#cw: kidnapping

[mint-8]

Platonic Yandere Kindergarten Teacher x GN! Child! Reader

Content/Trigger warning: Mentions of child kidnapping.

- Yandere Kindergarten Teacher has experienced a lot of pain in their life, just as many hardships and sorrows have followed them as well. Yet, they never lost their kindness and will to live. They pushed through it all and managed to graduate to later pursue their dreams as a teacher. They wished to give the youth the guidance and love that they themselves yearned and craved for so many years during their childhood.

- Yandere Kindergarten Teacher who couldn't really get a job anywhere else other than at the local nursery, so they took the position and passed the interview with flying colors. They are patient, sweet, and attentive to each and every child that ever enters the kindergarten. They are always there to listen to their over excited rablings about what they did that morning and dutifully follow any pretend play the little ones come up with. They skillfully the classroom clean and tidy (well, as much as it's possible with toddlers running around the place), send the babies to sleep during nap time, entertaining them with plays and games and teaching them important lessons about sharing and being polite.

- Yandere Kindergarten Teacher who first meets you while they are walking around the town's park. One minute, they are leisurely strolling in a sunny day, and the next, a chubby baby, you is clinging to their legs for dear life. They are used to children being clingy, but that's not important right now! Why is the most adorable toddler in existence alone in here and unsupervised!?

- Yandere Kindergarten Teacher is already planning to take you home with them and build the best nursery in the world until they hear the worried cries of someone. Your guardian, seemingly tired and with tears running down their cheeks, yanks you away from Yandere Kindergarten Teacher's hands and into a loving embrace. They are apologizing a mile a minute, explaining how they were so sleep deprived of your nightly crying (bullshit, in Yandere Kindergarten Teacher's opinion) and how they fell asleep on a bench near the playground area and how you most likely got off your stroller and wandered off on your own.

- Yandere Kindergarten Teacher is already fuming with rage from the nonsense coming from your guardian's mouth. How dare they lose sight from the most adorable and angelic baby in existence by saying they were too tired? Preposterous! But they are able to keep it hidden, under a false facade of attention and worry. While they listen to your guardian's ramblings, in their head they have already decided they need to be closer to you so as to properly take care of you. Your guardian isn't doing a good enough job clearly! So who better than themselves to properly look after you and give the love and attention you deserve?

- Yandere Kindergarten Teacher who mentions the nursery they work at to your guardian. How modern and affordable it is, and how every single staff member takes care of the children as if they were their own! They are delighted when your guardian's expression of tiredness and gloom shift into a hopeful and excited one.

- Yandere Kindergarten Teacher is so happy when they see you at the nursery as a new addition to their classroom alongside your sheepish guardian who personally hands you over to them, citing that they 'trust them after last week's fiasco'.

- Yandere Kindergarten Teacher can't contain their excitement any longer, and after your guardian leaves the premises, they do a full spin and jump with glee while warmly hugging you! They are so happy their sweetness is here, and they are committed to providing you with the best care and treatment they possibly can!

"We'll have so much sunshine!"

(Happy giggles)

- Yandere Kindergarten Teacher is extra patient with you, only reads the bedtime stories you like during nap time, sneaks you little sweets and treats, always prioritizes your opinion whenever they play games, insist to your guardian that you can be left with them well after hours so that they can go and get that bread, throws away the lunches your guardian made and cooks better ones for you, convinces your guardian to hiring them as your permanent babysitter, builds a nursery in their home and prepare everything they will need when they finally kidnap you and brings you home. You know, just small things :)

- Yandere Kindergarten Teacher absolutely loves that you are baby, so it isn't as difficult to deal with you if you were older. But don't you dare think even for a second that they wouldn't love you as much, if not more, if you were any older. Whether you are a toddler, a child, a teenager, an adult, or an elder, their love and devotion wouldn't change in the least. They are more than willing to get their hands dirty for your sake, but the discovery would be extremely upsetting to you, so it's better to work around it. But if worst comes to worst, they won't hesitate :)

"You are the cutest thing in this world, you know that?"

"..."

"The most adorable, chubby little baby I've ever met"

"..."

"I'll make sure to destroy anyone who ever dares to hurt you and fight against the devil itself if it means seeing you smile"

"... Poo..."

"... Of course, sweetie, let's get you changed"

[cobwebs-in-autumn]

Childhood Best Friend Price and you making one of those “if we’re not married by xyz age then we’ll marry each other” when you’re in your late teens only for Price to spend every moment after that calling you his wife and sneaking into your room to grope you while you sleep. He’s forged the marriage certificate before you both are even through with your twenties and by the time you both reach the agreed upon age he’s already financially and emotionally crippled you, forcing you to stay right where you belong, with your loving husband

[thedarkestrivernymph]

Caught

Yandere!Demon x Gn!HauntedReader

warnings: mentions of bullying, sleep paralysis, mentions of hallucinations, paranoia, drugging, attempted kidnapping, attempted murder, murder, gore, death

©Copyright -2024-thedarkestrivernymph - All Rights Reserved

Slender gnarly hands slithered over your exposed skin, curling around your throat, squeezing so tightly that black spots floated around your vision.

You were being chocked.

A silent scream was caged in your throat, while your eyes ripped wide open and death was awaiting you, and you couldn't do a single thing other than stare into two large orbs of never ending black depth.

This was your final moment, the last seconds on earth, you had to do something, anything or else you were going to die—

Or were you?

Hiccuping and gasping you awoke to your sheets drenched in sweat, trembling all over with the sensations of needles pricking your limps, all of them heavy and uncomfortable.

You were always a weird kid, since childhood to be precise. You see things that are not there, feel things that shouldn't be able to be felt and hear whispers in the dead of night. You know of things that you should not know of, things that no one else has discovered yet.

Groaning you drag yourself up, swinging one leg over the other, ascending to your numb feet, barely catching yourself before you fall down again. It's horrible, each morning you awake to a body exhausted and aged, as if you were never granted rest.

Another day of your boring job, simmering away in an office, an occupation you loathe, with coworkers regarding you with the same disturbed glances and hushed whispers that have haunted you your whole life.

Perhaps you may feel strongly, stronger than any other person in the room, but they can sense it, the air of animosity around you. That cursed energy emitting from you.

Maybe that's why every single man you were interested in, killed himself after the very first date.

The hours in the office rolled around painstakingly slowly, yet somehow the seconds faded into minutes and then into hours. You were used to the lingering judgement around you, that none of your colleagues meant it when they smiled at you waving you goodbye as you finished for the day, yet what you weren't used to was for him.

He, your office crush, to approach you.

“Good work today.” he mentioned casually, dropping praises onto you as if you were a golden hen instead of the mascot for all things depressing. You knew what they whispered behind your back, how unbearably edgy you were.

“Uh, Thanks.” you sputtered overwhelmed by the sudden attention, which wasn't unwelcomed by any means but definitely alarming. Alarming in that sense that you now feared for this man’s life.

“Would you like to join us? We’re going out to eat at the new Italian. Might be fun.” he offered lightheartedly with the same picture perfect smile that you fell for.

Instead of joy, you felt your fear now unfolding infront of your very eyes. You just couldn't allow him to also commit the same mistake as all the others. So you flashed him an anxious smile, acting as if you were oh-so busy, apologizing profusely and thanking him.

Yet he was more stubborn than you initially assumed.

“It's really not that expensive if that's what you're worried about! And the food is great. Besides I think it wouldn't be so bad if you opened up more, would make you certainly more popular among our colleagues!” he exclaimed energetically, overly confident, with such a glimmer in his eyes as if he knew, knew about those gnarly fingers that kept trying to choke you. You shook your head at yourself, you were succumbing to paranoia again, this had to stop besides he was right though, you needed to at least try to make this better for you, and it wasn't a date anyways.

So it was win-win, right?

That's at least what you had hoped for. And yet it turned out yo be a disaster. Their burning gazes never leaving you, so penetrating with unfiltered judgement bordering on almost hatred, you couldn't stand it.

Admittedly as the night progressed and you after you managed to pull yourself together after a mini meltdown in the bathroom did things starten to loosen up, well your colleagues certainly did through the help of alcohol. So you started to be drowned in the mass of boisterous laughter and messy gossiping, making you finally stop sticking out like a sore thumb.

Perfect that's what he wanted.

While everyone was too occupied, it was easy to watch you in silence, face a perfect facade, he knew you, that knew the moment you staggered, blinking slowly.

“Hey—everything okay?” asked one of your colleagues who was intimidated by you, yes, but not heartless enough to not notice the odd way your eyes moved, pupils dilating and shrinking, while you felt fuzzy all over, as if you were the one that chugged two beers instead of her.

Before you could even answer, your colleague who had been so kind to invite you jumped up in concern. Worry lacing his tone as he suddenly laid his palm flat against your forehead, startling you with the sudden intimate gesture.

“Are you sick? I wouldn't have suggested you join us if I knew you were sick.” he muttered seemingly more to himself than you, while all you could do was watch in silence, your voice refusing to work no matter how hard you tried.

From then on it was all a blur, you heard all of the noise at once, everything overwhelming and overly stimulating your senses as a arm was draped over your waist, squeezing your midrift slightly as the restaurant faded into nothingness.

There was something like a breeze softly tickling your nape, no, it was someone breathing down your back—it was him, you made out, the colleague who was guiding you to his car.

“Don't worry.” you felt something wet against your neck, body so numb you were uncertain how you were even able to walk. “I will be gentle.” he breathed into your ear, reminding you of same haunting voices that whispered into your ear every night.

You didn't even understand what was happening, his words failing to properly register into your mind, as he dragged you into his car, placing you in the passenger seat like a ragdoll while you couldn't even keep your head upright.

There was only this silent scream deeply plunged in your chest, some sort of instinctive panic, that tried to wake your body up, but nothing, you could only sit there trying to fight off sleep as the engine started.

“Took some time.” he groaned, starting to laugh. It wasn't a laugh you ever heard from him before. That laugh was unhinged, squeaky and something you would hear from a killer in a horror movie.

“Y’know how hard it was to get my fingers on that drug? Phew! Took ages to be discreet! But it worked! God it worked!” he laughed, his tone starting to sound like nails scratching against those green boards you saw in school.

“Fuck—you’re a real weirdo but so hot, god! No one would miss you anyways—easy. And you're just so dumb too! You didn't even think twice about trusting me—or well you didn't have another choice with how drugged you are right now!” you felt your chest tighten, thoughts muddled yet one was clear, concreted in the forefront of your mind—that you had to find a way to escape.

And that opportunity presented itself to you so swiftly, so brashly and so painfully you regretted wishing for it.

You couldn't even make out what occurred, only the sudden flickering of lights, something indescribably loud ringing in your ears, making you want to claw your eardrums out and before you realized it the car tumbled over and crashed.

Breathe in. Breathe out. Breathe in Breathe out—

For a moment there was only this ringing, similar to that of a buzzing of a phone, before you glanced over at what remained of you colleague; a pulp of red, raw flesh.

You gagged, but before you could lose yourself in a sea of despair you felt slender, gnarly, icy cold fingers caress your cheek.

“You're mine, human.”

it was an omnipresent voice, words not uttered but received by you nevertheless.

Cursed with the gift of knowing things others couldn't, you were also cursed with living with the owner of those gnarly fingers that gently wrapped around your throat squeezing so tightly until peace crept inside every nook and cranny of your brain, lulling your eyes back into your skull.

