The Bad Fairy (girlxgirlxgirl)

46. Memories

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Cosmo feels an ugly nausea crawl up his throat at the thought of it. He shudders, walking down the hallway of his father's royal tower while a lump forms in his throat, making it impossible for him to swallow. He keeps his head up high, ignoring the guards and servants around him. Their eyes pierce into his soul. It's so obvious that they all know what he has just been told.

It's just been a few days since Nayan left. Not even an entire week. And yet wherever he turns he is reminded of it. The servants are quiet and fearful. The guards are tense and nervous, getting more aggressive the longer it drags out. Cherelle is still missing, no doubt having escaped already, all while the king continues to insist that she is somewhere at court, forcing every living servant and soldier to look for her.

They barge into people's rooms at any time of day or night, search through their belongings and leave the place a mess. They've turned Cosmo's room upside down more than once. People are brought into questioning, nobody is allowed to leave or enter the palace grounds anymore. Without Nayan, the situation at court suddenly feels much more serious than it did before. There is no longer any form of authority they can turn to, aside from Novus.

And Novus is a tyrant, controlling every aspect of their lives, destroying their rooms, working them to the bone and spreading fear at court. All because he is so hungry for power.

And in the middle of it all, Cosmo, Astro and Miriam have somehow fallen between the cracks. The forgotten pawns of his game that only stand and wait, for the day they will finally come to use. Cosmo has stayed in his room the entire time. He has stayed quiet throughout all kinds of questionings and room-raids, claiming that he knows nothing. All while he, Miriam and Astro are the only ones who know anything. It's been like living in a constant nightmare.

And now, this.

Now, his brother is gone, and the entire kingdom is starting to realise it. Cosmo doesn't want to know what Novus has done to Nayan. Nayan isn't the type of person who'd just disappear. He doesn't want to know so he doesn't think about it. Instead he concentrates on the present.

None of them can leave the palace, so they are all stuck here with King Novus and his rules. Miriam might be the eldest, but both she and the queen have been pushed aside. Cosmo knew that it was only a matter of time. He is the eldest of the two of them, him and Astro, and he is the one described as more mature. It was only a matter of time before his father called for him, and even though Cosmo knew exactly what he was going to say, it still came as a surprise.

He is nauseated, and although he hasn't gotten along with Nayan these past few years, he really, really misses his older brother. The only one who ever really stood up against their father. That's probably why he's gone, though. Cosmo doesn't want to think about it. He really, really doesn't want to think about it. He walks down the spiral hallway of his father's palace, and tries his best to keep the stern expression that he always upholds. Weakness is not something that he can show right now. Not now, and apparently, never again.

"What did he say?"

Cosmo nearly startles to death at the sight of his sister, standing behind the door of one of the rooms on the lowest floors. He looks around to see if anybody is watching, finding nobody. He gets inside whatever room Miriam is in, and closes the door behind himself.

It's a rather dark lounge area, most likely having been abandoned a few years ago because of how far away it is from the rest of the busy main palace. Miriam pulls him away from the door to make sure that nobody will listen in to their conversation. Cosmo sighs and drags a hand through his hair. They sit down on some old, green and dusty velvet couches in the middle of the room. Without a fire lit, it is kind of cold and drawy. Rain slams against the walls of the palace, spreading an unsettling feeling around them.