled, shoving him back. "I don't know what it is your business is here, but I'm assuming you're trying to kill someone or something equally as bad."

The hooded person didn't answer, lunging toward him again. The two of them locked into a sword fight, making their way backwards on the roof, back towards the party. Roman glanced behind him as he was backed down, noticing the steep drop down into the gardens. Thinking quickly, he swung his sword as hard as he could at the person. They blocked it, but the force sent them tumbling back. The sound of their body hitting the tiles of the roof got guests to look up, gasps and screams echoing from the party. The hooded figure's eyes widened before narrowing at him.

"Oh, I'm sorry, did I ruin your stealth mission?" Roman taunted, waving his sword invitingly. They growled and rushed him, delivering blows so quickly the prince could hardly block them. The speed and intensity of the attack sent him tumbling backwards, making him fall down onto the balcony. He rolled up hitting it, jumping back to his feet despite feeling a dull throbbing in his shoulder. "Alright, enough playtime."

The prince and the assassin were at it again, going back and forth until Roman finally began to over power him. He slashed closer and closer to his skin, catching the fabric of his cape and causing a rip. The masked person was backing away, getting more and more desperate to escape the situation.

Roman's sword sliced through another bit of fabric before he kicked him in the chest. The masked person slid across the balcony, disarmed as he was trapped between the railing and the prince. As he stood above him, his heart stopped. His eyes widened as the world slowed down. One of his strikes had slashed the top of his shirt; hanging from the masked person's neck was an all too familiar necklace with a red gem.