When Bill woke up around noon the day after the ceremony, the first thing he noticed was that he didn't remember falling asleep. Then, he heard a wail from downstairs.
Worried something had happened to his parents or brother, Bill came running down the stairs, nearly tripping. He was met with Sonia sobbing in the kitchen, while also looking livid. When she saw Bill, her eyes widened in anger.
"It's your fault! You were supposed to be watching him!" she screamed, walking toward Bill and towering over him.
"Wh-what?" Bill asked weakly. His mother had never hit him, but he wouldn't put it past her with how angry she appeared.
"Edward! Your brother! He's... he's..." Sonia broke down crying again.
It was then that Frank entered the room. He seemed upset but was composing himself much better than his wife.
"Bill, you're up," Frank stated, leading Sonia to their couch to sit down.
"Wh-what happened to Ed-Eddie?" Bill asked, extremely worried for his brother.
Even though they were the same age, Bill had always taken on the older brother role and had felt responsible for Eddie. They were best friends and if something happened to Eddie, Bill wasn't sure what he'd do.
"He's gone. No one's seen him since last night," Frank said as Sonia's sobs got harsher, scaring Bill.
It was no secret that Sonia loved Eddie more than Bill. He was smart, sweet, and didn't have what Sonia called "a speaking issue that should have landed her embarrassment of a son in Tenebris."
As much as Bill felt he should be jealous of Eddie for being the favorite, he couldn't. He loved Eddie more than life, and he was terrified he was injured somewhere without help. As able as Eddie was, he was still Lucantian and hadn't had interactions with any people who weren't Lucantian.
Sonia eventually walked to her room to lay down, and Frank sat across from Bill at the table.
"I don't blame you, William," Frank said, grabbing Bill's hand, causing him to look up and meet his father's eyes.
"I w-was the last t-t-to see him, wasn't I?" Bill asked, knowing the answer but not sure he wanted to hear it.
"Yes, you were. Your mother believes he's been kidnapped, but I'm less sure. Did he say anything to you last night?"
"You think he ran away." Bill meant for it to be a question, but it sounded like a statement, making him blush and hide his face.
It was never the place of a son or daughter to sound like they were challenging their parent.
Thankfully, Frank didn't seem to mind. "I do. Did he say anything to you, Bill?"
The use of his nickname caught Bill's attention, and he made eye contact again. He noticed the bags beneath his fathers eyes, no doubt from having been out all night and then taking on the stress of a missing son.
"No, he didn't," Bill said shamefully, though the wheels in his head were turning.
He remembered the conversation he and Eddie had the night before. That was right before he abruptly fell asleep...
Bill stood up, almost knocking his chair back and catching Frank's attention.
"Are you okay, son?"
"Y-yeah, uh, c-can I go to Ben's? I w-want to ask if h-h-he's seen Eddie," Bill asked, inching toward the stairs.
Frank nodded. "Don't blame yourself, William. It's not your fault."
Bill gave another nod and walked up the stairs, feigning sadness. As soon as he entered the shared room he ran to their bathroom and opened the shelf.
Eddie always told Bill when he planned on taking his sleeping pills so the pair wouldn't run out in case one of them came down with a fever and needed them to sleep.
The bottle they had was new, since the fall season was just starting. There should be thirty pills in the bottle.
Bill fumbled with the bottle, opening it and pouring the medicine onto his bed. He counted through them and inhaled sharply when he realized there were only twenty nine.
Eddie had drugged him and taken off.
Bill knew his brother. He was smart, but if he came in contact with someone that wasn't Lucantian, he may crumble with fear or simply be outmatched. That fear pushed Bill to pack a small bag of clothes and throw it out the window.
He went outside and collected his bag before making his way to Ben's house. His parents would be at work, based on the timing, so Bill didn't hesitate to slam his fist against the door frantically.
"Bill? What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be studying?" Ben asked.
He was right, usually Eddie and Bill reserved the weekends to study for their classes. They were both in advanced classes, so they had lots of homework and Sonia always encouraged their studies.
"C-can I come in?" Bill asked, and Ben quickly opened the door, noticing his distressed expression.
Bill explained the story of the pills and Eddie's sudden desire to travel.
"I d-don't know why he'd r-r-run. It's not l-like him," Bill said, holding a cup of tea Ben had offered to help him calm down. "I th-think I'm going to ch-check the ports."
"We're not allowed around there, Bill," Ben said softly. He'd always been the least likely to disobey rules and he certainly didn't want to start.
"Y-you don't have to c-come. I need to make s-sure he's safe, Ben. He's m-my brother."
Ben sighed deeply. "I'm not letting you go alone, Bill. Let's go so we can try to find him or some sign of him before our parents notice," he said, standing up and walking toward the door.
The two made their way to the ports, sneaking around the forested area just past the port. There were ships from both Pona and Konilla, as well as departing ones with the Lucantian flag. In Bill's history stories he'd read of a flag that used to be of Divisus, with a spade to include the Tenebrians, but overtime they changed it to a Luceat only flag.
"Bill, look," Ben whispered, but he was pointing behind them.
On then ground was a silky type sock, one that could only belong to a rich Lucantian. It was also small, so Bill knew it had to belong to Eddie.
"H-he must've jumped on a sh-ship," Bill stated. "I d-don't care what your p-plan is. I'm g-g-getting on a ship."
Bill began to inch toward a ship with the Pona flag, hiding behind boxes of materials being loaded off of it. They climbed onto the ship just as it was departing, and they watched as the land mass that was their home faded behind them.
