Storm Blooded
Rating: M for language, violence, darker themes, sexual situations and abuse. (More may be added) This story may be triggering. I will do my best to give warnings about certain triggers as they occur but this is a heads up in case I miss something. Also there is no ship yet. I’m just going to let the story unfold and go with it.
Diabolik Lovers Oc fanfiction
Summary: Her kind and theirs have fought for centuries. It was no secret that vampires and witches did not get along. But when her Coven starts working to initiate peace treaties, Cora must stay with the Sakamaki brothers for the remainder of the negotiations. Six vampire brothers were bad enough but things get complicated when there are people behind the scenes who are are not so keen on allowing these negotiations to succeed…
(Chapter One) (Chapter Two) (Chapter Three) (Chapter Four) (Chapter Five)
Her fingernails were breaking, cracking as she clawed desperately at the heavy stone slab that kept her sealed in. The musky odor of the casket had been notable before she had been closed in but now that she was trapped, completely swallowed by darkness it was over powering. Her skin felt gross as it rubbed against the filthy and withering cloth beneath her. The darkness was so engulfing, so complete and devoid of any life it felt like ink was flooding her pores. Anytime she felt the bare skin of her thigh brush against the decaying bones in the casket with her she had to forcefully swallow the bile in her throat. She was regretting wearing shorts.
Cora had no idea how long she was trapped in there. No light at all could come through and the panic that was crushing her throat made her sense of time slip away. How long would she be able to breathe like this? She’d run out of air eventually. Tears were pouring from her eyes and broken sobs escaped her lips as she fought to get out of her new prison. She knew of no magic that could help her and while her storm magic may be powerful, she would need a raging storm overhead to harness the level of power needed to free herself.
It was so cramped and she could barely move. Fear had paralyzed her vocal cords and she could only scrabble flimsily at the lid but nothing would make it budge. Her limbs were shaking heavily, blood trailing down the skin of her forearms. She was slowly starting to realize that she was not going to get out of here without help. Cora didn’t think she could feel any more afraid until she realized that she was going to have to rely on a very sadistic and unstable vampire to free her from the casket. No one else would even know she was here and she wasn’t entirely convinced that any of them would care enough to look for her.
The longer she waited, the more her mind began to haze over. Clear thought became impossible and her breathing steadily grew more labored. Any thoughts or perceptions she had became hazy and muddled. An intense drowsiness had begun to creep up on her as her heart palpitated rapidly and in abnormal rhythms in her chest. Still in her sluggish panic, she still groped for something, anything that could free her. The witch let out a distressed cry as she felt a spider creeping up her leg.
‘Out.’ She thought in her foggy fear, ‘out, out, out, let me out.’
She felt her consciousness continually spiral downwards, her limbs growing weak until she had come to the dazed realization that this was where she was going to die. Just as she had arrived on the precipice of unconsciousness, the heavy stone slab above her began to move. The stone grinding was harsh in her ears but it was enough to keep her from passing out. Never before had she felt the moon was too bright because it was hard on her eyes after being in such darkness for what felt like an eternity. Cora flinched, squinting her eyes shut weakly and gave a weak moan.
“The fuck…?” came a gruff, familiar voice.
The first breath of fresh air nearly brought tears to her eyes but she was too out of it. Instead she just greedily gulped down air, trembling finely. A rough pair of hands grabbed her arms and she was hauled out. Cora’s sight was hazy but she squirmed pathetically, all of her energy drained from her as she tried to free herself. The witch couldn’t even muster the strength to lift her head so it lolled back as she was pulled from the casket. Her dark eyes caught sight of silver hair flashing in the moonlight and she knew who had saved her. But in her current situation, Cora couldn’t help but feel she had been pulled from one bad situation into another.
Subaru had tried to bite her the last time she had seen him but now she was weak, had no holy water and no raging storm to fuel her magic. But consciousness was barely clinging to her and she felt so weak and limp within his hold. Once she was cleared of the stone coffin, she was dropped unceremoniously to the ground. Nausea filled her as she continued to gulp down the air she felt so deprived of, her heart still palpitating in her chest. But as she continued to breathe, her mind seemed to clear more, until at last she was able to think concisely again.
“I’m gonna curse…the fuck out of him….” She muttered under her breath as she still panted, “I’m…gonna curse…the absolute shit out of him…”
Subaru snickered above her, “And where was all of that power you claim to have when you were first shoved in there?”
