Summary: Your dad owns a ranch in between Thieves Landing and Armadillo, doing business with both Blackwater, Armadillo and Tumbleweed. One day three strange men show up on your land, a man with a scar across his face, an old bearded man whose horse has a literal mustache, and a tall and handsome man, both black and indian you think. What are they doing here and how will you deal with them?
A simple wish
Prompt 39 -Â âI wish we could stay like this foreverâ
Little Dragon Summary: You were a child slave of Meereen, when one day a silver haired woman sets you free. Though your master isnât too keen on letting you go, and Daenerys took personal action to see you freed and taken care of.
(Warnings: Ooooooooh boy! A lot of angst in this⊠like⊠a lot⊠thereâs blood, gore, angst and some major angst later on, but it DOES somewhat end normally lol, enjoy!)
Daryl woke up with a wince, his head aching and spinning, his first thought being Judith, then Daisy, his eyes landing on the latter in the corner, tears staining her cheeks, eyes red and puffy, nose runny as she just stared at the floor, a vacant, empty look on her face, as though she wasnât really there anymore. She was sitting next to a bed, holding the hand of someone and when he got up, he realized who it was⊠Victor was lying on the hospital bed, a massive scratch torn through and across his left eye, scraped down to the corner of his mouth, a large nasty, ragged gash that was barely covered by the bandages. At the very least the eye couldnât be saved. âShe doesnât want to talk to anyoneâ Carol whispered softly, glancing over at Daisy before looking back at Daryl âjust-... focus on Judith, okay? Daisy, she-... she wouldnât even let me talk to herâ she whispered, Daryl nodding with tears in his eyes âwhat-... what happened to âim?â
âWalkerâ Carol whispered, Darylâs head snapping to look at her and she looked down with tears in her eyes before nodding, looking over her shoulder at Daisy and Victor again, the hollow look on Daisyâs face. âSheâs refusing to leave his sideâŠâ she admitted in a whisper, looking back at Daryl âfocus on Judith⊠sheâs in bad shapeâŠâ Carol advised, a hint of pleading in her tone and Daryl nodded. Turning away from Daisy was one of the hardest things heâs ever done, if not the hardest⊠but going over to her right now wouldnât do anything, wouldnât do any good⊠she wanted to be left alone, Judith needed blood and he could give it to her. That he could do. That girl he could help, the other one⊠the other one heâd let mourn a bit before he interruptedâŠ
She continued to just⊠sit there⊠She didnât move, didnât talk, barely blinked. Not even when he gave blood to Judith, not even when the others went to sweep the hospital and kill walkers, something she always did to clear her mind. She just⊠sat there⊠vacant and hollow, her bloody hand softly holding his while the other stroked his hair, brushing back the dark locks that had gotten much longer since she first met him.
âHeyâŠâ Daryl tried but she didnât even seem to register him, his heart breaking, tears forming in his eyes and he looked down at Judith, still holding the tube in place so his blood could help Judith, stop her from bleeding out. âDaisy⊠Delilahâ he tried again, his voice breaking a little and he saw her head turn, barely an inch, in his direction, but she didnât fully look at him, didnât turn to face him. She just kept staring at Victorâs maimed face, occasionally the hand stroking his hair would rest over his forehead, as though she was checking his temperature before going back to stroking his hair.
When Judith woke up and kept mumbling about dying, he looked towards Daisy, seeing her with fresh tears streaming down her cheeks, her hand had stopped brushing Victorâs hair, instead clutching his hand with both of her own, eyes shut tightly as she looked down, trying to hardest not to cry, not to openly sob like she desperately wanted, and needed, to.
The second Carol burst in, talking about walkers breaching, Daisy just sat there, staring at Victorâs face, his shallow breathing. âDaisy, come on, we have to go-â
âGoâ Daisyâs voice was⊠hollow⊠her eyes empty as she looked up at Carol âI wonât leave him and we canât take him with us. Itâs okay. Go-â
âNah. Nah, ainât no way weâre gonna leave yaâ Daryl hissed almost angrily but she knew better, a smile forming on her lips as she looked at him âitâs okay⊠I promise⊠itâs okayâ she whispered softly, looking towards Judith âget her out of hereâŠâ she muttered to herself before looking back at Victor âIâll stay with him⊠So long as heâs still breathing⊠Iâll stay with himâ she determined, sniffling quietly, leaning down so she rested her head on his stomach, looking up at his face.
âDelilah! I canât-... I need youâ Daryl growled, voice cracking and she straightened back up, looked up at him, looking at Judith and then back up at him âyou canât carry her⊠move her on the gurneyâ she advised before looking back at Victor. âNah⊠Nah. You stay with âerâ Daryl ordered, taking out the tube in his arm, hurrying to the exit, blocking it with a gurney from the outside, pulling over some shelves, looking through the window at a frowning Daisy and an unconscious Judith, placing his hand on the window before running off to help the others, Daisyâs heart racing and she looked between Victor and Judith, lower lip starting to tremble and she leaned over Victor, cupping his face in her hands⊠still not feverâŠ
âI need you to wake up⊠I need you, Vic⊠I need you to wake up, I need you to be here, be with me, pleaseâ she whispered desperately, her own tears dropping and falling onto his cheeks and she sniffled, a strained sob leaving her âplease, donât leave meâ she continued to beg, shaking her head, sobbing âpleaseâ over and over again, as though itâd make a difference. When it didnât, she openly sobbed, shutting her eyes tightly, clinging to his hand as she screamed, louder than sheâd ever screamed before, her throat raw and burning as she sobbed out loud, unable to hold it in much longer.
When she felt a small clench of her hand, she flinched, eyes shooting open and she looked up at Victor, her breath ragged and shaky as she got up from the stool and cupped his face, being careful with his maimed side. âVic? Victor? Say something⊠please⊠pleaseâ she whispered desperately, desperate to know that he was still⊠himâŠ.
âI-... love⊠youâ the words were barely a whisper and she held her breath before letting it out, ragged and shaky and she couldnât help but laugh, a grin on her lips as she leaned down and kissed him over and over again, her tears coating his face as she kept crying. âMy⊠my face-â
âDonât worry, youâre still handsomeâ she joked and he smirked but winced âdonât think youâve ever called me thatâ he admitted in a raspy voice and she bit her lips together in a line to not laugh or smile too brightly âyeah? Well donât get used to itâ she whispered softly, kissing him again just as she heard glass break from down the hall, her head lifting and she instantly straightened up âcan you walk?â
âYeah-â
âStay with Judith, okay? Just-... stay with Judithâ she ordered softly, kissing him before he could get a chance to respond, or even sit up. She grabbed her knives and instantly ran out, managing to squeeze herself past the gurney, pushing it back into place just as the others were running towards her âwe gotta move!â Daryl yelled and she nodded, shoving the gurney away while he pulled up the shelf, hurrying inside with her as she helped Victor stand up âcan you walk? Can you stand?â
âYeah whatâs-â
âWe have to go⊠NOW!â she stated desperately, quickly putting her knives away, making sure she had her bow, backpack and arrows before helping him to his feet while her uncle, Connie and Kelly pushed the gurney, Daryl in front of it and them and Daisy dragged Victor along with her. âLeave me-â
âIâm not fucking leaving you!â she hissed at him ânow shut up and focus on walking instead of talkingâ she growled angrily, still pulling him with her.
Daryl watched them as she laid on the couch with Victor, Victor laying on his back on the couch with Daisy on top of him, like some kind of blanket. His bandages hadnât even been changed by Tomi, no one dared to suggest it, not with how unpredictable Daisy was at the moment. Even one wrong question could make her think that something was wrong with Victor and she wasnât able to take that. Not right now. Daisy was like a powder keg at the moment⊠one wrong subject⊠THE wrong subject⊠and sheâd go offâŠ
âHow is he?â Carol asked Daryl quietly, Daryl shaking his head, looking down âhavenât asked⊠he donât look too badâŠâ he muttered, looking up at Carol âyou sure it was a walker?â
âYeah⊠Iâm sure. I killed itâŠâ she admitted, tears in her eyes as she looked at Victor and Daisy âshe wonât let anyone check his temperature or his bandagesâ Carol admitted, shaking her head as she looked down âI donât know how sheâll take it when-â she cut herself off, unable to say the words.
âCan I have a word?â Tomi approached, Daryl and Carol instantly tense and worried ââbout Jude?â Daryl asked with worry and Tomi hesitated but shook his head, looking over at Victor and Daisy, both dead asleep, before looking back at Daryl and Carol âis there somewhere we can talk?â he asked quietly and Daryl hesitated, looking towards Judith and Carol smiled âIâll watch over herâ she whispered, Daryl nodding, hesitantly leaving the room with Tomi, standing in an empty hallway. âSo?â Daryl asked and Tomi hesitated before sighing, deciding to just spit it out âyou need to talk to her. You have to convince her to let me assess the damage. From how severe the scratches are from what I can see, I need to assess it. ImmediatelyâŠâ Tomi whispered with desperation, Daryl looking over his shoulder at Daisy, still asleep on top of Victor, his hand resting on her back while the other hung over the side of the couch. Daryl nodded after a while, walking over to Daisy and Victor, gently shaking Daisyâs shoulder, watching her flinch as she woke up, lifting her head from Victorâs chest, eyes half closed, still filled with sleep. âHm?â
âDaisy⊠we gotta talk⊠âbout Victorâ he muttered, Daisy frowning at him before sitting up âheâs fine-â
âNah, he ainât⊠Daisy, Tomi needs to check him-â
âNo-â
âDelilah⊠if you want him to survive, you need to let Tomi do his jobâ Daryl argued softly and carefully, Daisy looking up at him, looking past him at Tomi who was waiting with a sympathetic look on his face and she clenched her jaw, thinking about it before moving off of him, Victor waking up instantly, frowning, jaw clenched in pain âwhat-â
âTomi needs to look at your eyeâ Daisy muttered, helping Victor sit up and he nodded hesitantly, sitting up straight and Tomi took Darylâs place, sitting down on the low coffee table in front of the couch. Tomi reached out and carefully undid the bandages Daisy had hastily slapped on him a few hours ago, putting them aside, his eyes instantly on the left side of Victorâs face, Victorâs head a little low and Tomi inched closer âcan you look at me?â he asked, Victor hesitating before doing as told, Tomi inching a little closer again, carefully inspecting the injury, the pads of his fingers carefully and gently testing around the wound itself, feeling for heat or any unseen damages, all while inspecting the eye, carefully moving to the eyelid that was partially hanging over the damaged eye. âLet me know if it hurts and I have to stopâ Tomi ordered gently, carefully holding Victor by his jaw while the other hand carefully and gently tried to lift up the hanging upper eyelid, his jaw tensing subtly at what he saw, Daisy looking away so she wouldnât see it. Tomi carefully let go of the eyelid, letting it fall back into place, his hand still on Victorâs jaw to hold his head still, Tomi taking note of every wince, every clench of his fists when he examined the eye socket, trying to be as gentle as possible. After a while he sighed softly, carefully letting go of Victor and leaning back a little, hesitating before speaking. He knew Victor could handle it, and technically so could Daisy, but the question was more on how to phrase it so he didnât end up decapitated.
âVictor⊠Iâm not gonna lie to you, the eye is badly damaged⊠I can treat it, but-...â Tomi cut himself off, sighing lightly, looking down with regret before looking back up at Victor âyouâre gonna be fine, but⊠I canât save the eye, Iâm sorryâŠâ he admitted gently. âWhat do you mean you canât-â Victor cut himself off, jaw clenched tightly, breathing heavy and shaky and he looked down, fists clenched and Tomi sighed softly âIâm sorry, VicâŠâ he shook his head a little, unsure of what to say. âWhat now?â Victor asked through gritted teeth, looking up at Tomi and he could see the pure rage that was in Victorâs eyes, the anger, the grief, the regretâŠ
âWell⊠first Iâll need to clean it properly to prevent it from getting infected⊠if we leave the eye like this⊠it could cause sympathetic ophthalmia, meaning that it could cause blindness in your remaining eyeâŠâ Tomi explained softly, Victor hesitating, looking at Daisy, his jaw still clenched in anger but he nodded, making Tomi nod as well. âCome onâ Tomi urged softly, getting up and walking to where most of the medical equipment was, Victor and Daisy walking after him, Tomi placing Victor on a chair, sitting down on another chair after getting his things. âEzekiel, prepare a needle and thread. Disinfect an 11 bladeâ he ordered, leaning a little closer, looking up at Daisy and Daryl âhold him, pleaseâ he asked, Daisy and Daryl exchanging a slightly worried look but they did as told, holding onto Victor, a shoulder each. Tomi then gave Victor some folded and rolled up bundles of cloth, Victor taking it with a pained frown and he sighed âbite down on it, itâll helpâ he stated, Victor letting out a nervous breath before nodding to himself, putting the fabric in his mouth and biting down. âNow, I want you to sit as still as possible for me, alright?â he asked, picking up some clean gauze âalright, this might hurt a bitâ Tomi warned before going in, carefully and gently cleaning the gnarly scratches, somehow able to work fast without being sloppy or too rough, knowing that Victor probably just wanted this to be over with as soon as possible. Once the area was clean, Tomi sighed with a frown âthis is the worst part⊠hold him steady, itâs important that he doesnât move an inchâ he ordered softly and Daisy and Daryl both held Victor more firmly, Daisyâs jaw clenched, set tight and Daryl saw it, saw the way she was barely holding herself together.
âAlright, take a deep breathâ Tomi instructed, Victor doing as told, letting it out slowly and Tomi moved closer, picking up the scalpel, Ezekiel walking over, helping hold Victorâs head. âHelp me with his eyeâ Tomi ordered, Ezekiel using a hand to gently lift the upper eyelid. It couldâve been much worse, it could be torn like the lower eyelid but it wasnât. It had a nasty scratch, but no tear, nothing that would need repairing. The second Ezekiel touched and lifted the upper eyelid, Victor flinched, biting down hard on the cloth between his teeth. Tomi picked up a small flashlight, turning it on and putting it in his mouth to have free hands, carefully inspecting the damaged globe. Thankfully it wasnât as bad as he thought. The globe was detached completely from the torn lower lid. Tomi reached over, carefully steadying his hand against the skin and lids around the eye, spreading it open just a bit more, trying to be as gentle as possible, keeping an eye on the torn lower lid to make sure that it didnât get pulled on. His eyes glanced up at Ezekiel who gave him a brief nod and Tomi nodded in return.Â
He carefully lifted the damaged globe with the tip of his scalpel, being careful not to cut or poke anything. He could feel where the tension was through the scalpel, feel where the resistance was and how much there was. He glanced up at Daisy before looking back at Victor and his eye, the tip of his scalpel slowly cutting a miniature inch of tissue to separate the eye, his free hand steadying the area around the eye, Victorâs fists clenching at his sides, sweat starting to form on his forehead with each cut, each tiny damaged tissue cut to free the damaged globe, the whole process agonizingly slow, Victorâs harsh pants through the cloth in his mouth making Daisy shut her eyes tightly, feeling the sting of tears starting to form, but she still held him. She didnât let go, her grip didnât loosen.
There was a brief moment where Tomiâs scalpel was away from Victorâs eye, merely to move to another spot but suddenly Victorâs hand flew up, gripping Daisyâs left hand, his fingers locked around it, feeling the edge of the rose ring on her finger and she immediately shifted to hold his hand, leaning down to him, her forehead against the side of his head, a normal tear rolling down from the undamaged eye while the other one⊠it was like an uneven welling of fluid⊠gathering at the inner corner of his injured eye before spilling over, a thin line running down his cheek while the other eye was clouded with tears. Daisy looked at Tomi and gave him a nod to continue before shutting her eyes tightly, staying close, letting him clutch her hand to bruises, her forehead against the side of his head, jaw clenched in a desperate attempt not to break down and cry like she so desperately felt like.
Tomi went back to cutting, making tiny controlled cuts where the tissue didnât separate on its own, checking after each small separation. He leaned back and took out the flashlight from his mouth âthis is the bad part. Itâll hurt like hellâ he warned and Victor looked up at Daisy who looked back down at him, her eyes locked with his good one and she nodded, making him look back at Tomi and nod as well, Tomi putting the flashlight back into his mouth, leaning back again. He shifted the globe a little, trying to see where it still resisted, where it stopped, which direction it wouldnât move in. Once heâd done that, he nodded to himself, his steady hand using the scalpel tip as a guide, not a cutter, tracing along the area where the tension was, gently nudging to confirm the exact point, Victorâs teeth biting down so hard on the cloth that Daisy worried he might actually bite through it somehowâŠ
Tomi looked up at Ezekiel, getting a nod in return and Tomi inched closer, somehow able to get an inch closer, steadying the socket area, bracing it and Victorâs heart was racing, chest lifting and falling heavily, Daisy clutching his hand tightly in response, almost as though trying to say âI got youâ.
He placed the scalpel exactly where he wanted it, checking a final time, making sure he was in the right place, Daisy shutting her eyes tightly, unable to look as Tomi made a small deliberate motion, hearing Victor groan in pain through the cloth, clutching her hand so tightly that she knew sheâd have bruises later. Tomi felt the tension give way, Victorâs body shaking a little. Tomi checked behind the now detached eye, making sure the socket stayed stable, that nothing collapsed inward, that it stayed open. He carefully removed the eye, placing it on a clean cloth next to him, Victor letting out a muffled yell of pain, collapsing into Daisy and she caught him, the movement causing Ezekiel to let go of Victorâs head and eyelid, Daisy holding him as he clung to her, panting and sweating from the strain and pain. Tomi had taken the flashlight out of his mouth, quickly checking on a very pale and sweating Victor. âVic? Victor? I need you to look at meâ he urged, Victor lifting his head to look at him and sat up straight again, Tomi immediately using some clean gauze to keep a gentle pressure, keeping the area supported, Victorâs face scrunched up in pain. âI need you to stay with me, Vicâ Tomi instructed, using his free hand to wipe some of the blood and sweat from Victorâs face, a clean cloth in his hand to catch itâŠ
âEzekiel, I need you to hold and keep the pressureâ Tomi ordered, Ezekiel nodding, taking over holding the gauze to keep the socket area stabilized. Tomi cleaned around the outside of the eye before using his fingers to gently and carefully align the torn edges of the lower eyelid, checking to see if the tear would be clean enough to close, nodding to himself after assessing it. He threaded a needle and looked up at Daryl and Daisy âhold him, thisâll hurtâ he admitted, Daisy wrapping an arm around Victor, her forehead still against the side of his head, his grip on her tight, his breath shaky. âAre you ready?â Tomi asked, Victor hesitating before nodding, biting even harder down on the cloth in his mouth and Tomi moved in closer, starting to carefully repair the damage, stitching it with small, shallow stitches along the torn skin, closing the gap, being carefully not to pull too tight, reinforcing the repair and immediately placing a clean gauze over the area.
âKeep him uprightâ Tomi ordered as he leaned away and put down the needle and rest of the thread, Victorâs good eye barely open, his breath shaky, skin pale and sweaty as he leaned against Daisy who held him up. Daryl gave Tomi some bandages, now that he didnât have to hold Victor still, since Daisy was doing that already. Tomi began to bandage the area, being careful not to upset the sensitive and damaged areas any further, tying the bandages and making sure theyâd hold âdonât let him touch the bandages and if the stitches pull, tell meâ Tomi ordered, looking up at Ezekiel âhe needs waterâ he ordered, Ezekiel nodding, giving Daisyâs shoulder a comforting squeeze as he passed her by to get the water, Daisy carefully taking the cloth out of Victorâs mouth now that the worst was over with. Victor was still sweating and shaking a little, his breathing alternating between shallow or heavy breaths, his eye barely open, his head almost hanging if it wasnât for Daisy holding it up. Ezekiel returned with the water and Daisy immediately took it, turning to Victor. âVic⊠Vicâ she whispered softly, Victor forcing his eye open to look at her, a dizzy smile forming on his lips when he looked at her âheyâ he murmured raspily and she sighed softly, trying not to break down crying at the complete lovestruck look in his eyes when he looked at her, âdrink, come onâ she whispered, putting the bottle to his lips after unscrewing the lid, Victorâs eye moved to the bottle before looking back up at her, letting her put the bottle to his lips, helping him drink some of it.
Tomi looked up at Daryl, subtly nodding him away from Daisy and Victor, Daryl frowning, watching Tomi get up and turn to Ezekiel âkeep an eye on himâ he whispered, Ezekiel nodding, sitting down on a chair near Daisy and Victor. Tomi stepped away and Daryl stepped with him, Tomi hesitating and Daryl frowned âwhat?...â he asked, Tomi looking back at Daisy and Victor. âHow long have theyâŠ.?â
âA few years nowâŠâ
âAnd-... have theyâŠ?â
âHave they what?â Daryl asked sharply with brewing annoyance and Tomi sighed and hesitated, thinking before finding the ârightâ words âhave they been intimate-â
âJesusâ Daryl growled in disgust, stepping back and Tomi sighed âIâm only asking because-... Daisy can infect others but not just through scratches or bitesâ Tomi hastily stated in a whisper âwhatâre you talking âbout-â
âDaryl, if sheâs been intimate with him, if sheâs done-... more than a quick peck on the lips-â Tomi stopped himself, stepping closer to Daryl âDaryl⊠he should be infectedâ Tomi whispered, Daryl frowning with utter confusion âwhat? He ainât been bit or scratched âtill now-â
âExactly! But if heâs been intimate with her, he should have a fever, he should show every single symptom of the infection even if it was days agoâŠâ
âBut he ainâtâŠâ
âExactlyâ Tomi stated with a grin, realisation dawning on Daryl, his heart starting to race and he looked over at Victor and Daisy, their hands interlocked tightly but Daisy was practically vibrating with fury, with utter rage and spite, her jaw clenched tightly in an attempt to control herself.
âSo⊠youâre saying⊠Vicâs like⊠her?â Daryl asked quietly, just to be sure he understood and Tomi nodded âalways asymptomatic even when the dormant virus is triggered and activated, yesâ Tomi admitted, a smile on his lips âdo you understand what Iâm saying? For these two people to meet, itâs-... The odds that two such people meet are about 0.04 to 0.09%... itâs roughly 1 in 2,500 to 1 in 1,000⊠if that doesnât make you believe in fate,â Tomi stated, looking towards Daisy and Victor âI donât know what willâ he muttered with a faint smile. Daryl looked back at Daisy, his gaze softening as he looked at her and Victor. It was obvious that she wanted nothing more than to skin Pamela alive right now, and yet she stayed with Victor, holding his hand, her thumb gently skimming over his knuckles which she probably wasnât even aware of⊠he was proud of her⊠proud that she stayed by Victorâs side instead of going off to get revenge, proof that sheâd made it this far, that sheâd become the woman she was now, capable and loyal. Sure, maybe slightly psychotic, depending on who you ask. Certainly volatile. But loyal, fair, capable, competent and compassionate, despite what she might think.
Being woken in the middle of the night was never fun. Being woken in the middle of the night and dragged outside where it was snowing was even worse. But being dragged outside at night in the snow and seeing Negan standing in front of the windmill that was splattered with old dry blood and bullet holes was even worse, her eyes widening, heart racing and actual tears formed in her eyes, every word the Warden said like muffled whispers to her, her eyes locked on Negan and he looked at her, blood around his mouth that was without a doubt from some kind of beating, a small content accepting smirk on his lips as he mouthed âitâs okayâ to her.
Suddenly Annie tried to run for him, guards catching her, Negan trying to calm her, shushing her, telling her it was okay while she sobbed and he was forced to his knees. Her entire body was shaking, her eyes wide, tears trailing down her cheeks from never-ending pools in her eyes, no matter how many tears rolled down her cheeks, her vision was still blurry, her body still shaking with shock and angerâŠ
As soldiers began to line up in front of him she couldnât help but let out a whimper, her lower lip trembling and all that rage, all that anger she felt, it was like it was syphoned, shelved for another time so all she could feel this moment was utter horror⊠until suddenly the Warden grabbed Annie instead, hauling her over to Negan, forcing her to her knees next to him and Daisy began to struggle against the two soldiers holding her by her arms. As Ezekiel stepped forward, she felt their hold loosen a little and she used it, turning enough so she could kick one guard between the legs and she used the other guardâs hold on her to pull him forward, getting free from both, grabbing the one she hadnât kicked to bite between his armor and helmet, making sure she tasted blood before letting go, running to stand in front of Annie, her eyes scanning the soldiers until she saw Miles⊠his rifle aimed at her, eyes wide and hands shaking and she let out a shaky breath that could be seen in the cold âyou kill him, you kill her and her baby, and you kill meâ she stated while she looked straight at him, tears staining her cheeks, a trail of blood running down the corner of her mouth as others moved to stand with them, Daisy standing right in front of Annie and she looked over her shoulder, smiling down at her and then looking at Negan who looked up at her, tears in his eyes while Ezekiel talked and Negan gave her a subtle nod of thanks, Daisy giving him a soft smile, looking ahead as the soldiers raised their rifles again, Ezekiel still talking and she closed her eyes. If this was it, she was okay with that. Enough people were between those soldiers and Annie, maybe Negan too. Sheâd be okay with that⊠she actually smiled when a shot rang out but when she felt nothing she opened her eyes, just in time for the Warden to grab her, a gun to her head as he backed up and the first one to aim their rifle at him were Miles, tears in his eyes, hands shaking as Miles stepped closer âlet her goâ he ordered, voice a little shaky, the Warden still backing up with her until suddenly they both stopped, the Warden going stiff as the sound of a knife cutting something was heard and he dropped to the ground barely half a second after, releasing his hold on Daisy and she spun around quickly to see-
She barely hesitated before throwing herself at him, eyes wide in shock and she was shaking again. Not from cold, not from fear, not from anger. Relief. Pure and utter relief as she clung to him, Kelly hugging her sister but Daisy still clung to him, tears running down her cheeks freely and she couldnât help the sob she let out into his shoulder, feeling his arms tightening around her ââm here, itâs okay, âm hereâ he whispered gruffly and she leaned back to look up at him, his hands cupping her face, pushing her hair out of her face to see her better âtold you, âm always gonna find yaâ Daryl muttered and she threw herself at him again, clinging to him even tighter than before as another sob tore through her. And another. And another and pretty soon she was sobbing as he held her, his hand smoothing down her hair softly and soothingly. ââm always gonna find ya, aâight? Alwaysâ Daryl muttered to her âyou didnât forget that, did ya?â he asked half-jokingly and she shook her head âyou took your damn timeâ she whimpered and he nodded, holding her closer âI know.. had to pick up someone along the wayâ he muttered and Daisy leaned back and let go of him as he stepped back from her, revealing the person behind him that she hadnât seen and her knees nearly buckled. She wasnât sure what kind of sound she let out, something between a mix of a gasp of relief and a cry, whatever it was it rung out in the cold air as Victor ran to her so fast that he almost barrelled into her, picking her up in the process, her feet leaving the ground as she hugged him, her eyes shut tightly as she clung to him until he put her down. The second he did, she leaned back, grabbed him by his jacket collar and pulled him down into a kiss, her lips desperate against his and he eagerly kissed her back with just as much desperation, Daryl wincing slightly at the sight of his niece, whom he raised as his own daughter, basically making out with someone in front of him.
She leaned back once the need for air became too much, panting for breath as she cupped his face, kissing his lips over and over and over again in a thousand brief kisses before hugging him tightly again, Victor kissing the side of her head before hugging her back just as tightly.
She felt someone poke her shoulder and when she turned she saw Connie, giving her a soft smile. âWhat? Iâm invisible now?â she signed and Daisy let out a brief laugh through her tears, pulling Connie into a tight hug that she eagerly returned, Daisy parting from her to look at Victor, wrapping her arms around him again, this time softer but just as tight and desperate as before. She took a deep breath and everything in her began to relax, she never knew she liked the smell of sweat and dirt so much, not until she smelled it on him, not until this moment right here. Everything else seemed to narrow in to just right now, the feeling of him against her, his warmth, that god-awful smell not even a dozen showers could wash out, the way his arms felt around her, how safe she felt in them⊠All of it was cut short by Rosita as she screamed at Negan, Daisy opening her eyes, turning to see Negan about to crush the Wardenâs head with a rock, Rosita stopping him, beginning to question the Warden, trying to find Cocoâs location and Daisy frowned, looking at her uncle âthe kids??...â
âWe thought theyâd be hereâ he admitted quietly and Daisyâs eyes teared up, her heart starting to race again and she looked up at Victor who shook his head, cupping her face âweâll find them. You know we willâ he whispered, kissing her forehead before holding her close against him, both of them oblivious to the teary-eyed gaze that Miles was giving their whole interaction. Rosita walked over to Daisy, grabbing her by her hand and pulling her closer to the Warden who was bleeding on the ground âbite him!â she ordered desperately and Daisy looked at her, studying her before looking past her at the shot guard who was now a walker, getting up and her face hardened. She walked over, grabbing the walker and Rosita moved out of the way, Daisy kneeling down with the snapping walker, hovering just above the Wardenâs face âtalk!â she ordered, teeth gritted as he just smiled, his eyes moving to Rosita âyou will lose everythingâ he stated casually, a smirk on his lips and Daisy looked up at Rosita, the anger and horror on her face, and she looked back at the Warden, shoving the walker down onto him, the walker immediately going for his eye, chewing and tearing on it, the Warden screaming out in pain while Daisy just stood up and backed up a bit, her eyes meeting Milesâ, his eyes wide in shock and she narrowed her eyes at him, as though asking him why he was so shocked but she didnât say anything, instead she turned and walked back to Victor and her uncle, a look of rage on her face âPamela is going to sufferâ she stated firmly, looking over her shoulder at the Warden as he was still screaming, a spiteful look on her face as she looked at Rosita, their eyes locking âweâll find Coco, weâll get everyone, and weâll make her payâ she stated more softly but nevertheless firmly, looking up at Victor, taking his hand âall of us are going to make her payâ she stated under her breath as she looked over at Negan and Annie before leaving, walking off, Victor looking around before following after her as she headed for where she knew theyâd kept their weapons.
