A/N—Here's a pic I drew. The left side is supposed to be Japeth and the right side is Aric. The building behind Japeth is supposed to be Arbed and the silhouettes fighting in the background on the right side is meant to represent the battle at the end of TLEA where Aric died. Do you guys like it? 🤨
~Japeth's POV~
Japeth was pretty sure Rhian had lost it. Rhian had become obsessed with fulfilling the prophecy of The One True King ever since Evelyn's dress had shown the twins the magical pen that had written out their supposed destinies.
A week after the mistral sisters' visit, Rhian began to mull over what to do now that the brothers had confirmation that King Arthur was indeed their father.
Apparently, the One True King was basically if a man became the Storian, which was the sacred pen that wrote all the fairytales in the woods. Japeth and Rhian learned that all the leaders of the kingdoms in all the woods wore rings that bound their loyalty to the Storian. But if those rings were to be burned and if those leaders put their faith in a man instead of a pen, that man would attain the powers of the Storian. Thus, man would become pen.
"We take over Camelot," Rhian had told Japeth days after the mistral sisters' visit. "I've been putting a lot of thought into this, and I think I have a plan."
"Oh yeah? And what do you propose we do to take over Camelot?" Japeth grumped at his brother, still struggling to wrap his head around the fact that Rhian had been right all along. Rhian truly was the heir of Camelot, but who would even believe him?
Rhian told Japeth that his plan would take time. And for a whole week, Rhian wouldn't stop bursting with ideas, so seemingly determined to fulfill the dumb prophecy that Japeth had become annoyed.
It was two days ago that Rhian arrived back at the house after a trip to the market. Japeth was fiddling with the tattered blanket that him and Aric had once slept on—the one he had yet to clean because he didn't want Aric's smell to fade away—when Rhian walked through the front door.
"Took you long enough, brother," Japeth groused, throwing his arms over his head to stretch and the scims wrapped around his torso squirmed.
Japeth expected Rhian to pull out the food he was supposed to have purchased at the market out of the bag on his shoulder. But when Rhian reached into the bag, it wasn't food he retrieved, but two books and a sleek mask.
"The tale of the Lion and the Snake," Rhian announced, pride in his tone. "It's an old story originating from Camelot."
Japeth resisted the urge to slap the smile off his brother's face. He stormed up to Rhian and snatched the bag off his arm to scour through it, but it seemed Rhian had forgotten about buying any food.
"So you spent the little money we have on some stupid bedtime stories?" Japeth sneered, enraged. His blue gaze sliced into Rhian, but Rhian's smile didn't waver.
"That's our plan!" Rhian said, a sense of excitement in his voice now. He thrust the two books towards Japeth, but Japeth didn't take them.
"The lion and the snake," Rhian repeated as if Japeth was supposed to catch on. "The lion is the good guy who fought the snake. The lion is like, the face of Camelot. Soon enough, Tedros is gonna take the throne and we can't have him be king of Camelot if I'm going to be it's king."
Japeth curled his fingers tight around the blanket in his hands, feeling the torn fabric caress the palms of his hands like a touch of comfort. In a way, this blanket was all Japeth had left of Aric along with the memories they'd shared together.
It felt everything had changed. But one thing that hadn't changed was Rhian's determination to one day take the throne as Camelot's king.
"Camelot has been in shambles ever since King Arthur's passing," Rhian explained. "The people expect Tedros to return Camelot to its former glory, but he's a little tied up at the moment with him fighting the School Master. But soon, he'll turn sixteen and ascend to the throne."
Rhian flung open the second book with a cherry red binding. He showed Japeth one of the pages; A beautifully painted picture took up most of the paper. The painting of a frosted haired boy clutching a blonde girl to his side. A sneer twisted the frosted haired boy's smooth face, a sneer that was directed at a blonde prince bound to a tree beside a black haired princess.
The End, is what the last page said.
"It's that girl," Rhian pointed out, placing his finger on the blonde girl's face. "The girl who the pen promised would help us complete the prophecy."
Japeth recalled that it wasn't just all the rings that needed to be burnt to fulfill the prophecy of the One True King. The pen gave direct instructions that the twins needed to find the girl who would wed the eldest brother and heal the other brother with her blood.
"Sophie of Woods Beyond," Rhian said, gaze alight in urgency. "She's the key. We need her."
Japeth couldn't help the scoff that ebbed from the back of his throat. He wanted nothing more but to rip the stupid book from Rhian's hands and throw it across the room. Maybe that would knock some sense into Rhian's damaged skull.