[anyxis]

Pomefiore Mafia

Vil is publicly known as the Fairest Queen. After all, someone with as much beauty and perfection as him doesn’t deserve any other title. What people don’t know, however, is that everything needs a balance and, for all his perfection on the outside, he is the most disgusting person on the inside. Everyone who knows him personally wouldn’t refer to him as anything other than an unfortunately Beautiful Tyrant. His behaviour comes from his father. Don’t be mistaken, Eric Schoenheit is not a monster by any means, but he is indeed rich and Vil is his only child. After his wife passed away giving birth to his son, Eric dedicated his life to give his precious boy the world. Everything he desired, he would have. This did not do him any favours as he never outgrew it. Now, Vil is nothing short of a diva and, if he doesn’t get what he wants the exact way he wants it, you’re as good as dead. Vil never had to work for anything in his life. Like I said, his father would have given him the moon had he asked for it. In the exact same manner, when Vil wanted to take his father’s place as the leader of Pomefiore, he accepted immediately. However, this doesn’t mean that Vil was an idiot. Don’t ever mistake him for an incompetent because you will face a fate worse than death. No, Vil still grew watching his father working and he learned quite easily how to manipulate people into giving him what he wants. This combination made him unstoppable. If you didn’t fall to his silver lined words, you would to his silver lined bullets.

Rook is one of the things Vil wanted. He saw him work for Leona one day and decided he just had to have him. And so, he started to flirt with him, trying to get him to reveal his current situation in order to convince him more easily. He learned that Rook was part of a very big and very rich family. That he loved the thrill of the hunt and, because of this, had very little time for himself. These informations, however, weren’t coaxed out of him, as Vil thought. What Rook didn’t tell the pretty blonde was that he also tended to become very obsessive with things he liked. Had Vil not approached him, the chances of Rook kidnapping him to do whatever he wished to the pretty boy would have been extremely high. And so, it wasn’t hard at all to get Rook to leave Leona for Vil. Not that Leona minded. He had to admit he was quite freaked out by him and believed it to be good riddance. When he joined Pomefiore, he immediately became Vil’s right hand man, but, before that could happen, he needed a makeover. Vil refused to be seen in public with what might as well had been an animal. After helping make the new Rook, he ordered him to start taking time in making himself better, to which Rook had no problem obeying. After all, anything for his Queen. Following that, they were inseparable. They were always seen together to the point people started to speculate what might be going on between these two. However, no one ever dared question it, which was very wise. Had anyone tried, they would have quickly disappeared without so much as a trace.

Epel was yet another thing Vil wanted. However, he had also caught Rook’s eye way back before he joined Pomefiore. Indeed, Epel has tried to appeal to Leona, but he had never been given his chance due to his appearance. Pretty boy like him wouldn’t survive a week in the savanna. Or so they said. So, because of his petite stature and delicate features, Rook immediately took a liking to him. He kept following him around after Leona had turned him down. When Rook and Vil met for the first time and Vil decided to speak to him, he was actually planning on kidnapping Epel. So, one day, after joining Pomefiore, Rook asked Vil if they could get him. He had done everything his Queen had ever asked of him, surely he could ask one measly thing in return. Vil, at first, wasn’t too happy about it and even thought of killing the boy. He didn’t like the idea of sharing his hunter after all. But, after Rook told him everything he knew of Epel and showed all the pictures, Vil also took a liking to him. He wanted to take the poor little boy under his wing and show him the world. But, why would Epel attract Vil’s attention, you might ask? After all, what would a diva want with poor farmer boy with a bad mouth like him? Well, Vil wanted him for the exact same reason Leona didn’t. His appearance. He had learned early that the way you looked could change everything and that boy had the potential to become a menace. His little poisoned apple. When Epel was approached by Rook, he recognised him immediately and thought Leona had changed his mind. No need to say he was quite dejected when he found out he was being asked by Pomefiore instead. The pansy fancy pants did not interest him by any means, but money was money and he needed it. His grandma had fallen sick and he was struggling to take care of the farm on his own. Because of that, he had been trying to get the necessary funds to pay for the medical bills any other way and, having learned of the offer Leona had made Jack, he had wanted in on the deal. And so, he said he would only join if he was paid big numbers. He wouldn’t tie himself down to something dead when he needed money and fast. Money was, however, no object for Vil and Rook and, when they found out that was the only objection he had, they accepted with a blank check. He just had to choose the number and they would deliver. Anything for their sweet little boy. They also took it upon themselves to cover anything else that would be necessary to take care of his grandma and hired the necessary workers to keep the farm going even without Epel or his grandma. Needless to say, it was a deal set in gold.

[rush-the-stars]

new tricks

pairing: yandere abyss prince kaeya x gender neutral reader

cw: dark content, kidnapping/capture, the reader is treated physically well but is still captured/being held against their will, mentions of a punishment, strange and toxic dynamic, mildly suggestive.

wc: 2.1k

a/n: dividers by @/cafekitsune!

this is just a tiny drabble. don't squint at worldbuilding or plot lol. i had this idea prattling around my head and wanted it out. one day i will write the dark long fic of my dreams but today is not the day. thank you to @/lorelune for taking a peek beforehand and assuring me <33

on the back of your neck, goosebumps ripple to life. a chill races down your spine. you know it well—as intimately as you know the brag of your own heart.

sensing him, you cast your eyes up in the reflection of your mirror to catch the shape of him behind you.

you didn’t even hear him enter your chambers. but you’d felt him somehow, known his presence. maybe known his gaze on you.

(it burns deep and vicious to know his gaze. to become accustomed and attuned to him.)

prince kaeya smiles knowingly.

the dark glint to his eye lets you know he’s in strange ways.

“you’re getting quite perceptive.” he muses. “if only you’d been so sharp when i first took you, maybe you wouldn’t be here.”

you were just a naive artist from mondstadt then. a child who knew the sound of the wind in the trees and the birdsong that rose into the sky early in the morning. you knew the golden hills and the valley and a sort of freedom that made you sing like those birds in the morning, too.

(in the dark, he asks you to sing. sing like you used to, he says. and when you open your mouth, you’re always terrified of what will come out.)

now you sit tucked away in the gilded cage he’s made for you in a land far from your home skies. in a castle where the eyes of gods cannot reach you.

“you’re lucky i wasn’t.” you reply sharply, trying to keep your bite around him.

it grows harder and harder to.

every day the edge you’ve tried so desperately to keep begins to whittle away. it’s hard to always be angry. it’s miserable to always be vicious.

(and he’s never harmed you. not physically—just in stranger, worse ways. emotionally. mentally. you wish he’d just break a bone or make a scar, so that when it heals, you know you’re okay again.

it’s worse that he spoils you. it’s worse that he cherishes you. it’s its own form of torment. he knows it.)

he smiles lazily, on the edges are amusement. fondness. he is endlessly entertained by your contempt.

he approaches where you sit in front of your ornate vanity. it’s too beautiful. it’s too grand.

he’s a dark shadow of blue behind you in the mirror. you watch his reflection carefully. he watches you back as he approaches.

something thrills inside you, wild and dark and sudden.

he reaches out, touches your cheek.

you watch his knuckle brush against your face in the mirror.

he’s testing you.

the last time you bit him.

the moment you turn your face towards his hand, it slips away, dancing out of your reach.

he smiles again knowingly.

it’s insufferable.

sensing your ire, he says, “let’s play our game.”

you breathe hard through your nose.

you turn to face him so you’re not caught in his endless reflection. you glare up at him with all the vitriol you can muster.

(it isn’t much anymore.)

“don’t you have more important things to do?”

“nothing so important as you, darling.”

your teeth grind together. but you get out;

“i’d try to escape from the balcony.”

he tsks.

“the guards would spot you.”

“i’d poison the guards.”

he laughs outright at this, “with what poison?”

you feel heat in your face, but you press on, “the hemlock i’ve been growing in the garden.”

he pauses at that. tilts his head.

“my, you’ve gotten good. i can’t tell if you’re lying.”

“go and check.” you dare.

“maybe later.” he agrees, “say i destroyed it. i froze it.”

“you’re not playing fair.” you accuse.

he laughs warmly, reaching out again to tousle your hair. you swat and push at him, but it only excites him, it only makes his hands catch your wrists and come down to your level. kneeling beside you. he holds your wrists tight, presses them down into your own lap. in another world, he could be a lover on his knees for you, his hands clasped over yours.

he fits himself between your legs. he presses himself too close.

but it isn’t another world. and his eye is like the endless night sky in this one. so dark, so terrifying.

“fine,” he agrees pleasantly, “the guards are poisoned. you slip out from the balcony. i’m a light sleeper—i hear you jump to the ground.”

“i try to run.” you breathe.

“where would you run?” he asks, nose nudging yours. you can feel the sharp cut of his foxish smile.

“past the fountain.”

“come now, you’re cleverer than that. i’d find you and drag you back.”

“i’d kick and scream. i’d make you bleed.”

“you’ve done that all before, it doesn’t stop me anymore.”

your nails bite into his shoulders as he lifts you from your place in front of the vanity. you hang around his neck like a child. instinctively, you wrap your legs around his waist.

you tuck your face into his shoulder so you don’t see the pleased look in his eye.

you know where he’ll take you.

“you need new tricks.” he hums as he sits on the edge of the bed with you in his lap.

“maybe i already have them—if it’s a good trick, you wouldn’t know.” you mumble into his shoulder. you hide there.

his hand creeps up to the back of your neck. goosebumps prickle. his fingers slip into your hair and then curl into a loose fist. he tugs gently to dislodge you from his shoulder, to pull you away so that he may see your face again.

he looks at you as if he’s trying to find the trick you speak of. perhaps it’s in your eyes or the set of your mouth.

“i always know.” he warns.

“let’s play again.” you say.

and this time, you use your weight to push him down onto the bed.

he goes down willingly, too easily.

you capture his wrists the way he did to you earlier. you pin them by his head. languidly, he stretches beneath you, amused with this show of sudden power or interest.

“okay, you begin.” he says and his smile is the curve of a laughing, crescent moon.

“i grow to trust you.”

he tilts his head, uncertain or intrigued, you can’t tell. but you can tell you’ve surprised him. his smile falters.

“i’m pleased—you know it’s all i want.” he says and though it’s softened, it’s guarded. you can feel the way he tenses beneath you, waiting, searching.

“and i grow to—to want you, too.” you say and your voice sounds strange to your own ears. far off. maybe too near. not your own, or else, horrifyingly, only yours.

perhaps there is truth there in a way you cannot even begin to untangle.

he’s silent. watching.

“what do you do?” you prompt, breath hitching, almost beg him to speak. “play the game. it’s your turn.”

you feel his wrists flex, the tendons and muscles moving, encircled in your fingers.

“i—cherish you. i foster your desires. i give you whatever you want.” his voice is bedroom soft. his lashes flutter.

“freedom?”

he releases a slow breath of frustration. you feel it against your cheek.

“a form of it.” he answers. and then, carefully, you feel the shifting of his hand beneath yours. his thumb sweeps over your wrist, into your palm. “more and more as i grow to trust you, too.”

you let your hand open up to his, feel it bloom to the touch.

“being alone in the garden.” you press, “i ask you one day to tend to it by myself, when i please.”

he laces his fingers with yours.

