The Weeping Monk x Fem!Reader : Forged Of Fire : Chapter 2
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Story Summary: Raised under the tiranny of your own family, and forced to steal to earn your keep, you struggle to survive. Born from a Fey mother, and a Manblood father who wanted only sons, you are forced to hide your Fey side. When you are ordered to steal from Father Carden by your half-brother, Cassian, your life spirals out of control and you find yourself at the mercy of the Weeping Monk. The life you knew changes drastically when Cassian betrays you in the cruelest of ways. A trade is made, a promise is broken, and a debt must be paid.
Chapter Title: The Betrayal
Notes: /
Warnings: Angst. Hurt. Trauma bonding. Intrafamily violence. Depression. Self-harm. Suicidal thoughts. Violence. Torture. Gore. Pining. Trauma. Self-Flagellation. Manipulation. Strong Language. Blood. Misogyny. PTSD. Spicy and smut parts. Slight redemption arc. Lima/Stockholm syndrom-ish. Childhood trauma.
Other warnings: Jealousy. Forbidden Love. Romance. Slow-burn Found Familly-ish. Comfort. Fluff. !SMUT and SPICE!
Word count of this fic: +250K
Chapter: 2/47
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Ava had returned with the wagon. Cassian briefly told the others what was going to happen. No one sat down in the presence of the Monk. The tension hanged in the air, and when the Monk began to wake you warned Cassian of it.
“He’s bound to a tree. What harm can he do?” he dismissed your warning and fear, making a mockery of it.
You hadn’t stopped staring at the Monk, at his markings that betrayed his secret. The others seemed to be unaware, or maybe they did not even care.
“Wake up, mutt.” Cassian nudged his head roughly. “Not so frightening now, eh?” he mocked him.
The Monk’s eyes opened and fixed on Cassian right away, then slowly he took in the situation he found himself in. Your blood ran ice cold at witnessing it, as if your body tried to warn you of the danger present. The Monk was far too calm to your liking, he looked even bored by the whole ordeal, as if it was an ordinary night for him.
Cassian walked to the black stallion and led it closer by the reins. “Looks like a strong animal. I wonder how long it would last if I cut off one of it’s legs.”
There was a slight change in the Monk’s eyes, they were sharper and focused on him.
The threat shocked you, “Cassian!”
The fury burned in Cassian’s eyes when he looked your way.
“We can use a horse.” you quickly blurted out to avoid his rage.
He held the reins out in your direction a little aggressively and you tried to keep a distance while fishing them out of his hands. Never would you admit it out loud that you might fear your own brother more than the Weeping Monk.
You led the horse away from Cassian and tied the reins to a tree, as you were petting the horse’s neck soothingly you became aware of the Monk’s eyes on you. It wasn’t hard to guess that the Monk was attached to the stallion.
Cassian continued to mock his captive, “Maybe I should cut your leg off and see how you’d fare.”
The Monk stayed eerily quiet, doing nothing more than study every single person present. Cassian pulled out his knife, dangling it in front of the Monk, then threatened to pierce it through his boot. The Monk didn’t even flinch, his icy stare far more intimidating than that simple knife. It bothered Cassian that his actions went without response, it was why he decided to punch the Monk in the jaw, who took it without a sound. Ava chuckled amused, part of her must have loved that twisted personality Cassian had.
“You’re a quiet one.” Cassian laughed and hit him again.
You hated to see the joy on his face when he was injuring someone who couldn’t defend themselves, just as you hated to see that same joy when he’d often hurt you. It felt so, so wrong.
“Stop it.” you said, all eyes turned to you. “It’s cowardly to attack someone who is bound.”
Your whole body tensed right after realizing what you had done.
Cassian scoffed insulted, “Are you calling me a coward?”
He stepped away from the Monk and stopped right in front of you. The backhanded slap you received was no surprise, but it didn’t hurt any less because of it.
Cassian sneered the words at you. “The only coward here is you. That bastard would kill you first of all, you can’t even defend yourself. That’s why you’re here aren’t you? Too weak and scared to survive on your own.”
Ava cruelly chuckled. Your eyes fell to the grass. Cassian looked so pleased to see you upset.
“Enough, Cassian. We need to focus on our plan.” Bertram was trying to draw the attention away from you.
Cassian looked at you like you were nothing more than the dirt beneath his boots, then walked away. “Just because you keep defending her, doesn’t mean she’ll pull you into the bushes with her.”
