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The idea that a Soulmate is someone who will always make you happy is an incorrect assumption that the vast majority make. It is simply exactly what is on the tin: the other half of a person’s soul.
Everyone has one half of a Soulmark from the moment they’re born. That Soulmark is unique to every person, taking the shape and color of whatever best represents their other half’s soul. If/when that person meets their Soulmate, their Soulmark will gain its other half with that person’s part of the Soulmark, uniting the two forever. And then, once one of the Soulmates dies, the whole Soulmark turns black.
Sometimes Soulmates are lovers, sometimes they’re lifelong friends, sometimes they’re family; the possibilities are endless. Sometimes they’re enemies destined to bring the best out of each other; sometimes they’re two broken people who only serve to drag each other further down into despair; and sometimes, they’re two people who will never meet.
Silver was lucky enough to have had his Soulmate with him his whole life.
When Silver was younger, after he learned he was adopted, his father often told him stories of how they both got their shared Soulmark.
Lilia had been born with an aurora-colored sword in the spot over his heart, and he had spent hundreds of years without meeting his Soulmate. Then, once he met Silver, their Soulmarks combined.
According to Lilia, Silver’s half-completed Soulmark had been a magenta-colored bat. After their Soulmarks became whole, it shifted into the magenta bat hovering just over the aurora sword—a symbol of their bond.
Silver, who had been lucky enough to have known his Soulmate his whole life, hadn’t considered that others didn’t have the same experience as him.
When he met Sebek Zigvolt, they had both been young children, and Silver had stupidly blurted out, “Why is your Soulmark black?”
After all, it was a very eye-catching Soulmark. It was located on the left side of Sebek’s neck right underneath his chin, and it was in the shape of a pumpkin.
In response to Silver’s words, Sebek had simply replied, “My Soulmate is dead.”
Silver and Malleus were both horrified, and Malleus made sure to scold Silver after Sebek and his grandfather left the cottage. And yet, Silver couldn’t help but feel like out of everyone, Sebek was the least concerned when it came to his Soulmate.
As the years passed, Sebek never showed any signs that he was affected by his Soulmark. He never talked about it and he wasn’t self-conscious of it; in fact, he always made sure to never cover it up, so as to prove that it never bothered him.
It only further cemented Silver’s view of Sebek as an incredibly strong person, because any time Silver thought of a world without Lilia, his very soul would ache.
He couldn’t help but selfishly wish to himself, I hope I never have to feel what Sebek feels.
Sebek had never been upset with his lack of Soulmate growing up. Sure, he noticed how happy Lilia and Silver were, but he loved his family with all his heart. Plus, his liege hadn’t met his Soulmate either!
…That is, until he arrived at Night Raven College.
He watched others find their other halves. First it was his liege, with his blue bow Soulmark combining with that magicless human’s green flame Soulmark; he noticed his roommates gain their Soulmarks; and slowly, jealousy grew in his heart.
Because watching them together was like looking at a future that was ripped right out of his hands by fate.
He saw how Malleus and the magicless human’s eyes sparkled every time they interacted; it was the same look that Sebek saw in his parents even after decades of them being married; it was the same look that Lilia and Silver had in their eyes when together.
Sebek was still happy. He was still happy as his liege’s retainer, and he was happy to be in Diasomnia, and he was happy with the life he had.
But sometimes, in the middle of the night, he mourned what could have been. Sometimes, he would dream of bright orange eyes that stared deep into his soul. Sometimes, he only felt solace when in complete darkness and solitude. And every Halloween, without fail, that feeling of wrongness was its strongest.
When others saw his Soulmark, he saw the ever-familiar pity fill their eyes, and all it did was make Sebek want to claw his Soulmark out of his neck. He never covered it though—after all, he wasn’t ashamed of it.
He just couldn’t help but wonder what life would be like if he had met his other half.
Malleus had grown accustomed to loneliness.
