LOVE LETTER TO THE ROGUE KING

26 FEBRUARY, FRIDAY, 1AM

"My dearest Roy,

It is with a flood of tears that I write this to you, but I cannot leave with you. My sister, the oracle, had foretold your death should I remain at your side. And as painful as it is for me to be physically separated from you by our pack's territorial lines, I do not think my soul could withstand it should you leave this world.

I had never cared that you were an omega, no matter what everyone else says. Oh how I wish my Luna Mother would also be able to look past your status and see the wolf inside you!"

"Her Luna Mother was the most unpleasant woman." Roy paused at this time to provide the side note, "My delicate princess had a heart of gold to not only tolerate that tyrant but love and respect her."

Because yes, Roy was reciting his love letter to me, word for word! WHO DOES THAT? It got worse as the letter went on:

"The wolf I have fallen in love with is intelligent, sensitive, generous, gentle, and humble. You are the only one who can make in laugh even when I am in despair. Or make me feel hope for a better future in this world."

Roy stopped here to sigh deeply. I resisted the urge to cover my ears and sing "lalala" and drown out the mush.

I thought all the little hearts I've made in my diary was bad, but this letter... I opened my mouth to tell him to stop.

"Wait, Little Princess, I know what you're thinking!" Roy held up his hand toward me. I shut my mouth.

"You're right, these words are so infinitely precious, each one written with my princess' pure tears. I, myself, would prefer to treasure these words in my heart, but there is a reason I must tell you this!" Roy told me solemnly.

Okay... Did that mean I had to sit here and listen more? T.T

At the back of my mind, it did occur to me that perhaps Roy was just as mad as the other inhibitants in this house. What should I do?

I mean, better Roy's love letter recital than Beta Lorent and Ruby. At the worst case, I could just force myself to wake up, but I've already survived this long, and Roy did not seem to be harboring any ill intent towards me... Furthermore, if this Roy was indeed the Roy he claimed to be, I should at least figure out how to help him. I supposed I could just play along for now and suffer a few mushy lines.

"Blah blah blah..." Roy continued. Okay, fine, Roy didn't actually say "Blah, blah, blah." But it was all meaningless mush so I tried my best to look interested, but not too interested because I really didn't want to hear any more than necessary.

I couldn't smell anything in my dream travel so I couldn't confirm it, but Roy looked suspiciously rogue. I don't mean to stereotype. Mrs Hen had taken pains to explain the "social disease of discrimination" but Roy had all the vibes, the unkempt hair, the shabby clothes, the muddy boots, topped up with the small scar on his face and the crooked nose.

If he appeared in a movie, the audience would immediately know he playing the part of the rogue. Probably the small fry that died in the first thirty seconds of his appearance. Someone should advise him on his wardrobe when we got home.

But maybe living out here in the warlock lands alone took a toll. How did he get here? But I was getting ahead of myself, Roy was still reciting...

"...for these reasons, my dearest Roy, you must stay on with your alpha. I admit, I cannot believe in all the noble ideas your alpha hopes for, but I believe in you. I will stay here, with my Luna Mother and support my brother's ascension to the head of our glorious Lorent Pack. Despite the faults you have rightly pointed out, this is still my homepack.

You have opened my eyes and now I cannot simply sit back or run away. If an omega can become a supporting pillar for such amazing changes, surely I, even as the alpha's sister, might be able to do more for my little sisters in these Packlands.

I thank the goddess for the joy of knowing you, and the inspiration you have been to me. Perhaps one day, our combined efforts in our packs would cause a large enough wave to sweep our packs towards a better future. Perhaps this future would include a possibility for the two of us to be together. Although for now, this is only a wistful dream, it is the hope that keeps my heart alive..."

At this point Roy was breaking down, his nose and eyes were red with emotion, "My brave young princess had suffered so much..."

Your princess isn't that young anymore, you know! But that wasn't the point.

"Then how did you end up here?" I took advantage of the pause Roy needed to compose himself.

