His Bark: Part 4
Herculanum could feel the intense fear rolling off of the girl in front of him. His grin widened. This was always his favorite part; the intimidation. He could always get a sense of what sort of person a human was, just by invading their personal space.
The girl began to shake visibly in front of him. She wouldn’t look him in the eye, though she kept giving him cautious looks. She wasn’t a complete coward, he could tell. But she was definitely afraid of him.
Good.
Herc looked her up and down. He had to admit, she was a cute little thing. He reached out his hand to touch her hair. He wanted to see how far she would let him go, before she fought back~
He felt her freeze at his contact. Her breath became more frantic and anxiety ridden.
Yes, she was very cute~
He began to slide his hand down her face, under her chin, down her neck, her shoulder, her-
“HERCULANUM!!”
In a instant the bigger skeleton was slammed against the back wall. His soul was visible and blue in front of his chest.
“HOW DARE YOU TREAT OUR GUEST WITH SUCH DISRESPECT!!”
Papyrus’ eye flared in anger.
“H-hey cuz! I was only talkin to her-“
Though Herc was bigger in size, he knew his magic was no match in strength compared to Papyrus.
“DO NOT LIE TO ME COUSIN! I KNOW WHAT YOU WERE “DOING”. LET IT BE CLEAR THAT THIS HUMAN IS UNDER MY WATCH AND THEREFORE MY PROTECTION! YOU WILL NOT ATTEMPT TO “TALK” WITH HER OR OTHERWISE AGAIN! UNDERSTOOD?”
The big skeleton was sweating bullets. He nodded grudgingly. Papyrus released his soul, dropping him to the floor. The bigger monster slowly got up and looked at the younger one with animosity. Papyrus’ eye began to glow again.
“LEAVE. NOW.”
Without another word, Herculanum exited the room.
Papyrus immediately turned his attention to the girl. She was sitting next to the bed hunched over into a ball again. As he listened more closely, he could hear her softly sobbing.
“Human? Are You-“
“I wanna go home!”
Papyrus was struck silent by her anguished cry. She lifted her head to reveal her tear streaked face.
“Please, I promise I won’t tell anyone about what I saw-I just wanna go home!”
She began to sob loudly, covering her face which had turned red from exertion. Her frame was still shaking.
Papyrus had an overwhelming urge to pick her up and comfort her; hold her close and tell her it would be ok and he wouldn’t let anyone hurt her again. Dry those tears and shush her until she finally melted into him.
The youngest skeleton felt another shiver go down his spine. He shook himself. Where did those feelings come from?
Wherever they came from, he knew those types of advances would only frighten the little human more. He needed a way he could make her relax.
He watched her silently, as her crying ebbed and flowed over and over.
....flowed?
“HUMAN, I UNDERSTAND YOUR DISTRESS AT YOUR SITUATION. UNFORTUNATELY I CANNOT LET YOU LEAVE UNTIL MY BROTHERS HAVE CONCLUDED WHAT YOU TOLD THEM ABOUT YOURSELF WAS THE TRUTH. UNTIL THEN I HAVE BEEN TASKED TO WATCH OVER YOU.”
The girl looked up at him, her tears subsiding momentarily.
“AS SUCH, I WILL DO EVERYTHING I CAN TO MAKE YOU COMFORTABLE-WITHIN REASON MIND YOU! THAT BEING SAID, I BELIEVE A HOT BATH WOULD HELP YOU TO CALM YOUR NERVES AND RELAX- EVEN IN THE SLIGHTEST.”
The girl gave him a worried and suspicious look. Papyrus sighed at the tedious nature of this conversation.
“THE DOOR LOCKS FROM THE INSIDE. THERE IS NO WAY FOR ME OR ANY OTHERS TO GET IN ONCE ITS LOCKED.”
The younger skeleton left out the part of them possibly using magic; no need to add to her distrust.
She turned to face him, softly wiping stray tears from her face.
