your whole life you’ve been told to avoid the forest because of the wolf like beasts that live there. never would you have thought that it would be the beasts that came out of the forest to you.
part 1/?
pairing: aizawa x gn!reader
word count: 2k
warnings: guns, dead animals, parent death (non graphic), future smut
a/n: dividers by @/cafekitsune and the banner picture is from mark chance photography 🫶🏻 this will be my first series and I am very excited about it! i hope you guys enjoy this first chapter ❣️
when you were a child, the grass in the field just before the forest was almost as tall as you were. it was your favorite place to play, despite the disapproving looks from the town elders whenever you’d come back with wildflowers clutched in your hands. you weren’t the only child who played in the field, but you were the only one who got so close to the forest.
the field was a gorgeous sea of bright green, with pinks, purples, blues, and yellows sprinkled throughout like the colorful fish you saw in the ocean the time your papa took you out on his boat. perhaps it was because they were so close to forbidden territory, but the biggest and prettiest flowers were just by the edge of the forest, where the field was shadowed by tall trees.
that was were you found yourself today. your papa had been sick recently, which in turn made your mother sad, and you knew that they both loved when you brought them flowers. even when they were scolding you for going so close to the forest, they couldn’t quite hide their smiles when faced with your gift of love.
this day, you were so focused on finding the best flowers that you didn’t even notice whenever the birds stopped chirping and the air turned still. you didn’t notice the boy until he was right in front of you. he finally gained your attention by holding out a daisy towards you.
startled, you jumped back. surprised by your reaction, he did as well. for a few moments you both just looked at each other in shock. he was tall and gangly, most likely entering his teenage years by the way he towered over you. (though, at only eight years old, everyone towered over you.) memories of your papa telling you the stories about the beasts that lurked in the forest flashed through your brain. gnarly canines, clawed hands, and a hunger for flesh is what he described them as. this boy was just….dirty.
he was covered in dirt, like he had been rolling around in it before coming to you. his dark hair dangled past his ears, choppily sheared off at the chin. his eyes were bright when you looked at them, like a midnight sky full of stars. slowly, he reached out to hand you the daisy again.
it was an impressive daisy. large and in full bloom, you could practically smell it from where you stood a few feet away. cautiously, you took a small step forward and reach to grab it. your fingertips brushed his, and his whole body seemed to tremble. you stepped back quickly and clutched the daisy to your chest.
“th-thank you.” came your small, shaky voice. the boy’s eyelashes fluttered as he took a deep breath and then cleared his throat.
“are they your favorite? u’disnant?” his voice was gravely, like he wasn’t used to using it. the foreign word rolled smoother off his tongue.
“the daisy? um, yes they are.”
the boy nodded, and repeated “daisy” as if trying to memorize it. the sudden scream of your name from across the field made you both jump, and the boy’s lips pulled back in a viscous snarl. you flew around to see the village head aiming a shotgun in your direction.
frozen in your terror, you stare at a man you’ve known you’re whole life ready to kill you on the spot. a hand grabs your arm harshly and pulls you to the ground. you both tumble in the grass, the boy’s snarling drowned out by the loud crack of a gunshot.
now that you were out of immediate danger, you were able to think again. horror dawns on you as you realize the village head thinks this boy is a monster.
“you have to go! he thinks you’re one of the monsters!” your voice is frantic, verging on hysterical as you push at his shoulder as hard as you can. the boy barely moves, and instead looks down from where he’s hovering above you, eyes wide and angry, but also seemingly hesitant to leave you.
“he won’t hurt me, he’s after you! you need to go now!” at your urging, the boy finally pulls back, and with one last glance he runs through the grass and back into the darkness where the forest swallows him whole. another gunshot disturbs the oppressive atmosphere.
you never returned to the field, and the daisy was lost in the chaos.
your parents were rightfully horrified whenever they opened their door to find the village head gripping your shoulder tightly, and you sobbing. your papa held you as they were told what happened, and your mother’s face had lost all life whenever she turned around after seeing the head out.
you weren’t physically punished, as the village head throughly recommended, but instead forbidden from going to your field again. your parents had only let you go because they knew how much you loved it, so this was punishment enough. they knew they were right whenever your sobbing started up again at this declaration.
you felt like you would never feel the sunshine on your skin again. never feel the grass beneath your bare feet, and never hear the hums of the insects and chirps of the birds that created a musical just for you. that night, you slept snugly between your parents, as both of them needed the reassurance that you were still there.
it didn’t take long for word to spread around your village about what had happened in the field. despite you stressing that “it wasn’t a monster! it was just a boy!” you still were given a wide berth whenever you entered the village center to buy things for your parents. soon, you were ostracized completely, and even dubbed the “monster lover” by your peers.
