ᵒᶠ ⁿⁱᵍʰᵗᵐᵃʳᵉˢ ᵃⁿᵈ ᵈʳᵉᵃᵐˢ
𝔖𝔬𝔫𝔤: 𝔗𝔞𝔤 𝔜𝔬𝔲'𝔯𝔢 ℑ𝔱- 𝔐𝔢𝔩𝔞𝔫𝔦𝔢 𝔐𝔞𝔯𝔱𝔦𝔫𝔢𝔷
Warnings: blood, yandere (death in a dream), manipulation
♥♠♣♦ —— ☠ —— ♥♠♣♦
Y/N panted as she ran through the woods, eyes wild with fear, hair that had once been pinned up in a prim and proper bun now in ruins. Branches stuck out of her mangled hair, mud-caked her cheeks, and her clothing was torn by branches and brambles. She worried not for the thorns inching deeper into her skin with each pull of her muscles, nor the dagger-like pain stabbing her side, or even for the burning sensation that was slowly creeping through her throat like poison.
She let out a small yelp as her foot caught on a tree root and she tumbled down a small incline, landing in a puddle of mud. She spat out the foul-tasting substance, wiped her lips on her stained clothing, and got to her feet, panting as she scrambled up the other side of the embankment.
She cursed the first drops of rain as they started to pelt down around her, bringing a haunting feeling that she hated. At least in the silent forest, she could hear everything around her. Now, as the rain struck leaves and branches, the footsteps of her pursuer fell silent. And though the rain didn't help her in the least, it certainly helped her pursuer. More than what he needed.
Y/N dared not stop as she ran, trying to ignore the increasing pain of her body screaming at her to slow down or rest for a moment. She grunted against the pain, slamming into a large cedar. Her legs nearly gave out, and she would have collapsed if not for the sturdy bark of the tree. She dug her nails into the bark, leaving behind claw marks as she tried to hold herself upright.
Hair stuck to her face, slipping between her lips and down her throat, making her choke as she tried to catch her breath. Rain and tears mixed on her face, blood streaming from a wound on her forehead that had come from her hitting her head on a low-hanging branch.
"Y/N~ Ma moitié~ It's dangerous in the woods." The voice of her pursuer became one with the rain, pounding in her ears as the rain pounded on the stone around her. Y/N let out a sob, allowing her body to sink to the ground, unable to keep herself upright anymore.
"Y/N~"
The young girl shivered and pressed herself against the trunk of the tree, turning her face away from the sight before her. She didn't want to see her pursuer as he found her, crouched like a wounded chipmunk beneath a tree, unable to escape.
"Where are you?"
Y/N glanced to the side and felt her heart leap as she saw a root raised off the ground the slightest bit. It was covered with leaves and mud. A natural hiding spot. She glanced back the way she had come, straining her ears, trying to listen to the footsteps through the pounding of the rain around her, and through the thundering of her heart.
"Y/N~"
He was close. Too close...
Struggling with her pounding heart, Y/N pulled herself closer to the roots, wincing as a jagged rock cut her side, drawing out a thin line of blood, and staining the tip. Y/N ignored it and slipped beneath the roots, clapping a hand over her mouth when she noticed a spider dangling in front of her face.
As she lay there, fearful of the man currently stalking her, calling to her as if she were his prey, she thought back to what had caused them both to run from the school.
- Dream/Nightmare -
Y/N was sitting on the edge of the castle wall, her legs swinging back and forth as she watched the sunset. Halloween had finally come and the entire school was excited about what would come that night. The night that they opened the school to the world, inviting all sorts of people into the hallowed halls, eager to show them what this school of mages had to offer. Y/N was particularly excited because this would be the first Halloween that she was spending with her new boyfriend, Rook.
As she sat there, she failed to notice the boy sneaking up behind her, his hands poised like a monster as if he was debating whether or not to push her from the edge, or pull her back to safety. But before he could make up his mind, there was the scream of air being pierced, and the boy fell to the ground with a sickening thump, an arrow embedded between his eyes.
Y/N whirled around, her eyes widening in horror when she saw the boy, limp in a pool of his own blood. She screamed and scrambled off the wall. She landed next to the boy and cupped his face in her hands, sobbing as she tried to shake him awake. She tried not to throw up at the sight of the familiar arrow, cupping a hand over her mouth as she tried to fight the bile.
"Ma moitié?"
Y/N turned, her eyes widening in fear when she saw Rook standing at the other end of the roof, his bow clutched tightly in his hands. A quiver sat on his hip. Usually, Rook made sure that he had exactly ten arrows. He only had nine in the quiver...
"Y-you did this," Y/N whispered, her eyes wide and fearful. She backed away from her boyfriend, and the body lying between them.
"Of course," Rook breathed, taking a step forward. "He was going to push you." He took another step and Y/N took another back. "I couldn't let him hurt you."
"He wouldn't have hurt me," Y/N screamed, tears streaming like rivers from her eyes. She glanced down at the boy again and fell to her knees, heartbroken by the death. It had started as such a happy day. The day of Halloween. Everyone had been working to decorate their dorms and preparing the performances that they would give when the guests started to arrive.
"You don't know that."
Y/N raised her eyes to Rook and shook her head, fear lacing her gaze.
