Wherever it takes us.

A Tale of Regret, with a Hint of Syrup

"Don't even think of letting that head drop." Her words were rough and precise; every syllable uttered with an unusual ruthless nature, well, as unfamiliar as it could be from Aunt Lucy.

But as we would have it during lessons, she was my teacher, nothing more or less.

"Yes, mam." The words rolled off my tongue as I clung to the last of my energy reserves. Four hours would have sounded short to some, but with

Miss Lucy at the wheel, you couldn't be farther from the truth. I sat, headaches accompanying me with the rampant direct input of knowledge.

"As a Prince of Kelflore, you must be able to show keen knowledge regardless of the topic..." Her words blurred together as I slowly slumped in my seat exhaustion had set its course, taking over, and my fingers sprawled around my hair, massaging the temples, hoping to ease the pain.

"Do I need to know all of this?" I groaned, my tone unbothered, as laidback as any eight-year-old should. "Can't you just, I don't know, Answer all the questions for me if anyone asks?"

Sadly, she shook her head in response, "I won't be with you forever, Jason." A smirk accompanied her words.

"Besides, I promise the next one will be a fun based on a legend, I tell ya." Her words perked up my interest as I quickly sat up, eager to listen for once. She lowered herself slightly, brushing off some dust from her shoulders, "Rumours have it that there were people that had walked this earth that looked to have been plagued by sin since their birth." Chills ran down my spine, with goosebumps crawling over my skin. Her voice was low, with her tone nowhere close to a joke. "They could be seen dressed in rags and dirty clothing due to their poverty and lack of faith for anything good to happen. They embraced their sadness by going from town to town, looking for people who wanted to offload their curses on them, all in exchange for a meal." She hesitated, causing me to lean out of my chair slightly, my eyes pleading to know how the tale ended, suspense building within and around me.

"And I will tell you the rest after I finish today's class." She smiled broadly while an involuntary groan oozed out from me. "You always do that, Aunty," I complained, angry at myself for failing the same old trick.

"Yet, it always works."

"No, it can't be." The words fell out of my mouth, my back rigid in shock as I eyed the supposed 'Curse Eater,' who suddenly was fond of something on the floor I couldn't see.

"...Never knew about that," Maya muttered, her voice in shock, eyes wide as saucers. The only one who didn't seem to be in a similar state looked at Andrea; her features looked crestfallen, strangely enough.

'Huh, why the lack of reaction from her?' CX asked, taking the words literally out of my head. 'I was just about to ask,' I responded, but to my surprise, the girl in question spoke up. "Why didn't you tell any of us; in fact, wh-why now?" A slight hiccup was enough to catch my attention as she tossed the question to Ralph, His Ruby colored orbs stared down by her Amythest, "You didn't trust us...or me?" The last bit was so low; I only caught wind of it due to our seating arrangements.

Ralph's eyes widened in shock, his mouth slightly ajar, yet no words came out. 'You better help out before this gets ugly.' CX proposed, his tone urgent, 'Ugh, can I not?' I asked, curious to see what would happen without any intervention.

'Stop being lazy, and help out.'

"Hold on, let him speak." I interrupted their conversation, being the center of attention. I could feel my heartbeat slowly rising as I sat still, contemplating my words, hoping to find the right line. "I asked Ralph to discuss this personally, yet he denied the opportunity, indirectly meaning he trusts everyone present. Give him a chance to redeem himself." Andrea seemed taken back, surprised before readjusting to her position, with a thin line on her lips.