it continues even to this day. you’re older now, just past your teen years, and your papa is gone. he left an emptiness in your house that has been eating away the foundation for years. one day you fear your mother will fall in.
the boy has become a fuzzy memory, something you are only sure actually happened because of everyone else not letting it go. sometimes you dream of red eyes peering at you, and when you awake in a cold sweat you swear you can see the same ones staring at you through your window.
the village has been getting antsy. the former village head has just passed on the title to his son, enji, and recently the village’s main farm found two of there goats slaughtered.
the farmer’s son (he being one of the few who actually talks to you), told you about it in detail while you were both at the river doing laundry.
“i’m telling you! i’ve never seen an animal tore up that way!” hizashi emphatically states as he grabs your arm and shakes it. his wide eyes are full of fear, you realize. this surprises you, because hizashi once ran off a coyote in order to protect the herd, and he has the scars to prove it.
“you need to be really careful! i know you like taking walks, so just promise me you won’t go on one alone anymore! at least until this animal is caught, ok?”
you give him a look, raising one eyebrow in disbelief. “who am i supposed to walk with? enji?”
that earns you a scoff, and then a considering look.
“he does have a soft spot for you, you know. i think he fancies you.”
that earns him a fake gag, which makes hizashi let out a loud laugh that echoes so loudly you’re sure the whole village can hear. the conversation moves on to more pleasant topics, and the rest of your chores passes quickly.
you drag your feet on the path home, already dreading the gloomy atmosphere that awaits. your mother lost a part of herself whenever your papa died, and each year the sharp blade of grief chips away more of her. she has become almost unrecognizable to you, her only child and someone who used to be so close to her.
you were always a little closer to your papa, but it was your mother who taught you how to create flower crowns, who kissed your bumps and scrapes, and who sang you lullabies whenever you had nightmares. now, you’re lucky to get a full conversation with her.
your house has become dilapidated, as it was your papa who did all the repairs whenever they were needed, and no body wants to go to the “monster lover’s” house and help. the entry, once lined with flowers, now has been overcome with weeds. you do your best with the upkeep, but some things simply escape your efforts. a sad entry for a sad house, you think.
surprisingly, your mother is at the table whenever you enter. her nimble fingers are knitting what could become a scarf or a shirt, and she has an empty expression on her face. at your footsteps, she looks up at you.
“there is a meeting at the town hall tonight.”
her voice is the same low, lovely tone it always has been, but it’s cold and gripping where it used to wrap around you like a cozy blanket. you simply nod, and get to work on a light supper you both can eat before you go.
you are both silent as you sit on one of the hard benches in the town hall. there were not many people there yet when you arrived, but you still chose a bench in the very back. it’s better for you to be as inconspicuous as possible at these sorts of events, you’ve learned. just as you hoped, barely anyone acknowledges the two of you, with the exception of hizashi and his family and a surprising nod from enji. a sinking feeling sweeps your gut as your friend’s words from earlier come back to you. the last thing you need is enji’s interest.
the whole town is here in the small building, so there are multiple people standing along the walls. you figure this must be a very important meeting, because even the old healer is there, and she never leaves her cottage anymore. a quiet takes over the room as enji makes his way to the podium at the front. his deep voice is commanding as he starts to speak.
“as you know, there have been multiple suspicious animal deaths in the village recently.” this raises murmurs from the people, and you see enji’s eye twitch in annoyance even from your place in the back.
“aside from this, the first wolf has been seen since the last sighting years ago.”
at this, several dozen people turn to look at you and your mother, making you shrink down. horrified gasps ring out, and fittingly a baby starts to cry at all the commotion. in a surprising display of affection, your mother grips your hand in hers tightly. you look over at her and her eyebrows are furrowed, eyes holding so many emotions its hard to make heads from tails.
“silence!” the room immediately goes mute as the village head harshly spits out the word. enji takes a deep breath, and begins again.
“due to this, i have decided we need to take proactive measures. we are going to hunt them before they can hunt us.”
there is no stopping the cacophony of sounds that rings out after this statement. enji seems to realize this, as he nods and steps down from the podium. kugo steps up quickly in his place, and cups his hands around his mouth.
“any men wanting to join the hunt please come forward!”
in horror, you and your mother watch as multiple men, young and old, scamper through the crowd to get to the front. you look around and make eye contact with enji, who seemingly was already looking at you. his expression is determined, and you have a bad feeling come over you suddenly. there is a storm coming, and your village was going to be in the dead center of it.