"Uh...what?" Roy blinked wet red eyes at me. He wasn't crying, but he was close enough to it for me to worry. I was never good at handling tears, and I really hated to watch a grown man cry. But I must have asked the right question because it snapped Roy out of the sappy tearful expression.

"Oh, well... It was a tragic day..." Roy even forgot to continue his love letter. His mouth was pressed downward and he continued his sorrowful tale.

Unable to bear the contents of his Lorent Princess' last love letter, Roy collapsed to his knees on the forest ground, "Nooooo...."

Which I never imagined anyone would do in real life, but Roy seemed to be quite the melodramatic hero - maybe his love for his Lorent Princess had infected him with Lorent dramatics. Anyway, back to the story:

Desolate and inconsolable, Roy was unable to accept that his Lorent Princess would choose to live apart from him. He then used the money he had saved to hire the free wolves from the nearby village to build his dream home right there where he had found the letter.

The warlock was an old friend of his. Fount used to come to the Green Packlands and Roy got along well enough with him. Fount was happy to have Roy as his neighbour. He even granted Roy a crystal key. Roy pulled it out to show me, "It allows me access around the forest, and even to Fount's house. But I don't go there anymore... Fount... He hasn't been himself lately."

And then Roy sighed again, "They've all gone mad!"

"Who?" I asked, "What do you mean they've gone mad?"

"No, no, little princess. They were not always this way." Roy explained without really explaining anything at all.

So anyway, Roy built his dream home in the warlock forest.

"It's complicated, little princess." Roy looked down at his clasped hands, "I couldn't move forward to build my new home in Night Forest as I had planned, not without my mate by my side. I couldn't move back to Night Leaf and rejoin King and Luc. They even threw me a farewell party. How could I go back and face them?"

Urm... Just go back. At most, you could return the farewell gifts.

"I was just trapped here... Not by the enchantments, although my princess was an enchantress in her own right. Her beauty was renounced in all the continent..."

No! Let's focus on... Anything else that wasn't mush!

"And then what happened?" I interrupted. Roy seemed to be the kind of story teller that often got off track.

"Well, after I had secluded myself here, I heard from the free wolves that Night Leaf had been poking around the warlock forest. They were looking for me. King and Luc had found that I didn't return home to Night Forest. Furthermore, my princess was still at the Lorents." Roy sighed, "So I got the free wolves to help me stage a rogue attack that supposedly killed me. I even had to cut of my links to Night Leaf."

Oh, wow. So Roy was really a rogue now?

"Believe me, I never meant to deceive King or Luc, but I didn't want them to waste any more time on me. Winter was fast approaching, and our pack needed to gather resources to get through it." Roy explained.

"Then you should just go back home and help them, right?" I said.

Roy shook his head, "I couldn't move on or go back."

Roy ran his hand through his hair. It was like he was reliving the emotions of making such a decision, "It was the hardest decision I had ever made in my life."

It was also the wrong decision. Just saying.

After he was sure King and Luc believed him dead, he continued his seclusion in the warlock forest. Sometimes he would visit Fount and they would debate for hours just for the fun of it. If he needed anything, he could trade or pay the local free wolves for their services. Roy settled down and planted a rose garden.

"I had a lot of free time, so I learned to propagate and cross breed roses." Roy told me, "I also explored the warlock forest and found many magical fragments of land, and eventually, I completed my life's work - the ability to transfer magical traits into roses."

Wait, what? Wth? Who would spend their life to create something like that?

"Ah, but I got ahead of myself. I've only just completed the prototype for this marvelous invention, and it is only a partial transfer. After all, if its between two different species, you can't expect the genetic expression to be complete or identical." Roy started rambling.

"But what has this got to do with Beta Lorent and Ruby?" I interrupted before Roy could go on about roses and whatever crazy science thing he doing.

"Do you know them?" Roy asked now, "You shouldn't get close to them."

Urm, he didn't have to tell me that!

And then Roy, as if sucked into another memory, shook his head and sighed deeply, "Oh, Elliot! I curse the day I met him!"