Alan looked up at the moon that was almost hidden behind the leaves. The rain almost muffled his voice, but the duo could hear him perfectly. 

“I’m Alan, a farmer’s kid from Rivendell. Most of my friends were farmers’ kids too, but Sheena was an exception. She was a clerk’s daughter. She was educated, kind, gentle, and had hair as beautiful as iris flowers. And she had a smile cuter than anything else in the world.” He paused for a moment. “If it weren’t because of that one incident, someone like her never would’ve come across someone like me. She probably would’ve married the mayor’s son or a noble’s child. She could’ve lived a wealthy life, but fate decided to throw something at her. That something was me. It was back when she was seventeen. Sheena was on a trip, and she fell into the Newi*. I jumped in to save her despite knowing the danger. We’d fallen in love the moment our eyes had met, and we started meeting in secret.” Alan’s eyes were starting to smile as he reminisced about the good old days. Even his fangs gleamed happily, as if they too were in love. The children felt their father’s happiness too, so they swayed. “A peasant and a clerk’s daughter… Unthinkable, but that was what fate wanted. We dated in secret for a year, and then Sheena got pregnant with the twins.”

PR/N: The Newi is a river.

“Hey, wait,” Roy interrupted, much to Alan’s surprise and annoyance. “So Sheena was pregnant when she was eighteen? How old were you then?”

“Twenty-eight and still pathetically single.” Alan stared down and grinned sheepishly.

A twenty-eight year-old peasant and an eighteen year-old daughter of a clerk… Did the two of them even have any mutual topics to talk about? Roy needed some time to process that, and he was shaken when reality hit him. He wanted to say something, but decided against it. “Alright, you lucky guy. Looks like fate does have some plans in store for you.”

“Yes. I was fortunate that Sheena fell for me. Of course, we couldn’t hide her pregnancy forever, so we eloped. Or else her family would’ve probably disowned her, and the whole town would’ve called her all sorts of names. We’d left one night and escaped into the great forest.”

He clenched his paws and looked down again. “But I was a useless man. I didn’t prepare enough for the trip. We got lost in the forest, and when we were about to run out of supplies…”

“You met her. That priestess,” Roy interrupted.

Alan nodded solemnly. “Rachel saved us. Took us to a rundown temple and took care of my wife until her delivery.”

“I need to confirm one thing.” Letho frowned, looking serious as well. “Did she ask for anything before she helped the two of you? Something like a reward?”

“No,” Alan replied adamantly, but the duo realized he sounded sadder than before. “After my wife’s delivery, Rachel held Arri for a while. Then she said the unthinkable.” Alan’s voice was starting to get hoarse, and his face contorted with rage. “That bitch wanted our daughter! Arri was just an infant, but she wanted to take her away before Sheena could even see her! Can you imagine how hard it was for us?” Alan roared at them. Roy took an involuntary step back and aimed his crossbow at Alan by reflex. “She wanted Arri to stay with her in that dark, humid, putrid place and inherit her legacy. Rachel wanted her to become a-a hack! A servant for that disgusting spider! I would’ve said yes if she wanted me as her servant, but she wanted my child.” Alan’s eyes gleamed crimson. “Naturally, I refused her,” he said coldly.

He had a faraway look in his eyes, as if screaming at something that wasn’t there. 

“We’d convalesced at the temple for a while until Sheena had felt better. The bitch noticed us when we were about to take Arri away, and then she started making those gestures. I was reminded of the witches in children’s stories and realized she must’ve been cursing us. Scared out of my wits, I got a knife and plunged it in her belly.” Alan tensed up. Not even the rain could muffle his heavy breathing and pounding heart. A long, long while later, Alan fell dead silent. “We hid in the temple, waiting for Rachel to bleed to death, and then we saw the weird signs she’d drawn on the ground using her blood. That marked the start of our nightmares.” He sighed. “But the curse isn’t all bad. At least I’m free of any and all disease, and I never tire. Also, the whole family became telepathic, so we can communicate freely. Made hunting and caring for them easier. And I started a traveling circus to take them on a trip around the world. But Sheena couldn’t take it. She hated slimy stuff like frogs when she was alive. She held on for two years, but eventually, she succumbed to the curse.”

***

“I was practically a one-man-show back then, so I thought I should just disband the troupe, but my kids were why I kept going. I had to do this. To find a way to lift the curse. Then I stumbled upon the way to get rid of it, and as you know, it’s true love. I thought it only existed in fairy tales, but nay. I didn’t lie to my members, since that was my goal. I sought professional help, and I realized I might be one woman’s kiss away from lifting this curse. I worked hard to fall for another woman, but I couldn’t do it, no matter what. That’s why I was never blessed with true love. And my kids have been cursed for five years.”

“Do you still love your wife, then?” Letho asked.

“Of course. I would like to see her right now, but…” Alan looked at his children. “I can’t leave my children alone.”

“As you should. Sheena gave you two beautiful children and shared your curse. Rachel was only targeting you, but because you and your family were bonded tightly by fate and bloodline, they shared your curse without knowing it. Thanks to that, you retained your sanity despite getting turned into a werewolf. Oh, and one more thing.” Letho arched his eyebrow. “You lied to us. The Lionheaded Spider’s goddess might be evil, but her priestesses follow the ancient laws nonetheless. There’s a condition if she wants your child to be the temple’s heir, and that condition is to entwine your daughter’s fate with hers. Most priests use the Law of Surprise for that.”

The Law of Surprise was an unwritten law that had binding effects, even if the contract was only oral. It was as old as human existence itself. The gist of it was that a person could request something from the person they saved. Most of the time, it was something like the first thing the person saw when they got home, or something they possessed but had no idea about. Many witchers got their disciples using that rule.

