Chapter Text

P R O L O G U E

In life, there are only a few pivotal moments that determine the general trajectory of the future. They’re usually quiet; deceivingly tranquil the way you’ve always been but these moments of impact have a certain gravitational pull so strong that destruction and devastation always lie in its wake.

Something must give to pave way for change.

As you sit with your legs crushed into your chest, listening to the wind whirring in your ears, you are well aware that the next decision you make will determine your fate forever. Your eyes take in the steel bars that encase your dehydrated form, soaking in the endless grey of the crumbling stone walls that look the same on the inside as it does from the outside.

You know because you’ve seen the tower from the outside. A grey, cylindrical structure rising into the clouds, looming like a spectre in the peripherals of the forest that protect the grasslands on which the castle is built. From your room in the castle, the tower had been a mere shadow but even so, you were drawn to its mystery, imagining the stories each prisoner held as they contemplated death and punishment.

You trace the cool silver of the bracelet on your wrist, rubbing your fingers over the crescent moon charm for comfort. It’s been with you for as long as you can remember, and right now, you can only try to seek comfort in consistency.

Absentmindedly, you prop your chin onto your knees, wondering if you’ve always inherently known you’d find yourself here, locked up, on the other side. You wonder if you’ve known because you never really belonged in the castle; never really wanted to stay; never envisioned a life behind castle walls… never wanted anything until one day, you wanted it all.

You wanted it with a desperation that bred fear so strong it clouded your thoughts and overshadowed every trace of joy you felt. You wanted it so much you began to realise, with increasing clarity, that none of it was yours to want – that you were an imposter.

And now, he knows this too.