It was mortifying to hear the insinuation and the laughter that followed from Cassian and Ava. Bertram on the other hand looked away from everyone.
Cassian beckoned for Bertram. “Let’s get him on the wagon.”
You stayed with the horse, the only company you felt comfortable with in that moment. They got him loose from the tree but kept his wrists bound together in front of him whilst they moved him to the wagon. Ava kept her distance, she had bound a rag around her arm to cover the wound there.
Cassian held his sword ready but looked your way just for one blink and chaos erupted instantly. The Monk took the moment of distraction to cut loose the ropes on his wrists by moving them across the blade of the sword, he kicked Cassian to the ground immediately after. Ava was running towards Cassian to help, but you ran to Bertram when you saw the Monk turn on him next. He had already managed to disarm and steal Bertram’s sword, the poor Sky Folk barely stood a chance against him. It was reckless, but you had to try and help. You ran up to them and grabbed the cloak of the Monk, giving it a strong pull so Bertram could get to a safer distance. What you didn’t anticipate was that the Monk would switch targets so fast. You barely registered the hand wrapping around your lower arm, nor how the Monk had turned and caught you in his grasp. The fight fell to a sudden stop when the sword was against your throat, the Monk was holding you against his chest like a shield.
For the first time, the Monk let his voice be heard, “Stand down.”
He caught a whift of your scent by standing so close, there was an oddity in it that he could not place.
Cassian cursed under his breath, as did Bertram. The group kept their distance.
Next, the Monk demanded, “My swords.”
None of them moved to fetch the swords they had put on the wagon, they weren’t willing to offer him any more weapons than he already had. The Monk moved just a little and a whimper escaped you.
“Shhh…” he hushed. “Quiet.”
“Let her go.” Bertram said, eyes going back and forth between you and the Monk. “Just let her go.”
The Monk held on. “What is her life worth to you?”
“What?” Cassian asked incredulous.
“Is it worth yours?” The Monk tilted his chin in their direction. No answer came and he pushed them for one, “She risks her life to protect you, and you will not even consider doing the same for her?”
Ava kept quiet, gulping down the undeniable fear she felt. For a second, Bertram looked at you apologetic and your stomach turned.
“You can try to run. Or you can die with her. What will it be?” The Monk watched the group, waiting for their decision.
You saw all of them looking at each other and then they began to retreat. Slow at first, but then they ran. Bertram, the only friend you thought you had, abandoned you… leaving you to die at the hands of the Weeping Monk. Inside you were crumbling apart, broken by the betrayal, by how truly easy it was for them to give up on you. You were blinking fast, fighting the tears from showing. The group was gone, they had fled into the darkness of the forest, abandoning you in the grasp of the monster. The Monk stood still for a moment longer, undoubtedly noticing the response you had to the group forsaking you. Then he slowly walked with you to his horse where he retrieved a rope and used it to bind your wrists together in front of you. After taking another rope, he led you to a tree and forced you to sit down against it, he bound you to it.
You barely dared to stare up at him, and even when you did you only saw how his face was cloaked in the shadow of his hood. It reminded you of how some would describe a creature who came to collect the souls of the deceased. The Monk picked up his swords from the wagon, sheathed the shorter one but keeping the longsword in hand. He inspected the ropes binding you one more time before walking away, leaving you there at the mercy of the forest and possibly even wolves.
“No! Please, let me go!” You panicked when you saw him walk off.
He ignored the plea and soon he was out of sight and into the darkness of the forest. Fear engulfed your being. How long before you would starve, or perish from thirst? Or perhaps a wolf would find itself a tasty meal tied to a tree…
“You bastard!” your scream followed in his tracks.
But the Monk did not return.
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Hours must have passed, it was dawn when you opened your eyes after having fallen asleep waiting for help that never came. You were still tied to the tree, but no longer alone. A frightened gasp escaped you when you saw the Monk stand near his horse, his back was turned to you, he was cleaning blood off of his sword with a rag he then discarded. Your eyes quickly scanned your body for signs of injuries but found nothing. But then where had that blood came from? He noticed that you were awake and walked over to you, sheathing the sword before stopping a few paces away.
“You are not Fey.” he stated.
Your eyes forced themselves away before they could betray the truth, your body shaking violently in fear of what he would do. You were defenseless like this, he could do anything he wished and you feared the worst.
The Monk spoke in a calm and even civil manner, “I found the Sky Folks. They have been cleansed.”