This didn’t mean he enjoyed it; quite the opposite. He despised how he was always alone, with the sole exception being Lilia.
Then, when Lilia had come back with a baby in his arms and a certain shine in his eye, Malleus knew instantly that this baby was Lilia’s Soulmate. And at first, Malleus despised Silver for it.
Because how dare he? How dare Silver take the only person that was Malleus’ away from him?
Of course, it didn’t take long for Silver to worm his way into Malleus’ heart, and fast. Soon enough, the cottage became a symbol of family; Malleus’ little brother and father-figure, both safe in one spot. The only thing that would make this perfect was him finally meeting his Soulmate. Then, he could keep them all here, safe and sound.
When Malleus arrived at Night Raven College, he went through his first two years pleasantly surprised by what he observed of the students. Humans were quite fascinating, and Lilia was right there with him, Silver following the year after.
In his third year, Sebek arrived, and Malleus was happy. He remembered how worried Sebek had been, just a few years ago, that he wouldn’t even get his magic—but here he was now, attending school with Malleus.
And then, one night, as he wandered by Ramshackle, he met him.
The boy was unassuming at first. And yet, it was his simple nature that somehow drew Malleus to him. He introduced himself as ‘Yuu’, gave Malleus the charming nickname of ‘Tsunotaro’, and when they shook hands—
Something in Malleus’ soul felt as if it had finally clicked into its intended place. He felt whole, for the first time ever, and he knew that this was his Soulmate. The back of his hand burned, and he saw the mark on the back of Yuu’s hand, exactly where Malleus’ own Soulmark was located.
Yuu’s green flame merged with Malleus’ grey bow, and Malleus felt complete. He reintroduced himself properly, and explained to Yuu the nature of Soulmarks, as he seemed quite confused.
Sebek and Silver had found them, sitting together on the steps leading up to Ramshackle, basking in their newly acquired Soulmarks. It was an exhilarating experience—until Malleus saw the look on Sebek’s face.
Rarely had Malleus ever noticed negative feelings within Sebek. Yes, he was very vocal about his displeasures, and Malleus would recognize the frustration in his eyes every time he lost a duel to Silver—but Sebek had always been a determined child, making sure to never let those negative feelings affect him.
Sebek had also never fussed about his Soulmate—though, it’s not like he ever talked about his Soulmate at all in the first place. Malleus remembered when he laid eyes on the black Soulmark, and all he remembered feeling was a chilling cold sensation deep in his soul, and then anger. Anger towards whatever took his retainer’s other half away from him.
As Sebek stared at Malleus and Yuu sitting together on the steps, Malleus could clearly tell what the look in his eyes was: jealousy. Sebek was jealous at the sight of Malleus and Yuu, wholly together. Somehow, Sebek knew that Malleus and Yuu were Soulmates.
That same icy cold feeling gripped Malleus’ heart and he quickly stood up. “Silver. Sebek. Have you come to take me back to Diasomnia?”
“Yes,” Silver nodded. He turned to Sebek, but Sebek remained silent, so Silver continued, “I see that you have been bonding with the Ramshackle prefect?”
“Yuu,” Yuu supplied his name. “And, um, yes. I think Malleus said that we were Soulmates…?”
“A human?” Sebek asked, though his voice sounded faint, as if he were simply going through the motions of his anger towards humanity. “A human…is my liege’s Soulmate?”
Malleus saw the confused and slightly hurt look on Yuu’s face, and he wanted nothing more than to reassure his other half that Sebek meant well—but then Sebek shook his head. “I…I need to leave.”
“Sebek…!” Silver blinked in surprise as Sebek practically sprinted back towards the Hall of Mirrors.
As Malleus watched Sebek, his little brother in all but blood, run away, he could only feel guilt and pity. This world really is too cruel.
It was a simple visit to Foothill Town. Or, at least, it was supposed to be.
