There's no denying I wasn't small anymore, but I was still exactly that—small. I was short, Sabre's height becoming superior to mine, dwarfing me by at least a few inches already (not that I was keeping track) and that bothered me beyond belief. I was still holding out, hoping that I had a miraculous last minute growth spurt and grew taller than Mother and Sabre— at the moment those chances were looking pretty dull. So much for being a tall, mighty king— now I'm going to be the enraged pipsqueak with an ego taller than him.

Thankfully the rest of me wasn't letting me down, because over the course of several weeks, I'd come to notice changes in my body (... this is not some book on the miracle of puberty so I'll keep it short). My body is thickening, producing muscle fit for my bloodlines— rippling beneath a monochrome canvas is the strength of warlords and conquerors, of kings. I am still not at my full weight, this was simply a preview of what was to come— a little sample of the truly delicious form my body would be taking. In time I'll be thick and powerful, a worthy opponent for my enemies and an intimidating presence to my subjects.  

Mother's eyes watched me closely, her words warning that if even a single hair of mine left the forest my end would come quicker than I would realize. I give a nod of recognition, breaking the eye contact and taking my leave— even as I walk away I can feel her steel gaze boring into the back of my head with tremendous force, sending chills down my spine as I move away from the little clearing Mother had deemed our 'home' (it wasn't fit for an Emperor or future king, but it would do for now).

I had intended to find Sabre, but my mind was easily caught by the sound of something breaking, brittle winter branches tumbling to the earth and clattering to the ground as a result of an unwarranted attack. I tread carefully, ears straining forward and eyes picking apart the brown, blurred forms of the trees so familiar to me— but there was something more. My lips twitch and grow into a twisted grin as I straighten out and step forward, batting my eyes towards the figure I guessed to be that boy I'd seen before. Zhu, I believe he called himself.

"And what did that tree ever do to you?" I comment, striding ever so confidently closer to the midnight boy. What I hadn't expected was to be assaulted with a new sight, a steadier, heavier boy that definitely hadn't existed the last time we'd met (oh no he's hOOOT). My eyes grace him, swallowing up the changes that have brought him farther from boy and closer to hot man. He's definitely gotten taller (shit, he's even gotten taller than me), and his muscles are much more defined than they were when we first met. And— oh.

My stomach lurches, bubblegum meeting clear crystalline— shit. He's not a fucking equine, just my luck. The frustration doesn't translate to my macabre face, but it's certainly there. My eyes linger a little too long on the glass horns creeping steadily from behind his ears, having broken through skin inconveniently after we'd met.

He even had a— fat mass with him (what the fuck is that?). I've never seen anything more angry and chubby in my entire life, totally not the kind of companion I saw Zhu walking around with. The thing looked like a big dump with flippers, and it was standing (laying?) there in Zhu's company, my face twisting in an attempt to keep from laughing. "Is that thing yours?" I really hope it isn't, because who knows what'll happen if I laugh and it is in fact Zhu's.