“in time.” he agrees, “and you can tend to your garden alone. you can walk on the grounds, wherever you please. you can take dinner in the atrium or the greenhouse or by the lake. it could all be yours.”

you squeeze his hand, “say i earn your trust—let’s finish the game.”

“i give you the world.” he breathes it and you feel it against your lips, feel it somewhere deep inside of you. on the other, soft side of your chest, where your heart thrums.

you know he is telling the truth.

but it rings discordant inside of you. just as softly, you murmur;

“and then i disappear with it. you wait for me to come in from the garden one day—and i never do.”

the tender hold of your hand turns vicious, biting.

you bare your teeth and hiss, “i steal your world and your trust and the love you gave me and i run and run and run. until you can’t find me—until you can’t catch me. i do it when you least expect it—when i love you too much.”

he pushes and twists you under him. he presses you down hard like he could keep you from disappearing, like you’re slipping from him already. but you press on;

“and you’ll see my face everywhere—in the windows of the atrium and the corners of the greenhouse. in the hemlock i grew in the garden and the wind that howls while you stand on the balcony. but i’ll be gone—“

“you’ll never earn my trust now.” he warns, “and you’ll never know the garden alone, or the world i could give you.”

“but i’ll know the one you took from me.”

his eye flashes dangerously, the flicker of frigid, dark waters beneath ice.

but then he’s gone. off of you. the warmth of him leaves you in a rush.

he grabs for a coat of his, throwing it over his shoulders in a flare of dark fabric.

“where are you going? i thought you wanted to play.” you sneer.

“and i thought you didn’t?” he heads for the door anyways, “i’m going to the garden. alone.”

“scared you’ll find hemlock?” you ask.

“are you scared i’ll find hemlock?” he retorts and then lowers his voice, almost to a caress, “i would punish you.”

“you’ve done that all before, it doesn’t stop me anymore.” you tilt your head, “maybe you need new tricks.”

the door slams behind him. you don’t even flinch.

and in a moment, you watch his figure, a dark smudge against the gray fog, trudge out towards the garden.

you watch from the balcony.

there is no hemlock in the garden.

and he is gentler again when he returns that night. but he locks the door to the balcony and he keeps the key tethered around his neck, pressed to you as he holds you; so close and yet so far.

you can feel it’s cool metal against your bare back. you can feel his skin to yours, the way he holds you like you’re going to slip away.

there is no hemlock in the garden, but there is nightshade.

“let’s play our game.” he whispers that night, pressing scattered kisses like falling stars along your shoulder, your jaw.

“i steal the key around your throat. i unlock the balcony door—“

“i hear you. i let you go, anyways.”

you go perfectly still.

“i—i climb down the balcony and i run—“

“past the fountain?”

you nod slowly. you feel your heart kick into an unsteady rhythm.

“i let you go. i let you get far.”

“you’d let me—“

your throat constricts; a ball of emotion wedged there suddenly. you feel your eyes prick with—with shock. is he really—?

something terrified stirs inside you at even the thought of your real freedom; of the thing you want most.

“and then i hunt you.”

he kisses beneath your ear, like a lover.

your blood goes cold.

“i chase you across the world i gave you and the one i took from you. and every time, i find you. i’d find you. and i’d drag you back.”

“i’d—i’d kick and scream. i’d make you bleed.” you manage to get out.

he props himself up, if only to catch your chin, to force you to look back at him.

he kisses you. slowly. sweetly.

“there’s no hemlock in the garden. you need new tricks.”

but the nightshade opens its flowers to the moon, just outside the locked door of your balcony, in the garden that you can’t tend to alone.

you melt into the kiss, open mouthed and tender. soft and deep like lovers.

when you pull away, you have the key dangling in your hand;

“and this isn’t the key to the balcony. so do you.”

when he kisses you again, brutal and dreadful, and with too much heat for someone so, so cold, you feel the sharp cut of his foxish smile.

and maybe even some sick curve of your own.

[nanamimizz]

𝐃𝐀𝐌𝐍 𝐇𝚬 𝐆𝚶𝐓 𝐋𝐔𝐂𝐊𝐘…

…𝐓𝐀𝐊𝚬 𝐇𝚬𝐑 𝐅𝐑𝚶𝐌 𝐇𝐈𝐌 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐋𝚬𝐀𝐕𝚬 𝐇𝐈𝐌 𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐇 𝐍𝚶𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐆.

author’s note: set in the yandere blade universe! part of a more significant piece in mind willing to answer questions about it. reader, the daughter of a cloud knight general was in an arranged marriage with blade before he became a criminal and took on the mantle blade - we aren’t aware of what his name used to/was so he is referred to as blade continuously. the reader is a social pariah and is married to a second husband. while we do not know exactly what blade and dan heng did together, we assume it was a creation of sorts, so that is implied. please keep in mind there is kidnapping in this piece but when this is out in it's bigger state there will be more heavy dc within the story!!

tags: +18 minors dni! dc content within, fem reader! arrange marriages, implied cheating/unfaithfulness, jealousy, angst, kidnapping, crying, mentioning of murder- let me know what i missed !

synopsis: a ghost shows his face - the past never dies, especially here in the xianzhou luofu.

You were frightened - it’s what you say to yourself as you grip the pillow beneath you, trembling in your inner clothes. It was like seeing a ghost, an apparition of your shameful past as red eyes leered at you from above, framed by long blue-black strands of his hair. Tilting his head you can hear the ornaments of his clothing and his earring clink quietly, paired with your trembling breaths; it’s all that can be heard in the room you share with your second husband. The man in front of you is like a cursed statue, unflinching, unmoving and unbreathing.

Still and present - like a stain you can’t get out, the past that will never die. He will lick his wounds and even if he were to lose a limb, his memories or his mind, the man known as Blade will always appear before you like a dog that doesn’t know any better. His eyes never leave you, even as you choke out the words and clutch the thin jade necklace he gave you as a wedding gift you still wear.

“Are you here to kill me?” Your words are punctuated by the cold sweat that runs down your cheek that he eyes with hunger.

“No. Of five people, three must pay a price…you are not one of them. Destiny has decreed that we will be together again.” His words turn your fear to anger. Fear, anger, betrayal - you think of your marriages. Though you grew to love the man he was once, your love had always been for the highest bidder. Blade’s former self’s talent was unmatched and your current lecherous husband’s money were the reasons for you being promised to these men. Love was never in the cards for you and even the man you did love had caused you so much strife because he couldn’t stay away from what intrigued him. Despite your counsel, your pleading, your begging - your life turned to ash in your mouth.

“Destiny? That is why you are here before me - because of the ramblings of a mad man?” You ask, tone impudent and harsh. If this was anyone else you’d be embarrassed, you were raised better than that but you just can’t help yourself at this moment. You didn’t even realize that you had tears stinging your eyes until he had drawn closer, knees to the bed and a gloved hand reached to cup your cheek. You couldn’t stop him even if you wanted to, once you were a proud warrior, the apple of your father’s eye and strong.

But after the incident you were stripped of it all - your weapon, your strength and even your father’s love.

You are weak and alone, a frightened woman with tears in her eyes at the mercy of the man she once loved. How pathetic you are, still the same from when you lost everything crying before all at the gravity of your loss.

“I made you cry.” He speaks finally, the artificial moon making his eyes glow like a crow’s in your room. His thumb rubs at your cheek and the affection is haunting as he would do this when his name was familiar to your tongue. You haven’t been touched so gently in a time, depraved of it for so long you don’t have it in you to smack his hand away. You’ve heard him say those words before - the memory makes you flush.

“You’ve always made me cry.” You say, tone warbling as you look at him with red eyes that almost match his. Blade makes a sound, confused but wanting and you look away to bring forth memories from when your lives were intertwined.

“Throughout our arrangement you didn’t say a word when we first met, I cried because I thought you found me repulsive. And you only gave me swords as gifts in the beginning, I thought it was because you didn’t find me womanly.” You laugh a little at that one, teary and soft because at the time you were driven mad about what to do but now you can’t help but find it humorous. The man before you was your blue spring of youth, and the winter of your death all the same.

 “Were we arranged?’ He murmurs, confused as his eyes scrunch in the same way they did when he would begin to craft some new tool for the artisans. You nod, letting small drops of salt water drip down your face.

“Yes. My father thought you were brilliant. He wanted to sponsor your talent, and through our marriage, you received financial help for your crafts.” You explained, feeling your cheeks turn tacky at the talk of finances. He nods, and again there’s a fog in his eye - a glaze that dulls his warrior sense as he begins to reach back into his mind for his ghosts of the past.

“That’s how me and Dan Fen-”

“Don't mention that man’s name to me.” You cut him coldly and it makes him laugh. Despite what you may think he does have some memories of you - your smile and the gentle way you would hold out your hand for finches to rest in your palm. It’s humorous to see you so harsh, like a lion cub growling.  

“Don’t worry, I plan to kill him when the time comes.” He says and it shames you to admit but that promise does soothe you some.

“I don’t care, I hate him. I hate you.” You say and Blade huffs an amused sound. Condescending and almost patronizing, you are aware that you sound like a petulant child.

“You’ve let me get rather close, for a man you hate.” He tries to tease but his voice is too monotone and you only grow more annoyed as you narrow your eyes and hiss at him.

“That’s because for as much as I hate you, I still love you. You were my first love, how could I possibly let you go?” You mutter the last bit but he still catches it and something smug grows in his chest at your admittance.

“Only love.” Blade says and you look at him bewildered.

“I am your only love. Unless you’ve fallen for the pig that is your current husband.” You blink and a new emotion glitters between your lashes and he wonders if he has made you cry again.

“Only love…yes…that’s right. A curse I must bear.” You say and he says nothing, as he supposed he must be like a stain on your life.

“Are you happy here?” Blade asks suddenly and it makes you glance at him from under your lashes that are still dewy with saltwater. It's a redundant question, the answer hangs in the space between the two of you - the liminal space that can be seen between the sun and the moon. Your voice cracks, and you answer him with a voice so bitter it makes Blade grin.

“No. No I’m not.”

“Would you like to leave?”

“Yes.”

Red eyes close to let his grin widen, a sight that before made you smile back then when he was younger and an awkward young man. Now all it does is drive a chill down your back, cold sweat like icicles down the fabric of your inner clothes as dread fills you up to your head. His head comes closer, you drown in a sea of banners and wine, your breath stutters and you don’t even see it - the tranquilizer in his hand that he is quick to inject you with. He is the last thing you see, and the last thing you feel is the ghost of his lips brushing against yours.

He laughs - a dark and cool sound that makes you whine like a frightened dog.

“Come with me then, just like it used to be - back then, now again.”

The celestial boat continues its journey, the artificial night sky filled with the stars it imitates but the only thing, when you wake up in a bed that is most unfamiliar next to a man who is both past and present you finally see the true stars for the very first time.

[goodfish-bowl]

Never Really Knew (DP x DC)

DP Side Hoes Week 2024 Master Post

Day 5: Dani - self-defense

Summary: There were plenty of things she knew, but it was all things that had been downloaded into her head. There was very few things that Dani had actually experienced in her extremely short life. Dani’s trip after being freed from Vlad goes well until it takes a turn into Gotham, New Jersey. Takes place after "Kindred Spirits", but before "D-Stabilized".  

