Kou felt the blood pool around him as he pressed further back up into the wall. "Yuma, is that you?"
A shadow in the back of his cell twitched. He could see some organs fallen apart on the floor, just the basic shapes. Kou didn't want to upset his own stomach by looking too hard for the details of the gore ahead of him. He had been so preoccupied with the stench and the deception of Reiji that he had missed his own brother lying across from him, bashed in and battered. He wanted to smack himself across the face. They had promised to look out for each other, and see what had eventually come to be of their family: chasing after a stupid mission they all knew would be foiled.
Yuma groaned, the sound a low rumble at the back of his throat. Kou could barely see the sprinkling of down feathers over his damaged body, as he inched as close to Yuma as his chains would allow him to. "Brother, what happened?"
Yuma gasped as he turned towards Kou, struggling to breathe to form coherent words. "Reiji... said... the ritual..." He collapsed onto himself, flopping over to a side, a squishy sound erupting from his body. Kou was more than glad he didn't have to see Yuma in such a miserable state. Subaru sighed. Kou didn't know whether the Sakamaki wanted to help them or not, but it was evident that he didn't want anything to do with their personal problems as long as they had been tied and gagged.
"Subaru kun..." Kou started but hesitated, hating the lack of confidence in his voice. He wanted to a be a pure-blood as well, he wanted to have ground-breaking powers and magic as the Sakamakis had, but he had to trade a piece of his soul to achieve that long-forgotten dream of his. "Can you not break out of the chains using your magic?"
Subaru's eyes shined in the darkness of his cell. He knew provoking or misleading Subaru into doing something wasn't the best of what he could conjure up, but Kou's mind had stopped working as efficiently as it used to. His eye failed to recognise whether Subaru's intentions were friendly or not, and he sure as hell didn't want to find out what he wanted to do with them once they were let out.
If they were let out.
"Reiji has marked me with a power suppressing spell." Everything Kou had imagined could go wrong had gone wrong till now, and he didn't have any idea as to why he had expected Reiji to leave Subaru's powers unchecked.
Within the recesses of the cell, they witnessed Yuma softly whisper. At first, Kou couldn't make out what he was saying, the flapping of bat wings and song of crickets louder than his brother's internal musings, but slowly his constant breaths made sense, falling into place all on their own. The realisation hit Kou like a truck. He didn't know how to prepare for this, he didn't know whether Reiji would leave them alive after witnessing such a thing. He hyperventilated, as his brother's whispers grew louder, enough to reach Subaru's cell.
Subaru grew curious. "What the hell is he saying?"
Kou looked at the fair-haired boy from behind his iron bars, unable to understand what had landed them in such a mess. "He's saying that Reiji didn't call upon that person to oversee whatever he had been doing."
Subaru flopped onto his side, his hand supporting his chin. "Our father? But what does that mean?"
Kou could hear more frantic whispering from Yuma, as he pieced together the incoherent blabbering. "His logic is that since that person didn't want any harm upon Yui, and Reiji hasn't sought him out to advise him, he must be either intensely powerful enough to conceal his intentions about harming Eve, or..."
Subaru gasped. "Or he must not be planning to harm Yui in the first place."
Kou hummed a nod of approval. He witnessed Subaru slump down as the harsh reality dawned upon him, that maybe they were all chasing after the wrong goal all along, maybe Yui in fact did not need to be saved.
Maybe, he realised, it was one of them.
***
Yui was hit with the overwhelming smell of warm honey and milk, as the sunlight filtered in through the kitchen window, dousing her surroundings in a pale golden glow. She had her hands covered in flour, her hair up in a bun, an apron tied around her waist. Warmth spread all over her body, as she noticed the familiar setting of the Sakamaki mansion. What was she doing here? Why was she baking pancakes? What was happening?
She vaguely remembered the labyrinthine sewers they had used to get away from the Sakamakis, and the burst of steel shrapnel that had peppered her in scratches, her body being lugged over by someone...
A strong scent of mint and smoke enveloped her, as she felt hands sliding in to hug her from behind. She looked below, arms clasping her waist, a particularly obvious band over the tawny ring finger. She felt like her body had been nailed shut into a coffin. Her chest failed to expand to let fresh air into her lungs, as she felt a cold breath on her shoulder, and a hearty chuckle from behind her.
