Pacing. We all do it. Sometimes it's because we're worried, sometimes it's because we're bored. Either way, we all know what it feels like walking back and forth from one side of the corridor to the next. Now imagine doing this every day for 3 years. It's nothing anyone would want to do. However, Queen Frayla had paced the castle's corridors for hours every day since her youngest son tragically died.
She remembered the day clearly, though she wished she could forget. The day started out normal. She drew the curtains in the prince's rooms to wake them and made her way to the dining hall for breakfast. The queen sat herself down at the head of the table as the two boys chased one another into the hall before finally sitting in the chairs. The king was the last to arrive. He had bags beneath his eyes and walked incredibly slow before falling into his chair.
The princes had noticed their father's strange behavior, though they never questioned it. Their mother told them their father was just working too hard. But they never knew what he was working on until that afternoon.
The princes had just arrived home from the stables on the other side of the kingdom. When the king took them to his study. This was confusing for the two young boys. They rarely were invited to the study. As far as they knew it was off-limits.
The king and queen had been studying the past few hours arguing. The plan was always to tell the boys about Lacuna when they turned eighteen, so they could continue the hunt if the king had to step down.
The boys sat side by side on the bench near the door as their father sat in the chair behind the desk. The queen stood behind him resting her hands on the chair. The king told his kids the fairly long story of his hunt for a legend. Lucas became extremely interested in the legend while his brother, Kilsey, became bored, distracted, and unable to sit still. The king saw the fidgeting. The more he saw his son become distracted the more his anger grew.
"Kilsey, may I have a word?" The king began to make his way towards the door. Waiting for no response from Kilsey.
In the hall outside, Kilsey's head was thinking of everything he could have possibly done wrong but he couldn't think of anything.
"What is wrong with you boy?" Taking a moment to think about what was said, and shrugged his shoulders.
"Your hands. They never stop moving. You can't sit still. Quite frankly it's irritating."
"Sorry father, I can't help it."
"You need to figure it out. Have you forgotten you are a member of this royal family? One wrong move and the Quentin family will be taking our roles, so figure. It. Out."
Kilsey never thought his behavior was abnormal. In fact, he thought others were like him. His head filled with thoughts. He was filled with rage and knew he was about to explode. So as his father turned to leave he grabbed his arm and pulled him back to face him only to be met with a push from his father. Stumbling back, Kilsey tried grabbing something to stabilize him but with no luck, he reached the stairs and gained his balance by hitting the banister.
With a bruise already forming on his back from the hard impact, Kilsey stood up straight taking a step away from the banister towards the king.
"I'm different, father. I always have been and always will be. But I will not change. I have no intentions of aiding you with your hunt. This road you are going down is dangerous for you and this family. I won't be a part of it."
And with one last push to the chest, the young prince went flying through the banisters and down 3 flights of stairs. The prince was killed on impact and his death was ruled an accident.
One of the most concerning parts was Queen Frayla and Lucas were watching from the cracked door the entire time. They never thought it would escalate to what it did. In the end, it didn't matter, what is done is done. The king seemed to forget about the incident, Lucas was scarred for life and didn't know how to cope with his loss, and the queen sunk into the never-ending loop she wished to break free of.