Infectious Devotion (Yandere M. x Fem. Reader)

The Grimmer Key

A/N: As usual, I would recommend putting the video on loop.

  

At the bottom of the steps, she held the lighter up and surveyed the basement, and she didn't bother locating a light switch since she didn't wish to give away her position more. Grey concrete floors greeted her as did dusty shelves filled with cardboard boxes. In places, the cardboard had been eaten through, and she heard tiny, skittering feet in the area. Something brushed across her left ankle, and she jumped, much to the annoyance of her aching body. Quickly, she moved the light in that direction. She saw the end of a rat tail disappear into the shadows of the room.

Relieved, she faced away from the animal and moved closer to the various shelves. She figured that the boxes were filled with clothes, shoes and jewelry, and she suspected that the remaining boxes had nothing too valuable in them as there were empty spaces on the shelves. That might be either from lack of stock, or the more likely option that things had been stolen since the display case had been broken through.

In the far right corner, however, there were three old wooden barrels grouped together. She raised a brow and wondered what they were doing there. Since when did a clothing store have barrels in their stock room? Maybe, it had been some trend she had been unaware of in the past. Or, they could've used them for Halloween if they had sold costumes. Whatever the case, she headed over to them cautiously.

Reaching them, she held the lighter over them and noticed something shoved in between the three. Before she could check them, however, she froze as she heard footsteps on the main floor. Instantly, she clicked the lighter closed and allowed the darkness to consume her. If it was the creature, being in the dark didn't matter, but if he saw the light from the lighter, he most certainly would investigate it.

Closely, she listened to the steps, and she noted that they weren't too soft, like the creature's usual ones. If he had seen her tumble down that hill and hadn't been the one to fix her wounds, then it would make sense as he might be rushing around to find her. But if he had been the one to aid her, he'd be taking his time and walk with his usual pace to mess with her; however, she wasn't going to climb the stairs and check who it was. Rather, she waited.

A short while later, the sound of the footsteps grew distant and presumably headed out of the building, which she entirely hadn't expected. The creature usually had a good sense of smell, and there was a good chance that he could smell the blood from her wounds, which made it even odder about her being taken care of earlier. If the creature hadn't been the one to help her, how had the creature not been able to track her down with all of that blood that she had lost from her arm?

The situation just all seemed far too bizarre, and she told herself that she just needed to find a good hiding spot. Then, she could think on all of it more even if the strange facts were causing her worry. (F/n) rubbed her temples before she flicked the lighter back on once she was more positive that the owner of those footsteps had departed from the building.

Holding the lighter over the barrels, she reached over carefully and pulled the item out, which happened to be a folded piece of paper. She made sure not to place it anywhere near the flame as she unfolded it and smoothed it over the service of the barrels. From the looks of it, it was a map of a list of halls and passageways.

Flipping the paper over, she read: Underground tunnels of Flat Peak. Her stomach knotted into a ball, and memories of the Cankerfell tunnels swept through her. Almost, she collapsed before she used her free hand to steady herself. (F/n)'s left hand trembled as she flipped the map back over, and she forced herself at least to scan over them. They would provide a better hiding spot than the surface, but they also could trap her. Barely, she had escaped the last tunnel system with Nick, and she didn't know how far her luck would extend.