"I WAS JUST A BOY. A BOY WHO FELL IN LOVE WITH A MONSTER. I NEVER THOUGHT I'D BECOME ONE MYSELF."
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When Aric was only six, he was abandoned by his mother in the Woods all alone before finding his way to Arbed House.
Meanwhile, Japeth is a trou...
A/N—Drawing of Japeth I did ;) Don't you just love him? 🥰
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~JAPETH'S POV~
It was after the sun had been restored that the news came that Tedros and his princess, Agatha, had headed off to Camelot for Tedros's coronation.
Perhaps it was fate or perhaps it was just plain luck, but by some miracle, Tedros's coronation had gone so bad that many people across the woods began to doubt Tedros's place on Camelot's throne. Apparently, Camelot's future king had thrown a fit as he struggled to extract Excalibur from a balcony. But he couldn't pull the sword no matter how hard he tried.
It was Tedros's very coronation that felt like a blessing to Rhian, who was still seeking to take over Camelot. The doubt that was instilled in the woods gave Rhian the perfect opportunity to enact his plan.
The only problem was Japeth's lack of willingness to help his brother go through with the plan.
Japeth no longer cared for Rhian's determination to bring their mother back to life. He no longer ate and he no longer slept as much as he used to either, because it was Aric that plagued his thoughts nonstop.
For weeks, Japeth had had reoccurring nightmares of the raven haired boy. Sometimes, Aric would have come back to him in the dream. A happy reunion would ensue before Japeth would awaken to his cruel reality. Other times, it wasn't just Aric who visited Japeth in his sleep. Rhian was there too, and him and Aric would be fighting each other like wild animals, clawing and biting. Japeth would try to intervene, but before he could, the nightmare would always screech to a halt.
Japeth never saw who'd win the battle.
In fear of having more nightmares, Japeth set his mind on reading. To stay awake, he began to scour through, The Tale of Lion and the Snake, until his eyes were sore and the revived sun had risen into the morning sky.
"Read this one instead," Rhian had ordered Japeth after giving him his copy of The Tale of Sophie and Agatha.
Japeth would've thrown the book back at Rhian, but he needed the distraction to keep himself awake. Rhian didn't seem to notice Japeth's lack of sleep or his lack of appetite either, for he would never comment on the dark circles around Japeth's eyes and the obvious fact Japeth would always pick unenthusiastically at his meals.
In fact, Rhian looked just as worn as Japeth felt. Japeth could only guess Rhian too was having trouble sleeping. Sometimes, Japeth would be lying on the floor in the living room and he could hear Rhian thrashing around in his room at night.
Rhian's thrashing at night made Japeth wonder if Rhian was suffering from similar nightmares he was. Did Rhian dream of the boy who'd tried to kill him?
Japeth never dared ask if it was indeed Aric who haunted Rhian's unconsciousness. Whenever Japeth would ever bring up the name Aric, Rhian would always have intense reactions. He would shake uncontrollably as if he was seizing and clutch at his skull as if he could still feel the dagger that had been embedded in his head.
