“Glad to know I’m appreciated,” came a gruff voice from the doorway. The man himself entered, and the boys rushed to take his cloak and pull up a chair for him at the table.
“What news from the palace?” Louis asked urgently.
“It’s not good,” Paul began ominously, and all four boys leaned closer in fearful anticipation. “First of all, the entire castle is in bedlam. Apparently King Simon has secluded himself in his chambers, permitting no one to enter. The palace guards have postponed their search for you until they receive further instructions,” he nodded towards Louis.
“That’s great!” Louis exclaimed. “This means Harry and I have a better chance of escaping the town undetected.
Paul held up a hand. “Wait, there’s more – Niall has been arrested.”
“What?!” all four boys exclaimed.
“Oh no, It’s my fault!” gasped Harry, clapping his hand to his mouth in horror.
“On what charges?” Liam demanded.
“Here’s the strange part,” said Paul, rubbing his beard and frowning, “The guard I talked to couldn’t give me any details, except to say that Niall isn’t being kept in the dungeons. King Simon requested that the boy be sent directly to his room. The guard said the king most likely wanted to mete out his special brand of punishment. Thought it was amusing, that bastard.” Paul had a look of disgust on his face.
“But why? Why would my father do that?” Harry asked, more worried than ever about Niall’s fate.
“Your guess is as good as mine. Rumor has it that the king has been acting most peculiar lately. Manic. On edge,” added Paul.
“Louis,” Liam said, frowning, “When is Niall’s birthday?”
“His eighteenth is not for another two months,” replied Louis in puzzlement. “Why do you ask?”
“The facts don’t really fit, and this is just speculation …” said Liam tentatively, “but do you think King Simon found a replacement for Harry? For the demon pact?”
There was a horrified silence as Liam’s words sank in. Then they all spoke at once.
“How would the king know –” began Louis.
“But Niall’s not turning eighteen yet –” said Harry
“It’s quite possible actually,” said Zayn. They all looked at him.
“What demon pact? What are you talking about?” said Paul in bewilderment.
They quickly explained the situation to Paul, then looked to Zayn for clarification. “From what I’ve studied about demon pacts, they are quite binding,” said the dark-haired boy. “Power granted by a demon always requires a sacrifice, which was supposed to be Harry. Once Harry proved no longer useful, the king had to find an equitable replacement. As his personal manservant, Niall is the most obvious and available option. The king is taking a risk, certainly, for Niall has not yet come of age, but if he doesn’t offer a virgin sacrifice, he would have to forfeit his own soul to the demon.”
“But if King Simon could use any seventeen-year-old virgin as a demon sacrifice, why go to all the trouble to raise Harry and keep him locked up for eighteen years?” demanded Louis.
“This kind of dark magic works best when there is blood relation,” Zayn explained patiently. “By giving up Harry, his own flesh and blood, the king will gain the greatest amount of power. Also, “virgin” refers not only to sins of the flesh, but includes any kind of sin, which is why the king felt the need to completely isolate Harry from the corrupt influences of the outside world.”
YOU ARE READING
Harpunzel || L.S. ✔️
Fanfiction"In most fairy tales, princes and stable boys don't usually have much to do with each other, and in the kingdom of Alluria, that was no exception. Once upon a time, however, a particular prince and a certain stable boy did meet, and here is their st...
4/4: Happily Ever After
Start from the beginning
