Something caught his attention. An odd, bizarre shape emerged from the stone wall, changing its posture, contorting its features. He recognized the beast. The horrible creature that once pursued him, driving him towards insanity.
For a moment, he considers the elation of living an ordinary life. An existence away from the constant fear and worry. A reality without the continual hardships and the plague of his sustaining uncertainty, knowing whether he lived a happy story or a miserable one, it’s the only truth he’s ever known. He accepts it has always been his burden to carry. If not himself then who, who would he wish this agony on? He is tolerant of the acceptance that through his many misfortunes, it may have prevented someone else from enduring his never-ending barrage of sorrow.