The Butterfly Bracelet [Yandere Prince x Female Reader]

54. Midnight Escape.

Y/N was paralyzed by fear as Dandini's coal-black eyes fixed on her. They stayed frozen for what felt like an eternity. She noticed that Dandini had already started undressing before he entered the bedroom and felt like all the air had been forced from her lungs as she started trembling.

In took the blonde-haired prince several moments to process the sight of shards of glass on the floor, the broken window looking down on the courtyard below, and his bride halfway out the window in her wedding dress. "W-What are you doing, Y/N?" Dandini asked, his eye twitching slightly. He didn't want to believe what he was seeing. From where he stood in the doorway it looked like Y/N was in the middle of throwing herself out of the window to take her own life, but that couldn't be the case. He couldn't believe it.

Finally gaining that ability the move her body again, Y/N screwed up all the courage she had left and stuck her chin out, fixing Dandini with such a cold stare that it caused him to recoil. "You abused your power, slaughtered my family, imprisoned me, and forced me to marry you. I don't know how I ever felt anything other than hatred towards a monster like you."

Dandini felt like someone had just reached into his chest and squeezed, hard. He gasped as Y/N's words sunk in. Tears of pain and anger began to cloud his vision. Through his haze he saw Y/N begin to hoist herself further through the window and in a flash he realized what she was going to do and lunged forward.

Taking a final deep breath, Y/N placed both her feet on the ledge of the window. Dandini rushed towards the window and time seemed to slow to a crawl. Just as Dandini reached her Y/N she stepped out. He reached his hand out in a desperate attempt to keep her from falling to her death, but his fist closed around air, missing the gleaming white cloth of Y/N's dress by a hair's breadth.

Cold air rushed against Y/N's face as she plummeted downwards. She squeezed her eyes shut and braced for a painful landing. She felt sturdy arms wrap around her waist moments before she reached the ground. Ilidoro had caught her and done his best to break her fall, but the force of her impact had still knocked the wind from Y/N's lungs and left her feeling stunned.

She stumbled against Ilidoro's chest and he wrapped his arms more securely around her. "I said I would catch you," he whispered to Y/N, trying to soothe her. The weight of what she had done caught up with her and she had started shaking like a leaf in the wind. "I know that was harrowing, but tonight's dangers are not at their end, and we must make haste."

Ilidoro helped the badly shaken Y/N onto his steed before mounting the white horse himself. Dandini screamed in rage at the sight. He had nearly thrown himself out of the window after Y/N in his desperation only to see her safe in the arms of another man instead of a mangled corpse on the cobblestones. He tore at his flaxen hair as he recognized the man as Ilidoro, his old tutor, and the man he had once idolized above even his father.

The sight of him embracing Y/N was enough to cause what little remained of Dandini's sanity to crumble away. Rational thought was far out of his reach as he watched the pair mount the pearly horse. His world was falling apart at the seams. His vision became fractal as the future he longed for came crashing down around him.

The three lovers in the courtyard were startled by the first deep, resonant chime of the clock tower as the hands struck twelve. The defining sound of it goaded Ilidoro into action. He mounted his horse behind Y/N and gripped the reins. "Hold on to me if you feel unsteady. This is not going to be a smooth ride." He said as she clung to his chest.

Ilidoro spurred his horse and after a few moments, they were galloping across the courtyard, towards the castle walls and the city beyond. Dandini who had been frozen had also sprung to life at the first stroke of midnight. As the clock continued to chime the hour he screamed loud enough for the guards manning the walls to hear. "CLOSE THE GATES!!! STOP THAT RIDER!!!"

Much to the dismay of the escapees, the soldiers obeyed and the tall iron gates began to swing closed. The gap between them grew smaller and smaller, but Ilidoro didn't falter. He egged his horse to go even faster and managed to slip through the opening just before the gates closed with a resounding thud.

"AFTER THEM!!! OPEN THE GATES!!! CAPTURE THAT RIDER!!!" Dandini commanded, his madness overtaking him. A cavalry unit quickly assembled in the courtyard, as they waited for the gates to be opened. The horses were as black as the starless sky above them, the only bit of color present was the scarlet on the uniforms of the riders. With a thundering clatter loud enough to be heard over the clang of the midnight bell in the clock tower the horsemen took flight, hot on the tail of the rider.

Ilidoro and Y/N blazed through the streets of the capital city, leaving the cobblestone street smoking behind them. The horse streaked through the black and graey city, it's coat gleaming like a shard of moonlight in the night.

The wind was whipping against her face and the stone buildings were little more than dark blurs as they flew by. Ilidoro had been right when he told Y/N that it would not be an easy ride and she clung onto him, trembling in fear as she heard the sound of the horsemen in pursuit of them. She buried her face against Ilidoro's chest and squeezed her eyes shut, not wanting to see any more of the capital, or of Vascini.

Ilidoro held her close to him as they continued to flee east. Even though he knew full well that if the horsemen caught them he would be killed he wasn't scared. Being with Y/N again took all his fears away. His only worry was what Dandini would do to her if he failed. I-I can't fail, Ilidoro thought with determination. I will do whatever it takes to make sure Y/N never is harmed by that wretch again.

He spared a quick glance down at her and felt his cheeks warm at the sight of her pressed tightly against his chest as they rode. His heart swelled with joy as he realized that even though he was far from perfect and had done wrong in the past, at that moment he was Y/N's hero. Even after all his mistakes, she was still willing to put her trust in him and rely on him in her time of need.

I-I promise that I won't let you down again, Ilidoro thought as his eyes watered both from the speed that they were moving at and the bittersweet emotions he felt. When you are with me I feel like I have nothing to fear, that I can accomplish anything. And for that, I will protect you, always.

They blazed passed the gate to Magnifico Manor, which now sat cold and abandoned. Without sparing it a second glance they sped onwards, no time for sentimentalities. Within the next couple of minutes, they had reached the Eastern foothills, and the mountain pass could be seen ahead.

It was two gargantuan cliff faces that towered black against the sky, nearly parallel with each other. The pass was long and shallow, barely wide enough for a carriage to pass through. Even though the horse's labored breaths showed that it was nearly spent Ilidoro urged his steed to go faster one last time.

They tore through the canyon-like pass, the sound of the horse's hooves echoing off the stone walls, reminding Y/N of the clang of the clocktower that was still reverberating in her mind. Ilidoro shook Y/N gently as the light as the end of the pass suddenly came into sight. "We've done it! You're free, Y/N."

A/N

With the help of Ilidoro Y/N has escaped from Dandini for good, or has she?

Until next time I'll see you on the other side

~J. C. Coltt.~