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Daisy was quiet as she packed, her heart racing since she first woke up, every thought stuck on⊠well⊠everything, really. Everything from the way the children were taken, from how she was tied up, from how everyone was treated⊠She was so lost in her own head that she flinched when someone touched her hips, ready to throw her elbow up but whoever it was caught it, making her turn to see Victor, a soft smile on his lips as she turned to face him fully âIâve asked you not to do thatâ she muttered with what could be mistaken as annoyance, Victor shrugging lightly, his hands returning to her hips âitâd be worth it⊠So, have you figured out the ring yet?â he asked with a smirk and she frowned at him, making his smirk grow. He picked up the hand with her ring, glancing up at her with mischief before looking down at her ring, placing a finger on top of the rose. âYou push down here,â he began, pushing down on the rose and she frowned as he carefully pulled it off, revealing a sharp tiny knifeâs tip hidden under the rose. Not big enough to do serious damage but certainly enough to cut through something like rope or maybe even zip ties, if one had the patience for it. âVoilĂ â he stated, his smirk showing off those dimples she loved and she couldnât help but smirk a bit as she watched while he put the rose top back over the tiny blade, pressing down and she heard the faintest *click* as it was stuck on top again, once again seeming like an innocent ring and she couldnât help but laugh a bit, looking up at him with obvious joy, and amusement. She sighed softly, leaning up and kissing him gently before leaning back down âthank youâ she stated softly, Victor smiling softly at her âyou didnât wake meâ he stated calmly and her smile fell a bit and she turned around to continue packing âthatâs because youâre stayingâ she stated casually in a light tone, her heart starting to race even more when she heard him sigh and sit on the bed theyâd shared for the night âthatâs not your decision to makeâ he stated after a while and she halted, hesitating before turning around to face him âyouâre staying. I canât-â she cut herself off, looking off to the side, closing her eyes briefly before looking back at him âI canât do what I need to do when youâre there⊠I canât-... be who I need to be with you thereâ she admitted sharply, Victor frowning at her âand who would that be?â he asked, Daisy hesitating, a few tears forming in her eyes but she tried to blink them away, looking away from him âyou said you saw the good in me⊠I donât want to-â
âTo what? âTaintâ it? Daisy, nothing youâre going to do or say will scare me offâ he stated, standing up again, approaching her âIâm coming with you. You canât stop me and besides, I know you want me there with you!â
âI donât!â
âYes, you do-â
âVictor, aside from my familyâs kids, you are the only pure thing in my life⊠but I would kill for these kids. I would happily torture people if it meant getting Coco back!... And-... I canât⊠hurt people to get to know what I need to know, to get to where I need to be, with you there, and I might have toâ she snapped and he sighed, cupping her face in his hands and she moved her face out of his grip but he insisted, making sure she was looking up at him âthey took the kids. They have them, okay? You really think Iâm just going to let that go? I love you. I love you, okay? And youâre not going to push me away⊠I wonât let youâ he stated firmly and she looked up at him with a frown, tears starting to build back up in her eyes âyou canât-â
âI can. You say you might need to torture someone but I know you⊠youâre a good person and maybe once that wouldnât have been enough but it is for meâ he stated more softly âI love you, Delilah, I love you more than I could ever hope to tell you! You think that seeing you love someone so much that youâre willing to do anything to get them back is a problem for me? Fuck no! One of the many things I love about you is that exact thing! So Iâm going with you, you canât stop me and I know you wonât, even if you say you willâ he stated, kissing her before letting go of her âIâll see you out by the busâ he stated, moving to pack his own things, Daisy watching him with tears in her eyes, her heart racing, breath ragged and she hesitated before walking over to him, turning him around and the second he faced her, she leaned up and kissed him, hard, her arms wrapping around him to hold him close as he eagerly kissed her back. At some point her back landed on the bed with Victor hovering over her, his lips still locked with hers and his hand touched her thigh, she almost waited for the repulsed feeling she usually got but⊠nothing⊠Victor quickly drew back, removing his hand âshit, sorry, I-â she cut him off by pulling him back down into the kiss with one hand and placed his other hand back on her thigh, heat stirring in her, setting every nerve alight with a spreading wildfire, her skin tingling and she felt desperate in a way she never had before⊠It was like a yearning, like a hunger⊠She was hungry for his lips, hungry for the way his hand felt on her thigh, hungry for the way he seemed to be starving for her as well⊠Sheâd never felt like this before⊠It was exhilarating, her heart racing and soon she felt his lips move down to her neck, her eyes closing in bliss, her breath ragged and heavy, his lips reaching her collarbone, his hand moving up to her shirt-
âDaisy, you ready- OH COME ON!â Daryl groaned loudly, backing up and shielding his eyes, Daisy and Victor both jumping apart like two cats whoâd spotted a cucumber, her eyes wide as she scrambled to stand up âuncle Daryl?!â
âYou decent??â
âYeahâ Daisy sputtered out and Daryl removed his hand and walked back into the room, glaring daggers at Victor âthe hell?! What the hell do you think youâre doinâ?!â he yelled and Daisy sighed, her cheeks beet red âcalm down, uncle Daryl-â
âNahâ Daryl began, Daisy sighing heavily, turning to a mortified Victor âIâll see you outsideâ she stated casually, grabbing her bag and weapons and moving towards the door, trying to push her uncle out with her âuncle Daryl, come on-â
âYou ân I, weâre gonna talkâ Daryl growled as he pointed at Victor while being dragged out by Daisy, Daisy not letting go of him until they were outside the house, watching him pace a bit after she let go. âUncle Daryl-â
âWhat the hell are you thinkinâ?â
âIâm thinking that I love him, he loves me, Iâm marrying him and that for once in YEARS I donât hate my own skinâ she hissed, shaking her head at him with a frown âI love him⊠you have to accept that. I love him. Iâm marrying him. Heâs going to be around for a whileâ she stated with bitter amusement at her last comment before walking off the porch and towards the bus, passing by Maggie.Â
âHey pie-â Maggie stopped as Daisy just stormed past her, Maggie frowning, approaching a still agitated Daryl âwhatâd you do?â
âWhat? Whyâd you think it was me?â
âWhatâd you say?â
âNothinâ! I caught Vic trying to-â he couldnât even finish the sentence, shaking his head and Maggie scoffed âyou do know that sheâs 21, right?â
âDonât remind meâ he muttered under his breath, still pacing a little and Maggie chuckled, smiling at him, making him stop pacing and frown at her âwhat? Whatchu smilinâ for?â he asked and Maggie shrugged âyou love her. You raised her. Youâre her dad in every single way that counts, but youâve got to let her grow up⊠sheâs not a kid anymore. She loves Victor, and she wouldnât just fall for anybody, you taught her better than thatâ Maggie pointed out âlet her grow up, let her be who she is. Sheâll always be your little girl, thatâll never change, but that doesnât mean that sheâs still a kid. Sheâs an adult, as much as it pains us both to admit itâ she stated the last part with amusement, Daryl looking down, letting out a gruff sound to convey his dislike for the whole notion of Daisy being grown up and doing⊠grown thingsâŠ.
âCome on, letâs get ready, Vic ainât gonna come outta the house with you guarding the door like a bloodhoundâ she teased, leading him away from the door and true enough, barely half a minute passed before Victor emerged like a skittish little ferret.
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Daisyâs entire world stopped the second Judith fell to the floor, her feet already moving as she sprinted towards her uncle, Maggie and an unconscious Judith, tears covering her vision as she fell to her knees âJudith?? Jude?? Come on, sweetie. Open those eyes, come onâ Daisy pleaded, tears starting to roll down her cheeks, her uncle shouting something and she raised her head, looking up to see who had pulled the trigger and her jaw clenched, tears still clouding her vision as she felt her entire body shake. Her heart racing furiously, beating like a war drum in her chest as she stood up and aimed her rifle, squeezing the trigger, three of Pamelaâs men dropping dead when suddenly someone grabbed her, dragging her back while she still fired the rifle, trying to hit whoever, screaming and yelling and struggling, someone eventually taking the rifle from her as she was pressed up against a tiled wall, her eyes finally looking at whoever had dragged her, seeing Victor close in front of her, hiding behind the cover with her, her eyes moving to Judith as Daryl shot something red that Ezekiel had thrown, the entire room suddenly engulfed in some kind of misty powder, obscuring everything except what was directly in front of you.
âDelilah-!â
âIâm okay! Judith?â
âLetâs get her the hell outta here!â he shouted and Daisy nodded, trying to take a deep breath but the smoke, or whatever it was, caught in her lungs, making her cough and Victor put his gun away, grabbing her arm as he pulled her towards the sounds of the others, the two of them soon making it outside, Victor immediately pulling Daisy aside, both of them coughing and Daisy looked up, spotting Eugene. âEugene?!â
âMiss Delilah, what an unexpected convergence of paths. I admit that I wasnât sure if weâd ever meet again but-â he was cut off as she threw herself at him, hugging him tightly, shutting her eyes so tightly that a few tears actually ran down her cheeks, but before he could hug her back after coming out of his âstunned possumâ like stance, sheâd already backed off, hurriedly following after her uncle who was carrying Judith, Victor patting Eugene on the shoulder âshe missed youâ he stated with a smirk that showed off those wonderful dimples before following after Daisy and the others.
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Daisy flinched when she felt hands touch her shoulder, her hand gripping her knife even harder as she was pulled away, spinning around to see whoâd pulled her, seeing Victor as he smiled at her, those dimples showing âgot a bit too closeâ he stated as his reason after killing the walker sheâd been trying to get at, her heart jumping with relief and she smiled briefly before turning around, following after the others and her uncle, instantly running towards Carol to help clear a path to the alley so her uncle and Judith could pass through, Victor instantly joining her, using both gun and knife and the second her uncle slipped through, she felt someone push her after him, turning around to see Victor âgo!! We got this!â he shouted and she hesitated, tears in her eyes but he gave her that smile, that smile that showed off his dimples that he knew she loved and she nodded, throat dry as she ran after her uncle and Judith, quickly catching up with them.
Sheâd always been faster.
Sheâd always been faster and he would be okay. Judith would be okay.
Everything would be okayâŠ
Heâd be okay. It wasnât the end of the world⊠sheâd see him again and heâd tell her to stop worrying, that he had it under controlâŠ
It wasnât the end of the world, and everything would be okay.
(Warnings: angst, captivity vibes, Daisy being terrifyingly smart, softâboy guard energy(who does not deserve Daisy making him believe she likes him, I will admit that), a sprinkle of manipulation, a dash of needle anxiety, and a whole lot of tension. Sorry lovelies, this oneâs a ride<3)
Daisy glared at the guard as he approached her with a metal plate of something that looked like baby vomit, kneeling down. âHere,â he stated, putting the food on the ground next to her before reaching over, pulling her gag out of her mouth and she wished more than anything that she could bite him, if it wasnât for those damn armored gloves that came with that stupid Commonwealth armor, âeatâ he ordered, picking the plate back up and offering it to her tied hands, her eyes studying it, her mind racing and she looked up at him, intentionally softening her gaze even though she wanted nothing more than to spit in his face. âThanksâ she muttered, her voice quiet and low and she reached for the plate with her tied hands, intentionally awkwardly struggling with it and the spoon and he frowned at her, looking around before sighing, pulling the plate and spoon away. âCome onâ he muttered, helping her move to sit with her legs crossed instead of pulled up against her chest, placing the plate on the ground so she could use her tied hands to hold the spoon instead of balancing both. Daisy smiled softly at him âthanksâŠâ she muttered again, taking the spoon with one hand, the other tied hand forced to follow and she leaned down, eating a spoonful of the baby vomit.
She ate quietly until the guy frowned at her âso⊠whatâd you do?â
âHm?â she looked up at him, eyes intentionally big and curious and she saw the way he eased up a little âyouâre designated ED⊠category fiveâŠâ
âI-... donât know what that meansâ she admitted softly, continuing to eat as the guard studied her âED means âExtremely Dangerousâ...â he stated and she halted, spoon halfway to her mouth and she couldnât help but smirk in slight amusement, thankful that he couldnât see it with her head lowered to the spoon and she continued eating, forcing the smirk off her lips before looking up at him with innocent eyes again âand⊠the category?â she asked softly, innocently, sweetly even.
She hated every bit of it.
âCatagory five means extremely dangerous and lethal, it means theyâre to be kept under guard 24/7...â the guard revealed and she looked off to the side, as though considering it before looking back at him âand.. the others? Are there other categories?â she asked innocently and he shrugged, getting more comfortable, still kneeling while she was sitting on the ground. âYeah, thereâs the other four categories and then thereâs category sixâ he admitted casually, his casual tone and relaxing stance making her heart race a little, a small feeling of victory bubbling in her chest at this. âSo⊠what is category six?â she asked innocently, continuing to eat the baby vomit food as though it was regular oatmeal. âWell, itâs for those who are extremely dangerous and too dangerous to be kept aliveâ he stated and she nodded innocently. Of course she was happy that she wasnât sent straight to execution but she couldnât help but be a bit bitter. She was only a five?? Seriously?? She wanted to huff and scoff to display her annoyance but she refrained from doing it.
She finished her food timidly, looking up at him, a soft almost shy look on her face as she caught his gaze before intentionally avoiding it âwhatâs gonna happen to me?â she asked softly, looking towards the others on their food break âwhy am I not cleaning up with them?â
âSomeone in sorting screwed up,â the soldier stated with a shrug âyouâre supposed to be designation twoâ he added casually and she nodded âso⊠what does that mean?â she asked innocently, looking back up at him âdesignation two?â she clarified, the soldier opening his mouth to respond when the other guard approached âMiles! What the fuck do you think youâre doing?â he snapped and the second the guard sheâd been talking with, Miles, stood up and looked away from her, her sweet soft look was gone, replaced by a glare and ice cold fury as she looked up at the other guard that had approached.
âI was just-â
âJesus fucking Christ, Miles. Sheâs designated ED and on top of that sheâs category five and youâre chatting with her? Seriously?!â
âI-... I was just-â
âGo walk the perimeter, you fucking idiotâ he ordered, Miles glancing at Daisy briefly before nodding âyes, sirâ he muttered, walking off and Daisy leaned back against the wall behind her, any hint of softness gone as she tilted her head at the guard whoâd interrupted her conversation with Miles.Â
The guard went to put his rifle aside, before kneeling down in front of her, putting the gag from around her neck and into her mouth again, her eyes ice cold as she looked up at him, making him glare at her âdonât fucking look at meâ he hissed before grabbing the plate empty and spoon, her eyes still on him and he tensed up even more âI said; donât fucking look at me!â he snapped before storming off with the empty plate and used spoon, her eyes moving to the rifle heâd left behind, her back straightening a little against the wall, taking in every detail of it, the knife attached the front, the magazine, the barrel, her eyes moving along the sharp edge of the knife but she looked ahead instead, her eyes moving down to her tied wrists before she took a heavy and deep breath, holding it before letting it out slowly, trying to calm herself down.
Victor was fine. He was okay. She knew he was okay, he had to be.
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âAlright, time to move. Get herâ one of the guards ordered, Miles hesitating before getting out a prepared syringe, approaching Daisy and she visibly tensed up, the needle coming closer and closer and she scrambled to get away, tears forming in her eyes and when he kneeled down to inject her she tried to speak, the gag muffling her and Miles pulled the gag out, Daisyâs heart racing âplease. Please donât. I wonât be any trouble⊠please⊠I-.. I donât like needlesâŠâ she whispered pleadingly, eyeing the needle nervously and Miles looked over his shoulder at the others as they were being forced onto the bus, sighing before looking back at her âI have to-â
âI-Iâll be really quiet! Pleaseâ she begged, breath shaky and uneven until she saw him point the needle at the ground and empty it into the dirt âtheyâll checkâ he whispered, looking back at her âjust-... act like I injected youâ he ordered in a whisper and she nodded desperately, letting him put the gag back in her mouth and she tried to force her body as pliant and limp as possible as he pulled her up, hoping and praying that it was believable. She kept her head hanging, letting Miles set the pace, putting her weight into her stumbling steps, keeping her eyes half-shut as though in a daze, trying to mimic what sheâd felt when the sedation earlier had begun to wear off. They stopped right at the back of the bus, one of the guards looking Daisy over, taking in her demeanor before nodding, Miles âhelpingâ her onto the bus, putting her down in a free seat right by the back door. Before he could leave, she held onto his gloves hand with her tied ones, looking up at him, eyes no longer half-closed, her eyes locked with his as she tried her best to convey a kind of thank you and he studied her before nodding, making her nod subtly in return before letting go, forcing her eyes half-shut again to appear drowsy and he left, closing the back entrance to the bus. The second the bus was moving, her eyes opened fully instead of being half-shut, her head held up instead of laying against the headrest of the bus seat and she looked around, seeing Ezekiel and Kelly closest and she couldnât help but let out a shaky breath of relief when she saw them, brows furrowing, tears clouding her eyes and he gave her a sad smile âfancy seeing you hereâ he whispered and she let out a very brief huff of a laugh against the gag, a tear running down her cheek in relief at his humor. At least he wasnât hurt too bad if he could still joke like that.
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Daisy felt her heart race when she saw him enter the office, the door swinging open and her eyes widened a little, the gag in her mouth felt like it was choking her as she watched him be put in a chair across from the Warden, where sheâd sat barely half a day ago. The second Neganâs eyes landed on her in the corner, her still zip-tied hands and silver rose ring, the red marks from around her wrists, the rope around her neck tied to the radiator in the corner, barely allowing her to stand without being pulled down, his blood began to boil.
âSee that? Thatâs an ED-5 right thereâ the Warden stated with a smirk, turning to look at Daisy, tilting his head at her âdonât get many of thoseâ he muttered to himself before looking back at Negan with that same smirk, Negan regaining his composure, looking back at the Warden, trying to hide his seething anger âan ED-5? Mind telling me what that is?â he asked casually and the Warden smirked, a small silence stretching between them before he turned to face Negan fully âED-5⊠âExtremely Dangerousâ. Sheâs a Category 5⊠Iâve only heard about them. The highest Iâve met is a 4â he admitted, looking back at Daisy like a hunter looking at his proudest kill displayed âitâs a mouthy thing too. Had to gag it to get five seconds of peaceâ the joked with a laugh, looking back at Negan âbut, I didnât get you here just to show you my ED-5. Sit, prisonerâ he ordered, his eyes returning to the open file he had in his hands since Negan first walked in, Negan being forced into the chair roughly âalright. Jesusâ he muttered annoyed, his eyes lingering on Daisy. He could see the way she was almost⊠vibrating with fury⊠her eyes piercing sharp and he looked down to hide his smirk. Sheâd come a long way from the Sanctuary⊠That Daisy wouldâve been scared, but this one? Who she was now? There wasnât an ounce of fear in her, only pure, unfiltered wrath waiting to be unleashed. As the soldier whoâd brought him moved to leave, the Warden spoke up â197âŠâ
âSir?â
âYour transferâs been deniedâ the Wardenâs words seemed to take the soldier by shock, he hesitated before finding his words âsir, my brotherâs been very sick, I⊠I donât know how long he has-â
âThen you shouldâve told me directly instead of going around to ask for a transferâ the Warden stated coldly, Daisyâs hands curling around each other in anger, Negan could see how it was almost about to bubble over⊠Sheâd probably have torn the rope around her neck and beaten the Warden to death with his own chair if she thought she could get away with it.
âYour duty here has been extended six months. Dismissedâ a silence filled the room as the soldier hesitated, glancing at Daisy and she could see the way his eyes flitted to the rope around her neck, but he stepped back and left anyway. Slowly the Warden got up from his chair, eyes on Negan before he moved around his desk, stepping closer to Daisy, lifting his hand, a finger almost brushing a loose strand of her hair out of her face but she yanked her head away from him, making him smirk with amusement before he continued around the desk to sit on it in front of Negan, showing him a piece of cloth with a line before throwing it into Neganâs lap. âThat was found a few hours after you tussled with my guardsâ he stated casually, Negan opening the cloth to look at it barely half a second âokay. Coolâ he stated casually, looking back up at the Warden but his eyes glanced at Daisy for barely a brief second before moving back to the man in front of him.
âWhat is it?â
âI donât know. A poor manâs tic-tac-toe?â Negan answered with a chuckle âlook, man, I donât know what it isâ Negan added casually, the Warden looking over his shoulder at Daisy before leaning closer to Negan âsomeone is keeping track of my guards, when they come and go, how many are on shift at any timeâŠâ
âWhatâs that got to do with me?â Negan asked casually and with slight amusement and Daisy narrowed her eyes a little at him, the Warden sighing and looking off to the side in frustration, barely a brief second but it was long enough for Negan to look at Daisy, giving her a subtle wink before looking back at the Warden when he looked back at him. âWhen you first came here, I thought maybe you were a leader. But now I see that you have⊠other priorities. Real leaders separates. They cleave themselves off from everyone else, because the thing that real leaders do? Most people just donât have the stomach for itâ the Warden stated casually, his tone letting everyone know that he included himself as a âreal leaderâ. Daisy scoffed quietly, muffled by the gag, and rolled her eyes at him. âBut the ones that do?â The Warden continued âtheyâre the real threatsâ at the mention of âthreatsâ, Neganâs eyes glanced at Daisy behind the Warden, Daisy catching his gaze, raising a single eyebrow at him which made him look down to hide his smirk of amusement. âThereâs a threat in my midst, and I believe itâs one of your peopleâ the Warden stated confidently but Negan just smirked a bit at him âmy people?â he asked with amused confusion before chuckling, looking down at the cloth still in his hands âlook, other than my wife, all those people, they hate my guts. So, I donât know anythingâ Negan stated casually, the Warden leaning closer to him âbut I bet you can find outâ he stated in a lowered voice and Negan looked past him at Daisy as he lifted the cloth rag with a straight line, taking her in, the red and sore skin that were so bruised it was almost torn around her neck and wrists, the plastic of the zip ties digging into her skin, tearing with each movement and he looked back at the Warden âbet I canâtâ he stated in a lowered voice, just like the Warden, who looked at the cloth as he took it before looking back at Negan, shaking his head a little ânot really an optionâ he decided as he got up to return to his seat behind the desk, thankfully ignoring Daisy as he walked by.
âUnless youâd rather not see that pregnant wife of yoursâ Daisy tensed up at the Wardenâs words, at his threat, her eyes meeting Neganâs and he could see the uneasy feeling in her eyes, the unsure feeling. He knew sheâd never let anything happen to Annie. She was pregnant, she had done no wrong to anyone, she was a good person, Daisy wouldnât let that die out.
âThink about itâ the Warden stated casually, throwing his feet up on the desk calmly, letting Negan know that it wasnât a âthink about itâ situation, it was a âdo it or elseâ situation. Negan glanced at Daisy and she could see the faint restraint in his eyes, the restraint that was about to snap at the mention of his pregnant wife and she glanced at the open door and then back at him, silently telling him to leave and Negan nodded a little to himself as he got up, looking at the Warden before leaving to see Annie.
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Daisy was quiet as she watched the others work, her hands locked around a post behind her back as she sat on a crate, the gag still in her mouth, her head resting against the pole behind her, her eyes scanning the people working on the train tracks. She felt like her wrists were on fire, the zip ties too tight against the pull of the pole between her hands and her back. She heard some dry leaves crunch, branches snapping as footsteps approached and she turned, seeing the same guard from before, Miles. She instantly softened her look, looking up at him as he arrived with a cup of water. He seemed⊠shy⊠nervous almost. âAre you thirsty?â he asked softly and Daisy waited a second or two before nodding weakly, looking up at him with pleading eyes and he nodded âhold onâ he muttered, walking closer, putting the water down on the ground before kneeling in front of her, carefully taking the gag out of her mouth, his touch far more gentle than anyone elseâs and she let out a small sigh of relief as it hung around her neck instead of tied in her mouth âthank youâ she muttered quietly, Miles nodding with a faint smile before remembering the water, picking up the cup and carefully putting it to her lips, helping her drink, her eyes locked on him while he focused on not accidentally spilling the water, making her intentionally pull her head back as though she was done, making him spill some water over her and he quickly drew back âshit! Iâm sorry!â he muttered, putting the cup down on the ground before looking around, his eyes landing on the gag thatâd been around her mouth and without thinking he untied it around her neck and used it to wipe the water from her chest and wet shirt âIâm sorry-â
âItâs okayâ Daisy stated in a soft voice, Miles looking at her, realizing how close he was to her, making him nervously clear his throat and pull back, standing up âI-I should-â
âWhatâs a âcategory fiveâ?â she asked quickly to stop him from leaving, her expression soft and pleading as she looked up at him and he hesitated before looking around, making sure no one was looking before pulling up another crate with equipment to sit next to her, but still at a distance âi-itâs something we categorize everyone inâ he stated awkwardly at first, as though unsure if he should even tell her to begin with. âWhat do you mean âeveryoneâ?â she asked softly and he seemed to ease up âthe prisoners. Like the ones you arrived with and like-â he stopped himself, Daisy forcing a sad look on her face as she looked down âlike meâ she finished for him, quiet, soft, her hands closing in fists behind her back, straining subtly against the zip ties to make the bruises on her wrists worse and when he seemed to be about to say something, she visibly winced, hissing, relaxing her hands and arms when he looked back at her âw-what is it?â
âMy wrists⊠they really hurtâ she admitted weakly, a painful look on her face and he frowned, hesitantly looking behind her to her hands, seeing the red and purple marks popping violently against her skin. âI-Iâm sorry, I-â
âCan you loosen them? Please? Just a little bit??â
âI-â he hesitated, looking back at her, already shaking his head and she shook her head and looked down âitâs okay, it was stupid to ask, I know you canât⊠Iâm sorryâ she muttered meekly. âI-I canât loosen them, Iâm sorry, but-â he sighed and looked around before edging a little closer âI-I might have something?..â he whispered, making her look at him, eyes wide, a confused look on her face, trying her hardest to look like a very confused deer and he smiled at her âI have some chocolateâ he whispered with a grin and for a brief moment, just a brief one, she saw the dimpled smile of Victor⊠if playing little girlfriend to this guard was what it took to see him again, then sheâd do it. So, she smiled innocently before shaking her head and looking down âno you donât, donât joke about thatâ she stated softly and he shook his head and edged closer âno, really, I do!â he whispered and she looked back at him. It HAD been a while since sheâd tasted chocolateâŠ
âYou really have some?? But-... w-why would you share it with me?â she asked softly and he frowned âI-... I-I donât know what you did to become ED-5 but-... chocolate wonât hurt, right?â he asked weakly, as though trying to convince himself as much as her and she gave him a soft warm smile that felt wrong to give him, but she did it anyway, sheâd be his best fucking friend if it got her somewhere useful, and right now anywhere was more useful than where she was now. âYouâd really do that for me?â she asked quietly and he nodded without hesitation, making her grin âI havenât tasted chocolate beforeâŠâ she half-lied. Sheâd tried it once. Years and years agoâŠ
âReally?â
âYeahâ she confirmed and nodded, Miles smiled âI-I can bring it with me tomorrow! I-I can volunteer for your sector as your guard and I can give it to you thereâ he stated with a smile and she smiled right back, pushing down every instinct to throw her face into his and just smile prettily instead.
Time slipped by without Miles noticing. He kept talking in a low voice, explaining little things about the camp, the categories, the shifts, the weather, anything that let him stay beside her a little longer. While for Daisy, time couldnât have passed closer even if it tried⊠she nodded and hummed in the right places, letting him fill the silence, letting him feel useful and feel like she cared about what his childhood cat did when it was 3-something years old and the neighbor got a new dog. Like she cared about that time he tried skateboarding, him growing up in the Commontwealth, safe behind its walls, never hungry a day in his life.
âSo Mr. Fuzzy actually jumped up on the old shelf with my grandmaâs painting and almost knocked-â
âWhat. The fuck. Are you doing?!â a voice snapped, Miles flinching, turning to see one of the other guards approaching, noting that Daisy didnât even have a gag around her neck, itâd been taken completely off and he looked at Miles âyou take off the gag?!â
âShe was thirsty! It was safer- s-she wouldâve choked if I hadnât!â
âDamnit Miles! Sheâs ED-5!â the guard hissed in a whisper, looking around before pointing at Daisy who kept her eyes wide and a shocked look on her face âget that thing back in her mouth-â
âBut-â
âNow, Miles!â he hissed and Daisy noted how Miles hesitated, an idea springing to mind and she put on as soft and somber an expression as she could, leaning closer to Miles âi-itâs okay, Miles⊠I-I donât want you to get into troubleâŠâ she muttered, looking up at him through her lashes and Miles almost visibly cracked with guilt, the guard shoving him away, picking up the gag and putting away his rifle so it wasnât in the way as he bent down to shove the gag back into her mouth and tied it at the back of her head, tying some of her hair into it and she couldnât help the genuine wince she made at the sharp pain, the guard turning to Miles, shaking his head with disappointment âjust wait until the Warden hears about thisâ he hissed, taking his rifle and putting on the sling, grabbing Miles by his upper arm, dragging him towards the Warden, Miles looking over his shoulder at Daisy who feigned a concerned look but the second Miles looked away, she looked back at the others working, catching Ezekielâs eye, giving him a subtle nod and he sighed, clearly sad but he gave her a subtle nod in return, his sadness without a doubt coming from the fact that he hated she had to pretend, had to act, had to force every instinct in her body to shut up and be quiet for once, that she had to fight her own nature, but sheâd do it. Sheâd do it for them. He knew that.
(Warnings: A bit of angst but mainly I think this is pretty fluffy lol
Note: At some point (I donât know if itâll be in this part or not, Iâm writing this A/N before Iâve started to write this part) Proto/Wenja will be in english but still in bold, just letting you guys know<3
Proto/Wenja in bold
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Anna was gently playing with the seashells on her armlet, fingers gently running over the curves, moving to the roughly shaped black balls of something she wasnât sure of. It was cold and smooth, as black as night and when it caught the light of the sun, unlike with the light from flames, it shined. The first time sheâd looked down at the beads while the sun was high in the sky, sheâd nearly been blinded, she was sure that it could be seen for miles if the sun hit it right. âTakkar, uh⊠what is it?â she asked, sheâd been learning more and more Wenja, felt more secure in it, but speaking it to a native made her feel⊠ill preparedâŠ
âBlood of Orosâ he stated casually before continuing to make his arrows, Anna looking back at the beads with a frown, then turning her head to the spear next to her âand this? Uh⊠This Blood of Oros?â she asked, Takkar looking at the spear she was pointing to, her finger aimed at itâs black tip, Takkar nodding with a gruff âhmâ before going back to making the arrows. âWill you teach me?â Anna asked and Takkar looked up at her, taking in her body language and expressions. There was still quite the language barrier, of course, but with Takkar it felt almost non-existent, as though the words, no matter what language, wasnât needed, it felt unnecessary, pointless, useless, merely an addition to their relationship. Takkar nodded and inched closer to her as he slowed his actions down so she could watch intently, his practiced hands moving with ease, Annaâs eyes locked onto his fingers and hands. After he made the third arrow with her watching, before he could make another, she gently took his hand, a frown on her brows as she turned his palm up to look at it, the skin hardened and calloused, her fingers trailing over the rough skin. They looked so worn and calloused that she wondered how much of her touch he actually felt when her fingers ran over the tips of his fingers, he didnât seem to twitch or react to what should have been a featherlight, almost ticklish touch. She was about to withdraw her hand when his hand closed around her smaller one, almost encasing her hand completely, the calloused fingers pressed against the back of her hand. He opened his hand and had her palm against his, spreading his fingers out, their wrists at level with each other, as though he wanted to examine the size difference, his thick brows furrowing even more than normal as his blue eyes traced over her seemingly unblemished skin, at least compared to his.
Anna took the opportunity to truly look at him while his eyes were locked on their hands together, her eyes flitting over his face, his thick beard that reached a little past his adams apple, his hair swept back and out of his face, the hair thick and matted and warm. He had a small scar on his nose bridge, the cut going through the white stripe that trailed down his nose, the right side of his mouth had a scar go through it at the corner, reaching past his lips, both the top and bottom one, his beard hiding the bottom of it while the top of the scar on his lips reached just the height of his nostril. He was strong, broad and large, his chest filled with hairy but thin curls, a white handprint on his right chest. She guessed the heavy furs and leather he wore added some to his strong-looking build, but she knew there was something to it, no amount of furs and leathers could hide that or fake it. His arms, chest and hands were large and muscled, his arms littered with tiny scars and scratches and when she leaned in closer, she could see the faintest hint of freckles across his nose bridge, hidden by his darker skin tone, his blue eyes hidden under thick, large dark eyebrows that seemed set permanently in a scowl. His eyes held a certain sadness to them, a longing for something⊠or someone.
âWhat happened to your tribe, Takkar?â Anna asked softly, Takkar looking up from her hand, his eyes scanning her face with a small frown and she mimicked the frown âyour people, before Oros?â she asked softly, Takkar looking down briefly, Annaâs hand still in his open palm and she hesitantly closed her hand around it, holding his hand, much to his confusion. He frowned at the action, studying her hand before slowly closing his own around hers, trying out the feeling, finding a lightness filling his soul, his frown easing up a little. âWe hunt for many moons, no food, no water. We hunt mammoth, we kill mammoth⊠then tigri attack, kill many⊠Dalso save Takkar, then give Takkar this, tell him to go find Oros, go find Wenjaâ he admitted, a frown still on his brows and he let go of her hand to show her his right wrist, showing her his seashell bracelet, matching the one heâd given her except that hers was an armlet and had small beads of âBlood of Orosâ in it. Anna hesitantly took his wrist into her hands, examining the bracelet. âDalsoâŠâ she muttered, her eyes meeting his as she continued to hold his wrist, her hand moving to slip back into his as she smiled a little at him âI thank Dalso. Dalso keep Takkar alive, Takkar keep Anna alive, keep Anna safeâ she stated quietly, Takkarâs eyes scanning her face, his free hand coming up, fingers gently taking hold of her strawberry blonde hair, his brows furrowing even more as he examined it, the pad of his thumb gently running over the tiny strands of hair, taking in the feel of it. âItâs, uh⊠my mom calls it âStrawberry blondeâ but my dad calls it just redâ, they canât really seem to agree on thatâ Anna muttered quietly, looking down at his hand that gently and carefully fiddled with her hair. âUh⊠mother says hair is pale red berries, father says only redâ she translated as she gestured to her hair, Takkar tilting his head at it before turning his eyes up to look at her âTakkar says like fireâ he stated calmly and Anna smiled a little more âlike fireâ she repeated quietly âAnna likes thatâ she admitted. It was a bit strange at first, talking in third person, even about yourself, but sheâd gotten used to it, sometimes Takkar even talked like she did, saying âIâ and âmeâ instead of just his name. Tensay had done that a little too, but Takkar was who she spent most of her time with after the ceremony where heâd given her her armlet and spear. Heâd been taking her out of the village, keeping her safe, walking with her, teaching her about the land and she felt like itâd soon be expected of her to maybe hunt or fish or gather something, the idea both frightening but also quite exciting, the idea of wandering this mysterious, ancient land in a time no one ever will know of, seeing things that no one else will see, learning things no one else will learn⊠an archeologist and historianâs wet dream, basically.
