Author's Note[]
This has nothing to do with any of my existing writing, I just had this oneshot I wrote a while back, that I really liked and wanted to post here.
Trigger warnings for mentioned violence and blood
Not Your Fault[]
He had to admit, sometimes Crystal Caverns...wasn't the best place in the world.
Sure, it should have been paradise for a petty thief such as him. And it had been once. But now it wasn't.
Wind whipped his shoulder-length hair against his exposed face-he had lost his hood in the previous battle. The wizard he was dueling had been an intense fighter, and the battle had taken them too close to the cliffs. Tracks still marked the snow-their Cybernetic Boots, and his own Swift Boots, making it look from a distance as if they had not been fighting, but dancing.
The wizard had nearly fallen off the cliff, but he had caught them, had pinned them down to keep them from plummeting to their death.
His hood had been lost, ripped off by the harsh wind and pitched over the side of the towering promontory.
But there was no point mourning it. It was truly his identity or their life.
And, for once, there was no question about which one he wanted to save.
Winston Von Loot was definitely a selfish a**hole. He never cared about people, he was rude to anyone who challenged him, and even within the Order, he didn't really have friends.
Even his henchmen hated him.
But today, he had done something that strayed far from his usual behavioral pattern.
He had saved a life.
So why did he feel so awful?
They had been a good fighter, far better than he. His payment for saving their life had been being punched in the face and stabbed by his own wand, which they had wrenched from his weakened grasp while he tried to recover from the first assault.
Blood leaked from the wound in his side, creating a beautiful pattern of scarlet upon the white blanket of snow.
A Crystal Monster came up behind him, taking small, hesitant steps.
Winston...
"Just leave me alone!" he snapped, tears gathering in his eyes. He shut them quickly, refusing to let anyone see him cry.
The monster didn't go away.
"Please..." he begged quietly, feeling himself growing weaker. "I can't do this, okay? I tried to do something right for once in my life, and they try to kill me for it. There's no point anymore."
It's not just that, is it, Winston? It's not just about this time.
They were right, but that didn't mean he could stand it.
No matter how much he tried, he always got things wrong. It was as if he were cursed to be a terrible person.
Winston didn't really believe in curses. He wasn't a superstitious wizard.
He always wanted to see things for himself before he believed them.
But this was the exception.
He was starting to think he actually was cursed to never do anything right.
C'mon, let's get you out of the cold. The monster looked around, and decided on a better choice of wording. Well...more or less.
The monster guided him back to the pace where he had set up camp, helping him sit down and trying to use telekinesis to bandage the stab wound that the wizard had given him.
Eventually, the monster left him alone.
I'll give you some time to rest. You really need it.
And then they were gone.
Winston watched them go, withdrawing into a dark, rocky corner of the cave in which he'd set up camp, the shadows shielding him from view.
It was there that he finally let the tears fall.