There was…a book fair? Sebek couldn’t quite remember; all he could recall was Grim doing something stupid, and then a flash of light, and then—
(Among the chaos of waking in a strange world in strange outfits, Sebek found that he couldn’t quite concentrate. There was a feeling inside his chest, and a point on his neck burned—
“Sebek.”
And then, his liege was at his side. Sebek blinked, snapping out of his reverie and replying, “Y-yes, Malleus-sama!”
But Malleus wasn’t looking at Sebek, he was looking at Sebek’s neck with wide eyes. “Sebek, your Soulmark…”
“It’s orange,” Yuu gasped. “But…I thought your mark was black!”
Sebek’s heart started to race. “My…what?”)
—here he was now, suddenly awakening from…a nap? Unconsciousness? He couldn’t quite remember anything other than a feeling of happiness.
But what could he have to be happy about?
Epel looked over to Sebek and gasped. “Oh, golly…Sebek-kun, your Soulmark!”
His remark caused everyone else to stop and stare, wide-eyed, at the area on Sebek’s neck where his Soulmark resided. He flushed slightly at the sudden attention, but then Malleus was there, gently tilting Sebek’s head upwards and tracing the mark.
“Your Soulmark,” Malleus breathed, his voice soft in a way that Sebek hadn’t heard since he was a child, “it’s…complete?”
Sebek blinked. “It’s…what?” His mouth went dry. But thinking about it now—
(“Will you grace me with your name as well?” the boy asked, looking deep into Sebek’s eyes.
Sebek’s heart started to beat faster for some unknown reason. “…I’m Sebek Zigvolt,” he said slowly. He mentally shook his own head. “I do not intend to make friends with humans, but I will follow my liege’s lead and at least exchange names.”
“Sebek-san,” Skully said softly, and suddenly, the moment felt private, the air between them charged. “So happy to meet you. I am grateful for our meeting—let’s get along.” He grabbed Sebek’s hand, lowered his head, lifting the hand to his lips, and then—
Light. A feeling of completion.
Sebek felt his soul snap into place, and his mark on his neck burned with the feeling of togetherness.
On the left side of Skully’s neck, Sebek saw Skully’s green lightning mark merge with Sebek’s now-orange pumpkin mark. And he knew as easy as breathing that this was his Soulmate.)
—there was a feeling in his chest. A nostalgic, bittersweet one; a feeling saying that he had something great, but it was now gone.
And then, Malleus’ hands came to rest on Sebek’s cheek, his thumbs wiping the area underneath his eyes; to Sebek’s shock and embarrassment, he found that he was crying.
“I don’t understand…” Sebek murmured, shrinking away from his liege for a moment to fix his face, before turning back to Malleus. “I…”
Malleus’ gaze sharpened and he turned to the rest of the group, who were watching the two carefully. “All of you, leave us now.”
“Tch,” Leona shook his head. “Alright. Let’s go; we have Halloween decorations to catch up on, got it?” The others walked away, leaving Malleus and Sebek alone in the now-empty book fair.
“Is it…” Sebek gulped. “…Is it still black?”
“…Yes,” Malleus responded quietly, his voice full of sorrow. “It is.”
Despite the crushing despair that Sebek’s soul felt at Malleus’ confirmation, he blurted out, “But then—! How could my Soulmark be complete if my Soulmate is dead?!”
It didn’t make sense. Nothing made sense, and Sebek just wanted to—
(“Let’s go, Skully!” Sebek had said, too excited to consider anything else. He was the most alive he had ever felt; his Soulmate was here, alive, and soon, they’d be returning back to Twisted Wonderland. Despite all the troubles they went through during their stay in Halloween Town, Sebek was excited to finally get to know Skully.
He could finally live like Lilia and Silver, and Malleus and Yuu. He had his other half, and once they got back to Foothill Town, Sebek was never going to let him go.
“Skully?” Jamil asked. “What’s wrong? You’re not moving?”