The only reason Rhian wanted to fulfill the damn prophecy was because he still wanted to become the King of Camelot. Rhian wanted to prove to everybody back at Arbed who didn't believe him that he was Camelot's lost king after all.
Perhaps though, proving those nonbelievers wrong wasn't all Rhian wished to accomplish. It was like a sudden flare of hope had sparked within Rhian ever since the twins learned of the prophecy of The One True King. When Rhian looked at Evelyn's dress, Japeth no longer saw the sadness weighing his brother down like a heavy burden. Instead, when Rhian looked at their mother's dress, Japeth saw hope upon Rhian's face.
To become the One True King would mean a man would attain the powers of the Storian. A man would be able to write anything, to control fate and wish for anything he so pleased using the powers of the Storian.
Japeth had a really good feeling about what Rhian wanted to wish for with the storian's powers. Rhian wanted to bring their mother back.
Besides, Evelyn Sader had loved Rhian far more than she could ever love Japeth. Evelyn Sader was the only person Rhian had ever wished for. She was the only person who he had loved more than he could ever love Japeth.
Japeth didn't care for the prophecy. He didn't care about bringing his mother back from the dead. And for some reason, Japeth never wanted to care about anything or anyone ever again.
How could Japeth bring himself to care about anything when he was still haunted by Aric's absence?
"That Sophie girl doesn't matter," Japeth told Rhian, shaking his head to clear his thoughts. "The prophecy doesn't matter."
"Than what does matter?" Rhian questioned, slamming the book closed. He didn't seem angry, but by the way his head shook, Japeth could tell Rhian was frustrated.
"The pen gave us clear instructions," Rhian went on, holding up a golden mask. It was the first time that Japeth saw it was the mask of a lion. "I say we fight each other. Not literally fight each other, of course. But pretend to fight each other. You'll be the snake and I'll be the lion, the hero eager to defend the woods from your attacks."
Deep inside his soul, Japeth felt a tornado of emotion whirl around inside him. It was a mixture of hurt and anger. Although Japeth knew Rhian believed he could change, Rhian saying that Japeth could be a snake—a villain who was believable enough to attack the woods—felt like a knife sinking into Japeth's gut.
All Japeth had ever wanted was his mother's love. Now, all he wanted was Aric. But perhaps Japeth's desires would never matter if even his own brother thought he would make the perfect snake. And maybe all anyone would ever see in Japeth was a villain who was undeserving of any shred of love whatsoever.
"We still need to work out a few things here and there, but I assure you that with you by my side, we can take over Camelot," Rhian continued, oblivious to Japeth's emotions. "It's my birthright. This is what I've dreamed of since I was a young boy, Japeth."
"What about my dreams?" Japeth breathed, staring at the lion mask clutched in Rhian's hands.
Rhian's expression softened and he looked like he wanted to comfort Japeth. But Japeth was far too distant from him, and if Rhian ever dared try to hug him, he'd strangle him with his scims.
"I'll take the throne as Camelot's One True King," Rhian said. His gaze shifted from Japeth's face to something over Japeth's shoulder, but Japeth didn't need to look to know what Rhian was staring at. "And with the powers of the One True King, I will grant you your greatest desire.
I'll give you the one person you've always wished for most...I promised we'd be a family again—you, mother, and I—and I meant it."
Japeth turned away from Rhian to stare at the ruffly white dress lying on the table.
He knew that if he were to reach out and caress it, the fabric would feel soft against his fingertips, like a mother's touch he missed so much.
But Evelyn was dead. Part of Japeth would always miss her despite how harsh he'd treat her, while another part of him had accepted her absence and gotten over her. He'd always love her, but the idea of having her back felt like nothing more but a foolish dream.
"You know I miss her too," Rhian spoke up, his voice gentle as if he could hear Japeth's thoughts.
Japeth did miss Evelyn. He'd loved her the best he could, but it had never been enough. She'd left him and Rhian behind for her own selfish reasons and Japeth still blamed her for that.
Rhian was too quick to forgive. He'd forgiven their mother for leaving, for dying like she did. Japeth, however, was still conflicted over wanting to forgive his mother for dying or wanting to hate her for getting herself killed.
"Mother can be enough for you," Rhian coaxed, and Japeth saw his gaze burning in passion.
Japeth should've been encouraged by Rhian's words, but nothing could change the fact that neither one of the brothers knew if their mother would stay with them or leave them behind like she had before.
For all Japeth knew, the prophecy didn't even work and the magical pen had dangled false hope in front of the brothers' faces. With this thought came the heat that bathed Japeth's entire being and his blood boiled a thousand degrees.
Rhian thought that him, Japeth and their mother could be one big happy family again. But too much time had passed since Evelyn left them. Neither brother was the same sons they'd been years before Evelyn left them in Arbed.
