Kings of Echoes - A Dream SMP Story

XIV

It had been three days of throat-numbing silence. Three days of cold winds as they walked past each other. Three days of sudden thunder storms over the entire kingdom.

Three seemed to be a divine number for beings. Three minutes without oxygen, three days without water, three months without food. Three wishes, three lives, three strikes. Three was the turning point, the limit until things went to best or worst. To Eret, three would be the making up or the breaking down. A looming curse, an execution waiting to happen.

Suffocating seemed like the most reasonable description of those days. The morning after their altercation, Eret woke up to the sound of birds singing and the shower running. They'd waited for Foolish to step out, anxiety buzzing against their skin. They only remembered unchecked insults and striking blows exchanged in the night. Every inch of their body screamed in protest as they moved about their messy sheets. They had sat, long legs dangling over the edge, until the heard the patter of water come to a stop. They listened for the shuffle of clothing, the soft steps on tiles, and the quiet creak of the bathroom door swinging open. They pushed themself up as Foolish made his way towards his bed, where they tried to strike conversation through the tension.

And, not to their surprise, he ignored them.

They quickly turned meek after seconds of prolonged quiet. They had watched as Foolish made his bed, went up to the niche, selected a book, and briskly made his exit. Not a single glance was thrown their way. Not even a glare of scorn.

They felt a pang shoot through their chest, though they couldn't pinpoint what it was. Something felt... wrong, knowing that their best friend felt angry at them. Knowing that all the bites and scars could've been prevented if they'd stayed careful. They felt a looming guilt in their heart that told them that this was their fault. That holding their tongue could've healed everything.

But then they remembered everything Foolish said in return. The cuts they'd gained because he'd struck first. How they seemed like a burden, something to constantly worry about. How they were a "bad king".

Eret couldn't be a bad king. They wouldn't. Not when they'd taken so long to gain the favor of their kingdom. If they looked like a bad king, they would gladly relinquish their throne.

Panic didn't take long to eat them alive. They'd curled up on the floor, breaths shivering and hands clenching with weird tremors. They didn't know how long they sat there, but at one point they had pulled themself together and held their crown high. It felt like the least they could do.

They'd roamed the castle for the first day, mind lost in some other world. They planned to stay like that until Emiror offered for them to join their activities on the second. Though reluctant, they'd accepted.

And that was what got them sitting in the greenhouse, balancing on a fountain's edge with tea in hand. The sun poured through glass walls, showering everything in a heavenly glow. Birds sang with angelic grace outside as freedom lined their wings. Butterflies fluttered around and pollinated off orchids and lilies. The fish that roamed at the bottom of the deep fountain herded around the king and the princess, fins wiggling with anticipation.

Eret's hand broke the still water as it covered the surface in ripples. The fish scattered beneath at the scare, instead swarming on the opposite side. The warmth of the sun cast glorious shadows that they wished they could bathe in forever. It was an embrace from the world that told them that not everything had gone to shit. That despite their looming amnesia and sharp tongue, everything was going to turn out okay.

In reality, their entire world was teetering on crumbling foundations. It didn't take much for their composure to snap, and that night had done the trick. They never got into arguments with Foolish, not when they both knew that they only had each other to rely on. They were two souls, bound together by an invisible string that neither dared to cut. They were each other's support during scared and lonely times. They fit together like a puzzle piece that didn't mean to go together.