Ava and Bertram were dead? Your eyes fell on the bloodied rag.
“The man, Cassian, do you know where I will find him?” he asked.
You were quick to shake your head and kept your eyes fixed on the grass.
The Monk was determined to find the one who had acted so distasteful towards him. “I will find him.”
Could he sense that you were lying? You hoped he couldn’t. He came closer and stood near your boots quietly for a while, you worried he was trying to determine whether or not to kill you.
“You stole from us.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Are you?” He arched a brow, questioning your sincerity.
You nodded shallowly. “Are you going to kill me?”
The Monk was quiet for the longest time, then he reached down and from reflex you flinched. Always prepared for a hand to strike. He was only inspecting to see if the ropes were still fixed.
He stated the facts. “The ring. I know you have it, Father told me he saw you take it. Where is it?”
“In my pocket.” you quietly said.
Right away he inspected your jacket for it. Well… it wasn’t in those pockets…
“Uhm…” You were wincing at the uncomfortable situation you were in.
He looked at your face expectantly.
It came out very quiet. “The pocket of my trousers.”
His hands were off of you instantly, he swallowed and was clearly trying to think of what he would do. You didn’t think he would look as uncomfortable as you were. A deep breath. “Which pocket?”
By nodding to your right, you gave him the answer.
He brushed his hand over his chin, then slowly reached over to try and search for the ring. But the moment you flinched again, he halted. “If you cooperate, I will show you mercy.”
To show that he meant it, the Monk loosened the ropes, freeing you. He must have been confident that you wouldn’t try to attack him, and you knew better than to try. You didn’t even dare to get up from the ground, it felt like your back was stuck to the tree.
“The ring. Hand it over.” He beckoned for it.
With trembling hands you fished it out of your pocket and held it out for him to take.
The Monk took notice of how you were avoiding eye contact and took the ring from your hand. He looked at it whilst interrogating you. “Why did you steal it?”
Because if you didn’t, Cassian or Aldith would either starve or beat you into submission again… Your silence persisted.
“Answer my questions.” his tone was firm.
“To earn a meal.” you hated to say it out loud.
“Poverty?” he asked.
Your father wasn’t poor at all… Yet you nodded, letting him believe his guess was right.
The Monk questioned you further. “Tell me what you know about the man you were with.”
“He was Sky Folk, the woman was his sister.” you said.
He must have known that you were being purposely avoidant. “Not him. The one who struck you. Cassian.”
Your brain tried to think of plausible lies quickly. Because you couldn’t tell him the truth and expect him to let you go after that. No, he would use you to lead him right to Cassian, to your home and neither Aldith or Cassian would be forgiving. “I only know his name and that he is a sellsword. I encountered him with the Sky Folks.”
The Monk was thinking up theories. “Did he force you to steal from our camp?”
You did not appear to be the sort of person who would be willing to take such risks voluntarily. There was not even a weapon on you.
You didn’t know how to answer. He was clearly waiting for one.
“Well?”
“Yes.”
“You fear him.” It was a statement, he sounded so certain of it.
Not a sound came out of you. As if part of you feared Cassian was still around, watching this and waiting to see if you’d betray him.
He knelt down to your level, holding the ring up for you to see. “Stealing is a mortal sin.”
“I’m sorry.” The constant urge to apologize to avoid the violence was ever present.
The Monk dropped the ring into the grass and rose from the ground again, he walked towards his horse. You were still sitting against the tree and he stopped to look at you.
“Go.” he told.
“I’m free?” You couldn’t really believe it.
“Consider this clemency.” He paused. “I will not offer it a second time should we cross paths in a manner such as this again.”
You were starring openly at him now.
“Understood?”
“Yes…”
The Monk mounted his horse and you scrambled to your feet. For just a moment his horse seemed reluctant to follow his command, the animal was looking at you. He spoke to the stallion, drawing the horse’s attention back to him, “Goliath.”
Finally, the horse listened and the Monk slowly rode away. You were still in disbelief about it all when the sunlight reflected on the rubies of the ring he had left behind in the grass. You picked the ring up and were left to wonder why the Monk would even let you keep it. Was it because you had prevented Cassian from cutting a leg off of the horse?Regardless, if he had known of the Feyblood in your veins, he would not have shown you mercy. It took you a moment before you went and climbed into the wagon, maybe you should have waited to see if Cassian would return for it, but he hadn’t bothered to return for you either so you rode back to Ravenwick alone.
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