"Ayato kun?" she turned around, facing him. He was utterly out of character this time, wearing a white shirt buttoned up to his collar and a vest over it. His eyes were the darkest shade of brown, and his dark brown hair had been neatly combed to his side, his unruly bangs nowhere to be seen. He looked weirdly formal and decent, which was perhaps the farthest from what she could ever imagine Ayato as.
"Happy anniversary, precious," he said, enveloping her in a warm hug. She was confused, she didn't know how to respond. What had happened? Who was she? Was this some kind of cruel joke?
He quickly withdrew, cupping her chin in his hand, turning her gaze towards him. "Are you still angry about last night? I didn't want you to invite Reiji and witness him throw tantrums about me never coming to meet father. You know that, right?"
Yui hadn't ever felt so warm and safe in her entire life. She didn't know what to say or do. Her hands lay useless by her side as Ayato held her in his arms, his musky scent calming her into submission.
"Are you not going to forgive me, love bug?" Ayato asked, his eyes widening, his forehead creased with worry. Yui settled into his embrace, accepting this little fantasy of hers for a brief moment. "I'm sorry, Ayato kun, I can't remember what argument we had last night."
Ayato looked confused for a moment, but smiled at her, and tucked a wild strand of hair behind her ear. The touch sent shivers through her body, as he traced his knuckles over her cheek, whispering, "Well, you need to accept my apology first, shouldn't you?"
She felt tears in her eyes as she said, her voice shaking, "It's okay, I forgive you, Ayato kun."
He asked, his expression conspiratorial as his lips turned up in a smirk, "Do you want to carry this on to the bedroom or..."
Her face warmed up as she blushed. "Ayato kun, please have some shame."
Ayato cocked his head. "What shame? It's been a year since I stole you from your father." He licked his lips, his eyes half-lidded. "You haven't called me by my name ever since I proposed. What happened to my little love bug?" He bent down to bury his head in the crook of her shoulder, and Yui felt a sudden touch of his wet tongue over her exposed skin. She savoured the feeling, her hands itching to tangle into his neat hair and mess it up, but she held back, holding on to some unknown knowledge that Ayato had places to go just right now.
"Are you still angry at me?" He whispered into her skin, evoking unknown sensations inside her that made her turn the deepest shade of red. She absent-mindedly pushed him back, her eyes harbouring a dazed look. His body pressed up against her tiny frame so perfectly, she didn't register half the words he said after that question.
Ayato looked at her, his expression twisted with worry. "Yui?" He squared up her shoulders, bringing her back to whatever reality she was experiencing. "What?"
"I asked you whether you were angry at me." He pouted, garnering a hearty laugh from her.
"Why would I ever be mad at you?" Yui pushed him back playfully, quickly rushing to the sink beside her to wash her hands. The dough had hardened upon her delicate skin, cracking up around her joints. Ayato enclosed her in a bear hug, burying his head into her shoulder, inhaling deep, as though trying to memorise her scent.
"Because I didn't allow Ruki to the reception..." Ayato trailed off as if expecting Yui to burst into anger. Instead, she patted his head, his silky locks soft against her slender fingers.
"Do you still feel jealous of Ruki, Ayato kun?" she asked out of curiosity, and felt him turn her body against him, his look hardened. She'd never expected him to get so protective over such a vague statement, but he assessed her with his eyes, cocking his head, shutting his eyes and exhaling.
"I shouldn't have asked that question," she thought out loud. Ayato's entire personality was supposed to be that of a jealous sadist. She shouldn't have ruffled his feathers more than she could hold.
He rested his forehead against hers, a tender gesture that took her by utter surprise. He rubbed that sensitive spot behind her ear, making her inhale a jittering breath.
"I know I should have acted a bit more maturely during the wedding, but I don't think my family relations can be saved. They've gone on their separate paths, Yui, and I can never join them in their journey. Best to stay apart for the greater good for all of us."
He pulled back, studying her, his thumb rolling on her lower lip. "I still think I can give Ruki another shot. I just need some time. What with the business and your own classes for the church choir, I don't think we have even given much thought to the family as of now, don't you think?"
Yui leaned into his embrace. "I don't know, Ayato kun."
