The cursed child

Jongdae woke up in the dark. All the candles were blown out, the air was cold, there was no moonlight falling into the room.

It was dark.

The prince lay on the bed, looking straight into the nothingness.

There were no sounds reaching his ears, the space between them seemed to be frozen in time.

Nothing.

That was how he felt. He felt nothing, and he felt like nothingness.

Tired, exhausted, afraid, confused, guilty. That was what he was.

He was nothing.

 

“Mom!” a child shouted, running towards a tall, beautiful woman, laughing loudly, “mom!”

But the woman never turned around. Instead, a pair of arms wrapped around his small waist, and he was lifted up.

“The queen is busy, now, Jongdae,” he heard a familiar whisper next to his ear, and was taken to the kitchen.

“Hello, little prince,” an older lady greeted him, cupping his cheek, “would you like some cake?” she asked, smiling softly, and the child nodded enthusiastically.

“I wanted showed it to mum,” the child spoke, munching on a piece of vanilla cake, and put a piece of paper on a table. A drawing.  All the women in the room smiled sadly, and looked at the child sympathetically.

“I am sure she will love it, when she sees it,” someone patted the boy, and he smiled.

“Where is Sehun?” the boy asked, looking around, searching for the younger kid.

“He’s in the garden with Siwon. They are taking care of the flowers,” the woman that brought him to the kitchen replied.

“Oh!” the child exclaimed, his lips forming a perfect ‘O’, “I was supposed to meet with Sehun in the gardens later! I have a drawing for him, too, Nana!” he cheered, smiling his cat like smile from ear to ear, “I drew me, and I drew him, and a ship, and we were sailing to fight monsters in the far away places! We will be pirates one day! Pwe, pwe, pwe!” he explaind and started pretending he was shooting arrows.

The woman smiled at the boy, and her heart ached. She could not bring herself to the tell boy such thing will never happen. And knowing how little the boy had in life, he did not want to take the last thing from him. So she smiled, and said, “I am sure you will be the most fearsome pirates our world ever knew!” and laughing she pulled the boy into a tight hug.

The boy laughed out loud, a pleasant warmth spreading in his chest.

He loved being hugged.

“Naumi,” someone whispered to the woman, “the queen wants to see the prince.”

The woman, Nana, only tightened the embrace, and whispered into Jongdae’s ear, “be brave, little prince. Be strong, and be good.”

Then, someone pulled on Jongdae’s little hand, and when the girl looked at the child, he was smiling brightly at her, nodding his head.

“Alright, Nana! Jongdae will be a good boy! I will come over later, when I meet with Sehun!” he laughed, and disappeared behind a dark door.

“Happy birthday, little prince,” she whispered, and felt a weight on her shoulder. When she looked back, she was met with a concern face of the oldest amongst them.

“He will be back.”

 

But the prince never came back.

 

“Mom!” Jongdae exclaimed the moment he ran into a massive room.

There was a massive fireplace on a wall with a hug fire inside, with two big armchairs next to it, one of which was occupied by a stranger; there was a window that reached all the way from the floor to the ceiling. The room was rather dark, with reds and browns everywhere.

The queen was standing by the fireplace, her eyes focused on her guest, and she did not even bother to acknowledge the child. It was only when the boy was tagging on her dress that she looked down at the smiling boy. “It’s for you mummy!” he exclaimed, raising the drawing. The queen took it, examined, and without a words threw it into the flames.

Upon seeing that, Jongdae’s smiled disappeared, and his eyes watered. He stood there, watching his drawing of their family burn.

“Stop crying,” the woman ordered, giving him a disgusted look, “you are the Prince of the West. Westerners do not cry.”

But Jongdae did not hear her, sadness defeaning him. Warm, fat tears were streaming down his face, as he looked into the flames.

“I said do not cry! Or I will give you a reason!” the queen yelled, and slapped the boy. The shocked child fell to the ground, and looked up at her with fear in his eyes.

Jongdae did not understand what was going on.

“Grow up! You are no prince! You are a weakling! You were spoiled, and it is high time you got to know what it means to be from the West. It is time you stopped failing and disappointing me and your father.”

“Mo… mommy,” Jongdae cried as he got up, and he tried to near the woman, but she only backed off.