“TOWELS ARE IN THE CABINET TO THE LEFT OF THE DOOR. SOAP AND BODY WASH ARE KEPT ORGANIZED IN THE SHOWER CADDY-PLEASE BE SURE TO RETURN EVERYTHING TO ITS PROPER PLACE! AS FOR YOUR CLOTHES; AFTER YOU HAVE CHANGED OUT OF THEM, LEAVE THEM OUTSIDE OF THE DOOR SO I CAN WASH THEM FOR YOU. NO DOUBT THEY ARE DIRTY FROM YOUR LONG DAY.”
The girls eyebrows knit together.
“B-but if you take my clothes, what will I wear when I get out of the shower?”
Papyrus paused. He had not thought of that. She probably wouldn’t want to linger in a towel after what had just happened. He turned to his drawers, sifting through them. Most of his everyday clothes were dress shirts and slacks, which he did not want to risk wrinkling. He kept searching, until he pulled out a sweater.
It was very rare he ever dressed down, but sometimes when he stayed at home, it was easier to just pull on a sweater. He brought it over to the girl.
Hesitantly she stood and took it from him. She held it up to her frame. As he expected, his monster sized clothes were extremely long compared to her tiny human body.
The thought of her wearing his clothes made his soul begin to thump. He cleared his throat to bring his mind back to its proper place. No more foolishness.
“I WILL BE BACK TO CHECK FOR YOUR CLOTHES IN 30 MINUTES. IF YOU DO NOT NEED ANYTHING ELSE, I WILL LEAVE YOU.”
The girl shook her head, clutching the sweater.
Papyrus nodded, exiting the room. As he walked down the hall, thoughts of the cute human being dressed in only his sweater sent chills down his spine. His soul started thumping again. He knew he needed to occupy himself with other things or those thoughts would make him do something he’d regret.
....
As she sat in the water watching the steam rise, she felt a weight begin to lift. Despite the fact that he had killed someone, Papyrus was turning out to be...kinder than expected. Of course he was still very straightforward and to the point. No nonsense and always organized. This was evidenced to her by the extremely well organized shower caddy hanging from the shower head. Everything was labeled and put in order of importance. Apparently he shared this room and bathroom with one of his brothers. Or maybe...that terrifying skeleton he had called his cousin.
She shuddered, trying to shake the memory of his touches. If Papyrus hadn’t stepped in...
She turned her thoughts back to the tall skeleton. Had he really meant what he’d said? That he would protect her?
She felt something in her heart flutter. She sank deeper into the water until her nose touched it. No one had ever wanted to protect her before....
Maybe staying here wouldn’t be so bad, all she had to do was wait for his brothers to check her story and-
Then what?
Would they really let her go? Would she just walk away from this and forget this ever happened? Life would be normal again...
Could it be that simple?
She sighed. No doubt it was more complicated than that. And what if they were just really good at lying? Was all this stuff with Papyrus just a sham until they figured out how to get rid of her?
She felt her heart sink again at that thought. Wouldn’t be the first time someone had gone back on their word with her; or used her...or hurt her.
She sighed and reached for the plug. In that moment, she kinda wished Papyrus would come back soon, so she wouldn’t have to relive those memories.
.....
As he suspected, the human’s clothes were filthy and in need of washing. She had left them in a pile outside the door, devoid of undergarments-which he was thankful for.
He couldn’t help but wonder what she would look like in his clothes. Of course, it would be a while before her clothes dried so he had no excuse to go see her again.
Papyrus shook himself. He didn’t need a reason to see her. It was HIS room and she was a prisoner after all, he had every right to check on her. A pang went through his soul at those thoughts. A prisoner...is that what she felt like?
He pushed that thought away. It did not matter what she felt like. His job was to keep an eye on her, nothing else.
He headed up the stairs, almost skipping steps on the way up. He paused at the door. What if she wasn’t dressed yet? He felt his soul leap. He shook his head and knocked on the door.
“HUMAN, IM COMING IN.”
He opened the door slowly. She was laying on her stomach on the bed, reading one of his books off the shelf. At his presence, she swung her feet over the side and sat up.