Her smile faded a little and she looked down, her smile fading into nothingness, her brows furrowing as she looked at their locked hands. Sheâd left to prove herself⊠to find the one thing no one else had, things people had only had an idea about⊠Sheâd left to prove that she could do this, that she had it in her⊠to know that she was right yet have no one to celebrate it with, it makes her heart clench and ache. Sheâd never see her mom, her dad, her brother again⊠Horace will take the credit, if he managed to get back without somehow dying without her⊠it felt like finding oneself lost at sea, surrounded by everything and nothing at all, all at the same time.
âAn-naâ Takkar gruffed out and she looked at him, forcing a smile as she attempted to let go of his hand and get up, but his hand locked more tightly around hers, making her frown with confusion. His free hand reached up to cup her cheek, feeling her flinch at his touch, her eyes locked with his, her heart racing as his thumb gently stroked her cheeks, her lips parted, breath almost shaky, his hand letting go of her cheek to let the pads of his fingers gently explore her face, his eyes following his fingers as he mapped every inch of her face, committing it to memory, making sure heâd always know what she looked like, with and without his eyes.
His hand hesitantly began to move from her jaw, further down, slowly and gently, his eyes following, her breath shaky as his fingers touched her collarbone and she almost shivered. His skin was so warm, he was like a walking furnace, the rough pads of his fingers tracing back up her neck, fingers grazing over her pulse point, about to move onward when he felt the small bump. He frowned and moved his hand back to that spot, his fingers lingering and he felt it again, seeming more and more intrigued with every bump he felt. He gruffed quietly, looking back up at Anna, his eyes locked with hers and he took in the redness of her cheeks, spotting the tip of her ears and their redness, a confused look taking over his features and he frowned even more. He slowly removed his hand from her pulsepoint, his blue eyes locked onto hers before he let go of her hand, standing up âshawa, mu hadam(stay, I return)â he ordered before leaving into some bushes, Anna letting out a shaky breath, eyes a little wide and she ran a hand over her face, as though itâd wipe off the burning blush. It wasnât long until she heard the sounds of twigs snapping from where Takkar had left. She heard some rustling of bushes and she turned to look, her eyes widening at the sight that met her. She flew up to her feet, picked up her spear and braced herself as she backed up a few steps, until Takkar casually walked out after what had her so defensive.
Takkar moved to stand next to the large white wolf, itâs mouth and paws covered in dried blood, itâs blue eyes locked onto her and she finally managed to calm herself down enough to study it. It wasnât baring itâs teeth at her, it wasnât snarling or growling, the bristles on itâs back werenât raised, there was nothing aggressive about itâs behavior. Takkar stretched out his hand and Anna frowned at him with wide eyes âare you insane?!â she asked with fear, looking back at the large wolf. God, it was huge in her opinion. Bigger than any wolf sheâd ever seen. âAn-naâ Takkar called and Anna sighed heavily, hesitantly taking steps closer to Takkar, eyeing the wolf wearily, the spear still in her hands until she reached Takkar. Takkar gently pried the spear from her hands, thrusting it into the ground next to them, leaving Anna essentially weaponless. He took her hand and placed it under his, beginning to reach it towards the wolf but Anna quickly yanked her hand away, looking at Takkar as though he was out of his mind. âWhat? No!â she hissed in english, Takkar studying her before petting the wolf, Anna watching the way it leaned into the touch, closing itâs eyes as it enjoyed his touch and her breath left her briefly in wonder, her posture changing, softening and her muscles eased up. Slowly, with a shaking hand, she reached out to the wolf, her heart nearly stopping when she felt itâs fur. It was rough and matted, but there was an underlying softness to it, Annaâs breath just as shaky as her hands. She flinched when the wolf stepped closer, immediately drawing back her hand, only to realize that the wolf was rubbing itâs large head up her leg while wagging itâs tail, Anna unable to stop the smile from forming on her lips. She reached back down, carefully moving her hand to itâs ears, scratching behind them, the wolf tilting itâs head in her handâs direction, sitting down, one of itâs back legs starting to twitch and scratch at the empty air, Anna laughing briefly. âYouâre just a big puppy, arenât you?â she asked quietly to herself, slowly easing up more, her grin growing and growing and it appeared that the creature was just as smitten with her as she was with it, once sheâd gotten over the shock of seeing a gigantic white wolf covered in dry blood, of course.
âHas it a name?â she asked and looked up at Takkar, Takkar frowning at her in confusion and she smirked, looking down at the wolf, kneeling down and petting it with a grin as it faced her, mouth open and tongue hanging out as it panted, sitting down casually, itâs tail still wagging from side to side. âHow about⊠Fido?â she asked, the wolf tilting itâs head at her and she laughed briefly âyeah, noâŠ. hmmm⊠Lassie?â she asked, immediately wincing afterwards, still talking with the wolf when Takkar slowly and quietly stepped back, barely making a sound. He moved to sit where heâd sat before, a smile hidden underneath his thick beard and scowl, his eyes locked onto the wolf and Anna, taking her in. She was still wearing the same clothes sheâd âarrivedâ in, though sheâd been wearing the boots Teesha made for her, made from rough leathers, mammothâs fur and padded leather for itâs soles, no doubt theyâd last quite a few years, but otherwise she was still in her normal clothes. Her strawberry blonde hair had gotten longer over the half year sheâd spent with them, her hair pulled away from her face, the fronts of it gathered in the back of her head in a fashion that Takkar had never seen before, tied with something round and strange, the rest of her hair loose. Teesha had braided in a small feather, it hung from her loose hair, hanging by the strands under her left ear, the feather dark as night yet it almost shimmered when it moved with her hair, displaying an array of colors for barely a brief second. âHow about something fierce? Like⊠snowblood?â she asked, the wolf leaning closer, sniffing her face before just sitting back again and enjoying the petting it received, Anna smirking, looking over her shoulder at Takkar âSnow bloodâ she stated with determination and stood up, gesturing to the wolf who was still wagging itâs tail, licking her hand mindlessly and Takkar nodded only once, signaling that he agreed on the name.
Suddenly, Takkar whistled sharply, Snowblood looking at him before running off, Annaâs smile fading and she looked at Takkar with confusion âwhyâd you do that?â she asked with a small pout, Takkar just smirking at her and suddenly, a large tiger-like creature sprung forward, padding over and Anna nearly fainted at the sight of it. It was obviously a sabertooth tiger, it had small scars as well as open, healed wounds on itâs snout, it was missing half of itâs right ear, itâs eyes were a piercing golden-green color with slit pupils. Itâs back was covered in bristled fur, itâs fur a dark brown with large dark stripes from the bristled fur on itâs back and to itâs lighter stomach, three large and nasty claw marks trailed down the side of itâs neck on the left side, itâs large, bladelike canine teeth covered in dry blood. It was massive. Sheâd seen skeletons, of course, but seeing the actual thing, right in front of her? She was on the verge of fainting. Takkar whistled briefly to get itâs attention, itâs large head turning to look at him and Takkar threw a piece of raw meat towards it, Anna flinching as it jumped up a little and caught it, gladly gulping it down, purring ever so slightly and Anna slowly turned to look at Takkar who got up and walked over, gently petting itâs head, the large cat closing itâs eyes, leaning into his touch.
âDantantigriâ Takkar stated softly, gesturing to the sabretoothâs elongated canine teeth, Anna nodding, hesitantly reaching for itâs head, flinching when it lifted itâs nose and it bumped against her fingers. Somehow, this was even more horrifying than a gigantic wolf. Wolves was tamable, itâs what led to dogs, after all, but a fucking Sabretooth tiger? Not quite the same thing. âIt no eat me, yes? Takkar not allow?â she asked half-jokingly, Takkar letting out a brief scoff of amusement, his beard moving a tiny bit as he barely smirked a little, only a half-smirk, his hand taking hers, gently moving it to the top of the tigerâs head to pet it properly and itâs fur was surprisingly soft⊠it wasnât like the wolfâs fur, a little rough and bristled but soft underneath. This was soft all the way through, like a catâs normally were. âAn-a give it nameâ Takkar stated suddenly and she looked up at him with a small frown, Takkar nodding towards the sabretooth tiger and Anna cleared her throat nervously, nodding to herself âuhâŠâ she trailed off, narrowing her eyes and frowning at the large creature, watching it tilt itâs head at her, the sun showing off itâs large fangs, the tiny dents in them from years and years of wear and tear and being exposed to all manner of things. âHow about⊠Hello Kitty?â she asked with a smirk before laughing quietly to herself, shaking her head âokay, no⊠something badassâ she continued to talk quietly to herself, Takkar watching her with soft eyes, his eyes locked onto every single part of her face, taking her in, the way her lips moved, her cheeks when she smiled, the corners of her eyes when she grinned, her brows when they furrowed.
âIt has to be something badass, like Snowblood⊠What about⊠Bloodfang?â she asked with a smirk, looking up at Takkar âBlood fang?â she asked and Takkar nodded, making her grin and look down at the massive, prehistoric predator as it purred and leaned into her hand as she scratched the top of itâs head âonce a kitty, always a kittyâ she hummed to herself with a smirk. âBloodfang it is, thenâ she added quietly, continuing to pet it, slowly growing more and more accustomed to petting a real, large sabretooth tiger.
(Warnings: oh dear lord. Okay! We got angsty fluff, Daisy comforting Eugene (shocking, I know), a brief flicker of joy before itâs snuffed out with angst for the rest of this angsty chapter. Sorry lovelies!<3)
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Daisy was on her way to the room Eugene was in when she heard his voice, the shakiness of it, and she stopped, slowing her pace, instinctually stepping lightly to remain hidden as she listened by the door.
âBecause Iâm a cowardâŠâ she frowned a little at his words, leaning a little further against the door, listening to Eugeneâs voice, waiting for it but instead she heard her uncle âno. Itâs because youâre smartâ he corrected and Daisy frowned a little more, noticing the door barely ajar and she carefully and silently opened it a tad wider to look into the room through the thin opening. âIâm a liability. Always have been,â Eugene stated in a shaky voice, ârelying on others to survive, counting on their courage due to the dearth of my own. Hell, the only way I bucked natural selection was my penchant for prevaricationâŠâ Eugeneâs voice stopped and she looked through the opening, seeing Eugene glance at Daryl before looking down âmeans âlyingââ he clarified quietly.
âI figured,â Daryl spoke up, Daisy narrowing her eyes a little, âyeah, well,â Eugene began âIâm ashamed to say itâs my only discernible skillâŠâ Eugene added, leaning a little forward, elbows on his knees, his hands by his mouth, almost clasped like he was about to pray âdo you think people are born brave, or become it?â Eugene asked shakily and Daisy sighed quietly, looking off to the side before entering the room âbothâ she spoke up, both men turning to look at her and she glanced at her uncle before looking back at Eugene, approaching a little. âI mean-... itâs not that simple. No one is born the way we are now, but yeah, Iâd say itâs both⊠Itâs in our blood but also itâs how weâre raised, what we experience⊠itâs not enough that itâs just in our blood. We might see bravery in the people we grow up with, we might see it in our relatives and family and maybe it is in our blood, but thatâs not enough. Itâs a bit of bothâ she admitted, walking over and sitting down next to him on the pew. âWith all intended respect and a statistically significant measure of humility, I must report that your attempted consolation is proving markedly ineffective, particularly coming from an individual who is, by all observable metrics, a certified badass and also, disconcertingly, my junior in chronological yearsâ Eugene rambled and Daisy smirked with amusement and looked ahead âI donât know about your upbringing and childhood but mine was shitty as hellâ she stated with that same smirk as she turned to look at him again âmy mom was a drug addict⊠sheâd use in front of me sometimes, bring home men she barely knew to have sex and get high with,â she admitted quietly, looking down âsheâd hurt me sometimes too⊠a lot⊠I had to clean up after her binges, barely made it to schoolâŠâ she continued âone day, when I was 9, she brought home a guy who looked at me-...â she trailed off, looking for the right word, looking up at Eugene âin a âwrongâ way,â she decided to articulate it in that way before looking down âso I left⊠I got to my uncle and dadâs place,â she admitted, looking up at her uncle as he watched the two of them âmy uncle took me for ice cream because my dad couldnât be bothered with meâŠâ she looked back at Eugene âitâs where I got my first scratchâ she added softly. âNo one is born brave, Eugene⊠you donât-... inherit personality⊠Youâre a scientist, you know thatâ she reminded him softly âyou might not be running into burning buildings but youâre still braveâ she determined softly âbravery isnât just-... charging headfirst at a walker or a gun⊠Itâs-...â she sighed and looked ahead, trying to come up with an example when something hit her and she smirked. âItâs going off on your own to find someone you met over the radioâ she stated, looking back at him to find him looking at her âitâs playing a recording over the speakers that exposes someone corrupt, knowing youâd get the blame. Thereâs no way in hell that you thought youâd be able to pull that off and not get burnt by itâ she pointed out âyouâre not dumb, Eugene. Youâre not stupid. And itâs because youâre not stupid that you know going out there right now to find Max is a bad idea. What are you going to do? Yell out for her?â Daisy asked with a scoff âyour brain knows itâs a bad idea⊠your heart just have to catch up with it, your head is just a bit too fastâ she stated with a shrug âI feel like that sometimesâ she admitted, looking up at her uncle âbut Iâve been lucky enough to grow up with someone who knows when to pull me back and when to let me spiralâ she added with a soft smile before getting up, sighing lightly âlisten to your head on this one, Eugene. Think with your headâ she ordered softly as she poked his forehead before leaving.
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Daisy was smiling quietly at the small ring sheâd found on her pillow, a bubbling feeling building in her stomach as she picked it up, her smile turning into a grin and she put it on. She admired it quietly before moving to her old backpack, opening a hidden pocket, pulling out the old envelope, taking out the letter, reading it over, smiling almost softly as she looked back at the ring, tears threatening to blur her vision âI have my afterâ she whispered quietly to herself while looking at the ring on her finger, admiring it when she heard the door open. âWas this why you asked me to meet you here?â she yelled, still admiring the ring on her finger. âWhat, did you cut it off of a walker like Maggieâs ring?â she called again, frowning when she heard no reply except for footsteps. Heavy. Thud, thud, thud, thud. Coming closer and her heart started to race, her hand moving to the knife on her thigh at the realisation. They were too heavy to be Victorâs. Just as sheâd grabbed the handle and was about to turn around she felt a sharp pain hit the back of her head, her world going back before sheâd had a chance to fight for it.
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Daisyâs heart was racing even before she woke up, her hands chained in front of her, a hood over her face and she felt drowsy, weak and tired⊠âVic-....ViâŠâ she trailed, slurring her words slightly until someone shoved her âshut the fuck up!â the voice sounded muffled⊠like the person was wearing a mask, or⊠or a Commonwealth soldier mask.
âVict-â
âI said shut up!â she winced as something hard smacked her across the face, her heart racing, tears starting to cloud her already obscured vision as she felt someone lift up the sack over her head but before she had a chance to wiggle out of their grip, she felt a sharp pinch in the side of her throat, something injecting into her neck and once again she felt drowsy, tired and weak. Her fingers fiddled with the unfamiliar presence of something around her left ring finger and just as she remembered, everything faded once again.
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Daisy woke up to someone gently shoving her, calling her name, the voice echoing and distorted and she winced, the hood being pulled off her face and she squinted at the sudden light, her head rolling back and she feltâŠoff⊠The voice started to get more and more coherent, more and more normal, getting more and more familiar and soon she could start to make out the words they said.
âHey, hey, princess, come on, wake up. There you goâ she looked towards the voice, frowning, everything still blurry and distorted. âDamn, they gave you too much it seemsâ the voice said and she narrowed her eyes, barely making out the shape, tears forming in her eyes âdad? Daddy?â she nearly whimpered, lower lip starting to tremble as she saw him, looked at him⊠was he here? Was she dead? What about her uncle? Judith? RJ? Victor? Were they dead tooâŠ?
âAh shit⊠Princess, come on, wake up, itâs Negan. Come on, sweetieâ the man gently slapped her cheeks, making her wince, her entire body felt numb, her neck was burning, it was like someone had injected her with acid or something. âCome on, there you goâ Negan soothed when he saw her become more coherent, her eyes a little more focused and he smirked âthere we goâ he muttered to himself, seeing her pupils focus slightly more but then he watched her droopy eyes almost close and he sighed âdamn itâ he tried to get a bit closer, hands still zip-tied âcome on, come onâ he muttered, mostly to himself, as he tried to wake her up again. âCome on, sweetheart, come on, open your eyesâ Negan mumbled to himself, panic starting to course through him, his heart starting to race until he saw her open her eyes a little, letting out a breath of relief, smirking a little ânext time you wanna scare the crap out of me, let me know firstâ he muttered somewhat jokingly, cupping her face to try and look her over again when suddenly a loud banging was heard from outside the bus, banging against the side of it from the outside.
Everything was hazy and foggy, dizzying and although sheâd never even tasted alcohol, it felt like what she imagined being blacked out drunk would feel like, everything tilting and muffled in a hazy way. Just as everything was starting to get clearer, the fog and haze lifting, she felt someone grab her arm, yanking her up. âCome on!â
âWaitâ a voice called out, Daisy lifting her head to look at the blurry image of someone approaching her, looking at her, tilting their head at her ânot her. What the fuck is she doing here?? Sheâs designation two. For fuckâs sakeâ he cussed, shaking his head with a sigh âfuckâ he muttered before nodding to himself âalright, weâll take her with us and-... fuck, weâll keep her with us and put her on the next train when it comes through or somethingâ he decided bitterly, shaking his head âfucking sorting⊠messing everything up. Give her another dose-â
âSheâs barely standing!â Negan hissed angrily, stepping forward but he was shoved back in his seat by the soldier holding Daisy up by her arm, a glare set on his face and he felt his heart race with anger when another soldier approached with a syringe, his gaze meeting Kellyâs and then Ezekielâs before he looked back up at them, his blood boiling when one of the soldiers grabbed her hair to yank her head back, exposing her neck and she winced when the syringe was pushed in, tears forming in her eyes and she was forced back down into the seat, Negan glaring daggers at the soldiers as they walked off the bus and the second they were gone and the gate shut, he reached over, cupping her face in his bound hands, noting the way she could barely keep her eyes open, tears forming in her eyes to the point that a few rolled down and he sighed âI know, princess⊠I knowâ he soothed, letting go of her face after making sure it rested comfortably on the headrest of the seat, taking her bound hands into his own tied ones âheâs a tough kid, heâs fineâ he whispered, hearing her whimper quietly, too drugged to do anything else, more tears running down her cheeks and he sighed, giving her tied hands a tigther squeeze.
âJesus, princessâŠâ he muttered to himself, he hadnât seen her this broken⊠Not even after Carl⊠His eyes moved to her hands, spotting a silver ring on her left ring finger. It was simple, a single rose on top of the band and he sighed at the realization âshitâŠâ he muttered. Sheâd never wear a ring, he knew that, not unless it was a gift from someone she loved dearly⊠And giving a ring to someone like her⊠you donât do that unless it has meaningâŠ
âHe proposedâ Negan muttered to himself, looking back up at her teary face, red lines already forming on her cheeks from where the salty drops rolled down. âShit, princessâŠâ he muttered somberly, sighing to himself. âItâs okay, just-... weâll figure it out, I promiseâ he whispered, hearing a faint whimper as a reply and she managed to roll her head to the side so she looked ahead instead of at him, Negan sighing softly with regret.
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âWhatâs so special about her anyway?â
âDonât know. Donât care.â
âCome on, youâre not even a little bit interested on why weâve got orders to dope her up with sedatives like sheâs a fucking elephant?â
âNope.â
âLiarâ the guard accused with a scoff, the other guard sighing heavily âIâm just following orders. Sheâs rated ED, category five, thatâs all I know. Now will you please just drop it?â
âHer? Sheâs a category five?â
âMiles, I swear to God, if you donât shut up Iâll shoot youâ the other guard groaned, their voices muffled, like as if she had her head underwater, her head swimming with confusion, exhaustion, every thought slow and thin, like when youâre so exhausted you can barely keep awake, like when your body is constantly on the verge of falling asleep without permission. Thatâs what her head felt like. That feeling of eyes becoming so heavy itâs impossible to keep them open. It was like trying to see through a thick fog. Everything was dense, tight, heavy. She could feel every beat of her heart, every thump, every beat heavy and foggy in some weird unusual way. She could hear distant sounds of people but nothing made senseâŠ
She was sitting⊠At least she thought she was⊠her head felt too heavy to hold up, her eyes unfocused, unable to lock onto what she was seeing, only vague figures that seemed familiar but at the same time not at all. Every inch of her felt heavy, every movement felt too difficult. As more and more time passed, everything started to make a little bit more sense, memories flooding back, her limbs felt less heavy and useless, she started to feel the zip ties digging into her wrists, her heart starting to race as she slowly started to realize everything, started to feel the ties, the gag in her mouth, her vision sharpening, blurry figures coming into focus as she looked at the two guards in front of her, their backs to her as they didnât even seem aware of her slowly coming to. Her head was still too heavy to move so she had to use only her eyes, looking out the corner of them to see people working to clear old train tracks of debris and whatever else was blocking it, her fingers and toes started buzzing, her heart beating faster and harder. Her breath got heavier and sharper, the buzzing spreading through her like a wildfire and it was as though it woke everything up after gliding over it. Her eyes returned to her fingers and she slowly stretched them, frowning in frustration when they barely stretched, annoyance starting to brew in her and she glanced up at the guards to make sure they hadnât turned around and seen her, her eyes quickly returning to her fingers, her hands shaking a little as she strained, fought to make them move quicker, to move how she wanted them to, not like she had to pull weight with her fingers. She let out a frustrated huff, looking up at the guards again before back at her fingers, taking a deep breath through the gag before trying again, stretching her fingers and slowly she started to feel it. Feel the muscles work, the nerves responding. Her fingers stretched slowly but much more evenly and sheâd smirk if it wasnât for that damn gag in her mouth. She tried again, closing and stretching, repeating it over and over again until she felt every inch of the movement, like she was fully in control again. She looked up at the guards to make sure they hadnât seen it before moving to turn her head, successfully looking to the side at the working people. It was a bit harder than with her fingers but she could do it and it got easier with each passing second.
She heard a distant thud, her eyes moving towards the sound, seeing a guy in a hoodie bent over, having been smacked over the head by one of the guards with some kind of baton, the man looking up at the guard and she frowned, blinking, trying to see if her eyes actually showed her the real person and not just who she thought it was. But nope, that was Negan, clear as day. She looked around, finding more and more faces she recognized, her heart starting to race even more when she saw Kelly and Ezekiel working on the train tracks too.
She looked back at her wrists, starting to fiddle with them, trying to get out of the zip ties when suddenly someone shouted ârunnersâ, the two guards in front of her running to the tree line, gunfire piercing the air and she actually flinched a bit at the sound, seeing 3 distant figures in the woods drop dead, her heart almost stopping and she scanned the people by the train tracks, letting out a shaky breath of relief when she saw them still there, unharmed and not dead in the treeline. Tears formed in her eyes and she sighed, leaning her head back against the wall she was sitting against, looking up at the tarp covering the small area she sat under, blinking away the tears of relief, anger starting to boil in her chest and she closed her eyes, her mind already racing for a way out, for something to do, for anything, anything at all, to distract her from the fact that she hadnât seen Victor at all since they surprised her and took her from their shared apartment back in the Commonwealth.
Note: At some point (I donât know if itâll be in this part or not, Iâm writing this A/N before Iâve started to write this part) Proto/Wenja will be in english but still in bold, just letting you guys know that if something appears in bold but is english (aside from the translations) then itâs meant to be fluent Wenja.
Proto/Wenja in bold
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âSo⊠thereâs the Udam, the Izila, and the Wenja⊠Dah is an Udam, is he a Neanderthal?â Anna mumbled to herself as she read over her notebook, a frown on her brows as Tensay watched from the other side of his hut, a smile on his lips as he watched her work, watched her attempt to adapt and understand. âOkay, I think I got itâ she muttered, looking up at Tensay âĂdam dijam shash. Ădam nay hatra. Ădam bal. Ădam sakwa Ăll(Udam land north. Udam have no food. Udam strong. Udam follow Ăll)... Izilia sakwa Batari(The Izila follow Batari). Izila gwam Krati, Batari shai(The Izila fear Krati, Batariâs son). Shrash?â she asked with a wince, Tensay laughing as he nodded with a grin âshrash! Shrash! SĂșâ he praised and Anna smiled with almost glee âI think Iâm starting to get the hang of thisâ she muttered to herself, Tensay moved over, staying low as he usually did when he moved after sitting or kneeling, placing a closed fist against her heart as he smiled at her âAn-na hawcha, warha way Winja. An-na hasa nu Winja, Winja tasha shayu An-na(Anna is strong, heart like Wenja. Anna is with Wenja, Wenja always protect Anna)â he stated with pride and she smiled, nodding her head in thanks, her smile turning into a grin at his words, at him naming her Wenja, it almost brought tears to her eyes. âYou-Wenjaâ Tensay stated roughly and Anna laughed briefly, nodding at him âshrash, muâm Wenja(yes, I am Wenja)â she replied with a smile and Tensay nodded with a grin, Anna placing her hand in a fist over Tensayâs heart âmu hasam way Winja(I live like Wenja)â she stated and Tensay nodded âyou-be-Wenja. To-night, shrash?â he got out roughly and Anna nodded with the largest grin sheâd ever had plastered on her face, tears in her eyes as she laughed briefly when she realized what that meant, hugging him tightly. Tensay tensed up in shock at her embrace, his arms raised and eyes wide as he looked down at her strawberry blonde hair, such an unusual color, but slowly he wrapped his arms around her, patting her back as he nodded âta hasa Winja(you will be Wenja)â he stated softly and she nodded, parting from him, sniffling briefly as she wiped the tears from her eyes with a grin, Tensay patting her shoulder before holding it, shaking it a little to get her to look at him and when she did, he grinned at her âmas wayda Shayu mushroomi. Su ti shayu. Ta bal. Mas nashman ta Winja(we find spirit mushroom. Good for your spirit. You are strong. We name you Wenja)â he decided, getting up and nodding to himself as he looked around in the various pots hanging in his hut, a smirk on his lips âgwam, hayta hasam. Mansa ta Winja(go, join them. Become Wenja)â he stated, nodding towards outside his hut, Anna getting the hint, getting up, about to exit when she turned to look at him âgwarshta, Tensayâ she stated with a smile before exiting the hut, looking around the village with a smile. She decided to move downstream, climbing down a few rocky edges before coming to the waterfall at the very edge of the village, looking out over the landscape. Sheâd never seen anything so beautiful⊠so untouched and pure and raw⊠it only served to get the point across even more that this was real, this wasnât her imagination because nothing in her head could conjure up something so beautiful as this. Come nightfall, if sheâd understood Tensay correctly, thereâd be some sort of ceremony where theyâd name her as one of them⊠the thought left butterflies in her stomach. Sheâd belong somewhere, sheâd have a home, a community⊠one where she wouldnât be looked at as the weird kid from some tiny town who liked to look at bones, who made up stories about the bones sheâd find, about the dinosaurs sheâd played with as a kid. Here, she wasnât the weirdo kid no one wanted to play with, she wasnât the history nerd, she was just⊠Anna. Just Anna. No last name, no middle name, no expectations, no requirements except just being herself and decent. It was primal, yes, but stillâŠ
It was serene and comforting, despite itâs brief horrors, such as Udam attacks and Izila taking Wenja and burning them, forcing them into slave labor⊠but what world didnât have itâs horrors? Every time period had itâs setbacks, itâs horrors, itâs mysteries and tragedies, modern time even more so⊠guns, bombs, chemical weapons, crime, corruption, senseless violence and needless death⊠this world, this time, it only had two of those⊠and it was severely less from what sheâd experienced so far.
Everything was black and white and gray back there, but here, things felt much more manageable, easier to handle, calmer⊠Dah appeared to be a remarkably good prisoner, heâd gotten his own hut by now in the caves and appeared to be thriving here. He kept mostly to himself but when he interacted with the others, he wasnât violent, he wasnât aggressive. Actually, he seemed almost⊠shyâŠ
Anna wrapped her arms around herself as a brief breeze slipped over her, the air warm and comforting and she closed her eyes, tilting her head back to face the sky, a faint smile on her lips. This place almost felt like home⊠Was it home? It felt like it, and thatâs all that mattered, right? âHome is where the heart isâ and all that, right? Her heart was here, it felt likeâŠ
Yes, her heart was here. Home was here.
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It was well past noon, nearly evening, and already the celebration had gathered everyone in the small village, music was played from drums, cheering and whooping, several people singing in an ululating voice, children laughing as they ran around and played, people chatting around campfires and bushes, several people dancing to the beat of the drums, laughter filled the air as Tensay dancing amongst the others, using his stick like some kind of rattle, the small ornaments on it complimenting the music, only lightening the mood further. Karoosh and Jayma were currently comparing spears, talking amongst themselves, Wogah was-... well, he was being Wogah, telling animated stories to some of the children, acting weird and crazy as always, his tales seeming to both entice and horrify the children he told them to. Manoo was talking with Teesha, who was his partner, both of them talking with a few others, Teesha holding their newborn baby, Drorru. Sayla was talking with a few others and Anna stood by herself, watching everything with a blissful smile. It was both strange and fascinating to watch how different their cultures were compared to what sheâd grown up with. Alcohol and loud music wasnât needed here, the music was rustic and genuine and simple, the people danced almost ceremoniously, singing in high ululating voices as they cheered and talked and had fun. It felt much more genuine and real than any âpartyâ sheâd ever experienced. Suddenly the chanting and cheering became louder near the entrance to the village, the sound moving closer and closer to the middle of the village by the open cave at itâs mouth, so loud that it was nearly ringing in Annaâs ears but she smiled when she saw what had caused the uproar of celebration.
Takkar was back.
Several Wenja greeted him and talked with him as he walked by, coming face to face with Tensay and Anna, Tensay welcoming the Wenja hunter and semi-leader back, gesturing to Anna as they talked, their voices drowned out by the cheering and chatter around her, but Tensay seemed very happy, as heâd been the entire night. Takkar turned and looked at her, eyeing her up and down and she swore she saw a smile under that thick beard of his, until he said something to Tensay and turned around, leaving the village and Anna felt her smile drop and her joy squashed, turned to ash in her mouth and she felt bitter at the taste of it, her heart shattering a little and she looked down, feeling hesitant and glum instead of gleeful and happy. Her mood had dampened and she glanced around, making sure Tensay wasnât watching as he talked with someone else, Sayla was still engaged in her conversation, Manoo and Teesha seemed distracted, all eyes averted from her and she backed up, walking over to the mountain side that the village was nestled against, approaching the stream, following it up until she came to the waterfall, her heart racing as she held out her hand, the water falling down on it, soaking her skin in cold water and it was like a jolt went through her, her eyes closing briefly and she sighed, opening her eyes back up, looking back up at the waterfall, silently praying that no one would come looking for her.