Rhian thought he knew Japeth. Rhian thought he could use their mother's death to worm his way into Japeth's heart, make him believe he was something he wasn't.
The fact was that Japeth was no snake! He was just a boy. A boy who was still yearning for his best friend back.
"You don't know me, Rhian," Japeth muttered angrily, turning his attention back to the dress which was now dormant as if it'd never came to life in the first place. "I'm selfish and broken!" Japeth snapped, angry tears threatening to fall before he wiped them away. "There's no coming back from what's happened."
Japeth heard footsteps coming behind him as Rhian drew closer until Japeth could feel his brother's bodily warmth at his back. Still, Japeth didn't turn around, gaze fixated on Evelyn's dress.
"You can change, brother. I know you can," Rhian whispered softly, placing a hand on Japeth's shoulder. The scales coating Japeth's shoulder squirmed as Japeth's Scims shied away from Rhian's touch.
"You think I wanna spend the rest of our lives in this crappy house as much you do?" Rhian asked, and Japeth finally looked at him to find Rhian was gesturing around the room.
"I know, together, we can get through this," Rhian told Japeth, his blue-green gaze hopeful. Than, Rhian reached for Japeth's arm, his movements sure. "Trust me, please."
Deep down, Japeth did want to trust his brother. He wanted to trust Rhian with every fiber of his being. But he couldn't. He couldn't trust Rhian not to hurt him all over again. Because Rhian had hurt Japeth. He'd allowed Aric be banished without a second thought, and that was something Japeth would never forgive.
Rhian's hand touched Japeth's arm, and fingers curled around the length above his elbow. Japeth couldn't bring himself to speak as he felt Rhian's bodily warmth overcome him.
"We can get Mother back, Japeth," Rhian persisted, squeezing Japeth's arm as Japeth shoved him away. "Don't you wanna see her again?"
"You go on and do what that stupid pen says for all I care," Japeth hissed, turning away in anger. "You're getting your hopes up, brother. She's dead, just like our supposed father, King Arthur..." He trailed off, muscles tense in anger.
"Japeth, Please," Rhian pleaded, reaching for him. "I can't do it alone. All you have to do is go along with my plan. I'll be the lion and you'll be the snake and we'll take over Camelot together. It's the perfect plan, but it's not a one person job. I need you."
Japeth had to admit Rhian had come up with a really clever plan, but that didn't mean Japeth would just join him. Rhian would have to try much harder than that to convince Japeth to join him.
"Find someone else to be the Snake in your dumb plan," Japeth fired, glaring over his shoulder at Rhian. "Just go away now." His voice cracked as he swung away, fists curled. "Just...leave me here. You know I won't miss you."
Silence hung in the stifling air. Japeth expected to hear Rhian's footsteps recede as he stormed out of the house. But the house was so quiet Japeth could hear the pounding of his own heartbeat in his chest.
Part of Japeth wanted to scream at Rhian while another part of him wanted Rhian to stay. As much as he might despise his brother, Rhian was still his other half. Japeth had to still care about Rhian because if he didn't, that would be a betrayal against their twin bond.
But the thought of hurting Rhian in the same way Rhian had hurt him was a considerable idea to Japeth. To make Rhian suffer the same way Japeth was suffering without Aric...Yet, Rhian had lost his own friend, Kei, who'd turned his back on him to go to Camelot.
Although Japeth and Rhian might be even, Japeth still hated the fact that Aric was gone and that Rhian had been the one to cause his banishment. To Rhian, banishing Aric had been the best thing for Japeth, but to Japeth, Aric's banishment was the worst thing that could've possible happened to him.
Rhian was still there, and it was so quiet, Japeth swore he could've heard his brother make his exit. Sure enough, Japeth found the strength to turn around.
"I said leave me here, Rhian...in the company of aloneness," Japeth objected, seeing his brother still hadn't moved away.
"You're not alone, Japeth," Rhian fired back, the conviction clear in his tone.
"Without Aric I am," Japeth breathed quietly, but Rhian had heard him and a brief look of annoyance flashed across his face.
"This isn't about Aric," Rhian said tersely, keeping his cool. "This is about us getting mother back. I need you."
A Hot flare of anger overcame Japeth and he dug his fingernails deep into the scales on his arms, so hard that his scims gurgled in discomfort. It felt like his blood was boiling a thousand degrees as he resisted the urge to lunge at his brother.
The only thing that kept Japeth from attacking Rhian was the remembrance that he'd chosen to take Aric's words to heart and to not succumb to his emotions. Boys don't cry.
