He just wanted to eat

Chapter 2

When Hisirdoux entered his room, Archie was still asleep, even lightly snoring.

Douxie wishes he had stayed asleep too.

He lied down on his bed and tried to sleep, he was tired, but he couldn't, his brain wouldn't stop working.

Everytime he closed his eyes, it was like he was still there, he could feel, hear, see, and smell everything.

He couldn't sleep, but he stayed in bed until he could hear Merlin walking around, outside of his room.

He slowly got up and changed his clothes. Archie was still sleeping, he usually slept until noon.

With the little basin of water he had in his room, Douxie washed his face, trying to make himself look a bit more presentable.

Finally, he stepped out and found his master walking around, picking up some things that belonged to his new project, but as soon as he heard Douxie's door closing he spoke.

"Hisirdoux, can you bring me my magnifying glass?" He asked his apprentice.

Hisirdoux didn't say anything and just went to get it. His throat hurt, and if he spoke, his voice would sound all weird.

Merlin thought it was weird that his apprentice didn't say anything, he always had something to say, so he looked around, to check if he heard the door or if he had imagined it, but when the boy was right in front of him and setting down the glass, he realised he hadn't imagined.

However, the empty look on the boy's eyes, the fact he wasn't speaking, and looking at the ground, made Merlin realise that something was very, very wrong.

"Is there something wrong?" The older wizard asked and the apprentice looked up with a forced smile and nodded. "Is it still the headache?" He asked, he thought it was unlikely, but after a couple of seconds, he nodded again.

Merlin noticed the way his apprentice was leaning on every wall he possibly could but never sat down, he also noticed the limp, it was impossible not to, but most of all, the boy carried this metallic smell that could only be associated with the smell of blood, and also a smell that Merlin couldn't quite identify as it was weaker than the smell of blood.

Something definitely happened.

Merlin decided that he wouldn't mention anything today, the boy was clearly disturbed.

"Maybe a warm bath will help with your head, I'll go ask for someone to prepare you a bath," Merlin said, and the boy tried to protest, he wanted to say he'd do it himself, but the man was already out the door.

Soon after, a maid, Catherine, one of the kindest maids in the whole castle, came to tell him that the bath was ready.

He followed her, not saying a word, and once they reached the bathing room, Catherine told him where she left the towel and he just gave her a smile as a way to thank her before she left and closed the door.

He heard her walk away, and turned to the bathtub.

When he reached to start to take off his clothes, was when he finally broke down.

As he sobbed, he managed to slowly take off his clothes, but it was so hard, because as soon as the air hit his skin, he could feel phantom hands all over him, even in places the man never touched.

He slowly got into the bathtub, his hiccups making the task more difficult.

When he felt the hot water, the hands stopped and slowly went away.

He eventually calmed down and when he properly opened his eyes, he saw that the water had changed colour.

He knew that it would be Catherine who he'd help cleaning up the bathing room, it was the least he could do, and he knew that she would ask why the water was that colour. He was the person who bathed more often in the whole castle, whether it was in a tub or a lake, it didn't matter, but he bathed, so it would be really weird for her to find the water in that colour.