She almost thought her prayer had worked, it felt like itâd been at least two hours until someone approached, the water splashing around their feet as Anna turned to face them, seeing Teesha there with a sympathetic smile on her lips âna-ta sĂș, shrash?(you are not good, yes?)â she asked with sympathy and Anna hesitated before shrugging with a light sigh ânay⊠Ku-ta wayda Takkar laykwa?(no⊠Do you know why Takkar left?)â Anna asked hesitantly, hoping that Teesha would have an answer for why Takkar left, Teesha walking closer as she shook her head with a sympathetic look in her eyes ânayâ there was a small pause before she stepped closer with a small sigh âna-ta sĂș? Nu ta hasa Winja, ta may su Winja?(you are not good? You are becoming Wenja, you not happy to be Wenja?)â she asked with a frown and Anna forced a smile âI do, I want to be Wenja⊠I just-... shrash, Anna su hesti Winja, ma Anna suha pacha Takkar kwa(yes, Anna happy to become Wenja, but Anna even more happy if Takkar see also)â she admitted hesitantly and it was true, she wanted to be Wenja, she felt at home, accepted, loved even, but she wanted Takkar there for it⊠he was the one to help her, he looked out for her, just as much as everyone else⊠it didnât feel whole with him gone from the celebrations. Teesha smiled and stepped closer, placing a hand on Annaâs shoulder with a soft smile, guiding her back to the celebrations as it began to get dark, dusk slowly falling over them, settling like a colorful blanket over the sky âTakkar gwam apa. Takkar gwam apa tim(Takkar come back. Takkar come back in time)â Teesha promised and Anna smiled âTakkar will come back when he wants⊠I donât own him⊠I just wish he was hereâ she muttered, Teesha nodding as though she understood every single word, even though it was in English, giving Anna another soft and warm smile as they got closer to the celebrations, everyone cheering as they saw Anna, many coming over to pat her shoulders, offering her cheerful words as the celebrations seemed to come alive even more at her presence, it almost made her forget the sting of Takkar suddenly leaving, a smile forming on her lips as some of the children dragged her by her hands towards one of the fires, starting to dance, one of the oldest, he seemed to be around 12, began to teach her, the children and some of the others laughing at her clumsy attempts at learning but it didnât feel mocking, it felt heartwarming, they werenât laughing at her, it was simply some fun, and she had fun too, learning to dance like them, Tensay nodding from the back of the crowd, giving her an approving smile and Anna smiled right back at him before looking back at the children as they continued to teach her, many clapping and laughing and cheering her on as she slowly started to understand and get the hang of it.
It was dark, probably near midnight when Takkar had returned, Anna recognizing the cheering and chatter that led from the start of the village and to the heart of it, Takkar appearing with something in his hand, string spilling out of each end of his closed fist, something small and white hanging from them, black balls in between them, catching the light from the fires brilliantly and beautifully. Everything quieted down as Takkar approached Anna, the entire village silent, Anna glancing around nervously, the kids having scattered, creating a circle of people around Anna and Takkar by the fire sheâd previously danced in front of. Takkar lifted his closed fist and turned it up, opening his palm and Anna felt her heart stop at what she saw inside. Seashells tied to string with roughly shaped black stones in between. She looked at his own bracelet, the seashells tied to them, and looked back at the one in his hand, her eyes moving back up to meet his and he lifted his hand further, silently offering her the jewelry and she hesitantly took it, lifting it up and examining it in the light, her breath nearly taken from her. âItâs beautifulâ she muttered quietly, fingers gently moving across the shells and roughly shaped beads. Takkar reached his hand out to her and she hesitantly gave him the jewelry back, Takkar taking it, gently grasping her right arm, turning her so it faced him and he began to tie it to her upper arm, making an arm cuff or armlet, tying it securely to her arm without constricting the blood flow, making sure it sat properly before stepping back, turning to one of the others who held a spear, itâs tip made from the same material as the black beads on her armlet, the shaft made from a dark piece of wood that looked sturdy and reliable, the tip held in place by thick and reliable straps of leather, small carving carved into the wood of the shaft, all around it and all the way down, from top to bottom.
âYou-are-Wenjaâ Takkar gruffed out in English, a little broken, perhaps, but understandable, Annaâs eyes filling with tears and she let out a shaky breath as she smiled, looking around at everyone, it seemed almost as though they were waiting for her, waiting for her to do something, to say something. So, she did the first thing that came to mind, her spear in her right hand and she lifted it high up in the air, everyone cheering, the dancing and music starting again, everyone whooping and cheering and singing in high ululating voices and Anna felt⊠warm⊠welcomedâŠ
(Warnings: some small fluff and Anna stumbling through the Wenja language lol)
Note: I used Copilot to help with translations and itâs the most accurate one to the game that I could find.
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Six days had passed, almost a week, and she had spent most of her time with Tensey, both learning from him and teaching him the English language. She was currently trying to tell a story, Tensey making sure she told as much of it as she could in his language, that way she learnt better. âUh⊠mountains?â she asked, brows furrowed as she drew mountains in the sand inside his tent, Tensey leaning over to look at them, humming and nodding âhoros(mountain)â he stated, a smile forming on her lips as she nodded âsounds like Oros⊠anyway. Horace chawa horus, Horace gwam shamashta. Na shamashta, wal hayta. Mi seya âna chawaâ, Horace na gwam. Horace shek wal, Horace chawa fasta. Mi hashka, Horace nay haska(Horace went to the mountain, Horace thought it was a cave. Not a cave, wolf place. I said âdonât goâ, Horace didnât understand. Horace saw wolf, Horace ran fast. I laughed, Horace didnât laugh)â she ended the story, Tensey laughing, nearly falling over and she smirked at the sight of it. The story of Horace thinking he found an ancient cave in a mountain that was actually just a wolf den always seemed to make people laugh, everyone except Horace, of course, the man refused to listen to her warnings, thinking he knew better than a group of experienced archeologists and guides who knew the terrain like the back of their hand. So far, she had learnt a few words and things, the words she were certain of were; Horos meant âmountainâ, Wadar was âwaterâ, Kasa was âhairâ, Eyi was âeyesâ, Tigri was a âtigerâ of any kind, even a Sabertooth tiger, Wal was âwolfâ and maybe even âdogâ, Mooni was âmoonâ, Wana meant âhuntâ, Gwarshka meant âthank youâ, Ta meant âyouâ, Manu was âsmallâ, Shawi was âbirdâ, Majish meant âbigâ, Bal meant âstrongâ, Mu was the same as âIâ while Um meant âmeâ, and Udam was of course the UdamâŠ
The ones she was less certain about was; Hatra, which could mean âfoodâ or âeatingâ, Shrash seemed like it meant âyesâ but she wasnât 100% sure yet, Hasa was probably the same as âareâ or âisâ, Gwash probably meant âwalkâ as in âwalking back homeâ, Ha could possibly mean âwithâ as in âIâm with Susanâ, either Saxwl or Suns seemed to mean âsunâ and Panku could possibly mean âfiveâ. There were other words that she wasnât as sure about, mostly how they were spelled, words such as Brashtar, which she was sure meant âbrotherâ or âbrothersâ, but she couldnât decide if it was spelled with a âTâ or a âDâ. Mammat probably meant âmammothâ, Padi probably meant âfootâ or âfeetâ, sheâd picked that one up from Jayma, a Wenja huntress that Takkar had apparently come across. Sheâd joined not too long ago, along with a one-armed man named Wogah, who seemed possibly a little bit crazy, but apparently some Udam people ate his arm, so a little crazy was probably to be expected. Another Wenja had also joined them, a one-eyed man named Karoosh, friendly enough if not a little⊠excessive⊠but no more than Sayla carrying around a necklace of ears, so he seemed to fit right in. That and he seemed to like to headbutt people. A lot. But luckily he hadnât tried his hand at that with Anna. Yet.
Tensay poked her side as he said something, gesturing to Annaâs clothing, the same sheâd worn for months now. âWhat? I donât have any other clothesâ she stated with a small frown, Tensay laughing briefly before babbling on, knowing full well that he was speaking too fast for her to even try and understand him. He stood up with help from his stick-staff thingie, gesturing for her to follow âguarmaâ he called, Anna getting up and following him outside, walking after him over the little stream, following after him to one of the huts just outside the cave, stopping as he walked up to a group of Wenja, stepping closer to a woman who got up, Tensay saying something and gesturing to Anna, the woman studying Anna before nodding, walking over, saying something that made Anna frown in confusion. âTeeshaâ the woman stated, pointing at her chest, making Anna raise her eyebrows âTeesha? Uh⊠Ta Teesha?â she asked, the woman nodding with a soft smile âshrash, shrash⊠guarma, An-na, guarmaâ she called, waving Anna to following her into the hut and she did, after giving Tensay a brief confused frown, only following when Tensay nodded. The second she was inside the hut with Teesha, the woman walked around her, mumbling to herself, as though studying Anna. At one point, she reached out to her waist, turning Anna a little this and that way and Anna realized what she was doing⊠It was almost like she was taking her measurements or something like that. Teesha continued to mumble to herself before nodding, gesturing to Annaâs shirt, making a motion of pulling it upwards and Anna felt her stomach drop, her heart starting to race and she frowned âno, Iâm good, really-â Teesha reached for Annaâs shirt but Anna slapped her hand away, wrapping her arms around herself âIâm not taking it offâ Anna hissed at a confused Teesha, the woman tilting her head at Anna, stepping closer, hands outstretched to show she meant no harm. Teesha stated something else, gesturing again to the shirt and Anna shook her head ânayâ she blurted out, having picked it up, thinking it meant ânoâ and judging by Teeshaâs reaction, she was right, Anna letting out a shaky breath, taking in Teeshaâs confused and slightly hurt expression and Anna sighed, shutting her eyes tightly, hesitantly reaching her hand back, turning her back to Teesha, pulling up the end of her shirt, just enough for Teesha to see the faint outline of a large scar across her back, Anna quickly hiding it again before Teesha could reach to examine it, Anna avoiding her gaze before taking the ends of her shirt, motioning taking it off before shaking her head ânayâ she stated again in a much softer tone, Teesha nodding with a frown. âTigri? Marwa?â she asked with sympathy and Anna frowned at her âmarwa?â Teesha nodded at her question, hesitating before making herself big, standing up and acting like an aggressive bear, even growling quietly and roaring lowly, Anna nodding âbear⊠uh⊠uh, nay marwa, nay tigriâ Anna admitted hesitantly, taking in how this only seemed to confuse Teesha even more.
âA man, uhâŠâ Anna hesitated, sighing heavily, taking a moment to steady herself before looking shaking her head ânevermindâ she muttered, stepping away from Teesha but she caught her hand, making Anna recoil quickly, Teesha pulling up some of her furs to show her a bundle of burn scars on her inner thigh, so high up that Anna could almost see the curls between her thighs. âIzilaâ Teesha stated with disgust, dropping her furs back down âIzila chawa. Izila gwam mi. Izila dashta mi. Izila shara mi. Ma mi bal(The Izila came. Izila took me. Izila burned me. Izila hurt me. But I am strong)â she added with spite, an angry look on her face as she pulled down the fur skin covering her shoulders to keep her warm, revealing a large and nasty cut across from the back of her neck to her shoulder blade, Teesha letting Anna walk closer, hands almost shaking as she lifted them to gently inspect the wound âĂdam para mi. Ma mi hinacha(The Udam did this to me. But I healed)â she stated quietly, Anna looking at her with a frown, barely understanding half of that, the only thing she truly understood was âIzilaâ, âburnâ, âmeâ, âUdamâ, âtryâ, âtoâ and âtakeâ. So⊠Izila burnt her, and an Udam tried to âtake herâ.. if Annaâs attempt at translating was correct. âMa shayu mi hinacha. Teesha bal. Bal shanti (But always I heal. Teesha is strong. Strong spirit)â Teesha stated with a smirk, as thought revealing something, some big secret, her voice a little lowered but she turned to face Anna, placing a closed fist over Annaâs heart, stepping closer to her. âAn-na bal suwar. An-na hasa tigri(Anna is strong spirit. Anna is tiger)â Teesha stated slowly, knowing that Anna didnât completely understand the language yet, but she knew by the look in Annaâs eyes that she understood that. Sheâd understood what sheâd said to her just now, completely and without a shadow of a doubt.
Anna managed a small smile as she nodded âgwarshta, Teeshaâ Anna mumbled, Teesha nodding, taking Annaâs right hand, closing it into a fist and placing it over Teeshaâs heart, as sheâd done with Anna, nodding once at Anna who nodded with a smile that was a little bigger âgwarshta, Teeshaâ she repeated and Teesha nodded, letting go of Annaâs hand, giving her a grin âTeesha shan ha An-na(Teesha stands with Anna)â Teesha declared proudly before looking Anna up and down with that same smirk, gesturing to Annaâs boots âMu shawa oni ha An-na, shrash?(I make shoes for Anna, yes?)â she asked and gestured to her own boots, then to Annaâs, Anna frowning before realizing that she was offering to make her some shoes instead, Anna nodding with a small smile âshrash, gwarshtaâ she mumbled and Teesha nodded, gesturing outside the small hut for Anna, already seemingly getting ready to make Annaâs new boots, which only warmed Annaâs heart.
Once she exited, she didnât see Tensay, her heart racing but she walked up to one of the Wenja in the tribe with a bashful smile âuh⊠Tensay?â she asked with a wince, the man nodding towards Tensayâs hut across the small stream and Anna nodded with a smile âgwarshtaâ she thanked before leaving for the hut, crossing the small stream over the bridge and walked into Tensayâs tent, who seemed somewhat surprised that she was still wearing her old clothes. âUhm⊠Teesha said sheâd make me some new boots, at least I think thatâs what she said⊠uhmâŠâ Anna gestured down to her boots, a pair that had served her well over the years of traveling through rough terrain and harsh weather, never once failing her, âshe, uh⊠Teesha, shawa oni?â she asked and Tensay hummed and nodded with a grin âTa hawcha palhu wordi. SĂș(You are learning many words. Good.)â he stated casually and Anna smiled, somehow getting the feeling that what heâd said was some kind of compliment âthanks, I thinkâ she muttered before sitting down, getting out her notebook and the worn down pencil, Tensay chuckling lightly, already knowing that she was eager to learn more words, Tensay more than happy to teach her the ways and language of the Wenja.
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It was nearly dusk when there was some sort of commotion outside, Tensay and Anna hurrying outside, just in time to see Takkar lead a large, bulky man towards the caves, the man was clad in fur and skins that seemed to still glisten with blood, as though it was freshly cut off the animal. His figure was large and heavy with broad shoulders. He had more prominent brows, a protruding face, his rib cage was shorter, deeper, and wider, just like his shoulders, the muscle mass seeming to be almost doubled compared to what she saw in everyone else, his stature was hulking and almost slumped over a bit, skin filled with random freckles, Anna following with the others, watching him be pushed into a wooden cage, immediately going for Takkar whoâd closed the wooden gate, the massive man looking around the cage when it didnât break under him, a confused look in his eyes and Anna noticed that his eye sockets appeared a bit larger than normal behind his eyes. He said something before looking at Takkar, Anna turning to look at Tensay as Takkar and the stranger talked. âTensay, whoâs that?â she asked in a whisper, pointing briefly at the new prisoner and Tensay hummed âUdĂĄmâ he revealed in a quiet voice âWinja hadam, aba Ădam hatra palhu Winja(Wenja survive, but Udam eat many Wenja)â he added quietly, Anna frowning at him, slowly beginning to understand more and more of their language, it was becoming easier to pick up on things, especially since Tensay talked a little slower when talking with her, giving her an opportunity to try and keep up. âSo, he eats Wenja⊠a cannibal, wonderfulâ she muttered quietly to herself, watching Takkar turned around to walk away when he noticed Anna and Tensay, Anna giving him a brief smile, Tensay walking over to talk with Takkar and Anna took the opportunity to study the man in the cage. She walked over after a while, seeing both Tensay and Takkar keeping an eye on her as they talked, watching her approach the cage, the large man inside looking down at her with a frown. âHello⊠uhm, Iâm Annaâ she gestured to herself when she said her name, giving him a soft smile before repeating her name as she pointed at herself again, watching him nod hesitantly.
âDahâ he replied quietly, gesturing briefly to himself and she nodded, looking over her shoulder at Takkar and Tensay, giving Takkar a soft smile when he looked at her while Tensay talked. Anna looked back at Dah, getting out her notebook and flipping through the pages, frowning as she looked through the book before settling on a page âuh⊠Ta-... Ta Udam?â she asked, looking up at him and he frowned at her, but ultimately nodded, making Anna nod with a smile, looking back down into her book âhold on, let me justâŠâ she muttered, continuing to flip from page to page âletâs see⊠right, âwhereâ thatâs Kwarim⊠âareâ thatâs-... ha? No, no thatâs âwithâ... uh⊠right kwarim⊠hasa⊠cha⊠bi? No, no that doesnât work⊠harshta is⊠âcome fromâ?â she muttered to herself as she managed to find the words âright, âwhere are you from?â... okayâ she decided, looking back up at Dah âkwarim harshta?â she asked proudly, a grin on her lips as Dah stared blankly at her, still with confusion and she frowned, her smile gone as she looked back into her notebook, scanning through the pages âuh⊠I think I said it right- ah, no, there it isâŠâ she muttered, clearing her throat as she looked up at Dah again âkwarim HASHTA?(where are you from?)â she asked with more confidence, Dah frowning at her âĂdam dijam shash(Udam land is north)â he responded briefly and Anna frowned again, looking into her book and through itâs pages. âUh⊠Udam is Udam, of course⊠uh⊠shash is ânorthâ... Dijam?... I donât think I have thatâŠâ she muttered and mumbled to herself, looking back up at Dah with a pleading look on her face âuh⊠dijam?â she asked with a small wince, Dah looking past her and she turned to see Tensay and Takkar, the first one smirking at her while the latter one was glaring daggers at Dah, arms crossed over his chest. âTensay, uh⊠whatâs Dijam?â she asked quietly, Tensay approached, gesturing around him âsalway Urusis machi buhata Winja dijam, Takkar mash Winja dijam, nay Ădam kwa His-HĂlaxâ he stated slowly, Anna nodded with a forced smile âuh⊠sureâ she muttered, Tensay chuckling lightly, patting her shoulder, his hand resting there as he led her away from Dah and Takkar âMu gwam ha tu, mu sakwa(I teach you, follow me)â he stated confidently, Anna looking over her shoulder at Takkar, finding his eyes already on her and she smiled again, giving him a small wave before continuing with Tensay towards his hut to learn more.
(Warnings: Some awkward and shy Anna, some more tiny fluff, some blood and angst and then some fluff again)
Proto/Wenja in bold
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Anna smiled to herself as she felt the cool water wash away her sweat, dirt and annoyance from her failed hunting of the tree she had tried to hit cleaned from her, eyes closed until she felt eyes on her, turning around and seeing Takkar, a fire already built and ready to be lit, but it wasnât dark yet, the sky bleeding red, pink and orange. Anna motioned for him to come closer, join her in the water and to her surprise, he did. She dived down another time as he got into the water, reemerging with a grin as she wiped the water from her face, turning around to see him in the water to his waist, his v-line prominent and she quickly looked away, flushed that sheâd even noticed that to begin with. She felt the waves of someone walking towards her, turning her head to smile up at Takkar who had walked further out in the water, the water now reaching the mid of his chest. Anna smiled at him and scooped up some water in both hands âwaterâ she stated softly, looking up at him as he did the same, saying a word she didnât understand, saying it slowly but without making her feel like she was stupid, a smile forming on her lips as she repeated the word, Takkar nodding and scooping up some more water. âWad-herâ he gruffed out, a small chuckle leaving Anna as she smiled at him âwaTerâ she stated softly, Takkar grunting before saying it again, this time more coherently and she nodded, repeating the word in his language, âwadarâ which seemed to please him, though she could never truly tell with his usual gruff expression. Another thought hit her and she gently took her wet hair, showing it to him with a smile âhairâ she said softly, Takkar frowning at her as she said it again and gestured to the hair, eventually reaching up and gesturing to her own hair, saying the word again and he seemed to notice, repeating the word surprisingly well given it was his first attempt, stating the word in his own language, âkasaâ he gruffed out, giving a brief nod as she repeated the word.
Anna watched as he took two fingers and tapped them against his mouth, saying the word âlipiâ, a frown forming on Annaâs brows âmouth?â she asked, gesturing to her entire mouth, Takkar shaking his head with a grunt, trying again and when he saw how confused she was, his fingers, without hesitation, reached out and gently tapped her lower lip as he said the word again. She felt her cheeks flush with warmth but she reached up, two fingers of her own laying against his lips as she repeated the word, Takkar nodding without removing his fingers, as though he was waiting for her to tell him what they were called in her language. âLipsâ she stated softly, Takkar surprising her with his thumb replacing his two fingers, gently running along her lower lip in a tender way, far more gentle than she thought possible of a man so rough and stoic.
Anna carefully reached up, thumb gently moving over his eye as he closed them, a smile on her lips âeyesâ she stated softly, Takkar moving his hand from her lip, slowly up her face and her eyes fluttered shut, his thumb stroking over her closed eyelid in a gentle manner, making her lips stretch into a grin as he repeated the word in his own language âeyiâ. As her eyes were closed, she suddenly felt him move closer, his free hand carefully circling her waist, surprising her, her eyes opening as his hand moved away, back down to her lips as he unashamedly pulled her closer against his chest. His thumb gently stroked over her bottom lip, dark eyes looking down at her, her heart skipping beats every time his thumb swiped over her bottom lip, back and forth. She almost leaned into his touch, her heart racing with excitement, but just before she leaned up and kissed him, she drew back, her cheeks turning red and she stepped out of his embrace, giving him a soft smile before wrapping her arms around herself uncomfortably âitâs coldâ she lied with a feigned smile, beginning to turn back to the shore, keeping her head a little low and her arms still around her. As she walked, she heard the water splash as Takkar followed her to shore.
After she had gotten redressed, Takkar being unashamedly naked in front of her as he did the same until he was fully clothed, with her shyly avoiding looking at him, she was sitting by the now lit fire, knees pulled up to her chest, arms wrapped around them and her chin resting atop her knees as she looked into the flames. She was sitting next to Takkar, happy that her withdrawing from him in the water hadnât caused him to keep his distance, and out of nowhere he stood up, offering her a hand, as she had done to him, and pulling her to her feet, sitting her down on a nearby log, a little further from the fire. He kneeled at her side, facing the sand as he began to draw primitive drawings as he began to speak.
âWinja gwash palhu mooni kwa suns. Winja gwash. Mas gwash. Winja swagarti. Nay hatra. Nay wadar. Tigri kwa wal chanti marshi Winja. Nu UdĂĄm chanti swar Winja. (Wenja walk under moon and sun. Wenja walk. Always walk. Wenja turn sick. No food. No water. Tigers and wolves kill many Wenja. Now Udam come to bring death to Wenja.)â Takkar spoke softly as he drew in the sand, pointing to his seashell bracelet whenever he said the name of his tribe, âWenjaâ. When he said âTigriâ he gestured with his hands like he had large fangs protruding from his upper jaw, like a sabertooth tiger. âWalâ was gestured with his hands up by his head, like ears, like a dog or wolf. âMooniâ was made with a gesture towards the moon in the night sky, after which he drew more than one moon in the sand, indicating that the word meant more than one moon, âwanaâ was gestured with the way he signaled âhuntâ. âHatraâ he gestured towards his mouth, like he was eating. Anna couldnât help but smile and nod, reaching for the sand, drawing three waves representing water âwadarâ she stated softly and pointed at the water in the nearby lake theyâd just been in, Takkar giving a nod, and she swore, under that tough and stoic exterior, under that serious and tangled beard of his, she saw his lips pull up in a small smile.
A thought struck her and she turned to him, remembering how she had thanked them after waking up âthank youâ she did the same gesture, Takkar frowning lightly at her but when she gestured to him, he seemed to understand. âGwarshtaâ he gruffed out and Anna smiled even more, nodding to herself. âGwarshta, wanaâ she got out, Takkar smirking lightly under his thick beard at her as he nodded âgwarshta um hawcha um wana(Thank you, you showed me hunting)â he corrected and Anna nodded with a smile, repeating the phrase in the appropriate way.
She turned back to the sand and gently brushed away the other drawings, making a small drawing of a wolf, as best as she could, gesturing to it and looking at Takkar âwolfâ she stated softly, Takkar nodding âwufâ he stated confidently and she chuckled lightly âwoLfâ she corrected softly and smiled at him as he tried again, saying it somewhat correctly, making her nod and grin at him. âYes, wolf. Walâ she muttered with a small smirk, Takkar nodding at her. She spent only god knows how long with him, learning different words and phrases, both of them learning the other personâs language, slowly. He was a surprisingly fast learner, catching onto a lot of words, it was the pronunciation he struggled the most with and even that wasnât even that big of a problem. It was only when the moon was high in the sky that Anna even fell asleep, Takkar staying awake as she slept soundly next to the fire, his eyes on her as he studied her. She was different, of course, but in a way he hadnât seen before. Her clothes, her language, her expressions, the way she walked and held herself, it was unlike anything he had even come close to seeing, and although he wanted to see her reaction, he hadnât yet shown her the animals he had tamed.
Anna woke up to the sounds of a twig snapping, her eyes opening and without moving too much, she looked around, trying to find Takkar but all she saw was a burnt out campfire that had turned to ash hours before sheâd woke up. She listened as she pretended to sleep, the sound coming from behind her, like someone was sneaking up on her. She felt your heart race and the second she felt something sharp poke her back, she rolled over and grabbed whatever it was, scurrying away and ripping the thing from the hands of whoever had sneaked up on her. She turned the spear around and pointed the sharp end at the stranger in front of her, dressed in heavy furs and bones, his face almost reminding her of the face of a Neanderthal and the faces that had been created from their skulls and bone structure, a wild look in the manâs eyes as he growled at her, a sort of club in his hands instead of the spear she had snatched from him. He made himself large as he growled, almost as though he was trying to intimidate her. âWenja?â she asked quickly, if he was Wenja, she didnât want to hurt him, not that she could hurt someone that size if it hadnât been for the spear she was holding, but if he was Wenja, this could be a mistake, a misunderstanding, but she knew when he laughed that it wasnât a mistake. âMu Ădam, Winja hasa lasiwaâ the man growled and she swallowed thickly, softly shaking her head at him as he took a few steps towards her, her own feet stepping back as he advanced and when he raised the club, she leaped forward, eyes shut tightly as she heard a grunt, someone wheezing for air and when she opened her eyes, she saw that the spear she was holding had pierced his chest when she had leaped forward with it. Her eyes went wide at the blood that was spilling out of him, even with the spear still stuck in his chest, and she pulled it out, stepping back nervously, waiting for him to fall to the ground but he didnât. The man seemed almost like it had only fueled his anger, he jumped towards her again but she used the spear to smack him over the head like she was auditioning for the Colorado Rockies as she stepped aside, watching him fall to the ground and without hesitation she pierced his chest with the spear, pinning him to the ground below.
Anna stepped back in shock as he began to grunt and wheeze, her eyes wide as she stumbled to a nearby log, sitting down, her eyes locked on him as he stared at her as he fought to keep breathing. His bloody hand slowly reached for her and it was like he was asking for help, asking her to pull the spear out of him, to help him up, yet she was frozen, eyes wide as she stared at him while he reached for her, his hand eventually growing limp, his last breath leaving his body as he laid still, motionless, no longer heaving for air or trying to wiggle free. Anna was so caught up in what the hell had just happened that when something touched her shoulder, she pulled back, jumping away, ripping the spear out of the man pinned to the ground and pointing it at whatever had touched her shoulder, lowering once she saw that it was Takkar with some birds over his shoulder. Anna looked down at the spear and quickly let go of it, looking at the dead corpse and suddenly she felt sick, her knees weak as she covered her mouth with her hand, trying to resist the urge to throw up, gagging and turning away from the sight, eyes closed tightly.
Anna continued to feel sick, her back facing Takkar as she placed a hand on her hip, the other hand still covering her mouth, though not as intently anymore. âJesus ChristâŠâ she murmured at the realization of what had just happened. Sheâd just killed someone. Sheâd stuck a spear through them and watched them die a slow and probably painful death. She heard careful steps approach her, glancing at Takkar before looking down in shock. âSam gwan UdĂĄm tar?(Your first Udam kill?)â he asked in a surprisingly soft voice, her eyes meeting his as she frowned, Takkar gesturing to the dead man and then raising a single finger to indicate one, so she guessed he was asking if it was her first time taking a life or just her first time killing an Udam. Anna nodded softly and cleared her throat, daring to look back at the man before running a hand over her face and looking away again. âYeah, I uh⊠Jesus Christâ she couldnât even finish her own sentence, her stomach twisting and turning as she continued to look away from the corpse. âFuckâ she muttered before turning around, gathering her journal before standing up, looking down at the dead man, eyes closing briefly before she kneeled down, hand gently over his face as she shut his open eyes, standing back up and nodding to herself, gesturing towards the Wenja camp âWenja?â she asked, Takkar giving a brief nod and a grunt, making her nod and sigh, her feet carrying her towards the camp with Takkar closely following her. As they arrived, Takkar spoke with the woman he had called Sayla, the woman looking at Anna with shock before looking back at Takkar, taking his hand in hers as she said something, a desperate look in her eyes. Takkar glanced at Anna and she felt her cheeks burn, her gaze quickly lowering to the ground as she let them finish their talk.
Anna flinched as someone touched her shoulder, head turning to look at Tensey, his hand leaving her shoulder as he nodded towards his tent, leading her into it and gesturing to the ground for her to sit, so she did. Tensey sat across from her , the fire in between the two of them as he was on his knees, mixing some kind of concoction in a small bowl, grinding herbs, berries and leaves. âTa pash Winja warha, ta pash Urus warha. Mu hawcha ta, ta hawcha mu(You learn the heart of Wenja, you learn the heart of Oros. I teach you, you teach me)â he stated confidently, looking up at her, taking in her confused expression and suddenly he moved closer without ever really getting up, almost like he was crawling over to her. âTaâ he pointed to her, making her frown, hesitantly pointing at herself, âme?... you?â she asked, pointing to him, âuh⊠ta?â she stated and pointed to him, Tensey nodding with a smirk, a small smile forming on her face as she let out a heavy breath as she nodded at him. âTa wal?â she asked, pointing at him then the wolf fur, Tensey chuckling as he nodded âshrash, shrash. Ta pash nu, ta pash Winja. Mu hawcha ta, ta hawcha mu(Yes, yes. You learn now, you learn Wenja. I teach you, you teach me)â he said and gestured to Anna, nodding at her, making her slowly nod at him in return. âUh⊠sure?â she asked, Tensey laughing as he nodded before sitting down properly beside her, a sense of excitement and eagerness to his one blue eye as he stared at her.
âTa hasa tigriâ he stated with amusement as he gestured to Anna, a look of shock and amusement mixing on her face as she pointed at herself, eyebrows raised to make sure she had understood him. âMe? Tigri?â she asked, Tensey nodding, making her chuckle. âNoâ she shook her head, Tensey laughing as he nodded âshrashâ he stated and she laughed again, shaking her head, pointing at herself âme? Smallâ she gestured with her hands closing together, Tensey laughing as he tried to pronounce âsmallâ, getting it almost right on the first try. âManuâ Tensey stated slowly, doing the same gesture as her, nodding when she said the word while gesturing âsmallâ, a victorious grin on her lips. âTa, ta bal(You, you strong)â he stated almost as though reaffirming the idea âTensay bal. Takkar bal. Ta bal shawi(Tensay strong. Takkar strong. You strong also)â he almost sounded like he was trying to cheer her up, making her shake her head and chuckle âMe, manu. Manu, like⊠uh⊠manu birdâ she gestured with her hands as wings, Tensey doing a quick âahâ as he nodded, saying the word âbirdâ roughly as he nodded. âShawiâ he said roughly, nodding as she pronounced it. âMe, manu shawiâ she stated and pointed at herself, then pointing at Tenseyâs chest âta, wal. Takkar, tigriâ she roughly got out, Tensey nodding and laughing, patting her shoulder, clearly having a great time with her.
