Well That's Not Good

Chapter Seventeen - Fallen Kingdom

The day doesn't get much clearer. By noon, a light rain has started to fall, bringing the fog back up to their doorstep. Seto sticks to the kitchen, canning and cleaning and trying to make himself useful. Trying to escape the guilt of a zombie plague. Sky sits at the table, tracing the woodgrain with his finger. Every so often, Seto places a bottle on the table, Sky twists it open or shut, and Seto returns to his work. having run out of cans, Seto searches for empty soda bottles and spare cups, sealing them shut with cooking parchment and wax. 

"How much do sea dragons cost?" Sky asks. Seto puts a bottle down and turns to look at him. he had turned the kitchen lights off, partly to save energy, partly so he could see without the headache. Sky's eyes glow faintly, fixed on the wood pattern on the table. 

"Sea dragons?" 
"Yeah. For the moat." 
"Oh." 

Seto thinks for a moment. he had agreed to Sky's request in a hope to calm him down, give him some hope. Sky always managed to bring everyone else up from a bout of gloom, so seeing him so still and dull weighs heavy on Seto's chest. 

"I don't know. I've never tried to buy them before," Seto comments. It isn't a complete lie, he hadn't ever tried to buy them before. As far as he knew, they didn't exist. 

"I want a gold one," Sky continues, "A gold sea dragon that glows, like at home. And she'll be friendly, you'll pet her and it'll feel like a warm blanket." He turns his head and looks at Seto, a tired smile across his face. For the first time in days, Seto feels a spark of curiosity. Sky hardly ever talked about the world he had come from. In fact, life before the ship crash was almost a banned subject. 

"Oh yeah? Did you have sea dragons?" Seto asks, half joking. To his surprise, Sky nods, and his face literally lights up. 

Seto sits down across from him. Sky sits up straighter, blowing loose hair out of his face. 

"I had four. I think where I live... it was like what you call a desert? Dark, hot or cold, too hot in the day and cold at night," Sky starts. Seto nods, propping his head up on his good hand. 

"Well, it was great. I lived in a castle! And when I had to travel, I went over seas, and the dragons took me! I sat in a boat, and they would pull me, and the water would glow blue," Sky's eyes drift upward, unfocused. Seto smiles lightly, trying to picture what Sky is explaining. 

The silence in the house broken, True wanders to the kitchen doorway and peers in, settling against the doorway. 

"The sand is dark- it was always dark. When the sun came out it was blinding and hot so we never stayed out past moonset," Sky goes on, "But once I watched. I watched it through a sheet of paper so I wouldn't hurt my eyes, and the colors! It was beautiful!" He throws his hands up, and Seto laughs, bringing a smile to True's face. 

"So you lived on desert islands?" Seto asks, eyes locked on Sky. He nods, smiling. 

"Yeah! It was so nice. I used to dance a lot, and sing! People liked when I sang, I'd play and write music for different holidays and invite them into my home-" 
"The castle?" 
"The castle! A castle made of black stone with soft fuzzy carpets! I used to fall asleep on them after long days, when life got busy and stressful and my room was too far away to walk. I... used to work a lot, actually." He laughs, but his eyes flicker to the ground. Seto frowns, sensing discomfort. He reaches his hand across, taking Sky's which makes him look up in surprise.

 True smiles as Sky's shoulders relax and, holding Seto's hand, he continues the story. 

"Yeah, so, I used to do a lot of work. I know I sleep a lot now but... well, when you're sleeping I'm awake, but back home, when it was dark and you could see the stars, it was beautiful! It was! And I lived in my castle and helped my people-" 
"Your people?"
"Yeah, I was in charge. I helped them and I think they liked me. I hope they did..." 
"I'm sure they did."
"It doesn't matter now." 

Again, Sky's smile flickers. True sighs and walks into the room, draping his arms over Sky's shoulders and giving Seto a small smile. Seto returns it, but it too begins to fade as the bioluminescence  on Sky's cheeks dims. 

"Sky? Are you okay?" Seto asks. He nods, raising his over hand up to wipe his face. 
"Yeah. I feel like I failed. Everything fell apart and I ran away, I'm a terrible ruler and a terrible person and-" 
"Sky?"
"What?" 
"You're alive. That's good enough." Seto's mismatched eyes meet Sky's gold ones, and after a dramatic moment of silence, he promptly starts sobbing. 

True moves to the side, keeping in contact with Sky and hugging him around the waist once he's on the ground. Seto climbs onto the table and pulls Sky to him, letting him cry into Seto's clothes. 

Lox sits on the roof, green light dimmed by the fog, watching. Bodies wander the yard, veiled by grey. The sky is grey. Everything he can see is grey. He turns his head, giving off a creaking sound. As far as he can see, there is nothing. As far as he can hear, there is the beginning of rainfall.  Not wanting to cause more trouble, he turns to go back inside, missing the flicker of movement among the stillness and the fog.