Hiraeth

Chapter 7

(After Aubrey/ Jafar's little brother had died) The pain. It hurt so much. Jafar's child-sized body couldn't handle it. He gripped onto his chains, feeling blood sweep down his arms as they laughed. Why? Why would they do this? Jafar was only 8... he had just lost his younger brother and now... now he was being treated like a traitor. He wasn't a traitor, though! So why!?!? Suddenly the people across from the bars stopped laughing, quieting down as someone entered the room. Jafar didn't even bat an eye at the person, just staring down at the ground, his eyes no longer having light in them. The person placed their hand over his cheek, wiping away a tear. "I'm sorry this happened to you." SHE said calmly. This startled Jafar, making him retreat back into the corner of the room. She chuckled a little, sitting in front of Jafar, giving him space. "How come such a young child like you ended up in a place like this?" She reached out to him, to which, Jafar frantically moved back in the corner more, swatting her hand away.

"M-Ms. Serendine!!" One of the guards stepped over to SERENDINE, putting a protective arm around her. Jafar just glared at the two, not making any other moves. Serendine giggled, reaching her hand out again. "Ms. Serendine, please-!!" Serendine put her other hand in front of the guard, silencing them. Yet all her attention was on Jafar.

"Shh, shh." In a few moments, Jafar slowly stopped resisting her and she put her hand back on his cheek. Jafar flinched at the touch, but after a minute, he slowly settled into her touch. It was calm, non-threatening, and kind. Serendine slowly slid her hand down Jafar's arm, making the latter flinch just slightly when she removed the chains on his wrists. It hurt more than it did before as she raised the sharp material from his skin. Jafar shrieked out in pain, crying out loudly. Serendine quickly pulled him into a hug, stroking his now blood stained white hair. "Shhh. I'm here, I'm here." She whispered to him. "No one shall dare hurt you no longer." Jafar felt safe in her grasp, slowly easing into it and succumbing to exhaustion.

...

Jafar slowly opened his eyes, feeling soft sheets over his small body. He sat up, seeing he was in a huge room filled with silks and many other fine furniture. He blinked, looking down at his wrists that were bruised and swollen. 'Great...' Suddenly the door opened, and there walked in the guard from yesterday. Jafar hid back under the covers before he could notice him. The guard cleared his throat. "Ms. Serendine, it's time to wake up." There was a groan beside Jafar as Serendine sat up, yawning. Jafar closed his eyes, making it look like he was asleep. Serendine pulled the covers off his head, chuckling.

"Dragool, come look at him~" (Drakon is the nickname Sinbad gave to him. His real name is Dragool or something like that) DRAGOOL walked over to the bed, looking at Jafar's "sleeping form." He snickered, poking his nose. Jafar had to hold in a vein from popping out of his head. "He's so cute~" Jafar acted like he was about to wake up by groaning slightly, rolling over. But what he met was his face was right in Serendine's lap. His face flustered up as he screamed, falling back off the bed. Dragool caught him before he could hit himself on the floor. Serendine popped her head over the bed, looking worriedly at the little assassin. "Are you alright!?" Jafar huffed, standing up.

"I'm ok..." He mumbled, standing up and wiping off his clothes. That's when he realized he was wearing different clothes. Instead of his old rags, he had a nice sleep gown on. It was a little big on him, but it was comfortable. Suddenly he was lifted up onto the bed by Dragool. He made a motion for Jafar to raise his arms up. Jafar huffed, lifting his arms up just for Dragool to take off his gown. Thankfully, he had shorts on underneath it. Serendine walked over to her closet, opening it and starting to change. Dragool looked away embarrassingly before helping Jafar dress.

...

At breakfast, Jafar was shown many different kinds of foods. His stomach grumbled at all the food, but he refused to take one bite of it. Dragool tried to force him to eat, but he kicked him away. Meanwhile, Serendine was getting ready to leave, giving Jafar a slight pat on the head and whispering to him. "Please try to eat something." Jafar sighed, grabbing a mush of food and gulping it down without chewing. Dragool looked worriedly at him.