scratch x either creative reader or lost tourist?
very much like the idea of collateral damage suddenly becoming Not That
bonus points for manipulation!
ʕ♥ᴥ♥ʔ Manipulating Scratch... sigh sigh swoon swoon.
I thought for a long time which version of him to pick for this request (thank you btw I ate the lost tourist concept UP) and decided to go with AW2 version, but a bit less feral.
This little ficlet is fully SFW and with fem!reader.
Enjoy!
ʕ≧㉨≦ʔ
”Lost, are we?”
The voice, coming from somewhere behind tall trees made you jump. Actually, that wasn’t the first jump you made; the woods were alive around you, grass moving, shadows flowing, trees making noises no wood should produce. And now this – growl, dark voice and you clutched the stripes of your backpack harder and blamed yourself for forgetting a knife, before finally, the owner of that husky voice stepped up… well, not into the light of the lamp, but closer and you took a look at him. He looked ordinary enough… but the shadows still obscured his eyes. Dark hair, sharp cheekbones, a jaw covered with coarse beard. He was wearing a flannel shirt, sleeves rolled up, like he just stepped out of a lumberjack catalog.
You should run.
That thought crystallized in your mind the moment he showed you a smile – which was polite. Disarming. Just a little bit condescending.
"I - I'm not lost. I'm just... taking a shortcut."
A man’s smile widened - just a fraction. Just enough to make your stomach drop.
"Shortcut," he repeated, and his voice was a purr now, a rumble that settled in your chest and loosened your fear just a bit more. He was just jesting. Of course. No other reason why his words were chopped short, like pieces of meat on a board.
Like he was struggling with connecting them.
"To where?"
You opened your mouth. Closed it. Opened it again.
"Back to… town."
"Lost, then," he nodded as if confirming his suspicions… or hopes. "Definitely lost."
His head tilted to the side as his studied you – your backpack, your face, the way your hands trembled.
"Bright Falls… tricky place. Folk get lost a lot."
He took another step, closer to you and away from light post. You could smell him now - pine and rain and something darker, something that reminded you of old paper... and spilled ink.
"You look like you could use a guide,” a man’s hand left his pocket; he extended it towards you, took yours, clutched your fingers.
"I'm Alan," he said, and there was something in the way he said it - a hesitation, a pause, like he was testing the name on his tongue, like it didn’t quite fit.
"The storm’s coming,” he nodded towards the dark cold sky. "You won’t make it out of woods tonight. My cabin is over there. Come on.”
And because you were tired, or stupid or something else entirely you followed him. He took you away from a main path, deep into the darkness and the trees and woods grew eerie quiet around you two. The cabin appeared out of the darkness like a thought made flesh, small, wooden, a single window glowing with faintest of lights. The steps lead up to the porch, a chair rocking gently in the wind, even though there was no wind. Alan held the door open for you, gesturing you inside.
"After you," he said and you stepped over the threshold. The door closed behind you and you realized that the room was lit by a single black candle on a floor, that the walls were covered in pages - sheets of paper, covered in writing, pinned up like a madman's scrapbook.
"Welcome to my cabin."
His hand touched your shoulder. Gentle. Cold. Unavoidable.
"Make yourself at home."
Your feet were frozen to a ground. He took your backpack from your shoulders and you didn’t hear it landing on the floor; the man’s hand returned to you, fingers dangerously close to your neck.
“Been awhile,” he hissed into your ear “When some stupid girl wanders too far away from light.”
He squeezed, just enough, but it made you whimper. The man pressed his nose against your neck, breathing you in, tasting your fear and despair.
"Don't worry," he said, and his voice was almost gone now, soft and overlaying itself like two records playing at the same time.
"I'll take good care of you. I'll make sure you never get lost again."
One hand slid down to grab your hip, the other curled around your jaw, squeezing hard, tilting your head and forcing you to look at the ceiling - at the pages that covered it, the writing that spiraled in patterns you could almost understand.
"Look," he commanded. "Look at what I've written."
Your eyes scanned the words. Your mind struggled to make sense of them.
She came to the cabin.
She was afraid.
She was tired.
She was exactly where she needed to be.
"You see?" he whispered. "It's already written. Everything that's going to happen. Everything I'm going to do to you."
His hand left your throat. Slid down your chest. Pressed against your heart.
"You're a character. My character. And I've got so many plans for you."
He turned you around. Looked down at you with those dark, unhuman eyes.
"Sit," he commanded. "Stay put. And let me write you a story."
He pushed you gently toward the couch.
Your legs buckled. You sat.
And he smiled.











