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Wukong sighed, the sounds of active life on his mountain soothed him as he reclined on his cloud.
All was right in the world, mk had the day off training so he was out having fun with his friends, his subjects were living life as normal and he could hear the chittering of happy monkeys.
But it felt like something was missing. It always did. He knew why but he refused to acknowledge it.
He took a bite of his peach and watched as two baby monkeys ran by, chittering with delight as they chased a butterfly. It made him smile knowing his kingdom had peace after so long….
He closed his eyes as he relaxed in the sun, then, for a brief moment he heard a chirp. One that sounded so familiar. He shot up and opened his eyes, only to be met with the realization that it was just one of the elders.
With a sigh of disappointment he laid back again. Taking another bite of his peach as he thought. He watched the juices run down the flesh, pooling at the bottom like blood on his staff before dripping.
What-?
His eyes widened and he immediately looked away, trying to push that thought to the back of his mind.
That was the LAST thing he wanted to be thinking about right now. Not when everyone around him was so calm and happy.
He got off his cloud and threw his peach away, he didn’t feel like finishing it anymore. He walked into his house and locked the door behind him before hiding away in his room.
He took off his armor before climbing into bed and curling up, hiding under his blanket and holding macaques old scarf close.
Their scent had long since disappeared and he sobbed when he realized it, but now it was more of a bitter comfort. Knowing he had lost any trace of one he once held so dear but to scared to let go of keepsakes.
He missed them…. He always did. He missed how his moon’s laugh would light up brighter than the sun. He missed how his shadow felt more like a friend than an empty space. He missed how he and his moon would chat for hours until the elders would scold them for staying up late.
He missed his moon. No- he missed macaque. His friend. He could never replace him and he knew that. He hated how empty he felt.
Back when he did it he felt nothing but rage. Then he blamed macaque. But after a few decades he just felt so…. Numb.
He hated it, he was desperate to feel anything but numb because the numbness was killing him inside. Then it got worse. It hit him like a truck, the grief and regret.
He curled more into himself and held the scarf to his nose, the faint smell of lavender fabric softener doing nothing to emulate that familiar smell of plums, tea, and lavender.
He thought of how macaque fought back. Then how they desperately tried to get away, but it didn’t matter. Wukong was stronger. No amount of portals, scratching, begs, or cry’s would stop him. The deafening sound of desperate sobs and screams of pain filled his head as he tensed up and tried to hide under his blanket.
Golden tears worth a fortune streamed down his face as he remembered how they begged him to stop. How the admittedly satisfying crunch of their skill finally silenced their screams.
That was the worst of it…. The deafening silence. He heard no scream. No plea. No sob….. and he’d never hear that laughter that once lit up his world ever again…. Never smell the fresh scent of plum trees, lavender, and tea…. He’d never get Lu’ier Mihou back….