“Do not call me that. First of all, I am the Queen. I am your queen, child, then your mother. I am not to be called ‘mummy’, or ‘mum’. Show me respect,” she demanded, “Do you understand?”

Jongdae swallowed, not understanding what was going on, but he nodded.

“I asked if you understood!” the queen yelled, “the prince does not nod! Use words to express yourself!”

“Un-understood,” Jongdae mumbled, trying his best to stop the tears, as he was terrified of what might happen to him.

“You are no prince, Jongdae. You are nothing. It is high time you learnt what if expected from you. Follow me,” she ordered, and leaving the stranger in the armchair behind she left the room. With a heart banging against his chest, Jongdae followed suit.

Whenever they were passing by someone, everyone was instantly looking down or away. Jongdae did not understand.

When they were nearing his room, he was out of breath, as he spent half of the way running, not being able to keep up with the queen. Exhausted and cofused, he failed to notice that his mother stopped, and he bumped into her.

“I am sorry,” he mumbled, slowly getting up. He could not catch a breath.

“First lesson,” the queen said, “every mistake comes with a price.”

And before Jongdae could even realize, he felt a stinging pain on his cheek, and fell to the floor. His eyes watered again, and his head was aching. Then he was roughly pulled up and threw inside his room. He quickly got up, wanting to catch the woman and apologize to her properly, do anything he needed to do just to make everything right again. He did not understand what he did wrong, but whatever he was, he wanted to make it right.

But before he reached the door the queen shut it and locked him inside. With the sounds of a lock being turned to the side, his heart dropped.

“Mom!” he shouted, running towards the door, and banging on it with his little fists, “mummy, let me out! Let me out! Mom!” he screamed, “mummy, I’m scared! Let me out, mummy! Mummy, please, let me out!”

He was screaming until his throat hurt, his voice became horse, his tears dried, and his hands were bleeding.

He fell asleep on the floor, next to the door.

 

There was a knock on his door, but Jongdae ignored it. He was used to it by now. The door was locked from the outside, and there was no way he could open it. There was only one person having the key. And it was never the one that was knocking.

So Jongdae ignored the knocking, never adverting his gaze from the book he was reading.

Someone knocked again, once – twice – once – three times.

Jongdae looked up, and frowned. Then, he quickly threw the book away and slowly made his way to the closet. He opened it, pushed the clothes away, and quickly removed part of his closet’s back wall.

A secret entrance. It was built in case of fire, in times of the Great Wall. His mother must have forgotten about it.

Upon removing the piece, he saw a smiling face of Nana.

“Baby!” she exclaimed, rushing past him into the room, “I brought you something good!” she laughed, throwing her arms around Jongdae’s tense form.

“Nana, my mother forbade anyone to bring me food. You have to go,” Jongdae hissed, trying to push the older woman back into the hidden corridor.

“Oh, stop, Jongdae! I do not care what that old witch says!” she said, and Jongdae’s eyes widened, “look at you, my little prince,” her voice softened, and she placed a hand on the boy’s cheek, “you are so thin and pale, you almost look like death,” she whispered, and her smile faded, “my little prince, what happened to you? What has she done to you?” she asked concerned, running a finger over a bruise on Jongdae’s temple.

“Nothing, do not worry about me,” Jongdae replied coldly, pushing her hand away, “worry about yourself. You might get killed,” he hissed.

“I do not care!” the woman raised her voice, “I am not letting you starve, child! Come,” she motioned to him as she passed him and neared the desk, where she put a plate covered in a piece of cloth. Removing the unnecessary item, she reviled a deliciously smelling pork with vegetables and a small vanilla cupcake, “Happy Birthday! I cannot believe my little prince is already nine!” she squeaked, and hugged Jongdae tightly.

But Jongdae was like a statue, cold and unmovable. He pushed the woman lightly, not wanting to offend her, but at the same time not wanting to be hugged by her.

“I appreciate it, but you have to leave, Nana,” Jongdae said, feeling nervous.

“My little prince,” the woman sighed, pain evident on her face, “what happened to my little prince?”

“He’s gone,” Jongdae whispered.

“Eat, prince,” the woman said calmly, wishing he had never heard that.

