Work Text:
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
" Well Xornoth Major, it appears that your time is up. Farewell, and thank you for the crown."
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
-A few weeks earlier-
Xornoth wasn’t sure how they ended up here, in front of all the rulers at a House Blossom meeting, but here they were. They had only been uncorrupted recently, although they didn’t know how.
Pearl was kind enough to let them stay at her place, even after they terrorised the whole server.
Not that they remembered it, but they still felt bad for it. Solidarity looked so scared of them.
But Solidarity's fear of them seemed miniscule in comparison to their own fear of Smajor. The person who had been trying to kill him for as long as he could remember.
Katherine said that she'd talk to Smajor about his behaviour during the meeting beforehand, but they were still scared.
They didn't want to offend Smajor, but it was scary just having Smajor sitting there, silently observing everything with his cold emotionless eyes.
But, Xornoth felt that there was something off about Smajor. Not just his overly scary aura. They felt that Smajor was in pain or something.
They weren't sure if it was the way he flinched slightly (in pain?) when he accidentally made a quick movement or the way he winced whenever fWhip, or someone else, yelled.
Maybe it was both.
Xornoth watched as Smajor winced once again due to the heated argument between Joey and Pearl.
"By RIGHT! They should stay at the Lost Empire because I am their love!!" Joey fumed.
"BUT!! You were also recently uncorrupted and we can't trust you to handle yourself AND Xornoth!!! So they should stay at Gilded Helianthia!!" Pearl fought.
Xornoth turned to see another argument brewing between Solidarity and Gemini about whether they should be punished or not.
Xornoth sighed.
"SILENCE!!" Katherine shouted. "Scott told me he had something to say." Everyone turned to look at Smajor. The atmosphere felt tense.
"I-I was planning to reinstate Xornoth to the R-Rivendellian Royal family…" Smajor stuttered. His words were met with silence.
Xornoth almost felt pity for him, before they recalled that Smajor had tried to kill them before and may do it again. Was this a trap of some sort?
They turned to Pearl, who was deep in thought. They saw that everyone was thinking about the idea's pros and cons.
Xornoth then turned to Smajor, for a brief second, they thought they saw an expression of pain and sadness on Smajor's face, but it must have been their imagination.
Once they blinked, Smajor had a different expression. One of faint hope, but mainly indifference. How did he change his expressions so fast? Did he practise in front of the mirror or something?
Eventually, everyone agreed to reinstate Xornoth to Rivendell's Royal family on the condition that they are supervised by a trusted personnel whenever they are in Rivendell.
Xornoth felt safe with this arrangement. They wouldn't be harmed in Rivendellian territory at least. Right?
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
When they saw the architecture in Rivendell with their own eyes, they were awestruck.
The towering white buildings and their pristine teal roofs were simply magnificent. Even perfect one could say.
And the people there were also really kind and welcoming to Xornoth, something that they didn't expect. They thought they would be driven out as an outcast and only allowed in due to it being the King's order.
…
Why did Smajor want him to be reinstated into the Royal family? He seemed so hesitant when suggesting it…?
When they consulted Lord Draug - the head advisor - about it, the man said that it was a political move. To gain favour from bringing back the first born. The true heir.
Xornoth believed him at the time.
They shouldn't have.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Xornoth attended a long and tedious ceremony that reinstated them as 'Prince Xornoth'. But the ceremony made them feel like a King, more than a prince.
At the corner of their eye, they saw Smajor, sitting at the front as they took their vows to protect the people of Rivendell to the best of their ability.
Smajor sat there with a stoic face, seeming uncaring. Despite this, Xornoth saw deep melancholy in Smajor's eyes. They wondered why.
Well- it wasn't their problem anyways.
Yes it was. It should have been.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
As Xornoth walked around the market one day with an escort, they heard a group of villagers whispering.
"Umm, excuse me?" Xornoth approached the group, trying not to startle them.
"Oh! Prince Xornoth! We didn't see you there!!" One of the villagers greeted them happily.
"May I ask what you were talking about? You don't have to answer me of course!!" Xornoth tried to be polite while not ordering the villagers.
