"Jesus," Arthur mutters, shaken, as he tries to take that in. He doesn't pull his hand away, but it is loose in Ossie's grip.
He wants to say how dare you, with the fury of the person on the wheel. But it's never been as simple as that. He has been on the wheel, and he has been the wheel, and the net effect of his life has always been harm, no matter what world he's in. Those were some of the only true words that the King ever spoke.
John has been the wheel as well, for the joy of it, far longer and far worse than either of them. And while forgiveness is the wrong word for how Arthur feels about that, he still misses him horribly. He wouldn't have grown close enough to miss him like this if John didn't regret, and if he didn't constantly demonstrate his effort to change.
God. Here Arthur thought his own and Ossie's similarities were only superficial. Ossie has done a good job of hiding this.
He's silent for a while. Then he asks, quietly: "How many people?"
He wants, badly, to know that they weren't faceless and forgettable to Ossie.
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2023-11-10 02:24 pm (UTC)He wants to say how dare you, with the fury of the person on the wheel. But it's never been as simple as that. He has been on the wheel, and he has been the wheel, and the net effect of his life has always been harm, no matter what world he's in. Those were some of the only true words that the King ever spoke.
John has been the wheel as well, for the joy of it, far longer and far worse than either of them. And while forgiveness is the wrong word for how Arthur feels about that, he still misses him horribly. He wouldn't have grown close enough to miss him like this if John didn't regret, and if he didn't constantly demonstrate his effort to change.
God. Here Arthur thought his own and Ossie's similarities were only superficial. Ossie has done a good job of hiding this.
He's silent for a while. Then he asks, quietly: "How many people?"
He wants, badly, to know that they weren't faceless and forgettable to Ossie.