Once Upon a Story [ SLOW UPDATES ]

Not Castlevania (4)

And I thought this would be over quickly 🤡

Word count: 2067
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Hendrik sat on the couch with Lina sleeping against him. Amidst the silence, his mind wandered to their earlier day. They had spent a few hours crafting flower crowns and running around in the fields with Mirabelle. In the evening, they returned inside and shared a meal. Regretfully, Kristoph appeared, asking his children to come home. He waited for them outside while they said their goodbyes.

"I will return. I swear it," Hendrik promised Mirabelle. He removed his necklace as he had all those years ago and tied it around her neck.

She smiled, the same sad expression as their first separation. "Will I have to wait a few years?"

"No more than a few days will pass before we reunite. You have my word."

He held her hand and bowed, bringing it to his lips. "Goodnight, my dear."

"Goodnight, Hendrik."

It was a sweet moment shared, and Hendrik's happiness followed him home. He tasked Lina with the basket of crowns and watched his mother's face revive from afar.

Now, they rested in the library after the day's excitement.

"Did you enjoy your time?" Hendrik glanced at his father, standing at the door. He closed his eyes and leaned into the couch pillows.

"Yes. Why did you allow it?"

Kristoph crossed his arms, tapping a sharp nail to his face. "Your mother is a persuasive woman when she begs. I felt a reward was due."

"Haven't you tormented her enough?" Hendrik muttered.

"I don't believe so. As my wife, she must submit to my will," Kristoph argued.

"Father, you're killing her," Hendrik hissed. "If you don't stop drinking so much blood, she will turn to ash at your feet."

He forced himself to calm down. Lina was still in his arms. "At least let her regain her strength. If not for her, then for Lina's sake."

Kristoph clicked his tongue. His daughter had grown close to his wife. If anything happened to her, she would shut him out.

"I'm only doing this for my daughter."

"...Thank you."

His father vanished in a thick plume of smoke. Hendrik was thankful his father listened, but he wondered what this act of kindness would cost him in the long run.

"I can only wait and see." Hendrik repositioned himself to lay on his back with Lina sleeping on his chest. He placed a hand across her back and closed his eyes. Sleep never came that night, but he woke up feeling rested.

He shifted Lina in his place and stood, stretching his limbs. As he stepped into the hall, his ears caught a current of speech in a nearby room. He followed the voices and found his father speaking with another woman. Hendrik frowned. She looked like Linda.

"Ah, Hendrik," Kristoph motioned him forward. "This is Helena, Linda's mother."

Hendrik bowed. "I'd have mistaken you for her sister. The sun hasn't set on your prime."

"You're a charmer, just like your father."

"It is my best and worst quality." Hendrik examined her features. The woman was short compared to his mother, with chestnut-coloured hair and equally tanned skin. She was so conceivable different from his mother that he didn't understand how his father bore a child with her.