“So here’s my guess. Rachel did ask for something. And that something goes along the lines of ‘If Sheena gives birth to a girl, then she must stay in the temple, but if they’re both boys, then all of you may leave.’ That element of uncertainty is how the Law of Surprise takes root.”

Letho looked into its eyes before going closer to him. “The two of you agreed to it before the delivery.” Letho was sure about it. “That didn’t happen after the birth. You lied. Threatening you after the birth would be pointless, since it wouldn’t create a binding contract, nor would it be magical.” Letho’s eyes gleamed furiously. “You breached the contract first, didn’t you? And you had the nerve to say you didn’t take any innocent lives.”

Roy looked at Letho with shock, then turned his attention to Alan. Instead of refuting the claims, he kept his silence. Just when the duo was about to lose their patience, Alan took one step forward, his body trembling, his eyes filled with an unspoken plea. “You’re right. I breached the contract and turned my back on the priestess, so this is my punishment. It’s supposed to be mine alone!” He held his head in agony. “I can live a long life, since werewolves are healthy, and Art can live for a few decades, since he’s a falcon, but not Arri. It’s been five years since then. She only has a year or two at best. Please save them, Letho. The children are innocent.”

Letho crossed his arms as he gazed straight into Alan’s eyes, and Alan met his gaze. “You’re right.” Letho sighed. “This is entirely your fault, not the children’s. They shouldn’t suffer with you.” He relented. “But answer me. Do you love them more than you love yourself? Be honest. This is crucial.”

“They’re my only family and the reason I keep going on.”

“I understand.” Letho nodded. “I can’t save them, but you can,” he declared.

“What do you mean?”

“They weren’t making things up when they said true love can lift curses. The countless tragic love stories recorded in history prove it. You’re on the right track, but you’re doing it wrong. Arri will be dead before you find that true love of yours. Consider this: You’re the person who loves them the most, and family love is a form of love too. There is no need to find someone else to fill that role.”

“I don’t understand.” Alan was confused. “I love them more than I do myself, and they never leave my side. Even so, they’re still cursed.”

“Every fairytale has its own little nugget of truth in it. You can find unimaginable power in love and blood,” Roy interrupted. He was reminded of Geralt’s story. One that was uncannily similar to Alan’s, and he knew what Alan had to do to lift the curse. “Now that we’re certain you love your children deeply, we’re one step away from lifting the curse. All we need now is blood. Blood combined with true love can end all curses and misfortune.”

“Be specific! What should I do?” Alan was in a hurry.

Roy looked at Alan’s kids, then opened his mouth, but said nothing.

“They’re just kids, so we’d better take this somewhere they can’t hear us,” Letho said. He glanced at Roy furtively, wondering why Roy would know the way to lift the curse.

Alan had a bad feeling about it, but he told his kids to stay on a tree not far from him. “They can’t actually understand things that are too complex though.” Alan combed his fur with trembling paws to calm his nerves, but what he heard next made his mind go blank.

“You’re the main target of the curse, so most of it will disappear when you die, and the blood taken right before that will be enough to lift the rest of it,” Roy explained.

“This is the only way your kids can get rid of that curse and live their lives normally,” Letho said sombrely. “You’ll have to prove your love to them by using your very life.”

Alan stared down in silence for the longest time. He pondered on the matter, struggling to make a decision, but in the end, he resolved himself. “If that’s the truth, then I shall pray for your good fortune once this is all done, but if not, I shall curse you with every ounce of my being, just like how Rachel did to me and my family once.”

“On the name of the Viper School, I, Letho, swear that everything I have told you about the way to lift the curse is true. If I break this promise, I shall never see the day the Viper School makes its return.” Letho raised his necklace solemnly.

“On the name of the Viper School, I, Roy, swear that everything I have told you about the way to lift the curse is true. If I break this promise…” Roy made a promise of his own.

Alan gazed at them for the longest time, and then he let out a sigh. “I have one final request. Can you… Can you send me off? I can’t do it. Even taking my heart out won’t kill me. You must cut my head off. I can’t ask my family to do it. It’s too cruel.”

“Are you sure, Alan?” Roy stared back at him. “Are you sure you want to do this?” His voice started trembling.

“Yes.” Alan looked up with relief on his face. Then, he tilted his head and smiled as warmly as he could. “I told you I loved them more than I do myself, and I wanted to see Sheena as soon as possible.”

“Don’t you want to say goodbye to your troupe? Tell them what happened? They’ve been working with you for years. They have the right to know the truth,” Letho reminded him. “No last goodbyes?”

“No. I don’t know if anyone else has found out about this, but I know Eveline has noticed something wrong about me, but I need you to bring my message to them.” Alan told them about the next captain of the troupe, what to do about his children, and how to deal with his funeral. “I’ve been tortured this whole time. Every time I see my children trapped in a beast’s body, every time I think about the night Rachel died, every time I remember about my wife’s passing, I feel this pain in my chest. It’s suffocating. It’s time. It’s time to free my children from the curse and atone for my sins with my blood. Only then do I have the right to see Sheena again.”

***

The long downpour finally ended, the dark clouds splitting apart, revealing the moon in all its splendor. The young man raised Gwyhyr high in the sky and looked at a place not far from him.

There, a menacing silhouette was kneeling on one knee, whispering to a pair of adorable birds. His eyes were filled with love and longing, but he knew what had to be done. “Remember the game we always play, Art, Arri? Right, here goes.”

He took a deep breath. “Close your eyes now. Turn around and count from ten. Come and find me whenever you’re done. The one who finds me first gets a bedtime story from daddy tonight. Don’t peep, Art. Don’t peep, you hear me? Don’t peep…”

Alan’s final message resounded in the air for a while, but eventually, everything fell silent, his last smile etched on his face.