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Chapter Text

Two young boys belonging to the Kingdom Rebellion play by the lake. A silver- haired one with teal eyes, his feet more reluctant and nervous than the other black-haired boy's steps. The black-haired boy drags the silver-haired one closer to the lake as he laughs with mischief, his snaggle tooth prominent against his bottom lip.

“Ivan, wait!” The silver one exclaimed as he was pulled faster than his legs could keep up.

“Relax Till, nothing's going to happen,” Ivan retorted with a sigh, dragging Till closer to the lake.

“We're too close to Heart territory,” Till replied, looking around wearily. The deep blue night sky, a beautiful contrast to the brightly shining stars scattered across the vast, never-ending canvas.

“It’s okay, Till. I’ve been here at this time of night before,” Ivan reassured him, stopping for a second to turn around and face Till, meeting his eyes. Ivan's dark eyes are capable of getting lost in, if it weren't for the red sitting uniquely in the center. Ivan gently squeezes Till's hand with an attempt at a warm smile, before turning back around and continuing to walk towards the lake- this time slow enough for Till to keep up a little better. “Heart knights don’t patrol at this hour.”

“But my dad said-”

“I don’t care what your dad says. You never get to leave the town,” Ivan states, cutting Till off harsher than intended. “Besides, I’m going to start my training to become a knight tomorrow! I will protect you forever, I promise. Nothing bad will ever happen to you while I’m around.” He continues, much softer than before.

“Okay.. if you’re sure…” Till reluctantly agrees, continuing to look around before slamming unexpectedly into Ivan's back. “Ivan? Are you okay?” He asks before letting out a sudden gasp, quickly bringing his hand to his mouth.

“What are you doing out and about at this hour, Rebel kids,” a cold older voice asks, towering over the two younger boys. Eyes seething with evil, unknown intent.

That was the last thing Till could remember. Everything after was fuzzy, nonsensical, and pitch black.

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“I will protect you forever, I promise.”

“I will protect you forever, I promise.”

“I will protect you forever, I promise.”

Those were the only words playing in Till's head. He could barely hear anything, tears clouding his vision. Through his watery eyes and grown out bangs, all he could make out was the blurred mess of his former friend in his arms. Till held Ivan tight as he whispered over and over, one single word:

“Please…”

Please, was all he could say, all that could come out as his friend's blood seeped onto his clothes. Clothing that had been unscathed. Till continued to hold him tight, touching the skin that had been scarred by cruel blades. All he could say was one meek little word. Please.

He couldn't get up. He was shaking throughout his entire frail body as he continued to hold onto Ivan. My friend is dead and I can’t even get up and fight.

Till had felt like time stopped. All he could remember were hands, familiar hands, prying him away from his dead friend. He couldn't hear anything, he couldn't see. Till desperately clawed out and reached for Ivan as his blurred body faded further from view. His throat hurt. He didn’t understand why, but his throat hurt. It felt as though it was being ripped out of him. Then, he realized:

He was screaming.

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Till sat, staring down at the ground- a familiar floor that he wished he didn’t recognize.

After Rebellion Knights had dragged Till away from Anakt Lake, they had gone back to retrieve Ivan; only for his body to be gone once they arrived at the Lake once again.

The Knights had restlessly searched for Ivan's body for four hours before declaring him dead, begrudgingly retreating back to Rebel Town to inform their commander that his son had been lost to the sands of time.

While the Knights Informed their commander of the tragedy that had taken place that night, the second in command busied himself with his own duties at his personal living quarters.

“YOU KNEW YOU WEREN’T SUPPOSED TO LEAVE THE TOWN.” Screams echoed through the second in command’s house, a sharp crack ringing through the house shortly after. Till collapsed to the floor, tears streaming from his face. He hadn’t stopped crying since the incident. Silence filled the room as the man's patience thinned out. “Answer me,” the older man demanded, leaning over him. “Answer me, Till,” he repeated, his face turning red with anger.