Word Count: 2173

AO3 Link

Dani had known that traveling by herself would be dangerous. She knew it in the same way she knew advanced mathematics and classic literature. It was knowledge she had but had never experienced, programmed and downloaded into her head. She knew a lot of things this way, and very few things the other way. Dani had wanted to experience everything, to learn the way everyone else did. But she hadn’t known, not really, just how dangerous this task would be for her. She doubted Danny knew either, or he probably wouldn’t have let her go. 

Dani wasn’t having any trouble with money, so to say, Vlad’s credit card covered that, but there were very few places that would both accept credit and let a 12-year-old rent a room for the night. So while she was good on food and any other thing, shelter was a lot harder to manage. It had been fun, at first, buying a tent and camping equipment, and staying at parks while she explored the area, but yet again, a 12-year-old couldn't rent out a campground, so it was a bit riskier every night she stayed. If she stayed in the wrong place or too long, she would get chased out. She lost a few tents this way. She lost a few more to thefts that happened while she was out and about. 

The campground was fine when she was just about, but they weren’t always an option, like in the bigger cities, where she was now. Normally, Dani was able to keep her head low, and hang out on a rooftop for the night, but that wasn’t really a good option with vigilantes of Gotham frequenting those spaces too. She had to find a different place to sleep for the night, which she supposes is what got her into this whole mess too. That and not knowing, to an instinctual degree, that she should not have come to Gotham all alone. 

Dani had bunked down for the night in one of the many abandoned buildings around, even setting up her cot and some of her other camping equipment. This was not where she had woken up. 

Dani woke up with a full body ache and a piercing migraine, and immediately curled up on herself with a soft hiss. Everything hurt. Slowly, as Dani came to, her senses faded back into focus. It smelt generally terrible, like BO and urine, along with the faint tinge of mold and cigarettes. There was the sound of someone else crying near her, whimpering, and the more distant sound of laughter. She could feel the bare concrete under her as it tried to drain away what little body heat she actually produced. Her tongue tasted vile in her mouth, still full of fuzz with a metallic aftertaste in the back of her throat.

Dani was locked in a dark, generally dingy cell, with the only light coming from a yellow street light that managed to crawl in through the basement window, and a white fluorescent light that climbed under the door. There were a few other kinds locked up in here with her, in various stages of crying or passed out. Some of them were hurt, bad. Dani had been kidnapped in the worst city to be kidnapped. 

Slowly, feeling her whole body protest, Dani pushed herself to a kneeling position, drawing the other kids' eyes to her. She gave them a shaky smile that probably looked closer to a grimace. Dani felt her clothes and found that all the belongings she kept in her packets were gone. Darn, no more credit card. No more anything, really. Well, that sucked, but it wasn’t like they could keep her here for long, ghost powers and all that. Dani should get out as soon as she can, and run for the hills. She was sure whoever had captured her wouldn’t even notice one less child.

Dani strained her ears to listen to the voices from under the door, but a sniffle from one of the other kids in the room stopped her in her tracks, shutting down her plan of running out alone. Stupid Danny and his stupid protective streak. She would have to figure out how to get them all out together, and probably fast if the pick up in activity from under the door was any indication. Dani went over to the window, straining to look out of it, trying to figure out where it let out. 

“Hey,” Dani whispered. “Do any of you know where we are?”

There was a soft murmuring among the other children, before a scruffy-looking boy answered her in a thick Gotham accent. “Somewhere in Crime Alley. That window has metal bars in it, no way to get out from there.”

Dani hissed under her breath, letting go of the window sill from where she was straining to lift herself onto it. 

“Do you know where it leads?” She followed up. 

“Just some scummy alley.”

Dani nodded, that was at least something good, no one would notice if she passed some of the others through intangibly. 

“Okay, I can get us out,” Dani declared, keeping her voice intentionally low. 

“How do you plan to do that? You a meta or something?” one of the slightly older girls demanded. 

“Something like that,” Dani answered sheepishly. “Come on, I can take us directly through the wall,” Dani gestured through the window. 

The others were too scared to protest, and slowly Dani began to file them one to two at a time through the wall, into the alley above. Every trip burned through her reserves, and she hadn’t noticed just how many of them were in the cell with her. After the fourth trip, Dani felt fragile, only able to pass the boy with the thick local accent through, but not able to go through herself, she would hurt herself if she tried.

“Butter biscuits… I can’t get out, I’m out of energy,” Dani called out. She was going to have to figure a way out, no powers unless absolutely necessary, she might risk destabilization otherwise. 

The boy peered down at her from the window, looking grim. “I’ll go get help,” he stated before leaving her all alone in the room. 

Dani let herself drop to the ground as soon as he was gone. She felt so tired, vaguely ill, and tried her best not to not fall back asleep, but still get a little bit more rest before the rest of her grand escape. She spent those minutes listening to the voices as best as she could, planning. She really shouldn’t use her powers for the next bit, but Dani also really needed her stuff back. It would have to be worth the risk, it was the only way she could really afford anything. All she needed was just her wallet with the card in it. Everything else could be replaced, emergency cellphone included. She might have a window to get it when whatever help that boy had mentioned showed up. 

The voices on the other side of the door grew frantic along with an even more distant sound of gunshots and shattering glass. The door slammed open, causing Dani to fall onto her back in fright. The man’s eyes were blown wide in fear, teeth bared. His eyes narrowed as he probably noticed the lack of children in the room, and spat out a nasty curse before his eyes locked onto her. 

“Fuck it, we only need one hostage, a half-dead brat will have to do,” the man spat, practically snatching her up by the arms, causing Dani to cry out in pain. 

Dani had to scrunch up her eyes under the artificial white lights, leading into an open warehouse. She struggled for just a second before there was something cold and metal pressing against her temple. 

“Try it, brat, and your brains will be blown out all over the floor,” the man growled, and Dani froze. 

It was a gun. Dani knew it was a gun, and finally, it sunk in just how much danger she was really in, and tears began to run down her face. She didn’t want to die! She had only just begun to learn how to live in the first place. She needed more than a few months to figure herself out!  

The man didn't do anything as Dani began to cry, but one of the other roughly dressed goons in the room, holding an even bigger gun, sent the one holding her a dirty look, before a confused realization passed over him. 

“Where the other kids?” The other guy asked. 

“Hell if I know. Only one left was this shrimp who looks well and ready to keel over. She’ll fucking have to do.” 

There was another loud bang as a door somewhere in the warehouse was thrown open. 

“Red Hood! Don’t fucking try it or I off the kid!” 

Dani strained to see through her tears and hysterics. Was this guy supposed to be her help? But Dani was already held hostage, how much help could this ‘Red Hood’ be?

“You know I don’t like people fucking around with kids on my turf,” a modulated, artificial voice spat. 

“Which is why you’re going to let us go, so that this little girl’s brains don’t end up splattered all over the ground,” The guy holding the bigger gun argued back. 

There was a creak from the rafters and the other guy opened fired, sending rounds into the ceiling. A large figure dropped down, returning fire as they fell. Dani’s eyes widened at the heavily armed figure in a red helmet and leather jacket. He was both the coolest and most terrifying person Dani had ever seen. The guy with the bigger gun went down with only a few well-aimed shots. 

Red Hood towered over Dani’s current kidnapper, who pressed the gun harder into her temple, causing another wave of panic to go through her as her eyes strained to dart back and forth between the man holding her and her ‘savior’ who had just definitely killed someone. 

“There you are, you shitty bastard,” her kidnapper growled. “Now!”

Gunshots came from a completely different direction, catching Red Hood by surprise, but not before he managed to take out one of the two new assailants, and a stray bullet slammed into the arm holding the gun to Dani’s head. The man recoiled, practically tossing both her and the gun aside, forgotten. Dani ducked down, scrambling the best she could away from the center of the fight, but exhaustion and a horrible pinch in her ankle weighed down on her entire being. 

Dani looked back after hearing a few more gunshots. The guy who had been holding her was dead, but Red Hood had taken a couple of hits himself, stuck kneeling as the final kidnapper pointed his gun directly at Red Hood. He was going to be killed, and then Dani knew she would quickly follow him. Panic seized her body and core, dredging up what little energy it could. She couldn’t let Red Hood be killed, Dani didn’t want to die. 

 Dani dove for the gun that had been tossed away in her. The knowledge of how to use a gun quickly clicked into place, just like all of those other things she knew and had never experienced. Dani was keen on never feeling the chill of a live firearm in her hands again, nor the image of the man dropping dead from a clean shot as she fired. 

The gun clattered to the ground and Dani was well aware that Red Hood was full-on staring at her beneath his helmet. 

“Kid-” the modulated voice called out, but Dani yanked on her invisibility, pulling as hard as she could, running off. 

Dani had killed someone, sending full-on shivers and nausea through her, compounded by the protests of her fragile anatomy as she tried to maintain invisibility. She quickly found her things, which had been haphazardly tossed into a corner, snatching the wallet and nothing else. It felt like she was falling apart. 

Dani made it to the exit before Red Hood spotted her again. 

“Wait!” He called out, sounding panicked. 

Dani couldn’t help the reflexive glance back, likely showcasing the bright glow of her eyes, and the thick trickle of ectoplasm as it seeped out of her nose before she fled into the night. There was cursing and heavy steps behind her, so Dani did the only thing she could and transformed as soon as she was out of direct eyesight, doing her best to ignore the familiar sensation of destabilization as it began to set in. She even ignored the swear-storm of the vigilante she left behind in the alley. Dani was going back to Amity Park as soon as she could, but she now knew, deep in her gut and in the sour taste of ectoplasm in the back of her throat, just how dangerous it could be on her own.

[dirtybg3confessions]

can't stop thinking about gortash abducting a redeemed!durge and forcing himself on them. it starts as him trying to get them to remember their relationship - they're bound and gagged but he's being gentle, he's convincing himself they want this - but then when it becomes clear that not only do they not remember, they want nothing to do with him now because they're some goody-two-shoes he starts getting more and more rough and starts torturing them for information on the party and where the netherstone(s) they already have are. he's trying to convince himself that now it's just business, he has to break them like any other prisoner and this is the quickest way, but in reality he's furious they moved on without him and wants to ruin them for their new love interest. fucking them dry until they're bleeding and sobbing and begging for mercy while he digs his gauntlet-covered fingers into their fresh bruises and tells them they deserve this.

[starrysnowdrop]

“Excellent! This one possesses the qualities to be the perfect test subject!” ~Fandaniel

[sleepyfan-blog]

Chase

Author’s note: The fourth fic for Nadesir! previous. Next

Tagged: @egrets-not-regrets @the-pure-angel @kit-williams

Warnings: kidnapping, violence, ask me if you want me to tag something else

Summary: Nadesir catches the trail of one of the lurking Alpha Legionnaires, but something more worrying comes up.

Nadesir silently made his way through the forest, using his wings to keep from leaving tracks on the ground. For reasons known only to them, the Dark Angel Interrogator Chaplain and the squad he had brought with him had decided to linger in the small human town, and had been terrorizing random Astartes by asking questions that made no fucking sense to him. Perhaps it was a Loyalist thing that they were chasing? Not that the Night Lord Raptor had made it his business to find out what the Dark Angels were up to - though he hoped that they would fuck off soon. With the Alpha Legionaries somewhere in the forest that he was currently flying through doing fuck knows what, the presence of another group of deeply mysterious and secretive Astartes was... Not great. While he was looking for four-legged prey to hunt, Nadesir was keeping a careful eye on his surroundings, just in case he caught a glimpse of a hydra lurking in these woods, or to catch their trail.

