Beth couldn't sleep.
She turned over under the covers for perhaps the thousandth time, unable to get comfortable.
It could be because she was in a new "house".
It could be because she was in a new room.
It could be because she was in a new bed, with the full moon shining across her face.
But she knew it wasn't true.
A certain face danced across her mind unbidden, canines gleaming in his smile, hair tousled attractively, his manner that of a charming gentleman.
She rolled over again.
How on earth could he be in her head like this after one meeting?
Finally she huffed and pulled on her robe as she went out onto the balcony and looked up at the beautiful, full moon.
The full moon. She mulled over it thoughtfully.
Scientifically, the full moon was proven to have strange effects on the human mind. Mythically, it was so much more.
A time of heightened powers for most supernatural creatures, Beth wondered to herself whether the effects on the human mind would make humans easier or harder prey for the supernatural beings?
She had always had a hard time sleeping on the full moon night. There was a strange restlessness that made it difficult and occasionally impossible to sleep.
She'd never had unusual trouble during this particular full moon though. Normally the sleepless night held off until December.
Beth returned her gaze to the moon, it's beams bathing her face in a soft glow and shimmering off of her velvety robe.
Blinking slowly, she amused herself by finding shapes in the craters.
She stood there for a long time, seeing the moon rise from the front of the castle and begin to descend to the back of it.
Then a movement in the woods caught her eye.
She looked, and she could have sworn she saw a figure beckoning to her.
Without even thinking Beth shook her head. Of course she wouldn't go. That would be stupid.
The figure didn't move away.
Beth could have sworn that she locked eyes with it.
And those eyes were amber.
A very familiar amber-green that she had only seen before in her dreams.
On the night of a full moon.
She stood bolt upright, disturbed, and went back into her bedroom.
Carelessly tossing her robe aside into a chair she took a running start and leapt into bed as though something could reach her feet from underneath if she got to close, something she hadn't done since she was a small girl.
Hiding in the covers, she trembled, overwhelmed by something she couldn't decipher. It wasn't fear. It wasn't pain. It wasn't happiness that was sure. It was something akin to excitement, an adrenaline rush from an incredible rollercoaster. Only it was deeper, a pulling in her chest that urged her to go to that strange figure in the woods despite all reason.
And it was terrifying.
Those eyes that had only appeared in her dreams mingled with the face of Taehyung, swirling with her disturbed thoughts until she fell into a strange, fitful sleep.
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The woods were directly in front of her. Her bare feet skimmed over the grass as she ran into the woods, forgetting that she was Beth, and that she was supposed to be at home in bed, asleep.
She slowed as she neared the edge of the trees, stooping to a crouch, looking for something she knew was there.
She found it.
Each print at least twice the size of her hand, she was not in the least surprised, nor was she concerned.
Instead she followed them.
Racing lightly, nimbly along the clear path marked by the enormous pawprints, she was soon deep in the woods.
She came to a small clearing, and the tracks disappeared.
She stopped as soon as the tracks vanished and looked around.
The clearing was rimmed in tall, straight trees, gleaming a barkless white in the moonlight. The moss underfoot was emerald green, shining vibrantly.
She called out, even though she didn't know what she was saying.
There was no answer.
Uncertain now, she called again.
A fierce snarl shot through the air, and she whirled around, trying to see behind her.
The path was gone.
She turned as another snarl shot through the once still clearing, another and another ringing through the air, building and layering in her ears as something fought beyond her sight.
She turned again and again, trying to follow the sound, trying to find out what was happening.
As she spun, the clearing closed around her.
Shrinking as she spun, trying to trace the sounds so she could call to them for help, the trees blurred together and became a solid tube, as though she were looking from inside the tree.
She tilted her head back, the sounds of the fight coming from all sides, layering until they overwhelmed her and she looked straight up into the moon, screaming, and heard nothing from her own throat.
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Beth sat bolt upright in her own bed, sweat pooled slightly in her collarbone and tears running into her ears, then down her face because of gravity's pull.
She was panting as though she had actually run into the woods, crying as though she'd actually been trapped, and sweating as though she had actually grown desperate enough to scream her fear to the moon above.
But she was safe in her bed.
Safe.
Beth hugged her knees and waited for the tears to stop. Then she got up and took a hot shower to clean away all of the sweat and tears before she went downstairs to get breakfast.
Her parents and sibling were still in bed, but Bernard was cooking pancakes in the kitchen, his suit jacket removed and his sleeves rolled up to avoid splatters.
The sight of the stoic man waiting patiently to flip the pancakes struck her as somewhat comical, and she giggled.
"Good morning miss. I did not expect anyone up so early or I would have begun sooner. As it is there are some finished that you may help yourself to." Bernard gestured to a covered warming basket.
"Thank you. And please call me Beth, miss sounds strange."
Bernard nodded as she headed to the basket, grabbing a plate on her way.
"I will call you Miss Beth then."
Beth smiled. It was more than she had expected.
Although it was stiff at first, she made conversation with Bernard about the castle and the area around it. Eventually she casually brought up the name Taehyung, and he instantly stiffened again.
"I have been instructed by your parents not to speak with you on this matter." He spoke in quick, clipped words, clearly showing his distaste, whether for her question or for his orders, Beth did not know.
She huffed.
"At least tell me what sort of person he is, and maybe what my parents have against him." She insisted. She needed to know.
Bernard hesitated.
"All I can say Miss Beth is that he is a very well known and well respected gentleman around here with the very best reputation, and well earned."
Beth could make no sense of his words, but didn't push it, sensing that he'd already said more than he ought to.
"Thank you Bernard."
He gave her a stiff nod and flipped the last pancake.
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Hello Hello! Two updates on one book in a day, look at me! Or don't lol, since you can't see me...
What do you all think of this so far? I hope you're enjoying!
Woo this was a thrill to write~