Pure of Mind and Sharp of Knife (Male Reader x Female Creepypasta)

She Who Dwells in Shadow

As Angel and I clash our wooden swords together in the confines of the sparring arena, I catch her blunt edge on mine shortly before throwing it aside and bumping the pommel into her head. She staggers backward and stabs her sword into the floor, a signal to pause our training.

At this signal, I fall to one knee, my hand so sweaty that holding my sword tightly had become a challenge, "That went on," I pant, "for too long."

Angel shrugs, having not broken a sweat, "Tiring out before your enemy is also a defeat, (Y/N). Your stealth naturally makes you docile during fights. It was to be expected that your endurance could use some work."

"Yeah," I grunt, standing up again after wiping the sweat off my cheek, "I'll admit, I thought this would be easy."

"Everyone has a weakness," Angel nods, "It is not a bad thing to admit that. You did well this round, too."

Still heaving with exhaustion, I rub my aching body, "You're the one who landed more than one hit here!"

She chuckles at my pained self and rests her practice weapon on her shoulder, "Oh, do not be discouraged. I have been doing this for a long time. It will take you just as long, but that is nothing to be ashamed of! One last time?"

I hold up my sword to see if my arm will give out; when it doesn't, I nod, "Let's do it."

"(Y/N)!" Scarecrow calls my name from outside the ring.

Angel looks over my shoulder and I turn around, "Scarecrow? What do you need?"

She crosses her arms, "We were supposed to talk last night until you got drunk. Can you spare some time?"

Angel nods to me and I step out of the ring after tossing her my sparring sword.

Scarecrow scrunches her nose and looks me up and down when I approach her, "Maybe take a shower first."

* * *

"Alright," I emerge from my closet with a fresh set of clothes, "this talk sounds important if you had to remind me."

Scarecrow, who sits on my bed, starts, "This concerns our plan, remember? I want to discuss how we'll bring Kagekao to our side."

"I thought we'd be doing it the same way we did with you," I sit down beside her.

"We are. I only wonder how effective this will be in the long run. Our plan, I mean," she worries.

I nod after thinking about it some more, "Zalga will probably put the castle on lockdown if we get Kagekao to join. Do you think we could lure a few Terrors at once?"

"They'll be more likely to deny our offer if they come in a group," Scarecrow shakes her head, "Mob mentality will stop anyone from joining us that way. We're better off sticking to recruiting one at a time."

"Then how are we going to recruit anyone if Zalga doesn't even let them leave the castle?" I question.

Scarecrow stares at the wall, searching for an answer, before submitting, "Zalga's unlikely to stop all traffic outside of the castle. She'd be surrendering her territory by doing so. The truth is we don't know how Zalga will react. For now, (Y/N), let's take this one step at a time. Let's not rush into it."

"You're right," I nod and stand up, "Let's take this to Slenda, then."

Disturbed, Scarecrow rises to her feet to stop me from leaving, "Wait, what? We can't tell her about this! She won't let us leave the mansion if she finds out!"

"Slenda's going to find out the moment we bring Kagekao home anyway," I open the bedroom door, "It'd be best to tell her. There's no need to break what little trust there is between you two."