Cora staggered to her feet, still feeling unsteady, clutching her palm to her head before fixing a venomous glare onto him. She really didn’t want to admit that Kanato had gotten the best of her. But she also knew that considering she was locked in a coffin, there wasn’t exactly room for doubt. Subaru’s jab made shame burn in her cheeks but she still clung to her anger to try and build herself back up. Those red eyes narrowed slightly before he shot out a hand to seize her arm. Her reflexes were still blunted from the time she had spent locked in the coffin so she was unable to dodge.
Her free hand clenched into a fist and she hurled it at his face but he easily caught her wrist. Subaru gave a low rumbling laugh, his fangs peeking from beneath his lips in his smirk. Cora could still remember his threat to her in the courtyard garden on how he would break her wrists and knew that he would likely do the same here. That knowledge stilled her struggles as he hauled her in closer to him, his nose barely an inch away from her own. Subaru then tilted his head to the side and drew in slightly closer before taking a long smell of her.
“Heh.” He smirked, releasing her suddenly so she stumbled, “Kanato locked you in there. I can smell him beneath all of that decay.”
Cora couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief when he did not trouble her anymore than to smell her. The witch had expected him to try and bite her again but it would seem he was content with taunting her for the time being. It was irritating but she would take it with minimal complaint for now. Cora rubbed the side of her head, which was aching miserably from where Kanato had hit her. Subaru’s crimson gaze locked onto that very spot. She was certain that there must have been a bruise there but she couldn’t really see.
“You’re lucky that I found you or you would have rotted.”
Subaru sounded more delighted about that then she really thought he ought to be.
“Kanato might have come back…” the witch replied faintly.
The pure blood really DID laugh that time, “Come back? The pipsqueak?” he hooded his eyes and drew in close to her, “You really don’t know anything do you?”
Cora cried out in protest when Subaru seized the back of her neck in his cold fingers. But he didn’t draw her in to him, instead he turned her around and forced her to bend over the coffin. Panic rose in her, fearing that he intended to lock her back in but he did nothing more than force her to stare into the dirty bottom. A fearful shudder still rolled through her as she stared down into what had been her prison for an unknown amount of time.
“It’s a coffin.” She snapped in a strained voice, swallowing her fear forcefully, “So what?”
“And what do you see in that coffin?”
Dust, a withering cloth, crawling spiders and… her eyes widened. Bones. They were old but not ancient. She wagered about a few years. The boys had still been receiving brides at that time those bones couldn’t have been….could they? Cora paled and swallowed the lump lodged in her throat.
“Is that…? Those aren’t…the bones of a bride are they?”
She could practically hear Subaru’s smirk, “Heh, now you get it. That was Kanato’s last bride. Normally he makes them into dolls, preserves them or some shit. But this one pissed him off real bad, was rebellious like you.” He paused to let that sink in, “So he decided that she didn’t deserve the quick death he could give her if he made her a doll. I could hear her screaming on the first day but it stopped by the second day.”
Cora could not stop the sheer look of horror and disgust that crossed her face. Her entire life she had been told that vampires were cruel beasts but no one had ever elaborated on just how cruel. In fact many witches who knew almost pointedly didn’t talk about it. And she was beginning to understand why. Her heart was plummeting within her chest when she realized that she was stuck with these beasts, the gravity of her situation hitting her hard.
Then anger took over her. These monsters just shoved a screaming human girl into this coffin and left her to die. And what was worse was that Subaru heard! Cora managed to reach around and shove the vampire hard, hard enough to make him let go of her as he staggered back and she whirled around to face him.
“You HEARD her?! And you just left her in there?!”
There was a moment where rage lashed in his eyes but at her horrified demand for answers, a cruel smirk cross his lips. Subaru lunged forward but did not grab Cora. Instead he shoved her back against the coffin and slammed his arms on either side of her, crowding into her personal space and brought his face dangerously close to hers.
“Why wouldn’t I?” He taunted her cruelly, the smirk still on his mouth but a simmering anger brimming in his eyes, “She was nothing. Nothing more than prey, food for us to feed on. And you are barely above her level, witch.”
Was this a fate that awaited her if they failed these negotiations? Would Kanato have really left her in there? She knew the answer was yes. He had barely seemed concerned about the treaties, probably didn’t care at all. Already she had been locked into a coffin, assaulted more than once on her first few days, drugged and threatened within her short time at the mansion. What more would they do to her? And how much worse would it get if she failed and she was no longer considered valuable?
Subaru’s smile widened, “Are you starting to realize your place, little girl? I hope so, I want to see that look of fear on your face more.”
His voice had dropped to a low timbre at that last sentence, earning a shudder from Cora. Her wide, dark eyes were staring at his scarlet ones, her heart palpitating in her chest. Despite feeling uncomfortable and a little afraid when she first came, in that moment she really and truly felt like prey. Her bones were nearly gripped with a raw horror as it all sank it just what she had gotten herself into. Subaru raised one of his hands and lightly clutched her throat, not applying any pressure but the threat was still there.
