Drapetomania

The overwhelming urge to run away

A word Lyon first heard when talking to his, now gone, lover.

-do you ever get drapetomania- Nox said, looking at a plant, sounding more like he meant to think that, not say it.

                                         -get what? - he responded. He’d never heard that word    

                                          before. If sounded Interesting

-it means “the overwhelming urge to run away” Nox responded, looking at him 

                                       -I mean, you know my family. My default feeling is       

                                        ”drapetomania”.

-would you run away with me, then? Nox asked, holding his hand 

                                         -I’d follow you anywhere, even the end of the goddamn 

                                          world, nox

-I love you so much- Nox said. And those were the last words Lyon heard nox say

lyon left Nox’s country a day later, after an unexpected letter from his parents, demanding him to come back because of political matters. Downsides of royalty, he thought.

Unbeknownst to him, those “political matters” were his parent’s plans to attack Nox’s country, in their country’s mad scramble for power.

When they realised they wouldn’t get Lyon to marry Nox’s older sister, they opted for a more aggressive way to get power of their country.

So they brought their troops to the capital city. 

—— 

Nox was walking through the garden, as per usual, when he heard a strange sound. 

He put the white flower he’d just picked, Lyon’s favourite, in his vest pocket, and walked near the noise. 

The next thing he knew, he saw a bow, and heard the light “swish” of the arrow when it flew toward him. The last thing he saw? The white flower, now stained red, still in his pocket, and died thinking of Lyon.

—————————-

Drapetomania

That’s what he felt when he paced his room, holding back tears.

Why?

Why him?

A few days ago everything was good. Perfect, even.

And now, the only person that understood him was dead.

Shot in the heart by his own country's troops.

And there was nothing he could do about it. Or at least not that he knew of. So he took his things, and went to the library.

As he opened the doors, and took in the smell of the old books that filled the shelves, he began to make a mental note of what he needed 

Something to go back, back to before nox died.

He walked through the spaces between the shelves, his pace becoming quicker and quicker as his desperation grew. 

He was stuck. It had been 4 hours and he had found nothing of use

He was now laying on the floor, surrounded by an increasingly growing pile of messily stacked books, watching the sun set from one of the few, but big, windows

But the slowly setting sun didn’t mark the end of his search.

Any normal person would have given up. After all, acceptance is a part of grief.

But not Lyon. He saw this as the beginning. With his parents on another planet, possibly not coming back, the power was all his. He could do anything he wanted.

But he still had to find the book. 

He didn’t know how many hours he’d been there, when he saw a book. The last one on the pile nearest to him. 

He hesitantly took it, thinking If it would be a better idea to leave the room and go to sleep, he could see from the window that it was way past midnight.

But he opened it. And he saw the spell. He gasped as he read it, ripped the page out and ran.

—————————-

Drapetomania

That’s what he felt now as he ran through the hallway of his castle, the only light lighting up his view being the one from the moon shining through the hallway, giving that moment an even more tense feeling.

He went outside, sat down, and started the spell. 

His first test was to take the paper, rip it in half, then bring it back to how it originally was, but after he ripped it out of the book.

With a barely audible “swish”  from his hand, the papers lifted up into the air, and slowly began to merge back together 

So it was possible.

—————————

Months later, his parents returned home. 

He had an unpleasant  conversation with his father.

After all, how do you say “you killed my lover, now I’m going to perform an incredibly dangerous spell to bring him back” without angering someone? ( especially if said lover is also male)

He ran to his room, and slammed the door. 

This was it. 

He was doing it. 

He don’t give a fuck anymore. 

Fuck his kingdom.

Fuck his dad.

He loved his hand, and began the spell. 

But it backfired. 

The walls in his bedroom began to crumble, he was breaking the o tire place with the raw energy from the spell.

He kept going until his dad barged in the room and stopped him.

—————

A few days later, he’d been sentenced to exile. 

He stepped in the portal, and arrived at his new world. 

The portal closed after he got out, and he never saw it again.

He managed to stay alive, he even made a nice little farm, but every single thing reminded him of nox, hurting him a little more each time.

The only good thing was talking to yunid.

The only other human he’d found, she at least kept him company.

After a while he started to abandon his plan.

Until 9 years later

————

He’d found it. A crystal powerful enough to get him back to Nox’s planet, and to before his death. All he needed to do was cast the spell. 

He sat down next to it, and began making the same motions as the first time, this time towards the crystal. The rest would sort itself out.

But, not unlike the last time, he wa interrupted.

There in front of him stood yunid, crossbow in hand 

-step away from the crystal, Lyon.-  she said, charging the crossbow.

Lyon didn’t even flinch. He wasn’t about to throw his last opportunity out the window.

So, without any other option in her mind, yunid pulled the trigger.

With a light “swoosh” the arrow travelled through the air, and hit his chest.

The last thing he saw? A blue flower he’d been keeping in his pocket for the past few days, Nox’s favourite. 

And so he died thinking of Nox.