- 𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘰𝘳𝘱𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘴. [Shin Soukoku]

chapter 1.

---------------------------------------------------------- 
 
Once upon a time, in a land, far, far away, there were people, who were burdened by curses.

Being cursed is a horrible burden, especially when you don’t even know why were you cursed in the first place.

Atsushi figured it could have been worse. He could have been alone in the orphanage, having to endure his curse and the scorn of other children and caretakers alike all alone.

But he wasn’t alone. He had Lucy and Kyouka.

He supposed he was terrible for being relieved - what kind of person is happy that someone else has to endure what he was going through? Truly the worst of the worst. Maybe that’s why he was cursed in the first place.

“Don’t be stupid” Lucy frowned, once Atsushi told her that. “We were cursed because this world is not fair.”

Indeed, it wasn’t.

There were many kinds of curses - sometimes they were better, sometimes they were worse.

The three of them got the worst kind of curses - those that cause harm for people around them. There had been numerous injuries and destruction when their curses hit people around them.

“Cursed children curse everyone around them.”

It was something the director hissed first, and then other children started to whisper.

It was easy to believe, especially as both Atsushi and Kyouka had destructive curses - Lucy’s was more subtle, but possibly even more malicious.

There was no other place for them, though, so they stayed, and listened to the other stories. They listened to the tales of witches who caused the curses, or knights who braved them. The King and the Queen who passed away many years ago, advisors ruling now, until the Princess could be old enough to rule.
“Isn’t she about to be old enough yet?”

“I heard she is still being educated.”

“What about her brother, though? The Prince? Wasn’t he older?”

“Yes, but nobody tells us where he is. It’s the Princess, who will rule.”

“Maybe he is cursed” Lucy muttered, hearing the matrons talk, and one of them turned around, striking her.

“Do not talk about such things! The Prince isn’t like you pests, he does not get cursed. They aren’t from the Forest.”

“How do you know only children of the Forest are cursed?” Atsushi tried, but all he got as an answer was that he got struck as well.

So this is how they lived.

The learnt to stay quiet. Stay out of sight.

That was how cursed children lived.