Papyrus stared, still holding onto the door handle. Even though it was large, his sweater fell right below her knees. Her arms were engulfed in fabric, which she kept pushing back every few seconds. The collar hung a little loose on her neck showing some of her chest. She looked like she was positively swimming in his shirt.
And he loved it~
His hand twitched with the urge to reach out and smooth her damp and wild hair.
“Papyrus?”
He pulled himself out of his trance and looked her in the eyes. It was then he realized he had been staring for an awkwardly long time. He felt his face turning red.
“I- CAME TO CHECK IF YOU NEEDED ANYTHING BEFORE I WENT TO BED.”
She stared at him for a moment, seemingly weighing out something in her mind.
“...Am I sleeping in here?”
Papyrus was confused by the question. Why was she asking him when it was obvious?
“YES. I DOUBT YOU WOULD WANT TO SLEEP ON THE COUCH AFTER THAT INCIDENT WITH MY COUSIN.”
She nodded in agreement. He was still confused by the nature of her question.
“Where are you going to sleep?”
He watched her silently. Why was she asking so many questions all of a sudden?
“MOST LIKELY ON THE COUCH. DO NOT WORRY, I WILL BE FINE.”
She nodded again, she his time looking a bit...forlorn. Papyrus sighed and turned to leave.
“GOOD NIGHT HUMAN.”
“W-wait!”
He paused and turned back to look at her. She was fidgeting and wouldn’t look at him.
“You-....You could stay in here.”
The tall skeleton’s eye ridge went up.
“I-I mean there’s another bed here so...you don’t have to sleep on the couch.”
Papyrus was silent. He watched as she fidgeted with the edge of the sweater. He saw red creeping into her cheeks. She was asking him to stay? He felt his soul leap, but his outward appearance didn’t falter.
“WHY?”
The girl looked up at him. The sweater in her hand was scrunched up in her nervous hands, showing just a bit more of her legs. Papyrus could feel something building up in him he had not felt before.
A need...a hunger~
“I-“ the girl looked down at the bunched up sweater again. She tried to talk again but couldn’t.
She was so cute~
“I don’t want to be alone again.”
Her voice finally came out in a embarrassed and terrified whisper. So that was it. She was afraid; afraid something might happen again. Afraid someone might try to come in again.
“HUMAN, WILL ME BEING HERE MAKE YOU FEEL SAFER?”
She sighed. He could see the weight of the entire day come down on her in that sigh. She was exhausted and though calmer, she was still terrified.
She nodded.
He felt his soul skip a beat. The cute human wanted him to stay with her? He wondered what she would look like; asleep in his bed-so small compared to everything on it.
Outwardly, the tall skeleton crossed his arms.
“I SUPPOSE IT WOULD BE WISE FOR ME TO MAKE SURE NO ONE ELSE TRYS ANYTHING DURING THE NIGHT. VERY WELL I ACCEPT YOUR OFFER. I WILL TAKE THE TOP BUNK, SINCE YOU ARE OBVIOUSLY ALREADY SETTLED ON THE BOTTOM.”
Truthfully, he wanted a birds eye view of her while she slept.
The girl nodded and laid back down; bedding herself down underneath the blankets.
He turned on the lamp on the bedside table, then turn out the lights.
She watched as he made his way over to his drawers and began to loosen his tie. Once it was off he carefully folded it and placed it back in its spot in the drawer. Then he stalked back over to the bunk bed and stared down at the human. She looked back up at him, this time not averting her gaze.
“GOOD NIGHT.”
“Good night.” She whispered back.
With a grunt of approval, Papyrus climbed the ladder to the top bunk and settled down.
“...Papyrus?”
Her voice was small but strong.
“YES?”
“Thanks.”
“...YOU’RE WELCOME.”
.........
@turtleskele
Thanks aka-indulgence for your help with this chapter and answering my midnight questions lol! Also for the suggestion to post on my AO3. I think I’ll do that soon, of course I’ll give you the credit for my inspiration :). My AO3 is Tismyname.
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AKA-Indulgence talking here, awww, she has someone to keep her company ;U; Baby needs some comfort...
I’ll be waiting to see you post! Thanks for sharing this :>
