Chapter Text
Scar stood in his room, gazing into his mirror. He grabbed a green ribbon from the table beside him and carefully tied his long brown hair back into a braid.
He grabbed his uniform and dressed himself quickly. The king wanted to speak with him, and Scar couldn’t keep the king waiting.
He made sure his long brown hair was tied tightly as someone knocked at his door.
“Sir Scar, his majesty is waiting.”
Scar grabbed his sword and responded, “Yes, Jimmy, I’m almost ready.”
Scar secured his sword to his side and hustled to the door. He swung it open and was greeted by the stern face of the king’s advisor.
The king’s advisor was a short, stubborn man by the name of Jimmy. He stood with his arms crossed and an impatient look on his face.
“Taking our time today, I see,” Jimmy said in a somewhat irritated tone. Scar nudged him enthusiastically. “Come on Jimmy,” he said, “It’s a wonderful morning.”
“It’s raining,” Jimmy replied plainly. Scar smiled at him as they began walking. “The rain is lovely,” he replied.
The two walked silently down the long hallway. Scar admired the large tapestries as he walked by them. They always amazed him, ever since he was a child. Each one was a blaze of brilliant colors, telling a story. Some spoke of love, some of war, some of magic. Each one completely unique, each one fascinating Scar.
Jimmy nudged him. “Pay attention. We’re almost there.” Scar nodded sheepishly. “Yes, of course.”
They came up onto a grand pair of doors. They were a gorgeous oak, with a deep red paint snaking around them. Small rubies adorned the door, making it one of the most elegant sights in the entire castle. They were even more grand than the tapestries. Scar loved the doors to the throne room.
A blonde man stood outside of the doors. He saw Jimmy and Scar approach and nodded towards them. “Good morning Sir Scar, Jimmy,” he said. Scar smiled at him. “Good morning, Martyn.”
Jimmy simply nodded at Martyn and took his place at the other side of the doors. “Ooh, grumpy today, are we Jim?” Martyn asked teasingly. Scar laughed. “Isn’t he always?”
Jimmy rolled his eyes and stood silently. Martyn let out a chuckle and turned to Scar. “His majesty is ready for you,” he said.
Scar took a deep breath as the doors swung open. He held his head high and entered the throne room.
The king sat on his throne and looked somewhat tired. He looked off to the side, seemingly zoned out. His golden crown sat a bit crooked on his scruffy brown hair.
Scar stepped before him and bowed. “Your majesty,” he greeted. The king seemed to jump at the sound of the knight’s voice. “Oh, yes, hello, Scar.”
Scar looked at the king’s tired face with worry. “King Ren,” he said, “Are you feeling alright?”
Ren lifted his arms and stretched. He rubbed his eyes and blinked. “Yes, I’m quite alright,” he responded, “I suppose I was up too late, taking care of paperwork and all that.”
Scar nodded sympathetically. “Yes, being king must be exhaustinghard work,” he said. The king looked at him, almost absently. “Yes, paperwork, taxes, all that.”
Scar looked at the king, hoping that it wasn’t too obvious what his intentions had been with his question.
Scar had been hoping for a promotion for years. He had been a knight since boyhood, and worked hard every day of his life. He had stayed loyal to the king and done everything without complaint. But he had grown tired of simply being a knight. He wanted more, he wanted to prove himself to the king.
King Ren had bore no children of his own, never having married. He had spent so much time focused on the kingdom that he hadn’t really looked. Scar admired his dedication.
“Scar,” King Ren began. Scar stood a bit taller, hoping that today was the day that he got his promotion. “Yes, my King?”
Ren barely glanced at him. “I need you to patrol the grounds tonight. Be on high alert,” he said.
Scar felt his shoulders droop a bit. “Oh,” he said, trying to keep the disappointment out of his voice. “Yes, your majesty.”
Ren nodded at him. “That is all,” he said. Scar bowed and left the throne room, his spirits a little bit dimmer than before.