"Well you see…" the villager moved out of the way to reveal a heavily bruised castle servant.
"What happened?" Xornoth exclaimed, rushing to check on the servant.
"He only made a small mistake, but King Smajor punished him severely!!" Another villager cried. Xornoth's expression darkened.
"Thank you for telling me this, here's some money, get him to a doctor." Xornoth passed some coins to the villagers, then they left.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Xornoth stormed up to Smajor.
"You know, I always thought you were a benevolent king… It turns out I thought wrong." Xornoth glared at him.
Smajor's expression faltered, shifting into an expression of deep pain and sadness.
For a second, Xornoth felt bad, however, he quickly shoved the sympathy down into a dark corner. Smajor was a bad person after all.
"I- I don't believe that I have ever done anything that required you to say those words have I…? But I- I suppose it's your own opinion. I deeply apologise for any unpleasant experiences I may have caused." Smajor bowed and then quickly walked passed Xornoth.
Xornoth could have sworn they saw tears in Smajor's eyes, but when they told Lord Draug about the incident, he said that it was just a trick of the light.
They were foolish for believing him.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
The next time Xornoth saw Smajor was at the next House Blossom meeting. Smajor seemed to be more miserable than ever.
Xornoth wondered why it was.
They couldn't ask anyone about it though because they noticed a while back that it seemed like they were the only one who noticed Smajor's suffering.
Katherine said once that some people were more in tune with emotions and such. Perhaps that was the reason?
People soon started yelling again. Xornoth sighed.
"If you'll excuse me," Smajor stood up, "I'm going to go get some air…" He walked out of the meeting room.
The yelling continued for a little longer before it quieted down and Lord Draug opened his mouth to speak.
"His majesty is treating us horribly!!"
Everyone in the room turned to the old elf, processing what he just said.
"He's using us and forcing us to do his bidding!!" Lord Draug whined. fWhip looked interested now. Xornoth's eyes widened.
"Prince Xornoth, you'd be a much better king than Scott! Plus, you are a firstborn child so the people with naturally accept you!!" Lord Draug appealed.
"Isn't he King Scott to you?" Smallishbeans asked. Xornoth was just trying to process all this. Why had Lord Draug not told them about this beforehand? Was he being threatened by Smajor?
"Why should we address him as our king when he does not consider us as his people?" Lord Draug protested. Xornoth seethed on the inside. Smajor truly was a horrible person then.
No he wasn't.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Xornoth was crowned king. They didn't know how, but the people decided that it was better for him to be the king over Smajor.
The paperwork was a little overwhelming at first but they soon got used to it. They soon received a report about Smajor trying to hurt people with his ice abilities but the guards managed to apprehend him.
That was good.
Even though they themself had fire powers that remained as their time as Exor's champion, they would never use it to hurt Rivendell's people.
That's how a king should be, caring.
They should have known better.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Xornoth had little to no remorse as the executioner chopped off Smajor's head. Or at least, that's what they told everyone. Their inner turmoil didn't show on their face.
Was this really the right thing to do?
Xornoth sat on their bed, hands holding their head, thinking back to Smajor's execution.
"I didn't do it I promise!!" Smajor cried out to them as the executioner prepared to swing the axe.
"Please…" Smajor was crying. Xornoth didn't know why.
"Scott Major, you are being executed for treason against the king of Rivendell" Lord Draug had announced, voice echoing into the distance.
"Please… Brother…! Alis!"
What did Smajor mean by Brother? Xornoth had asked Lord Draug beforehand and he said that they weren't related at all. That Smajor was just some noble's kid.
Why did it tear their heartstrings so much?
"...Alis!"
Who was Alis?
Why did it sound so familiar?
.
.
.
.
.
.
-A few years later-
A young boy ran around happily as a younger one chased them around.
It didn't last long.
"Alistair! You're not supposed to be hanging out with that second-born wretch!!" A man yelled, causing the younger to hide behind 'Alistair'.