Jongdae was scared, and nervous, and he wanted Nana to leave, because something terrible might happen if the queen found her there. But he was hungry. He was starving. He had not had much in his mouth for the last week. He failed in his combat lesson, so he must have been punished. He gave the woman the last glance, and quickly started eating, humming each time the meat touched his tongue.

He was almost done when it happened. He was enjoying the meal, Nana was telling him about things that were happening in the castle, when they heart a lock in his door being turned. Jongdae let the fork out of his hand, and the moment it touched the ground, the door opened.

“Well, well, well,” the queen said when her eyes landed on Nana and the food, “look who we have here. Our dear Nana.”

Jongdae thought his room became the North, as he suddenly felt really cold. His mother was terrifying.

“Guards!” she yelled, and a moment later two men ran into his room.

Everything happened so fast. He was terrified.

The men grabbed Nana, and kicking her in her legs made her kneel in front of the queen.

“My dear, Nana. It is a shame you came here today, really. You were such a good servant. But you need to know that every mistake comes with a price,” the queen declared, and looked at Jongdae. She knew very well that Nana was one of two people Jongdae cared about. And she decided to use it against him. “Your punishment is death,” she said, and left the room.

Jongdae watched him mother leave, and the guards taking a screaming woman behind her. He could not move. He was terrified. He could not believe it was happening.

Two days later Jongdae was standing in the first row at Nauem’s execution.

 

A loud knock brought Jongdae back from his journey down the memory path. At first he was startled, not really able to tell the past from the present. Jongdae hated closed rooms and spaces. He was afraid of them.

Then, someone knocked again, “Jongdae?” he heard a voice coming from the other side, “Jongdae, it’s Junmyeon. We are going to the library, are you ready?”

Library. Xiumin. Jongin. Kyungsoo. Baekhyun.

Jongdae suddenly felt a terrible weight on his chest, and he started having troubles breathing.

Too many people, too many lives he suddenly became responsible for. He did not want to care for his own, how did he come to care for others?

But it had to do with his brother. He had to help Jongin.

Trying to calm his beating heart and stabilize his breathing, he managed to get out of the bed and quickly changing his clothes into fresh ones, he opened the door, just to be met with a concern gaze of the other prince.

“Jongdae, are you alright? You look…”

“Terrible, I know,” Jongdae interrupted him and shrugged, “do not worry about me. Let’s go, we have things to do.”

“What are we starting from?” Jongdae asked when they were standing in the library. Sivers ran down his spine, as the library at night seemed cold, unpleasant, and dangerous. Without people, the building reminded him of a grave.

“Going down,” Baekhyun replied, and Jongdae frowned, “there is nothing here. We will not find what we came for on these levels. We need to dig deeper. Things that we need are the ones of the, how to say that, probably something no one would like us to find. So we need to go underground,” he explained, and taking a torch from the wall he turned around and started going down the staris.

They walked for what felt like forever, and when they finally reached their destination Jongdae forgot how to breathe. If he found upstairs to be like a grave, this place had to be hell.

Dark, cold, massive, with only a few torches by the entrance, spiderwebs almost everywhere, and what really scared him were bones scattered around the place. He did not dare to ask who’s bones they were. With each step he felt as if there was someone following him, trying to grab him and pull down, under the ground.

“Everyone, take one,” Bakehyun ordered pointing at the torches, “we will have to each go a different way. That will be faster.”

“Faster?” Jongdae asked, “we will die in here. This place is a labyrinth! We should not leave each other’s side.”

“I cannot believe I am saying this, but I agree with Jongdae,” Junmyeon nodded, “I do not want us to get lost here. Is there any other option?”

“There is,” Yixing said, “but first, let’s settle what exactly we are looking for. What kind of information?”

“The black arrow, I need information on Minseok,” Junmyeon said instatntly, clenching his fists.

Jongdae looked at him, and swallowed. “Should I tell him?” he asked himself.

“Jongdae, are you alright?” Baekhyun asked suspiciously, and Jongdae figured he must have been staring for too long.

“He is not,” Yixing replied for him, and he frowned, “Jongdae, what do you want to look for?”

“Black arrow,” he mumbled, “it has something to do with my brother. But I also want to know about the prophecy.”

“Let’s start with the arrow. I am not sure we would be able to find anything about the prophecy tonight. These are old tales, as old as time. If there’s any information about it here, it would be well hidden,” Baekhyun explained, and they moved to the centre.