If he could find where they were hiding out in - when not sneaking around the town in the guise as other marines - it might help? If he could make his way through the Alpha Legion base, try to snoop through their things, to see if they had any plans written down - likely coded, if it was written down - he and the other bonded Astares who lived with their humans might have a clue as to what those teal-hued snakes were after. Not that Nadesir was of the opinion that they should give the Alpha Legionaries whatever it was they were after. Not with the underhanded groxshit that they've been pulling for months now. 

Snap!

A branch broke loudly, startling the Night Lord, and Nadesir choked back the instinctive desire to hiss or growl at whatever had made such a sound, whirling where he was hovering to try and see the cause of the broken branch. At first, all he could see were several different kinds of trees - odd, as none of them were the type of tree to shed branches at this time of year unless the tree was damaged or sick somehow - when he saw a flash of teal and silver. A vicious smirk spread across his face beneath his helmet as he flew as swiftly and as silently as he could manage toward the brightly colored flash he'd seen.

He quickly approached where he'd seen the initial flash of silver and teal, noting that particular Alpha Legionnaire had indeed been caught in the deadfall trap that he'd left out for unwary prey, from the destroyed trap and the scrapings of paint on the underside of the large and heavy branch the other had likely been trapped - or partially - trapped under. There were a set of Astartes-sized footprints for him to follow deeper into the woods. The smirk on his face broadened to a grin, and he was about to fly off to hunt down his two-legged prey when he paused for a moment as he got a message from his bonded.

[You busy, Vanya?]

He hesitated for a moment before answering, using the text-to-speech feature in his helmet (making sure that his external comms were off - no need to potentially tip off to his prey that he was closeby) [Somewhat, but never too busy for you. Did you need something? I am on a hunt.]

[Oh, have fun! I just thought I saw you at the grocery store. Must have been another Night Lord.] She said, unintentionally causing Nadesir to panic a little.

He didn't know of any other Night Lords who lived in this area, and there were no Night Lords in the migratory war bands who passed through this town. At least, that had been true the last time one of the warbands had passed through, and they'd come and gone before this group of Alpha Legionnaires had decided to be spooky bastards. [... Be careful, darling. Most of my brothers are... Spectacular in how poorly socialized they are, to use your words. And it's possible that the Night Lord You saw was actually one of the shape-shifter Astartes borrowing someone else's form.]

[I'll keep that in mind. Have fun on your hunt, Vanya!] She texted back [I'll tell you when I get home.]

[See you soon, this hunt shouldn't take long.] Nadesir promised, anxiety and determination making his hearts beat quickly. He was torn between his desire to run the Alpha Legionnaire to ground, and flying back to his bonded... Especialy with this suspect Night Lord in town, he was worried that this might be some kind of trap or bluff -

Snap!

Another broken branch. Another flash of teal and silver paint.

A silent snarl left Nadesir as he lunged for his prey, while also making sure to send all of the information he'd gathered on this hunt to the Ultramarine Lieutenant who'd been put in charge of handling all information that the allied Astartes in the area had gathered on their wholly unwelcome visitors. That way if he was captured or went completely silent, they had some sort of clue as to what had happened to him.

The trees were too close together for Nadesir to fly properly, but he leapt from branch to branch in the upper canopy, gliding on silent wings as he sought out the Alpha Legionnaire he'd caught sight of twice, one hand on his bolter, the other helping to steady himself on the branch he leapt to, to keep from making too much noise. 

It did not take long for the Night Lord to catch up with the single Alpha Legionnaire who was limping on the ground.

...

Why was there only one of them? Of the traitor legions (were Alpha legionnaires traitor? They were labeled such by the Loyalists, but Nadesir wouldn't be surprised if the true answer was much more complicated. Even so, was this Alpha Legionnaire a traitor, or was he from a time before the Horus Heresy?) the Alpha Legion almost never splintered off into groups fewer than two. He looked for signs of more Alpha Legionnaires, but did not find any. He kept pace with the bastard Hydra limping around on the ground, careful to keep behind him and moving as silently as possible, in the hopes that if the other did not know he was there, that he would not alert the other to his presence. And the injured Alpha fucker definitely seemed to be headed in a specific direction, rather than wandering around aimlessly.

Nadesir stalked the injured Alpha Legionnaire from the forest canopy, resisting the urge to swoop down and pounce on the bastard - to tear him limb from limb and leave a pretty little warning for his fellow teal fucks to find in the woods - patience was the mark of a true hunter, and if he was lucky, the other would lead him directly to wherever it was the group of Alpha Legionnaires were lairing. Hours passed, and the Alpha legionnaire eventually limped up a well-worn forest trail to a wooden cabin, knocking on it four times before entering.

Anticipation sung through the Night Lord's veins, but he again sent his current coordinates and a short explanation as to what he'd found to Lieutenant Ollias. He paused for a moment, realizing that his beloved bonded had sent him three more messages, while he'd been focused on the hunt, each more concerning than the last.

[I'm almost home, but I think I'll need to spend some time at a neighbor's place. I think someone's following me.]

then

[How badly socialized are most Night Lords, again? The one from the grocery store is trying to talk to me. Says he can smell you on me?]

and finally, a terrifying 

[Help! He's ajklreg-]

The timestamp was half an hour ago. No no no no no! Nadesir knew that he should have turned around and gone to his beloved at the first mention of another Night Lord. It was too unusual a happenstance for it to be a good thing, and he couldn't shake the feeling that something awful had happened to his bonded. He could only hope that she was still alive. He'd been told by older Astartes that they had felt when their human had died. Had felt the bond snap as their sanity waned. Forcing down the panic, Nadesir closed his eyes as he reached out to the wonderful, strange bond that he had with his beloved human, trying to get a general sense of where she was, his body already moving towards where she was by the time he opened his eyes again.

He could hear and smell the large, unmarked van coming minutes before it arrived, its noisy engine and awful pollutants chugging along, with his bonded inside of it. The van was moving at speed - but no faster than Nadesir himself could run. He silently judged the distance before landing on the roof of the van with an unfortunate thud.

Nadesir dug his claws into the roof of the van, the inferior metals bending and buckling beneath his strength and frantic determination. the metal shrieked and screeched as he tore open a hole large enough to see what was going on.

His human was bound and gagged, held in place by a wide-eyed human male. She was struggling against him. There were several other humans in the van, two of whom were also bound and gagged, the other six trying to keep them in place. All three of the captured humans were bonded to Astartes. He leaned in, growling in the dominant human language "I don't care what foolishness you think you're up to, but I will be taking the humans you are foolishly attempting to kidnap. Resist and I will kill you."

"Y-y-you wouldn't dare!" One of the capturing humans stuttered. He stunk of fear and was dressed in a black suit and tie, with a white under-shirt. "I-I am-"

"I. Don't. Care. Who. You think you are. You attempted to kidnap my bonded, and the bonded of two others I consider allies and friends. Then again, I could leave you stranded here. The Hydra hunt in this region. I'm sure they would feast upon your fear and helplessness before tearing you apart." Nadesir hissed. Or he could leave them for the Salamanders to find. While they were loving and soft to those whom they cherished... Well, these idiots definitely would have roused the fury of the dragons. And enraged Salamanders were breathtakingly vicious and cruel. 

"We... We... We still have a working-" Suit and tie stuttered uselessly.

Nadesir ignored his babbling, looking over to his beloved - who continued to struggle furiously against her captor. He reached for her, cutting the ropes off of her, offering her his combat knife "I'm going to stop the vehicle. I imagine these two's bonded aren't far behind you." He gently bumped his helmeted head against her forehead in a gesture of affection. "Strike hard and fast, my heart." Before he crawled back on top of the van, pulling his bolter from it's holster and shooting at the hood of the van, aiming for where the engine probably was, and blowing a large hole through the middle of it.

There was a lot of panicked shouting and wailing from the would-be kidnappers. Their symphony of fear was almost enough to provoke Nadesir to purr - but he wouldn't. Not until his precious human was safe. And that the other kidnapped humans were safe too. 

Sure enough, he could see several large green Astartes sprinting down the road towards the rapidly slowing van. He waved at them from his perch, calling out to them over vox {You here to retrieve our kidnapped humans?}

{Yes! Your appearance is timely, if surprising. We were told you were on a hunt?} The lead Salamander asked. He was one of the Primaris Marines - larger and allegedly better than first born marines. The young dragon was sure a fast fucker, at any rate. Nadesir wasn't sure what his name was.

{I was. Then my human texted me for help, so I followed my bond to where my human is. I've given her my combat knife and freed her hands and legs, so the others who were captured are going to be freed soon too.} Nadesir explained, looking back into the hole he'd created. Sure enough, his beloved had freed the other two bonded humans - and was threatening Suit-and-Tie human at knife point, using methods he'd taught her. He's so proud of her. He calls out to her "Are you ready to go, love? Or do you want to kill your would-be capturer? Or I could kill him for you, and give you his heart to devour. Or his liver. Or both!" He was... Mostly joking. He knew that cannibalism wasn't something that most humans on ancient terra did unless under extreme circumstances and desperate. But he was leaning into the terrifying reputation that his legion had earned on Ancient Terra.

"... I'd rather they face the justice system, then have them killed out of hand, Vanya. Even if this shithead's parents are wealthy enough to pay off the courts." His human huffed, glaring darkly at suit-and-tie.

"Mmm, the squad of angry Dragons says otherwise, dearheart." Nadesir crooned. He doubted that these would-be kidnappers would last long in captivity, unless they had some very compelling information to give to the local chapter masters. "Then again, the Interrogator Chaplain has been getting restless... I'm sure he'd be delighted to... Mete out the due justice these fools have earned." Oh look, and the scary bastard and his posse were following the squad of furious Salamanders. "You never should have kidnapped our humans. Ready to go home, darling?"

His human blinked and smiled, handing him his combat knife. Instead, he picked her up, nuzzling her lovingly. "I thought you wanted to hunt?" she asked, confused. 

"If you think that I am going to be anywhere but at your side for months after you got kidnapped, you should reconsider that idea. I... I am sorry to have failed in protecting you, beloved." Nadesir rumbled, guilt and shame gnawing at him. One of the would-be kidnappers tried to reach for a weapon, but with a flick of his wrist, he cut the bastard's offending hand off with one of his claws without looking.

"Hey... It wasn't your fault I got grabbed, love. And you came to get me as soon as you knew I was in trouble. I... I'd like to go home now. I'll talk to whoever Captain Urar sends to talk to me about what happened tomorrow." His beloved responded, shaking a little as she buried her face in his chest.

Nadesir kissed the top of her head. It was still a failure on his part that she'd gotten kidnapped - perhaps he needed to ensure his reputation was terrifying enough that none would dare approach her with covetous thoughts? Ah, but he didn't want to potentially scare her away, either... These were things to consider later, however. The squad of Salamanders had arrived and he nodded politely to the sergeant leading them, saying "I'm going to take my human home. We'll both give full reports of what we know happened tomorrow."

"That works for me, go on home." The sergeant responded. "And yes, I'm aware of the Pride half a klik behind me. They're bored and frankly, I think that letting them handle the idiots would be entertaining."

The night lord raptor nodded, holding his human closer as he took to the skies. She slowly started to relax in her arms, the fear and anxiety in her scent giving way to wonder and delight. She always did really enjoy it when he took her for a flight.