"Y/N -"
"No," Y/N screamed. She turned and ran, tears blinding her vision. But before she could make it three steps, pain blossomed in her back and she stumbled, falling to the ground. She would have cried out in pain, but she was dead before she hit the floor.
"Y/N?" Rook released his hold on his bow as he realised what he had done. He sprinted across the roof and cradled his love in his arms, searching her face for any sign of life. "Y/N? Ma moitié?" There was no response. "No, no, no," Rook screamed to the sky. "Y/N!"
As his body started to calm, he lowered his head to her chest, pressing his ear against her skin, searching for a heartbeat. When he heard nothing, he set her down on the ground, tears still falling from his eyes.
"You shouldn't have run," Rook hissed, his words bubbling over as he withdrew a knife from his boot. He pointed it at his chest. "You shouldn't have run... You shouldn't have run... You shouldn't have-"
- Dream/Nightmare ends -
When Y/N came to, she was startled by the sudden warmth and the sound of a gentle fire flickering next to her. She shot up, wondering if she had died out in the woods, but was stopped when she felt a hand on her shoulder, gently pushing her back down to the pillow behind her.
"It's okay," Rook whispered, smiling gently at Y/N as he pressed a compress to her forehead, gently dabbing at the wound as he tried to clean the blood. He hated seeing her injured. If only she had just taken the time to listen to him instead of running into the woods.
"Where are the others? What happened," Y/N asked, turning to look at the fire flickering in the hearth. It seemed to beckon her to its warmth, and yet, also seemed to chase her away, as if it was trying to warn her of the dangers that it possessed. She turned away from the flames and shut her eyes, allowing Rook to clean her wounds with his gentle touch. Despite his aggressive and somewhat concerning confession, Y/N was glad that it was he who had found her. At least that gave them the chance to talk about it.
"They're coming back," Rook said. He wrung out the cloth, watching the ruby water as it dripped into the basin at its side. "I sent them a text to tell them that I had found you." He dipped the cloth back into the water, glancing up to Y/N as he did so, and lay it back on her forehead. "I found you passed out beneath some tree roots." He turned away, his shoulders sagging. "Why did you run, ma moitié?" He turned back. "I would have explained everything to you."
"I'm sorry, love," Y/N whispered, taking Rook's hands in hers. "I'm so sorry. I-I was just so s-scared by w-what I saw..." As her body started to tremble, Rook quickly forgot about his own problems and embraced his girlfriend, whispering sweet nothings to her, and soothing her back into a tranquil state.
Y/N sighed, pulling away from Rook and relaxing once more on the pillows. "You know, sometimes I really hate my unique magic." Her eyes blinked open and she stared at her hands, gently flexing the muscles.
"Don't," Rook advised, taking her hand in his, preventing her from flexing. "Your muscles need a chance to relax, ma moitié. You pushed them quite a bit tonight."
Y/N nodded and her eyes fluttered shut again, her breathing slowed as her body succumbed to the warm embrace of slumber. Like a bed of clouds bordered by the warmth of the sun.
"I'll let you rest," Rook said, rising to his feet and taking the basin with him. "I'll be back soon, ma moitié." He leaned forward and pressed a gentle kiss to Y/N's forehead before leaving.
"Thank you, Rook."
"It was nothing, ma moitié." As he was about to leave, he paused at the door and turned back to her, a small and sad smile on his face. "I'm sorry that my nightmare scared you so, ma moitié." He trailed his hand down the door frame. "You don't know how scared I was when I saw you run into the woods."
"It's okay, Rook," Y/N whispered, slowly falling into a blissful sleep. "I'm sorry for running."
"It's okay, ma moitié. I shall always find you, and I shall always keep you safe."
Rook shut the door and as the door clicked into place, he smirked, allowing his concerned facade to slip away. He calmly walked over to the sink and dumped the basin, watching the blood and water as it trickled down the drain. As the last of the blood clung to the edges of the sink, Rook pulled off one of his gloves and wiped it up, his eyes glistening in the candlelight as he watched the blood trickle down his finger.
There was something... fascinating about a human's blood. Perhaps it was simply because of how... sensual... tantalising... enticing it smelled as it marked a trail over his pale skin. Or maybe it was the simple feeling of the blood trailing the exterior of his body rather than the inside. The cooling feeling that her blood filled him with, somehow simultaneously lighting a fire in every place it touched.
He glanced over to the door hiding his moitié from his sight. As his poison green eyes trailed the door, he lifted his finger to his mouth and licked the blood from it. It was divine. Simply spellbinding. His eyes rolled back in his head and he threw his head back, stumbling back against the edge of the counter as he tried to keep himself standing. He had never yearned for blood before Y/N. He had never had the urge to lie to those closest to him, saying that he had seen Y/N slip and fall off a cliff, plummeting to her death. He had never desired to hide away in his secret cabin, taking his moitié with him and hiding her from the rest of the world.
There would come a time when he would have to tell her that she was never to return to the world, and there would come a time when he would have to tell her that the whole world thought her to be dead. But that time was not now. Her broken limbs would take weeks to fully heal, and during that time, he would be able to bend her to his will. Twist her mind so she would belong to him and him alone. Warp her desires so that he was all she could focus on.
His nightmare had almost come true. But now... he would never have to worry about that again...