In the Arms of Absence

Hopefully and Wishfully, We'll Meet Again

lennox teiwind (in Raphael Bendyke)

It had been three days since that horrible discovery. The pain and emotions were still raw, refusing to fade. He was shattered, barely holding himself together. He wanted to search Raphael's room, to find some clues , but every step he took was weighed down by his grief.

What kind of place was this? He felt like a stranger in a cruel world. Desperation clawed at his heart as he longed to return to his real family, to the safety and love he had known. He missed his father, who would have moved heaven and earth to protect them, who would have killed anyone who dared harm a single hair on his mother's head. He missed his siblings, their playful teasing, and even their annoying habits.

He would give anything to have it all back, to be with them again. The ache of loss was unbearable, and he felt lost, consumed by a longing that seemed to have no end

He kept himself occupied with his , no, Raphael's siblings. He needed something, anything, to distract him from the turmoil inside. He refused to speak to Martha or Kloff Bendyke. Yes he would never call this man his father.

Martha tried to brainwash him with tales of the cruel things the evil Count Teiwind had done to her poor master. But her words only fueled his anger. The more she spoke, the more his fury burned. How could they expect him to accept this twisted reality? He was furious, seething with a rage that threatened to consume him whole.

Martha thought he was mad because his father had scolded him for searching for Aeroc Teiwind. But the reason was far deeper, far more painful.

"Young master, try to understand, your father loves you," Martha told him on the fourth day after he had seen Aeroc's tombstone.

He clenched his fists, struggling to contain the storm within. "Why would a mere name cause so much harm?" he retorted, his voice trembling with barely suppressed emotion. He couldn't understand why a name, a memory, could shatter his world so completely.

"You don't know that devil; he killed your mother," Martha started to cry.

"But what Father did to him... was that justified? He was a fallen noble, right?" Lennox asked, a bitter smile on his lips. "I asked the servants. They told me about the Count. Do you expect me to believe that Father had nothing to do with it?" Lennox slid closer to her, his eyes piercing.

"Yes... he deserved it for what he did," Martha replied, without a hint of remorse.

Lennox looked at her, seeing the woman who had the same face as his kind-hearted nanny. Yet, in this world, she was nothing but a blind follower of Kloff.

"I want to visit my mother's grave," Lennox said, his voice steady.

Martha smiled at his words. "Sure, young master... I'll come with you."

"No, I want to meet my mother alone," Lennox insisted, a fake smile masking his true feelings. His mother had trained him well in hiding emotions, a skill he never thought he'd need in a different world.

Martha nodded, turning to leave his room and prepare for the visit. Lennox watched her go, his heart heavy with the weight of this unfamiliar life. He needed this moment alone, to connect with the only semblance of family he had left in this twisted reality.

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At the family sanctuary,

At the family sanctuary, the air was thick with a solemn quietness. The path to Raphael Westport's grave felt endless, each step echoing the heaviness in Lennox's heart. He walked alone, his mind a tumult of memories and emotions.