Impossible (A HEARTLESS Fanfic)

Chapter Twenty-Two

Hatta stroked his chin in contemplation as he gazed at the chessboard. The white queen was flanked by both white pawns. The red pawn with a white heart had now changed sides, sitting herself just behind the white queen. His attention drifted across the board to the heartless red queen, surrounded by her royal pieces. The sides were evenly matched, although the red queen appeared to have more powerful players on her side. However, in addition to her bishop whose heart was white, her knight had suddenly developed a heart of his own—a blue heart. The Queen may have powerful subjects at her disposal, but most were not dedicated to her cause.

A thought came into Hatta's head, and his face involuntarily scrunched up, as if he had eaten something sour. Narrowing his eyes, he fished an object out of his vest pocket.

The white rook.

Still marked with a black X, Hatta now considered the murdered piece. His lavender eyes wandered back and forth, twitching every so often. His grip on the rook tightened.

It can't be possible, he thought to himself.

But his memory flashed back to when the clown had grabbed him by the shoulders, trying to shake him out of his madness. For the briefest moment, Hatta could have sworn he had seen a change. It had only been a flicker. Had he blinked, he would have missed it. But he was sure he had seen it.

A flash of yellow.

Yellow as a fresh lemon.

Hatta shook his head. As soon as he had seen it, though, the clown's eyes had returned to their dull brown color.

Had it been madness? Was he truly spiraling into an insanity from which he could not return? Was this the prophecy proving that he couldn't escape his fate?

Or...

His hand hovered over the chessboard, poised to place the rook back on their side, right alongside his own pawn.

But he withdrew his shaking hand.

With a harsh laugh, he tucked the rook back into his pocket and revealed instead a white bishop. He placed this new piece beside their queen. Bringing his face closer to the board, his eyes level with the playing field, he stared intently at the newest member of their army.

"Who are you?" he wondered.