A Retelling

Grief is a Poison

Grief was a poison, seeping deep in, making you hollow from the inside.
And greater was the grief of lost innocence and the one shed in yearning for a kinder ending.

Eliseo tightened the grip he had on his mouth, fearing that even a too-loud breath could alert the Holy Knights who carried out the execution - oh oh God!- of his father.

Choking back the sob that begged to be let out, he closed his eyes.

Calm down. Calm down. My Kingdom depends on me.
And so he took another deep breath and ran. He ran and ran and ran.

He didn't know what he was doing he didn't have a plan, yet.
He rushed to his chambers, the guards would take some time, given the distance from his father’s and his own chambers.
He grabbed a small bag pulling out the lightest clothes that weren’t too heavy and a bag of coins, he pulled the blue book that rested on his book shelf, his heart pounding.
The secret passage that was known only to royalty, to be used for situations quite like now, revealed itself.
Eliseo ran down his path, a lifetime of memories running through his mind as he took another step towards the exit of the castle.
The games he had played in his childhood coming back to him, as he pondered on which path was the safest.
He rushed out of the Castle his determination shining as he planned on what to do next.
As hard as escaping the Kingdom would be, asking Camelot to help would be the best course of action.

On the matters of how exactly he would convince the King, Eliseo had some good methods.

It was rumoured that the King was a kind honourable man, a man like that would try to help him out.

If that didn’t happen to be true, Eliseo could always propose a marriage between himself and a Princess of the royal family of Camelot, as distasteful as that thought was, there was nothing, Eliseo wouldn’t do for his people.
But first he needed to find a way out of this Castle.




A few weeks into his search, Eliseo was quickly losing his hope and determination. He was already close to giving up, only his father’s plea stopping him from surrendering.
Eliseo made his way to the Boar Hat tavern to escape the Holy Knights, and in case he did got caught drunk men were the easiest to provoke, and in part to gather information.
Nothing made mouths open quicker than a few cups of alcohol.
Eliseo made his way up the hill the tavern was located on, seriously why would anyone build a tavern there??
Eliseo entered quietly his presence practically non existent to anyone but a blonde haired man who smiled at him with shock and then a smirk.
Eliseo sat right next to a window so that he could see the view outside and make a run for it if things became desperate.
Sitting in a place he had never been in before, Eliseo stood out like a sore thumb.
The patrons were friendly and loud, some were half asleep on others, some making conversation with random strangers.

In all honesty, it was a fun atmosphere and invited people to join let loose and have some fun.
The men were seated around one singular table, chairs arranged in a pathetic attempt at a circular seating pattern, their clothing cheap and so were the alcohol ordered.
Given where they were, Eliseo Hazzard a guess of all of them being agricultural labourers, with the two who dressed better than others being the leaders.
Their conversation was about plane things such as the new girls in the village (the younger boys discussed this with stars in their eyes), and some discussed their home affairs.

Eliseo, as stated before, stood out like a sore thumb.

In his too proper clothes that contrasted the more loose outfits worn by the people around him.

His silence was deafening between loud, happy, drunk shouts and smiles.

Eliseo desperately tried to fit in, all awkward smiles and stiff posture. He sat near the men trying to engage himself in conversation.
“So where are you from?”
One of the patrons asked him, from the looks of it the most out going one the others had made as their group mascot for this conversation.
Eliseo smiled, trying to imitate his eldest sister and her effortless grace but toning it down with the roughness of his elder sister, Veronica, “I’m from the nearby town, worked for Lord Elin. Real piece of shit. Said he’d pay me seventy but wouldn’t budge after sixty when the pay day came. So,”
Eliseo winked, “I stole his stuff and ran away.”
The men around him cheered obviously pleased with seeing a noble suffer.
In times of the economic crisis that Britannica was going through nobles were much like the public enemy number one.

He ordered a cup of ale, and it was slammed almost forcefully on his table.

As he looked up in alarm, full lips curved into a warm smile and vibrant green eyes that sparkled like emeralds.
The smile was of the I-know-something-you-don’t-kind ergo Eliseo’s least favourite one.

Eliseo stiffened, his posture tensing as he reached for the ale.
He gulped it all in at once too awkward to put any thought into his actions.
And he promptly choked on it.

A hand slapped on his back to help him.
All the while only one thought echoed in Eliseo's mind.
Too sour!
Eliseo hasn’t ordered this.....infuriating barkeep wanted to talk.
Eliseo gathered from the laugh the man restrained no apology or concern visible.

Eliseo would be the first one to admit, at the risk of sounding condescending and spoilt, he had less of a sweet tooth and more of a quality food tooth.

"Hey careful careful. There's no hurry, is there?"

A loud charming voice called out from way too close.

Eliseo shrieked and did not jump half a foot in the air.
A hand wrapped around his waist to prevent him from falling due to his not half a foot jump.

(Eliseo was a firm believer in the concept of ignorance as bliss.)

