Ashton held onto the trees and rocks as he tried to get back into the pride lands. He tasted the blood in his mouth and the pain in his ribs - the spots that were once red were now turning into dark coloured bruises. He groaned as he took another step, his ankle hurting from when he was getting beat up by the outlanders.

He smiled as he saw the entrance of the town right in front of him. He just had to walk a small hill and could get to Luke, to the people he wanted to apologize and tell the truth about everything.

Ashton entered the town and it was awfully (and strangely) quiet. The baker had his windows closed and Mrs.Wilson did not have the usual pie cooling off in the window. It was desert-like, which was unusual. He fell and groaned, his hand on his bruised stomach. All his strenght was gone, he felt weak as he looked at the castle entrance. There was something up to the street that led there, his vision was blurry with tears which made it difficult for him to see clearly. Was he seeing... people?

You're almost there, he heard Luke saying in his mind, you can do it.

And suddenly it was like he had reganied all his strenght. He could reach the top of the hill, he could run to the castle and he could meet again with the love of his like. His name was exploding in his mind, make his heart feel a hopeful rush that maybe everything would be okay. His pace started slowing down when he got to the bottom of the hill, the whole town looking at him.

Judgemental stares were being thrown at him. He could hear the people whispering to each other, but it was so awful that he wondered if he was imagining it all. As he walked up the hill the pressure became more intense, the citizens gathering at the entrance of the castle leaving a wide corridor for him to get through.

It's him. He took another step.

Look, the outsider. His ribcage hurt.

I never trusted him. He trips and falls, groaning.

He should be executed. He gets up.

As he walked by the locals he could feel the burning glare of the same ones on his whole body. Perhaps it was the wounds, but something made it hurt physically. So much that he had to put all his effort to move, to get to Luke once again. He saw the castle entrace and the king had been waiting in the balcony. His hands were wrapped with white cloths, his forehead with a wound made by a stone one of the outsiders had throwed.

"Ashton!" he heard Luke say, noticing the same had been held back by Calum and Michael - who vowed to protect the prince.

"Why are you here?" the king shouted at the outsider, the whole square going suddenly quiet "Haven't you betrayed us already?"

"Sir, please, I had nothing to do with-"

"You don't belong here." the king said, making Ashton frown "You never did."

"Mister Hemmings, please..." Ashton said, kneeling in the middle of the square right in front of the balcony "I beg for you to regain trust in me, to let me love your son as much as I can or even more and to please, accept me as I am - as who I'm trying to be for the sake of the one we love the most. I kneel here and beg for your forgiveness." he completed, tears running down his cheeks as he changed his stare between the strict king and the broken hearted love of his life.

"Dad, please!" he could hear Luke beg. Ashton felt his nails piercing through his skin as he tried to manage his pain.

"Shut up!" the king replied to his son harshly "When you came here you asked us to judge you, and that's what I'm going to do."

Ashton shook his head, getting up and backing his way to the entrance. The locals now had fruit on their hands, along with buckets of dirty water.

"Exile him!"

He took one last look at his lover who was also looking straight at him. Ashton hoped Luke would understand what he was trying to say, leaving the square. He ran as fast as he could down the hill where the castle as, buckets of dirty or cold water hitting him - these mixed with the food that was also being thrown. Ashton groaned as he fell, getting up before the locals got to him.

The disgrace and sadness followed him as he went further and further from the pride lands. In the end, he wasn't special.

***

me, trying to write this for weeks but still staying small:  does anyone even use wattpad anymore

guys i miss you and if you like voltron: legendary defender I write klance and (as soon as we got more development) Adashi woop my profile is kerbecos on ao3 (archive of our own)

my twitter is @paladvdes so if you want you can hmu in there

this will probably be the last book of the series, does not mean i won't pick it up someday and continue ;))

-ana rita