A Side Character's Guide to Surviving an Otome Game

A Brief Look At Cale

A/N: finals are absolutely killing me yall. i am absolutely suffering out here.

but also: 1837 kudos? 28002 hits? 175 comments? 254 public bookmarks?

thank you so much!

i'm so glad y'all enjoy this fic so much!

"Are you sure you want to do this?"

"Rosalyn. I have to. This... this is the only way."

"You could die, Cale. This could completely fail. There's no assurance that this ritual will even work. You could die, Cale."

"... That's just the risk I'll have to take."

"... Alright."

"You can't seriously be okay with this, Rosalyn!"

"Your Majesty. If I had any choice in the matter, I would chain Cale up and prevent him from going through with this ritual. Unfortunately, I do not have a say in the matter."

"Cale!"

"Alberu. You know why I have to do this. I have to bring him back. Nothing else matters."

"He's dead, Cale. He's been dead for decades."

"I can't just move on from the fact that the entire reason my best friend, my other half, was brutally murdered was because of something I did. I can't just move on from the fact that it was my actions that brought them to him. I can't just move on from the fact that it was my actions that caused the only person who could save us to die. This ritual gives me a chance to fix this. I have to do this."

"This is just a theory-"

"I have to try, Alberu."

"..."

"You know there's no other choice."

"I'm aware."

"... Are you ready, Cale?"

"I'm ready, Rosalyn."

xxxxxxxxxxx

Cale shot up in his bed, sweat beading his forehead. He shuddered, sucking in desperate breaths.

Ever since that first night, when he had dreamt of his older self and a younger Ambrose, he'd been having regular nightmares of a life he didn't remember having.

Ambrose not surviving the fire, but dying instead.

Cale turning to alcohol at the age of twelve to deal with the loss of his closest friend.

Cale joining forces with a person with a blurry face, hunting down the organization that killed Ambrose.

Cale watching that person, who he had cared so much for, dying a brutal, violent death.

Cale and his friends, all but two being completely and utterly unfamiliar, struggling to survive in a world torn apart by the very same people who he had been hunting down.

And now, Cale doing a strange ritual that would... he didn't know.

What was that ritual supposed to do?

Why was he doing the ritual?

Why was he dreaming these things?

It wasn't like Ambrose, who had begun having nightmares about the fire and his past. That made sense, in a way. It was strange, admittedly, that his amnesiac best friend was suddenly beginning to regain memories five years later, but he was no expert in amnesia.

His dreams... well, they seemed more prophetic, in a way- only twisted and wrong .

Ambrose wasn't dead.

Ambrose wasn't dead.

He was laying in the room next to Cale's, resting and recovering from being kidnapped.

Cale grabbed the glass of water off of his bedside table and downed it, grimacing at the bitter taste. Ron had put lemon juice in it, the bastard.

He tried to collect his thoughts.

Cale wasn't sure what the dreams were supposed to mean. He wasn't sure why he was having dreams that had the crown prince in them of all things. He wasn't sure why this whole situation felt wrong , like it wasn't supposed to happen this way.

Why did he look at the dragon and feel so... remorseful ?

Was it simply because Cale felt horrified about the young dragon's torture?

Or was it something else?

Cale slid out of bed, stalking over to the bathroom. He stared at his reflection in the mirror, lit only by the light of the flickering fireplace in the bedroom. His face was pale and sweaty, his eyes dark and lined with faint shadows.

For a split second, his reflection changed.

For a split second, he saw his hair grow, his face gain scruff and wrinkles, his skin scarred and sunburnt.

Then he blinked, and his reflection was back to normal.

Cale shook his head, red hair flying around his face. Great, now he was seeing things.

His hands tightened into fists.

He didn't have time for this.

There was a godsdamn torturer-slash-kidnapper locked up in the same house as him. His best friend was recovering, there was a freaking dragon to figure out what to do with, and he still had yet to send notice to his father updating him about Ambrose's condition.

Whatever was going on with him?

It could wait.

He would figure it out later.

A/N: i wonder what's going on with Cale certainly can't be a major plot line hmmm

also.

some of yall were talking about the lack of cale/ambrose tag.

to that i say...

oops?

i forgot to tag it?

it was always supposed to be tagged *cries in exhausted college student*

but oh well. it's tagged now. hope that gives those of you who were disappointed by the lack of that tag some joy.

hope y'all are having a great day!