[masterhallmark]

Ugh, I do this so much with so many characters

Phantom Blot x FemReader headcanons

Some of them are gender nuetral

CW: Brief Kidnapping mention

He stumbles upon you while scouting out a place he's planning to rob, and strikes up small talk to avoid suspicion.

Bonus idea: He's having a rare outing with his daughter, who immediately tries to pull an Anya from SpyXFamily and act as a wingman, "Oh, Dad, I want a Mommy...how about her?" "...What?"

He is surprised how smart you were. Not a super genius like himself, but smarter than most of the residents of Mouseton. Surely someone who would be nice to have around... Seems like he's going to be stealing more than he originally planned, because normal dating clearly isn't an option since his mugshot is everywhere. Yeah, you're getting kidnapped in the "nicest" way he can muster.

He tries very hard to win you over once he has you in his lair (and you calm down). He promises fortune, power, fame if you want it, luxuries beyond your wildest dreams, anything else you want to hear. All you have to do is be his. If this doesn't work, he's not afraid to subtly threaten you, too. He is a villain after all.

Should you accept his advances, he does his best to keep you a secret, just as he tried to keep his daughter a secret. He can't risk any other villains using you as a hostage.

He makes a hidden room for you to hide in whenever there are unwanted guests, complete with an emergency exit.

He's charming, acting like a complete gentleman, but you could never fully trust him. You're no fool, you know what he is.

He does genuinely try to spoil you, occasionally stealing a few extra necklaces and letting you pick some before selling the rest on the black market. He'll also steal high-end clothing, and sometimes... he'll actually BUY something.

He doesn't use pet names often, but when he does, he tries to stick to the "blot" theme. "My little spot" is a go to for when he's trying to butter you up. You catch on to this and after a while start to respond to "My little spot" with "What are you up to?"

If he starts calling you his queen or empress, it means he's got a world domination plan going on. These are his world domination specific petnames.

Oh, you'd better be ready to hear all his evil monologues, hear him complain about the other villains, etc. He's been needing someone he can vent to for YEARS.

He won't admit it, but he likes cuddles and other forms of physical affection. He wasn't given nearly enough affection as a child.

Oh, cool! He made robots to do all the chores and...turn into a robot suit for him to use? (Darkenblot reference)

He told his daughter he "saved this princess from a dragon" btw.

His daughter is a sweetheart. You would die for this child. It breaks your heart you have to lie and paint The Blot as the good guy and hide the fact he's actually a criminal mastermind. You don't see her too often since she's in the care of Mrs. Fragmuffin, but The Blot spoils her rotten, snd she starts calling you "Mommy" right away.

[poly-yandere-lovers]

Yandere Alphabet: Soma

Warnings: kidnapping, murder, suicide, abuse, manipulation, extreme masochism, stalking

Tags: None

Thoughts: If I missed something that should have a warning, let me know.

Affection: How do they show their love and affection? How intense would it get?

Soma will scream his love for you at any possible opportunity. He won't ever stop. He'll follow you everywhere, he'll give you anything he thinks you would like... like the heart or head of your enemy. He'll do anything you ask, then insist that he do everything for you from then on.

Blood: How messy are they willing to get when it comes to their darling?

He will do anything he, or Enma, deems necessary. He'll kill, manipulate, kidnap and threaten anyone, including your friends, family, coworkers and that stranger you looked at once(1) while walking down the street.

Cruelty: How would they treat their darling once abducted? Would they mock them?

Soma would treat you as good as he possibly can. He'd wait on you hand and foot, get you anything you want and take you anywhere. He'd do anything except leave you alone. He can get a bit disturbing, though. He'd want you to hurt him, as severely as possible provided that Enma is also taking care of you. And he'd hurt you, too, if he thinks that you'd like it.

Darling: Aside from abduction, would they do anything against their darling’s will?

Yes; he wouldn't force himself on you sexually but he will force his affection on you. He'd force feed you medication if he thinks you either need or would benefit from it.

And Soma would never mock you! He loves you too much to do that!

Exposed: How much of their heart do they bare to their darling? How vulnerable are they when it comes to their darling?

Soma gives you his heart on a diamond encrusted gold platter. He'll entrust you with everything and I do mean everything. He'd tell you about all the things that happened to him during his childhood, good and bad. He'd tell you all about what Enma's done to him throughout his life.

He's yours from the start~

Fight: How would they feel if their darling fought back?

He'd be simultaneously happy and concerned. On one hand, he's excited by the idea of you hitting him. On the other, he doesn't want you to feel unsafe! You must feel that way if you're fighting him.

Game: Is this a game to them? How much would they enjoy watching their darling try to escape?

This is very much not a game to Soma. He loves and needs you as desperately as he needs air, food and water. He's genuinely upset and concerned when/if you try to escape. And he'll try anything to make you more comfortable. He'll even move into your home if he thinks it'd help you.

Hell: What would be their darling’s worst experience with them?

The constant begging for you to hurt him or his need to be all over you at every possible second.

He needs pain, he's addicted to it. And if you're living with him in his home, you're also living with Enma. So you'd constantly be seeing them hitting and cutting Soma. You'd hear it, too. Soma's not at all quiet about how much pleasure he gets from getting hurt.

Ideals: What kind of future do they have in mind for/with their darling?

I've actually touched on this before. He's willing to do anything you and Enma want. As long as he's with you, he's okay.

Jealousy: Do they get jealous? Do they lash out or find a way to cope?

It depends on the person. If you're with anyone other than Enma or him, he will get jealous. He won't take it out on you, after all you probably don't even know he's jealous! He'll take it out on the other person. He'd pay the person a visit and have a little chat. If the person escalates it, he'll kill them with no hesitation.

Kisses: How do they act around or with their darling?

Soma acts like a puppy around you. He's gonna follow you everywhere, talk to/at you a lot, fawn over you and glare at anyone he thinks might bother you. He lets you boss him around, too. He's very affectionate, he wants to touch you all the time. He's clingy, he'd follow you into the bathroom if you let him.

Love letters: How would they go about courting or approaching their darling?

He stalks you way before he talks to you. By the time he talks to you, he knows your schedule, normal walking routes and patterns, what's currently in your house, what drink you've been buying a lot of recently, etc. And he has a very poor poker face, so when he talks to you you'll probably catch that something's up. If that doesn't put you off right away, you might be put off by just how aggressively friendly he is. He's trying too hard to get close to you.

Mask: Are their true colors drastically different from the way they act around everyone else?

Not really? He's friendly naturally, but he doesn't put effort into knowing other people like he does you and Enma. And he doesn't try to act smarter or dumber than he already is. The only thing that's different between you/Enma and other people is how hard he tries.

Naughty: How would they punish their darling?

He doesn't, lol. That's up to Enma. He doesn't believe you should be punished for anything you do. Like if he kidnapped you and you tried to escape, he'd understand! You're in a new place and you weren't super excited about it, but he has to do this! Enma said that's what you wanted! They said that's what would make you happiest!! You understand, right?

Oppression: How many rights would they take away from their darling?

As few as possible. You could question whether you're really being held captive or not. The only right he might permanently take away is you going outside on your own. And that's only after you try to escape once or twice.

Patience: How patient are they with their darling?

Soma... tries to be patient. He snaps more than he means too. He wants to let you come to him or willingly give him what he wants, but he can't stand being apart from you for more than a few minutes.

Quit: If their darling dies, leaves, or successfully escapes, would they ever be able to move on?

Soma would only give up if you died. If he went to jail, he'd just go back to stalking you when he got out. He'd violate any restraining order you get without any hesitation or question. He'd even kidnap you again.

If you die, Soma would be devastated. The day you die is the day his world, his universe, his deity, is violently ripped from his hands. He'd rely on Enma, like he usually did when you said something hurtful to/about him. And it'd be up to Enma to keep him propped up. The only time he'd feel any sort of emotion is when Enma abuses him. And if Enma died? Soma would kill himself in a heartbeat. Without you and Enma, he feels absolutely nothing. He is nothing, without the two of you.

Regret: Would they ever feel guilty about abducting their darling? Would they ever let their darling go?

No. Soma doesn't feel bad about kidnapping you, he feels bad that you're upset or angry with him or scared. In his mind, you want him to do this. Enma's convinced him that you want to be kidnapped, taken away from your life as you knew it. The reasons will vary, they might say that you feel unsafe or that you're simply unable to live on your own due to financial reasons.

Stigma: What brought about this side of them (childhood, curiosity, etc)?

Enma. If Soma didn't meet them, he would not go to the lengths that he's willing to now. He probably wouldn't experience many emotions, but he would never even consider kidnapping, killing or stalking anyone.

Enma encourages Soma to form unhealthy attachments to people and things around him. Ei're the one to plant the idea of stalking you or killing anyone who gets too close into his head. They're a terrible influence on a man that is very gullible and suggestable.

Tears: How do they feel about seeing their darling scream, cry, and/or isolate themselves?

He feels bad when he sees you in any sort of emotional distress. He does what he can to appease you, though.

And if you isolate yourself... that won't stop him. He'll force his affection on you and cling to you like a octopus.

Unique: Would they do anything different from the classic yandere?

I'm not sure? I'll be honest, I don't know what defines a classic yandere lol.

Vice: What weakness can their darling exploit in order to escape?

Soma is so willing to let you do whatever you want, you could so easily use it against him right in front of him and he will never question you. Honestly you could straight up kill him and he's be over the moon, because you were to one to do it!

Wit’s end: Would they ever hurt their darling?

Only if he thinks you'd get some sort of pleasure from it. Then he would hurt you. Otherwise, no.

Xoanon: How much would they revere or worship their darling? To what length would they go to win their darling over?

Soma happily kisses the ground you walk on, he praises every word you say and he'll destroy anyone that doesn't believe in how wonderful of a person you are. He'd do anything for you, be anything for you. He'd break himself down and build himself up again if you commanded it.

Yearn: How long do they pine after their darling before they snap?

I would give him six months at most.

Zenith: Would they ever break their darling?

I don't think he'd do so intentionally? He might wear you down by his aggressive friendliness and clingy demeanor.

[cobwebs-in-autumn]

Kraken!Merman!König finding the lost boat of Fisher!Reader and falling in love the second he sees you. All drowsy and delirious from thirst, skin dry and burnt from no shade. He coos to you as he scoops you up with his tentacles and brings you to a solitary cave on a long undiscovered island. Nursing you back to health little by little, panicking everytime he gets something wrong. But he’s so happy when you’re at full health! Purring and nuzzling you as he holds you close. What was that? Leave? Why would you want to leave :(((( Sorry Sweet One, but he just can’t allow his adorable new mate out of his sight. 🧡🧡🧡

[thedarkestrivernymph]

Death

Yandere!Kidnapper x f!Reader

warnings: fanatic behaviour, kidnapping, unreliable narrator—split perspectives—contradictions, mentions of self-harm, suicidal tendencies, mentions of sexual topics, touching without consent, heavy religious themes, yandere has taken somewhat the role of a caretaker, forced infantilization

Note: Read at your own risk tbh, I perceive this story as pretty disturbing, however if you can handle heavy topics, then enjoy. :)

©Copyright -2024-thedarkestrivernymph - All Rights Reserved

He was righteous, has been all his life, or well, had been until he met you.

There just wasn't a way to stop himself, no, to stop the demons haunting him from taking you in his grasp, imprisoning you in his humble home.

