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Once upon a time, in a land, far, far away, there were people, who were burdened by curses.
Being cursed is a horrible burden, especially when you don’t even know why were you cursed in the first place.
Atsushi figured it could have been worse. He could have been alone in the orphanage, having to endure his curse and the scorn of other children and caretakers alike all alone.
But he wasn’t alone. He had Lucy and Kyouka.
He supposed he was terrible for being relieved - what kind of person is happy that someone else has to endure what he was going through? Truly the worst of the worst. Maybe that’s why he was cursed in the first place.
“Don’t be stupid” Lucy frowned, once Atsushi told her that. “We were cursed because this world is not fair.”
Indeed, it wasn’t.
There were many kinds of curses - sometimes they were better, sometimes they were worse.
The three of them got the worst kind of curses - those that cause harm for people around them. There had been numerous injuries and destruction when their curses hit people around them.
“Cursed children curse everyone around them.”
It was something the director hissed first, and then other children started to whisper.
It was easy to believe, especially as both Atsushi and Kyouka had destructive curses - Lucy’s was more subtle, but possibly even more malicious.
There was no other place for them, though, so they stayed, and listened to the other stories. They listened to the tales of witches who caused the curses, or knights who braved them. The King and the Queen who passed away many years ago, advisors ruling now, until the Princess could be old enough to rule.
“Isn’t she about to be old enough yet?”
“I heard she is still being educated.”
“What about her brother, though? The Prince? Wasn’t he older?”
“Yes, but nobody tells us where he is. It’s the Princess, who will rule.”
“Maybe he is cursed” Lucy muttered, hearing the matrons talk, and one of them turned around, striking her.
“Do not talk about such things! The Prince isn’t like you pests, he does not get cursed. They aren’t from the Forest.”
“How do you know only children of the Forest are cursed?” Atsushi tried, but all he got as an answer was that he got struck as well.
So this is how they lived.
The learnt to stay quiet. Stay out of sight.
That was how cursed children lived.
The children of the Forest, they sometimes called them. Orphans whom nobody knew where they came from, so they said the fae from the Forest brought them to humans. Their curses showed their unnatural nature, because they were not supposed to be anywhere but the Forest.
Children at the orphanage were forbidden to enter the Forest, unless they went to nearby towns, in groups, strictly on the path.
Never stray from the path.
Not like Atsushi wanted to.
If he had really came from the Forest, he felt no inclination to return, but Lucy and Kyouka sometimes whispered.
“Maybe we could be normal in the Forest, you know” Lucy shrugged.
“Or maybe something would eat us” Atsushi shuddered.
“I think you would eat them first” Kyouka pointed it out, which caused Atsushi to shudder again.
Also, of course none of these names were their real names. Nobody they ever knew used their real names, because names meant power, and you don’t want to give the fae, the people of the Forest power over you.
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And then the knights arrived.
Two knights, one lady with beautiful blonde hair and another one, whose face was hidden. Everyone bowed to the knights, and led them inside to rest themselves and their horses.
Only the lady - Ser Higuchi, her name was - spoke about their quest, with the other knight disappearing to have a rest.
“I plan on winning the Princess’ hand in marriage, but she’ll only marry the one who saves her brother.”
The three cursed children were not supposed to listen, but it’s not every day you see knights around, do you? Especially not when you have a curse.
The other children all whispered together, and even the headmaster looked confused.
“Her brother? The Prince? What happened with the Prince?”
“He is being held captive by a creature. Unless the creature is slain, the Prince shall not return home, the Elders had said.”
Atsushi edged forwards a bit, trying to listen, when his hand slipped - Kyouka and Lucy tried to catch him, but he fell forward with a loud thud. Atsushi’s heart skipped a beat, and a winced when he heard the headmaster’s booming voice.
“You trash! Out of here, all three of you!”
Atsushi flinched when he got hauled to his feet, but…
“Unhand the children right now!”
Atsushi fell back with another thud, as Ser Higuchi rose to her feet, eyes hardened, and with the second knight also entered the room.
“But Ser Higuchi… these are children of the Forest. Cursed ones. Not a good sight for a kni--”
“Not all cursed are children of the Forest.”
At the knight’s interruption, everyone exchanged glances uncomfortably.
“But Ser… they are cursed.”
The knight glared again, and stepped closer to the stairs where the three were still cowering.
“Do the three of you wish to join us in our quest to save the Prince?”
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Obviously they said yes.
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They went to the forest, with the knights leading their horses on foot, and the orphans keeping up. They also did not stray from the path through the dark forest.
“So… the Prince?”
Kyouka asked nervously, and the knights were silent for a short while before Ser Higuchi answered.
“I guess you three would find it out sooner or later. But the Prince is cursed.”
“Princes don’t get cursed” Kyouka said, and the knight just shook her head as an answer.
“As I said, not only children of the Forest bear curses. The Prince ran away years ago, but we believe we have found him.”
“Held by a monster?” Atushi muttered, and the knight nodded.
“As far as we are aware. We plan on slaying the monster, and taking the Prince home.”
“Even when cursed?”
“Even when cursed.”
The five of them soon reached a clearing - the three orphans had never been this far from the orphanage - and soon there was a scoff heard.
“Oh great. Adventurers. Didn’t you all hear the rumours of the forest? Two knights and three children. What do we owe the pleasure?”
It was a voice of someone who was disgruntled, and all of their faces turned there, and Atsushi felt a chill run down his spine.
It was a man with long, blond hair, and he wore glasses, and clothes he never saw anyone wear, not even the wealthy people who sometimes came and adopted children.
He was tall and slender, a scorn on his beautiful face, and Atsushi felt like running away, and he felt Lucy tremble beside him.
They all know what this bespectacled man was.
Ser Higuchi stepped forward, gently bowing.
Atsushi also knew the rules, and clumsily followed suit along with the others. They were the ones trespassing, after all.
“Please let us pass through. We want to save someone important.”
“Don’t all of you?” The man in glasses snorted. “You all come here, begging to be get rid of your curses , going on your quests. And yet you never stop to think. Give me a reason to consider letting you go.”
Before anyone could have said something, Kyouka stepped forward, raising a hand towards the man with the glasses.
-
Curses are hard to control, but not impossible.
Sometimes people would get control over them - like Lucy had a better grasp at them, while Atsushi had none at all.
Kyouka was somewhere inbetween.
“People say our curses come from you. People said even we come from you” Kyouka said softly, as she started to glow. “I’m giving it back. I’m giving myself back. If something comes from you, it’s probably better off with you.”
Demon Snow.
That’s what she called her curse, the demon-like figure that appeared behind her back, wielding a sword. It looked like a creature from another world, white as a snow and when she emerged, blood was often spilled.
The fae of the forest just fixed his glasses, and he just looked at Kyouka, and he looked like he could look straight into her soul.
“You are all on your way to save a Prince you don’t even know. Would you really give yourself over for someone you never met?”
Fae don’t lie.
Similarly, fae don’t like lies.
So Kyouka opened her mouth to reply.
“I don’t care about the Prince. I just don’t want to return to the orphanage.”
The man just smiled a little - a small smile, barely visible.
“Very well. I will accept the offer.”
“Kyouka…!” Atsushi reached out, grabbing her arm.
“It’s okay, Atsushi” Kyouka smiled, and her smile was beautiful. “One day, I’m sure we’ll meet again.”
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