~Empathverse~

Despair/Malice's Backstory

In the center of Empathverse, there's a small world.

In the enter of that world, there is a tree.

But not just any tree.

The Tree.

The Tree of Feelings.

An almost exactly replica of the Tree of Feelings in the original Multiverse.

Surrounded by this Tree, by this world, are hundreds of other worlds, some big, some small, some light, some dark, some Positive, and some Negative. If a world lies on the Positive side of the Tree, it's a Positive world, and vise versa for the Negative side.

This Tree has two Guardians who keep the Tree safe from harm, as if the Tree dies, anyone who's soul is linked to the Tree will die. The Guardians are Despair, the embodiment of Negativity, and the Guardian of the Negative side of the tree. His brother, Hope, is the embodiment of Positivity, and the Guardian of the Positive side.

I'm Despair. A skeleton with a black and blue vest, a headband that's too big for my head, and a lot of bad luck.

My brother is Hope, who has a lot more luck than me. He's also shorter, though sometimes I wish he was taller than me so he could hug me easily when I cry.

We don't doo much as Guardians. Hope visits the townsfolk in the village, and I just... Sit at the Tree, reading. And the reason for that... Is because, over the past couple of years, every time I head into the village, the people there... Make fun of me. Sometimes they even throw sticks at me, though that's mostly the immature, young kids with horrible aim. Sometimes the sticks hit me, though...

One day, about two weeks ago, though... I had gone into the village to get some new books, and maybe sit in the cafe and drink some tea, when I felt a rock hit the back of my head.

~~~~~~~~

I walk along the gravel pathway, clutching a novel to my chest. It's a windy day, and it's cold. I want to get into the library where it's warm.

Something hard hits the back of my skull, and I fall to my knees. The book falls out of my hands and lands on the ground. I put my hand to the back of my head, and when I look at it, it's got blood on it.

"Tch, pathetic little Guardian." Someone sneers from behind me. I turn and see one of the villagers- I don't know his name- walking up to me. He picks up the rock that hit me and grabs me by the collar of my vest. "Why do you exist?" He asks. He pushes me down on the ground, and I whimper. "It's not like you do anything. You just sit up there and read. You have no reason to exist. No one needs you."

"Y-Yes they do." I mumble as he grabs me again. "T-The Tree n-needs Guardians..."

"Well we have Hope for that, don't we?" He bashes the rock against my skull, and I cry out in pain as he drops me. A small crack forms. It's not severe, but it does hurt. "We don't need two Guardians."

He kicks me in the ribs roughly and drops the rock. It lands on the other side of my skull, creating another crack. I cry out once again, and he walks off. Rain starts to pour, and I grab my book, stand up, and run back to the Tree. There, I curl up among the roots on the Negative side and sob.

~~~~~~~~

Over the past two weeks, I've attempted to go into the village again, but every time I do, I come back with more injuries. Mostly bruises, but one person did crack a rib once. I don't tell Hope about any of this. I just tell him I slipped on some rocks near the stream, or something like that. I don't like lying to him, but I don't want him to get hurt. He couldn't help me with this, anyway.