Estarossa and Zeldris were left alone in their silence as Merlin excused herself to try to do more research on what happened and why the doors crumbled as they left. She said she wasn't sure if the emotion-leveling spell wore off during that last memory, causing the boy's magic to override everything, or if the war ending acted as the final catalyst to break down the doors and free everything as it should be. So, while Merlin studied to find out which of the two of the drastic theories were true, the brothers were left to do nothing but wait as their brother could either be restored to his former self or destroyed altogether. 

"We... failed him. We failed him so badly."

Zeldris didn't bother responding. It was the truth. The had been expected to be perfect sons of the Demon King and pushed so hard to be the flawless leaders their father had wanted, that they lost the thing that mattered most. They pushed down the good parts of themselves and lashed out at their younger brother when it hurt to do so. Then, going beyond that, they expected the same thing from that same boy when they themselves couldn't handle the strain to begin with. He needed to be less childish, more considerate of their time, more responsible, more, more, more, until they had taught him that everything that made him wonderful was wrong, and that his actions and behavior directly correlated to their love for him. That every time he made mistakes- or just what they perceived as mistakes, really- their love for him faded more and more. And they hardly even noticed as their kind, happy, confident, imaginative, Meliodas, turned into a dull, depressed, beaten down, shell. Instead of teaching him to be happy as he was, they taught him that what he was alone, could never be enough. They had taught him to view everything they loved about him, everything that made him, him as a flaw. And by the goddesses, was that only the start... They had been so wrapped up in their own stress and pride, that they didn't even THINK to try to listen to the boy when he tried to get their attention. All of the neglect, all of the ignorance and unknowns they held about why Meliodas had left could have been avoided if they had just LISTENED. It sounded so simple, yet they had failed on that possibly more than anything else they had ever failed at with the demon! It had been so different when they were all younger, before the war. Zeldris thought about the contrast every day as he got to be reminded of that young boy all over again when Meliodas was reverted, yet it still never occurred to him that Estarossa and himself played a part in that. They thought it was their brother who had changed, but instead it was them that changed him as he tried hard to adapt to their own youth they left behind. They didn't even notice his changes through the teen years, and then when he left and was deemed a traitor, it STILL wasn't enough to get their attention! They let their own pride be hurt, their own anger fester and boil, they let themselves only see the blond as a traitor instead of looking at why he was acting the way he was and the part they played in it. All of the hurt and anger Zeldris felt over the years, the confusion and bitterness and complete bafflement over the betrayal, none of it was just. Meliodas had never hurt them, they had done it all themselves, and it still took more than the blond's words and actions for them to see it. It took three thousand years and a repeat of it all for them to finally understand. It took lying to the child and hurting him all over again, it took nearly breaking him, nearly killing him, for them to even START the process of trying to understand. It took far more mistakes and time than it ever should've for them to see how their actions affected Meliodas. And even now, it might be too late. He might be gone, and... in a way worse than death. Which was... a whole new discussion the two demons needed to have about what they saw in that last memory. 

"Our father cursed him as the war ended, yet... he gave us orders to kill Meliodas. And the memory reversion where his magic started to attack him WAS killing him. Did we... Did we end the curse our father placed by reverting him? You brought all of the commandments together for this spell minus me, and our father had said before the seal set in that the only thing to end his curse was to have an equal power erase it."

Zeldris was fine with the silence he got back for a moment. He hadn't exactly responded to his brother's realization either, they were both too overwhelmed for quick responses right now.

"I think our curse overrode the other. Though, I can't say which is a worse punishment. Our father must've been so pleased when I told him of what the commandments planned as an alternative to murdering out kin. To think, I had actually wondered if he truly did care for our little brother when hearing him agree so easily, yet now... I know it was because he knew our power would break the curse he placed, and eventually, that would lead to the blond dying one way or another."

There was an understandable amount of bitterness and disgust in the demon's tone as the ravennete felt a decent amount of it in himself as well. Yet it brought more questions into play, ones that needed to take prevalence over their guilt about their actions at the moment. Because these questions that needed to be spoken dealt with what action would be taken moving forward. 

"What are you going to do now? You said before that you would return to the commandments when this was over to lead them away, but... it doesn't seem like you're terribly thrilled about going back to that now. A notion I understand. So, what do you want to do now?"

The man sighed as a fatigue the two shared settled over the room.

"I still plan to return. I take no joy in it, and I have no desire left in me to carry out that horrid man's will, however... it will still be the best option for the two of you. With our father sealed away, it will become much easier to work from the inside to work against this new war he wants to start, therefore protecting you both and carrying out the safety of the humans. But I know it will still be a struggle to do so without angering him terribly, or worse, without him working to escape just to enact revenge on his two 'traitorous sons.' And yet I still have to do it. It's the action I must take to make up for my own failures; besides, I've always been the best at reasoning with him."

Zeldris nodded. If he weren't so emotionally exhausted, he would feel touched by the notion that Estarossa wanted to protect them, but unfortunately, he couldn't muster up any sort of feeling at the moment. Not beyond the numbing guilt, suffocating fear, and overpowering regret filling up every part of his soul.

"I understand. Then I suppose this will be one of the last times we see each other. With Meliodas and I labeled as traitors, we won't be willing or able to return with you. And if our brother doesn't... recover, I intend to carry out his will myself to protect the humans. It's the least I can do to make up for the lives I've ended myself. Perhaps I'll become one of those... what was it our brother was called? Ah, yes, a Holy Knight. Horrid name, but they seem to specialize in protecting the humans weaker than themselves."

"And... if he does recover?"

They both knew that Estarossa already understood the answer to the question he just whispered. He knew his siblings well enough to know the fate Zeldris was willing to accept, and the strife that had occurred to make it a likely outcome once Meliodas awoke. Zeldris and the blond had been enemies after all, and the demon had already missed his opportunity to fix that. 

"If he does recover like we hope... then what happens next will be expected."

The elder clearly didn't like that answer, but there was nothing he could do or say to counter it. They had already made the decisions leading to this in the past, now, they were merely making up for it. And in Zeldris's case, that meant paying the price in something strong enough for the cost of his actions; with his life.

The tension within the silence was nearly palpable, but neither of the brother's had a chance to break it with their goodbyes as Merlin teleported next to where the two sat with a grave look on her face.

"My research was... inconclusive. However, the boy is starting to stir awake now according to Ban. I recommend one of you two come with me to visit. If there is any chance of having something trigger if our attempts failed, it will be with more familiar faces."

It was a silent conversation between the two to decide who should go, before Estarossa nodded to the other quietly as Zeldris got the message. 

"Alright mage, take me to him. It's time to see if... if we were able to fix our mistakes."

She nodded as well before leding him back to the demon's room upstairs, the room Ban just left with eyes wide in alarm. 

"Ban, what is it? You said he was stirring before, is he awake now?"

 "I-I don't know. H-He was stirring, and I put my hand on his head to check for a fever. He opened his eyes, said my name, and got surrounded in some weird glow. I-I think the curse is acting up again!"

They needed no other confirmation to enter the room as they all rushed to the door, only to be blasted back as lines of light and dark magic burst through the tavern, knocking everyone inside unconscious other than Merlin, Estarossa, and Zeldris for some reason. And as the light cleared and the ravenette's vision returned, he saw Meliodas sitting up slowly in the bed, but not as a child. No, he was restored to his former self, and Zeldris hated to see those hardened emerald eyes back again to haunt him. Only now, he knew exactly why they were there. 

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