The man smirked, Eliseo's own features remained neutral however his lips dropped their awkward smile, "See what you like, Your Highness?"
Eliseo did not react.

But every nerve in his body tensed, as he desperately tried to outthink his way out of this situation.

His fingers tapped on the table, a desperate urge for him to do anything what Eliseo didn't know but something was born.

He avoided eye contact with the barkeep....(Eliseo assumed from how he was the only worker here and given his clothes were a bit too fine to be of any ordinary servant), the barkeep however kept giving him the same smile.
Infuriating annoying and obnoxious.

His amusement towards Eliseo's situation was clear in the way his eyes sparkled and the upturn of his lips.

Think, Eliseo think. If he could run a kingdom at the age of two hundred then he could do this too.

" I bring no trouble, to your doorstep. I can leave if you wish for me to. I fear I have already imposed upon your... hospitality for far too long."
The amusement the man got in seeing him not even the accusation was clear.
"Well, well. It's a little-"

The silhouettes of men climbing up the tavern was what the man pointed at
“-too late for that."
Hands around the back of his head, the barkeep looked perfectly calm.
As if runaway Princes was something that happened to him every other day.
Eliseo gulped, his posture still and calm, a contrast to his racing mind.
The man was athletically built, his physique not unlike the high ranking Knights that Eliseo knew of.
His fingers curled inwards as they dug into his palm.
The man, Meliodas, Eliseo had gathered from the chatter of the patrons, was far too patient for it to be anything good.
Before anything could happen, Eliseo slipped  closer to the drunk men.
Decision already made.
Sitting in the corner, Eliseo had marked the two men who were clearly the leaders of this group.

The others were clearly peasants who worked under them, even if they weren't convinced by his story, they would follow their leaders.

"You know...,"Eliseo slurred, his graceful composure gone, instead now he appeared drunk and under the influence so to say.

The two men he had marked were not so athletically built, and men with family given how they hadn't participated in the talk of visiting the whorehouse.

And given how neat their clothing appeared, too careful for men who were essentially very low in the social ladder, clearly someone else took care of their clothing and dressing.

They didn't appear to be careful of how others viewed them, given how they were willing to join their subordinates in drinking.
Ergo either a wife or a lover.

“Hey, have you guys heard about the Knights recruiting for war?”
They're dragging people away, forcing them to fight. And from what I've seen, they're not treating them well either...”
Not a lie.
OK not a truth, but desperate circumstances called for desperate measures.
The patrons around him looked at his warily.

All of the patrons now looked very interested in the Knights who were clearly loosing their patience over dealing with Meliodas and a......talking pig.....
Well what do you know the universe is really vast.

The men around him were clearly spooked, their drunkenness increasing their impulsiveness, numbing their inhibitions.

As Meliodas attempted to calm the Knights down, the Knights dug their own grave by pushing Meliodas inside and entering forcefully.

Out of the corner of the eye, he observed the patrons gathering their courage as the two men who Eliseo had marked as the leaders of this group signalled for all of them to move.

And as the Knights stepped into the room, the men jumped on them.

Running after  Knights the tavern slowly emptied out, those who didn’t run after the Knights made their way to their own homes, concerns and fear visible on their faces.

Between this conundrum, Eliseo tried to make his own way out of it.

Tried being the operative word. A hand around his waist stopped him.

“Now now, where you going?”
The irritating barkeep was back.

His smirking face was obnoxiously amused, “The name’s Meliodas. And yours is?”
“Unhand me! The name’s Eliseo. And you already knew that.”
Meliodas held him a little tighter against himself, “I believe in giving everyone a chance to introduce themselves. Never let yourselves presumptions that you make of others and all that.”
Eliseo put his own hand around Meliodas, digging his nails into Meliodas.
Something gave him the impression that Meliodas didn’t even feel it.
And as hopeless as Eliseo was in combat of any sort, the idea of Meliodas not even feeling it was far too bruising to his already diminished pride.
“So then, Seo-kun, how may I help you?”
Eliseo’s right eye twitched, “Pray tell, how could you... aid me in my predicament? And what reason could you have for offering your... assistance?"
Meliodas’ smirked lost it’s arrogance, coming of a bit more helpless, “I’ve heard that you’re good at lifting curses, help me with a couple of ‘em?”
Eliseo raised an eyebrow, perplexed beyond, “Why shall I? What could you possibly offer me in return for my assistance.”
Meliodas let him go, standing in front of him he raised his white sleeve higher, showing a mark that resembled a dragon.
This time it was Eliseo who stepped forward, stumbling towards Meliodas his fingers trailing the mark.
He whispered in awe, “The Dragon Sin of Wrath, Captain of the Seven Deadly Sins.”
Meliodas smirked, “You guessed it!”
The exhaustion of the day and the hunger that had persisted for a few days at least finally caught up, his annoyance with the barkeep and his bewilderment at the revelation made him even weaker.

And thus, Eliseo proceeded to faint.