Perhaps he was doing you a favour? Chaining you to the bed placed in his basement just for you, white ruffles decorating the sides of the countless pillows and the duvet cover. Everything pristinely white—linen, handpicked for you.

He even dusted it and cleaned it, installed an old-school TV and even got you coloured pencils and endless amounts of paper of all kind!

And it all was just for you. How romantic, don't you think?

Your captor was nice—he was soft, even his edges didn't hurt you. He never raised his voice, couldn't even imagine hurting you, even if it was just a hair on your precious head.

You were his entire life. His gift from God himself.

However he quickly realised that you didn't quite share his opinion. You weren't horribly hostile, tried to appease him in fear of his sometimes rash and almost fanatic behaviour, fearing one day he might just flip the switch and obsess over breaking a bone in your body, yet you never were overly soft. There was this wall between you two that bugged him greatly, but he just didn't know how to destroy it.

To top it off, you feared death at his hands, at first. However as days faded into weeks and then into months—and before you knew it a year had passed with no one succeeding in rescuing you from the obsessive stalker clinging to you—you started fearing a life with this man.

It started off with small things, like you eating less, your leftovers slowly increasing in size or you would leave the paper completely blank instead of scribbling something onto it.

Until it started affecting other areas of your very limited life like you starting to lose interest in watching TV, the only luxury that connected you to the outer world. Until that penetrating dark cloud hanging over your head affected you more severely, so much so, that it worried him.

You his sacred bride losing your excitement for life was terrifying. He couldn't imagine a life without you—he refused to even think about it, the sheer thought was too painful.

You refused to eat, laid around all day, didn't even fidget when he would not so subtly try to seduce you. Well he was a kidnapper, but he would never force you to spread your legs for him! So he was still waiting for your heart to warm up to him, however instead of warming up, you started fading away from his grasp.

It was so petrifying, so much so that he started asking his pastor for help, then his colleagues—he even searched through the internet at the computer of his local library!

Depression.

in big bold letters was what popped up first, a page dedicated to mental health. He was mortified reading through everything, the symptoms and what it could possibly lead to. Death. The word daunted him and haunted him.

He rushed home, your captor breaking out in a cold sweat, only experiencing sweet relief seeing you curled up beneath the covers, pale in the face as always.

Days have passed and now he clung to you like glue. “Sweetheart—Sweetheart you have to eat!” he whined, the spoon once more missing your mouth as you twisted your head away. He bound you to the chair to keep you still and yet you kept on avoiding his attempts at feeding you.

“Say Ahh love! C’mon for me! Be good? Please, sweetheart!” he pleaded and begged to no avail, you gazed at him empty-eyed and shook your head. That was when he finally caught sight of the red streaks down your neck and collarbone.

At first he thought it was an allergic reaction, then he remembered you hadn't consumed anything but water in the last few days. Then with a glance down at your shaking fingers, feeling over the broken and bloodied nails he realised.

Your own nails. You hurt yourself with your own nails.

He lost it. The bowl of boiling hot soup landed on the ground, porcelain shattering as he lunged forward, grasping your hair and tilting your head back to gauge the damage to your holy skin.

“How could you?—” he spat in revulsion, face mirroring the rage that was consuming him inside, yet he never could be mad at you for long.

“Sweetie—Sweetheart—” your kidnapper's voice faltered, face pulled into a grimace, he let go of your hair, easing the sting of your scalp, sinking to his knees in front of you, pleading with his eyes.

“Please talk to me baby, please tell me what's wrong. Is it the TV? I can buy you a new one. Do you want new pencils? Do you want crayons? Maybe watercolour? I can get you new clothes if that is the problem!— Sweetheart please, please talk to me.” he broke down, fat tears running down his cheeks, pathetically clinging to one of your calves, licking a strip up your knee.

“Baby—baby.” he whimpered, crying into your two knees, fingers now grasping your lap in such desperation that if it wasn't the man that kept you captive you might have felt more sympathy for him. It wasn't as if you hadn't considered just carving in by now and accepting him as the person that would be beside you till death, yet the thought hurt. It dug a hole in your heart and left you wanting to pluck each individual hair follicle out of your scalp.

You just couldn't bear stand his constant whining and begging, humping you dry from behind like a dog when he thought you were deep asleep, preaching that he was a devoted believer to god, when he had kidnapped you, forced you down here, kept you still chained up, with only limited times when you could use the restroom and then always with the door a split open to ensure you didn't flee from the narrow window placed over the toilet. Showering was even worse, he would insist on staying, waiting behind the shower curtain, eyeing your shadow. When you would step out he would be bright red, averting his eyes and adjusting himself before finally draping a towel over you that always managed to smell like his musk. It was disgusting.

Even though he claimed that he would never hurt you, he had overly violent episodes, where he would just throw things around, rip up the extensive pages upon pages of your emotional rant, threaten you with a broken glass bottle, before always falling to his knees, crawling on the floor begging and pleading for forgiveness.

All in all he was a walking contradiction and never could be trusted. So wasn't it clear why you would prefer death over being stuck with the constant fear of what's to come?

“Baby” he whined incessantly, clinging to you like a lifeline. Bastard. You kept on ignoring him. It wasn't just this day, but all the following days, opting to just leave yourself to rot away.

However it seems you didn't calculate that he was so transfixed with you, that he would protect you from anything and anyone, even if that someone was yourself.

“Sweetie” he whispered oh-so sweetly into the shell of your ear, still weary from your restlessness the night prior, you didn't even want to turn in your bed to face him. Big mistake.

Before you could see it, you felt it. Fingers grasped your jaw, some sort of fabric draped over the lower half of your face, a strong scent engulfing you all while he rocked your head back and forth, stroking your hair lovingly.

When you woke up, unbeknownst to you, you succeeded in losing all your privileges.

“Sweetheart! How are you feeling?” he chirped, the basement now completely padded, decorated in pink, filled with toys and plushies. That wasn't all—because you regretted looking down.

A diaper. You were wearing a diaper. You breath staggered, horror written across your features.

He snickered, stepping closer to you, kneeling down to your level on the floor. “Sorry Sweetheart, but— you just wouldn't listen to me. You were starving yourself! It was obvious that no one ever taught you properly. You didn't receive proper parental care—they didn't care for you enough, they didn't love you as I do. So I am just going to start from zero and reteach you everything! How does that sound? Good right? You will love it!” he cupped your wet cheeks, the real nightmare starting just now, with the prospect of being saved already having slipped from your mind, understanding that this hell was your new reality.

He leaned forward, lips brushing against your scalp as he whispered something so gut-wrenching you hoped that he would swallow his own tongue and choke on it.

“Cuz’ Sweetheart I gotta teach you real good, so when we get our own baby you will be a good mother, yeah? A great mother! The best mother!”

he laughed.

[anyxis]

Diasomnia Mafia

Malleus is the heir of one of the most feared mafias in the city. Diasomnia is not hidden in anyway. Everyone knows about it and everyone knows who they are. The reason they have never been taken down by justice is the simple fact that they are untouchable. What people see is that they are heartless criminals who think of nothing more but pain and blood. What they don’t see, however, is that they are a lot more than that. They control everything. With their money, they were able to fund many of the Al Asims charities and they even managed to put the Kingscholars in the city hall. Everything that goes down in the city is either carefully planned to their advantage or carefully monitored to make sure it won’t become a problem. One of such problems was a recent war with a very powerful gang. Not as powerful as them, but, unfortunately, they were able to cause irreparable damage, such as the death of Malleus’ parents. This event left a very young boy, so young he couldn’t even remember the sound of their voices or the look of their faces, at the head of the most feared family. Because of this, Maleficia, who had stepped down from this role years ago to let her daughter reign, came back in control until Malleus was old enough to take over. This also caused the issue that she couldn’t care for him, since she was constantly busy with work. In order to not leave him unattended, Lilia, who had been declared a traitor, was called back to play babysitter. And so, because of the tragedy that left him an orphan, Malleus grew to despise every other gang and family. He didn’t trust anyone other than himself and his own family. Trust was what made his parents lower their guard and leave a problem unattended. A problem which, ultimately, cost them their lives. He was decided he wouldn’t make the same mistake. He would be better. He would be the Lord everyone used to fear. It had been too long since the city had known the meaning of the Malevolence.

Lilia was Maleanor and Raverne’s closest friend. They were his whole world. When the tragedy happened, they were all attacked by surprise and he would have lost his life for them. But there was one small issue. Malleus was present. Maleanor begged Lilia to just take her son and go and, obeying what was both his leader and one of his other-halves, he took the boy and ran. To this day, he still wakes up in cold sweat, remembering the gunshots and the screams of a terrified child who was too young to understand. When they were found, Lilia wasn’t given time to explain. He was first suspected of having abandoned them in the fight instead of dying by their side, like he had sworn in his oath to the family. However, now that they had found the young missing heir with him, it was all clear. The attack had been planned and he was part of it. His job was to kidnap Malleus and hold him hostage until further notice from the gang. This, of course, was false. But with no other proof than his own words, Lilia could do nothing more than to accept his fate. The only reason he lived was because Maleficia couldn’t bring herself to kill him. He had been too important to her daughter to do this. Instead, he was exiled from the city, never to return again, and, if he did, it would be on sight. And so, he left. It wasn’t long, however, before they sent Baul after him. When Lilia woke up one day to find his old instructor and friend in his living room, he thought that they must have changed their minds. He was here to get rid of the dirty, worthless traitor that he was. Needless to say, he was quite surprised when Baul asked him to come back. He explained that his reputation had been cleaned thanks to some anonymous sources and that he was needed to take care of the heir. He couldn’t believe it and, frankly, some things had changed since he had left. He couldn’t go back like everything was normal, but, at the same time, he couldn’t abandon his godson the same way he had his best friends. So he took it upon himself to have a talk with Maleficia. If he was to come back, he could no longer be involved like he used to be. The safety of his own son depended on it. And so, Lilia became the father of what was meant to be mortal enemies.

Silver’s parents died in the war between his family’s gang and the Diasomnia mafia. His parents had been the leaders and, after the Draconia’s assassination, the family stopped at nothing to get their heads. Silver only barely survived the attack. His parents had sent him away, sensing the rising danger on their lives and, even then, the escape had cut it short, with his parents dying barely and hour after his departure. Following his parents directions, he had been left at a random house outside of the city, with no name to himself, not history. Only a ring. Little did the members charged with this mission knew that, the owner of the house was painfully aware of what that ring meant. Still, with a broken heart and all the self-hate of the world, Lilia still decided to take him in has his own. He wasn’t doing this out of the good of his heart however. No, he was doing this has a punishment. Not only would he have to live with the painful memory of his betrayal, but he would also live with the constant reminder of what he had done. Fate really could be some twisted bitch sometimes. Still, Lilia took care of him, gave him all the love of the world. Ultimately, Silver wasn’t responsible of what had happened. He didn’t deserve to be treated horribly because of his parents decisions. And everything was perfect, growing up with his older brother and his father, up until he found the ring. It was nothing malicious. He was just a curious little boy, snooping around and having fun inventing stories for the strange objects he found. The problem was that he went around showing his newest treasure to everyone, including the members of Diasomnia, and, where most had accepted Lilia back as one of their own, some were still convinced that it was a terrible mistake. So when his own son started showing around a ring of the enemy, a ring he had found in his father’s belongings, all hell broke loose. Because of this, Lilia had no other options but to explain where it came from, meaning he had to reveal Silver’s true identity. He had worked so hard to keep him safe and, now, everything was out the window, because the family had a mole in their ranks. Had it not been for Malleus shielding a crying Silver from the guns, he would not have made it out alive. And, still, here he was now, ruling over the most feared family in all of the city, alongside his one and only brother, Malleus Draconia.

