3rd Person POV
The trio was back together again but Reginald could as well have been buried with Xanthippe. He was in a world that was not in the world that belonged to the outside world. Everyone was really worried about Reginald who had not shut his eyes or eaten or spoken since Thippe had died.
“Watching him like this breaks my heart,” said Regina to the father of her children one evening. They had all moved back to Dagen's palace including Harlin. They had thought it best for Reginald to stay away from the Blood Moon pack for a while. He had not protested because he was not even there.
“He's wasting away right in front of our very eyes,” said Dagen, looking at his son who was staring into an abyss of nothingness.
“I don't want to lose my son like this? How did this even happen?” demanded Regina from Harlin and Charlotte. They had no answer to that question. They had known that Reginald loved Xanthippe but they had not known how deep those feelings were. If Harlin had known he would have tried to stop the wedding before it even took place. He blamed himself a little for what had happened.
“He's not eating anything, someone please feed him, he's going to die,” cried Regina, she could not take this anymore. She had tried for days to force something down his throat but he would only keep the food in his mouth until he drooled it all out again.
“Mum, come here, Reginald will not die, okay? He's in a dark place and he will come out of it, okay?” quipped Charlotte as she led her mother out of the room where they had placed Reginald.
Dagen could not believe that just the week before he had been talking to his son from across the table eating dinner. If he had known that allowing his son to travel to the Blood Moon pack would result in this, he would have refused him.
“He's still not eating?” quipped Arabella, she was Harlin's cousin—the soon-to-be Beta of her pack. She had been there when Reginald had fallen into despair.
“No, the physician said if he doesn't sleep, he's going to die,” said Charlotte, who had returned to Reginald's room.
Arabella walked towards Reginald who made no movement whatsoever. She hugged him tight and placed his head on her shoulder. In three minutes, Harlin and Charlotte watched their brother fall asleep.
“What did you do to him?” whispered Harlin, who was quite surprised.
Arabella took out a weird-looking flower from her bosom. Charlotte and Harlin gave her a strange look.
“It works like a charm. My father is sick and he's so uncomfortable it's difficult for him to fall asleep sometimes. Reginald is in shock from grief. Once he's had a good sleep, he'll snap out of it and then grieve her properly,” said Arabella.
“How do you know this?” asked Charlotte. She was just relieved that someone had tried something that had actually worked.
“I was in a really dark place after my mother died,” she whispered, her face breaking into a sad smile as she recalled the agonising pain she had been in afterwards.
Charlotte and Harlin helped Reginald lay down properly on his bed.
“Sleep beside him,” whispered Charlotte to Arabella.
“What? Never!” she whispered back at her.
“Bella, please,” pleaded Harlin, “I'll go get you the herbs you came for.”
Arabella had come to get some herbs for her father. She was a friend of the family and when she had seen that Reginald had not improved one bit, she had tried the only thing she knew.
****
It took several days but gradually Reginald did find the light. He was eating a little and he was talking to his friends even though only a little. He even began to attend court and carried on like nothing had ever happened. When Charlotte and Harlin tried to bring up Lady Xanthippe he was quick to change the topic and soon they learned not to mention her in any conversation.
One day, Reginald brought up something that they had put aside, “What about the zombies? Are we not going there anymore?”
Charlotte knew her brother. He was looking for a way to follow his beloved but it was not going to happen on her watch.
“My mother is trying to find a way to reverse the zombies but she needs approval from the Council of Elders.”
“A way to reverse the transformation? Is that not permanent? How can they ever be normal again?” asked Reginald. Charlotte was curious too.
“Apparently the solution lies with the sky people,” said Harlin. He did not understand all of it himself.
“The sky people? You might as well say there's no solution. Those guys up there don't care about us at all,” there was anger in Reginald's eyes and voice.
“Well, there have been zombie sightings and they have all been killed. I do not think we need to bother with the ultimate zombie and his community for now,” said Charlotte in a soft voice.
“When are you going back to the Dark Moon pack, huh? Don't you have a pack to rule? I heard Aunt Em is on compulsory bed rest,” said Reginald to his sister. Charlotte ignored him. There was no way she was going to leave his side now. She was scared to death that her brother would try to take his own life.
“Mum is standing in for Aunt Em and she's doing a fantastic job. The pack doesn't need me,” nothing was more important than the health of her brother.
“And you?” Reginald turned to Harlin.
“My mother is Queen and she has my aunt to help her. I'm not needed at home,” said Harlin with a bright smile.
“I just want to be left alone. What do you guys think I'm going to do, huh? Take my life?” he finally said the very thing the both of them feared.