After walking for another fifteen or so minutes between massive bookshelves, they stopped.

“I think we can start here,” Baekhyun mumbled, lifting the light to look at the books.

“What are we looking for?” Junmyeon asked, looking around confused.

“I have no idea,” the Guardian of the light replied, and the all gulped. Not wanting to waste time, they all went into another aisle and started looking.

After a few hours of not finding anything, Jongdae growled loudly and threw a book he was currently holding into a dark space in front of him.

“Jongdae?” Junmyeon’s voice came from behind him, so he quickly turned around, “are you alright?”

“There’s nothing here, Junmyeon. We will never find anything! We could as well be looking for a needle in a haystack!”

“Jongdae,” Junmyeon’s voice was soft and calm, and it startled Jongdae. Shivers ran down his spine, when he felt a hand touch his shoulder, “we will find it. We just cannot give up. We will figure it out, and find whoever hurt our families. We are in this together, Jongdae,” Junmyeon said, and when the words left his lips, something moved inside of the Westerner, “you are not alone,” he repeated, gripping his shoulder tighter, as if trying to reassure the other.

Jongdae was shocked. He was alone all his life. Always. There was never no one other than him that he could count on. Jongdae never had anyone else who would care. No one ever cares. No one ever did.

“You have me,” Junmyeon continued, seeing all the doubt and confusion in the other’s eyes. He did not know what Jongdae felt, but for the first time he realized, how broken and damaged his was. Something Yixing tried to tell him so many times, and something he could never bring himself to believe. This was not what people were saying about the Westerners. They were supposed to be soulless beasts, uncivilized barbarians, a nation that sees itself as gods, proud and vain. Jongdae was not like that. Junmyeon felt a weird need to take care of the boy, to try and help him put the lost pieces of him together. But he was not sure that was even possible anymore. “You have me,” he repeated, “you have Baekhyun, and you have Yixing. We’ll do it tog…

“Minseok’s alive,” Jongdae mumbled, overwhelmed by everything Junmyeon said, and how it made him feel.

“What?” Junmyeon asked, frowning, “what did you just say?!”

“Prince!” they were interrupted by Bakehyun loud yell, “prince Jongdae!”

“Junmyeon!” Yixing screamed as well, “come here! Quickly!”

The two princes looked at each other and frowned confused. They quickly got up from the ground and ran towards the other two.

“What is going on?” Junmyeon asked, eying the two boys sitting on the floor in between some old journals. They were both pale, and looked shocked.

“Have you seen death?” Jongdae mumbled.

Baekhyun got up, and tightening his grip on a very old looking journal, he neared the prince of the West, “I think you should read this, Jongdae.”

The prince frowned, and taking the journal he started reading.

“Can you read it out loud?” Junmyeon asked as he was beyond curious of what was so impotant. Jongdae nodded, and started reading out loud.

 

March, 18

 

It is my seventh week on the court of the King of the West. The winter came early this year, destroying much of the country’s crops,                                                                                                                             bad spirits entered the castle’s walls, and I do not know what might come, so I decided to write everything down.              terrible is hanging in the air.

                                   …the queen has been acting really strange. She used to very cheerful, and                                            but not anymore. I heard rumors that it is due to the fact she cannot get pregnant.

 

Janouary,20

 

The queen told me today, that it is                           pregnant. She also admitted that she if afraid of what her mother-in-law might do                                        no heir. Apparently, there are rumors going around the castle about a witch that lives in the Dark Forest.                                        …wants to meet her. I tried to tell her it was a bad idea, but I do not know if she is going to listen to me.                                                    …the whole country will be doomed. The queen needs to listen.

 

March, 25

 

So the rumors are true. Queen Hyeoyeon went to

 

“Wait… what is this thing about?” Jongdae asked, “my mother’s name is Hyuna,” he explained, looking from Baekhyun to Yixing. Both of them had pained expressions on their faces.

“Please, read Prince,” Yixing whispered.

Jongdae shrugged and continued reading.

 

Queen Hyeoyeon went to meet with the witch. She came to me today and told me in secret that she is pregnant.                           …afraid it might have tragic consequences for the whole nation. But the queen was so happy, I could not do anything else than just be happy for her. Her smile reminded me of my queen when she told me she was pregnant. I can only hope for this child to be luckier than prince Minseok.

