It was a normal, mundane day as Luca went to open up his family’s pottery shop, looking forward to getting through another book or newspaper. 

“I need to go to make a delivery.” His father told him before leaving. 

Luca nodded, happily sending him off so that he could flip the page next. 

He smiled, eagerly wishing to dive right into the book. Then he heard the doorbell ring, a sound that almost made him cry. He let out a groan before putting the book down. He would face his reality. 

Except it was not a customer but a friend of his, Mario, coming in. 

He could have read a whole page alone. But Mario often had something fun to tell him that could make up for his lost time. And his only chance to read now, the next time, was with the fading candlelight after he finished with his schoolwork. 

They were both friends since they were in the local school for boys.   

Mario put his hands on the counter. “Have you heard?” 

“No,” Luca said. “I was up last night working on a vase my father needs.” 

He could not spare that much time keeping up with what all the influential thinkers, as he still had to study, help his family out. 

Perhaps one day, he’ll never need to deal with such monotony and not work. 

While his father did well enough to feed them, and hence they had to help the store if they did not wish to starve. 

But their friendship was more than them.  

“There’s been a new pamphlet written about revolution.” 

Luca closed his book, interested now, getting up from his chair. “What is it?”

As a potter’s son, and even in the future as a secretary or a lawyer, his life would barely change. Above all, it would not resemble the luxurious life of the nobles. 

The parties, the hunts and, of course, the choice to give themselves entirely to a single pursuit because they simply lived off the work of others. For nothing more than being born to the right family. 

He and Mario shared that sentiment, for he was not a noble either. And his future was like what Luca could expect. 

Mario gave him a pamphlet to read. “Look at this.” 

The author was anonymous, and inside was plenty of reason; it put a smile on Luca’s face. But above all, was just a few passages that he could single out as his favourite. 

A Duke who keeps on justifying that everything he does is for us but never asked us whether it would change anything? He assumes it is for our sakes and that it would improve, but he would never truly know whether it’s a success. But just go on thinking that he’s solved all our problems, instead of asking us to give us his problems or just solve them ourselves. 

We’re his children. He acts as if he’s our father. But he's spent his whole life in palaces, never worrying about his next meal, or never having to work just to continue to exist? What would he know about the problems of servants? 

We need a constitution that would restrain him and any future Duke, at least to not act against the country and for the people to oppose him and partake in the government legitimately.