âManu shawi, bal warhaâ he stated with amusement as he pointed to her chest right over her heart and Anna chuckled, having no idea what the hell he was talking about except for âsmall birdâ, but he seemed to be having fun while trying to cheer her up a little. âTa, ta hasa shlawdra shanti. Ta bal, Takkar bal. Ta hasa tigri Takkarâi(You, you are wild spirit. You strong, Takkar strong. You are Takkarâs tiger)â he stated through his laughter, Annaâs cheeks burning as he smirked at her, like he had said something that would merit a little embarrassment. âTa, ta kwa Takkar?â he asked and she frowned softly, gesturing to herself, âme? And Takkar?â she asked softly, Tensey smirking at her as he nodded and instantly she knew what he had asked, cheeks burning with heat as she shook her head and looked down, an awkward smile on her lips âUh, no, I uh⊠I think Iâm a bit too-... soft? I-I donât knowâ she mumbled, forgetting that he didnât understand a word of what sheâd just said. She looked down with a frown before looking back up at him, pointing at herself. âMe? Manu. Ta, Takkar, Sayla, taâŠ. uh.. strong? Big?â She asked with the same frown, doing the opposite of when sheâd gestured âsmallâ, Tensey humming and nodding, doing the same gesture âmajishâ he stated in a soft voice, making her nod a little. She pointed to herself âmanu,â then to him âmajish,â then towards the entrance to the tent, gesturing to the other Wenja outside âWinja majishâ She muttered softly, a frown on her brows as she saw him nod with an almost sympathetic look to him. Tensey turned to the sand underneath them both, drawing a stick figure man, saying Takkarâs name as he pointed at it, only continuing once she nodded her understanding. âTakka hasa bal(Takkar is strong),â he gripped his bicep roughly, baring his teeth briefly and she nodded softly. So, âbalâ meant âstrongâ. Tensey then pointed to the stick figureâs chest before his own âmu gwan warha. SĂș warha(I see heart. Good heart)â Tensey stated with small exasperation, pointing to where his heart was with a soft expression, making Anna nod softly and look down. âSometimes a good heart doesnât matter, sometimes it just makes things worseâ she mumbled softly, Tensey patting her shoulder gently as though he had understood her words completely.
Suddenly the tent flap was opened and Takkar entered, Annaâs eyes landing on him and she gave him a soft smile as he approached and kneeled in front of her, Tensey having moved out of the way and left the tent. âMuâ he pointed at his chest, making Anna frown until she got an idea of what he was trying to say, pointing to him âta?â she asked, Takkar nodding âmu wana Ădam, mu hayam(I hunt Udam, I go),â he gestured walking with his two fingers, continuing once sheâd nodded âim panku suns, mu gwan tu apa(in five suns, I see you again)â he gruffed out, a small frown on Annaâs face and he shuffled a little closer, gesturing to himself, then the walk, then he held up a hand, fingers splayed out, all five of them and she nodded, he then drew a sun in the sand as he said itâs word in his language, then drawing four more, showing her five suns in total as he said the word again. âIn five sunsâ, so, five days. He then gestured to himself again and then pointed away from them both before bringing his arm back in a smooth motion, a nod leaving Anna once again. He was leaving, either for five days and then heâd return, or itâd take five days in total. âI understandâ she stated softly, nodding at him and he gave a brief nod. âMu shlaka Winja, Winja gwam bal, Tensay hawcha ta wordi(I gather Wenja, Wenja get strong, Tensay teaches you words)â his voice was so soft as he spoke, one of his calloused hands cupping Annaâs cheek, she could feel the different scars and scrapes, the tough skin and hardened structure of his hand that had adapted to his style of living. âBe safeâ she murmured, Takkar not saying anything in return, probably not understanding what she said. âTa, uh⊠ta gwash panku suns, ta⊠uh⊠come back?â she asked with a wince, Takkar frowning at her and she looked off to the side, searching her mind for what little words she understood. âUh⊠ta gwash panku suns(you walk five suns)⊠then, uh⊠ta guarma⊠apa?(you come⊠again?)â she asked with another wince. Every now and then, Guarma seemed to mean âcomeâ or âcome withâ or something like that, maybe itâd mean âcome backâ as wellâŠ
Takkar nodded with a grunt and Anna nodded with a sigh of relief, sheâd definitely have to learn more words before heâd come back. âBe safeâ Anna stated softly, Takkar nodding as though he understood, his hand still on her cheek and she gave him a soft smile before gesturing to outside the tent with a nod of her head, Takkar nodding before getting up, leaving, quiet words being exchanged outside the tent, Tensay entering soon after with a grin, seemingly ready for something and if the way he got out different paints was any hint, he was either getting ready for a make-over or itâd be to better communicate, drawing instead of guessing the meaning of words, which meant heâd be teaching her more words, much to Annaâs excitement.
(Warnings: angst, blood, mentions of being shot and a slightly fluffy ending)
A/N: I am aware that this will not be popular or read at all, itâs basically self indulgent but for those few out there who are like me and a total slut for Takkar, here you go lol.
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Climbing over sharp rocks, hiking for miles and miles in the worst terrain, rationing food, sleeping in tents, her strawberry blonde hair sticking to her forehead after being tugged loose from the tight braid itâd been in, all for this. This exact moment. Anna felt excitement rush through her at the sight of the cave, her blue eyes wide in wonder as she quickly got out her camera, taking a picture of the marvel before her. One of the most well preserved, undisturbed and unknown caves in history. Every single lead, hint, clue and legend pointed to this exact spot, at least by her calculations, and here they were. She heard a small grunt from behind her, turning around to see her assistant, Horace, struggling to climb up the relatively small ledge. She approached and helped him up, patting his shoulder and turning to the cave ahead, gesturing to it. Anna didnât wait for his reaction, instead walking closer to the cave, a brand new notebook out as she wrote down nearly every detail she saw, every thought and theory she had, mind racing, her hand desperately trying to keep up as she got closer and closer to the cave. âWhatâs so special about this shit again?â Horace asked, out of breath, but she barely paid attention to his struggles, daringly venturing inside the cave at a very slow pace, so she wouldnât miss anything. âIf my calculations are right, this should be a cave occupied by the Wenja tribe⊠one of the most well known tribes yet we donât really know anything about them except that they were here⊠their culture, their beliefs⊠They called this land âOrosâ, if Iâm translating it correctly, and itâs theorized that theyâre one of the first tribes to ever have a civilized and cultural language with nuances and depthâ Anna muttered to herself, walking over to a particular cave painting near the entrance, frowning softly at the almost demonizing picture, a black horned, broad, menacing figure engulfed in red flames, a red handprint on itâs chest, a chill running down her spine as she began to draw it in her notebook, her thoughts written down next to the drawing. âWas this an enemy or were they worshiped? Perhaps a leader? A demon of sorts?â
She slowly moved further into the cave, her hand gently running over the cold stone as she walked further into the cave, unaware of Horaceâs halted steps, his eyes lingering on Anna as he let himself sag behind, watching her go further and further into the cave. âHoly shit! Horace! Weâve found it!â Anna shouted as she entered an open space in the cave, rocks carved in the sides like small shrines and altars, paintings depicting different things were everywhere, her heart racing with excitement and satisfaction. Sheâd found it. Sheâd fucking found it and those assholes at the university could suck it.
She hurriedly took a few pictures before drawing one of the particular drawings that caught her eye, a man amidst beasts. An owl, a bear and other animals that had been smudged out over the years, Annaâs heart racing as she carefully reached out for it, fingers dancing along the male figure, her heart skipping a beat when she felt an almost electric shock run through her fingertips, a frown forming on her brows as she quickly pulled her hand away, looking down at her fingertips before hurriedly getting out her notebook and writing down the experience. As she looked further around the cave, she noticed another painting of another figure, this one seemed to be a woman, sitting cross legged, arms raised above her head, the same beasts from the previous drawing surrounding her and at the top, above her raised hands, was a tiny figure, a small human⊠a child, a strange sense coursing through her as she stepped closer, studying the drawing of the child closely, noting that the previous figure, the male surrounded by the beasts, was off to the side, facing the woman and the child, spear raised, almost as though hailing the child, the beasts following and hailing that child as well. Anna quickly got out her notebook again and her new pencil, instantly re-drawing what was in front of her before adding her own notes off to the side of the drawing, two pages each, each one dedicated to the drawings, one of the man and one of the woman and child, her notes about the drawings written next to them. In the bottom corner of the drawing of the man surrounded by beasts sheâd written; âWho was this? A God? A deity? A leader? Maybe a spirit of some sort?â
By the woman with the child, sheâd written; âWho was this? A goddess or a matron of some sort? Perhaps that child was some sort of heir? A miracle maybe, or some destined leader?â She looked over her notes before nodding to herself, lowering her notebook and putting the pencil in her back pocket, kneeling down as she took off her backpack and began to dig through it, getting out her camera and taking pictures of the cave paintings.
When Anna realized that Horace never responded to her call, she turned around, packing away her camera. âHorace? Donât tell me youâve gotten lost alreadyâ she called out in a joking tone, though she didnât feel like joking around, and certainly not with him. Horace was annoying, lazy, dumb as hell, didnât give a shit about archeology, creepy, pushy and didnât take no for an answer. He was a narcissist through and through, he hated working for a woman and he hated footwork most of all. In short: he wanted all the glory without working for it. Like most men at the university she went to. Hell, even some of the women didnât want to work for it, they wanted the title of âfirst female archeologist to:â something-something, either sleeping, bribing or cheating their way to the top. And then there was Alice. One of the brightest students Anna knew, and one of the smartest minds at that university, hard working, diligent, trustworthy and kind, her boyfriend luckily being made of the same sturdy material. They were a rarity that Anna quite enjoyed, even now, having discovered one of the greatest archeological finds pertaining to the start of human civilization, she regretted that they werenât with her, that every hardworking student, male or female, was with her on this. Instead, she got Horace.
âHorace? Iâm serious, where the hell-â
âRight hereâ Anna jumped at the sound of his voice, standing up and turning around to find him with a gun pointed at her, a small scoff leaving her lips âreally? A gun? What is this, The Last Crusade?â she asked with annoyance as she turned back around to zip up her backpack, locking the combination lock around the zippers before standing up with her backpack hanging in her hand, Horace smirking at her as he walked closer, leading her backwards until her back met with the cave wall, stopping her, though it didnât stop Horace, the gun still pointed at her as he stopped barely a foot away from her. âGive me the camera and your journal-â
âNo-â
âGIVE IT TO MEâ the way his voice echoed in the cave made her flinch, the fear of having a gun pointed at her finally started to seep through, yet she just glared at him. âIâd rather die than letting your lazy ass place your name on this! Iâve worked so hard for this, I did all the calculations, I did all the planning, I was the one to figure all of this out! You havenât earned shitâ she spat in anger and she knew it was stupid. Giving him the camera and journal would probably spare her life, and yet she clung to her backpack, thinking it over, eyeing the gun, before sighing, raising her free hand to show she wasnât doing anything stupid as she kneeled down. She unlocked the lock around the zippers and dug through her backpack, getting out the camera, zipping her backpack back up again and locking it. âYou can have the camera, okay? I-It has all the proof, all the pictures and videos, okay? You can have it, you can have the filmâ she offered softly, watching Horace nod, it wasnât everything he wanted, but it was proof, he never knew what she wrote in her journal so to him, this was the one proof above all. Anna nodded and slowly turned, putting her backpack on properly as turned, putting the camera on one of the small carved out rock shelves to take out the film.
Anna carefully placed her notebook in between two surfaces, hiding it as best as she could before taking out the film from the camera, turning back to face Horace, the film in her hand but just as he reached for it, she tore it apart, glaring at Horace as she ruined any chance of salvaging the evidence. Horace jumped at her in anger, hitting her across the face with the gun, knocking her to the ground, lining up the pistol but she jumped at him, tackling him and fighting for the gun and somehow, the trigger was pulled in the struggle, a blinding pain coursing through her right side as she screamed out in pain and rolled off of Horace, fighting against the pain as she stood up, slinging off her backpack and using it to hit him across the face, grabbing her notebook as she ran away as quickly as possible while Horace was still in shock, as though he truly hadnât expected her to actually go for the gun, or that it'd go off in the first place. She ducked behind a large stalagmite with an old altar-like structure carved out in front of it, clinging her notebook to her chest with one hand, her backpack next to her and she clung to the strap, no way in fucking hell sheâd let him have that, hearing Horaceâs hurried footsteps come closer and she instantly held her breath, her body shaking with fear, her heart racing so fast she worried heâd be able to hear it. She watched his shadow as he stopped, looking around, turning side to side to find her. âFuck⊠fuck fuck fuck!! Shit⊠fuck itâ Horace muttered, his voice shaky like he just realized what heâd done, the consequences of it, and like the coward heâs always been, he ran.
Annaâs vision began to blur as she heard him running out of the cave, leaving her there as she continued to bleed, sitting against the stalagmite, her mind hazy and not even really registering where the bullet landed, all she knew was that it was her right side, the shooting pain, the burning, all the blood, it prevented her mind from registering exactly where itâd hit her. An artery, a vein, organs, she didnât know, her mind too hazy and tired to try and figure it out. She reached for her backpack with shaky and bloody hands, undoing the lock and getting out her Garmin inReach mini 2, her hands staining the device as she sent out an emergency SOS signal.
Just when she thought it was it, her eyelids heavy with exhaustion, she heard what sounded like a spark being lit. She dared to lean to the side, looking out from behind her cover, a frown forming as she saw a spark spring from the rock wall. She somehow managed to pull herself to her feet, limping over, watching another spark emerge from thin air against the stone wall, like someone was striking the wall, creating sparks. As another spark appeared, she flinched at the close proximity, the sparks appearing from the cave painting of the woman and child that sheâd noted earlier. She lifted a shaking and bloody hand, flinching back as there was yet another spark, hesitating before touching the wall, feeling a sharp and burning pain rush through her, her muscles tensing, burning, searing, a pain almost like being shot again and she slumped against the rock wall to the ground as her eyes closed before she even had a chance to register what had happened.
Anna could hear birds chirping, voices muffled by something, her back no longer on the harsh stone surface of the cave she had passed out in, instead feeling the soft feeling of furs beneath her and her first thought was her notebook, if Horace had come back and found her, found it, the second thought was wondering where she was, last she knew, the entire canyon where she had found the cave was isolated from humans, few people knew of it, mostly elders in nearby villages, and they wanted to keep it hidden, guiding scholars and tourists alike away from it, steering them in the wrong direction. Anna slowly opened her eyes, wincing at the pain she felt, her hand reaching down, fingers running over a leaf that covered her right side. She turned her head down and looked at it as much as she could, groaning in pain when she tried to sit up, her body heavy and numb with pain.
Just as she was about to try and sit up again, she heard voices and footsteps, her eyes finally scanning her surroundings, frowning at how much it looked like a tent from the stone age. She looked towards the sounds of people as a flap opened, revealing two people who stared at her, their language unknown to her, foreign, clumsy even. The two men stared at her, one of them wearing some sort of wolf fur on his head, the fur stretching down his back, almost like he was part wolf. He had some sort of black and white paint over his eyes and mouth, streaks of white paint covering his body here and there, chipping off as though it had been dry for months without being reapplied, he carried a stick of some sort and was skinny, one of his eyes pale and possibly blind, antlers attached to the back of the wolfâs head. He had white paint painted down his front, along his ribs, white paint stretched across his arms, some sort of sea shell bracelet tied around one of his upper arms and around his waist as a belt, holding a bundle of furs around his hips as his only clothing, he looked old and weathered, like he had seen things one could only dream of, like he had lived for far longer than what should be possible. The second one was much taller and much more muscular, he had an almost âlumberjackâ beard, thick dark brown hair that was tied back in dreadlocks. He wore fur around his broad shoulders, a necklace of what seemed like sharp teeth or fangs hung around his collarbone. He had a brooding look to him, a white streak of paint down his forehead to his nose, two dots of white paint above his eyebrows and a line of paint in his beard under his lips. Around his wrists and some of his forearms he had skins and fur wrapped around them, the same kind of sea shells as a bracelet around one of his wrists. From the waist down he was clad in the same kind of fur and skin, all the way to the heavy boots or shoes the skins had been made into, his chest bare and hairy with a white handprint on his upper chest, one on each pectoral with streaks lower down, like someone had wiped their hands with the paint there, some sort of horn hanging by his hips in the front, a quiver of arrows hanging from his right hip and a string over his chest holding something in place that Anna werenât quite sure what was.
The language they spoke was rough, unfamiliar and nowhere near any language sheâd ever heard before, the tallest one about to approach when she held a hand out and shuffled away from him, unsure of where she was, who they were and why she was there. âDonât come any closerâ she snapped, the two men exchanging confused glances before looking back at her. Seemingly recognising her fear, the tallest one kneeled down, almost like he was about to crawl around on the floor, one hand reached towards her to show her he had no weapons, the other hand was gestured at himself âTakkarâ he kept repeating, a confused frown on Annaâs brows as she studied him, heart leaping up into her throat as she tried to calm herself down. âTakkar?â she asked softly, the man nodding with a gruff grunt of affirmation. He gestured to the man behind him, the one clad in wolfâs fur, spouting out another word âTensay.â
Anna looked at the other one as Takkar said the name, nodding softly as she carefully pointed at him âTensay? Heâs Tensay?â she asked softly, the man in front of her, Takkar, nodding before then carefully inching closer, gesturing to his chest. âTakkar. Takkarâ he stated softly and Anna nodded, pointing to her chest âAnna. My name is Annaâ she informed, the two men frowning, looking at each other before Takkar looked back at her, trying to pronounce her name and failing, a tiny smile forming on her lips as she shook her head and said her name more slowly, Takkar catching on and saying her name again, this time somewhat correctly.
âI donât know where I am⊠am I still in the Carpathian Mountains?â she asked softly, glancing between the two men who didnât seem to understand, a frown forming on Annaâs brows as she looked off to the side, trying to think of a way to communicate with them. âUh⊠am-... Anna in Kyrat?â she asked slowly as she tried her hand at what she knew of American sign language, the two men still unsure and she sighed again, this time with a deeper frown, until a thought struck her. She gestured at herself as she spoke, then gestured to the ground âAnna, Oros?â she asked, the two of them nodding and she sighed, running a hand over her face in frustration, only to wince in pain in her side, her eyes finding the source of the pain in her side, fingers daringly brushing over the broad and long leaf that covered her side. âShitâŠâ she murmured. âWell, at least it wasnât a headshotâ she thought. âFucking HoraceâŠâ she murmured, looking around before forcing her numb body to stand up, wincing and clutching her side in pain but she forced a smile at them, awkwardly gesturing to her side and bowing her head. âThank youâ she stated softly, looking up at them, hoping they recognised what she was trying to do, and it seemed they did, both of them giving a brief nod and she found her eyes lingering on Takkar. He had a rugged, brooding aura about him but it made him quite attractive, in a feral, primal sort of way, her cheeks blushing at the thought as she looked down and cleared her throat. âThank you, for your help, but I have to go... I must goâ she stated slowly and softly, slowly walking around the two of them and outside the tent, only to halt completely.
This was nowhere near where she was with Horace, yet it was the exact same spot, except she wasnât in the cave sheâd found, she was almost directly across from it on the other side of some running water. The vegetation was far more prominent, bushes, flowers, small trees, vines, leaves, everything that hadnât been there before. Tents were raised around the mouth of the cave and further down a small hill that hadnât been there before, the hill having replaced the ledge she had been forced to crawl up on, or maybe it had been the ledge that had replaced the hill? There was a small stream of water running that separated the tent she had been in from the rest of the other tents, smoke rising from small campfires scattered here and there. It was practically everything the stone age had been pointed out to be. And it was beautiful in some sort of odd way. Anna felt a presence beside her, turning and looking up at Takkar who watched the people buzz about, a sort of pride and warmth radiating from him as he watched the people relax in their home, in and around their tents, talking amidst each other. âI-.... holy shit⊠is-... how the hell is this possible?â she muttered to herself, turning to look up at Takkar once more, finding his brooding eyes already locked on her and she swallowed thickly, hesitantly gesturing to the campsite and small village. âWenja?â she asked softly, Takkar seemingly taking a long breath, as though he was somewhat surprised that she had heard of the tribe, her knowledge putting him a little on guard, but he gave a gruff nod, her eyes returning to the tents. âEither this is some fever dream or-... I-...â she couldnât even finish that sentence, her eyes landing on Takkar before back on the cave, a frown on her brows as she hurried over the passing, hearing Takkar follow her as she walked through the crowds of people, trying to ignore their stares and hushed whispers as she entered the cave. She walked directly over to where she had passed out, hesitating, praying and begging to whatever god or entity that brought her that they brought her backpack, and if not that, then at least her notebook. She looked over the cave in the area, eyes scanning along the stone floor, dread filling her when she didnât see it. âAn-naâ Takkar gruffed out and she spun around, seeing Takkar reach behind him, taking out her notebook. It was a bit bloody and dirty, but it was the exact notebook. She hurriedly took it from him, letting out a heavy breath of relief that she hadnât even noticed that she was holding. It was better than nothing.
As she heard approaching footsteps, she halted upon seeing a woman with severed ears around her neck, Annaâs hands clutching her journal tightly against her chest as the woman slowly advanced on Anna, Annaâs feet stepping backwards with every step the woman took towards her. Anna moved her eyes down the womanâs arm to her hand, spotting a sharp dagger of some sort and Anna felt her heart leap all the way up into her throat, fear evident in her eyes and just before the woman struck, someone grabbed her arm. Anna looked up as Takkar stepped forward, the woman ripping her arm out of his grasp, turning to him, pointing the dagger at Anna while she spoke with Takkar, yet he didnât seem fazed. Anna caught onto a word the woman seemed to respond to, âSaylaâ, the woman glaring at Anna before leaving, Takkar turning back to Anna and she hesitantly opened the journal, flipping through the pages until she landed on her drawings of those sheâd found in the cave, before everything that led her here, with these people. She carefully handed it to Takkar, showing it to him and holding open the journal as she pointed at the different drawings she had made of sights she had seen or cave paintings she had found or relics she had dug out of ruins. He seemed quite enamored with it, eyes locking onto the different paintings and drawings, barely noticing the words written near them or beside them.
He looked back up at her and nodded for her to follow him, which she did, leading her to a small area of some sort, a bedding on the ground and it seemed almost like an open bedroom of some strange sort. He picked up something and when he turned around to show it, Annaâs breath was almost stolen away. She hurried over as quickly as she could, grabbing the backpack from him, examining it closely before holding it, and her notebook, close against her chest, sighing in relief.
--------------------------------------
Five weeks had passed and slowly, very slowly, Anna was coming to terms with her reality. She didnât have reception and when she pulled out her phone there was no cell service. Her Garmin inReach mini 2 wasnât any better, the only thing it was good for right now would be as a paperweight or a substitute for a rock in a slingshot. Her backpack was intact, somehow, and everything in it seemed to work fine, but there wasnât much use for any of the things in it, not right now, right here. She had no need for a multitool, she didnât need a thermal blanket, durable windproof clothes, extra socks, extra underwear- well okay, yeah, maybe that one. But in general, the survivalist things in her backpack werenât needed. The only thing that was being used was the notebook and spare notebooks she had with her, along with spare pencils and a pencil sharpener. And to make things even more weird, the drawing of the woman and child that sheâd seen before, the one that just⊠almost called to her⊠it was gone. Sheâd checked all over the cave and it was nowhere to be seen, like someone hadnât drawn it yetâŠ
She was currently sitting near the water, a little ways from the small village, eyes closed with her face turned towards the sun, sitting in the grass and gently picking at the straws. It was blissful. A moment of calm that was crushed at the sound of heavy footsteps. Her eyes opened and she turned to look around, eyes finding Takkar as he approached, a spear in his hand and the usual stone-faced look as his default emotion it seemed. She gave him a brief smile before looking down at the grass, running her fingers through it. It felt softer than the grass from her own time, or world, or home, or wherever she had been compared to now. There was no moss making the ground soft but it felt like it, everything seemed more at peace. âAn-naâ her name was gruffed out, the pronunciation that Takkar, and the others to be honest, used for her, her eyes landing on Takkar who was still standing there and after a brief moment of thought, she patted the space on the grass next to her, a silent invitation that he seemed to understand, placing his spear near him as he sat down, legs crossed like her. His eyes were still on her and it was almost endearing, the way he studied her, like she was a fascinating new creature he wanted to learn everything about, it almost made her believe he was interested in her, men apparently hadnât developed all that much when it came to approaching women, staring was one of the things that didnât seem to have changed. âAn-na,â she looked at Takkar as he gruffed out her name again, looking at him as he motioned to her, Anna finding an odd understanding of what he was trying to say and she nodded, answering his question. âTakkarâ now it was her turn to ask him, her hands gesturing to him in the same way after saying his name, âyou ok?â she asked aloud while she signed, Takkar giving a brief nod and she nodded with a smile.
âAn-na hunt?â he gruffed out and she looked at him, a shocked look on her face that he had already picked up on her language, a little bit, and she smiled, gesturing to his spear and the bow on his back âhunt?â she asked, using the proper sign for it, but seeing his confusion, she nodded to herself and decided to make it more obvious, drawing her hand back as though shooting a bow, only briefly, before lowering her hands, Takkar nodding and she gave him a sad smile before shaking her head âno, but I can shoot a gunâ she admitted as she signed, motioning her hand like a gun, her thumb coming down twice like she shot it, Takkar frowning as he stared at her. âG-nâ he gruffed out, a small chuckle leaving her âGun, gUnâ she helped him pronounce it until he got it, a nod and a smile being his confirmation that he said it correctly, and that he had learned the proper sign for it. âYou⊠hunt?â There was a longer pause between the words and Anna frowned, thinking it over before narrowing her eyes âyou want to teach me?â she asked before realizing that he didnât understand that. âUh.. hold onâ she held up a finger and got out her journal, flipping to a fresh page and drawing a rough sketch of him behind her, helping her pull back a bow, like he was teaching her, and she showed it to him. Takka nodded and gestured to it âhuntâ he stated roughly, awkwardly making the sign for âhuntâ that she had made before, a small nod leaving her as she packed away her journal and stood up, offering Takkar a hand. He didnât need it, she knew that, but it felt polite, yet he stared at it with curiosity and confusion.
He slowly placed his hand in hers and she stepped back, effectively pulling him up, Takka studying her, his hand still firmly grasped in hers and her cheeks began to burn at the lingering touch. He didnât seem to mind, instead lifting her hand and inspecting her palm, which was much softer and smaller than his, even though it had been through years of hard work. He inspected her hand closer before lifting it up, palm facing him and slowly he placed one of his hands over it, Annaâs cheeks continuing to grow hotter and hotter, the entire thing feeling intimate as he stood with his hand against hers, palm facing her palm and his fingers, gently locked through her spread ones, the feeling making her breath hitch a little and he noticed, frowning, one of his hands reaching towards her cheek, the back of his fingers brushing over her cheek, feeling the warmth that had flooded in them. He frowned and tilted his head a little at her, as though he was wondering if she was sick or if something else had caused them to be so warm. âI-I uh⊠t-this is a bit intimate, isnât it?â Anna asked awkwardly, glancing at his hand interlocked with hers before looking back up at him. âWhat about⊠what about hunt?â she asked softly, watching him as he almost seemed to realize he had forgotten about it, his hand softly letting go of hers and he bent down, picking up his spear and nodding, gesturing for her to follow him, and she did, after letting out a heavy breath and running a hand over her flushed face, as though itâd wipe the heat off.
Anna felt her sore muscles ache as she pulled the string of the bow back, wincing as she could feel her bow arm beginning to shake, her arm close to dropping and she almost did, until she felt a warm hand wrap around her wrist, gently holding it still as the other placed itself on the small of her back, pushing her chest out a bit more and she instantly felt the relief in her arm, her arm more steady and when he gave a brief grunt she let go of the arrow, wincing as it hit beside the tree which was the target, a scoff leaving her lips as she moved out of his arms to retrieve it with annoyance, walking back to him and handing him the arrow, gaze down in slight shame, this was attempt number who-fucking-knows and she still couldnât hit a goddamn tree that was standing still, it felt almost shameful, the sun was practically cooking her alive even though they were both inside the forest, in the shade of trees, and yet she was sweating like a roasted pig. Takkar approached and gently placed a large hand on her shoulder, making her look up at him, a frown still on her brows as he said one word in his language, Annaâs frown deepening until she realized what he was saying. Patience. He said it again, eyebrows raised in a question, asking if she understood and she nodded. âPatienceâ she muttered and signed it, Takkar nodding with a grunt âpa-ciensâ he repeated poorly, a smile managing to form on Annaâs lips. She actually liked that he tried to learn her language. He may seem tough, feral and rough, but he seemed to have a kind heart and a curious mind, which only added to his primal good looks. Anna gently put a hand on his upper arm, smiling at him when he looked down at her, watching her walk away with his bow, smiling at him over her shoulder and calling out a word she had learned meant âfollowâ, âsakwaâ she called out.
Anna led Takkar to a small place by the water, sitting down on some stones, giving his bow back when he joined her and he placed it on the ground next to him, his eyes turning to the sky, not even narrowing them, as though not even the sun could harm him and he knew it. He muttered one word and got up, Annaâs eyes following him as he began to walk off, her eyes moving back to the horizon where his eyes had been and she realized the sun was setting, a small sigh leaving her lips as she stood up and stretched. She glanced over her shoulder, making sure no one was around before she pulled off her sticky shirt, dropping it to the ground and unbuttoning her pants, pulling off her shoes and socks and pulling down her pants, leaving her in just her underwear and tank top with her sports bra underneath. She carefully walked towards the water, dipping her feet into it and letting out a sigh of relief at the coolness as she walked out into the water until it reached her waist, jumping in head first and reappearing soon after, unaware that Takkar had returned with firewood.
Derek hesitantly approached as she stood by the window, staring out at the dark sky. He felt like he did after Boyd died⊠hesitant to approach her, scared that sheâd be angry with him, hate him⊠loathe himâŠ
âAlina?â he called softly as he got closer, seeing her flinch and look over her shoulder at him, forcing a small smile, her eyes falling to the steaming cup in his hands and he gave it to her âitâs-... itâs cinnamon chai teaâŠâ he admitted sheepishly and she frowned at him as she took it, lifting it up to take in the smell, closing her eyes, every nerve in her body relaxing and releasing for just that one second. âHowâd-.... Rileyâ she muttered with a faint smile, Derek nodding as he leaned against the table behind him as she turned to look back out over the small town of Beacon Hills in the dark. âYeah⊠she told me you liked it⊠she⊠told me a few other thingsâ he admitted and she tensed up a little, turning to face the window again with the cup of tea in her hands, remaining silent and he nodded, looking down, unsure if he should talk or not.
âI didnât see a way outâ she finally spoke, swallowing thickly before looking over her shoulder at him, a few tears in her eyes âitâs not because I didnât want to live anymore that I did it⊠itâs because I DID want to liveâŠâ she continued, looking down into the tea, a sad smile forming on her lips âshe sneaked in some cinnamon chai tea afterwards⊠the hospital didnât allow any non-hospital food or drinks for patients but she snuck it in anywayâ Alina admitted with a smirk, looking up at Derek, how he kept his eyes away from her and she sighed, taking a sip of the tea, savoring the taste before nodding to herself âthis is why I donât tell people I tried to kill myselfâ she stated with faux amusement, forcing a smile when he looked at her âsort of brings down the whole vibeâ she added jokingly before turning to look back out the window, her forced smile faltering. âWhy didnât you tell me?â
âBecause it was before I got back to Beacon Hills? Because it doesnât have anything to do with this place? Because itâs no oneâs business and because everyone would look at me the way you look at me nowâ she stated more firmly, turning to face him again âwith pity⊠looking at me like I might try and do it again any second. Like you have to watch over me to make sure I donât try again. Like Iâm incapable of looking after myselfâ she stated more harshly, frowning at him âyouâre doing it right now! Looking for signs, thinking that the second Iâm alone Iâm going to swallow some pills or jump from the balcony or slit my wristsâ she stated more firmly, walking over and putting the half-drunk tea on the table next to him.