Outside, Martyn was laughing at something. Jimmy sat with a stern look on his face and arms crossed. “You aren’t funny, Martyn.” Martyn was practically shaking with laughter. “You- you’re,” he managed to breathe out between fits of laughter, “you’re ju- just a toy.”
Jimmy rolled his eyes. “I am not a toy.”
Both Martyn and Jimmy looked up when Scar stepped out of the throne room.
Martyn’s laughter died out at the sight of Scar’s disappointed expression. “No promotion today, I suppose?”
Scar shook his head. Martyn offered Scar a warm smile and placed a hand on his shoulder. “Well,” he said, “there’s always next time.” Scar nodded, perking up a bit. “You’re right,” he said.
“I have to get to training before this evening’s patrol,” Scar said. Martyn nodded. “Have fun, Scar.”
Scar smiled and left. As he walked through the corridors of the castle, he took his time admiring the different paintings and banners that lined the walls.
Scar loved the castle. He had lived here for about ten years now. Scar had moved in as a boy, taken in by the king after he lost his family. Scar served the king loyally after that day. He wanted to repay the king’s kindness with his own service, so he was honored when the king made him a knight.
Scar remembered that day. He had always dreamed of being a knight, and the day he was knighted felt like a fantasy finally coming true. He was forever grateful to the king for all he had done for Scar. Scar was positive that he would repay the debt for the rest of his life.
Scar approached his room and entered. He needed to bandage his hands before training began.
As Scar sat down to wrap his hands, he gazed into the mirror that sat before him. He reached his hand to a mark on his cheek. He traced it carefully with his fingers, feeling the way the scar was etched into his face.
He shuddered. That scar came with many bad memories. It was a reminder of all he had lost, all he had destroyed. It was a scar that filled him with guilt. That scar was a burden he would always carry with him.
Scar jumped at a knock on the door. “Sir Scar? Training is in ten minutes.” “Oh, yes! I’ll be there shortly!” Scar replied, pulling himself from his thoughts. He quickly bandaged his hands, which now trembled a bit.
Scar rushed eagerly out the door, walking speedily to the courtyard where training took place. He arrived a bit out of breath, hoping he wasn’t late.
A figure stood behind him. “Greetings, Sir Scar.” Scar turned around, startled. Behind him stood a man with shining silver hair. He had a scar over one of his dark eyes. Scar saluted and greeted him. “Hello, Sir Etho,” he said, still a little winded from his jog over.
Etho gave him a smile. “Relax, Scar. You’re early, just like always.”
Scar gave a relieved sigh. “That’s good,” he said, smiling.
Etho laughed. “You’re doing great, Scar.”
Training seemed to fly by that day. Scar performed well and received some envious glances from his peers along with praises from Etho.
As he left training that day, Scar couldn’t help but feel content. He had a life that others would dream of. He was respected by the king and nobles, he had plenty to eat and nice clothes to wear, and was able to protect the people close to him.
Scar felt a little saddened at the thought. He knew how grateful he should feel, but part of him felt empty. It was like a fragment of him was still missing, and was unable to be replaced.
Scar shook his head, trying to free himself from those feelings. He took a deep breath and brushed himself off. He checked his pocket watch. It was almost 6 in the afternoon, so he began to head out for patrol.
With every step Scar remained watchful, although it was hard trying to keep himself focused. Everything in and around the castle amazed Scar. He had lived here for almost half of his life, but he still felt like a newcomer. He looked at the world with the curious, fresh eyes of a boy, although he’d matured rather quickly.
Scar rounded the castle’s main hallways before he headed out to the courtyard. He arrived at the gates to the courtyard and took a deep breath, enjoying the air.
Scar stepped outside, and immediately felt the cool evening breeze. He smiled to himself as he felt it pass by.
The sky had now grown dim, the sun already sinking behind the horizon. Large clouds filled the sky, obscuring any early stars that had already begun to shine.
Scar glanced around the courtyard, scanning for any signs of intruders or vandalism. He scanned the walls of the courtyard, searching for anything remotely suspicious.
He didn’t notice anything at first, simply glancing at the tops of the walls. However, he had to do a double take as he spotted something odd.