“I’m sorry.. father-” Till began, before getting cut off harshly.

“Do you THINK you have the right to call me that right now, after what you’ve done? After what you’ve caused.” The man harshly stated, grabbing Till firmly by the face and forcing the young boy to look him directly in the eyes. They were sharp and deadly- threatening to slice Till up right then and there.

The older man was greeted by silence once again, only this time the smell of fear ran thick in the air along with it.

“DO YOU?” The older man repeated, digging his fingers harder into Till’s face, bruises already threatening to surface.

“I’m.. s..orry.. Urak.” Till replied, the grip held on him making it hard to speak.

“Ivan. The Commanders fucking son.” Urak releases Till from his grip, throwing his face to the side as he gets up with a manic laugh, turning away from Till. “You messed up big time. You should have died along with that worthless mother of yours,” Urak continued, walking to the front door of the house, not bothering to look over at his poor excuse of a son curled up on the floor before leaving.

This is all my fault, was all Till could think as he held his knees close to his chest and continued to cry on the cold, familiar floor he couldn't help but despise. I will protect you forever, I promise, repeating in his head, stinging like an open wound being hit by crisp cold air as he drifted off to sleep on that hard, awful floor he wishes would open up and swallow him whole.

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NINE YEARS LATER
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Knights walk through the long halls of the castle, voices excited yet nervous as they make their way to the Queen. Today was finally the day they had been anticipating all year.

“I can’t believe it's been five years already,” one knight sighs, shaking his head.

“I know right?” Another chimes in, “I have a good feeling about this time though!” He adds on, opening the giant wooden double doors to the throne room.

“The quinquennial Jousting tournament against our neighboring Kingdom Heart is arriving upon us.” Hyuna, the Queen of Rebellion, stated as the Knights fell into position. She held herself high and spirited as she spoke amongst the Knights she had called to meet in the throne room. “We need a volunteer to represent our Kingdom. You must understand there will be a chance that you shall die if you do.”

Silence filled the room as Knights looked between one another, eager to see which soul shall be willing to sacrifice their life, but not willing to sacrifice their own.

Suddenly a voice, confident and sure, rang through the room.

“I’ll do it.” Till declared, determination unwavering in his eyes.

Chapter Text

“ARE YOU INSANE?!?!!”

A young girl, around the same age as Till shouts out. She had shiny, slightly wavy waist length hair, pink with light blue at the ends. It was tied up half up-half down in order to keep it out of her face. She had bright yellow eyes.

“You’re going to die, you know that, right???” She continues, waving her hands around in disbelief.

“I know, Mizi. But I have to do it!” Till retorts from where he sat, his confidence from earlier wavering as he fidgets with his hands.

“You don’t have to do it! You just feel like you need to for- Mfgh!” Mizi begins to ramble before her mouth gets abruptly covered by a shorter girl's hand.

“She’s just worried about you Till, please excuse her words,” the shorter girl explains, before moving her hand away and placing it back onto Mizi’s waist. She has deep, intriguing purple eyes and a straight, chin length, black bob. Her composure is calm and elegant as she speaks.

“We both are, admittedly,” she adds, slightly embarrassed.

“I know, Sua. You guys really don’t have to worry about me! I swear!” Till attempts, his unsure tone of voice betraying him.

“Come on, Till! It’s not too late to drop out, you still have a week!” Mizi pleads. She wraps her arms around Sua’s shoulders, bringing her into a hug. “You’re only 21, your life has just started!” She continues, slightly shaking Sua as she speaks.

“Yea? And he was 13 when his life ended,” Till bites back, guilt creeping into his voice at the thought of Ivan's lifeless body in his arms. “It isn’t fair. He died and I didn’t. I need to do this for him.”

“Till…” Mizi releases a slightly shaken Sua from her grasp and moves her hands to lay gently and lovingly on Till’s shoulders.