Sebek grew up in the family, just like Malleus and Silver. The Zigvolts had always been part of Diasomnia and they were considered trustworthy allies. So, when Baul’s own daughter fell in love with a member of another gang, it had been the end of the world. He had tried everything to make her change her mind, but, if she was anything like her father, it was that she was strong minded. They had many fights about this, how it was a betrayal of the family and she would be killed for that. Even then, she didn’t care. At least, she would die with the man she loved. It was another story for her lover. He wasn’t that suicidal. He loved her, but he still loved living more. So, it was all fun and games until the threats started coming. It didn’t take him a day to cut everything off. Needless to say that she was devastated. First loves can be cruel like that. However, after she was done mourning, it was on sight. Baul proposed to do it for her, but she insisted she be the one to look him in the eyes when he takes his last breath. This is how she met her husband. He was a normal dentist, finishing up his day at the clinic, when he ended up at the wrong place at the wrong time. He witnessed what would become his wife and mother of his children kill her lover. He was convinced that, after seeing this, he would be next, but, fortunately for him, she didn’t do things in halves. When she saw him, it was love at first sight for her. Because of this, instead of being silenced, he was just kidnapped to ensure his silence. It took some time, but, after a few months of being held prisoner, he was allowed to go back to his normal life. On the condition that he would be closely followed of course. Years later, they slowly, but surely, got closer and closer, until Baul caught them kissing in the very same alleyway she had killed her ex. Fast forward some years, Sebek is born. Thanks to Baul and Lilia being so close, he was constantly playing with Silver and Malleus. The three of them were inseparable, which only served to bring even more painful memories to Lilia, who saw Maleanor, Raverne and himself in them. Seeing the way things were playing out, Baul and Lilia could do nothing more, but to wish and hope the story wouldn’t repeat itself.

[alicewritingstories]

Febuwhump Day 25: Waterboarding

CW: kidnapping, torture, restraints, drugs

AO3

---

Link wasn't entirely sure how long it had been since he was kidnapped. It didn't help that he'd spent part of the time unconscious; he could still feel the lingering traces of the drug that had been jabbed into his arm by someone in the crowd at the marketplace.

One thing that was certain was that he was now standing against a post, bound too tightly to even shift position. Even his breathing was restricted. A cloth was tied between his teeth tightly enough that his cheeks ached and another was over his eyes.

Dully, he wondered who was holding him and what they wanted. It wasn't as if he was short of enemies, but most of them would have cut his throat already and been done with it. The fact that apparently he had been wanted alive was worrying. It meant that either they wanted to take their time killing him or they wanted something other than his life.

Neither was a comforting thought.

Then he heard something: the rattle of keys in a padlock, followed by the scrapes of a chain being unwrapped and a door rubbing a floor as it opened. He raised his head, trying to give a show of strength and defiance.

Nobody spoke, but he heard footsteps, something heavy being put down, some rustling and scraping, and then footsteps walking away again, followed by the door closing and being locked again.

He frowned, confused, straining his ears to try to hear any talk from outside or any hint of where he was. Everything was silent except that he caught a faint sound that he could believe was half-stifled breathing. He couldn't even be sure enough to seriously wonder if another prisoner had been brought in.

He squirmed as best he could in his bonds, trying to find an angle to rub the blindfold away from his eyes, but it was no good. He just had to continue to wait to find out what was happening: something he had never enjoyed or been good at.

After a while, he heard a faint noise. This time he was sure: it was a soft, gag-strangled voice moaning as the other prisoner recovered consciousness. He tried to make some sound through his own gag in response, but had no way of knowing if the other prisoner had heard him; he just faintly made out some small rustles and shuffles that he guessed was the sound of an unsuccessful struggle against ropes.

Before he could come up with any kind of plan to communicate with the other prisoner or find out more about who they were and their state, he heard the door unlocked again. Again, he raised his head and squared his shoulders as best he could. Footsteps approached and this time someone grabbed the blindfold and pulled it violently away from his eyes.

They were holding a torch near his face and he had to turn away, closing his eyes against the sudden bright light.

"Captain Link," said a voice.

He looked up slowly, blinking away the watering at the corners of his eyes. It was still hard to see, but he did his best to focus and to keep his head up.

A hand grabbed his chin and held his head still as someone untied the knotted cloth tied around his mouth and pulled it free. He took a quick, grateful breath, licking his dry lips to try to moisten them.

"I'm sure you're wondering what's going on. You'll be relieved to know you're not the one we want."

He tilted his head with a scowl, not making the effort to speak aloud. His eyes had grown sufficiently accustomed to the light that he could see the man speaking to him, not that it helped; he was wearing a mask and only his eyes were visible. Link noted that they were green, a few freckles were visible on the bridge of the man's nose, and he had a Castletown accent. Useful information if he got out of here alive.

"We're interested in the princess. Answer our questions and you'll be untied and released once we've finished our work and kept safe and comfortable in the meantime. Refuse and you won't."

Link met his eye squarely, his jaw set.

"I thought you might not be interested in cooperating. Whatever else anyone says about you, you're a brave man and you've always been happy to risk your skin for her. Well, how about the skin of your little cousin here?" The man stepped aside and pointed. Now Link saw the other prisoner: a young boy in a brightly-coloured quartered tunic, gagged and tied spread-eagled on a table. Another masked man had just removed his blindfold and he was blinking in Link's direction.

Link had never seen him before in his life. He didn't even have any cousins.

"Strangers' lives mean nothing to you, we all know that, but he and the rest of the family have been asking around town for you. I guess you don't do a good job of writing home."

Both accusations stung. Neither was worth engaging with right now.

The boy's eyes had focussed on Link's face. His expression showed none of the fear Link had expected. There was some resemblance, he supposed, though in the circumstances it was hard to tell. But the question of whether whoever had left him at an orphanage when he was a baby had had family that might have tracked him down could wait. First, he had to get himself and the boy out of here.

Link's gaze went back to the man speaking to him. He wished he had Proxi, but wishes were wasted. He was going to have to speak for himself and he licked his lips again, unsure what to do. The boy knew too much now; they wouldn't let him leave alive even if Link managed to persuade them he didn't know him and therefore by their own logic he didn't care what they might do to him.

He did, he always did, but what he cared about didn't matter much to anyone.

"Let's start with something easy, shall we?" said the man pleasantly. "The royal kitchens. Are there any special precautions around the princess' meals and those of her closest retainers such as General Impa?"

Link glared at him.

"Ah, I see." The man turned and nodded to his companions. Before Link could react, one of them pinched the boy's nose closed while another dipped a bucket of water out of a barrel beside the table and tipped it over the boy's head. The boy let out a cry, strangled to a squeal by the now-soaked gag, and bucked against the hand on his face and the ropes holding him to the table.

Link swallowed hard, imagining trying to breathe through a mouth filled with wet cloth. The man holding the boy's nose held it a moment longer, then released it, letting the boy gasp in a breath.

There wasn't much choice for Link; he couldn't betray Zelda, not to save himself, not to save a stranger, not to save someone who might be long-lost family.

"Nothing?" asked the kidnapper.

When Link still stayed silent, the man nodded at his companions again. Another bucket of water was thrown over the boy's face. This time the man standing over him didn't plug his nose and his gasps were punctuated by sneezes, muffled coughs, and the occasional involuntary whimper.

Link gritted his teeth and stayed silent.

The man asked more questions, visibly more and more frustrated. Link kept quiet, though the boy's muffled cries as he struggled to breathe properly tore at his heart. He had to do this. It wasn't even as if it was the first time he'd let an innocent suffer for the greater good.

Then, out of nowhere, the door was smashed open. Link's head snapped round and he gasped as a tattooed man in shining plate armor ran in. The kidnappers were just as shocked as he was, which gave the newcomer - newcomers, he realized; three other men ran in after the first - a chance to make it almost to where he stood before the kidnappers could even react.

"Legend, Hyrule!" the armored man shouted. "With me!"

The man who had been waterboarding the boy drew a knife, but a slight teenager in a red tunic closed the distance before he could even get out the threat to kill his prisoner. The man who had been questioning Link didn't even make a threat; he drew his knife and brought it to Link's throat.

Link took a quick final breath and mentally said farewell to Zelda and his other friends.

Then a sword flashed past his face. The kidnapper reeled back with a cry, clutching at his hand. A young man in a white cloak stepped in front of Link, sword still raised protectively.

"Are you all right?" he asked, glancing over his shoulder.

Link let out the breath he'd taken and nodded. He couldn't see past the man in the cloak, but he heard the clash of swords, shouts, and then coughing and someone saying, "OK, Four. Just keep breathing."

The man in the cloak relaxed and sheathed his sword, then stepped over beside Link to start cutting his bonds.

"You're Link?" he asked quietly with a small, comforting smile.

Link nodded. "The traitors?" he managed.

"Dead."

"Are you hurt?" asked the armored man, looking over from where the two teenagers were supporting the boy - Four. Now there was more time to look at them all, Link noticed that one of his eyes was closed, the lid marred with a long scar. He instinctively ranked him as a captain, though he wasn't wearing any uniform Link recognised.

He could once again see some resemblance between them and him. They had come for Four, so this must be the group his kidnappers had talked about.

He could see why they had thought this was his family.

Then he was distracted as the blood finally started to return to his cramped, numb limbs. As soon as he was no longer supported by the ropes, Link collapsed forward. The captain lunged forward to catch him and held him up as the one with the cloak kept working on the ropes.

"Are you hurt?" he asked again.

Link shook his head. "The boy - Four - is he all right?" he asked quietly.

The captain looked Link up and down and, to his surprise, he smiled. "Legend? Hyrule?" he asked, glancing over his shoulder.

"I'm fine," said Four in a surprisingly low-pitched, steady voice, accompanied by relieved-sounding chuckles from the two teens. Then he coughed again.

Link had expected anger at what he had allowed to happen to Four. He'd expected to find that he'd burned the bridge with his maybe-family before it had even been built.

"You must be Captain Link," the captain said as he gently lowered Link to sit against the post, a hand still on his shoulder to steady him.

Link nodded.

"My name is also Link, but you can call me Time. It's a pleasure to finally meet you. These are Sky" - He pointed to the man in the cloak - "Legend" - the teen in the red tunic - "Hyrule" - the other teen, this one dressed in humble green and brown - "you've, well… you've seen Four" - Four waved with one rope-burned hand, covering more coughs with the other - "and Wind is keeping watch."

Link looked up at them all, still confused. "Who are you?" He asked. It was a start on the questions he really wanted to ask.

Time sighed. "That's a long story," he said. "And it's best told somewhere other than here."

Link forced an approximation of his usual bright, confident smile and at last the words came easily. "Well, then, when I can walk again you should come with me. Four should see a medic and I'm sure her highness would like to meet you."

Time nodded briskly, his own smile relaxing, and squeezed Link's shoulder. "In the meantime, you concentrate on recovering. You're safe with us."

And as the blood flowed painfully back into Link's swollen hands and feet, he believed him.