“I can feel your pulse pounding beneath my hand…” He sniggered, “It’s about time you learned to fear us.”
But there was something that didn’t make sense to her. If Subaru hadn’t cared about the last bride that had been locked into that casket, why would he have bothered to free her? How did he even find her to begin with? She wasn’t screaming when she was trapped in there so she hadn’t been making a whole lot of noise. How long had she even been locked in there?
“If I’m so worthless…” she asked slowly, trying not to move too much in his grasp, “Then why did you free me? How did you even know I was in there?”
Subaru gave a warning squeeze of her throat, “Tch. Don’t get cocky or nothin’. That glasses guy was raising a fit that you were missing and insisted that something had to have happened to you. Said you wouldn’t dare miss his lessons now that you understood your place.”
Cora’s eyes widened considerably, “His lesson?! Then that means I was locked in there for a whole day!”
Silver flashed before her eyes until Subaru was barely an inch away from her face, eyes hooded in a predatorial satisfaction. For one wild moment, she had thought he was going to kiss her but he did not move for her lips. He chuckled lowly in the back of his throat, his cold hand still lightly wrapped around her neck.
“Where’s all that witch power now? Huh?”
He was taunting her and she knew it but for some reason all she could do was stare into his brilliant red eyes. Cora could not pull her gaze away no matter how hard she tried. Her pulse had evened out and she could feel energy amassing within her head. The witch realized then that she was about to have a vision. She gritted her teeth and then was suddenly assaulted with a flash of light behind her eyes.
The world fell away and revealed a dark prison cell. It was such a dreary place, with torches that provided the orange blanket of light. But even with the fire light there was no warmth that could be brought to this prison. Locked away behind the iron bars was a beautiful woman but madness and sorrow rolled off of her like a wave. She was shuddering on her knees, her torso rested against the bars. Her skin was naturally fair but it had taken on a sickly pitch from her time locked away. Her hair rolled down her shoulder like liquid moonlight until it pooled into her lap.
But her eyes were a familiar, sad scarlet.
Cora’s eyes widened when a tugging of understanding began to creep into her mind. But it was crystal clear when she caught sight of a small boy, with hair like moonlight and mournful red eyes standing outside of the cell. It was no mystery that this young boy was Subaru and the woman in the cell was his mother. Hysterical sobs tore from her throat from within her prison, one fragile hand clutching a bar shakily but the other was pressing a knife into child Subaru’s trembling hands.
“Mother…” He sobbed, afraid to close his fingers around the weapon.
“You have to kill for me! I need you to commit murder!” She insisted, her voice wild.
His mother was weeping as well. Never before had Cora seen anyone look so worn down and shattered but this woman looked so broken. Subaru resisted, trying to shove the knife back to her and away from him, crying harder. Who would ask for their child to commit murder? He was already small but he seemed to become even smaller when that knife was pushed into his fragile looking hands.
“You have to kill me!” she sobbed hysterically, “I’m filthy. FILTHY, CORRUPTED, POLLUTED!! YOU HAVE TO MURDER ME!” His mother collapsed even more in broken hopelessness against the bars, “You…you were always such a gentle boy. But you are disgusting too. You are a vile thing that came from me. I am unclean…kill me. Kill me, please Subaru, kill me.”
Cora felt her breath catch in her throat, unable to believe what she was seeing. If she had been there in her body, she would have clutched her mouth to stifle the horrified gasp that wanted to escape her. The silver-haired boy was crying and shaking his head adamantly, calling for his mother, telling her that he wouldn’t do it. She would hear none of it, reached her hand out and grabbed the back of his head, yanking him in close to the cell.
“YOU HAVE TO!” she screamed into his face, “IT’S YOUR FAULT. YOU POLLUTED ME! I CAN’T LIVE WITH THIS ANYMORE, STRIKE FOR MY HEART!”
“Christa…that’s enough.” Came a new, masculine voice.
And just like that the vision was ended. For a moment she was incredibly dizzy and touched her hand to her forehead as she tried to regain herself. The vision that had just played out in vivid color in her mind rattled her, shook her to the core. Cora found herself wondering just what other horrors had Subaru been exposed to in his childhood.
“Oi, little girl!” Snapped the vampire in question, giving her a shake, “The fuck was that all about? Your eyes were glowing and you weren’t answering me.”