“What happened wasn’t your fault. The Heart Kingdom is unfair. Always has been, always will be.”

She moves one of her hands to Tills cheek and gently smiles before moving back to Sua, placing her arms back around her shoulders and planting a kiss on her cheek.

“At least think about it, for her sake,” Sua says, giving Mizi a quick squeeze before leaving her arms. “Lunch break is over.”

“Okay... I’ll give it some thought,” Till sighs, standing up from his chair. “I need to start heading back to my place, my Father hasn’t heard the news yet.” He winces at the thought.

Mizi and Sua leave before him, hands intertwined as they head to the Queen's chambers. Till leaves alone, mind still set on competing in the tournament.

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The air felt sterile and heavy as Till closed the worn, wooden door to his house behind him. Uneasy anticipation was setting in every step he took as he prepared for his father's reaction to the news. Although he had not made his father aware of his intentions to volunteer, he was almost certain of what he would say. His father hadn’t changed a bit in the last nine years. If anything, Till’s father showed more disgust and disappointment toward him since that night.

“You idiot,” were the first words that greeted Till as he made his way to the dining area. Urak sat at the table with an empty glass mug placed next to him. Till winced at the observation; he knew his father became more irritable when drunk.

“Jousting. You’re going to compete in the jousting tournament? The tournament against Heart,” Urak continued, laughing at the thought.

“How’d you-” Till had begun to ask before the loud screech of wood against wood ricocheted through the walls, cutting him off as he flinched in anticipation. Urak was now standing, his hands placed firmly on the tabletop. His outwardly calm demeanor masked the anger festering underneath.

“Tell me Till. Why is it that the commander has informed me of my son's intentions before my son himself?” Urak questioned through gritted teeth, his dark eyes meeting Till’s with a chilling glare.

“Let me explai-” Till had been cut off once again, ducking with his hands over his head as the glass mug shattered against the wall behind him, barely missing his head. Before Till could stand again, he felt a solid hand wrap around his arm and pull him toward its owner. Urak was now looming over Till like a dark shadow.

“This is for him, isn't it. Do you seriously think that Jousting is going to avenge him? Clear your guilty conscience? Make you feel better about yourself? HUH?”

Urak's face was now close enough to Till’s that he could feel a warm breath against his face. The smell of alcohol was fresh and pungent.

“Just look at yourself. You’ve been a knight for four years and you still look like a child, ” Urak continued, his grip on Till tightening as he spoke causing Till to attempt to pull away. “Look. YOU CAN’T EVEN ESCAPE MY GRIP AND I’M NOT EVEN TRYING. You’re such a wimp, a little bit of discipline leaves you shaking.”

As Urak finished, he threw Till, slamming him into the wall.

Till’s throat felt suffocating as he dryly swallowed. He stared down at the floor, fighting back tears. He couldn’t cry, not in front of him. No matter how much his father's words stung. Urak harshly gripped Till's face as he began to speak again:

“You’re just going to get yourself killed, and god, I hope you do.” Urak spoke low with a growl before replacing the grip on Till’s face with a sharp, crisp slap that made Till's ears ring.

“Pathetic.” was the last thing Urak said before leaving the dining room, leaving Till alone with a newfound determination. He would not drop out of the tournament.

He was going to prove his father wrong.

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“Commander Marty,” a soft, elegant voice spoke; a hint of something sinister sat faintly in the air. “Please pick who shall represent my Kingdom in the Jousting Tournament that’s dated to take seven days from now.”

The man speaking had short golden hair that matched his captivating eyes, yet an unnerving feeling sat behind them.

“Of course, Luka, your Majesty.” Marty replied with a bow. He had shoulder length light brown hair matching his eyes. “I think it’s time we test his loyalty to your Kingdom.”

Marty gestured over to the tall, broad figure standing to the side of the Throne where Luka sat.

“I would have to agree,” Luka said with a contemptuous smile. “He is our strongest.”