Sebek paused and turned back around to face his other half, whose expression was…wistful. Why was he acting wistful?
“This is it,” Skully said softly, walking over to Sebek and lacing their fingers together. “It’s finally time to say goodbye.”
“What’s all this now?” Sebek furrowed his eyebrows, squeezing Skully’s hand in response. “Must you be so dramatic about everything?” He turned back towards the door. “This door leads to Twisted Wonderland. It’s just going to transport us all back to Foothill Town.”
Yuu nodded in agreement, inviting Skully to hang out. Sebek resisted the urge to roll his eyes; of course Skully would spend time with them, he was Sebek’s other half.
“No, I can tell,” Skully shook his head. He turned to Sebek and his other hand came up, lightly touching the left side of Sebek’s neck, where he knew the Soulmark was. “…I don’t think I’ll ever meet you lovely personages again.”
Sebek’s heart dropped and his body - no, his soul - went cold.
“But we can always see each other whenever we like on Halloween,” Skully continued, his hand lowering as he slowly peeled his other hand away from Sebek’s grasp. “This was a genuinely delightful Halloween. Thank you, everyone.” And then, he peered at Sebek over his sunglasses and whispered, “Thank you, my other half.”
Warning sirens flared in Sebek’s head. “Skully, what—”
And then they were falling through the door, and all Sebek felt was ice-cold fear.)
—go home. Sebek just wanted to go home.
You were home just now. Your home is gone. Your home is dead.
Lilia Vanrouge had fallen in love with Maleanor Draconia, the princess of Briarland, the moment he met her—but when his Soulmark was still its half-complete aurora-colored sword and hers was still its half-complete red crow, he cursed the powers-that-be for not making her his Soulmate. The Soulmark weighed heavy where it resided on the space over his heart, but he learned to deal with it.
Then they both met Raverne, and he had another reason to curse fate. Just like Maleanor, he had fallen in love with Raverne on site—but fate laughed at him once again.
“Greetings,” Raverne had said respectfully. “My name is Raverne.” He had bowed before Maleanor, because of her royal status.
“Hello, Raverne,” Maleanor grinned, her teeth sharp. “I am Maleanor.”
And then, the moment they shook hands, a bright light shined from where their hands made contact.
The two people that Lilia loved so deeply with all his heart were fated to each other, Maleanor’s red crow combining with Raverne’s green horns to complete their Soulmarks. They wore them with pride—and judging by the look in their eyes, there was no doubt that they had fallen in love instantly.
Lilia was young and bitter, but the more they all grew up, he learned to accept it. He watched his beloveds become stronger, and he himself became the General of the Right.
Then. Then, then, then. Raverne disappeared, and Malleus was entrusted to Lilia, and Maleanor died, and—
Then, the war was over, but so was Lilia’s life. His only reason left to live was Malleus, who was quickly fading.
It wasn’t until he encountered Silver, as a baby, alone in that cradle, asleep—and he felt it. When he picked the baby up to calm him down, he felt his soul lock into place as the contact points between them shone brightly; Silver’s magenta bat Soulmark joined Lilia’s aurora sword Soulmark, and his heart broke into pieces as he felt the most alive he ever had. And for a moment, he couldn’t help but resent fate.
This baby was his Soulmate, but this baby was the reason Lilia lost all that he loved. This baby’s father killed his beloveds, and for a moment, he had half a mind to kill this baby; his other half. He had the urge to turn his Soulmark black.
He didn’t. He took Silver in - it’s what Raverne would have wanted - and he raised the boy. Together, with Malleus, they made a family.
Malleus had grown into a young man when Lilia took Silver in. Malleus’ own Soulmark, a grey bow located on the back of his hand, was still incomplete; of course it was, considering the Senate practically forbade him from leaving Briar Valley at all.
And then, Baul came to Lilia with a request: to train his grandson in learning to become a knight.