Despite his attempt to get her attention, the witch was staring almost dazedly at his chest. A coldness had settled over her as she tried to really come to grips with what she had just seen. The gift of foresight and divination was not one that she had wanted. When Cora was a sprouting witchling she had gotten her hands on several sets of tarot and oracle cards, wanting to be a Seer like Sage Megumi. But whispers from other witches had set her on edge and they all told her that if she cultivated the gift then tragedy and misfortune would follow her wherever she went. So she had put her cards away years ago. But even then she could not stop the random visions that would take her.
“Hey!” Subaru gripped her jaw hard, forcing her face up, “Anyone in there? I’m talking to you!”
Cora swallowed hard. What could she even say? There were no words she could think of to offer after seeing his own mother try to force him to kill her. Watched as she screamed at him and claim he was the reason that she was dirty and corrupted. What had happened to her? What had happened to him? The rosette let her eyes go into focus and she stared into his demanding red gaze.
“Why…” She took a steady breath, “Why did your mother beg for you to kill her?”
His eyes snapped wide open in shock at her question. And then hot fury washed back over them. It was that fury that brought him to cast her to the ground, a snarl ripping from his throat. Vicious fangs bared at her as she crawled backwards in the dirt of the cemetery to get some distance between them. Subaru did not move, did not advance towards her, just stood his ground with his chest heaving. His knuckles were whitening even further as he clenched his fists painfully tight. Cora began to regret saying anything as he glared down at her.
“You rooted through my memories! You cast a spell on me, witch.” He spat out that word like it was the vilest thing in existence, “WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?!”
His roar made her bones shake, “I-It wasn’t on purpose-!”
“DON’T LIE TO ME!”
Bestial was the best word that could describe Subaru as he began to advance towards her, a brutish fury pouring from his powerful frame. Cora could see all the protection her status as diplomat gave her evaporating before her eyes. He was going to kill her. The witch harnessed the storm that called in her blood and she brought it bursting forward to defend her. A flash of lightning erupted from her palms and exploded before her, blowing Subaru back through the air.
Cora did not wait to see him land, she leapt to her feet and took off running. At this stage he was clearly enraged beyond reason and she wasn’t going to stick around to try and talk reason into him. This head start would only do her so much good with his speed, strength and natural senses as a hunter but it was something. Cora was already trying to come up with an idea of how she could repel him should he descend upon her again but would she get the chance?
If he was angry enough then he could just snatch her up and snap her neck before she could do anything about it. Deciding she couldn’t take the risk, she called up her magic again and let the lighting and the distant echoing of thunder sheath her frame. This barrier wouldn’t last long since it would lose energy as she went but it would keep him from just being able to snatch her up before she could do anything about it. Cora estimated that she could refresh this barrier two more times before she would be drained.
‘I better run really damn fast then.’ She thought with dread.
The mansion loomed in the distance underneath the light of the moon and somehow it felt like if she could make it then she would be safe. Cora had no idea what made her feel that way since the mansion was still his home and there wouldn’t really be anything stopping him from ripping her throat out but it was her only salvation. And there would be more places to hide. Perhaps if she made it to Reiji in time he could stop his murderous rampage.
A strangled scream caught in her throat when Subaru suddenly appeared before her, his teeth bared in a dangerous smirk, “Heh, it’s nice to see you run like the prey you are. I was going to kill you but your fear is so arousing. And I haven’t even had the chance to taste your blood.”
Cora recoiled in horror and disgust at his statement that her fear was arousing. That was not something that she had expected but hearing that made her even more disturbed. She realized then that she had stopped running and if she didn’t get moving she was going to lose her first barrier. Her dark eyes hardened as she reminded herself that she wasn’t as powerless as he was making her feel. Digging her shoes into the dirt, she charged forward towards Subaru. The vampire looked surprised but as she drew closer, he caught sight of the electrical sheath that encompassed her.
The witch lashed out her hand at him. The attack never landed but that didn’t matter, it allowed her to rush past him since he couldn’t touch her without shocking himself. This barrier wouldn’t last much longer for her but it would get her a little ways closer to the mansion. As she continued to run, it was disturbing that she couldn’t hear or see Subaru. But yet she could feel him following her. This level of vulnerability shook her deeply, never in her life had she felt hunted like this. There was a bit of bedroom play with this kind of dynamic with Amane but it was in an entirely different context and all consensual.
Here if she got caught she could be bitten and possibly killed.
The sound of her heartbeat roared in her ears as she continued to race back towards the mansion. Almost there! She was running along the outer walls, drawing nearer to a side door that leads back inside. However an icy arm wrapped around her waist like a vice, trapping one of her own arms in the process. Before she could even blink her face was shoved against the coarse stonework of the mansion, a large hand gripping the back of her skull and holding her head there. In her rush she hadn’t even realized that her barrier had disintegrated.
