When a Young Heart Loves (The Secret of Moonacre Fanfiction)

Epilogue: Of What's to Come

Epilogue- Takes place between chapters 5 and 6 of part 2.

Charles groaned.

His head rolled lazily to the side, coming to a soft thump against the wooden beam he sat by. His eyes drilled into the wall before him.
He was bored.
He ran his hand over his unshaven face, disgusted at how dingy and disheveled he must look.

Ninety-three tally marks were scratched onto the stone. Ninety-three days since he'd been locked up.
Well over three months since he kidnapped Albert. Three months since he catastrophically failed to use the pearls.
How had he been so stupid! Clearly, he hadn't planned it through.
Would he ever get another chance?

From the little he heard; Maria had long gone back to school. She wore the pearls on her at all times.

She would be returning soon for the holidays.

They were fast approaching.
With every day—every damned tally mark—the dungeons grew colder.
His sister and mother made sure to visit him as frequently as they could. Maybelle even sent letters to him. He refused to speak to either of them though. They brought him clothes and food.
Yesterday, they brought blankets as well.

It seemed his father's plan to take him away before the upcoming cold months had failed.

The blankets sat in the corner of his cell, still unwrapped. His pride wouldn't let him touch them. He was bound to freeze down here. Or get sick. Whichever happened first.
That's how most of the prisoners died. It's been a long time since these dungeons held any though, not counting the Moon Princess.

He shifted his weight, the stone floor had numbed his legs.
He sorely wished for a warm bath—and where the bloody hell is my dinner!
Charles rolled his eyes, the guard was taking his time today—again. He wondered how much longer he would have to be here for. He heard from the guards that his father continued to beg Mr. De Noir for his release.

Charles scoffed.

That man had no pride, begging to the likes of Coeur.
There was talk about sending him away, to another country, Australia or something of the sort. Possibly even the Americas.

No one would tell him about Robin. He saw when the spell hit him that night. He hoped Robin was suffering.

He snorted.
As if they could get rid of him that easily. As long as he was alive, he swore vengeance. He just needed to find Althea.
Occasionally, through the nights he heard her birdlike screeches. She was still alive. Locked up away, somewhere secured, until they found a way to be rid of her.

He hoped she was alright.

Althea made a great impression that night. Never before had he seen such a transformation. She turned out to be quite the imposing, yet magnificent, creature. Her golden feathers were captivating under the moonlight.
Certainly, they must be more mesmerizing under sunlight. She was dreadfully beautiful.

His thoughts sprang to those of Cecile.
What if he could convince her to release him... "—no" he said to himself.
He had long ago ruined that relation. Such a softy that one. She would've made a lovely wife. But she was simple-minded, and easy to forgive, only caring about her mother and damned brother! After his refusal to accept Maria, she gave up hope.
It's a shame her betrothed was murdered, he chuckled. He made sure to thank Althea for that one.

Althea...
Despite her clear disdain for humans, Charles was sure she'd be more than eager to help him. Besides, he could even offer her a taste of the pearl's power. Once he figured out how to use them...

... Tap...Tap...Tap...

Charles looked up. His thoughts were broken by the heeled footsteps of the approaching guard. His stomach growled.

"I may be locked away but I am still a De Noir! I demand my plate of food be delivered at an appropriate hour!" His voice cracked, scratching his dried throat. Charles coughed; his lungs burned with each one. These dungeons would be the end of him, he needed to get out before the weather worsened! He didn't trust his well-being at the hands of Robin's family, despite what his mother said. He had no reason to.

The guard didn't respond.

Charles raised an eyebrow. Normally the guard would've retorted or insulted him by now. This one must be new.

A quiet, scratching, sound soon joined the steps. The bit of moonlight streaming through the cell's roof grate revealed a pair of tall black boots coming his way. Alongside the boots, dragged lazily behind him, was a sword. The sword was dripping with blood and glowing red.

The figure came to a proper halt in front of Charles' door. He was a tall, muscular man. His black hair was slicked back and he had a sharp widow's peak. His eyes were as dark as his hair, and his dense eyebrows matched his thick mustache. He wore a long red riding coat. He carried himself with an easy grace.

There was a charming aura about him, one that drew Charles to the stranger.

His eyes scanned over Charles. A glint of malice laid in the dark pits of his eyes.

"Country folk, they never fail to disappoint."

Charles glared. "Who the hell are you, what do you want?" He snapped.

"I've come to take what's mine, where is she?"

"I.... I don't know."

The man studied him. Satisfied he drew a gun and shot the deadbolt. The cell gate groaned open.

"You're welcome to join us." The man turned and continued through the dungeons, searching for the rumored monster.

Charles stood and stared intently at his back. He twisted his mouth and looked around his cell.

The tap of the stranger's footsteps dimmed as he traveled further into the dungeons.

Charles drew a frustrated breath as a foreboding feeling nestled in his stomach. He pushed the thought aside, hurriedly shoving his sister's letters into his coat's pocket. He wrapped the rest of his belongings together in one of his new blankets. He didn't have much else to take.
He scrawled a quick note on an old piece of paper and shoved it under his cot. He hoped Maybelle would know where to look.

With one last look around, Charles followed the man into the dark.

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AN: Thank you so so very much for reading and giving this story a try. I know I may have just deeply upset a few of you due to the sudden insert of amnesia, and for that I am sorry. If you're wondering why I did it, well I was unhappy with Robin's development. The more I thought about it, the more I felt like I hadn't given him room to grow. I was so focused on Maria the monster, and the rest of the OCs, that I forgot about him. I wanted to put Robin in a situation where he is back to square one, but is able to overcome the challenges (ie feuding with Maria) without waiting around for "life" to force him too... but I didn't want to write a new story so I added that twist. Plus, I have dealt with memory loss before and find that topic so interesting! Sorry!!!

Its funny because this twist actually made writing the next part harder, and I later learned from readers they felt Robin's development was fine... welp, wish I had known that earlier lol.

Anyways thank you for reading!! What did you think? I am so eternally grateful and would love to know your thoughts/questions/concerns!! Once again part 2 is finished and posted on AO3 and FFN, I am posting here when I have time to edit!