âIâm not going to try and kill myself, Derekâ she stated harshly, her eyes scanning his for any sign that he believed her. âI did what I did because the life I was living wasnât worth living to begin with,â she admitted âit wasnât about dying⊠it was about the life I had not being worth it, worth the pain, the nausea, the agony, the hospitals, the tests, the chemo, the sickening sympathy looksâ she stated sharply âbut this life is. Iâm not in pain, Iâm not throwing up everything I force myself to eat, Iâm not stuck in a hospital bed with an IV stuck in me like a clingy ex boyfriend who wonât let go,â she continued âIâm with my family, Iâm with my brother, my dad, my boyfriend, all of whom I love! So no, I wonât try to kill myself again, and no, you donât have to hover! Iâm not fragile! Iâm not made of glass and Iâm not going to break if you handle me wrong! You want to help? Stop hoveringâ she snapped harshly, a few tears in her eyes âbecause it makes me feel exactly like it did before⊠Having someone breathing down your neck every second of every day like youâre incapable of existing on your own! No one gets it unless youâre in it, I was in pain, more than you could ever imagine! Every bone in my body begged and ached and screamed for me to give up, to make it stop. I was incapable of doing ANYTHING. You know me, Derek. You know ME⊠Do you think Iâm the kind of person who can stand being in a hospital bed, withering away until Iâm nothing but a husk in pain, until Iâm trapped in my own body. Iâm with people I love now, people who support me, people who KNOW that I love them and I get to live my life. I didnât have a life before⊠I do nowâ she ranted, panting for breath as she just stared at him while he stared at her, making her frown âfucking hell, Derek! SAY SOMETHING! Donât just stand there staring at me!â she yelled, tears blurring her vision as there was another long silence.
âYou love me?â he asked quietly and she blinked, frowning with confusion before realization hit her, her eyes widening a little and she closed her mouth, snapping shut like a trap door with a spring. âI-... I.. uhâŠ.â she trailed off, clearing her throat somewhat awkwardly âI-...â
âNow whoâs being silent?â he asked with a small smirk and she looked up at him with a light glare âI hate you.â
âNo, you donât.â
âNo, I actually, really do. I hate you.â
âNo, you love me.â
âYou misheard.â
âNope.â
âYes, you did.â
âNo.â
âYes.â
âNo.â
âYes.â
âYes.â
âNo.â
âSee? You love meâ he stated smugly and she stared at him for a good solid 20 seconds. She blinked and sighed, moving to leave when he caught her, holding her in a hug from behind âDerek, let me go-â
âI love you tooâ he whispered and she froze completely, stopped trying to get away from him. She was standing so still that he worried heâd accidentally turned her to stone, if it wasnât for her heart racing in her chest. After a solid 30 seconds he frowned âAlina?...â he asked softly, leaning back so he could turn her to face him and she stared up at him, tears running down her cheeks and he cupped her cheeks softly, wiping away the tears âAlina, I-â he was cut off as she leaned up and kissed him, wrapping her arms around him. âSorry! Sorry I just-... needed to make sure I wasnât like dreaming or having a stroke or-â
âAlina?â
âMhm?â
âShut upâ Derek muttered with a smirk before leaning down and kissing her, his hands moving from her cheeks to her waist and in one move he lifted her up onto the table, making her yelp briefly before laughing as he put her down, his kiss continuing. When Alina deepened the kiss, Derek pulled back, Alina chasing after him but he stopped her âare you su-â
âDerek, I went through years of hell. Of pain, exhaustion, fear⊠I felt my own body betraying me, trapping me in this-... dying, decaying husk⊠I saw how it affected my best friend. She chose to take care of me, miss her school and work, stop going out, stopped having funâ Alina sighed âshe was dying with me⊠then I came here⊠I came here to die and you-... you saved my life, Derekâ she admitted with a small grin âand not only that, you then had the audacity to make me fall completely in love with you. I know that what you did was-... not you⊠I know that a sickness is NOT the person itâs taken a hold ofâ she whispered softly âso yes, Iâm sure. Iâm sure of this. Of you. Of us. So yes, Iâm sure, Iâm sure Iâm choosing you, Iâm sure Iâm choosing this moment right here, right now. And Iâm sure that Iâm choosing life⊠so shut up and kiss meâ she ordered with a smirk. Derek smiled against her lips, immediately kissing her and she wrapped her arms around him, his hands moving from her waist to her thighs and she instantly hooked them around his waist, pulling him closer. He held one of her thighs against his hips while the other one came up, cupping her face before moving down her body, up her side, ribs, just under her breath, his mouth leaving hers to trail down her throat, he could hear her heart racing and he was sure that his wasnât any better.
She felt like her body was on fire, her eyes closed in bliss at the feel of his lips against her burning skin, his stubble scratching slightly in the best way possible and one of her hands moved to his hair, running through it while her other hand ran down his chest to the bottom of his shirt. He understood and immediately leaned back, the only comfort she felt at the absence of his lips was that it was momentary and only to get his shirt off. The second it was off, her hands ran down his chest, the toned muscles, her touch hungry, greedy, alive. His lips returned to hers but only for a moment as he leaned away again to pull her shirt off of her, throwing it somewhere to join his own, his hands instantly working on her bra, undoing it with practised skill and she couldnât help but laugh a bit, his lips returning to her neck and her laugh turned into a breathy moan, her eyes closing again in bliss, getting lost in the way his lips felt on her scorching skin, the way he nipped teasingly against her pulse point, causing her heart to flip. Her legs pulled him in closer, feeling the outline behind his jeans and she felt hungry at the feel of it. Her hands frantically moved to his pants and belt, undoing the offending articles of clothing in record time while he trailed his lips down to her breasts, fondling one while his mouth practically worshipped the other, her skin tingling with desire from every inch of him being so close to her and yet not close enough. When she finally got his jeans and belt undone she leaned back on her hands on the table, breath ragged and shaky as she felt the way his lips scorched over her, biting softly, lovingly, reverently, now giving the other breast the same reverent attention as the first one, his hand taking over on the breast heâd worshipped before.
âDerekâŠâ she trailed off breathlessly, one of her hands moving to his hair, running her fingers through his hair and she bucked her hips up to try and meet his, feeling how wet she was and she heard Derek growl quietly, moving up her chest to her throat where he mouthed at her pulse, causing her to shiver a little âDerek, if you donât do anything soon I swear, Iâm going to explodeâ she breathed and Derek smirked as he came up to her face, his hands moving from her breasts to her jeans, undoing them, grabbing the waistband of both her jeans and underwear, Alina lifting her hips and in an instant they were pulled down, his hands practically ripping off her shoes to pull her pants and underwear the rest of the way off, her socks following somehow, leaving her completely bare and she reached for his jeans but he stopped her, catching her hands by her wrists, his lips so close to hers that she could feel his breath fan over her own lips.
âLay backâ he whispered and kissed her softly, trailing down her cheek, jaw, throat, down her collarbone, his hand gently guiding her to lay down and she followed, laying down on the table as his lips continued further down, excitement rushing through her, feeling each kiss, each nip of his teeth as he trailed down, his hands grasping her legs under her knees, spreading her legs as he kneeled down. She felt his hot breath on her inner thigh, a soft nip making her flinch and smile with slight amusement, her hand reaching down, running through his hair as he worked his way towards her core. His hot breath fanned over her and he inhaled deeply, Alinaâs cheeks burning with slight embarrassment at the action but before she could say anything, he dived into her, his tongue hot and wet against her sopping folds. She arched her back, her free hand reaching up, cupping her breast as he wasted no time, immediately feasting on her like heâd been starved for years. Alina couldnât help but moan when he sucked on her clit, her hand in his hair tightening, gripping at the roots as he devoured her, the tugging in his hair making him groan against her, making her shiver, the sensations running through her and straight back down to her clit.
âFuckâŠâ she moaned breathlessly, feeling his teeth drag along her clit, that tight knot in her stomach already so close to snapping, a warm burning spreading through her, her eyes shut as she arched off the table, gripping his hair tighter, pinching her nipple sharply, breathy moans of Derekâs name leaving her as that knot tightened impossibly more âshit! Derek-â before she could even finish, Derek reached a hand up, his lips locking onto her clit as two fingers thrust into her as he sucked and swirled his tongue around her clit, causing that knot in her stomach to snap. She gripped his hair even tighter, moaning loudly, so loudly that if it had been anywhere else, she wouldâve worried about neighbors. Her hips bucked and flinched as he thrusted his fingers in and out of her, curling them just right, working her through her high, lapping up every single drop she gave him, his eyes closed in pleasure and when she looked down and saw it, she moaned quietly at the sight. It was positively sinful.
When it began to become too much she pulled him up by his hair, crashing her lips against his, tasting herself, moaning into his mouth and he happily swallowed that moan, her hands gripping his shoulders, holding on as he picked her up, carrying her to the bed, laying her down softly on it. He continued to kiss her as her hands wandered, over the broad expanse of his muscled back, her fingers clinging to him and she wrapped her legs around him, her wandering hands returning to his belt, her skin felt like it was on fire, almost feverish as she pushed his pants and underwear down his hips, Derek leaning back, moving to stand at the foot of the bed, kicking off his shoes before pulling down his pants and underwear, practically throwing them to the side as he instantly settled between her legs again, his lips returning to hers and she reached down, grasping him, pumping him and he growled against her lips, the sound sending a thrill through her, straight down to her core, making her impossibly wetter, her heart skipping at the sound and he took note of it, smirking against her lips, a hand coming up to cup her face tenderly. âSay it againâ he whispered, Alina a bit confused at first until she realized what he meant, a smile forming on her lips âonly if you say it tooâ she whispered, leaning up and kissing him before breaking it âI love youâ she whispered, guiding him to her hole and he pushed in, growling under his breath as he pushed all the way in, his lips practically glued to her neck, letting her adjust to the stretch, âI love youâ he whispered and she felt her breath shake a little, a grin forming on her lips as she wrapped her arms around him âsay it againâ she whispered, Derek lifting up to look down at her, smirking âsay what?â he asked smugly as he began to slowly thrust into her, making her breath hitch and she let out a tiny whimper at the torturous pace he was setting âthat I love you?â he asked just as smugly, hearing her whine and he smirked even more, his lips hovering just over hers. âI love youâ he whispered, his lips so close that she felt them brush against hers as he said those three words, heat flushing through her like firework sparks that had been set off, her legs tightening around his hips, her own bucking up to meet his in time with his movements. âI love youâ Alina panted as he sped up, every drag of his cock inside of her felt heavenly, the way he filled her so completely, it was mouthwatering, her nails pressing into his back as she clung to him, his hips speeding up, every movement hitting that special spot inside of her, making her moan even louder, sweet music to his earsâŠ
Until she flipped both of them over, her hands on his chest to steady herself as he looked up at her with slight shock, a smirk on her lips as she leaned down âI love youâ she whispered against his hips before leaning back up when he tried to kiss her, slowly moving her hips, swirling them, feeling each movement, how heavenly it felt. He reached up, one hand fondling her breast roughly as she began to bounce on his cock, her eyes rolling back in bliss, his other hand on her hip, guiding each movement, pants and small growls leaving him as he allowed her this shred of control, feeling her walls tighten around him, hot and wet and sucking him in, his own control slipping and he sat up, holding her close against his chest, her breasts pressed against his chest and she moaned at the new angle, wrapping her arms around him, clinging to him as he thrust his hips up, the angle allowing him to get deeper and she whined and whimpered against his ear, lazily nipping and licking it, kissing it softly and he growled quietly, the sound sending heat straight to her core and his hands gripped her hips tighter, pulling her down on him in time with his thrusts, her heart racing in the best way, her body covered with sweat and she kissed his shoulder, up his throat and neck, to his pulsepoint before licking a stripe up his pulse, feeling it jump under her tongue, the salty taste of his sweat lingering on her tongue. âJust like thatâ she breathed quietly, leaning back just enough to put her forehead to his, a coil of heat tightening in her stomach, her hands threading through the hair at the nape of his neck, clinging to him, fisting the roots as he thrust up into her harder, one of his hands coming down to play with her clit, rubbing it perfectly in sync with his hips and it was enough to drive her mad.
âI love youâ Derek managed to grunt out and it was as though that was all it took, the coil snapping and heat spread through her, filling every inch of her body as she tensed around him, her walls sucking him in even tighter and he growled at the feeling, the feeling of her hot walls pulsing around him, sucking him in, keeping him close inside of her as he came, his hands splayed out over her back, nails digging a little into her skin as he kissed her, swallowing every moan and breathy pant she gave him, her thighs shaking a little as she came down from her high, Derek panting with her, sharing her breath and she smiled âI love you tooâ she whispered against his lips. She ran her hands through his hair softly, gently scraping her nails along his scalp as he hugged her tightly.
âCan we stay like this? Just for a bitâŠâ she asked in a whisper and he kissed her collarbone sweetly before leaning back just enough to look up at her âas long as you wantâ he whispered against her and she smiled, leaning her forehead against his before resting her head in the crook of his neck as he held her, her arms wrapped around him in a tight hug.
With all that had happened these last few weeks, this last month⊠sheâd never felt safer than she did right now.
Riley barely managed to stop the car as Alina practically jumped out, hurrying towards the others, just in time to see Kiraâs mom with a dying firefly in her palm, Alina frowning, looking at Isaac, placing a hand on his shoulder, about to ask him if he was okay when she heard a voice behind her. His voice⊠and she almost smiled, turning around, hoping to see the real him but all she saw was it⊠wearing her brotherâs face, using her brotherâs voice, the Oni behind him instead of in front of him. âRiley, get in the car and drive back to your hotel⊠right nowâ Alina ordered, Riley about to argue when the Oni prepared their swords, making her back up and nod.
Alina let her claws and canines grow out, her eyes glowing as she roared at the Oni, that thing wearing Stilesâ face approaching âcome on, sis, you wouldnât hurt your baby brother, right?â he asked with a smirk and she tilted her head at him âyouâre not my brotherâ she hissed, watching as his smirk widened a bit âyou really are becoming the black queen, arenât you?â he asked quietly, mostly to himself but Alina froze, hesitating, her eyes widening a little as she frowned. âWhat? Derek didnât tell you all of it?â he asked mockingly âguess he was a little busy, doing⊠you know⊠â he added under his breath, knowing full well that Alina heard it, he saw the way her breath stopped, her body tensing up. âWhat do you mean?â She asked sharply as she stepped forward, her heart racing and whatever it was, wearing her brotherâs face, it smirked even more at her âStiles really sees you as this white light⊠but we both know⊠thatâs not true, is it? Antheia of Arcadia, an undead monster raised by Zeus. Saluâah, the monstrous female that devoured men. The she-wolves of JĂŒlich, 300 women who made pacts with the devil and terrorized the locals and the Duchy. The White Women of native folklore who kill any men interested in them, they have the power to turn them away but they chose to kill them. Why do you think that is, hm? And letâs not forget the MorrĂgan, harbinger of imminent death and war, foretelling doomâ he listed casually âand you think you deserve to be on the white board?â he asked as though it was a childish idea. âYouâre a plaque, a sickness, a darknessâ he spat, smirking at the tears in her eyes âStiles was wrong to put you on the white queen⊠youâre black on the inside, arenât you? Rotten, wrongâŠâ he paused intentionally, a sadistic glint in his eyes âcancerousâ he added in a hiss. âYou twist everyone you love, you want to protect them? You canât, YOU are the reason why theyâre dead. Erica. Boyd. Youâre the reason why Stiles was the PERFECT one for me to use, you let him get into that bath. YOU did this. YOU killed all those people. You know it. You know itâs trueâ he taunted darkly.
âAlina, donât listenâ Isaac whispered, stepping closer to her, his eyes still on the Oni, weary, but when he tried to take her hand she flinched away from his touch and he looked at her. Tears coated her cheeks, her entire body shaking like an earthquake, her jaw clenched so tight that Isaac actually worried she was going to break her own teeth. âYou⊠youâre only able to bring pain, death, loss. You think youâre helping? You shouldâve just died of cancer, made it better for everyone-â
âIâm going⊠to really⊠really⊠really enjoy killing youâ she managed to mutter out, her voice shaky and breath ragged, like her entire nervous system was stuttering. She watched that thing in her brotherâs skin smirk and back up, her eyes glowing brighter and she roared as the Oni charged, immediately charging at one of them, grabbing the wrist that was bringing the sword down on her, her claws digging in into it as she threw it aside, throwing it against an old oil barrel, denting the metal and immediately she turned to that thing, the Nogitsune, her entire body still shaking, her vision red. All she could see was him, that thing, that thing that looked like her brother but it wasnât. It wasnât him.
Sheâd barely managed a single step towards him before she felt a sharp stinging pain cut across her entire back, shoulder to waist, a sharp pain spreading through her and she fell down, roaring in pain before turning around, seeing an Oni stand above her, raising itâs sword and she immediately kicked at itâs leg, making it stumble and she reached up and grabbed it, her eyes glowing so brightly that her pupils were barely visible as she threw it to the ground, reaching for itâs mask, ripping it off, roaring loudly into the darkness before throwing the mask aside, reaching for the katana it dropped and thrusting it into itâs chest. She watched the light in those glowing eyes vanish and fade, her eyes wide as she roared at it, at itâs dying, fading light before it vanished to smoke. She immediately got up, attacking one of the Oni that charged for Kira, swiping at itâs legs and kicking itâs back when it stumbled down, pushing it to the ground but before she could reach down it faded into nothing and reappeared further away, Kira staring at Alina with wide eyes, breath shaky and heart racing as she looked at Alina, golden eyes so bright they almost looked like the Oniâs. Just glowing orbs hovering.
âAlina?â Kira reached out to touch her but the second she did, Alina turned, roaring directly in her face, Kira flinching and stepped back, her eyes wide as Alina turned away from her to look at the Oni attacking Isaac and Allison, running towards it as though she hadnât just roared at Kira like SHE was the Oni⊠the realization was almost like a hard slap across the face. Sheâd looked at her like Kira was the OniâŠ
As Allisonâs arrow managed to pierce one of the Oni, actually hurting it, destroying it, Alina jumped at another Oni but it phased and faded before she could reach it, her eyes wild as she looked around, eyes still glowing so brightly that her pupils were practically invisible, her heart racing fast enough to give a normal person a heart attack, she didnât even hear Scott, she didnât hear Allison fall, didnât hear Scott crying, begging, didnât hear Allisonâs heart stop. All she could see was red. All she could hear was the pounding of her blood in her head. All she could smell was blood. All she could feel was⊠a mix of anger and nothingness, a numbness that made everything else feel distant⊠so distant that it felt like it wasnât real and the second someone reached for her she grabbed them by the wrists, slamming them against an old oil tank, denting the metal as she had them pinned, roaring loudly at them, whoever they were⊠Her claws dug into their skin before she threw them to the side, roaring at them, as though⊠trying to scare them. She couldnât even see who it was.
She looked around for the Nogitsune, roaring in anger when she didnât find it and she ran off, every single breath a growl, no real destination in her mind, Isaac watching her run off with tears running down his cheeks, his wrists still bleeding from where sheâd gripped him when she held him against the oil tank.
----------------------------------
âWe canât keep driving around-â
âIf you have another plan, please, tell meâ Derek snapped and Riley clutched the steering wheel tighter, jaw set and tense and Derek rolled his eyes a bit âwhat?â
âNothing-â
âWhat?â Derek asked more sharply and suddenly Riley stopped the car, turning to look at Derek with a deadly glare âfine, hereâs the deal: I donât like you. In fact, I hate you. I hate you with every single cell in my body. When I knew Alina in New York, she wasnât some overwhelmed lovesick puppy ready to jump off a cliff. Not even when she was on chemo or tried to kill herself did she act the way she does with you. You might be hot and cute and all mysteriously sexy but I see through that. I see you for what you areâ Riley hissed angrily âyouâre the guy who didnât give a shit about her back in school, youâre the guy who played pranks on her and told her âjust relax, itâs only a jokeâ afterwards. Youâre the asshole she makes herself a fool for and youâre the piece of shit she allows to hurt her. You handcuffed her to the bed, threatened to kill her baby brother, the one person she practically lives for, the person she loves most in the world. You locked her up like she was some prisoner. Do you know what she did when she finally got out? She ran to me, crying, sobbing her eyes out. She still had the fucking handcuff on one of her wristsâ Riley ranted angrily âso weâre going to drive around here for as long as it takes, and youâre going to shut that obnoxiously sexy mouth before I smack you. I donât care if youâre her boyfriend or if itâs just sex or if youâre a werewolf. You hurt my friend? I donât give a fuck what you are, because Iâll kill youâ Riley warned angrily before pulling back out onto the road. âNow shut the fuck up and help me lookâ she hissed angrily.
A long silence fell over the car, Derek quiet as he just stared ahead, a few tears in his eyes and he swallowed thickly before finally speaking âshe tried to kill herself?â he asked quietly and Riley glanced at him, taking in the genuine tears in his eyes, before looking back at the road as she drove, sighing lightly. âYeah⊠she was a few years into the chemo and trialsâŠâ Riley admitted softly, her grip tightening a little on the wheel âI found herâŠâ she admitted more softly, Derek looking at her, seeing how hard she was trying not to cry herself. âIâd-... Iâd been out, she was in our apartment and-... sheâd taken everything⊠everything theyâd given herâŠ. just-... dumped all of it into her mouth and swallowed itâŠâ Riley continued quietly âI found her there⊠found a damn note tooâ Riley admitted the last part with a scoff, shaking her head âfuck, I was so mad at herâ she added with a bittersweet laugh âI just-... I got so angry⊠so fucking angry⊠angry that sheâd do that. That she wouldnât think about-... about how everyone would feel⊠how I would feel, finding her dead with a damn noteâ Riley continued, swallowing thickly, clearing her throat âbut then I realized how scared she actually was⊠how scared she mustâve been to do thatâŠâ she admitted, pulling over the car and stopping, sighing heavily, wiping the tears from her eyes âthere has to be a better fucking way than just-... driving around!!â Riley snapped, sighing, her mind wrecking itself and she looked at Derek âis there ANYWHERE that she likes to go? To be alone maybe??â she asked, desperation obvious on her face and Derek frowned, looking off to the side, thinking, thinkingâŠ
âShe used to babysit Boyd⊠he got her into stargazingâ he admitted and Riley nodded âokay, so⊠whereâs the best place to stargaze in Beacon Hills?â she asked, Derekâs eyes widening a little as he got out of the car âIâm drivingâ he stated, Riley nodding as she got out and they switched places in the car, Derek immediately speeding off the second they were both in the car.
----------------------------
Alina was sitting alone on the rock, staring at the sky, cheeks stained with tears as Derek and Riley slowly approached, Derek halting suddenly and Riley stopped to look at him, frowning. âWhat-â
âI should stay here-â
âOh my godâ Riley groaned quietly âfucking stopâ Riley hissed with annoyance, approaching him âthis isnât about you or your guilt trip. You say that you were literally possessed. The Alina I know would know that. You handcuffed her and locked her in your apartment, of course sheâs going to be rattled but if you stay here now you are the one pulling away. Not herâ Riley hissed with anger âfucking get it. Not everything is about you, pretty boyâ she murmured with annoyance before scoffing, walking back towards Alina, Derek swallowing thickly, a few tears in his eyes.
The second Riley was close enough, Alina looked down, shutting her eyes tightly before sighing âgo away, Riley⊠please-â
âYeah, but you know Iâve never been great at doing what Iâm told. Remember that class in Homemaking? When Mrs. Fowler criticized my âquestionable cooking skillsâ?â Riley asked as she walked over, casually sitting next to Alina, looking at her as Alina scoffed but didnât answer, making Riley nod âlisten, I-... I heard what he said⊠you told me to leave but I couldnât just-... leave you so I stayed and-... I heard what he saidâ Riley admitted, Alina shutting her eyes tightly as she looked away âdonât-â
âI did some digging of my own, because he was, like⊠talking gibberishâ Riley stated casually, looking up at the sky calmly âhe left a few things out, you know. I mean Iâd hoped that a centuries old Japanese fox spirit would be more intelligent but, you know,â Riley simply shrugged, looking from the stars and over Beacon Hills instead. âSo, I thought Iâd catch you up on all the shit he left out. Now, Iâm not a research machine like you, so I only got a bit. Those White Women he mentioned? Theyâre benevolent⊠that killing guys thing? It only happened when, like, a guy tried to force one of them to be his wifeâ Riley stated with a scoff âwhich is, like⊠fair but yeah. Anyway.. theyâre not evil, Al⊠Theyâre powerful women who bring guidance and rituals a-a-and help! And that MorrĂgan person? She wasnât just some harbinger of doom. She stood for war, fate, prophecy! She guided warriors into battle and helped them win! She protected her warriorsâ Riley stated with a smile, Alina looking at her with tear-stained cheeks âthe Nogitsu-thingie feeds off of chaos and pain and strife and all that, right?â she asked, Alina nodding hesitantly and Riley nodded in return âso why would you believe itâd tell you the whole truth??â she asked softly, Alina shaking her head, biting her lower lip to try and hold back a sob âbecause itâs right! What it said is right-â
âHow?â
âI let my brother get into that bathtub⊠it should have been meâ Alina hissed sharply, Riley sighing lightly, opening her mouth to respond when someone else beat her to it. âAnd what if it had been you? What do you think a nogitsune would do with someone like you? You killed an Oni with your bare hands, if the nogitsune had a chance at that kind of power? Weâd never have beat itâŠâ Derek asked softly and Alina turned around, looking at him, the moonlight reflecting on her wet cheeks made them seem as though they were almost glowing, shimmering silver. âStiles is strong. He wouldâve gone in before you could even have had a chance to stop himâ Derek pointed out, stepping closer, kneeling down in front of her âand if it had been you? What do you think wouldâve happened to Stiles? You are the one reason why Stiles still held on. Why he was still in there, holding on, waiting, knowing that weâd do everything to find himâ Derek continued, his eyes moving to her hands at her sides and he wanted so badly to reach out, to touch her, take her hand in his, but he didnât. âBesides⊠I donât-... if itâd been you-â he cut himself off, jaw clenched as he looked away before sighing, looking up at her âwhat I did⊠I-...â he trailed off, tears in his eyes and he tried to compose himself âIâm sorry⊠I am⊠I truly, truly am⊠Iâm so sorry, Alina, Iâm s-â he cut himself off when Alina leaned down and hugged him, clinging to him, his arms immediately wrapping around her, fisting her shirt, his eyes shut tightly. He took a deep breath, breathing in her scent, his heart racing as she continued to cling to him and he felt a few tears in his eyes âIâm so sorry⊠Iâm so sorryâŠâ he whispered desperately and she shook her head, sniffling, leaning away from him, hesitating before sighing âI-.. it wasnât you⊠I knowâ she muttered hesitantly, swallowing thickly, leaning further back from him but her hands took his into her own, holding them. âI just-... I want to go home but I donât-â
âIâll take youâ Derek whispered softly, reaching up and cupping her cheek softly âIâll take you homeâ he added and she nodded, looking at Riley who nodded with a smile, Alina letting go of Derek to hug Riley tightly, Riley hugging her back. âBy the way.. you looked badass as fuckâ Riley stated and Alina laughed quietly, leaning back from Riley who smirked at her. âI remember what you told her⊠Mrs. Fowlerâ Alina admitted, Riley raising a small brow at her and Alina smirked âyou said âmaybe I canât cook but itâs not as if it matters when I marry a guy rich enough to hire oneâ...â Alina remembered, Riley laughing quietly âyeah, still working on that oneâŠâ she admitted before standing up, Alina and Derek following and she smirked âwhich means; if you, you know, happen to stumble across some old millionaire who is single and preferably with not a lot of heirs⊠just⊠give me a call?â Riley joked and Alina laughed briefly âI know someone but he might be a bit more than you can handleâŠâ she joked and Riley scoffed âbitch, please. How bad can it be?â
âA werewolf with a narcissistic god-complex who enjoys tormenting others mentally?â
âIs he hot?â
âYeahâ Alina admitted, Derek frowning at the way Alina just so casually said that and Riley smirked âthen honey,â she stepped closer âIâll eat him aliveâ she teased before leaving âyou two are walking, by the way!â she called out as she walked towards where Derek had parked her car and Alina scoffed, turning to look up at Derek who raised a brow at her âreally? Peter? You think heâs handsome?â
âDonât worry. Sociopaths and narcissists are Rileyâs type. Iâm all for the brooding but soft underneath cuddlersâ she joked and he scoffed, putting his hands on her waist ânot sure how you feel about thinking my uncle is hotâ he admitted with a small wince and she laughed briefly âwhat can I say? The Hale gene is blessedâ she teased, tilting her head up at him âbut you? Youâre definitely the best looking. And more age appropriateâ she added the last bit jokingly and Derek scoffed before nodding âokay, I think youâve tortured me enough already-â
âReally?â
âYeah, youâve had your revenge-â
âBecause I have a few more stored away. I mean, you kinda deserve itâ she stated casually and he groaned quietly, looking around before starting to walk down from the hill overlooking Beacon Hills, Alina following, his arm wrapped around her as they walked âyouâre going to enjoy torturing me, arenât you?â
âThoroughlyâ Alina admitted casually as they walked, Derek smirking a little.
Alina woke up with a flinch when someone touched her leg that was thrown over the covers, her head lifting and she saw Derek sitting there, pale, red rings around his eyes and she frowned âDerek?...â she muttered, every inch of her still reeling and in pain as she forced herself to sit up, watching as Derek continued to run his hand up her thigh, goosebumps following his touch, it didnât feel⊠seductive or romantic, it felt more⊠possessive, like he wanted to remind himself that she was there, in his bed. That she was his. âWhy the white queen?â he asked and she frowned âwhat-... what?â
âWhy the white queen?â he asked again, this time looking up at her, getting up from the side of the bed, approaching, sitting down closer to her, face inches from hers âStiles⊠you told me he put you on the white queen⊠and me on the black king⊠when he explained everything to your dadâ he spoke low, a hand coming up, barely caressing her cheek, his touch featherlight and she shook her head a little âI-... donât know-â
âAnd then, when that thing was there, before it took you⊠it moved you. From the white queen, to the black queenâ he continued and Alina frowned even more âI-... Iâm not sure I understand?â
âI doâ he stated softly, a soft smile forming on his lips and yet it felt⊠wrong⊠this whole thing felt wrong. âDerek, you really donât look good⊠maybe-â
âWhyâd you do it, hm? Why did you have to go home? To get some tiny, worthless trinket?â his voice got rougher and she leaned back a little âworthless?... itâs not worthless-â
âYou left me to get some worthless little toy and you almost died, that THING tortured you-â
âStop calling him that!â
âThatâs what it is! Itâs a thing. Itâs not your brotherâ he hissed, leaning closer âyou shouldâve stayed, stayed with me⊠I could protect you. You belong with me, Alina, at my side. Not running off after some ugly little trinket because you think that something as pathetic as that could actually make a difference. You think it made a difference?â his words made a chill run down her spine and she scooted a little back, his pupils blown, his breath frantic and his heart⊠she could hear it, the rhythm erratic and frantic, like the look in his eyes âDerek, what are you talking about?â
âItâs okayâ he whispered softly, reaching for her face and she leaned away a little âitâs okay, shh, itâs okay. I know now, itâs okayâ he whispered again âI know why youâre the black queen. You belong with me, by my side, not running off, putting yourself in danger by leaving my sideâ his tone differed completely from his words, his tone still soft and gentle and she shook her head âyouâre not the real DerekâŠâ she muttered in slight horror, watching his pale, sickly face, tears forming in her eyes âI am⊠and I wonât let anyone hurt you, I promise, never again. Iâll protect you. Itâll be over soon⊠first Argent and his daughter, then that thing in your brotherâs body. I can see how much it hurts you to see it, walking around like itâs still him, talking like itâs still him⊠Iâll make the pain stop, and after? Anyone else, anyone who hurts you or tries to take you from meâ he said calmly and she shook her head âwhat- What are you talking about, Derek??â she tried to reach for him but felt something hold her wrist back, a metal clanging as she felt something dig into her wrist, a frown forming on her brows as she looked down, seeing a pair of handcuffs cuffing her wrist to the bed, her heart starting to race. âDerek-â
âItâs okay, itâll be over soon, I promiseâ he whispered softly âitâs for your own sake. Iâll be back soon, I promise-â
âDerek, let me out-â
âI canât, youâre still too weak. Itâs for your own goodâ he stated almost⊠lovingly⊠getting up, grabbing her phone on the nightstand, turning it over, taking out the battery while she struggled against the handcuff, trying to yank it off of her but it was like her entire body wouldnât comply, still too weak and numb, still buzzing lightly with pain and she grunted, looking up at Derek as he crushed the battery that heâd taken out of her phone, picking up a duffel bag âIâll be home soon-â
âDerek! Derek!â she snapped as he walked out, trying to yank on the handcuff, her limbs felt weak and numb as she pulled and pulled, groaning and straining against the restraint âDEREK!!â She yelled out, continuing her battle against the handcuffs. She heard the loft door slam shut, a heavy lock sliding into place and she yelled, her eyes starting to glow as she strained against the metal, her claws coming out and she tried slashing at the chain but it did nothing. âFucking piece of shit!â She growled, her gums aching as her canines started to grow longer and sharper as she continued to struggle, wiggling and tugging and pulling until-
She fell back on the bed when the wood finally snapped, her hand still cuffed but now it was to a broken piece of the bedframe. She pulled the wood out and got up, instantly picking up her phone, as though she hadnât just watched him take out and crush the battery ten minutes ago. âFucking shit!â she hissed, throwing it back onto the nightstand as she hurried over to the loft door, grabbing it, yanking and pulling and groaning and straining against the metal, yelling as she tried and tried, her eyes glowing as she strained to open that damn sliding door but it didnât move, didnât budge, and all she achieved was her still sore and slightly red wrists hurting even more. She sighed heavily, looking around before heading for the large window and the balcony, hurrying outside, looking down, letting out a sharp breath as she continued to look around, her gaze anywhere from the street below and to the root above her.