So Japeth wiped his teary eyes and took a deep breath to compose himself, struggling to calm down his racing heart.
"Well, maybe I don't need you," Japeth murmured to Rhian.
It was a low blow, and Rhian flinched as if Japeth had very well struck him across the face.
A good brother would've apologized for saying something so harsh. A good twin would've taken those words back quicker than they could blink, but Japeth said nothing. He just watched as Rhian's expression twisted into a look of pain.
For a long moment, Rhian looked from Japeth to the books he'd set on the floor. He looked at their mother's still dress, lying on the table, and his fists clenched.
"Fine!" Rhian snapped, his voice sharp. His gaze burned into Japeth. "If that's your wish, than I'll grant it right now! You obviously want some space away from me, so I'm leaving."
Japeth's scims squirmed against his skin, but Japeth's attention was too fixated on his brother to care about their distress.
Rhian grabbed a ratty coat from the hanger by the window. He slipped it on before he swiped an oil lamp sitting next to the basin tub. Although it was mid afternoon, the sun was fading fast. So Rhian lit the lamp with shaking fists, his lips in a flat line of disapproval.
"I'm gonna go take a walk, and when I come back, you better have made up your mind on the matter," Rhian growled. He turned and went outside, slamming the front door behind him.
Japeth didn't stare after him. Oddly enough, Japeth felt no remorse or pity for driving his brother away. In fact, all he felt was his heart darken as if his last shred of humanity was fading away.
Japeth realized he was still clutching him and Aric's blanket, and he painstakingly loosened his grip, letting the fabric fall to the floor.
Japeth made his way over to the table and he gazed down at the white dress looking so out of place in the old house. With shaky fingers, Japeth extended his hand, and his skin cane into contact with the lace of his mother's dress.
The dress didn't move. Japeth scooped it up into his arms and pressed it against his chest. The ruffles of the dress tickled his scims but he only held his mother's dress closer as if holding it close gave him strength.
"I'm not like Rhian," Japeth whispered to Evelyn's dress. "I'm not hopeful like he is. I'm not good. But I loved you the best I could, and now you're dead..."
Japeth's gaze found the blanket heaped on the floor just inches away from him, and his eyes stung in unshed tears as he pictured Aric and him lying beside each other on it.
"But I still care for Aric and I—I think that's enough," Japeth whispered into the empty house. "It's the best I can do."
Japeth stroked the lace of Evelyn's dress and he stilled for a moment as if awaiting for his mother's dress to come back to life before his eyes.
Nothing happened.
Japeth sighed and tenderly placed the prim ruffly white dress back on the tabletop, running his palm over it to smooth out the wrinkles in the fabric.
He couldn't help but recall him and Rhian's argument. Rhian was trying so hard to convince Japeth to join him in his crazy plan. Rhian wanted to bring Evelyn back for Japeth.
For a long time after Evelyn's abandonment, Rhian hadn't showed much of any consideration towards Japeth's feelings. For a long time, the brothers had been distant. But now, after leaving Arbed, Rhian seemed to be more expressive about his emotions towards Japeth.
All Japeth had ever wanted back in Arbed was Rhian's approval, but now Rhian was the one who wanted Japeth's approval. Without Japeth, Rhian didn't think he could fulfill the prophecy of the One True King.
Somehow, Japeth no longer wanted Rhian's approval. He didn't want their mother back either. All he wanted was Aric, but that was just a dream of Japeth's that Rhian didn't care about.
Rhian would never care for him and Aric's friendship. He would never care about Aric in the way Japeth did. Never in a million years.
Japeth bent down to pick up the blanket off the floor and he folded it in his arms before setting it down in the living room chair.
The house was strangely silent, especially now that Rhian had gone away. Japeth felt emptiness curl in his gut, but he wasn't as alone as he seemed.
There, at Japeth's feet, was the mask of a lion and the two books Rhian had left behind. The eyeholes of the lion mask peered up at Japeth from below as if taunting him.
Japeth glared down at the golden mask before he felt foolish for even doing so. It was just some silly mask. Nothing more.
Japeth kicked the mask away and watched it skid across the floor, thumping against the wall.
"Like I'll be some snake," Japeth grumbled under his breath.
He was angry at his brother, but most of all, he was angry at himself for ever thinking he could let Aric go in the same at he'd let his mother go.
—————
Sorry for not updating in a while! I had to do School finals and I went camping with my family too, so I've been busy!
Anyway, what'd you guys think of the chapter?
The next chapter is gonna be, let's say emotional, so you better be prepared!
Comment and vote?
Thanks for reading! I appreciate it!
—Alexis Peters 🥰