RIGHT WHERE YOU LEFT ME [ owl house ]

five

"well what do we have here?"

i stood in the middle of what seemed to be a throne room. i was shaking. in the throne was a man. he wore a golden mask that looked to have devil like horns. "it seems to be a human." a soldier spoke up.

it was the one who trapped me in the woods and brought me to this strange place. "a human?" the man in the throne asked.

the soldier to my left nodded, "it has rounded ears."

they were addressing me as if i wasn't in the room, and they were calling me an 'it'.

"show me."

my gaze shot up to the man in the throne. then two other soldiers grabbed my arms and forced me up to the throne. "get off!" i shouted.

"please, don't hurt our guest."

the sudden kindest scared me, and the soldiers too. i felt them stiffen up. they let go of me and i walked forward, not that i actually wanted too.

"i apologize for their hostility." the man said, "it's not normal for someone like you to be here." that confused me. the man looked at me ears. "you are human, right?"

i nodded, "what do you mean, it's not normal for someone like me?"

"where are my manners?" the man almost laughed. he reached up for his mask and took it off.

he looked rough. really rough. his face was scared with green. his blue eyes looked welcoming but seemed to have a different undertone. the man's ears were not normal. they were stitched like if something caused them to be cut. they were also pointed.

he had a smile on his face, "I'm emperor belos."

"again."

belos stood in the training room with myself and hunter. i was fucking exhausted. "if i may, emperor," hunter spoke, lifting up his mask, "we've been training for ten hours, if we don't-"

"i said; again." his voice was much more menacing that time.

hunter nodded and gave me a sympathetic look. he was tired too. i could see it in his eyes. he didn't put his mask back on and i had taken mine off a while ago. i shrugged slightly.

"go." belos spoke.

"you've let me down."

i kept my gaze on the ground. hunter was in front of me, kneeling to belos.

"i understand, my lord."

belos's blue eyes were glowing, "you understand there will be a punishment, correct?"

"yes, emperor-"

"it was my fault." i cut off hunter. both of their gazes shifted to me. i was shaking. "it's my fault we didn't get the palistrom wood." i wasn't looking at hunter, but i could feel him staring at me through his mask.

belos turned his head slightly to the left, "well i am thankful for your honesty, unfortunately you will still both be punished."

"i understand, emperor belos."

"kill me. it's your mission right? so do it."

"you- you want me to do it?"

i groaned. "do you want to get killed by your uncle?"

the powerless witch raised his staff at me. the red stone on the point, glowed a bright. "i won't." with that, the red glow died off. i looked up and hunter was just standing there. "if you make it out," he began, "go back to the castle. belos would rather see you survived on your own then find you on the streets as a criminal."

he ran off.

belos might not have wanted me to turn out to be a criminal in his eyes, i knew if i made it out, i was never going to go near that damn castle ever again.

word count: 607