Scar squinted at the top of one of the walls. “Is that,” he asked himself, “Is that a person?”
He ran up to the wall and stared up at it. A figure sat on top of the wall, looking down at the courtyard, as though searching for something.
“Uhm, hello?” Scar called up. The figure looked down surprised. It jumped up quickly, but froze, as though unsure about its next action.
“Oh, careful!” Scar called. He knew that he should be more concerned about his own safety considering a strange person was standing above him, but he couldn’t help but be a bit concerned at the figure’s precarious position.
The figure nodded, as though to confirm that they would be careful, before they looked down slowly. Scar stared at them. “What are you doing up there?”
The figure crossed its arms. “Wouldn’t you like to know,” it said mockingly. Scar nodded. “Yes, I would like to know. That’s kind of why I asked.”
The figure looked at Scar wonderingly. They were filled with a certain level of curiosity, although they still stayed wary. “What are you doing?” It asked in reply.
“I’m patrolling the castle,” Scar said matter-of-factly. “That’s my job as a knight.”
“You’re a knight?” The figure asked. “You look awfully young to be a knight.” Scar placed his hands on his hips. “I am a perfectly capable knight, thank you,” he said indignantly.
The figure raised its hands up defensively. “I’m sure you are,” they said. Scar could hear the smirk on their face. He smiled a bit at them, finding a strange enjoyment of their witty personality.
For a moment, the cautious attitudes left both of them. It didn’t feel like two strangers who were both wary of each other, but instead two people who were enjoying each other’s presence.
“What are you doing in the dark?” Scar asked, still curious. The figure looked down and responded, “I’m watching.”
Scar glanced around. “For what?” The figure placed a hand on their hip. “You ask a lot of questions, huh.”
Scar rolled his eyes. “I wouldn’t have to if you would stop acting so secretive and actually answered me.” The figure shrugged. “That’s fair.”
“So,” Scar asked again, “Who are you?”
The figure looked around quickly, as though making sure they were both alone. Carefully, they pulled their hood down, revealing a young boy about Scar’s age. His face was covered in freckles, and his hair was a mess of light brown curls. Even in the darkness, Scar could see his mischievous shining blue eyes.
The boy looked down at Scar and smiled. “You can call me Xelqua.”
Scar stared up at him in wonder. “That’s a cool name!” He smiled. Xelqua grinned proudly. “I know,” he said.
Xelqua sat back down on the wall, the feelings of wariness now beginning to disappear. “Where are you from?” Scar asked eagerly.
Xelqua shrugged. “The Eastern side of the kingdom.” Scar nodded, as if understanding. After a moment, he asked, “What’s it like there?”
Xelqua looked at him curiously. “You haven’t been there before?” Scar shook his head and looked down at the ground. “I… don’t really leave the castle,” he replied sheepishly.
Xelqua gave Scar an eager, somewhat mischievous look. “Maybe I could show you sometime,” he said. Scar looked up eagerly. “Really?” he asked. Xelqua nodded. “Why not?”
Scar smiled. Xelqua couldn’t help but return it. Something about this knight’s grin was so… contagious. His whole eager demeanor made Xelqua feel lighter inside.
He hopper up, once again causing Scar to give him a nervous look. He waved at Scar with a grin. “I’ll see you,-” Xelqua paused for a moment. “Wait, what’s your name?” he asked. “Oh, uhm,” Scar responded, “It’s Scar.”
Xelqua stepped closer to the ledge. He waved again. “Well, Scar,” he said, emphasizing Scar’s name, “I’ll see you around!”
And with that, Xelqua hopped back behind the wall, disappearing from sight.
“Wait, when-?” Scar had began, but Xelqua was gone before he could finish.
He was left alone in the now nighttime, the darkness feeling strangely empty now that Xelqua had left.
As Scar finished his patrol and laid in his room that night, he couldn’t help but wonder at the strange events of the evening. He wondered when he would see the boy again, or if he would even return at all.
Nevertheless, that night Scar went to bed, his mind still curious about the strange boy named Xelqua.