The Cursed Prince

1

TW: pain and mentions of death

Roman quietly snuck downstairs from his room, hiding from any servants or guards that might be awake. He couldn't sleep and didn't want to stay in his bed, so he decided to walk around the castle grounds for awhile.

He was only thirteen but he already had trouble sleeping at night, he can never just turn his brain off. Whether he was thinking about his duties to the kingdom as the prince, or if he was thinking about a story he was creating, his mind made sleeping hard.

Well, it could be worse, he could have horrible thoughts like his brother. Luckily Remus is in therapy, but that's just to make sure he doesn't act on any of his thoughts.

Roman went over to the window and saw that it was raining outside. He saw the wind pushing around trees that were nearby the castle. He could barely see past them, though his candle didn't illuminate much.

There was a banging coming from somewhere and Roman turned towards the door. After a few moments, it knocked again. Strangely enough, no one was around. Wouldn't a guard have seen someone coming from the watchtowers?

Whoever was outside knocked again, so Roman decided he shouldn't keep them waiting. Though, he was a bit nervous, who would be knocking at this hour?

Roman pulled the door open and found an old woman wrapped in a cloak outside.

"What brings you here at this hour?" Roman asked, completely confused at this point.

"My dear child," the old woman rasped, "It is so cold and wet outside, would you be so kind and allow me to rest here for the night?"

"I really shouldn't, not without any guards nearby at the moment." Roman was seriously wondering where any of the guards were, hoping one would come walking down a corridor to see them any moment. He didn't want to be rude and send her off into the storm again.

"Oh please, I'll give you this rose in return." She reached into her cloak and pulled out a beautiful rose, the red petals were so vibrant and the green steam looked flawless. "I really suggest you don't turn me away."

Roman felt his heart hammer in his chest, it sounded like she threatened him for a second. Both afraid and angry, Roman insisted, "I apologize, but I don't believe my parents would be happy with me if I let a stranger in. I'm sure you'll find some shelter in the nearby village." Roman tried to close the door but before it closed a hand with sharp claws for nails stopped him.

Roman gasped when he saw scales crawling up the arm and he looked at the old woman once again as she tore off her cloak. She grew in size and showed that she wasn't an old lady, but a dragon witch. Her gray hair turned black and horns grew from her head, scales growing on her arms and neck.

"Oh child, you shouldn't have tried to turn me away."

Roman felt frozen to the spot, a scream stuck in his throat. She raised a hand at him and suddenly everything burned. His bones twisted and broke before reforming into something different, hair grew from his arms and face, claws and horns grew from his hands and head. He was pretty sure he was screaming, or maybe someone else was screaming. He wasn't sure. Eventually the pain won out and everything became black and silent.

When he finally woke up, everything was still dark. His body ached and he tried to remember what had happened. Looking around, it looked like there was a battle. The castle banners were torn, it seemed like the rug was burned though it wasn't on fire at the moment, glass was broken and wood was cracked.

"Roman?" He heard his brother's voice, but looking around he didn't see him.

"R-Remus?" his voice was quiet, though it was not his own. His hand went to his throat, his voice was deeper than usual. Of course, it didn't take long for him to realize his hand was a paw, and his neck was covered in fur.