She walked back inside, starting to pace nervously. No phone, she was still weak, locked in Dereâs loft on the first floor, no way to get downâŠ
She walked back out onto the balcony, taking a deep breath before letting out as loud a roar as possible, the sound echoing over Beacon Hills⊠All she could do now was wait... either to get stronger so she could get herself out of there, or for Scott to have heard her⊠if that pack roar thing even workedâŠ
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Alina flinched when she heard the lock on the door open, her hands clutching the lamp tightly as she waited, her breath shaky and she tried to calm her heartbeat⊠not that it worked⊠she could tell it was him. Smell it. She could hear it was himâŠ
âAlina?â The loft door was slowly pulled open and the second she saw his shadow she swung the lamp down over his head, shattering it, grabbing his shirt and pulling him into the loft before slipping out past the sliding door, slamming it shut, grabbing a nearby pipe, yanking it free and using it to lock the door, prevent it from opening as she backed up, cheeks stained with tears, breath ragged, hands shaking as she felt her back hit the brick wall behind her.
âAlina! Alina, itâs me, Derek⊠Itâs-... Iâm me againâ he called through the door and she hesitated, lower lip trembling as she hesitantly stepped closer to the sliding door, shaky hands facing the metal, her heart racing as she tried to hold in her tears, trying to hold back a sob. âMy brother-â
âHeâs alive. Heâs alive⊠heâs free. Scott called me when you didnât answer your phone-â
âBecause you took the battery out and crushed it, you fucking ass!â she yelled, slamming on the sliding door as she backed up, unable to see the tears in his eyes on the other side of the door. âAlina, Iâm not-â
âStay the hell away from me!â she screamed, breath ragged as she turned around and ran away from the loft, hearing Derek slam his fist against the door in frustration.
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The second Riley opened the door to her hotel room, she immediately sighed, hurriedly pulling Alina inside, hugging her tightly as she closed the door âoh honeyâ she whispered, holding Alina as she cried quietly in her arms, gently rubbing her back âshh, itâs okayâ she whispered, parting from Alina to lead her to the bed in the room, sitting down with her âwhat happened??â she asked, reaching over and putting a lock of Alinaâs hair behind her ear, a frown forming when she felt the raised skin and Alina leaned away a little. âWhatâs that??â Riley asked as she leaned closer and Alina sighed, letting her lean over and see the single line brand behind her ear âwhat-... what the fu-â
âItâs-... not as it seems⊠Itâs difficult to explain-â
âDid he do that to you? Did Derek do that?â
âWhat? No! No itâs-...â Alina sighed heavily âokay, here goes,â she muttered before taking a deep breath âitâs something called an Oni I-... can I just use your phone?â Alina asked shakily and Riley sighed, getting it out of her pocket and handing it to Alina who took it and dialed a number, putting the phone to her ear, gnawing at her bottom lip as it rang, and rang, and rang⊠She almost hung up when-
âHello?â
âScott? Scott, itâs Alina⊠Stiles, is-... is he-â
âHeâs fine, heâs-... Stiles again but the Nogitsune took Lydia. We have everyone out looking for her. Where are you? I tried calling you but-â
âIâm-... Iâm at Beacon Hotel, room number 243⊠Derek-â she hesitated, looking at Riley who raised a brow at her, making her sigh and look away âhe-... took the battery out of my phone and crushed it after handcuffing me to the bedâ she admitted shakily, trying to keep as neutral a tone as possible as she heard silence on the other end. âScott?â
âI heard you, I heard you, I just-... when I heard you-â
âJust-... what do you need me to do?â
âRight now? Right now it sounds like you need some time⊠we got this, weâll find Lydia and the Nogitsune and donât worry about Stiles, your dad already has me on watch duty. Weâre at my house. Take your time, okay? Thatâs an order.â
Alina couldnât help but half-smile at his âorder, looking away and she could practically hear his smile.
âI just made you smile, didnât I?â
âJust⊠take care of my baby brother until I get there? And Scott?... Donât tell Derek where I am. Iâm getting a new phone as soon as possibleâ Alina asked quietly before hanging up, handing RIley back the phone and Riley took it, sighing heavily. âSoâŠ?â
âSo⊠my brother is no longer possessed by an evil Japanese trickster fox spirit, my boyfriend technically kidnapped me after threatening to go on a killing spree and locking me in his loft and I feel like Iâm the verge of a mental breakdownâ Alina summarized casually, trying to hold the tears at bay but she crumbled the second Riley put a hand on her knee comfortingly, Riley leaning over and hugging her as Alina continued to cry quietly, Riley hugging her tightly.
âSo⊠wanna tell me what the fuck âOniâ are?â she asked after a while and Alina couldnât keep in a small brief chuckle as she leaned back and wiped her eyes and nose âitâs⊠a long storyâŠâ
âBaby,â Riley back, smirking as she leaned back against the plush pillows âIâve got timeâ she stated with a shrug, patting the spot next to her on the bed and Alina laughed briefly, nodding, leaning down and laying next to her, taking a deep breath and letting it out âokay, so, thereâs this thing called a Kitsune and a Nogitsune is basically a dark kitsune-â
âWait I thought it was âOniâ we were talking about-â
âYeah, easy, Iâll get to thatâ Alina stated with faux annoyance, laughing briefly with Riley before getting more settled on the bed âso,â she began.
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It was already dark when Rileyâs phone began to ring, Riley picking it up and answering. âHello?â
âUh, hi⊠uhm.. is-... is Al-â
âItâs for you hot-shot!â Riley called, Alina approaching with a frown, taking it âhello?â
âAlina! Itâs Scott. Listen, we know where the Nogitsune has taken Lydia-â
âGreat! Where?â
âAlina, thereâs something you should know-â
âTell me when I get there. Where are you??.... Scott⊠why arenât you telling me where you are?â Alina hissed at the silence, her heart racing and she opened her mouth to ask again when she heard a distant shout of a location from Isaac, Alina immediately hanging up. She gave Riley her phone and then moved towards the door, Riley scrambling to follow her, hurriedly locking her room door as she nearly stumbled after Alina âRiley, get back in your room-â
âNot a fucking chance in hellâ Riley stated casually, Alina stopping to look at her âRiley-â
âI let you go once, no fucking hell Iâm doing that again! BesidesâŠâ she lifted up her keys with a smirk âIâm the one with a carâ she stated smugly before nodding towards the elevator âcome on, Iâm drivingâ she stated before hurrying down the hallway, Alina sighing heavily before following after her, unable to stop the smile on her lips from forming.
Warnings: Oh my god the angst in this one⊠like be warned, there are mentions of blood (very briefly), elements of torture, a ton of angst, like itâs mostly angst⊠psychological torture, emotional torture, thereâs quite a bitâŠ
Alina hurried through the door, barely managing to close it as she hurried to her room, storming inside, heading straight for her old desk, yanking open the shelf, only to freeze. She looked into the empty shelf, her heart racing and she closed it and pulled open another shelf, and another, and another, her entire being filling with dread as she shook her head âno⊠no no no no no noâ she rambled, starting to tear her room apart. Shelf by shelf, everything was torn away, no surface or shelf was spared her rampage, tears blurring her vision. âWhere-... no no no where the hell-â
âLooking for this?â she spun around, seeing Stiles in the doorway and she frowned, looking towards what he was holding and her heart sunk. The tiny small figurine, held between his fingers as he had a satisfied smirk on his lips, her focus on the figurine he held up, enough so that she didnât notice his other hand holding something behind him. âStiles-â
âNope, wrong. Try againâ he mocked casually and she took a deep breath, slowly approaching âI know youâre still in there⊠if you can hear me, fight! Itâs playing a trick on you!... I donât want to hurt you, Stiles-â
âToo badâ he stated casually before swinging something at her head, the sound of something metal colliding with her skull and she fell down, blood dripping from her forehead, her vision blurry as she looked up, seeing him stand with an aluminum bat, a satisfied look on his face before he swung it again and the last thing she saw was her own blood on the bat as it came down to meet her face again.
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The first thing that woke her was the burning, the sharp, sizzling pain in her wrists, ankles and around her throat, her eyes filled with tears before sheâd even woken up, but once she did, everything else hurt, her heart racing, her head practically killing her and she felt⊠crampedâŠ
Her vision was blurry as she looked down towards the pain, small cries of pain leaving her as she began to react, unable to keep them in, her vision returning and she frowned at what she saw, her breath shaky and she whimpered, her whimpers turning to soft cries of pain. Rope was tied around her wrists, she could see the sizzling of her skin, a rope lead from the rope around her wrists let up to her neck and when she tried to pull her head away from it she felt a stabbing, burning pain, making her cry out and whimper, her entire body shaking with pain as she sobbed and looked around, tears clouding her vision and she saw Stiles, kneeling in front of her, tilting his head at the small figurine in his hand. The one theyâd made with mom⊠one of the last normal things she did with themâŠ
âStiles?-â
âNope, wrong againâ he stated casually and she gritted her teeth at the pain, forcing her head to turn anyway, her brows furrowing even more when she saw a ring of dark powder or⊠ash⊠it was ash around her, confusion clouding her mind until she recognized the ring, recognized what kind of ash it was.
Mountain Ash.
She looked back down at her bound wrists and ankles, the searing, sizzling pain digging into her and she whimpered, Stiles nodding âwolfsbaneâ he stated casually âthought it best to take extra precautionsâ he added and she looked up at him, the small movement causing her neck to sizzle and she cried, her breathing shaky and rapid. âDid you really think this small thing, this tiny, insignificant object, would actually be enough?â he asked with a smirk and she frowned, a sense of anger rising in her for just a brief moment, a spark, nothing more âitâs not insignificant⊠the real Stiles would know thatâ she hissed and he raised a brow at her âreally?? Itâs a worthless trinket-â
âItâs the last thing we had with mom before-... thatâs why you havenât destroyed itâ she pointed out quietly, a faint smile forming on her lips despite all the pain âStiles wonât let you⊠heâs still in thereâ she stated with a faint smile, eyes filled with tears and hope. She wouldnât let it take that. Wouldnât let it take hope. Her courage, yes, maybe. But not her hope. âYouâre patheticâ he stated and she just smiled âmaybe⊠but then destroy it, go onâ she encouraged, seeing him tense, jaw set, clenched, anger filling her eyes and she nodded, hissing in pain, wincing, but she didnât stop smiling âthis means nothing to meâ he growled, clutching the small figurine tightly in his grip, enough to break it⊠and yet he didnât⊠The moment was broken up as she heard⊠footsteps⊠footsteps and⊠she recognized the scent immediately, her eyes glancing to the loft, hoping he wouldnât notice but he did and he smirked âlooks like the fun is about to beginâ he stated casually, picking up a rag that looked like it was soaked in something, reaching over carefully, moving to be behind her and before she could do anything, he wrapped it around her head, gagging her mouth and she screamed, tears streaming down her cheeks as it burned and sizzled and felt like it ate away at her skin and flesh. He patted her shoulder casually before standing up and walking to stand in the middle of the loft, facing the door as Alina sobbed, dizzy from pain, watching his blurry figure place the small figurine in his backpocket.
She could barely hear the voices that talked, all she could hear was a strange familiar muffled voice, her vision blurry as she looked up, tears still running down her cheeks like rivers as she sawâŠ
âDad-â her voice and word was muffled by the wolfsbane gag, a muffled scream tearing through her as she felt the gag move with her mouth when she tried to speak, more tears streaming down her cheeks and she heard a muffled âitâs okay, itâll be over soon, itâs okay sweetheartâ, her heart racing as she tried nodding, tried to show that sheâd heard him, whoever it was, that she understood, but the small movement of the nod made the rope around her neck shift, burning her further and she cried out in pain, her entire body stiff and tense, too scared to even breathe too deeply, too scared that anything would shift the ropes and cause more pain. She heard handcuffs clicking and then shortly after, she heard them being torn apart, more footsteps entering the loft but all she could smell was the damn wolfsbane, burning her nostrils and her lungs, her quiet whimpers filling her own head. She felt drowsy, tired, her entire body aching and burning and she dared to look up, only her eyes moving too scared to move her head or neck but when she saw Derek being thrown like a ragdoll by Stiles, or whatever he was, she whimpered, flinching and trying to reach for him, the wolfsbane rope burning, searing her skin and she flinched, trying to shift away from the searing ropes. She looked up when she heard a gun cock and an argument breaking out, tears clouding her vision but she saw a figure, a vague outline that looked like Allison, that slowly and quietly stepped towards her, using the argument as a distraction, reaching her foot towards Alina, breaking the circle of mountain ash and Derek quickly hurried over as quietly as he could, about to reach for the ropes when she shook her head, whimpering against the searing gag in her mouth, trying to force out the word âwolfsbaneâ as Allison tried to make them all stop arguing, Derek reaching for Alina anyway, gritting his teeth in pain as he ripped the gag out of her mouth, the skin red and blistered from where the gag been touched her skin, his own fingers red, sizzling and blistered as he undid the rope around her neck, hissing in pain as night began to fall, his eyes moving to the setting sun, nearly gone, and he sped up his efforts. He hissed and grunted in pain as the ropes burned him, Allison handing him a small knife, kneeling down and helping untie the rope around Alinaâs neck while Derek used the knife to cut the rope around her wrists and ankles, Allison throwing them to the side, just as Stiles stepped back, the sun setting and Derek grabbed her, pulling her away from the window, practically having to drag her away from it.
Her skin was red and blistered, like someone had thrown boiling water on her, the skin seared off in burnt blisters, reaching the top of the dermis layer, her entire body shaking with pain and Derek gently smoothed down her hair, shushing her, about to try and take some of her pain away when she looked up, her eyes widening as she saw the Oni appear. Derek looked back at her and she shook her head weakly âhelp them⊠whatever it takesâ she reminded him weakly, Allison hurrying over to take Derekâs place, helping Alina up âcome on, we have to get you out of here-â
âNo-â
âYou canât fight right now!â Allison hissed up at Alina, her body still shaking, her eyes tired and droopy and she could barely breathe without wincing.
As the Oni appeared in front of the door, Allison backed up with Alina, Derek standing behind Stiles as Allison still held Alina, Alina pushing herself off of Allison to stand on her own, her eyes glowing golden, the burns from the wolfsbane soaked ropes still present but they were not as red, not as blistered, not as bad⊠as though they were already healing. âHeâs my brotherâ she stated harshly while staring at the Oni âheâs still in there, and you canât have him. You canât have him and whatever the hell is in him canât have himâ she stated harshly, stepping a little closer, her claws growing out.
As the Oni charged she roared, the corners of her mouth still burnt and red, her claws out and ready, immediately charging, swiping her claws, trying to hit something, anything, something solid, something that would do damage, that would help them, that would save them, save Stiles. The sound of gunfire rang out in the loft, her arms weak and she felt slow, too slow, one of the Oni catching her by her throat, another cutting Derekâs back, the Oni that held her by her throat lifted her up and she gasped, grasping for purchase until suddenly it just⊠dropped her⊠all of them vanishing and she gasped and coughed on the floor, her entire body weak and aching, pain enveloping her. She winced when someone held her and she felt her body give out, no longer able to hold itself up and she looked up at whoever was holding her, her eyes meeting Derekâs and tears filled her vision, Derek wincing at his back and shoulder and she reached up to cup his face but he leaned away, already knowing what she was trying to do, what she wanted to do, and he wouldnât have it.
She was in enough pain, he wouldnât let her add his own pain to that. Instead he wrapped his arm around, holding her close and she clung to him, sobbing tiredly, curling into him and he held her, just as Scott and Kira arrived but the entire world was muffled, pain surrounding her everywhere, deeper than anything sheâd ever felt, any pain sheâd ever experienced. Cancer, chemo, the Bite, any injuries from any kind of fights, nothing compared to the hollow, echoing, dark pain she felt spread throughout her entire body⊠Noah walked over to the middle of the loft, where Stiles had last stood before disappearing like the Oni, picking up the tiny figurine, tears clouding his vision as he looked at it. It was a small figurine of a shooting star, poorly made, the paint job was crappy and messy and uncoordinated, but he recognized it⊠he remembered seeing his wife in the hospital, in her bed, guiding Alina and Stiles while making it, paint everywhere on the bedsheets, covering Stilesâ hands while Alina watched him, occasionally helping him but mostly, it was Claudia helping Stiles make it⊠it was one of her last lucid daysâŠ
He ran his thumb over it, feeling the small crack in it, in the old, dry, hardened clay, the crack that wasnât there until today. Tears ran down his cheeks as he looked over at Alina in Derekâs arms, sobbing, his hand clutching the small figurine tightly.
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âWhat are you doing-â
âBe quietâ Derek muttered, looking over his shoulder at his uncle before looking back at the chess board he was setting up âsheâs sleepingâ he added more quietly, his eyes moving to the bed where Alina were, cheeks stained red in lines from where her tears had run down her skin, not all of the wolfsbane burns had healed entirely, leaving red streaks around her neck, wrists and ankles. She was currently wearing one of his t-shirts, clutching the covers tightly to her chest as she slept. Peter walked to stand in front of his nephew on the other side of the table, looking over his shoulder at Alina and Derek was a bit shocked to find a certain⊠genuine remorse in his eyes⊠at least, as close to genuine as Peter Hale was capable of. He wasnât quite sure how he was feeling about thatâŠ
âSo, why arenât you healing?â Peter asked, looking back at Derek, how he hesitated before continuing to set up the board âitâs from one of their swords. Itâll heal.â
âBy playing chess?â
âBack in his room, Stiles had a board with my name on one of the pieces. If this is a game to him, then I need to figure out the playsâ Derek admitted, Peter picking up one of the pieces ânot so easy to do when itâs a game without rulesâ he stated casually, Derek looking up at him âwhat does that mean?â he asked and Peter took a breath, putting the chess piece down âyouâre dealing with the kind of spirit thatâs lived too long to play by human rules. Itâs a fox spirit that chose to become human. And supposedly, thatâs something they can only do after about 100 yearsâ Peter said, Derek continuing to set up the board before looking up at his uncle, shrugging slightly and Peter leaned his hands on the table âif a kitsune is an annoying pain in the ass, then a nogitsune, which is a dark kitsune, is a freaking disasterâ Peter stated before straightening up, putting on his jacket âbesides, chess is Stilesâ game⊠Itâs not the game of a Japanese foxâ he pointed out, walking around the table and past him âdo yourself a favor and put something on that,â he stopped next to Derek âbefore it gets infectedâ he added and then left the loft, Derek watching him leave before looking down at the board, studying the pieces before looking over at Alina, still soundly asleep, he could hear her heartbeat, finally steady after hours and hours of sobbing and weeping and crying in his arms.
His mind raced with Peterâs words, his eyes returning to the board, frowning as he picked up the black queen, the one on Stilesâ board with Alinaâs nametag on, a realization slowly hitting him. Stiles had used the board to explain everything to Noah⊠but he hadnât put her name on the black queen⊠heâd put it on the white queen when heâd tried to explain it to their dad, he remember her telling him that⊠but when theyâd found the board after Stiles, or whatever he was now, had been in his room⊠itâd been on the black queenâŠ
Getting a call in the morning wasnât exactly something a lot of people thought was pleasant. Getting a call about oneâs boyfriend being in jail was even less pleasant. Alina hurried into the station and straight for the reception âDonna?â she asked, Donna looking up at her, a woman around her 40s with black hair streaked with gray, dull brown, almost black, eyes, arched eyebrows and a no-nonsense air about her. âHeâs okay. The bench by the office. At least theyâre not in a cellâ she joked in a flat dry, humourless tone before looking back at the desk and Alina nodded âyouâre an angel, Donnaâ Alina mumbled, Donna giving a brief âmhmâ as Alina ran off into the station, hurrying past the others and arriving in front of the sheriff's enclosed office, seeing both of them sit there and she sighed heavily. âWhy the fuck are you two handcuffed to a bench?â she asked, both turning to see her and Derek sighed lightly as she approached them âyou two are the last ones Iâd expect to find here! Especially you, Chrisâ she hissed at the hunter before looking back at Derek. âWe were framedâ Chris spoke up and Alina frowned at him âfor what?â
âMurderâ Derek stated casually and Alina raised a brow at him âagain?â she asked shocked and Derek frowned, making her roll her eyes âStiles told me everything, especially when Scott was first bit and everyone thought you murdered your sisterâ she admitted sheepishly, Derek scoffing under his breath. Of course Stiles told her everything, he shouldâve seen that coming from a mile away.
âSo⊠whatâs going on? How were you framed? Why were you framed? Are you okay?â
âWeâre fineâ Chris said and she raised a brow at him âfine? Youâre in jail, being framed for murderâ she pointed out, shaking her head âbut⊠as Donna said: at least youâre not a cellââ Alina muttered before looking back at Derek who frowned at her âwho is Donna?â
âThe woman at the front desk. Iâve known her since I was like, five years old or somethingâ she admitted before sighing âso, what can I do to help? I-Iâm sure I can find a lawyer or something! I mean, these charges are shit, right? Who arrested you?â
âMcCallâ Derek stated flatly and she raised a brow at him, leaning back a little âMcCall?â she asked, Derek giving a brief nod and Alina scoffed, turning away from the bench, pacing a little âhe just doesnât know when to stopâŠâ she muttered angrily when suddenly the station erupted into a panic, her brows furrowing as officers flew by around them and she looked back at Derek and Chris âhold on, Iâll ask Donna whatâs going onâ she informed before jogging to the front desk, leaning on it, Donna calling from phone to phone in a frenzy, and somehow she still seemed calm. âDonna?â
âGet outta here, sweetheart. Now-â
âWhatâs going on??â
âThereâs a bomb! You gotta leave, sweetie-â
âGive me your handcuff keysâ she ordered, holding out her hand and Donna sighed heavily but quickly gave her the keys anyway, Alina hurrying back towards Derek and Chris, she was almost there, barely five feet away when suddenly a package inside the sheriff office exploded, glass shattering, it felt like everything inside of her exploded, knocking her back, glass stuck in her face and forearms that sheâd somehow managed to lift to brace against the explosion, her back slamming into the sharp edge of a desk as she was pushed back and she slumped to the ground, dizzy, everything somehow silent and screaming at the same time, an ear-piercing pitch screaming in her head and she winced, she felt like she could barely breathe, like her lungs had been squeezed of all air in them, her vision almost swimming, like she was drunk. Her mouth tasted ashy and of metal, her spine aching from being knocked against the edge of the desk, her body on the ground and she wasnât even sure when sheâd fallen to begin with. It was like everything was in and out, nothing was really constant except the pain. She winced and frowned, coughing, gasping for air as she raised herself on her hands and knees, looking towards Derek and Chris, finding them standing, massive shards of glass sticking out of Derekâs back and she winced, trying to pull herself up on a desk but her legs gave out, making her stumble, a small grunt of pain leaving her before she stumbled to her feet again, staggering over to Derek, almost tripping several times and Chris caught her before she could fall, her eyes turning to Derek and she held him by his shoulders, panting briefly, shards of glass poking out of her forearms, some stuck to her cheeks and brow but she ignored it, ignored the sharp, stinging pain and cupped Derekâs cheek. âDerek? Derek..â she trailed off, her head pounding, her own voice slowly coming back to her but that damn ringing was still screaming at her, coming in waves, growing stronger and then fading again.
She wasnât sure how long itâd been, maybe a few minutes? But suddenly her dad was there, gripping her by her shoulders, turning her to him, a worried look on his face as his voice was distant, his hand reaching up to cup her face when he thought better of it, seeing as there was literal glass sticking out of her face. At first the ringing was all she could hear but then it faded a little, her brows furrowing, the movement causing the glass shards to shift a little and she winced in pain, reaching a shaky hand up and barely touching the glass before her dad quickly lowered her hand so she wouldnât accidentally move or disturb anything to make it worse. She looked down at his hands in hers, her frown still present and she blinked hard, once, twice, not truly feeling his hand holding hers and she looked back up at him âdad?... What-â she stopped herself, shutting her eyes tightly, shaking her head a little, trying to shake off the dizziness and swimming vision before looking back at him âwhatâre you doing here?â she asked quietly, the ringing still present but at least it was more like background noise now. âWe need to get you looked at, honey-â
âIâm fine. Derek-â she turned to point at him, swaying a little, held in place by her dad âDerek needs help moreâ she admitted, every movement still felt slow, but it was all slowly coming back to her, slowly returning to normal, except the pain got worse and worse the more normal everything got. The glass digging into her face and arms, the aching bruise on her spine, her head pounding.
âAlina??â she looked up when her name was yelled, her eyes landing on Stiles and she frowned âwhat are you all doing here?â she asked, wincing in pain when she reached for him and he was about to hug her when he thought better of it, tears in his eyes as he looked at his big sister, glass sticking out of her like she was a damn pincushion, nose bleeding, ears bleeding, unsteady on her feet âIâm so sorry, Iâm so so sorry, I-â
âItâs okay⊠itâs okayâ she murmured, voice still a little slurred and she looked back at their dad, her brows furrowing and her eyes widened, pain enveloping her and she gritted her teeth âoh my godâŠâ she muttered harshly, looking towards the exploded office with wide and shocked eyes, as though only now realising what had happened.
âSweetheart, you need to sit downâ Noah stated with worry, guiding her by her shoulder towards outside and she gritted her teeth in pain, limping a little âDerek-â
âLet me take care of you firstâ Noah almost begged, Donna appearing, having been more safe by the reception desk, mostly only covered in dust and debris, hurrying over, rushing to Alina, helping her away from the explosion zone while her dad went back to get Stiles and Scott out of there and help in any way possible.
------------------------------------------
Alina was quiet as Scott, Stiles and their dad talked, Scott trying to talk Stiles out of the decision, her head down, arms around herself and Scott turned to her âAlina-â
âItâs his decision, Scottâ she murmured, still keeping her head down and Scott shook his head, stepping closer to her âyou canât do this-â
âYou think I want to?â she asked sharply, looking up at Scott with tears in her eyes âyou think I want to lock my brother up in an insane asylum?â she asked more sharply, frowning at Scott âyou think I want him treated like heâs some psychotic mental case?? I donât. But itâs his choice, Scott! What do you want me to do? Tie him up? Lock him in some cell?? Keep him from the outside world?? Thatâs what theyâll do here anyway but at least he wonât be tied up⊠at least he wonât be alone and at least here they can look out for him, care for himâ she hissed, stepping closer to Scott âI donât want my baby brother locked up but itâs his choice and I love him, more than anything in the world⊠I became a werewolf for him⊠I have risked my life again and again, for him⊠I know you have too, so donât-... donât tell me how I canât let this happen⊠Donât tell me this shouldnât happen because youâre right, it shouldnât, but what other options are there?? What else can we do? Itâs his choiceâ she stated in a shaky voice, tears clouding her eyes and she turned to face Stiles and their dad, shaking her head âI canât walk you in there⊠Iâm sorry⊠I thought I could, I really really did I just-â
âItâs okayâŠâ
âBut-â
âNo, I mean it⊠and-... I donât want you to see me in thereâ Stiles admitted and she nodded, lower lip trembling as she wrapped her arms around him, pulling him close tightly as she hugged him, feeling him hug her just as tightly. âNothing in this world could ever make me love you less,â she whispered softly, ânot a nogitsune, werewolf, kitsune, the Oni⊠Nothing could ever, ever, make me love you any less, or be any less proud of you⊠donât you ever forget that, okay? Donât. Promise me you wonâtâŠâ
âI wonâtâ Stiles whispered, hugging her even tighter and she kissed the side of his head affectionately âI love you, Mischiefâ she whispered and he clung to her, digging his nails into her to cling harder to her âI love you too, Cherryâ he whispered back and she parted from him, wiping away a tear on her cheek before forcing a smile at him âIâll see you when you get out. Weâll have everything figured out by thenâ she stated, forcing a smile at their dad who gave her a sad look and she looked back at Stiles âgo onâ she nodded towards the building, stepping aside as Stiles and their dad walked inside and past the gate, Scott looking at Alina, seeing the tears rolling down her street and he sighed âAlina-â
âWeâll figure this out⊠weâll figure this out because I will NOT let my baby brother rot in that placeâ she stated firmly, looking at Scott who gave a small nod and she nodded in return. âDo you need a ride?â
âNo⊠My boyfriend is locked up and almost got blown up, I almost got blown up, my brother is being checked into a mental institution because heâs possessed by a dark Japanese demon spirit, my dad is barely hanging on by thread and Iâm running out of leads for finding out exactly what kind of werewolf I am⊠I need the walkâ she admitted, giving him a soft smile âthanks for askingâ she added before turning around, wiping her eyes as she kept walking back towards Beacon Hills.
-------------------------------------
âAlina?? What are you doing here?â
âI-... I heard Derek-... the chargesâŠâ she couldnât form a coherent sentence, her eyes fixated on the brain scans in his hands, both of which she recognized far too easily, tears forming in her eyes and Noah finally realized, moving to hide them away but she shook her head and walked over ânoâ she managed to get out, taking both brain scans, looking them over, her heart racing. Derek could hear it, hear the way it furiously rammed against her ribcage like it wanted to explode. âI remember theseâŠâ she admitted, holding up the brain scan she hadnât seen since she was 16. She then looked at the other one, a frown forming and she sniffled briefly because of her runny nose âwait,â she muttered, lining the scans up and she looked up at her dad âthey-...â she cut herself off, looking down at them again before looking up at Chris and Derek âtheyâre-... the same⊠exactly the sameâŠâ she admitted with confusion, Derek stepping a little closer to her âIâm guessing thatâs not possible?â
âNo⊠itâs not even remotely possible, it just-... doesnât existâ she admitted with more confusion, looking up at her dad âdad?...â she asked, Noah sighing lightly âthatâs what I found out as wellâ he admitted and Alina let out a shaky breath, carefully putting down the overlapped scans. âSo, the trickster is still playing tricksâ Chris stated and she looked up at him before looking at Derek, feeling his hand subtly on her lower back, a silent attempt at comforting her but suddenly a wide grin formed on her face, fresh tears filling her eyes and she began to⊠laughâŠ
âHoney?â Noah asked with concern, frowning as she continued to laugh, like she couldnât control it, a hand over her mouth to try and stop it âIâm sorry- Iâm sorry, I just-â she stopped, looking up at Noah âheâs not dying, dadâ she stated with a laugh âitâs just a trick! Heâs not dying like momâ she continued, unable to stop laughing, her eyes turning to Derek who sighed lightly and she continued to laugh âheâs not sick! Itâs just a trickâ she repeated, her laughter soon turning to hyperventilating sobs, her eyes returning to her dad and he sighed with sadness âsweetheartâŠâ he muttered and she shook her head, looking down at the brain scans, all signs of laughter and joy gone from her as she was on the verge of sobbing âitâs a trick⊠Itâs just a trickâ she repeated shakily, starting to shake her head âitâs just-... itâs-...â she let out a brief sob, covering her mouth and Derek gently pulled her into his arms, sighing in regret, holding her close. âItâs okay-â
âNo! Itâs-... oh my god, itâs using momâ she whimpered, looking at her dad, tears in his eyes as he nodded âI knowâ he whispered softly and she shook her head âdad, if itâs using momâŠâ she trailed off, Noah nodding âI knowâŠ. when I was in the army, an officer told me, âif you want to defeat their enemy, you donât take away their courage. You take away their hopeâ...â Noah admitted and her eyes widened. She turned away from Derek to face her dad âdad⊠if Stiles loses hopeâŠâ she trailed off, Noah nodding âexactlyâŠâ
âThen-â she stopped herself, straightening up and wiping away her tears, and snot, on her sleeve âthen this isnât just about his body. This isnât just fighting to get his body back,â she took a steady breath âitâs about getting him back. If itâs using mom⊠itâs just about the only thing that can make him lose hopeâ she admitted more steadily, turning to look at Derek and then Chris âAlina, heâs left several severely injuredâŠâ
âAnd severely deadâŠâ Derek hesitantly reminded her and she looked between them, stepping to stand next to her dad to face both of them at the same time âthatâs not HIM! Thatâs not my brother, thatâs not Stilesâ she stated firmly, Noah placing a hand on her shoulder and she looked up at him. âThatâs why I need them⊠and you, sweetheart.. I need people who have experience with this and I need someone he knows better than anyone and thatâs you, sweetie. I need your help to stop himâ he admitted and she nodded âwhatever you need, whatever it takesâ she stated firmly, looking at Chris and Derek âwhatever it takesâ she stated more sharply, making sure they understood and she looked at Derek with pleading eyes, Derekâs face softening and he nodded âwhatever it takesâ he murmured in agreement and she nodded.