How would she answer his questions when she herself was a stranger to this fantasy? She didn't know what led to her being wed to Ayato, she didn't expect it to be as functional as it was looking right now, and even if they had fought with each other just the night before, it seemed like it wasn't the usual and like Ayato felt deeply sorrowful of his actions. Yui knew that back in her reality, Ayato would do horrible things and expect Yui to take all the blame for him. He'd just blame her for the trivial things she did in her defence. She'd never expected him to ask for her forgiveness in a million years.
"Aww," he said, picking her up in bridal style. She let out a yelp of surprise, as he carried her off to the hall, dropping her softly onto her back over the sofa, straddling her. "It's all right if you don't remember anything, chibimushi." He descended upon her, his weight trapping her, as he stole a little kiss from her. "It doesn't matter to us, does it?"
She smiled as he pouted, apparently finding her amused reaction unexpected. She chuckled, her breaths wild as she raised a hand towards his face, her fingers caressing the sharp angle of his jaw, her thumb rolling under his lower lip, mimicking his previous action. Her thumb pulled his lip down gently, and she was pleasantly surprised to find his canines blunt and short.
"What's so funny?" Ayato asked, his huge palm gripping her dainty wrist with his left hand. She inhaled his peppermint musk, gasping as he pushed her hands above her, holding them in place with his left hand. "Hey, I asked you something, little bug."
He found his favourite spot in the hollow of her neck, showering lustful open-mouthed kisses on her warm skin. Her hands struggled against his stony grip, as she let out a breathy moan.
"Keep making those sounds and I will definitely call in sick," he kissed the underside of her jaw, earning a shiver from her. "Do you want me to miss my workday, little bug?"
"I..." she gasped as he nipped gently on her skin, the sensation surprisingly welcome and pleasant. "I just thought I had the strangest dream."
Ayato pulled back, positioning himself between her legs, his other hand going to grasp her waist roughly. "Oh really?"
Yui felt her mind go blank as she felt him pressed against her core. "I dreamt that you were a vampire."
Ayato raised his head from her neck, his eyes shining with mischief. "Was I a good little bloodsucker? How did I look like?" He tilted his head in question.
Yui opened her mouth to speak, but he interrupted, asking, "And was I theatrical like Dracula? Please tell me I had a cape. God, I love capes."
"I... You weren't really theatrical." She strained her memory. "No, I think you were. God, you were very theatrical sometimes."
"Sometimes?" he leaned down to lick her raw skin, the sensation soothing for her. "It seems like a long dream."
"It was. More of a nightmare." She breathed hard. "You were very possessive and jealous. You hated studying. You messed up a lot of things. You hated being organised. I remember you never wore your tie normally. You used to wrap it around your neck like a scarf."
He laughed. "That doesn't sound like me," he said, breathing between laughs, "I think I'm a control freak."
"You also had bright red hair and green eyes," she said. He looked at her warmly. "I must have been cooler in your dream, right?"
"Your eyes glowed in the dark, Ayato kun," Yui said softly, liking the warmth of his skin for a change.
"Damn," he whispered back, running his fingers through her hair. "You must have liked me in your dream, love bug."
She gasped as he dove in to seal his lips with hers. His tongue slid easily into her mouth, the act wakening her up from a daze, as she closed her eyes, drowning herself into him. A gentle tug made her moan hard into his mouth. He chuckled, letting her breathe in as he pulled away to explore under her tunic.
"Ayato kun..." she bit her lip to curb the groan building up in her body.
It changed.
She was still holding Ayato, but he seemed... different. His body became lighter, his clothes were suddenly swapped for the school dress he refused to change even after school hours, her hands now tied with the silky red tie. He raised his head, his eyes glowing at her as he smiled at her, his lips peeling to show his sharp fangs. Yui thrashed against him but to no avail. She was being awoken from her sweet dreams into her horrid nightmares yet again.
He chuckled, relishing in her horror. "Itadakimasu, Chichinashi."
He pierced her neck.
Yui jolted awake, her dress pooled with sweat. She blinked hard, trying to get rid of the haze her dream had given her vision. All she found was darkness around her.
She was back at the mansion. All her efforts had been foiled. She wasn't going to escape from her reality anytime soon.
She broke down, sobbing into the back of her hand, trying hard to bury her screams. She could never outrun them, after all.
She was trapped in her nightmares, forevermore.
A/N: I hope you enjoyed this chapter!