"I'll do as I wish father!!" Alistair yelled back. "Cay, go wait in my room." They told the younger boy, who nodded and ran off.
"I DID NOT DISMISS YOU CAY-"
Xornoth sat up, breathing heavily and in a cold sweat. They had been having dreams like that over the past few years.
The dreams were all different in terms of the scene, but they always ended before the younger boy's name was mentioned.
By now, they had deduced that they were 'Alistair' and that 'Cay' was a nickname. 'Cay' was also likely to have been someone they were close to in the past.
Could 'Cay' be Smajor? Because in some of their dreams, 'Cay' calls them 'Alis'.
Why didn't they remember?
It was frustrating having so many clues yet so little answers. Over the course of the past few years, Xornoth had also learnt that Lord Draug often omitted truth or just downright lied.
Xornoth didn't know what to trust anymore.
The world that seemed so bright and innocent was anything but that. During their almost 13 years as the King of Rivendell they have uncovered many conspiracies and plots.
Xornoth sighed in exhaustion.
They weren't made to be a king.
Xornoth got up and dug a box out from under their bed. It was a box of records of past council meetings. They had snuck this away from the storage room before Lord Draug locked it up.
They picked one up and infused it with a little bit of magic to get it to work.
They bit their lip. This could be either good or bad. They played it.
"Following the finding of Xornoth, we think it'd be a good idea to reinstate them to the Royal family." Lord Draug smirked.
"What do you mean that you want to 'reinstate Xornoth to the Royal family'?" Smajor slammed his hands on the table, glaring at his advisors.
"Are you disagreeing with us Scott?" Lord Draug sneered at him with a dangerous glint in his eyes.
"I-'' Smajor bit his lip.
Smajor looked conflicted.
He quickly shook his head, averting his gaze to his robes.
"Good. You are dismissed. I will send you the paperwork later, get approval from the other rulers." Lord Draug walked out of the room, leaving Smajor clutching his own robes like a child.
Xornoth frowned. They'd think that Smajor would have fought back against the improper way that Lord Draug had addressed him.
This led Xornoth to wonder… Was Smajor- or Scott a puppet king? The recording continued playing, this time showing Scott's room.
"I think that they are trying to replace me." He said, pacing. "I saw a recording previously that partly confirmed my fears."
He sighed.
"If you- whoever you are- happen to be watching this, that must mean that they succeeded. Be careful. You may be next. Protect Xornoth from them. Please."
Xornoth stared at Scott's icy blue eyes that were filled with worry as the image froze, the recording ended. That- was a lot to take in.
First, Scott wasn't entirely acting on his own free will? Did he have any at all to begin with?
Second, Lord Draug purposefully tried to get rid of Scott? And may now be after them? That one was confusing.
* Knock Knock Knock*
Xornoth quickly slid the box back under their bed and made it look like they were just getting up.
"Come in!" They called. Lord Draug walked through the door with a tea tray. They tensed. If the recordings were telling the truth, they had to be wary.
"Good morning your majesty." Lord Draug gave Xornoth a sickeningly sweet smile that seemed a lot more rotten than before.
"Care for some tea?" He poured out a cup and passed it to Xornoth. They sniffed it a little to see if they could smell any poison. Lady Amelia - Lord Draug's daughter - told him that poisonings were common when someone was high up on the hierarchy.
It smelled safe so Xornoth took a sip of it while Lord Draug babbled on about something.
They shouldn't have. Poisons can have no scent or flavour .
They didn't realise that Lord Draug had gone quiet.
They didn't know that their limbs were going to go numb soon.
They coughed and blood splattered on their bedsheet.
Xornoth stared up in horror at Lord Draug, coming to a realisation.
"You…-" They coughed again, more blood spilling from their throat.
"Well Xornoth Major, it appears that your time is up. Farewell, and thank you for the crown." Lord Draug smirked as Xornoth's vision started fading.
"You- Traitor!!!" Xornoth spat before everything went black.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
It was cold.
Bitter biting cold.
Were they supposed to feel anything?
Weren't they supposed to be dead?
Well. This was good.
That meant that they could get revenge .