âAnd by stop him⊠you mean trap himâ Chris stated and Noah nodded a little, making her nod as well âwhatever it takesâ she muttered to herself. âIâll go home, get everything and then meet you guys at the Argentâsâ she stated with determination, about to move when Noah caught her by her elbow âget what?â he asked and she hesitated before sighing âsomething to bring Stiles backâŠâ
âAlina-â
âItâs okay, I know what Iâm doing!â she called halfway out of the station.
Alina was quiet as the equipment beeped maddeningly, dried tears on her cheeks as she just sat at his bedside, holding his hand hopelessly, tired and exhausted. She flinched when there was a knock on the doorframe, looking up, seeing Riley there, approaching hesitantly âso⊠heâs⊠you know?â
âYeah⊠howâd you get in? Melissa gave me a keycard but-âÂ
âI mightâve snatched it from some nurse or something, for now I amâŠâ Riley frowned, taking out and looking at a keycard âAshley⊠Smithâ she admitted, pocketing the keycard again before looking back at Isaac âso⊠heâs in your, uhâŠ. âpackâ?â
âYeahâŠâ Alina repeated, Riley nodding as she walked over, standing next to the chair Alina sat in. âI got a text from my brotherâŠâ she admitted, sniffling briefly âtelling me to not look for him, that heâs okay, that I shouldnât worryâŠâ she added quietly, looking up at Riley and away from Isaac, fresh tears in her eyes âI donât know what to doâŠâ she admitted in a whimper and Riley sighed, bending down to hug Alina in the chair, Alina clinging to her with her free hand as she cried quietly âoh, honeyâ Riley sighed, her cheek resting on top of Alinaâs head âitâs okay⊠from everything youâve told me, heâs smartâŠâ she comforted, Alina shaking her head, unable to form words as she calmed down, sniffling, her breath shaky.
âAlinaâ a voice called and they both looked towards the doorway, Riley parting from Alina as Derek walked a little closer âhow is he?â
âHeâs still not healing, I-Iâm trying to take as much as I can of his pain but-... thereâs so much of itâ she admitted weakly and Derek looked at Riley, making Alina sniffle quietly and wipe the fresh tears, and snot, from her face. âThis is Riley, sheâs a friend from New York⊠my best friend. She knows everythingâ she explained, gesturing faintly to Derek âthis is Derek, my-...â
âBoyfriendâ Derek stated, noting how that single word seemed to light her up, and he walked over, shaking Rileyâs hand in greeting before looking at Alina, walking around the bed to kneel in front of her, taking her free hand âwhen was the last time you slept?...â
âI canât sleep⊠Stiles is out there and Isaac wonât heal and I canât help but feel like-â
âI know, I knowâ he comforted, looking at Isaac before getting up âyou need to sleepâ he instructed, guiding Alina to stand up, his hands on her hips as he made her face him âcome on,â he took her hand, kissing her forehead and leading her towards the door âweâll go home and get some sleep, okay?â he asked and Alina hesitated before nodding, looking at Isaac and he nodded âIâll wait in the hallâ he stated, kissing her forehead again before leaving the room, Riley turning to face Alina, Alinaâs eyes turning to her as Riley mouthed âoh. my. fucking. godâ at her, looking towards the hallway to imply that it was about Derek and Alina laughed quietly, nodding âI knowâ she whispered before looking at Isaac, leaning down, kissing his forehead softly âitâs okay, Iâll be back laterâ she whispered to him before standing back up again, Riley smiling sadly at her âI can sit with him, if you want..?â
âYeah, thatâd⊠thatâd be niceâŠâ
âOkay. Iâll call you if I hear anything or if something happens, okay?â
âYeah, just⊠donât stay in here too long, I donât want you to get caught, just wait outsideâŠâ
âI will, donât worry about me. Get some rest, honey,â Riley called as Alina was almost out of the room âyou look like shitâ she added and Alina smiled in amusement, scoffing as she nodded and left the room, joining Derek. âWait, howâd YOU get in?â she asked with a frown, looking at Derek as he smirked âmightâve threatened one of the doctorsâ he admitted and she smirked, shaking her head, leaning into him and he wrapped an arm around her âsomehow Iâm not surprisedâ she muttered with that same smirk that began to soften into a smile as she walked with him, heading for his loft.
---------------------------
Derek watched her as she slept, sitting next to her on the bed, a small smile forming on his lips when he noticed that she was drooling a little, a strand of her hair over her face and he carefully and gently moved it away from her face, tucking it behind her ear where the symbol was, the one those shadows had left, the one so different from the other symbols⊠His eyes moved to her phone, a frown forming on her brows and he got up, walking over and picking it up, unlocking it with the code sheâd given him, going through the contacts until he found the one he was looking for, dialing it and putting the phone to his ear.
âHello?â
âDr. Finch. My name is Derek, Iâm Alinaâs boyfriend-â
âAh! Youâre the one sheâs always talking about! Whereâs Alina?â
Derek couldnât help but smirk when he heard that Alina was talking about him, a warm feeling bubbling in his stomach and he looked over his shoulder at her sleeping form âsheâs out at the moment but she asked me to look into something for her and I thought youâd be the best one to ask. She says you specialize in a lot of subjects?â
âWell, it depends. What do you need?â
âWhat can you tell me about Japanese folklore and tales? Specifically symbols and their meaning.â
âI have a feeling you have a specific symbol in mindâŠ?â
âA straight lineâŠâ
âA line? And you think itâs Japanese becauseâŠ?â
âCall it a hunch.â
âAlright⊠well it can be seen as a lot of things and have many different meanings. Can you tell me anything about the context?â
âItâs related to a symbol that looks like the number five, but backwardsâŠâ
âWell, as I said, symbols can mean many different things, I need a bit more context than just that, Iâm sorryâŠâ
There was a long silence and Derek sighed subtly, about to tell the professor to forget it when he spoke up.
âLet me see what I can come up with, give me a secondâŠâ
There was yet another long silence, the sound of something shifting and being moved far away from the phone before getting closer.
âLetâs see here⊠hmm⊠well, thereâs a few things here⊠are you sure you canât tell me anything else??â
âWhat about anything relating to a Nogitsune or Kitsune? Or-... black figures with glowing eyes that are almost⊠smoke like.â
âIâm not sure what you mean, but one of the symbols youâre referring to, the backwards five, COULD possibly be the symbol for âselfâ... but a single line often means âoneâ, as in the number, but it can also mean individual, like one of a kind. Itâs quite the uncharted territory for me here Iâm afraid, I wouldnât take any of it as gospel. Oh, and about the shadowy figures⊠Black figures with glowing eyes⊠They COULD possibly be something called an âOniâ. Itâs a kind of yĆkai or demon, orc, ogre, or troll in Japanese folklore. They are believed to live in caves, deep mountains or Jigoku, a sort of Japanese Buddhism version of hell. Oni are known for their superhuman strength and have been associated with powers like thunder and lightning, which is probably where the relation to a Kitsune mightâve crossed your mind. Now, the name âOniâ means something invisible, formless, or unworldly, so in other words, theyâre âghostsâ or the âsoul of the deadâ. Though the Japanese dictionary, WamyĆ RuijushĆ, was written in Japan in the 10th century, it explained the origin of the word âoniâ as a corruption of on/onu, meaning âto hideâ. Now, there ARE some other mentions but theyâre not as widely known. One of them is that Oni are a sort of demon spirit who appear in the form of warriors or shadows, wearing masks and itâs supposedly the only physical thing they carry that mortals are actually able to touch or come into contact with. Under their masks itâs said to be pure darkness, while their eyes glow yellow. It says here that Onis are summoned by the nine tails of a Kitsune. Itâs said that even though they are demon spirits, they are not necessarily good nor evil, they take simply their commands from whoever breaks one of the nine Tails. But this is a lesser known version of the Oni, compared to the more widely known and accepted versions. As I said, this isnât exactly my area of expertise, donât take my word as gospel, there are many conflicting resources⊠Did that help in any way? Iâm sorry I canât offer more but-â
âNo, no, you did more than enough, thank youâŠâ
âYouâre welcome. Do say hi to Alina for me, will you? And remind her we have a video call this friday to discuss her research into the greek mythology of King Lycaon and his descendents, itâs a fascinating subject, she seems rather determined that Lycaon had more descendents than we know about, sheâs adamant that we mustâve missed something, that his line didnât end with him and his sons. Anyway, sorry for dragging on. Say hello for me.â
âI will, thank youâ he hung up, putting her phone back where itâd been, looking back at Alina, walking over and kissing her forehead before going out.
------------------------
âJesus fucking christ!!! Son of a bitch!!!â Alina growled as she was practically tearing the place apart, Derek hurrying into the loft after having heard the emitter a few blocks away, his brows raised as he saw the chaotic apartment and she looked up at him âI know, I know, Iâll fix everything but right now I swear to god, Derek, Iâll kill something if that damn thing isnât turned off!â she snapped, continuing to look around and Derek frowned, with an emitter it should be coming from one direction, but this was from all over the apartment, like a couple of synced emitters and he nodded âthereâs more than oneâ he stated with clenched jaw and began to help her look.
All in all? Five. Five fucking emitters hidden around the apartment and when Alina found the last one, she snapped it in half in anger âIâm going to seriously kill Argentâ she muttered with anger and he walked over âdonât. Iâll take care of itâ he promised, taking the broken pieces from her âyou, fix my apartmentâ he ordered playfully and she sighed, looking up at him before nodding, relenting, seeing past her anger to reason. âGood girlâ Derek playfully joked as he turned around and grabbed the emitters, Alinaâs cheeks beet red at his comment but he was gone before she could do anything about it, a heavy sigh on her lips as she began to clean the place up âsuper speed would be wonderful right nowâ she muttered as she continued, putting things back in place, cushions returned to the couch, pillow placed back onto the bed⊠after itâd been placed back after itâd been flipped in the search for the emitters.
Half an hour later and the apartment looked⊠mostly unscathed. Alina sighed heavily, hands on her hips as she nodded to herself. She looked around before sighing, getting out her phone to check the time, grimacing a little âtraffic with the bus is going to be a bitch⊠I seriously need a car⊠wellâŠâ she muttered, looking around âitâs not like I havenât stayed the night here beforeâ she muttered before opening her phone and calling a Thai restaurant that delivered.
âYour Grace, youâve just been wed, a honeymoon is expected-â
âIâm a Queen. A Queen has duties. Duties that I will not forsakeâ she stated calmly as she looked through the papers in her apartments at her dining table, a glass of plum-wine half-drunk and an untouched plate of lunch stood off to the side, having been pushed out of the way. âIf I may, perhaps it wouldnât hurt to take some time-â
âWhy?â she asked bluntly, Tyrion hesitating, sighing lightly âit is expected, even for an arranged marriage, that some time be taken after the wedding, so that the newlyweds mayâŠâ
âMay what?â she asked as he trailed off, looking up at him and he tried to search for the right words that wouldnât lead him to probably be decapitated. âTo-... So that-... you may-â
âSo that perhaps we can get to know each other betterâ a voice interrupted and both the Queen and her Hand turned to see Durran standing there, hands behind his back, folded neatly. âI have work-â
âWhich will be here tomorrowâ he stated softly, approaching, Tyrion stepping back as Durran walked over and kneeled down in front of Rhaella. âPlease, I ask, humbly, that you forsake your stubbornness in favor of paying your attentions to me insteadâ he stated, obviously in a joking tone, and her cheeks turned red as she scoffed under her breath and looked away âI have seven kingdoms to rule-â
âAnd one husband who misses his Queenâ he interrupted and she glanced at him out of the corner of her eyes before sighing, hand clenching and unclenching as it rested on the table âyou may leave, My Lordâ she stated quietly, glancing at Tyrion so he knew that it was he she meant. He bowed and nodded, leaving the chambers and Rhaella looked up at Durran âyou canât just-... draw me away whenever youâre feeling needy.â
âCanât I? It worked, didnât it?â he asked cheekily and her cheeks flushed even more, eyes widening a little and she huffed and looked away âinsufferableâ she muttered under her breath and Durran chuckled, tilting his head at her and she looked back up at him âif Iâd known you were to keep me from my duties then I wouldâve found a better matchâ she stated quietly and he raised a brow âno you wouldnât haveâ he stated softly and she frowned at him, making him lean closer, leaning down to her âyou decided to marry me the day I climbed and rode your brother with youâ he stated and she opened her mouth to disagree, to protest, but found that no words came out, no retort, no warning that he was stepping beyond a line that didnât actually exist⊠âyouâre arrogantâ she finally settled on and he smirked a little âI just know my wifeâ he defended innocently and she scoffed again, a small smirk on her lips as she shook her head and looked away from him, thinking it over before looking back up at him âgive me a reason why I should put the entire Realm on hold just for youâ she half-ordered and he smirked again, leaning down, kissing her gently and softly, one of his hands coming up, gently brushing his knuckles against her cheekbones, feeling her start to kiss him back and when she did, he deepened the kiss, his hands cupping her cheeks as he gently guided her to stand, the kiss quickly turning heated and he guided her every step of the way, setting the pace, taking the lead, and she let him. He gently parted from her, taking her hand, leading her to the bed, kissing her softly before turning her around, wrapping his arms around her from behind and he smiled a little when she leaned into him. He placed a hand over her bosom, right over her heart, feeling it race recklessly. âI want youâ she whispered and unlike before, unlike on their wedding night, this time she didnât just give her consent, she wanted it, wanted HIM. He kissed her shoulder gently, unwrapping his arms from around her, taking a small step back, gently brushing her hair over her shoulder, leaning down and kissing what he could reach of her neck, lips soft and gentle, as though she was made of glass and not the fire that was brewing in her.
He gently turned her around, guiding her to sit on the edge of the bed, kneeling down and undoing her shoes carefully, opening the straps, being careful when sliding the heeled shoe from her feet, hearing her sigh a little in relief and he smirked âbetter?â
âMuch. You have no idea how dreadful they are to walk inâ she complained with a wince and he chuckled âI believe youâ he murmured, reaching up a little, just enough to reach the ribbon holding her stockings in place, undoing it and carefully peeling off the fabric from her legs, kissing each leg once the skin was revealed. He put it aside before standing up, helping her up, turning her back around so her back faced him, retaking the position he had before he turned her around to help her out of her shoes.
His fingers hovered for a moment before he touched the embroidered edge of her gown, fingers gently trailing over it, a small frown forming on his brow when he felt something underneath and when he lifted the fabric, he saw a small hook, finding an identical one on the other side. She could feel his confusion, her cheeks reddening a little âitâs-... it was my motherâs idea⊠itâs removable so the Maesters can get to my back more easilyâŠâ she admitted and he smiled a little âyou got your intelligence from your motherâ he whispered, leaning in, the words whispered across her ear and she shivered as she smiled âflattererâ she accused with slight amusement and he chuckled and kissed her neck, the first hook easily giving beneath his thumb, his hand moving to the second one, finding a little more resistance and he frowned, trying again and she smirked with amusement at his struggles. âPerhaps I shall call for Falia, if youâre struggling, my love?â she asked teasingly and he scoffed âitâs-... itâs stuckâ he admitted and she rolled her eyes and reached behind her, easily undoing the hook and he hesitated âwell-... it was the angleâ he accused, hearing her laugh and he smiled, as though her laughter brought him to the skies above in joy, lifting him up in euphoria. To think, a single laugh, brief but genuine, brought him such joyâŠ
He kissed her neck again as his fingers found the third hook, this time managing as easily as the first one. One by one, the hooks give in, releasing the fabric. Once the last hook gives way, the back panel loosens, the gown itself still clinging to her shoulders and he hesitated before realising that the panel only revealed the bodice, not freeing it as he thought. Rhaella starts to get nervous at his pause and she cleared her throat âitâs-... i-it doesnât release the dressâ she informed in a murmur and he exhaled a soft laugh at himself, sliding his hands to her shoulders. The fabric was heavier than he expected, structured, layered, lined, and he lifted it carefully, easing it down her arms. The gown pooled at her feet on the floor in a dark, silken ring, the red lining catching the light dimly. With parts of her shoulders now exposed, he kissed the end of her shoulder gently and softly, feeling her flinch a little before leaning into him again. She wasnât used to the reverence he was showing her and he kissed her shoulder again, this time delighted that she didnât flinch away. Now, with the gown removed, the blood-red bodice was fully visible, laced tight, fitted perfectly to her frame, as though waiting for his hands to untangle it. The laces were tight, neat, impossibly small and his brows furrowed, just for a moment, before he started loosening them from the top down, each pull giving him a little more slack, each loosened cross revealing how the bodice opens like a book rather than lifting away. He worked slowly, kissing what skin he can reach with her short sleeved chemise underneath, the red cotton fabric hidden under her bodice. He took a moment to look at it, gently removing the bodice from her, carefully dropping it on the ground next to him. Itâs only now, when he sees the hidden slit and single string looped at the top of her back, that he realises how intricate it all is. Itâs far more complex than anything heâd ever seen, the layers, lining, laces and strings⊠it felt almost like a crime to him, hiding all of that beauty below the layers. The complex chemise looked seamless at first, until one notices the faint overlap along her spine, a hidden fold, almost invisible and without a doubt designed to be so. He leaned closer, kissing her neck, silently asking her if she was alright and when she turned her head a little, titling it away from him to give him more access, he knew. He kissed her skin again, his hands coming up to the tied string at the top of the chemise, tied with a ribbon, and when he pulled on the string, the overlapping layers that create the split falls open softly and he leans closer to her, almost with his chest to her back, as he carefully tugs at the shoulders of the chemise, pulling it away from her body, letting it pool around her feet. He stayed close to her back so he couldnât see or touch the scales âcan I see you?â he asked softly and she nodded a little, Durran kissing her shoulder just before the start of her scales, feeling her tense briefly before relaxing as he placed another kiss further down, this one on top of her scales and he heard her breath shake a little, her heart racing. Never had anyone shown such reverence for her, or her scales⊠Her mother adored her, told her she was beautiful no matter what, her step-father, Jon, told her it only made her stronger, that she had something no one else did or ever had, that she was special⊠but this⊠this felt differentâŠ
His hands settled on her thin hips, his lips traveling along the dragon scales on her shoulders, running over where they began and stopped, kissing her skin as much as her scales. She frowned as she realised something, turning to look at him over her shoulder, a few tears in her eyes âyou truly love me⊠donât you?â she asked with quiet shock, Durranâs eyes tracing over her face before gently turning her by her shoulders, his eyes remaining on her face as she turned to face him fully and he reached up, gently cupping her cheek âsince the second I saw you on the Iron Throne, so high upâŠâ he admitted in a whisper and she let out a shaky breath at this, a few tears forming in her eyes and before she realised what she was doing, she leaned up and kissed him, her arms wrapped around him, her heart racing, fire coursing through her veins with a want sheâd never felt before, a safety she wasnât aware was possible. âI love you tooâ she whispered against his lips before resuming the kiss. Durran kissed her back with just as much passion as she kissed him with, her hands starting to tug at his clothes and heâs sure that heâs never undressed as fast as he did now. Her hands roamed over his chest in an attempt to help him undress, her hands shaking with eagerness as she found the front of his doublet, finding the small toggles beneath the embroidery, each one releasing with a muted click while his own hands worked at his belt, finding the buckle at his waist, the leather smooth, his hands sliding the strap free just in time as she finished undoing his doublet, the doublet soft, no longer rigid with structure and she hastily pushed it off his shoulders and he laughed at her eagerness but didnât stop her, dropping the loose belt along with the doublet. Her hands moved to the linen undershirt, tied at the throat and chest with thin cords, her hands rugging the cords loose while his own moved to his trousers. The ties at the front of his trousers were revealed now that the belt and doublet was gone, his kiss with her broken as she began to pull the linen undershirt over his head, Durran ducking down, the soft linen leaving his body, Rhaella throwing it aside before immediately rejoining her lips with his, as though it physically hurt her to part from him, to be away from him for more than a mere second. She began to kiss down his throat, mimicking what heâd done, kissing down his throat and neck, copying his actions before moving her hands down his upper arms, over his biceps, heat pooling in her gut at the feel of them. Never had she felt so⊠hungry⊠not for food, but for his touch, his love, his smile, his eyes, his body, everything about himâŠ
How could she have been so foolish? Forcing herself to believe it was nothing but political when every act, every word, every ounce of him loved her⊠and even worse, she had tried to force herself to hate him so much that each kind act, each soft word spoken, only made her love him more. Oh, how foolish sheâd been.
Once his trousers were loose, he shifted his weight just enough for them to be eased off his hips, pooling at his ankles and he stepped out of them, leaning down and picking her up in a swift motion, hearing her yelp briefly as she clung to him to not fall, Durran smirking with amusement at her and she hid her face in his neck as he carried her to the side of the bed. He kissed her deeply as he placed her on the bed, bending down and undoing his shoes, kicking them off as much as he could, left now only in his braies. He leans down and kisses her, guiding her to lay down on the bed, his hand cupping her cheek while the other holds him above her. He hovers over her, his lips still on hers as she lets him run her hands along his back and arms, feeling the muscles flex, the shape of them, until her hands ventured further down. His braies sat low on his hips, tied with a simple drawstring and her fingers wrapped around it, tugging lightly, all while staying close to him, her kiss still greedy and desperate as the fabric gathered in her hands as she draws it down, sort and light, loosening it, her hand venturing daringly under the fabric at his side, sliding it from his hips and he let go of her cheek in favor of pushing it off him, maneuvering out of it before leaning back over her, keeping close to her, his chest against hers, her nipples perked from the cold air, pressed against his chest and she found herself lifting a leg, bent, allowing him in between her legs as she kept kissing him, her hands clinging to him, partly out of nerves, partly because she wanted him as close as possible. He parted from her by leaning up a little, Rhaella chasing after his lips and he smirked, allowing her a mere peck before leaning away again âmay I touch you?â he asked so softly, a soft whisper, and she nodded, his lips back on hers and he gently guided his hand down her body, his other hand still holding himself above her. He gently went down her thin body, the few curves there were, fingers massaging the flesh of her hips, reverently sliding over her ribs under her small breasts.
His kisses moved down her body. First her neck, then collarbone, then bosom until eventually it was her cleavage. His lips gently ghosted over her breasts, his eyes meeting hers and she nodded, his lips instantly wrapping around one of the perked buds, his other hand moving down to her leg, gently grabbing under her knee, wrapping the leg around his waist as his lips gently swirled around her perky bud, alternating in between suckling and teasing it with his tongue, Rhaellaâs breath growing more and more heavy, her hands fisting the bed sheets next to her, her eyes closed and he smirked a little when he saw it, more than pleased at her trust in him. It formed butterflies in his stomach, his member growing hard, his own heart racing as his hand moved back up towards her hip, his lips parting from her nipple to pay attention to the other one. He looked up at her, lifting himself off of her âtell me if anything hurts and Iâll stopâ he said softly and she opened her eyes to look at him, nodding and he nodded in return, continuing to kiss down her cleavage, down, down⊠downâŠ
Before she could ask him what he was doing down there she gasped and flinched when she felt his tongue on her, his hands gently prying her legs apart, getting fully settled between them, kneeling by the side of the bed, his hands wrapped around her hips as he licked a lock, flat stripe up her opening, hearing her gasp and whine, her hands fisting the sheets even harder and he smirked at her reaction before going back to feasting on her like she was his last meal for a year. He alternated between licking her hole and her pearl, sucking, licking, pleasuring her in ways she never knew was possible. He blew some cold air on her wet pearl and she flinched and gasped, looking down at him and when he looked up at her, Gods, it was a sight⊠her cheeks were rosy pink, eyes half lidded and her pupils⊠almost round⊠they were more oval than slit as she peered down at him, her perky buds still glistening in the candlelight from his spit. He kissed her inner thigh while keeping eyes contact with her, his lips wet from her arousal, smearing it on her inner thighs as one of his hands left her hip, moving between her legs and she flinched and threw her head back when she felt his lips wrap around her pearl, his tongue starting to flick it as she felt something nearing her hole.
The hand still on her hip gently massaged the flesh as he continued to lick and suck at her pearl, carefully pressing a finger near her hole and she moaned quietly when he pushed in to the first knuckle, sliding in with no resistance from her arousal and his spit. He carefully pushed it further in, watching the way she fisted the sheets, mouth open and he smirked against her pearl before intensifying his efforts, carefully sliding his finger in further before gently pumping in an out and she whimpered, the sound going straight to his hard cock, the tip weeping and it was almost painful to endure, but the sight and taste of her was more than worth it. He turned his finger inside of her, starting to curl them, hitting a spongy spot inside her and she moaned, her hand quickly covering her mouth but Durran reached up, removing her hand from her mouth, moving up her body, kissing his way up to her lips and when he kissed her and she tasted herself she whined needily, feeling his finger still curl and pump inside of her, her breath shaky and her legs started to shake, her brows furrowed as she shut her eyes tightly, a pleasure building in her chest, traveling down to her stomach, her insides on fire, a tight coil forming in her stomach but just before that coil could burst, he withdrew his fingers from her, making her snap her eyes open and look up at him in desperate confusion. âAre you alright?â he asked in a whisper, moving up to hover more over her and she nodded, panting a little âw-whyâd you-... why?â
âBecause if Iâm to make you come apart⊠I want to feel itâ he admitted quietly against her lips and she couldnât help the small whine that left her, leaning up and kissing him, his lips moving in sync with hers until he leaned away âlay in the middle of the bedâ he guided softly, Rhaella frowning but she did as he said, Durran moving to lay between her legs again once she was in the middle of the bed, her legs automatically parting for him, allowing him to slot himself between them and she felt something brush against her pearl, her eyes widening a little and she clung to his biceps, his lips meeting hers and slowly she began to relax âtell me if itâs too muchâ he whispered and she nodded, feeling something prod at her entrance, slowly making itâs way in and she tensed up, Durran stopping entirely ârelax, easyâ he whispered against her cheek, kissing it, his other hand gently stroking her other cheek, feeling her relax and he eased in a little more âthere you go, itâs okayâ he hushed softly, continuing to kiss her cheek and neck, whispering praises in her ear, pausing every now and then to let her adjust and relax.
Once he was fully inside her she let out a quiet moan at the full feeling she felt. She didnât feel too much pain⊠it was more like a heavy yet subtle pressure⊠Now she understood a bit of what Falia had told her about the pressure. She could see the way Durranâs muscles flexed as he hovered above her, face hidden in her neck, lips placing endless kisses on whatever skin he could reach. âAre you-â
âYesâ she replied breathily and he nodded, lifting his head from her neck, his eyes roaming her face, taking her in. Her skin was flushed, cheeks red, mouth parted slightly, eyes hooded⊠and most extraordinary⊠her slit pupils had widened⊠replaced by two adoring circles. His hand cupped her cheek, a frown on his brows and yet he smiled, a little breathless, his thumb gently stroking her cheek âwhat?â she asked quietly, almost in a whisper, and he let out a subtle breath, as though merely looking at her released him from some kind of deep torment he hadnât been aware that he was under. âNothing⊠youâre beautifulâ he whispered, leaning down, his forehead against hers and she wrapped her arms around him, legs locking behind him and he understood immediately, starting to slowly pull out and push back in, slow and gentle, hearing her breath hitch, her lips by his ear, unintentionally letting him feel every shift in her breath, every gasp, every sigh, every breath directly given to him, the feel of her body, how she held him, both inside and outside, tugging him close, as though she never wanted to let go⊠Nothing had ever felt this good⊠this perfect⊠this rightâŠ
âZaldrÄ«zes dÄrilaros ofos Äeksion(dragon crown of gold)â she whispered breathlessly, his pace gentle as he sped up, lifting up to look at her, his forehead against hers as he shared her breath, panting at the feeling of her, wrapped around him, nails digging into his back as she held him close, her brows furrowing as she felt that coil in her stomach again. One of her hands let go of him to press down on her stomach, trying to figure the strange feeling out and he noticed, smirking a little âRhaella-â
âDon tos keligon ios begos ao(Donât stop I beg you)â she whispered shakily, closing her eyes, her hand moving from her stomach to his cheek, cupping it, holding it as her breathless pants and moans grew louder and more frequent, her brows furrowing as he began to thrust into her harder and quicker, feeling a coil in his own gut start to form and he leaned down, kissing her desperately and she kissed him back just as desperately, whining quietly, her whimpers and moans caught by his lips, spurring him on as he swallowed them eagerly, his breath sharp and shaky as he felt her pulse around him, her mouth opening in a silent scream, eyes shut and he felt the way she squeezed him. âLook at me, pleaseâ he begged in a whisper and she opened her eyes, her round pupils looking up at him, her brows furrowed as her entire body tensed up, that coil in her stomach releasing, hurling her straight off a cliff she didnât know existedâŠ
Durran let out a choked moan when he felt how hard she squeezed him as her own release washed over her, his lips immediately locking with hers sloppily, trailing down her cheek and neck to her throat as his own hips stilled inside of her as he found his own release, his seed filling her and he stayed put, silently hoping itâd take root already.
They were both panting breathlessly, his body hovering over hers, face buried in her neck, both bodies slick with sweat. âIos jorrÄelagon ao(I love you)â she whispered against his cheek, panting for breath and he lifted his head from her shoulder to look down at her, silently relieved to find those round orbs staring up at him, soft and round still, looking up at him with such care, such adoration and such love. Her hands gently his face gently, her forehead against his as she closed her eyes, still trying to catch her breath. âIs thatâŠâ she trailed off breathlessly and he nodded âyesâ he confirmed and she began to laugh briefly, then a little more, tears in her eyes when she opened them to look up at him, her eyes taking him in. Panting, flushed, sweaty, hovering over her, his hair, short as it may have been, framing his face so gently⊠Perfect.
He leaned down and kissed her softly, a peck, followed by another and then another as he pulled out of her, hearing her hiss and he kissed her cheek âforgive me-â
âNeverâ she stated quickly and he looked at her, seeing her smirk with amusement and he laughed briefly, laying on his side next to her, raised on his elbow to look over her, her silver hair splayed out like a divine crown. He took her hand in his hand and brought it to his lips, kissing the back of it softly as he looked down at her âis there anything I can get you, Your Grace?â he asked with a smirk and she blushed âI-... donât know what normally happens afterâ she admitted sheepishly and he nodded, kissing her hand again âit depends. What do you feel like? Are you thirsty?â he asked and she nodded a little, making him smile and nod, kissing her hand once more before placing her hand on her bare stomach as he got up, Rhaella feeling heat pool in her belly as she watched him walk bare towards where the wine stood, naked as the day he was born and she felt the heat burn bright inside of her. âDurran?â she asked and he turned, smiling briefly at her, jug in one hand and goblet in the other. Rhaella hesitated, cheeks burning hot as she didnât dare look in his eyes âcome backâ she ordered softly, Durranâs smile turning into a smirk as he put the empty goblet down, the jug with plum-wine following as he walked back to the bed to join her again.