When Lilia met Sebek Zigvolt, he felt two things right away. The first was happiness; here was a half-fae who served as the perfect bridge between the human world and the fae world, just like Raverne would have wanted.
The second was horror. After all, Sebek’s half-Soulmark - a pumpkin located on the left side of his neck - was completely black.
“How long…?” Lilia asked after Sebek and Silver ran off to play, Malleus supervising them.
Baul grimaced. “...It has been black since birth.”
Lilia thought of the moment he met Silver. Ever since then, life had become much brighter; it wasn’t that his senses were any different, but he now knew what it was like to live with his whole soul. Before he had met Silver, he felt ever-so-slightly wrong, as does everyone before they meet their other half.
And Sebek…was cursed to never feel whole.
Fate works in cruel ways, was all Lilia could think.
As Sebek expected, neither Silver nor Lilia knew what to make of Sebek’s newly fully-formed - and yet still black - Soulmark.
Sebek and Malleus made sure to dutifully walk them through the events leading up to them suddenly passing out, but no one could come up with a good reason.
Since Sebek’s Soulmark case was apparently rare, they sent Sebek to his room for the night and started to theorize without him. Of course, Sebek made sure to listen in—but no matter how many theories they threw out, none of them sounded right.
“Perhaps his Soulmate’s body is buried in Foothill Town?” Silver suggested quietly.
“Sebek has been to Foothill Town before,” Malleus replied. “If that were the case, his Soulmark would have long since developed.”
“Was anyone carrying some type of…casket, perhaps?” Lilia said.
“No—we were at a book fair,” Malleus replied.
Sebek left at that. Deep down in his heart, he knew that he was never going to truly find the answer, so he instead settled on retreating to his room. It was barely 19:00, and yet as Sebek went through the motions of preparing for the night, he found himself unusually tired—as if he had just gone through days of labor, somehow.
It was weird. Everything was weird, and all Sebek wanted to do was fall asleep.
(Later, Crowley would introduce them to the portrait of the King of Halloween, and Sebek would be overcome with a wave of indescribable sadness and longing. Later, Sebek would celebrate Halloween with everyone and somehow feel both happiness and sadness. Later, Malleus would plunge the entire island in a dream, and Sebek would find himself greeting a stranger with the most striking orange eyes he had ever seen. Much later, Sebek would grow old and, upon his deathbed, finally remember everything.)
As Skully gazes down at the members of Night Raven College celebrating along the main street, he smiles softly, his hands coming up to cup his own cheeks. What a wonderful sight, truly.
Lanterns hung from the bare oak trees, lights illuminated the Great Seven statues, and there were dozens of students dressed fit for Halloween. And even though Skully enjoyed the scene as a whole, his eyes could not help but wander towards one person in particular.
His left hand slowly trailed down towards the spot under his chin as he gazed fondly at his beloved, laughing and having fun with his friends. Sebek’s Soulmark was black—but it was whole. The proof that they had met was still there, and for now, Skully was content with that.
Skully had gone through his whole life with his green lightning bolt Soulmark, always wondering if he’d ever meet the other half of his soul. And then, one unassuming day, Skully had ventured to Foothill Town. One second, he only had half of a Soulmark, and the next—
He was whole.
Skully remembered stumbling for a moment as the left side of his neck burned. When he checked later, he found an orange pumpkin right next to the green lightning bolt—and yet, he had no memory of meeting anyone. And so, he went through the rest of his life with a full Soulmark, but no Soulmate to show for it.
It wasn’t until he died that he truly remembered the visit to Halloween Town. It wasn’t until he died that he remembered the bright light that had filled both his eyes and his soul when he made contact with Sebek for the first time.
I’ll wait for you, Skully promised as the students started to head back to the campus. As long as it takes. I promise, Sebek-san, we will be together.
(As Sebek walked towards the campus, he turned and gave one last look at Main Street. A feeling of bittersweet relief settled over his shoulders.)