H&S: Story Of Dorothy Oneshots

You Lose

You Lose

The boy searched the entire mansion for the strawberry blonde, checking every possible hiding spot the girl could be in. After combing the rest of the first floor, Sue stood affront her bedroom door, which glowed the same purple as his captivating eyes and automatically swung open to allow the raven-haired child inside. A small serene, yet eerie smile graced his pale face, his inky black locks draped over one narrow eye like a dark veil. "Dorothy, I wonder... " He whispered as he looked underneath the bed. "Where are you hiding?" His eyes wandered over to her closet, specifically her wardrobe, and he calmly strode over to it before slowly opening the doors.

"Ah, there you are."

Dorothy was inside, curled up and sleeping peacefully, the long eyelashes that framed her eyes fluttered and her light orange-red hair shimmered in the light. The twelve-year-old's pink rosebud lips were slightly parted as she snored softly. She was beautiful even when asleep, the boy thought. He could've easily sought her out in a matter of seconds instead of going about it the longer, more human way, but he decided to drag this last round out as long as possible and feed on the terror and misery that exuded from her the more he neared.

Sue's violet eyes flashed with a childish glee, and his smile grew slightly wider as he tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. "You lose, Dorothy." He said in an emotionless tone, smile unwavering. With a swift snap of his fingers, the whole room, and the rest of the large house, was engulfed in roaring flames. He closed the closet doors, and sealed them shut with his powers to ensure she wouldn't escape if she woke up, a smoky eggplant-purple tendril snaking around the wardrobe and trickling through the expensive mahogany wood.

Their game of Hide and Seek was over, and he won once again, as he knew he would since the beginning. "Sleep tight, my dear friend." Those last words being uttered from the demon child's mouth, his form faded to white and he vanished in the blink of an eye.

Lines of smoke leaked out of the windows and intermingled above the rooftop, colliding into a dark, thick column of smoke which tumbled into the starry night sky and alerted the villagers. The ravenous flames had set to work slightly despairing the property remarkably fast, eating away at the once beautiful wallpapered walls and costly, polished furniture. However, he did not allow it to crumble into a pile of burned debris that the earth would swallow up over the years, that was unnecessary and the place still meant something to him. The family portrait in the house of a pregnant redheaded woman, her husband, and none other than him proved this. To the villagers, the fire ended just as mysteriously as it had started, the damage it did proved that it was one big fire and they still didn't know, to this day, what caused it, but it could've been anything. Someone could've accidentally knocked a bunch of candles over, or an unattended dish in the kitchen could've overcooked and sparked the flames.

Long after the townspeople rushed up the hill to the aide of those who resided in the deafeningly silent manor, who had long since perished before then, Sue patiently awaited the arrival of an old friend outside. He silently read a new, thick blue book, in better condition than the dusty stack of ancient tomes he owned settled in the grass beside him. He nonchalantly flipped through the pages without a care or a single glance to the abandoned ruins looming over him, as if the cruel death of many undeserving innocents didn't occur in that very place.

An otherworldly and curvaceous figure materialized behind him, how ghostly yet beautiful they looked not taking him by surprise in the least.

"You're the same as always, Sue." A soft, all-too-familiar velvety voice greeted him, and although he didn't turn around to face this newcomer, he could still perfectly picture her silky-smooth, luscious dark fuschia hair billowing in the wind like an unearthly aura around her snow-white skin.

"There are no reasons to change." Sue replied with a content smile, closing the the book he'd undoubtedly took from within the library of the mansion sometime before the fire reduced it to nothing but a gray, ash-ridden, decaying shell of the formerly magnificent home. He reached a pale hand into his burgundy suit jacket, pulling out something that glinted in the dull morning light that weakly shone through the gloomy overcast sky.

"Hm? What's that?" The woman inquired curiously, magenta eyes locked onto the shiny item he plucked from his pocket. Her long dress twirled around her legs in the chilly air that breezed in the direction of the house, a few shades darker than her hair.

"Um, a... souvenir?" Sue said with a slight joking tone to his usually flat voice, his gaze transfixed on the golden, ticking pocket watch he held. As playful as he sounded to the older, regal being before him, he was entirely serious about deeming his gift a memento of his time at the manor, of her. It may not have been much to offer as a thanks for him showering her in expensive gifts every time she won their little game back then, but her father encouraged her to show her gratitude anyways, and it was as good a souvenir as any for him to keep as the years flowed by.

"Oh, you." The woman's silvery chuckle rang back at him, one that inevitably reminded him of the higher-pitched giggle that he knew would forever occasionally echo around the very place he stood. Presently, his friend had no idea what had truly become of her, she thought she had woken up from a nightmare and that she was still among the living. She was once again feeling joy and warmth like the times before she met him again as she played with her family of parents and servants, living in blissful ignorance of the reality of her situation. That was the way it was meant to be, her soul had been tested and she was rewarded with eternal happiness in purgatory.

He briefly pondered whether or not he would still be considered a friend in her eyes if she was currently aware that everything wasn't a nightmare, remembering the betrayal, sorrow, and anger on her face the last time she looked at him before shoving the image into the back of his mind. He was her first friend, but it was a toxic relationship since the start, her heart was filled with greed and he wanted nothing more than to use it against her for his own benefit. The deal he made with the mysterious woman behind him required her as a sacrifice.

"I had fun this time." Sue sighed, lips still slightly curved upwards into a smile. He resisted the urge to raise his head and peer into the window that belonged to her bedroom in favor of staring out into the distance after he put away the pocket watch, which flashed one last time before disappearing into his pocket.

"Well, maybe it's the same story as always." The fellow demon, of a higher social status, replied with a frown tugging at her stunning features. "I don't want to hear your story," she then warned, not in the mood to hear about the cruelties of how he went about doing the job this time.

"Oh, well that's too bad then." Sue said, his high spirits trampling over his disappointment. He had looked forward to telling the princess the story of Dorothy, the lonely naive girl whose sin inevitably lead to her doom.

The family who took up residence there was never heard from again, but Dorothy's remains were found clean and unscathed in that very closet. Rumor has it that you can hear a little girl's laughter if you visit the site of the mysterious house fire. If you are skeptical of this rumor, you will find upon idling around the long forgotten mansion that it is quite true. Joyous, bubbly laughter will echo, as if Dorothy's spirit was still playing and living her childhood like a twelve-year-old should, even after death.

.....

Finally nostalgically staring up at the mansion, memories he held dear flashing inside his head, Sue decided to play one last time with Dorothy before he returned her to the spirits of her family, he'd make this game of Hide and Seek one to remember, even if it meant tormenting her soul just a little longer.