Loyalty's Lullaby (A Crossmare Fanfiction)

Town

Can we like- please forget the last part where Nuggetmaru goes Sanic mode existed? I wrote crack by accident. Nu, sadly tentacle hentai octopus daddy doesn't do Naruto running. Sigh. I'm not going to delete it though. It's too fabulous.

HAPPY VERY LATE NEW YEARRRRRRRRRS!

Imma start from a bit of the last fumi.

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Why were they having this conversation anyway? Weren't they fleeing for their lives at the moment? Shouldn't they be focusing on that? Oh, the mysteries of the world.

"Now, as I was saying, let's pick up the pace, shall we, princess?" the taller suggested, just able to stifle back the snort threatening to erupt from him, due to Cross' puzzled and 'hhhhhhh' expression.

Cross yelped as they started sprinting faster, the dappled light finding their way through actual leaves hitting him square in the eyes, making them sting and squint. Being carried in the air by a single appendage wasn't exactly the most comfortable, and the smol constantly felt like Nightmare was going to let go and drop him any second. He couldn't bare to think of what would happen if he did.

Underlust inhabitants weren't known to be the most athletic, and surely the octopus would be able to out run them. Then again, these people were trained, so it was possible they'd be different. Plus, Nightmare was a pretty fast runner with endurance better than most. Maybe the smaller could allow himself to at least have a little hope.

Trees and greenery blurred pass them, several times almost being crashed into by the two skeletons before the tol would abruptly change direction, throwing the bean into a moment of panic. Yells of distress and frantic orders rang out behind them as the group of guards realized they had started to escape, a series of footsteps clanking softly onto the grassy ground signaling that the chase had begun.

Adrenaline began pumping its way up the duo's boney legs, and at some point, Cross finally did let loose, and whooped, actually getting excited by the whole affair. There wasn't much, but the bit of wind racing towards them was enough to whip his breath away as soon as the noise left him, only a faint echo of the original reaching the taller's 'ears'. Nightmare laughed, shockingly genuinely, when he heard the sound of joy.

"The uptight frick finally learned to have fun? I'm actually proud of myself," the octopi grinned, raising his voice to be heard over the rushing air enveloping them.

"And I'm starting to regret it."

The first obstacle the pursuers had to get through was the river, which was really shallow, and not much of help at all. Though, it would slow them down and buy the wanted companions  a little more time. The guards stood at the rocky bank, glaring at the water distastefully, before tentatively talking small steps in, cringing as their boots sunk into the mud sucking them in, and making a squelching noise. The stream honestly smelled rotten, like dead fish. Even though it had quite a small width, it still seemed like there would be so much more to cross. They daren't look up at the other side, afraid they'd see how far they still had to go and faint, as they kept traveling farther into the middle, deeper part of the river.

Back with our two wonderful main protagonists, they were making good progress, successfully having already put at least 0.6 kilometer in between them and the guards. A bit later, and the group behind them were back in the chase, proving to be faster than expected. After all, no matter where they were from, they were still trained killing machines. Even if they'd probably lose a fight to a frog, if unarmed. Luckily for the skeletons, they were.

After some sprinting, stumbling, tripping, whooping, and profanities, both parties were starting to fatigue, and teens knew that sooner or later, they'd have to find a safe place to rest. They were going around the forest aimlessly, just hoping they'd just so happen to bump into a town they could stay at until the guards left. Wouldn't that be something? Yeah, like it was ever really going to happen, though.

By evening, they were still on a wild goose chase with no known destination, and even the octopus' poor legs were on fire, threatening to crack into a million pieces and betray him, left lying helpless on the floor just waiting for death anytime. The oxygen they suck up through the huge gulps were barely enough to supply their over-worked, non-existent lungs. The burning sensation staring up Nightmare's thighs almost certainly couldn't mean anything good, and this was one of the few times he doubted himself. The urge to dump the heavy weight of the bean right there by one of the thorn bushes was growing ever so strong.

Each breath hurt, slicing their raw throats and sliding down the entire way. The pursuers themselves weren't doing too well, either, none of them having ever really liked anything physical, except for that. Nonetheless, they were still gaining on the others, not rapidly, but definitely doing so. 

A blue bird, assumedly a bluejay, flew right at his face before changing direction and shooting towards the gradually darkening sky, causing Cross to squeak, only for a wheezy cough to come out. Nightmare had brought a pack with water inside, but they couldn't just stop running and drink it. That'd be signing up for suicide. The air around them were starting to get chilly, and whenever they breathed, a light, nearly transparent mist would escape them, curling into the night and dancing in swirls and leaps upon the crisp breeze, trailing behind them.

A few stars dotted the canvas of a sky above them, streaking across it in splashes of carefully woven paint over billions of years. Night creatures were coming out to prowl and play, a few late tunes like the symphony of crickets starting to erupt from various places. It was a rather beautiful sight, really. If they weren't running for their lives.

Despite having been in the nature for two days, being able to roam outdoors freely still excited the smaller to no end. Oh, what he'd give to have a nice, relaxing little walk in this scenery. 

But truly, they were losing hope. Apparently, the guards' specialty was long distance sprints, which gave them an advantage. The skeleton males couldn't just keep running forever, and the people chasing after them had weapons. Perhaps Nightmare would get his calamari and beef stew after all.

And then, just like every cliché fanfiction out there, they saw it. A clearing, and beyond that, streets and wooden or stone buildings lining them. A few colorful stalls displaying all sorts of goods, and carts piled with supplies. They'd finally found it. A town.

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I wrote this all in one night you better be proud.

And yes this is below 1500 words ;-; kill me plz.

Just saying, when I spell the 'f' word with two 'c's, that's not a spelling error, I genuinely don't want to cuss. But I aLsO don't want to censor it cuz I find that very annoying. Oh, and I spent 10 minutes procrastinating wether to spell 'kilometer' as that, or 'kilometres'. :'D

This fic is turning into a poem halp-

—Grace