 

Jongdae took a sharp breath, and so did Junmyeon. They both looked at each other, and then at the two other boys. The boy quickly looked down and started reading again.

 

April, 23

 

Bad things are happening. Yesterday, I found the queen drinking some weird potion. When I confronted her about it, she said that it was given to her by the witch to make sure that the pregnancy is safe. Witches are not kind and pleasant, and most certainly they do not make wishes come true just like that. She must have asked something from the queen, but I do not yet now what that was. I pray that they young queen did not do anything irresponsible.

 

May, 5

 

The queen told me today that she was expecting a boy. It has been long since the last time I saw her this happy. She was really glad it was supposed to be a boy. She knew her husband would love the child. She was going to give birth to his successor.                                          …happy, but I am not                                       … consequences. All the gods, have the West in your protection.

 

May, 20

 

A few days ago the king and the queen told the whole kingdom that the heir will be coming at the end of this year.                                   … the prince would be born towards the end of November. The kingdom has gone mad. People has been out on the streets from days now, celebrating the news.                               … they love their rulers. It is really nice to see                                           … afraid of what might happen to it.

June, 13

 

The queen fell ill. She lost weight, and it so weak she is not able to get out of bed. No one knows what is happening. Since the day she learnt about her pregnancy she was taking an extreme care of herself.                         … child is a miracle. Whenever I meet her, she can only speak of the prince.                                         … a loving mother.

 

June, 15

 

The queen is feeling worse and worse, and no one knows why. I know. She has been drinking the witch’s potions for months now,                                   … it is killing her. The witch is planning on something                              … who to tell? Queen Hyoeyeon is like a daughter to me                          … death might be the end of the dynasty.

 

June, 23

 

The queen told the king today to call for the witch. She told him about the potions, and he sent his best people to track that abomination and bring her to the castle. I hope they come back safe.

 

June, 25

 

The queen is dying, and so is the child. Everyone is already mourning them, even though they are not yet dead. Yesterday, the expedition that the king sent two day ago came back. Or rather its pieces. The witch sent us five heads.

 

June, 27

 

Today, the king decided to leave and look for the witch himself. Dark clouds are gathering above the castle, and the whole kingdom.

 

June, 30

 

The king came back with the witch, and she cured the queen. Hyeoyeon is all back to her normal now, and the child is going healthy. But the witch has not left yet, and it sends chills down my spine. Black magic has entered these walls.

 

July, 4

 

We are all doomed.                                      Hyeoyeon talked to the witch. She came running to me                            crying. There is no hope left.                        … the iwtch tricked her. Of course she did. The child is cursed. Hyeoyeon said                           price for getting pregnant. She could not stop crying.

 

 

“Pages are missing,” Jongdae noticed.

“We do not need them,” Baekhyun whispered, “just read the last ones,” he suggested, flipping a few pages. Jongdae swallowed, and after taking a deep breath he got back to reading.

 

 

September, 15

 

I overheard the witch’s conversation with someone today. I must write a letter to my queen as soon as possible. Prince Minseok’s life is in danger. The witch planned on kidnapping him. I cannot let it happen.

 

September, 20

 

Queen Hyeoyeon came to me today, and spent a few hours crying. She said she was thinking of running away, or killing the baby.                                    ….afraid of the witch. She did not want to bring a child into the world                           by the witch. She also told me that she had not been feeling well lately, and is afraid something bad can happen                                                                      hope she is wrong.                            …enough bad has already happened. I told her not to do anything irresponsible. I promised her we would figure something out.

 

September, 21

 

I failed to keep my promise. A terrible thing happened today. September, 21, 4 in the morning 27 minutes, the Prince of the West was born. His name is Jongdae

 

The journal hit the ground, and a loud bang echoed through the library. Jongdae was blankly staring on his hands, his eyes wide, his expression a compilation of so many emotions it was hard to name all of them.

Junmyeon stood next to him, and the moment he heard the last sentence, he gasped.

Everyone was silent, Jongdae and Junmyeon shocked, Yixing and Baekhyun sympathetic. Realising that the prince will not be able to finish, Baekhyun knelt slowly, and grabbing the book he stood back up. He looked at his friend, and Yixing nodded. Bakehyun clearned his throat and continued.

