Entwined | 𝘠𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘳 𝘍𝘢𝘯𝘧𝘪𝘤

Insecurity

~CHARLOTTE~

They had been hearing the bats' echolocation clicks for a minute now, getting louder and more frantic with each step they took. Charlotte focused on Yami's hand, as long as they were together they'd be okay. She kept pressing forward when out of nowhere the lantern they'd been using to light up their path went dark. Her heart rate spiked, and she gripped onto Yami's hand reactively.

"Charlotte?" Yami's deep voice called out to her. He was still beside her. She took in a breath to steady herself and then responded.

"Yes."

"You doing alright?"

"I think we need to fix the lantern. We need our sense of sight."

"We're fine, I can use my ki." She began to move forward again, but more cautiously now. Sure, Yami could sense things but she was out here in the dark. Using her free hand, she felt for the cave wall and turned around a corner towards the bat sounds.

"Charlotte, why are you going that way?"

"The clicks, they are coming from down there."

"You're wrong."

Charlotte was taken aback by his words. The clicks had always been coming from this direction. She turned towards the sounds, trying to make sure she was indeed hearing things correctly.

"Stop, Charlotte. Didn't you hear me?" His voice was now agitated and impatient. For some reason, she felt a sting in her heart. She looked down, even though she still couldn't see anything. The misdirection in sounds must be part of the hallucination. If so, she'd have to trust Yami since he was probably using his ki instead of his hearing.

"Where do we go?" She asked him.

"You can go outside the cave. You're just holding me back by getting caught in their trap."

At first she couldn't believe what she heard. Then, it sunk in. He was right. She was just going to lead him in the wrong direction at this point. Deep in her heart, she had been worried about getting trapped by the hallucinations. She had strived her whole life to be a strong woman, to be someone who could deal with her own problems. Yet, even now, she was holding someone else back.

"Ok," she replied dejectedly. She walked away, then felt a tug on her arm. Oh, right, I'm still holding his hand. He can take care of this without me... Then she let go. The sting in her heart ripped wide open. She felt like sobbing, but instead she just kept walking away. Her hand pressed into her chest above her heart, as if she was trying to stop the bleeding of an emotional wound.

Once she was a distance away, a light flickered beside her. The lantern has come back on. Or...? After a quick inspection, she saw that the lantern never went out in the first place! Their sense of sight had been completely overcome by the bats' clicks. Did that mean...? Were Yami's words also a dillusion?!

Yami can be blunt and dense, but he's not a liar. Earlier today he told me he wanted me, he wanted me even if I hurt him. He held me close and he was the one to suggest holding hands. He wouldn't want me to leave him.

Charlotte spun around and looked behind her, only to see an empty cave. She called out his name, but was met by the echos of her own voice. She began to run back to where she had left him. The clicks had retreated off into the distance, and they had decreased in frequency and number. Yet Yami was nowhere to be found. 

She quickly rushed around the tunnels nearby, calling out his name and tilting the lantern to light up every crevasse. She turned up nothing. He must have been led away just as she had. Panic gripped her heart, but she shoved it out of her mind.

She reached internally for her mana, and concentrated on extending her awareness. Briars stretched out from her in all directions, crawling through the network of corridors and dead-ends. She would find Yami. It was only a matter of time. She could do this. She just had to believe in herself.

After an extended period of near-meditation, one of her vines wrapped itself around something expelling body heat. It didn't move away at her touch, that was a good sign. Focusing even more intently, she felt a sensation completely new to her. It was like her vine turned into another appendage, with the all the feeling capacity of her fingertips.

She instantly knew it was Yami. He felt soothing, and every cell in her body seemed to focus its attention on him. She could even feel his pulse, and she knew he was alright. However, he wasn't reacting to her, and she knew he'd recognize her briars. That must mean he was still trapped in the hallucination. Following the path of her vine, she went to rescue him.

A/n: Got get your  mans, Char!