A hard, cold body crowded up against her and she could see a glimpse of luminous red eyes glinting back at her. A wicked laugh left him before he dipped his head down while she awkwardly tried to reach around with her left arm to hit him. The angle was all wrong and with him crowding her, pinning her and making her panic she found it hard to focus and channel the power that she had in a way that wouldn’t possibly kill them both.
“Play time is over, little girl.” He growled out in dark amusement into her ear.
“Get off of me!” she spat, her free left arm flailing ineffectively against him.
“I don’t think so. I caught you fair and square.” He buried his nose into her hair, “You’re my prey now. Mmmm you smell obscene with that magic. It’s your body begging me to bite you.”
Her heart bottomed out in dread, panic squeezing her mind so tightly clear thought and focus had nearly evaporated. Cora renewed her struggles, bucking and squirming wildly against him. A snarl came from his mouth then at her defiance.
“Stop struggling! Sit fucking still!”
“Fuck you!” she screamed at him, still thrashing in his grasp.
Subaru released her head for one moment and suddenly there was a loud crunching next to her head. Cora could not contain the scream that erupted from her, the stone sending spiderweb cracks across the wall around the crater where his fist landed. That could have been her head! The vampire pressed his icy lips to her ear then, rich laughter vibrating in his chest.
“Stop resisting…” He threatened lowly right into her ear, “or I’ll break you just like that wall.”
Fear brought her to freeze in his grasp but even then she still could not stop the trembling of her frame within his brutal grasp. Subaru brought his left hand back up to thread through her hair where he took a hold of it into a fist and tugged her head back so it was resting on his shoulder.
“Good girl.” He purred, deeply taking in her scent, “Hehehehe I still have to punish you for using that spell on me.”
A shameful whimper escaped her when he pressed himself harder against her and she could feel his hard length through their clothes. Dread filled her as she realized that her fear and weakness really was arousing him. Desperation was gripping her throat. Her magic brimmed beneath her skin but in her terror it snapped and crackled violently. In this close of quarters she could lose control if she wasn’t careful and possibly kill them both.
“Mmm your fear is so intoxicating. Heh, I’ve never had a witch cower in my grasp before. Never had witch blood before either.”
A startled cry left her lips when Subaru dipped his head and dragged his icy tongue along the flesh of her neck. A shudder followed down her spine, a great maw opening up in the pit of her stomach. The impending threat of him going to bite her renewed her squirming. In response, he tugged harshly on her hair.
“Didn’t I warn you what would happen if you struggled? Be obedient!”
Cora was breathing in shuddering gasps now, trembling within his grasp. She couldn’t let this happen! It would corrupt her magic! Her body! Everything! Desperation lead her to do something that would sting her pride later.
“Please…please don’t do this.” Her voice croaked out feebly.
“Begging me now? This is a nice side of you. Maybe if you beg me some more I’ll consider it.”
The witch jerked when he licked sharply at her neck again, “Please! Don’t do this, please!”
“Is that all? That’s not enough, especially not with how good you taste.”
Cora couldn’t let this happen. She couldn’t. Absolutely terrified she took a slow, deep breath in, allowing her eyes to drift closed. Another deep breath. She could hear the distant memory of her teacher in the coven. Reminding her to breathe back in her beginning stages of magic, when she was first learning control of her talent.
“Focus. And breathe. Focus. And breathe. Breathe. Breathe.”
The magic beneath her skin settled to a steady thrum instead of the wild chaotic mess that it had been before. This she could handle. This…was what she was. Cora gathered herself and then snapped her eyes open. She released her magic then in a controlled burst. The electricity coursed through Subaru, locking and spasming his muscles until she was able to wriggle out of his grasp. The deepest part of her wanted to flee and hide in her room but she found herself turning to look at him.
The vampire was on the ground, still trying to regain control of his muscles and motor functions but he was still very conscious. Anger coursed through her at the thought of how much he had made her cower in his grasp. It made her feel sick. She couldn’t change that but she could still leave with some dignity.
“I am not your prey.” She growled through gritted teeth, “And I hope you like hexes because I am definitely going to send one your way.”
With that promise, Cora slipped back inside before he could get back up. Reiji would be waiting for her, no doubt, but that was not where she was going to go first. First priority for her was a shower to wash off the death of that casket and then to prepare an appropriate spell to punish Kanato and Subaru for what they had done. Adrenaline still gripping her tightly, she clenched her fists as she hurried back to her room as quickly and quietly that she could manage.
‘Alright you leeches. You want to play dirty? I will play dirty.’