 

His name is Jongdae, and he truly is a cursed child. He was born on the darkest night in ages, and hit by two lightings. Everyone was terrified, women screamed. But the child was alright. The prince was lying in the same place, not crying, not screaming, just looking through the window at the dark sky. Something tells me this child is meant for great things.

 

September, 22

 

The West is no more. The cursed child was born in the sixth month, and will probably die soon. That was the witch’s doing. She wanted to get inside the castle, and the queen was her ticket. Hyeoyeon does not let anyone keep Jongdae. She has not left his side even for a moment. I heard her calling the child a Storm Bringer.                                                         …dark clouds are here to stay.

September, 23

 

It is time for me to leave. The witch took her price today. She took Hyeoyeon. She cursed her, turned her into a tree, froze her in time and space. This is the worst of all punishments. She will never die, but no one will ever know about that. I also learnt that when the king was gone to find the witch, he made a pact. The witch was to save Hyeoyeon and the prince, but the king was to marry the witch at some point.

 

September, 24

 

I went to the gardens today, to bid my farewell to my dearest Hyeoyeon. My heart bleeds, when I look at her like this. Turned into a cherry tree, hidden from the world, prepared to be forgotten. I looked at her pained expression engraved in the bark. All she wanted was to protect her child.                                                                                                                                                                                                                  …my time has come. If anyone finds this, I will be executed. The West has a new queen. But the people will never even notice the change. The king is The King, and the queen will always be the Queen. They have no names amongst their people. Hyeoyeon will fall into oblivion, and even her child will not remember her.                                                          …someone finds this journal, please tell Prince Jongdae of the West, that he is not a son of Hyuna, the wicked witch of the West. I hope the boy will survive whatever this hellcat as in store for him. If he truly is a storm bringer, I hope he will bring a storm that will clear the West from all the black magic that has been haunting these lands for centuries.

 

Jongdae swallowed. He was fuming. He clenched his fists, and felt electricity slow though his body.

“I will kill her,” he growled, lowly, and his eyes turned a dark shade of purple, “I will kill everyone.”

“Jongdae, you have to calm -,” Yixing started, but stopped the moment Jongdae looked at him, or at least in his direction.

Yixing could sense other’s emotions, and he knew very well what the prince felt, but he knew he could not proclaim a war on the Queen of the West on his own, acting like a lunatic. So he closed his eyes, and focusing to the fullest, he crept into Jongdae’s mind. However, the moment he got through, he took a few steps back and cut the connection.

Jongdae’s mind was a terrible place.

“Yixing, are you alright?” Junmyeon asked, quickly moving towards his finace.

The healer shook his head, “my prince,” he whispered, looking at Jongdae. He was not able to form a coherent sentence.

Jongdae took a few breaths, and when he calmed down to the extend he could think clearly, he cleared his throat, and making his final decision, he looked at a terrified Yixing, and a concerned Junmyeon.

“Prince Junmyeon, Yixing,” he started very formally, “I apologize, but I will not be able to your wedding. I have a witch to kill,” and with that he started walking towards the stair that would lead him up.

“Jongdae!” he heard Junmyeon’s yell, “Minseok! What did you mean when you said he is alive?” he could hear desperation in the other’s voice, and he sighed. He turned around, and was met with three pair of eyes looking directly at him.

“I have been meeting with him for some time now. He is dying, Junmyeon. But I will bring him back home,” he whispered, “I promise you, I will bring you your brother. But I beg of you, do not tell anyone yet. Because I cannot promise I will bring him alive.”

Welcome back! ~~~

It's been so long ! But omg, I know the poll suggested I should update PMLOOYFG first, but I just sat down today to this, and omg look what I got! I just had to update this beauty finally ! ;] and I am quite happy with what we have here! Are you? I hope so!

Please, comment, upvote and subscribe if you like it ! :) I really wanna know your opinion on this chapter, it'd mean a lot ! ~~

Best wishes,

badblood

P.S the blank spaces in the journal just mean blank spaces on the pages. These were the parts that were either crossed out, or something spilled on them, or were simply impossible to read :)

P.P.S this chapter has just been wirtten and updated straight away, so it was not proofread alright, sorry for all the mistakes and typos, I'll get through it at some point :)