The journey before had been eventful, you could say.

From his beloved being abducted, to her adsorbing into a whip, to being betrayed by a good friend, and then having to defeat literal death…Was he supposed to act like this all was normal..? That he was going to be fine after this?

The adrenaline before had guided him. It made him feel strong, and resilient, like he had always been. But now, on this lonely walk back home, his mind truly began to process. He was serious when he gave Mathias that message, and he was damn determined to carry it out..But..How could he have been so foolish? How could Mathias have been so foolish?

To let his emotions control his actions and do something so utterly…Horrible was something he never thought he’d see the other do. Yet here he was, walking away from the aftermath of it all.

The castle had crumbled after he defeated death, leaving him no choice but to run into the bittersweet sunset outside, and the forest it covered.

“What is done, is done, and there is no going back from it..” Leon mumbled to himself, taking a moment to breathe. Though soon, with a snap of a twig from feet that wasn’t his own, he was ripped from his thoughts and pulled into defense. His hand flew to the whip hung on his belt, his head snapping towards the sound in an instant.

“Come out!” He cried, his eyebrows pinched together in focus. “Show yourself!”